Chapter 124: Reunion

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Chapter 124: Reunion

This was an extraordinarily beautiful star system. Gazing at the view beyond the window, Liu Shaoyu could not help thinking so. At the very least, it was more beautiful than the Solar System.

In the end, Liu Shaoyu had chosen to come to Wang Weifu. He did not know whether it was the right decision for the future, but at least for now, it felt right.

The spacecraft slowly descended toward a planet of blue and green. For some reason, colonists always seemed to enjoy reshaping other worlds into something like this—vast expanses of ocean, just like the planet Liu Shaoyu had come from.

“Welcome, Comrade Liu Shaoyu.”

A delicate voice sounded nearby. Liu Shaoyu finally came back to himself, realizing that he had been lost in thought while someone was speaking to him. With an apologetic smile, he looked toward the woman who had spoken.

“Hello. This place is beautiful,” Liu Shaoyu praised sincerely.

“I thought you were going to say that I was beautiful,” the young woman teased playfully. As she spoke, she gently tucked a strand of hair drifting across her face behind her ear.

The motion drew Liu Shaoyu’s attention to the elegant shape of her ears—long, pointed ears resembling those of the elves from human legends.

“You’re beautiful too.”

This time, Liu Shaoyu was being equally sincere.

“Thank you. Please come this way.”

With that, the young woman turned and led him onward.

Along the way, Liu Shaoyu observed the scenery around them. The place looked more like an academy. Lush trees stood in rows along both sides of the streets. The planet was apparently in autumn, and the air was crisp and refreshing. That was what the introduction aboard the spacecraft had said during the journey.

“These trees are called Mokai—I mean, that’s the name of their species,” the young woman explained, apparently noticing Liu Shaoyu’s continued interest in them. “They were cultivated by the elders of our society. They’re particularly well suited to surviving on this planet.”

More suited to surviving?

Liu Shaoyu silently repeated the thought to himself. He only hoped that he, too, would prove better suited to surviving here.

The road was not long. Soon, Liu Shaoyu and his guide stopped before a white building. It consisted of three enormous spheres, and Liu Shaoyu felt that was probably the most appropriate way to describe it.

“The envoy is waiting for you inside.”

After saying that, the young woman turned and left. It took Liu Shaoyu a moment to realize that he had forgotten to thank her.

“Come in. I’m on the second floor.”

A voice suddenly rang out inside his mind. Liu Shaoyu suspected he would never quite get used to that sensation, but he walked through the door all the same.

The entrance opened, and Liu Shaoyu stepped onto a circular platform. It was not large—perhaps enough room for four people. Once he had steadied himself, the platform slowly floated upward to another platform on the second floor.

Guiding lines on the floor indicated the way forward. Following them, Liu Shaoyu finally saw that familiar figure once more.

“Sit down first. I’ll be with you after I finish what I’m doing.”

Without turning his head, Wang Weifu continued working at a ring-shaped console in the very center of the room. Complicated information covered the holographic screen. In any case, Liu Shaoyu could not understand a word of it.

Looking around, Liu Shaoyu discovered that Wang Weifu’s quarters were astonishingly empty. Apart from the console and a single chair in front of it, there was no other furniture or decoration.

So... where exactly was he supposed to sit?

Liu Shaoyu walked behind Wang Weifu and quietly raised his head to study the data on the holographic display, trying to make sense of it. Although most of it was intricate and incomprehensible, he could at least read the simpler text.

“A war simulation,” Wang Weifu explained, sensing Liu Shaoyu standing behind him. His eyes remained fixed on the display.

Since it was a war simulation, Liu Shaoyu could understand at least a little. Looking closely, he saw that it was a simulated projection of the current conflict—a war game based on the data Wang Weifu had entered, together with information from the various factions.

Amid the data and map models, Liu Shaoyu noticed several familiar figures.

“How accurate is this simulation?” Liu Shaoyu could not help asking.

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“Thirty percent.”

Wang Weifu still did not turn around. He merely answered in an indifferent tone while continuing to adjust the data at astonishing speed.

Liu Shaoyu did not speak again. He continued watching the simulated battle carefully. Before long, Wang Weifu stopped entering corrections.

“All right. It’s finished. Let’s go over there. I’m a little hungry. What do you want to eat?”

Only then did Wang Weifu turn around and give Liu Shaoyu a faint smile. He then led the way toward another part of the building.

“Anything is fine. Whatever you’re having, just give me another serving.”

“Are you sure? I eat quite a lot,” Wang Weifu joked.

In the time it took to say this, the two of them had already reached another room. The passage leading there had been concealed behind a door seamlessly integrated into the wall. Without Wang Weifu to guide him, Liu Shaoyu would never have realized there was a door at all.

This room was just as tidy, but only about a quarter the size of the previous one. A modular sofa occupied the center. Apart from that, the room contained nothing else. Wang Weifu sat down first.

“What do you think of this war?” he asked once he was settled.

Liu Shaoyu did not understand why Wang Weifu had suddenly asked such a question. He did not know how to answer—or rather, he did not know what answer he ought to give. Based on what he knew, he did not seem qualified to comment on the conflict. Wang Weifu was different. In terms of information and every other aspect, he clearly knew far more than Liu Shaoyu, who was still completely bewildered.

If Liu Shaoyu had understood the simulation correctly, it had been a projection of this very war.

“Does my opinion really matter?” Liu Shaoyu replied. He did not believe his views could have any influence on the outcome.

Wang Weifu fell silent in thought for a moment before answering, “Actually, it matters quite a lot.”

Liu Shaoyu’s brow furrowed slightly. He knew that Wang Weifu would not say such a thing as a joke. Even so, he could not imagine why his opinion would be important.

While Liu Shaoyu was still puzzled, Wang Weifu spoke again.

“They’re here.”

They?

The instant he heard that word, Liu Shaoyu knew whom Wang Weifu meant.

“Where?” Liu Shaoyu asked excitedly.

“Here.”

A voice sounded behind him. Liu Shaoyu turned his head, and a familiar figure entered his field of vision.

To be honest, until that moment, Liu Shaoyu’s emotions had remained unsettled. Part of it came from the destruction of Young Dragon Star, part from the monkey’s death, and part from his own helplessness. Only now, upon seeing Long Ruyuan and the others, did he feel the stone in his heart finally fall to the ground.

Liu Shaoyu stood up. The words reached his lips, but he did not know how to begin—or where to start.

Just as the moment was becoming awkward, Long Ruyuan waved a hand.

“We can talk about everything later. He says he has something to tell us.”

As he spoke, Long Ruyuan pointed toward Wang Weifu, who was sitting there dealing with the food that had just been delivered.

Liu Shaoyu nodded and sat down again. Long Ruyuan, Xu Meng, and Hua Qiang, who had just entered, sat down as well.

Everyone turned their attention to Wang Weifu. He hurriedly stuffed down a few mouthfuls of food to replenish his energy before slowly beginning.

“I already explained the general situation to them before you arrived. As for the outcome of what has already happened, all we can do for now is accept it. But what has not yet happened still concerns all of you.”

As he said this, Wang Weifu stared directly at Liu Shaoyu, as though waiting for an answer.

Liu Shaoyu nodded for him to continue. Taking advantage of the pause, Wang Weifu drank some water before speaking again.

“The Federation’s war is not as simple as it appears. It isn’t merely a conflict between the Vatican Theocratic State and the Huaxia Federation. I told Liu Shaoyu some of this before, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll explain it again.”

For nearly ten minutes, Wang Weifu recounted the analysis he had previously given Liu Shaoyu. The other three possessed excellent comprehension, and none of them needed a second explanation to understand the truth of the matter. However, their previous understanding of the world had been overturned, and they needed some time to calm down.

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Long Ruyuan handled it somewhat better than the others. Because of his family background, he knew at least a little about the Federation’s internal secrets, particularly those concerning the Glory of the Republic.

“Now that we’ve discussed the cause, the rest isn’t difficult to analyze,” Wang Weifu continued once he saw that everyone had more or less absorbed what he had told them. “The Glory of the Republic does not exist to help humanity grow stronger. It wants to understand this species. So, the word we can use to describe what it has done is ‘domestication.’”

Wang Weifu paused. As someone who had been subjected to such treatment—or had once been subjected to it—he knew it was not a pleasant thing to discuss.

Liu Shaoyu fully agreed with Wang Weifu’s definition. He could already guess, more or less, what Wang Weifu was about to say.

“Suppose that something you’ve domesticated becomes powerful one day—powerful enough to threaten you. What would you do?” Wang Weifu asked.

“Restrain it, or destroy it,” said Long Ruyuan, who had remained silent until then.

“Exactly. But destruction does not seem to be necessary at this point. From what we can see, it has chosen restraint—using war as the means of restraining us.”

“That’s why this war exists? Then why would the Vatican Theocratic State help a machine wage it?” Liu Shaoyu asked, still puzzled.

In truth, Liu Shaoyu was not the only one confused. The others were equally perplexed.

“That’s something you’ll have to ask God,” Wang Weifu said with a sardonic smile, as though he found the answer deeply ironic.

From that smile, Liu Shaoyu obtained the information he wanted.

Yes. Whenever they did anything, did they not always have to ask God?

“Now that we’ve finished analyzing the situation, let’s discuss the next question: our position,” Wang Weifu continued.

This was also what concerned Liu Shaoyu most—the question of where they stood.

“It’s obvious. No matter what happens, we are ultimately acting for humanity. Or, to put it more accurately, for ourselves,” Wang Weifu said.

No one present disagreed.

“We’ve had contact with the Huaxia side before, but their own situation does not appear particularly promising at the moment. So we cannot place all our hopes in the Huaxia military. Fortunately, after all these years, we have developed a complete system of our own. This system is no longer dependent on the Glory of the Republic. More optimistically, we can even say that we possess considerable deterrent power against it.”

As he continued, Wang Weifu once again turned his gaze toward Liu Shaoyu.

“And you are our greatest trump card,” Wang Weifu said decisively.

“Me?” Liu Shaoyu asked, bewildered as he met Wang Weifu’s gaze.

“Yes. You.”

A Note to Readers:

My sincerest apologies. The past month has been filled with personal matters for San Chi, which resulted in such a long interruption. Things have finally eased up, so the story will continue. I believe that, after this month-long pause, I will be able to bring everyone even more exciting content.

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