Chapter 1224: Stars
"You could say that." The thin, dark-skinned man nodded. "If the plan succeeds, it's a 'pincer attack from within and without.' If it doesn't work…"
"I understand." Zhang Shan nodded. "If it doesn't work… at least this city has done its best."
"Haha…" The man let out a dry chuckle. "Dashan, if you really do make it to the very end, what do you want to do?"
"What I want to do… I…" Zhang Shan had only just received this news, so of course he hadn't yet thought about where he would go from there.
"We're soldiers." The man continued. "How about trying the tactic 'catch the king first'? Try to snipe the enemy leader."
Zhang Shan thought it over for a moment. The leader here… wasn't that Tianlong and Qinglong?
"Get some rest early." The man changed the subject. "Now that you know the lie I told, remember to keep it a secret for me."
Zhang Shan took a deep breath after hearing this, lowered his head, and looked at the corpses at his feet.
Corpses were indeed a rather diverse thing. Their appearances were bizarre—some were still soft, others already stiff; some looked lifelike, while others were ulcerated and oozing pus.
But no matter their state, piled up together here, anyone who saw them would only call them by the same name—corpses.
If they couldn't be resurrected, whether ulcerated and oozing or lifelike, whether shattered into pieces or unrecognizable, they would ultimately be regarded as the same kind of rotting flesh.
They couldn't escape, couldn't flee. They came from all corners of the land, but now they were casually gathered together, waiting to rot in the same way, then turn into the same bleached bones.
"Old Nie… Damn it, let's do it." Zhang Shan muttered through gritted teeth. "So annoying… shit…"
"Why can't you kick that habit of cursing?" the man asked with a smile.
"Old Nie, let me ask you—when I leave… will you notify me in advance?" Zhang Shan asked.
"No." The man shook his head. "What, am I supposed to have a tearful farewell with you, a grown man?"
"At least…" Zhang Shan fell silent for a moment. "Damn it, at least let me have some psychological preparation, okay?"
"You've been discharged before too." The man reached out and patted Zhang Shan on the shoulder. "It's roughly the same principle. Comrades-in-arms who fight side by side every day will one day go their separate ways, maybe never to see each other again in this life. In situations like this, we men can't cry. If we have to cry, it's best to do it secretly, under the covers."
"Damn it…" Zhang Shan gritted his teeth. "I…"
The man thought Zhang Shan was about to say something reluctant to part with, but he didn't expect Zhang Shan to hold back for a long time, then finally say flatly: "Old Nie, I'm afraid I won't have another chance to say this later. I lied too."
"Oh?" The man thought for a moment. "What kind of lie could a rough guy like you tell?"
Zhang Shan reached up and touched his own buzz cut, similar to the other man's, and replied: "I said I'm used to this haircut because I spent too much time in the military…"
"Yeah." The man looked at him.
"But actually, it's also because I spent a long time in prison." Zhang Shan gave a bitter smile. "Before I came here, I wasn't 'just discharged' at all. I had only been out of prison for a few months."
"Haha, damn it…" The man couldn't help but laugh when he heard this lie. "I thought it was something huge… Served time? So what?"
Zhang Shan blinked, thinking he hadn't made himself clear: "Are you deaf? I committed a crime, damn it…"
"You committed a crime in the past, it's not like you enjoy committing crimes." The man waved his hand. "We've fought side by side for so many years. Do I still need to re-evaluate whether you're a good person based on your past?"
"Aren't you even going to ask me why I committed the crime?" Zhang Shan frowned.
"If you wanted to say it, you would have said it long ago." The man shook his head. "Who in this world has never made a mistake?"
Zhang Shan heard this and let out a light laugh, his mood slightly complicated.
"Dashan, I've already turned the page on you. You should turn the page in your heart too, as soon as possible."
The man slowly leaned back, eventually lying down on the pile of corpses.
He slightly opened his eyes and looked up at the sky, but that night in "Whirlpool City," the stars still couldn't be seen.
The soldiers barely surviving throughout the entire city were also like stars, flickering with a light that no one could see.
But if no one can see a star's light… can it still be called a star?
Zhang Shan's eyes flickered. He felt his body begin to ascend and shuttle through time, starting from a few years ago in "Whirlpool City."
He passed through dim rooms, walked through desolate streets, arrived at a hell of slaughter, and saw a school at sunset.
When he opened his eyes again, he was faced with a long corridor.
On both sides, many "Zodiacs" stood there, watching him with detached expressions.
"Zhang Shan." Chu Tianqiu called out from behind. "Are you alright?"
Zhang Shan turned around, hesitantly looking at Chu Tianqiu's face. After a long pause, he asked tentatively: "Chu… Tianqiu?"
Hearing those three words, Chu Tianqiu slowly furrowed his brow and said: "The way you say that… it's like you forgot my name."
Zhang Shan felt that a lot of memories had indeed been crammed into his mind. Though those memories flashed by in an instant, it felt as if he had actually lived through many years.
Seeing Chu Tianqiu at a time like this, he had almost really forgotten his name.
This dazed feeling… as time went on, would it happen to every "participant" on the "train"?
"I remember everything…" Zhang Shan said with a somewhat wooden expression. "Someone is driving all of this forward…"
Zhang Shan shook his head hard, feeling his brain was still somewhat chaotic. Ninety percent of the memories had already surfaced in his mind, but there were still some fragmentary memories that he couldn't figure out which year they belonged to.
"What are you referring to…?" Chu Tianqiu asked.
"Everything we're experiencing now… is the result of countless people's efforts…" Zhang Shan said. "Someone secretly united the people of the entire 'Taoyuan' right under Qinglong and Tianlong's noses."
Chu Tianqiu narrowed his eyes, feeling he already knew who that person was.
"That White Sheep…" Zhang Shan turned his head to look at Ground Rat. "Among the 'Zodiacs,' there was a White Sheep… Where is he?"
"Commander…" Ground Rat said with a half-smile. "Your memories are back, but your reactions are a bit slow after all… What White Sheep is there now?"
"Huh…?"
Chu Tianqiu shook his head from the side: "It used to be the White Sheep, but now it's Qi Xia."
"Qi Xia…" Zhang Shan felt like he was gradually starting to piece everything together.
"So… do you remember what you're supposed to do here?" Chu Tianqiu asked again.