Chapter 297: "Reappearance"

Bang!

Han Meng got into the back seat of the car and closed the door with a bang.

"Are there any survivors?" Tan Xin asked, her gaze sweeping over the corpses littering the ground outside the window.

"None of those involved in the charcoal trade survived."

"What about Yan Shang?"

"I don't know," Han Meng paused, "but he won't survive either."

Tan Xin raised an eyebrow but didn't press for details. Instead, his gaze followed the figure in the gray padded jacket walking away alone. "Who is he?" he asked.

Han Meng was silent for a long time. "He's just an innocent child," he finally said.

Zhao Yi was, after all, a 'fusionist' and a target for the law enforcers to eliminate. Han Meng emphasized "innocent" hoping Tan Xin would spare him.

Tan Xin's gaze returned from Zhao Yi's retreating figure. He spoke calmly:

"Drive."

As the car started moving, Han Meng finally felt his tension ease.

"How was your experience at the Aurora Base?"

Hearing Tan Xin's question, Han Meng fell silent. Images of people disfigured by human experimentation and Dr. Yi's hysterical roars flashed through his mind. After a long pause, he finally spoke:

"I... saw despair."

"Despair," Tan Xin nodded, his eyes on the myriad buildings outside the window. "We've never truly had peace and stability. The smoke from chimneys and kites beneath the aurora merely made us forget the world's true nature... Now, with the aurora fading, it's time to wake from this beautiful dream."

"Is Aurora City... truly beyond saving?" Han Meng's brows furrowed.

"Yes, and no."

Amidst Han Meng's puzzled gaze, Tan Xin spoke again. "In the early days of the Great Cataclysm, a nuclear bomb struck this land, turning tens of millions of lives into nothing. Their souls were captured by a nascent magnetic field, transforming into the aurora and merging with it... They created an unprecedentedly powerful monarch, a guardian deity beneath the aurora."

"Are you referring to the birth of the Aurora Sovereign?"

"Exactly."

"What does this have to do with saving Aurora City?" Han Meng frowned. "Shouldn't the way to save Aurora City be to extend the Aurora Sovereign's life?"

"With our current technology, extending his life is impossible. The only one who can extend his life is himself."

"What do you mean?"

Tan Xin was silent for a moment, then slowly uttered four words: "Beyond Rank Nine."

Han Meng was stunned. "Beyond Rank Nine? Rank Ten? Is that truly possible?"

"I don't know... Throughout history, no one has ever reached that step. But if that rank truly exists, it is this domain's last hope."

"But the Aurora Sovereign is already dying of old age... How can he possibly step beyond Rank Nine?"

"I just told you."

Han Meng didn't grasp Tan Xin's meaning at first, but then it clicked. "The birth of the Aurora Sovereign... Don't tell me you're planning to sacrifice three million citizens of Aurora City to let their souls merge into the Aurora Sovereign again??"

"Tens of millions of souls created a Rank Nine Aurora Sovereign. Another three million souls... perhaps that offers a slim chance to unlock that door."

"Are you insane?!"

Han Meng, usually calm and composed, now looked horrified. "So those explosives in the base are meant to destroy Aurora City?! But what's the point? You'd kill everyone in Aurora City, and even if you saved the Aurora Sovereign, the Aurora Domain would cease to exist!"

Tan Xin shook his head. "You're mistaken. As long as the Aurora Sovereign lives, the Aurora Domain will exist. Perhaps in three hundred years, a new city will rise from these ruins, perhaps there will be new Seven Districts or Nine Districts. As long as the aurora never fades, Aurora City will be eternal. This is how the current Aurora City came to be."

Han Meng was stunned. He sat sideways in the back seat, the streets on either side blurring past him. He didn't know how much time had passed before he shook his head again:

"But it's uncertain if 'beyond Rank Nine' even exists, and it's uncertain if sacrificing these three million people will allow the Aurora Sovereign to take that step... What makes you so sure this will succeed?"

"The Aurora Base has calculated the probability of this plan's successful implementation to be less than 0.001%."

"Then why are you still...?"

"Seeking a way out amidst slim possibilities—that's what humanity does."

Han Meng opened his mouth, but found no words to refute. He silently settled back into his seat, motionless as a statue.

"...So, this is the 'Hand of Redemption' plan?"

"No."

Tan Xin shook his head. "This plan is called 'Reemergence.' It's about recreating the day the aurora was born, abandoning humanity and morality, wagering three million lives for a slim chance of the Aurora Sovereign's survival... This is the plan the Aurora Base is currently committed to."

Han Meng paused, startled.

"Then what is the 'Hand of Redemption'?"

Tan Xin turned to look at Han Meng, a faint smile appearing on his lips:

"Have you ever heard a record?"

The car slowly came to a halt in front of the elevator at the Aurora Base.

Tan Xin opened the door and stepped out. Eight silver patterns silently shimmered on the hem of his black trench coat. He adjusted his collar and calmly gazed at the deep passage leading underground.

"Wait for me here."

Hearing this, Han Meng didn't follow but stood quietly by the car, waiting.

Tan Xin stepped into the elevator, pressed the button, and slowly descended into the depths of the earth.

"Deputy Chief Tan Xin."

"Good day, Deputy Chief."

The metal doors of the elevator opened, and the law enforcement officers guarding nearby immediately greeted him respectfully as he stepped out. After verifying the access code, he passed through layer after layer of checkpoints, heading directly towards the deepest part of the base.

Finally, he reached the last checkpoint leading to the fourth level.

By the door, a red-haired woman in a white shirt and tie slowly looked up. Seeing Tan Xin approach, her eyes narrowed slightly.

"What kind of look is that?" Tan Xin asked, feeling a bit awkward under her scrutiny.

"...Nothing," the red-haired woman said, closing the book in her hand. "I just wanted to confirm it was really you."

Tan Xin recalled the destroyed artifact on the third level and mused, "Red Heart Six was here? And he even transformed to look like me?"

"You weren't actually fooled by him, were you?"

Tan Xin's lips involuntarily curved upwards, a hint of relaxation replacing his previously grim expression. "Are all of you from the Asura Path so thick-skinned?"

"Tan Xin, mind your tone and attitude towards your superior," the red-haired woman said coldly.

"My apologies, esteemed Chief Red Sleeve."

The red-haired woman looked at him. The anger in her eyes gradually faded, replaced by a complex emotion.

"Are you truly sure about this?"

"Yes."

"...Good," the red-haired woman nodded, slowly rising from her seat. She walked directly out of the passage and stopped beside Tan Xin.

"You may go... I'll handle the rest."