The walk back to the village was unexpectedly free of any heavy mood; instead, they spent the entire journey fooling around, laughing and joking.
The reason was simply that as they left the base earlier, Zhe Qiuhong had waited specifically by the main gate to remind Han Qingyu to be sure to get his medical dressings changed early tomorrow morning. Rusty Sister and Wu Xu had received the same reminder.
After that, Xu'er's whole demeanor turned hilarious.
He had never gone through such things before and initially hadn't understood a thing about them; all his current knowledge on the subject came from the crude banter and tall tales of these foul-mouthed buddies of his.
So, in his heart, he probably figured it was something terrifying—far worse than drawing blood, at the very least.
When they reached the village entrance, Father Han and Mother Han were waiting as usual atop the high earthen slope.
Once reunited, they walked home together beneath the waning moon and starlight.
Usually, when parents wait up late into the night for you to come home, there isn't actually anything specific they need to do, nor will they keep you up through the night to chat.
They just want to see you return safe and sound, and with their hearts at ease, they will quickly tell you: go wash up and head to bed.
"What kind of meeting lasts this long? Drink some water, everyone have some. I put ginseng in it, so don't let it get cold," Zhang Jiexia said.
Then Han Youshan chimed in, "Yeah, get yourselves sorted out and go to sleep, quick."
Likely because they saw Qingzi, Xiao Fei, and the others returning with laughter and joking, Han Youshan and Zhang Jiexia felt quite reassured. Once back at the house, they poured water, offered a few reminders, and went off to rest.
Only Lao Jian, who was staying the night at the Han house, remained standing there stubbornly on his own, looking as though he had a bellyful of questions to ask and a bellyful of words to say.
However, his young son wasn't used to sleeping in a strange bed and suddenly burst out crying. That, combined with Wen Jifei shaking his head to signal that tonight was not the time for a long talk, left Captain Lao with no choice but to suppress his urge for now and return to his room to soothe the boy.
The others had little to say either. Once each of them had washed up, they retreated to their respective rooms.
Han Qingyu lay in bed.
Over the past few days, he had grown reacquainted with this bed, reacquainted with this home, with everything ordinary that once belonged here—even including an ordinary version of himself.
Yet tonight, he was clearly unable to fall asleep as peacefully as in the days before. He didn't know how to break the news to his parents once day broke, or how far he should go in saying goodbye this time.
He couldn't just gloss over it and keep them in the dark again, could he?
There were some words that, if left unsaid, would leave him burdened with worry and unrest once he departed.
Since heading to the perimeter of the Moon was inevitable sooner or later, and Han Qingyu was already certain there would not be enough time to wait for his injuries to heal on their own, they had settled it earlier: better to go sooner than later.
In another room, Wen Jifei and Yang Qingbai bunked together.
Both had previously tried sharing a room with Wu Xu, but that was practically no different from rooming alone. There was no conversation, and they had to endure Xu'er absorbing source energy and training his surges all night long. In the end, they could only team up to swap him out.
"By the way, do we need to go back and pick up people first? If so, I can make a trip early tomorrow morning," Yang Qingbai asked, lying flat on the bed with his hands clasped behind his head. "Since we're going all in, our base still has three supers. Especially Weize—should we bring him along this time?"
Weize the living dead—Wu Xu's only friend outside this small circle of guys.
Naturally, the reverse was also true: Wu Xu was the only friend Weize truly recognized from the bottom of his heart.
As someone who had essentially been dead four or five years ago, Weize, cloaked in death energy, had never truly perished. Furthermore, he theoretically possessed one final, overwhelmingly powerful strike that could take an enemy down with him.
"I had Azure's combat research team run calculations and deductions. Weize's final death strike wouldn't have much meaning against Puta'er," Wen Jifei replied, also lying on his back, his tone flat.
"Oh." Yang Qingbai uttered a quiet sound of acknowledgment, tinged with a touch of regret, and said no more.
Instead, it was Wen Jifei who suddenly spoke up, a complicated smile coloring his words. "Actually, someone like me could never truly look at everything in a positive light."
Hearing this, surprised and puzzled, Yang Qingbai rolled onto his side to look at him.
Wen Jifei remained facing the ceiling, his eyes likely empty, as he continued:
"I recall Xu Xiaohong once said that schemers often have dark hearts, suspicious and cold-blooded. I am that kind of person. So for what lies ahead, you guys don't need to ponder too much; just focus on fighting. But I can't only see the hot blood and desperate gambles. I have to think further—and darker."
"You mean...?" Yang Qingbai asked.
"In truth, with how things stand, there's still a slim chance another outcome might emerge. We're wiped out, and Puta'er is killed in the fight, but humanity as a whole survives, and the war drags on into the distant future. Under those circumstances, I cannot ignore or underestimate the chaos that might ensue later. Still less can I leave Stream Vanguard—along with the wives, children, families, and friends of all our soldiers—sitting there with nothing to rely on, pinning our hopes on this world staying united and beautiful, or hoping that humanity's gratitude and support will be enough to protect them for a lifetime," Wen Jifei said.
Hearing this, Yang Qingbai roughly understood. "So you want to leave Weize behind, since his going wouldn't have a decisive impact anyway."
"Yes. Years ago, when Qingzi first began standing at the peak of human combat power and continually led the line in one major battle after another, I was already thinking about and preparing for these things. To put it another way, back then, I had already started contemplating and preparing for his posthumous affairs." It was an awful joke. A thin yet deep sorrow tinged Wen Jifei's voice, and he chuckled after saying it.
"Weize is without a doubt the most dependable," Wen Jifei continued. "I've already drawn up a whole series of strategies to deal with that scenario. As for successors to carry them out, I've trained more than one, including Tu Zi, that kid we poached from the Rejectors. They might not be capable of much more, but following the plan and holding the fort shouldn't be a big problem. To that end, I still need an ultimate weapon to serve as deterrence and suppression, both internally and externally. Weize is that person."
"Will that... be enough?" Yang Qingbai asked with slight hesitation.
"If you ask whether it's enough, it's definitely still lacking. The best scenario, of course, would be for one of us to survive. For that, I even considered leaving Wu Xu or Rusty Sister behind this time," Wen Jifei said with a smile.
"That's impossible," Yang Qingbai said.
"Yeah," Wen Jifei agreed. "We both know it. Neither of them could possibly stay behind."
"In any case, I'm going. This is aerial combat. If I go, I'll be of great use," Yang Qingbai suddenly stressed his own importance.
Seeming to anticipate what was coming next, Wen Jifei turned his head to look at Yang Qingbai.
"Actually, among our group, there really is someone who probably won't be of much use going, but is best suited to stay behind—and would be the most useful staying behind." Yang Qingbai's meaning couldn't have been clearer.
"Fuck off! How am I useless?!" Wen Jifei snapped in mock irritation. Pausing, he said, "There's no way I'm not going. I've said it before, agreed upon right from the very beginning: I will see Qingzi through to the end of his road, whether the final outcome is victory or death."
Yang Qingbai fell silent for a moment, then teased, "You don't sound like a mature schemer at all."
"Hahahahaha." Wen Jifei laughed. He really didn't look like one, but... "You've got to allow me room to be willful somewhere. After all, I'm a Dice."
Chapter 965