Wen Shifei coughed violently and struggled to her feet. She immediately rushed to Lu Cheneng, who was beside her, and nervously checked his breathing and heartbeat. Fortunately, although weak, it was still there. She held his hand tightly, as if she was holding the whole world.
Li Shuo, Yun Zhan, Dr. Qin, and the surviving warriors supported each other as they stood up. They gazed at the utterly shattered entrance behind them, their faces filled with a trance of survival and immense sorrow. They had won, destroying Pandora's root. But the price was the tens of thousands of imprisoned soul lights that ultimately transformed into a dazzling torrent, perishing alongside the main tentacles of the Matrix.
"They... are free." Dr. Qin looked at the ruins and whispered in a hoarse voice.
Li Shuo nodded silently and patted Dr. Qin on the shoulder. He looked at Wen Shifei and the unconscious Lu Cheneng in her arms, his eyes filled with complicated emotions.
At this moment, Lu Chensheng's eyelashes trembled and he slowly opened his eyes.
Those eyes no longer held a cold metallic luster, no longer filled with chaotic struggle. They were like the sky washed clean by a rainstorm, clear and deep, carrying a long-lost, human fatigue and bewilderment. He first saw Wen Shifei's face, stained and tear-stained, yet filled with ecstasy.
"...Shi Fei?" His voice was as hoarse as sandpaper, but extremely clear.
"It's me! Chen En! It's me! You're back! You're really back!" Wen Shifei's tears burst out again, she hugged him tightly, and cried inconsolably.
Lu Cheneng felt the trembling warmth in his arms and the suppressed sobs beside him, and consciousness slowly returned like a tide. The coldness of the chip, the call of the mother, the agonizing struggle that tore at his soul, and finally, the redemption enveloped in a warm light... all the fragments of memory came flooding back. He struggled to raise his hands and gently hugged her back, using all his strength.
"Hmm... I'm back..." he whispered, his gaze passing over Wen Shifei's shoulder, towards the ruins that buried Pandora's core and tens of thousands of indomitable souls, and then towards the faint light at the end of the distant passage, towards the "Firefly" community. He saw the relief in Li Shuo's eyes, the tired yet hopeful smile on Dr. Qin's face, and Yun Zhan's silent watchful eye.
A new order is being rebuilt there, paved with the sacrifices and hopes of countless people.
He lowered his head, gazing at the crown of Wen Shifei's head in his arms, feeling her genuine heartbeat and warmth. Then, he raised his head, his gaze calmly sweeping across Li Shuo, Dr. Qin, and Yun Zhan, finally returning to Wen Shifei's tear-filled eyes. His gaze, devoid of the previous struggle, was replaced by a clarity of mind, a sense of unwavering resolve.
"Uncle Li, Doctor," his voice was still hoarse, but it carried an unquestionable power, "'Firefly'... is in your hands."
The relief on Li Shuo's face froze instantly, turning into astonishment: "Chen En? You..."
Dr. Qin was also stunned: "Child, you..."
Lu Cheneng didn't explain. He simply grasped Wen Shifei's shoulders with difficulty but determination, supporting himself to stand. His body was still very weak, his steps unsteady, but his back was straight. He looked at Wen Shifei with gentle yet firm eyes, a questioning and inviting look.
Wen Shifei looked up at him, at the sky in his eyes, cleansed of all impurities, at her own reflection reflected deep within his pupils, equally exhausted yet burning with a certain light. In an instant, she understood. Completely.
The shadow of the chaebol has dissipated, Pandora's roots have been destroyed, and dawn is dawning in the Lower City. But for them, this land carries too much indelible pain, conspiracy, and bondage. The formatted chip in Lu Cheneng's body is like a time bomb. No one knows whether it has been completely eliminated or whether there are still "signals" that attract Pandora's remnants. And she herself, the guilt of leading her brother's backup to destruction, and the final wails of tens of thousands of soul lights, are like heavy shackles.
Staying and becoming part of the new order? That would mean responsibility, being drawn into the vortex of power again, and never being able to truly escape the shadow of the past.
Staying means they will never be able to truly breathe.
A sense of relief, like a thawed stream in early spring, slowly flowed through Wen Shifei's tear-soaked heart, dispelling all the sadness, pain, and confusion. Tears continued to flow from her eyes, but the corners of her mouth slowly and ever-so-slowly curved upwards, revealing a smile mingled with tears and dust, yet incredibly bright and free.
She said nothing, but reached out and tightly grasped Lu Chen's hand, clasping her fingers together so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
No words are needed. Atop the ruins, beneath the dawn, their journey has just begun.
Li Shuo looked at the two men's tightly clasped hands and the unmistakable determination in their eyes. He opened his mouth, but all his words of dissuasion ultimately dissolved into a heavy sigh, a single exhortation tinged with endlessly complex emotions: "...stay alive."
Dr. Qin took off his glasses, wiped the blurry lenses, and said in a choked voice, "...Take care."
Yun Zhan stood silently in the shadows and nodded very slightly at the two of them.
Lu Cheneng and Wen Shifei took one last look at this land, buried with countless pasts and nurturing new ones, at the companions who had fought side by side and entrusted them with trust. Then, they turned, supporting each other, and walked step by step towards the end of the passage, towards the place where the dawn was breaking, shining brighter and brighter above the ruins.
Behind him is the order that is tenaciously reborn from the ruins.
Ahead is a boundless wasteland full of unknowns yet also full of freedom.
Their figures were stretched very long in the dawn light, and finally merged into the dim light of the vast world.
Above the ruins, their dawn truly breaks.
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