On the very same day, Qin Wu's body returned to his home in the Upper City District.
Upon hearing the news, Qin Jie, the director of the third security office in the Upper City District, dropped everything and rushed home, hoping that he had misheard.
Upon opening the door, the sound of crying coming from the hall made this middle-aged man's heart sink to the bottom.
He walked into the hall with heavy footsteps. In the center, a refrigerated mortuary chamber and next to it, his wife, a woman dressed in luxurious clothing, crying wildly.
Two servants were supporting her, else she might have collapsed.
On the other side, Qin Jie saw several officials from the collection team, as well as a resolute-looking stranger.
Qin Jie immediately pounced on one of the collection team officials, grabbing him by the collar and shouting,
"What happened? Why did my son die?"
The official sweated profusely as he tried to calm him down.
"Mr. Qin, please calm down and listen to me."
"I won't!" Qin Jie shouted,
"I just want to know how my son died!"
"Your son collided with an Ascender and threatened him with a weapon, which resulted in the Ascender responding with lethal force. Mr. Qin, please accept our condolences."
The resolute-looking man standing beside them spoke up.
Qin Jie's eyes were bloodshot,
"Who are you?"
The collection team official quickly introduced him.
"This is Assistant Lin Yang, the chief of staff to Night Walker's general."
Qin Jie glanced at Lin Yang, who nodded slightly. Then Qin Jie said,
"My son collided with an Ascender, does that mean he deserved to die? This matter won't be settled like this. Even if you are Night Walker, I will go to the city lord's office to file a complaint!"
Lin Yang said calmly,
"Mr. Qin, as I just said, your son didn't just collide with the Ascender. He also pointed a gun at his head. The fortress rules stipulate that in such a situation, the Ascender has the right to respond with lethal force."
"Moreover, prior to this incident, your son also committed the crimes of desertion and shooting his own teammate with a gun, using him as bait to gain an opportunity to escape. To put it bluntly, your son had a history of bad behavior and his death is not regrettable to society."
"But in the spirit of humanity and respecting the deceased, the fortress military will not investigate the crimes he committed before his death. If you have any complaints, you can file them with the fortress military judiciary."
After speaking, Lin Yang bowed slightly.
"Once again, please accept my condolences. Goodbye."
He turned and walked to the door.
At the door, Lin Yang suddenly paused and said,
"Oh, by the way, Mr. Qin. Besides representing Night Walker to offer condolences to the family, I personally wish to offer you a piece of advice. Let the past be past."
Then he left.
The collection team officials also bid their farewells one after another.
After everyone had left, Qin Jie roared in anger, smashing the furniture and decorations in the hall.
After venting, he gasped for breath and said, "Let the past be past?! Is this a warning not to seek revenge? Night Walker, such arrogance!"
His wife looked up and said, "Qin Jie, he was our only son. Revenge him!"
Qin Jie remained silent, his face still like water.
...
In the lower city, at Shed 1837 of Youshui Road.
Tianyang glanced nervously at his mother, while Nanfei stood at the window with her back to him, looking at the quietly flowing canal outside.
After a moment, he uttered,
"So not only are you an Ascender now, but you've also joined Night Walkers?"
The young man nodded eagerly,
"Yes. Night Walker has already applied for a dorm for me. Once it's approved, we'll move. I've even thought about renting a nearby house for you to live in. I can visit you whenever I'm on breaks. Also, I'll see if I can help Kaidi open a bar in the upper city."
"I'll be a shareholder in the bar. If you have nowhere to go, you can come and work there to kill the time."
Nanfei said,
"You are quite thoughtful."
Tianyang scratched his head and replied,
"Well, I guess. So, you don't object, do you?"
Nanfei responded calmly,
"I object."
Tianyang was surprised,
"Why?"
Nanfei bit her lip gently, "Anyway, just listen to me. I don't want to move. We're fine here. I just want you to be safe and sound."
Tianyang forced a smile, "Mom, I'm already an Ascender. I can make our lives better. Among Night Walker, Storm, Iron Wall, the three major legions, Night Walker has the best offer. I..."
Nanfei suddenly exploded,
"I said quiet! If you must join the army, join Iron Wall! But not Night Walker or Storm, I won't allow it!"
She rarely lost her temper, and Tianyang had rarely seen her like this. He tried to calm her down, "Mom, listen to me..."
"No, you listen to me!"
Nanfei grabbed her son's shoulders, her eyes a little bloodshot and excited,
"If you still see I'm your mother, go and quit Night Walker now!"
Tianyang finally couldn't bear it, pushed her hands away and said,
"Why should I? Mom, I'm not a child anymore! Why don't you trust me? Last time when I wanted to join the collection team, you were like this too! I don't understand why you don't want me to join the army! Is it wrong for me to want to make our lives better?!"
He took two steps back and yelled,
"And every time I ask you who my father is, you always say I'm too young to know. Is it because you're too controlling? Maybe my father couldn't stand it and left!"
Pa!
Nanfei slapped the boy on the face, her eyes red and her body trembling.
"How could you say such a thing?" she said.
Tianyang grunted, holding his face, and stormed into his own room.
The door slammed shut.
Nanfei thought about going after him, but hesitated and sighed instead. She walked out of the shack and squatted at the door, lighting a cigarette.
Tianyang's bedroom was small, with a neatly made bed and a stack of books at the foot of it.
"Synopsis of Fortress Law," "Overview of the Nine Levels," "Inverse Universe Survival Rules," "Classic War Analysis of Ascenders"...
The covers of these books were mostly worn and the pages yellowed. They had been Tianyang's playmates since he was young. Ever since he could remember, these books had been around, but whenever he asked his mother where they came from, she wouldn't say.
Tianyang secretly guessed that they were left by his father because of some of the annotations inside. The handwriting was obviously a man's.
Looking at them, Tianyang sighed. He regretted being impulsive.
It was difficult to raise a child in the lower city, and Tianyang knew how much his mother had suffered over the years.
Although he felt that Nanfei's demand for him to quit Night Walker was unreasonable, the boy still regretted saying such harsh words to his mother.
He thought to himself that he would apologize to her tomorrow.
Tianyang lay in bed, thinking.
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