novellk Chapter 676 - Six Hundred and Seventy-Three:
Chapter 676 - Six Hundred and Seventy-Three:
Chapter 676: Chapter Six Hundred and Seventy-Three: "I Want to Become a Star.In the night, the fierce cold wind whipped up snowflakes, and beneath the thick, dense clouds, the stars were hidden from sight, with planes passing by dimly like cold crows.
Su Ming’an was thirty meters above the ground, where dozens of
The old man said he was his best friend.
The old man’s name was...
"Don’t be sad, thank you for being with me at the end," the old man said.
The old man’s expression grew more and more composed as his profound eyes looked up at the azure sky, as if trying to etch the beauty of this splendid spring day securely into his memory.
Such a splendid spring day, one he would no longer see.
"Spring will come," the old man muttered to himself.
"Spring?" Lin Guang repeated, "Has it come? Will it come?"
Why couldn’t he see spring, even after decades?
"Tick-tock," "Tick-tock," "Tick-tock," the wall clock sounded softly.
Four o’clock, five o’clock, six o’clock...
"Whoosh—" Suddenly, the night wind rose sharply, and the buds that had been on the verge of blooming exploded into life at that moment; a myriad of petals awoke from the stillness of death, stretching open lavishly to bask in the setting sun.
"Please don’t die, can you?" Lin Guang said.
He faintly felt he was about to lose again, and the pain of that loss clung to him like an incessant dampness.
The old man smiled for a moment, then suddenly whispered softly:
"Actually, I don’t want to die either..."
"I want to keep walking with you, I want to see the real spring day, I want to live for a very, very long time, I want to drive out the enemy with my own hands..."
"But I don’t have a better ending anymore..."
"Tick-tock," "Tick-tock," "Tick-tock."
The clock’s ticking marked the evening hours: seven o’clock, eight o’clock, nine o’clock...
The leaves on the branches grew abundantly in an instant, and in the next moment, they changed from green to gold, dyed a brilliant golden hue—like gingko trees with golden butterflies, the color seemed to tear through the veil of night as if heralding another sunrise.
Ten o’clock.
Eleven o’clock.
This day’s time felt like a rehearsal from spring leaping to winter; Lin Guang hadn’t even managed to brush off the gingko leaves from the old man’s shoulder yet.
Time in dreams raced by, ticking away swiftly; no one could stand forever in the river of time.
"You..." Lin Guang said softly.
But no one responded.
"..." Lin Guang didn’t move.
Drooping silver hair swept the butterflies flying by; the old man’s head dropped powerlessly, the light in his eyes lingering until the very end, until his eyelids closed.
He departed beneath the gingko tree, the rose petals in his hair withering away.
Lin Guang remained still, in the position of brushing off the gingko leaves from the old man, frozen in place.
Until he completely lost his strength and collapsed next to the old man. At that moment, he suddenly experienced a piercing sorrow, his throat as dry as a desert.
This day was the first year of the Catastrophe, December 31st, midnight.
—Dawn System initiated, password "L–I–G–H–T". A world steps into a new century.
The deceased old man was named "Yasa Acto".
He died after pouring the World Origin into the Dawn System, his life force exhausted, at the young age of twenty.
"Meow".
A cat’s cry.
Lin Guang turned his head in a daze, his vision blurred, and through his tears he saw a small black cat approaching him.
This was the old man’s cat.
The black cat carried a piece of paper in its mouth, upon which were written a few small characters "To Lin Guang", a handwriting deeply familiar to him.
He slowly unfolded the paper.
[Lin Guang, after my death, don’t rush to your own.]
The first thing that caught his eye were these words.
Lin Guang stared blankly, setting down the cake knife he had just picked up.
With a "clang," he lost his strength and slumped to the ground.
[I have many things I wanted to tell you, but never had the chance, and in the end, you became more and more paranoid. I want you to know that the development of the world to this state of despair was not your fault; it was mine.]
[In the past time, I tried everything to the best of my ability, yet I did not welcome a good ending. I know that after my death, you would surely choose suicide, and forcing you to live every second would be a torment to you. I respect all your choices.]
[But before you meet death, please arrange the preconditions for the Dawn System. The Dawn System is our only hope of protecting the world.]
[You are a good person; there is no need to feel guilty.]
[I have never disdained you; you are my dearest friend.]
[Finally, I will write a poem for you that I have seen.]
["I want to live forever."]
["I want to become a star."]
["Let my love twinkle in the sky,"]
["Let my soul wander in the universe."]
["I want to live forever,"]
["I want to become a great tree, so all people in the world can see my existence,"]
["and when night falls, let the moon light me up..."]
[That’s it.]
[Although young and full of regrets, it’s the end.]
[Goodbye, good night.]
Lin Guang clenched the letter tightly.
In front of his eyes, the dazzling gingko danced like butterflies, beautiful as if in a dream, like a golden storm.
In the night, the gingko tree rustled as if a young man in a white coat lingered among the leaves, gazing at the world for a moment, smiling as he left.
...
Lin Guang suddenly awoke.
He gasped violently in the rehabilitation pod, his eyes moist, as the bright room lights stabbed into his eyes. This memory-filled dream had too great an impact on him.
He was about to stand up when he suddenly saw the figure of Lewis outside the room door.
Seeing Lewis, he felt a surge of happiness.
—Wait, why was Lewis here?
Before he could comprehend, he heard the intense roar of an explosion; in an instant, flames engulfed the room’s interior.
"Boom—!!!"