Chapter 382: Disappeared for Four Months (Request Monthly Tickets)

At 17: 0, before nightfall.

Shuguang City.

Last night's unrest was temporarily suppressed by the strong crackdown from the Garrison Command and Night Patrol Corps, holding back the citizens' explosive anger—but since dawn, some mid- and large-sized caravans that sensed the crisis have begun moving: many head toward Qingbo City, the base of the Phoenix Assembly's Tianjian Ship, while others shift toward Yongcheng Port, the No. 3 Construction Base of Starhua Heavy Industry; but the expansion of Star Abyss 8 is extremely rapid, and Yongcheng Port has less than two months before it enters permanent night, so these people's main goal is to join the 83rd Iron Guard Brigade heading toward Kangcheng, with only train caravans attempting to enter the Oceanic Orbital Route.

Inside the city, ground traffic has been jammed since dawn until afternoon; to curb this evacuation wave and keep residents in Shuguang City, Zhou Mingyuan issued a ban that appeared open but was deliberately designed to delay: for the safety of evacuees and convoys, and to increase survival rates, all those leaving the city must undergo the latest-model Soul-Dispelling Value detector, which, besides detecting Dark Markers, claims to also measure the concentration of Dark Invasion within the human body.

This measure did have some effect: survivors eager to leave formed long queues, and by 16: 0, the number of people waiting had dropped by more than half—after all, leaving at this hour would make it impossible to reach Kangcheng before nightfall, which is undeniably dangerous for survivors.

Moreover, the so-called concentration of Dark Invasion forced those wishing to relocate to consider the consequences of leaving Shuguang City, which offers "95% Pure Water Purification," and this genuinely deterred some small caravans and organizations; coupled with the Federation's constant anti-rumor propaganda over Shuguang City's internal network, some private accounts even subtly linked this incident to the appearance of the Phoenix Assembly, attempting to ignite conspiracy theories and seize public opinion—after all, many survivors have become extremely sensitive since the apocalypse, and unless their lives are directly at stake, most dare not flee the official sanctuary.

{Rumor or conspiracy? The 95% Dark Invasion Purification technology has just emerged—what are the Silent City and the Phoenix Assembly aiming for by acting now?

{S-Class Gray Mist Walker, world's first kill—whose interests have we disturbed?

{The High City is forged—unafraid of any enemy who dares to invade!

On the internal network, official and unofficial content flooded every screen; within a single day, the comments below had erupted into chaos, with debates splitting into three factions: those supporting the Phoenix Assembly, those backing Shuguang City, and a self-proclaimed neutral group arguing that humans must aid one another, insisting the true goal is a full investigation of the Crimson World incident and the purge of the upper echelons.

In a large private room at Mountain Cat Bar, over twenty people were packed tightly together—all leaders of caravans exceeding two thousand members, all members of the Windwalker Alliance; their expressions were grim, the atmosphere in the room heavy with tension.

"The Federation is definitely doing this on purpose—there are too many useless bureaucrats in the Population Control Bureau; when they took money to let people in, they had hundreds of Zhian officers alone, but now they've only opened two exits for departure—according to this pace, you'd wait three days and still wouldn't get out!" a bearded giant cursed, this man named Wang Hongyuan, captain of the Hongyuan Trade Alliance, 45 years old, with a thick beard, his gold chains long discarded, now wearing a necklace made of bullet casings; his caravan exceeds eight thousand people, and though its members come from all walks of life, he strictly follows "apocalypse rules," embodying classic chivalric spirit.

"Strange—so many are leaving, but even more are entering; the city is bursting at the seams—why is the Federation in such a hurry?" a female captain asked.

"Hah, those leaving are big caravans, those entering are small fry—do you think Zhou Mingyuan is stupid? And big caravans with capable individuals have massive influence, especially those on the Human Light Evolution List—each one carries weight; losing even one is a huge loss of combat power for Shuguang City!" spoke Song Feng, leader of the New Era Engineering Corps, a 36-year-old tech fanatic with black-rimmed glasses; his scholarly, gentle demeanor clashed sharply with the two custom-made tungsten-titanium alloy mechanical arms bristling with weapons mounted behind his power armor—nicknamed "Four Hands"—his caravan, which marched north from the south, exceeds five thousand people.

"Yes, and the loss of high-tier combatants will trigger panic—if the fire spreads, even Minister Chi Tian, Luo Ming himself, couldn't stop it."

"So what? The Federation's collusion with the Crimson World is a done deal—suppressing public opinion won't change anything; this is a matter of survival—we can't pretend we don't see it!" said Liang Hao, captain of the Iron Shield Caravan, clad in an interstellar military tactical power suit, 35 years old, with a buzzcut, clearly a retired soldier; his massive facial scar did nothing to diminish the overwhelming aura of righteous authority he exuded!

The Iron Shield Caravan is also a large caravan, operating under military discipline; Liang Hao trains civilians to ex-soldier standards, dividing his force into vanguard, main, and medical columns, totaling over three thousand people.

"Not necessarily."

A clear, calm voice broke the argument; everyone turned—the door opened, and Jiang Yun and Ren Huiyan entered, saying at once:

"Shuguang City is just muddy water now, but bringing down the Federation won't be that easy."

"Why? Can Shuguang City forcibly detain everyone? Enslave its people?" a middle-aged captain immediately frowned.

The crowd parted, and Jiang Yun sat down among them, his expression sharp as he addressed the man who had spoken: "It's not that simple—that video only ignited the fire; but if no further evidence emerges soon, or if the Phoenix Assembly doesn't act, the situation will quickly calm down."

"Yes." A cold female voice replied from the corner; everyone turned to see a woman in her thirties, clad in power armor, arms crossed, short hair neat, expression steady.

He Linqiu, 36, is the captain of "Burning Phoenix," the largest female-led caravan in the Windwalker Alliance; rumors say she began as an ordinary woman fleeing with her young daughter, surviving countless deadly nights, breaking out from a bandit caravan's prison cart, building her own force along the way, sheltering the weak, expanding to six thousand people; most of her caravan now lives in the outer districts, strengthening their power through the city's black market—she's a formidable female hero.

She now said: "Don't be fooled by the noise—it's all about personal stakes. Those who seem to support the Phoenix Assembly won't necessarily leave; many are just venting suppressed frustration. And those who fervently back Shuguang City don't truly believe Zhou Mingyuan is innocent—they just don't want to leave, and dare not leave; life is only once, and they've finally found a safe haven, only recently eliminating an S-Class threat—these people are the ones who least want Shuguang City to collapse."

"Exactly," Wang Hongyuan boomed loudly: "For survival, loyalties don't matter—only caravans truly sensing the crisis will focus on how to escape quickly; those arguing online won't leave—I'm right, aren't I, Captain Jiang?"

Jiang Yun took a deep breath and nodded: "Yes."

"So, any news from the Phoenix Assembly?" Song Feng's mechanical arms automatically adjusted his black-rimmed glasses as he asked, eyes deep.

"The Tianjian Ship has returned to Qingbo City and is stationary—no updates yet. Global broadcasts have stopped." Ren Huiyan, clad in leather, pulled out a mobile terminal, tapped quickly, and a holographic projection instantly appeared in the room; all eyes turned to it.

"The Phoenix Assembly's Tianjian Ship is currently stationary north of Qingbo; the Silent City and the Infinite are in Jinhai; the 83rd Iron Guard Brigade near Yongcheng Port is advancing toward Shuguang City; several super-large factions inside the city are preparing to evacuate; most of the Wanderer Alliance has relocated to Changuan, aiming for Dawn Center—this is the current power distribution around Shuguang City."

"Are Star Abysses 7 and 8 expanding this fast? In under a month, Longjiang is almost gone?" Liang Hao of the Iron Shield Caravan frowned at the newly drawn Star Abyss map.

"Shuguang City is now surrounded on all sides—the situation is dire." Bearded Wang Hongyuan added.

"It's the same everywhere—except for North America, East Land, South America, and part of Europe, only the oceans remain wide open." Jiang Yun now said: "Chairman Jian has already sent word—we've formed an alliance with the Infinite; the Skyborne has begun emergency construction with the Silent City's help."

"No wonder Chairman Jian pulled it off—she definitely secured the Silent City." Song Feng said.

"She didn't secure the Silent City." Jiang Yun smiled: "The Silent City allied with us."

At this, everyone was stunned.

"What?! The Silent City allied with us?!"

"What's their goal?"

"Did I hear that right? Are we joining the Silent City?"

"..."

The group erupted in shocked murmurs.

Jiang Yun immediately raised his hand to silence them: "It's not what you think—we're allied with the Infinite, and the Silent City is also allied with the Infinite; there's no joining or merging—we've simply gained two stronger allies."

"The Infinite." He Linqiu looked at him: "That caravan that, with Xilan City and the Phoenix Assembly, successfully killed the first S-Class anomaly, Cloud Black Thorn?"

"Yes—like us, they're partners of the Phoenix Assembly's Crimson Phoenix Order."

Jiang Yun said: "Their captain, Lin Xian, is a mechanical adept. I've received word that Wang Yue Zhen chose to ally with Captain Lin because he rescued the Silent City from the Star Abyss—and he's offering aid based on... the Skyborne Train."

A chorus of astonishment erupted!

"Rescued the Silent City?"

"Is this guy that powerful?"

"So the Skyborne Interstellar Train is now under Captain Lin's control?"

"Yes, it's the best choice." Jiang Yun took a deep breath, recalling the man who had turned the tide at the spaceport with such commanding presence, and couldn't help smiling: "With the Silent City's assistance and Captain Lin's mechanical adept power refining its construction, this interstellar train can function—currently, including the Fing Group engineers, about five thousand people are there."

"Mechanical adept refinement?" Song Feng stared in shock: "What does that mean—he builds starships with his ability alone?"

"Don't believe me?" Jiang Yun asked.

"I..." Song Feng opened his mouth: "I'm not saying... I just... what kind of ability is this? Isn't it cheating?"

"I received some data packets from Xilan," He Linqiu now said gravely: "It's said his mechanical adept power can not only manufacture G-3 electromagnetic railguns, but also collaborated with the Phoenix Assembly's Emperor Project to repair a supermassive war machine—Xilan's battle was won only because of his decisive intervention."

"I heard that battle was brutal—Xilan City, including the Recon Corps, had fewer than one hundred thousand people, yet they held off a billion snow wraiths for two days and two nights, slaying two Special-Class Abyss Worms and that S-Class Cloud Black Thorn—amazing!" Wang Hongyuan muttered in awe: "The Dark Markers were also won in that battle—when I heard the news, I cried like a baby—it was so inspiring!"

Liang Hao's gaze was resolute: "Yes, that battle was truly outstanding—He Zhen, commander of the Seventh Garrison Legion, was my former commander; the Infinite is no ordinary group—I fully support allying with them, no matter what others think."

At this, the Windwalker Alliance caravans in the room erupted in enthusiasm; the mood surged.

With the Windwalker Alliance and Fing Group already on their side, now joined by the Silent City and the Infinite, every caravan gathered here—bound by shared ideals—was electrified; in this chaos, aligning with such powerful forces was undoubtedly wise. "So what's our next move? Do we head straight to meet the Infinite?" He Linqiu asked Jiang Yun eagerly.

Jiang Yun shook his head: "Our original plan was to shift all forces to Qingbo, then wait for Jinhai and the Silver Star to join—but now, things have changed."

"What changed?"

"Hold position."

He Linqiu's eyes narrowed: "Do you think the Phoenix Assembly, Silent City, and Infinite are about to unite?"

"Highly possible." Jiang Yun shrugged: "The Phoenix Assembly came here for a reason—whether targeting the Federation or the Crimson World, major moves are coming. Since the Tianjian Ship arrived here, it means the Federation and the Phoenix Assembly have reached an irreconcilable split on some critical survival issue—so the best course now is to do nothing."

"The Wanderer Alliance retreating to Changuan probably thinks the same." Song Feng adjusted his glasses: "Shouldn't we temporarily evacuate Shuguang City?"

Shuguang City now resembled a storm vortex—evacuating might be the safest option.

Jiang Yun looked at the group and pointed to the hologram: "The situation is complex. Though many large caravans are leaving, the city's population is actually increasing—many are last-resort survivors from outer districts and the north, west, and south, fleeing as permanent night approaches; Shuguang City won't stay calm. The Wanderer Alliance is holding at Changuan because of their size and Yu Huai'an's cautious nature—I suspect he'll remain there and won't immediately move toward Dawn Center."

"But now that we're allied with Captain Lin of the Infinite, all deployments must follow his orders—including mine. So I've discussed with Chairman Jian: until Captain Lin gives instructions, everyone must stay inside the city, hold your districts, stay quiet—we can't help Jinhai by moving now."

He Linqiu and the others nodded: "Makes sense."

"Good—since we already paid the entry fee, staying a few more days won't hurt." Wang Hongyuan grinned.

Song Feng exhaled: "True—waiting in line to leave would take days anyway. Let's just watch and see what tricks Zhou Mingyuan pulls next."

"Agreed," Liang Hao said.

Thus, the Windwalker Alliance became the Infinite Alliance; after a brief meeting, everyone departed. Jiang Yun poured himself and Ren Huiyan a drink and said:

"Have a drink—you've been rushing back from Yongcheng Port all night—aren't you thirsty?"

Ren Huiyan looked down at the wine in her cup and said sharply to Jiang Yun: "Do you really believe the Phoenix Assembly will attack Shuguang City? Didn't I tell you Yongcheng Port isn't just the 83rd Iron Guard Brigade—it also holds the Emperor Project, those two Divine Beings—they're clearly not meant for fighting Shuguang City's Garrison Commander Lu Tianye."

Jiang Yun's expression remained calm; he set down his half-drunk cup and said:

"Impossible. If they wanted to attack Shuguang City, a thirty-thousand-strong Iron Guard Brigade isn't enough—Ye Lan and Li Heping would need to bring half the interstellar fleet. And if they were going to strike, they'd have done it when the Federation collapsed. Shuguang City has six million people—this is just the population inside the walls. The Phoenix Assembly's doctrine makes it impossible for them to wage war on humanity now."

"Then what do you think?"

Jiang Yun's fingers moved, a precise wind vortex swirling the wine in his cup into a golden miniature tornado spinning at the bottom. "Hmm~"

"Some things that aren't human."

Tianjian Ship, Conference Room One.

Lin Xian stared at Ye Lan, silent for a long moment, then spoke:

"The Cleansing Plan? You want me to deal with the Descenders?"

"Yes." Ye Lan replied.

"Why me?" Lin Xian asked a strange question.

"Not just you."

Ye Lan replied calmly: "When facing Darkness, our only option is to unite every possible force—because it is our common enemy. But this is different: the enemy isn't just outside—in the approaching Star Abysses 5, 7, and 8, and the permanent night—but also within. We cannot attack our own survivors or our cities—but for humanity's survival, we must thoroughly cleanse the Crimson World to buy us time."

Lin Xian frowned slightly: "Is it because the anomaly in Star Abyss 5 is accelerating the expansion of the others? May I ask—how much time remains before global permanent night?"

"Less than ten months—and the cycle is accelerating," Ye Lan replied.

"We've lost four months?!"

Lin Xian stared in shock: "What is Shuguang City after?"

"That's exactly what we're worried about," Ye Lan said seriously to Lin Xian:

"From the day the announcement was issued, Shuguang City was scheduled to contact Star Abyss 5's permanent night in 72 days, then be swallowed by Star Abyss 7 in 189 days and Star Abyss 8 in 168 days—but 40 days have passed. Due to the changes triggered by Star Abyss 5, as of today, the time until these three abysses consume Shuguang City has become 41 days, 62 days, and 48 days."

"You mean they gained nine days from Star Abyss 5—but because of those nine days, Star Abysses 7 and 8 accelerated by 120 days?!" Lin Xian said immediately.

"Yes."

"What good are nine days?" Lin Xian's face hardened, his voice barely concealing anger.

"For Chu Zhaonan, every extra day, every extra hour, matters," Ye Lan replied calmly.

Lin Xian couldn't comprehend: "So Shuguang City can live one more hour?"

"No—you misunderstand."

"He's doing this not for Shuguang City, nor for his position as Federation Chairman, nor for his own survival."

Ye Lan looked at Lin Xian: "Perhaps, given your views on the Federation and Dawn City, this conclusion differs greatly from what you expected—but I can honestly tell you that, from the Federation Chairman's perspective, he acted for… all of human civilization!"

Lin Xian fell silent.

"The Federation's collapse is not merely, as the world believes, an issue of ideology or political interest—though I must admit, those certainly exist. The greatest division stems from differing judgments about the apocalypse."

Ye Lan now gazed toward Lin Xian and spoke slowly: "Since Revelation Day, 85 percent of the world's cities and regions vanished overnight. The Federation's interstellar military and all global organizations lost control. The Long Night gave us no time to react or prepare. The transformation occurred in every nation, region, city, even every household. All order collapsed, as if humanity had returned to primitive times. Everything we have today was rebuilt after the First Long Night—including the crippled interstellar military. But after the First Long Night, the Celestial Veil appeared. We lost all satellites and communication networks—and simultaneously, we lost the sky…"

"Even now, as Commander of the Phoenix Society, I can only tell you this: we have no strategy or direction capable of fully saving human civilization. Psionic abilities, Cold Dark Reagent, Soul-Scouring Value, Dark Markings, Dark Beasts—these are all the knowledge humanity has gained through sacrifice and effort, against the Dark. But they are merely the tip of the iceberg."

"So the Federation's collapse, the divide between Dawn City and the Phoenix Society—this isn't a matter of survivalists versus saviors. Strictly speaking, apart from the Descent Faction, both we and Dawn City are saviors. The only difference lies in whether we hold an absolute pessimism or a relative pessimism regarding how to preserve human civilization."

Lin Xian, hearing this, felt an immense weight and said softly: "The Phoenix Society is relatively pessimistic, and Dawn City is absolutely pessimistic?"

"Yes."

"Chu Zhaonan, as Federation Chairman and humanity's supreme leader after Revelation Day, understood better than anyone else what forces and methods humanity had deployed against the Dark. Global nuclear arsenals, biochemical weapons—even triggering geothermal disasters—all had been tried before the Federation collapsed. A fleet of interstellar warships, equipped with the highest-tech armor, entered the Star Abyss and resisted for less than forty-eight hours. Despair rarely appears at the outset…"

Ye Lan gazed calmly at Lin Xian, as if recounting a sorrowful tale, yet her voice was restrained, her eyes like the vast heavens.

"It appears after resistance."

(End of Chapter)