Chapter 893: Chapter 890: "Dad.
"Do you like this kind of work?" Li Mingyue said ahead.
"Hmm?" Su Ming’an responded.
"The residents of Salvation City, receiving their gratitude, allowing their precarious lives to continue, keeping their impossible hopes alive in this world. Letting them pray to deities who show no mercy. Li Mingyue said: "This is the work of the church, do you like this kind of work?"
Su Ming’an was silent for a moment, then slowly said:
"No, I don’t."
"It’s a pity, I was thinking, if you liked this kind of work, you could take over my job someday. That way..." Li Mingyue’s voice paused:
"Even if you don’t take the college entrance examination, don’t go to North Qing University, don’t contact the City Guardian Department... even if you don’t do these things, it’s okay. It’s all okay. You could stay in this city for your whole life and become a streamer with Su Luoluo. This city also recruits civil servants, you could try that, you could get married, and your life could be happy."
Su Ming’an was slightly dazed.
Li Mingyue’s remarks seemed to imply that following the main quest will lead to some unfortunate event—perhaps only staying in the small city, never taking the first step, is the luckiest ending.
...
[But with your destiny line, you are already the luckiest, Shaoqing." Li Mingyue still muttering to himself: "Being locked up to extract blood is already your luckiest destiny line. I’ve seen thousands of your futures, none luckier than this.]
...
Su Ming’an immediately recalled the words of Li Mingyue, the State Preceptor from "Louyue Nation," which overlapped with Li Mingyue’s words at this moment.
But regretfully, a perfect pass is impossible without following the main quest.
If he were an ordinary player, without so many heavy responsibilities, he might truly happily end these twenty days, not stepping on his own shattered bones, walking step by step into the most dangerous, most insane places.
Facing against deities and confronting Ta Wei civilization head-on, maintaining rationality like a madman relying on drugs.
But there is no "if."
Su Ming’an shook his head: "The definition of happiness does not mean self-deception. I don’t want the tragedy of this city to happen endlessly. Even if there is a happier ending, I want to face the truth."
...
—[Even if there’s a HAPPY END, I prefer the TRUE END.]
...
Sounds seemed to echo in his ears, or possibly illusions.
Li Mingyue turned back, looking at him.
Their shadows were drawn long, Bai Yu flying in the sky like melting snow.
Su Ming’an and Li Mingyue’s gaze met, they seemed to fall into a subtle state of stagnation, the noise of flying feathers clearly heard. Until Su Ming’an spoke—
"I hope they find happiness, and such happiness doesn’t equate to anything else, unique."
"Really?" Li Mingyue actually saw through his hesitation.
"Yes." Su Ming’an’s words became much firmer.
"Is this your true heart?" Li Mingyue asked again.
"Yes." This time, the words were emphatic.
"...Alright." Li Mingyue’s voice sounded regretful, yet also like a relief.
Su Ming’an turned back, glancing at Lv Shu who was following silently behind, not rashly speaking. Lv Shu was so afraid of disturbing him, never uttering a word from beginning to end.
Meeting Su Ming’an’s gaze, Lv Shu was slightly startled, subconsciously smiled.
Su Ming’an nodded, turning back his gaze.
"Hasn’t the tragedy of this city been transmitted through the news? Do those living in the modern urban areas outside know what’s happening here?" Su Ming’an asked about the city’s tragedy.
The news on the street was full of lipstick, cosmetics, health products, etc. Images of luxury goods were not rare, starkly contrasting with this city full of suffering. Like two worlds, day and night.
"Even if it stirs public opinion, it will only be buried by more and more gossip events. People outside, even if they know about the city’s situation, feel for a while, then quickly forget." Li Mingyue said faintly: "Tragedies in society are not uncommon, many tragedies once caused a sensation, even if people were very angry then, it’s already exhausting to live, and soon they will be forgotten. Entertainment-focused internet will cover all the gloom."
"The Union Government is very adept at using the internet and public opinion." Su Ming’an lamented. He had seen many tragedies covered up due to the internet. Everything beneath the surface of "happiness" and "entertainment" seemed hidden, only gossip about celebrities attracted attention.
They walked toward the direction of the church, suddenly heard a loud bang.
"Boom——!!"
It seemed a loud noise emanated from not far away, instantly a violent wind wave came, mixed with the smell of gunpowder and fierce yellow sand, huge shock waves overturned the houses at the end of the view, a cloud formed by a fire wave was gradually rising, temperatures increased.
Suddenly, all around, fearful screams arose. Several aircraft like black crows swept across the sky, black objects fell from high altitude, landing in the city.
"That’s..." Su Ming’an raised a shield, surprised: "An airstrike?"
He hadn’t expected people to recklessly drop bombs in the city—this is a city with hundreds of thousands of residents!
Li Mingyue glanced up at the sky’s aircraft:
"Perhaps done by other kingdoms, or maybe forces wanting to make money off the dead... but the biggest possibility is the Old Day Church. The Old Day Church often massacres cities and villages for no reason. After the ’First Union Agreement,’ the world’s focus was placed entirely on the Dream Patrol Family, military strength was withdrawn, and the Old Day Church became increasingly reckless, always enjoying killing, creating negative emotions."
"Are these people purely evil?" Su Ming’an couldn’t comprehend—how could there be people wanting to destroy the world so desperately, creating negative emotions only makes the front line’s exotic species stronger, is the Old Day Church all antisocial elements?
He didn’t stay where he was, ran toward home, Su Luoluo was still over there. She’s just a first-rank rookie, completely unable to resist bombs.
"Boom——Boom——Boom——!"
Flames continually emerged, rising like growing mushrooms. In sight, dust flew wildly.
Bombing sounds echoed in his ears, people fled in panic like rats scurrying everywhere. An elderly person was killed instantly, body parts flew around, mothers with children hurriedly hid in air raid shelters. "Clang clang clang" sounds of steel breaking, roof collapsing were incessant, everything in front of him crumbled like sandcastles, the air emitted intense trembling.
"Help—help me!!"
"Why, why, why!"
"Save me, don’t, don’t drop here! Mama—"
One by one fire blossom bloomed on the ground, rapidly expanding outward like beasts of flame, swallowing up one residence after another and fleeing residents. The sound of cannons roared, causing ringing in ears, the high-decibel sounds seemed to pierce the eardrums.
A total of twenty shells fell on this devastated land, flames continuously blooming on the ground, mercilessly stripping away life, no matter how people roared and wailed, the war did not spare them.
Previously, the residents had experienced many airstrikes, henceforth the ruins everywhere. Since the black mist spread, such remote areas in the city had no protection system whatsoever. The world of old days was already almost indistinguishable from the apocalypse, only the Union Government maintained superficial decency.
Su Ming’an had absolutely not expected, at one moment it was peaceful small town life, the next it suddenly became a terrifying war-torn scene.
Most destruction comes without any warning.
Li Mingyue burned the talisman to create a massive shield that blocked the shells in this area, and residents flocked to seek refuge, but those further away could not be protected.
The repeated loud noises echoed in Su Ming’an’s ears. Ten minutes later, the bombers circled above the city for a moment, leaving behind only pitiful cries and a ground full of fragmented remains.
"Ah— Ah!"
"Help, save me..."
In just ten minutes, the scene before his eyes completely changed. The city, already chaotic and damaged, seemed to have been turned over again, revealing even denser craters and ruin clusters. Everywhere there was crying, sorrow, and despair.
Su Ming’an stared at the retreating bombers and released the Purple Grade pet "Scarlet Bird" to follow the fleet and find out who these people were.
Then, he continued to rush toward Su Luoluo’s house.
Only a Fourth Rank standard could withstand thermal weapons. Su Luoluo was only First Rank; she couldn’t possibly withstand them. Su Ming’an could only hope that the shells didn’t fall in her area.
Upon reaching Su Luoluo’s doorstep, Su Ming’an looked up—
He saw—beneath the pitch-black clouds, the collapsed ruins.
The pitch-black crater fell nearby, and the blast overturned all the housing in the area.
...Clearly, her home wasn’t spared and was even close to the explosion zone.
Amongst the flying ashes, bright red fibrous material floated in the air, the scent of blood and gunpowder filling his nostrils, and he could feel the scorching air on his skin.
"Su..." Su Ming’an didn’t know how to call her at that moment. Everything before him was swirling dust, the once aged residential building gone, no longer seeing her staircase or the old tree in front of the apartment.
He walked a few steps, then a few more; the bricks beneath his feet consistently made creaky sounds. Dust and broken tiles covered everything.
A Dream Patrol Helmet, bomb-blasted into half, rolled in the ruins, with a hint of pink graffiti—it was her helmet. Faint remnants of the nearby sofa and chairs were visible; even the sofa’s cotton was charred black. A few charred photos piled amongst the bricks, where a purple-eyed little girl beamed brightly in the photographs.
A section of an arm lay quietly across the intersecting steel bars, its skin scorched black, the nails shattered by the blast, still gripping a shattered wine bottle tightly. Su Ming’an immediately crouched to inspect and found the tattoo on the arm—this was Su Luoluo’s father’s arm.
Next to it lay Su Luoluo’s father’s incomplete body.
Then what about her? She had returned home and could only be near her father.
Her house wasn’t large, with her father here; she could only be amidst these ruins.
"Clatter, clatter, clatter."
Su Ming’an flipped wooden planks, cleared bricks, using the Priest’s Staff as a digging stick, prying open stone bricks one by one and digging down bit by bit. Li Mingyue stood quietly behind him, holding a thick-shelled book, her thoughts unknown.
Until twenty minutes later, Su Ming’an had dug up all the empty spaces nearby, but still saw no sign of her. He could only see fragmented cloth pieces and incomplete limbs, unable to identify who they belonged to.
Su Ming’an looked at these strands of blood and flesh and stopped his excavation.
In the Ruined World, war was a frequent occurrence. During the seventy-two years of Caius Tower, casualties exceeded five billion. Such bombed cities were countless.
But only when it truly unfolded before Su Ming’an’s eyes could he directly feel what each command over a war-red dot on the map meant, what the millions of casualties reported by his subordinates represented.
...Too sudden.
...Too strange.
So this was what war was.
"Su... Luoluo?" Su Ming’an stood up straight, standing amidst the pervasive ruins, looking at the indistinguishable corpses in the void, lost and at a loss.
No one responded to him.
In this vicinity, there were many others like him, digging with desperation. Clad in tattered clothes, without tools, they frantically dug through the collapsed ruins with their bare hands, arms full of blood, nails broken, while crying out their loved ones’ names:
"Shanshan—Shanshan—!"
"Xiaole! Come out! Come out! Just say something, okay?"
"Mom—where are you, Mom!"
Su Ming’an glanced back at Li Mingyue, who was gazing at the sky.
"If it’s the bombers of the Old Day Church, the fuselage would be equipped with a self-destruct system. Once the pilot is killed, the self-destruct system would directly initiate, causing the plane to fall and explode." Li Mingyue muttered to herself: "Intercepting them is impossible; this explosion was bound to happen..."
Su Ming’an sensed his Scarlet Bird was already trailing behind the fleet.
But where was Su Luoluo?
The red-black sky was filled with smoke and dust, the dense pitch-black clouds subsiding slowly.
Step by step, Su Ming’an retreated, looking at these fragmented ruins, at the incomplete pink Dream Patrol Helmet on the ground, his eyes somewhat blank.
Until—
"Little Cloud."
Instantly, the red-black in the sky swirled with the wind, as if blown away a bit.
A trembling voice came from behind:
"...Little Cloud."
Su Ming’an turned back and saw the purple-eyed girl, confused, walking from another still intact building. Her arm was covered in bright red blood, her voice mixed with sobs.
She seemed also not to have anticipated such a sudden calamity; this air raid was too abrupt, the war so ruthless. With no warning, just twenty pieces of metal took countless lives.
Su Ming’an was startled for a moment before confirming that the dust-covered girl was Su Luoluo.
"Little Cloud."
The girl called him for the third time.
She stood amidst the floating ash and dense fog, coughing as she walked toward him, her eyes full of lingering fear and terror, her voice like a trembling sieve of wheat.
"I originally had a bit of money and planned to send Mom to the hospital for cancer treatment this morning... I even asked Dad this morning if he would go with me to send Mom. He said he wouldn’t and wanted to stay home drinking..." Su Luoluo said tremblingly, "But who would have thought, the shells would fall on my house while the hospital remained unscathed..."
She saw the broken body of the man in the ruins and perceived the unpredictability of fate.
If only he went to send Mom, could this death have been avoided?
Her expression seemed both crying and laughing, as though relieved yet holding sadness.