Chapter 96
Meyan watched Gu Yesheng for a long time and his eyebrows suddenly softened. It was like a parent looking at their adult child with relief. “Ah Sheng, you have really grown up.”
These simple words entered his ears and Gu Yesheng’s body shook.
Meyan didn’t seem to notice that the relationship between them no longer existed. His tone was just like when they had long conversations in the past. “The first time I met that child called Yi Jiamu, I realized his existence might become the variable in all my plans. Obviously, my intuition wasn’t wrong. It seems that all the obstructions in the plan can’t be separated from him.”
He gave a low laugh. “Or is this the destiny from G.o.d? It was destined to let him appear in your life and destined to make him a different existence.”
Gu Yesheng’s eyelashes fell and he didn’t speak.
Meyan seemed to relax completely. He took two steps forward and narrowed the distance between them. “Since he appeared, I could clearly feel that many things were getting out of control. That’s why I couldn’t wait to start my plan in advance. However, it turned out that I was still too anxious.”
His tone gradually stretched out and it sounded a bit regretful. “Ah Sheng, you should’ve been closer to what I wanted. In that way, you could’ve suffered less.”
Gu Yesheng watched the familiar yet strange man in front of him and slowly moved his mouth. However, before he had time to say anything, he felt an invisible curtain hanging over his vision. Immediately afterwards, Meyan’s image in his field of view also started to blur.
It was an ability!
Gu Yesheng quickly understood but what followed was an extreme sense of suffocation. He thought that the double mental and physical torture of the past few days was enough to make him feel completely desperate about this man. He never expected that at this moment, he could still have such a heart-wrenching feeling.
His palms were clenched tightly and the pain from his wounds being torn dragged him from chaos back to reality. This moment of sobriety was enough for Gu Yesheng to find the only crack in the layers of misty illusion.
Gu Yesheng’s hands finally locked tightly around Meyan’s throat, the expression in Meyan’s eyes finally changed. “Sure enough, you have found a way to deal with the backlash.”
Then without warning, sirens were suddenly heard, tearing at the surrounding silence. It was the announcement of the countdown to the final judgment. Obviously, after so many years of circling and running, the allied government had combined all its power and found this hidden place.
In the end, Meyan still failed to win the time race. All his painstaking preparations were a waste. Nevertheless, Meyan didn’t seem to notice such changes at all.
The entire floor inevitably became chaotic.
Meyan’s gaze flickered over the sticky blood that fell to the ground and he looked at Gu Yesheng in a kind, calm and pitying manner. “However, it’s too late. Ah Sheng, it is too late.”
Gu Yesheng couldn’t remember how he got out of the confinement room. The frantically beating image in his mind made him confused between reality and illusions. Was Meyan dead? Or was he just unconscious?
It was the first time he had used his ability against this respected elder and it would be the last time. The side effect of his ability allowed him to clearly see the scene of the planet’s destruction, majestic and beautiful. This was a very different image from when he came in contact with Shen Ling.
Meyan’s emotions were far from what he had shown. His emotional conflict was full of excessive and complete abandonment and despair of the world. Sometimes, only destruction could bring about rebirth. This was a paranoid and crazy idea that would only emerge after a person no longer had any expectations for the world.
There was no doubt that the process of extreme destruction would thoroughly melt all the dirt. Who would’ve thought that the initial weak source of such madness was merely a humble longing for the most ordinary life? The ruler’s mistakes were doomed from the beginning.
By the time Gu Yesheng went outside, the corridors were already in chaos. Figures came and went in a hurry. He occasionally b.u.mped into a frantic group of organization members. In front of Gu Yesheng’s beast-like violent state, everything seemed normal. If the ability weapons in their hands were removed, they were just ordinary humans.
Gu Yesheng walked forward in a muddled manner. He didn’t know how many people he took care of or what else he encountered. The frantically clamoring thoughts in his mind made him unable to tell if this excessive desperation came from Meyan or from himself.
The sirens were beeping crazily in his ears. They were both close yet far away. It was as if they were in another dimension that shook his mind. The wound in his palm from where he was stabbed by the thorns of the ring was stabbed again. He held it in his hand carefully, allowing the bursts of dizziness to overflow.
In this building full of Arbiter members, there was no time to let down his guard. He had stayed in this place for too long and he had to go back.
Gu Yesheng’s chest moved up and down. He forcibly suppressed the desire to vomit and glanced at the door labelled ‘master control room.’ He took a deep breath before lifting his leg and kicked his way in.
***
No one would’ve thought that Arbiter, who the allied government had been searching for years to no avail, would actually be hiding in the luxurious business district of Zorfa Star.
All the residents in the surroundings had been evacuated and Yang Xingwen stood in the general control cabin. He watched the distant, towering luxury building with a complicated expression. “This Meyan, he really dares!”
There were several violent explosions on the empty streets. Immediately afterwards, smoke came from all corners of the air. The originally lively city seemed to be bursting with splendid fireworks, one after another, making the eyes painful.
The equipment communicator flickered twice and reports from the front lines came one after another. “Reporting to Mr Yang, the bottom floor of the Lingdun Building has been successfully captured. We are now preparing to advance to the upper floors.”
“Reporting, marching to the fourth floor. Nothing unusual has been found!”
“Reporting, we’ve successfully broken through the 10th floor. The Arbiter members have chosen to self-destruct and no one remains!”
“Reporting…”
……
“Reporting, the 48 storey building seems to have been cleared in advance… it is confirmed that there are no deaths. The cause of the unconsciousness… is unknown.”
“Reporting, we are now close to the top… defense facilities… used by unknown enemies, our side… difficult to move.”
“Should we take special… operations, please, cough cough cough, please give instructions…”
The young man standing in front of the French windows suddenly looked back. Yang Xingwen also realized what happened and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He thought they would’ve been destined to go through an uncertain battle of life and death. Who would’ve thought the interior of the building would’ve changed before they arrived? As for the source of this change, it was likely to be…
He was about to say something but Yi Jiamu had already stepped out. “I’ll go and see.”
Yang Xingwen’s heart jumped and he grabbed this person. “You can’t go. It’s too dangerous!”
Yi Jiamu’s lips pressed tightly together. “He is waiting for me.”
Yang Xingwen refused to let go. “You don’t know what’s happening inside!”
Yi Jiamu showed unexpected calm. “First, Arbiter’s power weapons aren’t threatening to me at all. Second, you know what the result will be if Gu Yesheng’s ability loses control. No one can bear the responsibility if it affects the vanguard. Third, I might just be an ordinary student but if something happens to Gu Yesheng due to the current hesitation, I… don’t guarantee that I can continue to be calm.”
Then he took a deep breath and declared, “So, please let go.”
Yang Xingwen’s body shook slightly. Under such an indifferent gaze, he instinctively released his hand. He saw Yi Jiamu stride outside and recovered. He immediately picked up the communicator and conveyed the only command that could be made at present. “Stay in place!”
***
Only Yi Jiamu knew that he was far from the calm he was showing. His heart had always been in his throat from the moment the Arbiter clearing operation had begun. Under such tension, he couldn’t even feel his quick heartbeat for a while.
After getting off the aircraft, Yi Jiamu only felt cold. He quickly showed his pa.s.s and didn’t bother to pay attention to the stunned gazes cast by others. He just rushed into the building without stopping.
The entire building had been restricted by Arbiter. The elevators were stalled and all aircrafts couldn’t approach due to the obstruction of a magnetic field. The only way to reach the high levels was to climb the stairs. The spiral staircase only contained a white wall.
In the silence, Yi Jiamu went up floor by floor. He could clearly hear his breathing becoming heavier. He couldn’t remember how many floors he had climbed. He just numbly looked at the numbers gradually changing like he couldn’t feel the fatigue in his body.
Finally, the uniforms of the joined security forces entered his field of view. These people had already received instructions from Yang Xingwen and quickly stepped aside when they saw Yi Jiamu. Yi Jiamu gasped and didn’t look at them. He moved through the crowd and into the depths of the floor.
The top floor of the building was much quieter than he expected. Along the way, he could see members of the organization lying down unconscious. The pale and distorted expressions on their faces were hideous but on the contrary, Yi Jiamu’s heart was vaguely soothed. Some of his tension was relieved and he could feel his heartbeat accelerating a bit.
There was no time to care about his sore legs as he accelerated his pace. The sound of his breathing and heartbeat merged quietly.
Yi Jiamu aimlessly searched everywhere.
A dim corridor flashed with dim lights and the door opened at the end showed a faint light. Far away, the sound of keys being tapped was faintly heard. Yi Jiamu felt his breathing stop for a moment and his fast pace instinctively slowed down. He carefully walked up to the door. Then he raised his head and saw the tall and slender figure in front of the console.
After so many days of sleeplessness, Yi Jiamu’s original spirit had long been used to such a tense state. However, the always calm and steady mask shattered uncontrollably with one glance.
Gu Yesheng seemed to feel the gaze on his back and paused slightly as he was operating the instrument. His excessive vigilance made him instinctively turn around. His violent and gloomy eyes fell on the incoming person and he completely froze. He seemed to suspect that it was an illusion. He opened his mouth to say something but found that his overly dry voice made it hard to speak.
Yi Jiamu’s eyes were red and he could no longer control his tears.
They stared at each other for a long time before Yi Jiamu rushed forward and hugged Gu Yesheng, his voice slightly hoa.r.s.e. “It’s okay, let’s go home.”
6th Anniversary Event Page (Final Submission Date: 15th November)
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