Chapter 1859: Mo Ling Cottage

As expected, upon hearing what Gao Tian said, the originally excited Wen Ya, whose eye sockets were red, suddenly stiffened.

A feeling of indescribable bitterness and sorrow instantly filled her heart.

Lin An had returned; she was very excited, even wanting to burst into tears, as if she had found support. During the half year Lin An was gone, she had imagined countless times what she would say to him upon his return.

She knew where Lin An had gone; she was too afraid, so afraid that she no longer wanted to wait to say certain things.

But at this moment...

"Is he with Mo Ling.."

Murmuring, she lost her voice; after bitterly repeating the sentence, Wen Ya silently clenched her fists, head bowed as if lost, heartbroken to the extreme.

Her shoulders trembled, a feeling of utter bewilderment, complex to the extreme, so much that she didn't even know why she felt wronged, making her eye sockets sore.

Lin An had already returned; he came back two hours ago.

Yet despite having been back for so long, he hadn't sent her a single message, nor even met her in person.

Was it that she was unworthy, or that she simply didn't matter—Lin An had long forgotten her.

After a while, Wen Ya's voice trembled slightly; only then, amid Gao Tian's bitter smile, did she slowly lift her head.

"Okay, I understand."

"Mo Ling has suffered so much and longs for him; it's only right that he first go keep her company."

"Perhaps they're discussing matters; Mo Ling has grown so much stronger, the information from Heiyu surely aids his strength... there's so much to talk about, they must need a long time."

"It's fine... I'm fine. I'll go arrange the meeting now."

"Just that he's back... just that he's back..."

She sounded incoherent, as if making excuses for herself.

Wen Ya, her hands trembling slightly, anxiously gathered a stack of documents and turned to leave as if fleeing.

With her back to Gao Tian and the others, unseen, the tears in her eyes could no longer be held back, spilling from the corners as bitter sorrow.

"Gao Tian, Wen Ya..."

"Captain Lin..."

"Sigh..."

Amid cheers like mountains and seas, on the high platform, Zhang Yong watched Wen Ya's retreating back and couldn't help sighing, feeling he wanted to say something but didn't know what.

The early members of Long An all knew what the relationship between Wen Ya and Captain Lin really was.

Put another way, even a fool could see what Wen Ya's feelings toward Captain Lin were.

One gazed at the other with eyes full of him, while the other remained as unmoving as a piece of wood.

Now it's even more...

"This isn't something we should worry about; Captain Lin might have his own difficulties."

"As for Mo Ling... Captain Lin might also be troubled."

"Forget it, let's not talk about this. We have our own matters— the fugitives and North America issues aren't resolved yet! Now that Captain Lin has returned, I have a feeling this will be an unimaginable 'great battle'!"

Meanwhile.

【Mo Ling Cottage】.

"Creak—creak"

Amid the creaking wood, Lin An looked helplessly at the girl sitting on him, his eyes revealing a rare expression of helplessness.

Up and down, back and forth.

Holding little Mo Ling in his arms, Lin An felt uncomfortable all over.

The cottage light was dim; in the simple wooden hut, there was only a small bed and a cradle.

No windows, no stools; rather than calling it a home, it's more like a box for sleeping.

In the enclosed cottage, a faint wood scent gave off damp moisture.

Far from the base's inner city, far from Long An.

Built in the rear mountains, the cottage was extremely quiet.

Unlike Awakened Ones who, upon gaining power, would improve their lives if able; for Mo Ling, she seemed to want nothing, as if she had lost the desires proper to a human, living alone.

Keen observation revealed that, upon first returning home with Mo Ling, Lin An instantly realized she likely suffered from a severe lack of security.

The enclosed cottage, hidden in the rear mountains.

One person eats, one person sleeps, one person lives.

Clearly, little Mo Ling would rather isolate herself than interact with anyone; aside from trusting him, Mo Ling seems unwilling to believe anyone else.

With a silent sigh, Lin An lowered his head in silence, gazing at Mo Ling curled in his arms like a cat.

Hesitating, Lin An opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing, allowing Mo Ling to lie on him and sleep.

He could feel that Mo Ling was exhausted, as if she hadn't rested in a long time.

It wasn't physical fatigue, but mental, spiritual weariness.

In Lin An's silently opened Soul Eye, he could even see that Mo Ling's soul fire burned differently from that of ordinary people.

Mo Ling, with only two flames, was like the flickering candlelight in an old house, burning coldly.

Although there were still many matters to handle and too many problems to solve.

But Lin An ultimately chose to stay here, accompanying Mo Ling. Perhaps out of guilt, perhaps out of reluctance. Lin An clearly knew who had truly borne the pressure after he left. He could also imagine how many times, over these six months, Mo Ling had prepared to cut off her own head.

Put bluntly, Mo Ling is the last trump card Lin An left for Long An; as long as Mo Ling remains, Long An's core members always have a chance to escape.

Lin An silently stroked Mo Ling's little head, watching the small hands that clung tightly to him even in sleep; he could only hold her a little tighter to give her some peace.

"Just stay with me for another half hour..."

"Gao Tian's side should have the meeting ready; Chu An seems no longer at the base, Zhang Tie is unconscious—I need to check on him. The captured fugitives and heavenly ghosts also require my personal interrogation and handling."

"Andre's side seems to be holding some meeting. Keeping the fugitives an extra day would affect my path of faith."

Unify the globe, reshape the image of faith, purge traitors, prepare for the next phase mission...

Problem... too many...

He accompanied Mo Ling while thinking about the future path.

Inside the quiet hut, as Lin An fell into deep thought, a somewhat dissatisfied chirp suddenly sounded.

Wuu~

Uncomfortable=, keep swaying.

Half-asleep, barely opening her eyes, Mo Ling, nestled in Lin An's arms, suddenly woke up, somewhat displeased tugging at Lin An's hand, gesturing for him to keep swaying the cradle to lull her to sleep.

Sitting on the vine-woven cradle, Lin An was slightly startled, then helplessly let the cradle continue to sway.

To be honest, he never imagined that after returning to Earth and returning to Long An, the first thing would be holding Mo Ling in the cradle, swinging, to lull her to sleep.

If such a scene were to spread, it would probably shock the world.

Mo Ling, it's about time, I'll keep you company...

He gave a bitter laugh, looking at the little hand clutching his Mo Ling, Lin An couldn't help but want to say something. But as soon as he opened his mouth, they didn't let him finish.

The next second, he saw Mo Ling suddenly lift herself from his arms, her little head raised, looking at him with a serious expression:

Lin An, let's have a child!