CR CH30

Chapter 30: Reminiscence

Knock, knock.

The sound of knocking echoed.

Jiang Tianji, who had been staring blankly out the window, snapped back to his senses. Just as he was about to say “Come in,” he saw the door already being pushed open.

Caught completely off guard, his gaze collided with those deep, radiant blue eyes. Jiang Tianji felt a bit constrained and instinctively wanted to sit up.

Ling Kongmiao waved his hand: “Just lie down.”

He casually switched on the light, and the originally soft illumination in the room instantly turned piercingly bright.

Jiang Tianji noticed that Ling Kongmiao’s eyes had shifted from vibrant blue to a slightly lighter shade.

Due to his depleted spiritual power, his reactions were sluggish; whenever he focused deeply on one thing, he easily forgot what else he was supposed to be doing.

Seeing him staring so fixedly, Ling Kongmiao raised his hand and snapped his fingers in front of his face.

Startled, Jiang Tianji snapped out of it: “Of… Officer.”

“Clear-headed now?”

Ling Kongmiao sized him up. Having just walked a fine line between life and death, the youth appeared considerably more well-behaved.

“How are you feeling right now?”

The scene he had witnessed right before his near-death experience was far too unforgettable. To him, the Ling Kongmiao of that moment was no different from a savior. Having him stand right in front of him like this felt entirely like a dream.

Jiang Tianji began to drift off again. Realizing this, his hand hidden beneath the blanket stealthily pinched a handful of his own thigh.

“Hiss—” The pinch was a bit too ruthless, and he couldn’t help but gasp. Jiang Tianji immediately let out a light cough: “Cough. Reporting, Officer, I am currently in a good state.”

The blanket was thin, making his movements quite glaringly obvious. Ling Kongmiao, who had taken in his entire sequence of bizarre behaviors, slowly knitted his brows. After offering a casual acknowledgment, he brought up his device to send a message to He Qian.

– Ling: Dr. He, add a brain scan to his repair process. His behavior is somewhat abnormal.

The response from the other end came exceptionally fast. Although she didn’t know the reasoning behind this request, He Qian clearly trusted Ling Kongmiao’s judgment implicitly.

– He Qian: Understood, Captain Ling.

“Training is suspended. Rest up for these two days first.”

Ling Kongmiao leaned against the table, asking, “Your mission underwent a class transition. Did you notice any anomalies at the time?”

Jiang Tianji reminisced for a moment: “At that time… after splitting up with the captain, I was preparing to rush toward the cafeteria. Suddenly, my device blared an alert, and an extra red dot appeared that hadn’t been on the scanner. By the time I noticed it, it was only two meters away from me.”

“It was quite different from other mutants; energy bullets could only serve to stall it. For a split second, it felt as though I was under some sort of influence, standing frozen in place unable to move. While my consciousness was hazy… I seemed to see a cluster of blue fireflies.”

Jiang Tianji’s tone grew somewhat hesitant: “Once I snapped back to clarity, I managed to escape that disaster, but I was injured later on and drained too much of my physical strength. Beyond that… I didn’t have much consciousness left, and my memory is very blurred.”

The clearest frame in his memory was the image of Ling Kongmiao standing at the absolute highest peak of the ruins, stepping upon the chains to close in on the giant beast… Jiang Tianji’s gaze began to zone out again.

After listening to his words, Ling Kongmiao lowered his eyes as if contemplating something. With both harboring their own distinct thoughts, the silence didn’t feel at all awkward.

“The blue fireflies are one of my abilities.”

Ling Kongmiao suddenly stood up straight and looked down at him, causing Jiang Tianji to feel an unprecedented wave of oppressive weight. “Even though it was a class-transition mission, you all could have utilized energy bullets to stall for time, guaranteeing your own safety while waiting for rescue. That was a feat entirely within your capabilities.”

“Yet you ran wild and lost control. This is the second time you’ve lost control since arriving at the base. The first time was due to another Alpha’s pheromones, and this time was due to a mere level three interference.”

His attitude shifted far too rapidly, leaving Jiang Tianji temporarily unable to process it.

“Top 1% talent in the Federal database, an ultra-premium Alpha, a rare delayed differentiation—you certainly possess the capital and backing to display a brand of childishness and naivety that shouldn’t belong to your age.”

Ling Kongmiao’s tone was entirely flat: “And your backing is indeed sturdy enough. I still have to show due respect to Commander Jiang. Furthermore, my master recently caught wind of a little genius roaming around and specially instructed me to focus my attention on you. There are a total of three core figures in the Federation; you’ve hitched yourself to two of them, leaving only the current Federal Chief, Boris.”

“Yet occasionally, when those two seniors call to inquire about your current status, I, as your officer, truly do not know how to give a decent response. Because logically speaking, even if your talent were placed upon a dog, that dog would likely have already become a rescue dog of a higher rank than you.”

Jiang Tianji opened his mouth, but not a single word managed to come out.

There wasn’t much mockery laced within Ling Kongmiao’s tone, but it sounded exceedingly scathing.

“With the remnant of my spiritual power, any spiritual interference generated against you should have been mitigated by at least two levels. Meaning, your current spiritual strength can manage to run wild even when facing a level one interference—a value where even a five-year-old child could maintain perfect clarity.”

“Sometimes I find myself wondering if you are truly stupid. After all, I can’t find a single reason for you to play dumb.”

Ling Kongmiao folded his arms, the corner of his lips pulling into a slightly mocking arc.

“It can’t possibly be some cliché storyline where you despise your own talent, deliberately hide your true strength, and while holding a basin of gold, insist on bowing your head to pick up a broken stone, stating with deep affection that this is the only one you want.”

“If that’s the case, the situation is troublesome enough that we’d have to seek out a priest in some remote tribe to perform an exorcism.”

Jiang Tianji: “…”

Seeing him lowering his head without uttering a single peep, Ling Kongmiao turned around to pour himself a cup of water, taking a gentle sip.

“Your state of mind is unstable, and your spiritual power cannot be concentrated. Today, if it weren’t for the fact that you had teammates and knew to send out a distress signal, you would already be dead.”

Ling Kongmiao’s tone sank, every single word landing like a heavy boulder crushing into Jiang Tianji’s heart.

“In a rescue mission, the moment you become an uncertain variable, your teammates are effectively carrying a bomb with them on assignment.”

Jiang Tianji’s body went rigid. He murmured in a low voice, “I’m sorry, Officer.”

Ling Kongmiao: “Look up.”

Jiang Tianji instinctively lifted his head, a lingering trace of bewilderment still trapped within his gaze.

Ling Kongmiao locked eyes with him, emphasizing word by word: “Right now, everyone is trying to save you. Do you understand that?”

He heard this sentence with absolute clarity, as if it carried some sort of profound underlying meaning. Jiang Tianji was stunned.

“I…”

But before he could ponder it any further, Ling Kongmiao turned around and walked toward the exit.

“Jiang Tianji, you are very fortunate.”

Before opening the door, Ling Kongmiao spoke to him.

“I have traveled to scenes of anomalies and accidents numerous times, but the vast majority of the time, I remain utterly powerless. Seeing you all return alive… makes me very happy.”

“Since you’ve managed to reclaim a life, treat it as a fresh start. There are still many missions and people… waiting for you.”

He felt that Ling Kongmiao was actually in a rather good mood today; he had uttered words he wouldn’t usually say, and his demeanor carried a touch of gentleness. He was no longer the aloof, high-and-mighty officer, creating an illusion that one could reach out and pull him close.

The silver hair vanished entirely behind the closing door. Jiang Tianji was unable to snap back to reality for a long time. Suddenly, a phrase he had heard a very long time ago flashed into his mind.

“In the future, you will be just like me, going out to save even more people.” Those were the words Jiang Yan had spoken to him.

In truth, for a very long period, Jiang Tianji had only remembered this single sentence.

But now, the scene from back then miraculously surfaced before his eyes.

Many years ago, his home had been minimalist and spotlessly clean, the living room completely devoid of the bizarre and eccentric decorations he would later buy.

A young boy dressed in plush pajamas was cradling his mother’s uniform, staring intently at the emblem pinned upon it, then looking at the people being rescued by Jiang Yan on the television. His eyes were bright and sparkling as he asked.

“Mom, can I also go out to save a lot of people in the future?”

“Want to be a big hero? You can.”

“No.” The boy’s voice was childish and tender: “I always dream that I’m pinned beneath pitch-black stones where I can’t see anything at all. Luckily, Mom always comes, scoops me up, and carries me back home.”

“I hope they can have their own little homes too.”

That day, Jiang Yan had stared at him for a very long time. For the first time, she leaned down to plant a kiss upon his cheek, telling him with absolute solemnity.

“Xiao Tian, in the future, you will be just like me, going out to save even more people.”

She seemed to have added something else, but her voice had been too quiet, and Jiang Tianji could no longer remember it clearly.