Chapter 468 Gaining Favor, The Changes Brought By Su Chan!
Hope One was a steel weapon made by humans.
The astounding, thrilling beauty of its machinery and steel could only be truly appreciated when seen up close.
In the live broadcast, Hope One’s brief appearance made a deep impression on all humans.
However, this impression was like watching a movie—they only felt shock and excitement; they were not really shaken up!
At first, when Hope One appeared within their sights, all the refugees also thought they would not be affected by its menacing presence. However, when Hope One actually came to a halt, they found that they were wrong, so wrong!
In front of this large s.h.i.+p, which was more than 20 meters high, they were as small as ants. It gave them a sense of overwhelming futility.
Fortunately, they did not get very much time to become downcast.
As the hatch on Hope One’s lower section slowly opened, the people who had already lined up inside the hull surged out like a flood!
10 people.
100 people.
1,000 people!
In just one minute, all the crew members, who had been confined on the s.h.i.+p for 10 days, leaped straight into the ocean like dumplings.
At first, these thousand or more crew members just cheered and swam in the water, making all kinds of unintelligible sounds.
However, after Zhang Long gave a command, they “usurped” the host’s role, approaching the villagers and refugees who were on the rafts and greeting them with utmost friendliness.
On one side, there were 300 people and more than a thousand on the other side.
Once both parties were mingled, it felt like the basin had suddenly become more lively. It was as bustling and busy as a gathering held in the civilized era.
Su Mo, together with Su Chan, leaped down to stand on the Sun-chaser Speedboat. He did not stop this harmonious scene but happily lifted his hand, driving the hubbub to a climax.
“Wow, who would have imagined that my brother could lead so many people? What a miracle!”
As the Sun-chaser Speedboat slowly steered forward along the path that had been cleared by the crowd, Su Chan looked at the antic.i.p.atory faces of the people around and could not help feeling somewhat emotional.
What she did not know was that Su Mo, now standing on the bow of the s.h.i.+p, also had this same feeling that time had brought about great change.
Once upon a time, the basin was still barren and devoid of all things. He had been the only one here, with only the long night for company.
Once upon a time, he lay on his cot in the shelter, wondering when someone would come and talk to him so he could a.s.suage the bitterness in his heart.
He had once thought that he would be here in the shelter with his parents and sister until the end of time.
He had once regarded the world as a cage that had everyone locked up inside it, making sure that no one could break free.
Su Mo had never expected, nor even dared to expect, that the “precious things” that he dared not think about would have come into his hands so naturally.
“Welcome home, Leader Su!”
“Welcome home, Leader Su!”
Someone shouted this, and the cry was taken up by the thousands of people around the Sun-chaser, all shouting in unison. Their shouts shook heaven and earth in an instant.
Even the ocean undulated visibly in response! Feeling his eardrums swell, Su Mo looked around with excitement, extended his hands, and slowly brought them down. The next second, the cheers stopped abruptly.
A raft with about 10 people on it drifted slowly toward him.
“Leader Su, welcome back!”
In the front row of the raft, naturally, was Chen Shen, the chief of Hope Village.
Compared to when Su Mo had left, Chen Shen was more tanned now. He was also a little taller and stronger and felt a little more like a warrior.
Su Mo could clearly see that there were tears glistening in his eyes, slightly iridescent in the sunlight.
Chen Shen was crying!
In front of everyone, Chen Shen was surprisingly like a child seeing his father return -a fledgling seeing its eagle parent coming back. He was so moved that his tears welled up in a show of emotion.
However, Su Mo knew that the tears were not due to a sense of grievance; instead, it was due to… Excitement!
In this part of the world, aside from Jiang Chu, only Chen Shen knew Su Mo’s ambitions. Only he knew that Su Mo had determined to make a new world.
Only Chen Shen had looked forward to him returning and going to the New World to stir up boundless things.
After the raft and the Sun-chaser came together and the two sides connected, Su Mo did not hesitate at all when facing his loyal subordinate. He immediately strode toward Chen Shen, extended his hand, and clapped Chen Shen heavily on the shoulder. “You did a great job!”
Ow!
This clap on his shoulders felt as familiar as before and was just as heavy.
Chen Shen grimaced. Seeing that he had stopped crying, Pei Shao, who was standing beside him, scooted closer wittily.
“Leader Su, me too! Pat my shoulder as well!”
“Hah, you little rascal!”
Pei Shao knew the main objective of the day. In order not to let the atmosphere get too serious, he ran up and made a joke out of things. By doing so, he broke the serious atmosphere that had ensued and made everyone laugh.
Su Mo no longer felt wistful. He laughed heartily while clapping the young Hope Village guardians on the shoulder one by one.
Pei Shao, Qi Qin, Wu Feiguang… Su Mo clapped every single one of them on the shoulder.
Although all the people to whom he did this ended up grimacing, there was a spark of excitement in their eyes that could not be concealed!
After Su Mo had clapped all the people in front of Hope Village on the shoulder, Chen Shen came forward.
“Leader Su, this is Li Hu, the acting deputy village chief that we picked from the prospective villagers of Hope Village. He retired from the army when he was 35 years old, and he’s excellent in martial arts. None of his enemies can even get in close to him. Unfortunately, when Brother Hu first came to the wasteland, he fought with 20 individuals from the foreign clans just to save someone. He won the fight, but he was seriously injured. He’s still alive, but he’s experiencing permanent side effects!
“The people whom he saved are over there right now!”
Chen Shen pointed toward an excited-looking group of four men and three women further away. He then continued, “These 7 people are from Yangtang Laboratory, which is famous in Huaxia. They’re all top-notch scientific talents. They’ll be able to enhance our village’s scientific skills in a big way. “A week ago, there was one individual from the foreign clans who was extremely skilled at concealing themselves. They wanted to take advantage of nightfall to go up the mountain and launch a sneak attack. We only discovered them because Brother Hu personally led a patrol to search for them, and thanks to him, we were not attacked. I’m asking on his behalf for you to use your healing skills on him!”
It was extremely rare for Chen Shen to speak so much when Su Mo had just returned.
Su Mo also heard the unconcealed respect in Chen Shen’s words.
If everything was really as Chen Shen had said, Li Hu was truly a capable fighter who had gotten himself in trouble just to save someone in this wasteland.
“Su… Almighty Su, uh, no, Leader Su, my injury is not a problem, it doesn’t matter. Don’t listen to Chen Shen’s praises. I’m just an ordinary person, you don’t have to…
“Ah!”
Li Hu was still scratching his head in embarra.s.sment while he explained.
However, the next instant, before he could react, a warm hand laid itself on his body. An injured warrior was still better than an ordinary person! Li Hu, a fierce fighter who could battle 20 foreign race individuals from the start, was still among the strongest warriors even though he was permanently injured.
However, he had not been able to react at all to that hand currently on him.
On the battlefield, this move alone would be enough to kill him.
The owner of these hands was terrifyingly strong! This thought flashed through Li Hu’s mind. Right as he was considering it, warmth flowed suddenly from the area that the hand covered.
“Ah!”
Li Hu felt like a person who had suddenly jumped into a hot spring after walking in the ice and snow, or someone who had suddenly received a delicious meal after being hungry for three days. This flow of warmth stirred him instantly.
Before he could continue to savor this feeling and figure out what it was, his sense of touch returned.
He was stunned!
“My back doesn’t hurt anymore. My arms, my legs… “Even my old injuries!”
With undisguised astonishment in his eyes, Li Hu touched the parts of his body that had previously been injured.
The moment he did so, however, he realized…
Not only had he completely recovered from all of his wound injuries, but even the old injuries from practicing martial arts in his younger days were all gone.
To put it in another manner, his body was full of endless strength and vitality, as if he were young and eighteen years old again!
are
“Even though you’re in the wasteland, you’re still prioritizing the safety of its people and the beliefs of our country. Li Hu, you’re a good soldier and a good man!
“Since you’ve joined my ranks, you deserve to experience a new lease of life!”
Lifting his head, this time Li Hu saw the owner of the big hand clearly.
A second later, he could not help but go down on one knee. “Leader Su, your kindness to your humble servant is truly a new beginning. In this life, I’ll be loyal to you in life and death. I’ll never betray you!”
“Good!”
After finding out through the system identification that Chen Shen’s words were true, Su Mo already had the utmost respect for such a good-hearted man. People like him were the backbone of a country and the soul of a nation.
If someone like him were in a collective, he would serve as morale support. He could completely raise the efficiency of the collective by 50%!
Su Mo extended his hand and helped Li Hu up, then turned to the remaining veterans who had varying degrees of injuries on their bodies.
Su Mo did not withhold his powers either. While he got to know the veterans, he healed them as well with the powers of the Mountain and Sea Painting Scroll.
With this generous gesture, he gained the loyalty of everyone almost instantly!
“Chen Shen, let me introduce Su Chan, my younger sister. From now on, all of you can regard her as your own sister. There’s no need to give her special treatment!”
After getting to know all of them along the way to Iron Rock Mountain, Su Mo also introduced Su Chan to them.
At this, a small commotion arose on the boat.
“Oh, h.e.l.lo, Su Chan!”
“Hahaha, I was just thinking that you and our Shelter Leader looked a bit alike, but I never expected that! Luckily I brought a gift with me
today!”
Even when Su Mo had contacted Chen Shen previously, he had not really concealed the fact that Su Chan was his sister.
Chen Shen’s group was also resourceful. They had not looked for a present last minute like Su Deben but had brought their own elaborately prepared gifts before leaving home.
“Ah, thank you, Brother Chen Shen, thank you, Uncle Pei Shao, thank you, Uncle Qi Qin…
“Uncle Hu, I can’t accept this, I… Alright then, thank you, Uncle Hu!”
One by one, Su Chan accepted everyone’s gifts. She grinned happily and made everyone laugh with her sweet tongue. All the courtiers in ancient times would keep advising the emperor to produce offspring for a reason.
When Su Mo was on his own, his party was still unstable. However large, Hope Village would most likely become disorganized and collapse within a short time of his disappearance or death.
Those who were left would be scattered. Now that Su Chan had joined the village, this potential pitfall disappeared without a trace. At the very least, if Su Mo currently vanished for 6 months, Hope Village would be anxious, but there would not be any restlessness. They would still aid Su Chan and wait for him to return! “Oh, yes, Chen Shen!”
“Yes?”
“Get ready and start moving everything onto the s.h.i.+p today. The day after tomorrow is when the game update ends. If we’re late, things will happen. To avoid anything unforeseen, we have to set sail to the New World by tomorrow at the latest!”
“Very well! Leader Su, don’t worry, we’ve begun preparing since the day before yesterday. Everything is basically packed now. We can leave immediately after we load everything onto the s.h.i.+p!”