Chapter 455: Night Flights and Unsettling Returns

There’s still a lot for Qinggang’s support team to take care of.

For example, with the Queen’s approval, a military unit was deployed around her for protection, alongside a continued investigation into every clue left behind by the Technology Church, tracking down that missing RV, and studying the abandoned files.

And out in the wasteland, numerous survivors who had just escaped the Disaster Museum now need Qinggang’s assistance for treatment…

Compared to the cleanup work, the aftermath has been shockingly convoluted.

Fortunately, Lu Xin wasn’t required to handle that. An hour after the support team arrived, under Chen Jing’s arrangements, he and Doll boarded a helicopter as heroes of this cleanup mission and headed back to Qinggang to rest.

……

During the flight back, Lu Xin said very little.

He quietly leaned against the cabin wall, his eyes fixed on the world outside as if lost in thought.

This cleanup mission was a sudden crisis, and to make matters worse, they encountered such a formidable opponent.

Even he seemed visibly drained by it all.

They left on a pitch-black, rainy night and returned under a sky full of stars.

Lu Xin felt with clarity that something had been irrevocably changed after this mission.

In truth, he wasn’t a fan of change.

As the helicopter neared Qinggang, it was already well past ten at night.

The pilot said to Lu Xin, “Mr. Lone Soldier, Professor and the others are waiting. Are we going straight back to the Special Cleaning Department Headquarters?”

Lu Xin replied, “Let’s head back to the Second Satellite City.”

The pilot paused, glancing at Lu Xin through the rearview mirror.

Lu Xin hurriedly smiled and explained, “I’m really tired right now. I just want to go home and rest.”

“If we land at headquarters, with city intercity high-speed trains already halted at this hour, I’d have to wait until early tomorrow. It’s better that I ask you to fly directly to the Second Satellite City so they don’t have to wait—I mean, everyone’s busy now.”

“Oh, I see.”

The pilot nodded in understanding and picked up the walkie-talkie to report the change in itinerary.

A gentle tug pulled at his arm.

Doll looked up at him with wide eyes and softly asked, “Don’t you like being with me?”

Lu Xin was taken aback. “You can actually say a ten-word sentence?”

Doll nodded and waited for his answer in silence.

“Oh, no, don’t get me wrong,”

Lu Xin smiled to reassure her. “I need to go home to see my family and deal with a lot of work. You, on the other hand, worked hard too and need to rest early. So for now, we have to part ways.”

Doll listened intently and then asked, “Why can’t we stay together?”

Lu Xin hesitated for a moment before explaining, “Because we’re colleagues. Once work is done, we have to go our separate ways for now.”

Doll wasn’t sure she understood and slowly nodded.

……

The helicopter landed with a clatter on the rooftop of the Security Hall at Qinggang Satellite City No. 2, then limped away.

Lu Xin carried his bag and slowly made his way down the stairs.

Just as he reached the lobby, he saw a short-statured female officer rushing in, clutching a bowl of instant noodles.

She bumped into him, clearly surprised, her small eyes widening.

“I was out on a job and just got back,” she explained.

Noticing her astonishment, Lu Xin stopped and smiled as he clarified,

“Yeah, I know a bit about it,”

which made the female officer nod repeatedly in understanding.

After glancing at the bowl of instant noodles in her hand, she hesitantly offered them to Lu Xin:

“Here, have some!”

“……”

“No, thanks,”

Lu Xin, still a bit taken aback, shook his head with a smile and said, “I’ll eat at home.”

“Really, really,”

the female officer insisted in a lowered voice, “We don’t know what’s going on outside, but tons of military units have been dispatched and the entire city is under martial law. We were all called back to work overtime because something really terrible must have happened out there.”

“Mr. Lone Soldier, you all… you’ve really had it rough.”

“Had I known you’d come, I would have prepared a late-night snack for you,”

“……”

“Thanks, thanks,”

Lu Xin gratefully thanked her, but still felt a bit embarrassed, “It’s your own snack, how can I take it…”

“It’s fine. You deserve it,”

the female officer said knowingly as she shoved the instant noodles toward Lu Xin.

……

Lu Xin had never expected that after flying back from Happy Town in the dead of night, he’d still be able to have a bowl of instant noodles.

But feeling her sincerity, he accepted them.

He couldn’t help but be touched; that simple bowl of instant noodles tasted unexpectedly special.

Soon after, the female officer turned away, but not long after, she returned with another bowl, this one freshly prepared.

And it even had sausage and egg in it.

……

……

Since it was late and the subway had stopped running—and Lu Xin was too shy to ask for a ride in a police car—he accepted the kind gesture and hopped onto a pink electric bike. With a twist of the throttle, he set off along the streets of Qinggang.

Riding the pink electric bike, he arrived beneath an old building on Moon Terrace and slowly looked up.

A sudden surge of panic gripped his heart.

The window of that building, which used to shine warmly, was now pitch black.

The entire building was dark, nestled under dim streetlights as if it had been abandoned for ages.

Only the night breeze quietly swept past the building.

“Thud…”

“Thud…”

Struggling against his wildly pounding heart, Lu Xin pushed the electric bike into the hallway and slowly locked it.

Then, step by step, he ascended the staircase.

The corridor was pitch black; he couldn’t see his own hand in front of him, and his footsteps echoed in the silence.

Probably because everything was so quiet, his footfalls rang out, accompanied by a faint echo.

Overwhelmed by a deep loneliness, he almost had to lean against the wall to sit.

But he forced himself to continue, even quickening his pace imperceptibly.

Before he knew it, he reached the fourth floor and slowly stood before Apartment 401.

Inside, there were no lights—just a gloomy darkness that mirrored the corridor.

Not a single sound could be heard.

……

……

Taking a deep breath to steady his trembling hand, Lu Xin slowly pulled out his keys and opened the door.

Click.

A crisp sound echoed in the quiet hallway as the door was gently pushed open.

With unsteady steps, Lu Xin entered the room.

The room was dim, with only a sliver of light from the streetlights outside piercing through heavy curtains.

With that faint glow, Lu Xin could just make out the rough arrangement of the room.

Scattered furniture lay haphazardly, cobwebs clung to the surroundings, and the vase on the table held flowers that had long withered. The heavy, tattered curtains hung in strips, and large patches of darkness loomed on the floor and walls.

It was hard to tell, but it might have been bloodstains.

The room was completely empty except for him…

……

Lu Xin’s heart felt as though it had been struck hard. He suddenly lost his balance and staggered backwards, leaning against the wall.

Using the wall for support, he slowly sat down, overwhelmed by a hollow sadness.

……

But just as Lu Xin covered his head and bowed it low, something gently touched the top of his head.

Two icy little hands suddenly cupped his cheeks.

Startled, Lu Xin looked up to see a messy cascade of hair and a strangely twisted small face.

Sharp teeth bared in a mischievous grin, with deep, dark eyes in its sockets.

It turned out to be a person dangling upside down above him. She had suddenly appeared from the ceiling and was staring straight at Lu Xin.

“Ah…”

Lu Xin’s mouth gaped open, his mind instantly blank.

Then, he leaned forward and tightly hugged the small head, the unexpected joy momentarily sending him into a light-headed daze.

“Hee hee…”

The upside-down little girl let out a naughty giggle, “Big brother, you were crying just now…”

“Smack!”

Somebody apparently turned on the lights in the room.

The dim bulb swayed slowly, stretching the room’s shadows long before they gradually shortened.

In the light, an elegant and refined woman was leaning by the window with a gentle smile as she watched Lu Xin, while near the dining table sat a stern-faced man who snorted, “Coming home so late—do you want the whole family to starve?”

An indescribable joy surged into Lu Xin’s chest.

He hurriedly stood up and held his laughing, playful sister close, repeatedly apologizing, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

Then, glaring fiercely at her, he retorted, “You’re the one who started crying.”

The family sat down at the dining table and began their quiet dinner, as the old television flickered back on.

From the outside, Apartment 401 in the old building inched back to life with warm light.

……

“Is Doll alright?”

“She’s fine.”

“Are you sure she’s fine?”

“She’s fine.”

“……”

At the same time, Doll had returned to her small apartment.

Outside, a flurry of people had shown up—Professor Chen, Mr. Su’s secretary, members of the City Defense Department, personnel from the Special Cleaning Department’s Emergency Inspection Unit, the top psychological expert from the Special Cleaning Department, and several of Qinggang’s best doctors—each inquiring repeatedly if Doll was truly okay.

At first, even the support team was nervously checking over and over.

But eventually, exasperated, someone glared, “Aren’t you done? Doesn’t Doll need to rest?”

“Alright, alright, get some rest… but make sure to check her again tomorrow.”

After a brief flurry of bickering, the group finally began to disperse.

Meanwhile, in the small apartment, Doll had already changed into her thermal underwear, dimmed the lights, and it was time for bed. Yet this time, she simply sat on the bed with a slight frown and a vacant look, staring blankly for several minutes before suddenly asking:

“How can we be together?”

“……”

“Huh?”

The support team member who was doing a final check in the room and about to leave froze for a moment before turning around.

She suddenly noticed that Doll had already removed her contact lenses.

Her eyes, now clear, were fixed on her, but the alarm device on her protective suit showed no reaction.

After several seconds of stunned silence, she gasped in surprise.

A loud shout echoed from downstairs: “Quick…”

“Come look…”

“Something serious has happened. Doll’s negative influence seems to have vanished…”