Chapter 101 Home
Qi An thought to herself that she was not adopted by that girl in her twenties; her adoptive father was Qi Wanquan.
But the question only briefly crossed her mind.
In the early days of the apocalypse, society is in chaos, and anything can happen.
The girl may have refused or been unable to raise her, giving her to someone else, or something may have happened while she was with her, causing her to fall into someone else's hands.
Who knows how many times she changed hands before finally settling with Qi Wanquan?
In fact, being willing to take in an infant in such a chaotic world is already considered very kind; Qi Wanquan has done her a great favor.
But no matter how many times she recalled the events of when she was 12, no matter how many times she led him out of the base, no matter how many times the soon-to-be-mutated Qi Wanquan entered her dreams, Qi An could not change her choice at that time.
She didn't want to save him, she wouldn't save him! She didn't want to be locked up in another lab!
Qi An truly hated Qi Wanquan back then!
But what about Ye Xiao? Her biological mother.
Qi An remembered Feng Xu saying to her before he died, "I've seen it."
Feng Xu had met Ye Xiao, the Ash Priestess "Ye Xiao," who destroyed three bases in South China, including Feng Xu's hometown!
At the memorial service at the South China Base No. 1, rows of portraits of young people were displayed, all of whom she recognized...
The interplay of light and shadow is truly intricate, and the night wind has created an insurmountable barrier.
After Ye Xiao finished recounting what happened back then, she stopped talking.
She didn't look at Qi An again, but silently turned away from the direction she was facing, turning away from the willow tree and Qi An, and facing the vast lake again.
A slight warmth spread across her back.
Qi An approached, gently, very gently, drawing near to her.
Qi An stiffly reached out and hugged Ye Xiao.
"If I were to say so easily that the destruction of those bases in South China and the casualties of my comrades had nothing to do with you, I would seem to be heartless and unworthy of my uniform and medals."
But you risked your life to give birth to me; you did everything you could. If I don't acknowledge you, if I blame you, I...
Qi An couldn't hold back. Her thoughts were in turmoil, but she couldn't suppress the intense bitterness and the selfish joy she felt.
She tried very hard, but still couldn't swallow her sobs, and said in a trembling voice, "Mom, thank you."
The body pressed against her trembled violently.
There was another silence that seemed both long and short. Ye Xiao moved her body, trying to turn around.
But Qi An's collar was grabbed by Xu Zhuoxing, who lifted him up and threw him far behind!
"She will not be conscious for more than 15 minutes at a time."
This is just the upper limit, not the lower limit.
If you have intimate contact with her, it's best not to exceed 3 minutes.
Xu Zhuoxing said calmly, still using that slender bone blade to freeze Ye Xiao's body as she was about to turn around.
The icy voice seemed to be squeezed out from between her teeth as Ye Xiao sneered, "A lonely old man, jealous?"
"Jealous that you clearly cherish your own daughter, yet you can't control yourself and want to kill her? It's not that bad." Xu Zhuoxing's words were laced with venom.
Ye Xiao retorted angrily, "You know perfectly well that I can't kill her! If I hurt her, I'll regain my senses..."
"That's why I brought you to see her. With her there, you might recover faster."
"In that respect, I am indeed jealous," Xu Zhuoxing said slowly, without moving the bone blade in his hand.
After a long while, at least an hour, some kind of fish in the lake gracefully leaped out of the water, making a soft "plop" sound, finally breaking the stagnant silence.
Xu Zhuoxing withdrew his sword, slumped to the side, and sighed, "That was really exhausting."
Qi An kept a close eye on Ye Xiao's situation and noticed that she looked blank for a moment, then turned her head to look at him, but then seemed awkward and immediately turned her head away.
This must be the real Ye Xiao, right?
"She's all better." Xu Zhuoxing simply lay back, his languidness from head to toe making it hard to believe he was once a soldier!
Xu Zhuoxing looked at the night sky and lazily said, "Your mother and I are the only two polluters on the continent who can remain conscious for a moment. But I have seen similar people on other continents as well."
Each polluter who hasn't completely 'died' has a different initial level of consciousness.
For example, I was initially better than your mother, by about 40% and 10% respectively.
The most likely reason for this result is the difference in natural spiritual strength, but it's also possible that I had direct contact with the very source of the pollution.
Xu Zhuoxing looked at Qi An after saying this: "Did you inherit your mother's natural spiritual power, but surpass her?"
Qi An shook his head and said, "The researchers at the base said that natural spiritual power cannot be inherited."
However, they also said that people who were exposed to pollution during fetal development have their mental strength greatly developed during the mother's struggle against the pollution.
Perhaps I was born with natural mental strength, and with my mother being very strong as well, the intense struggle during my pregnancy led to an unprecedented development of my brain.
Combined, my mental strength became extremely high, reaching a threshold!
She felt she had found a way out, and her eyes brightened: "Qiu Yunmeng said I'm a thief."
My understanding is that pollution is a deal between humans and gods; humans gain power but must sacrifice themselves in return.
But I didn't give myself away, yet I gained power. It's like buying something without paying for it; it's theft.
"You, especially... Uncle Xu." Qi An looked at Xu Zhuoxing:
"You can also use the power of the Fallen Insects according to your own will."
However, since your spiritual power is not high enough to reach that threshold, it's like you stole a treasure but left traces, were caught by the god, and then had to keep struggling with the god.
But my thieving skills are so advanced that I can leave no trace and escape undetected by God, so you don't have the trouble you're facing now!
Xu Zhuoxing's eyes lit up, but he wasn't very surprised, clearly because he had already guessed something similar.
He agreed with Qi An, but pointed out, "I'm two years older than your father, you should call me..."
"Does calling him 'Uncle Xu' sound nice?" Ye Xiao scoffed, still looking awkward as she glanced at Qi An, but her voice wasn't quiet:
“I think you’re right, but what does ‘steal’ mean?”
Is that 'transaction' fair and voluntary?
The guy on the other end was just trying to rob you, and instead of getting robbed, you robbed him! That's skill! You should be proud!
Xu Zhuoxing smiled and nodded: "Indeed." He also looked at Qi An:
"You didn't know you had power at first, did you?"
That's understandable. You were too young when you mutated; you had just opened your eyes and your memories hadn't yet formed.
This corrupting force is like the dragon within our bodies. We know the dragon exists, but we cannot completely control it.
Your dragon is a good-natured creature, but you have no idea it exists.
However, there's one more thing. Generally, people with higher initial awareness are also stronger. I'm stronger than your mother, so you should be stronger than me.
"Hasn't your power been fully developed yet?"
"Yes," Qi An nodded honestly.
Her level of mutation, or pollution level, or power development level, is only 98% as she perceives it to be, leaving room for improvement.
"That's really strong. Even before it was fully developed, it could defeat Qiu Yunmeng." Xu Zhuoxing plucked a blade of grass and put it in his mouth.
"Alright then, your mom and I will continue fighting and strive to reach your level as soon as possible."
You can develop it further, just in case we lose, so that you and humanity can still protect yourselves.
He tilted his head and asked Qi An, "So, are you coming with us? Or do you want to stay at the human base?"
“I’ll go with you,” Qi An said without hesitation.
She didn't really want to stay at the base anymore, and although the reasons for not wanting to stay now were different from before, the result was the same.
She's leaving the base!
When Qi An returned to the main base of the new students, it was already 3 a.m.
Apart from the wounded and the elderly and children who couldn't stay awake any longer, no one slept at the base.
Yu Shuang, Chen Yuezhou, and the others didn't sleep either. After she returned, they were anxious to confirm her safety and asked her about the whole story.
Qi An didn't hide anything, nor was there any need to hide anything. She cheerfully told everyone about her final guesses about her abnormality and her plans for the future!
She told both her friends and Mao Anlin.
“Qiu Yunmeng won’t reappear anytime soon, and the only remaining four-winged creature won’t dare to show its face easily either. We’ll have a peaceful period ahead,” Qi An said to Mao Anlin.
She did not emphasize that there was still a threat.
Even if her mother and Uncle Xu both succeed and completely break free from the control of the polluting will, humanity will not let its guard down.
With no enemies left, the three of them became potential adversaries.
Humanity will only develop technology more frantically.
Qi An didn't sleep that night, spending the entire night chatting and having a late-night snack with his friends.
The next morning, she carried a huge backpack filled with clothes and daily necessities and went to Guanlou.
There were many people seeing them off, including relatives, friends, and clones, as well as high-ranking military and political officials from the new base.
Perhaps further back, most of the people in the base had their eyes on this place, whether near or far.
Everyone has their own feelings.
Yu Shuang and Zhao Bohan were reluctant to part with him, but they were also happy and full of encouragement and expectations for Qi An's future.
The clones each had their own thoughts, but more or less they were reluctant to part. When they learned that Qi An was going to leave with two Ash Priests who were also friendly to humans, they felt a kind of admiration for the strong.
Lin Jiaran was truly reluctant to part ways. Her eyes were already swollen like rotten peaches, but she still couldn't stop crying at the last minute.
Qi An hugged her.
When Qi An hugged her, Chen Xi was right next to her, watching her intently.
When there are many people around, Chen Xi always avoids becoming the center of attention unless absolutely necessary.
But this time, in public and without Qi An's consent, he hugged her tightly right after Qi An and Lin Jia Ran separated!
He held her tightly, his voice a murmur, trembling with barely suppressed emotion: "You are so cruel."
Qi An's heartstrings trembled.
She looked over Chen Xi's shoulder and saw Chen Yuezhou standing behind her, staring at her with deep, quiet, and composed eyes.
There's nothing to say, nothing that can be said. Perhaps even a simple statement like, "It's not like I'm never coming back to the base again. I'll come back to see you often," is a form of cruelty?
Qi An ultimately retreated, simply smiling and waving to the crowd that had filled the gate.
Snow-white wings unfurled behind her, and Qi An rode the wind upwards, embracing the blue sky for the first time with a completely relaxed and joyful feeling!
On May 2, 2056, the three strongest Ash Priests of the time left the human base together and headed to the vast East Sea.
The warm and gentle spring days seemed to have come to a complete end with their departure, and what followed was the scorching heat of summer!
During the subsequent year and a half of peace, the size and production scale of the mainland base cluster expanded rapidly, and new technological achievements emerged like an explosion!
An era of vibrant life and boundless vitality is dawning!
A long-awaited heavy snowfall finally arrived.
It's almost New Year's Eve in 2057.
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