# 1386
Chapter 1387: Rain's Birth
"Qiye has been taken out of the boundary by Bai Ze!"
Baili Pangpang squinted into the distance. When he saw the two figures vanish behind the aurora, he immediately spoke up.
An Qingyu's brow furrowed tightly. After a moment of hesitation, he gritted his teeth and stuffed the Black Coffin into Baili Pangpang's hands. "I'll go take a look. Don't move from here!"
An Qingyu's figure turned into a streak of light and shot forward, but before he could fly far, cracking sounds rang out from the pale cyan aurora.
Dense cracks began spreading across this world. Cities and rivers were fading at a visible rate, as if a dream bubble was quietly shattering.
An Qingyu stopped in mid-air, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings as he murmured:
"The [Virtual Reconstruction] world... is about to collapse..."
...
Torrential rain poured down from the clouds.
Soaked through, Tang Mingxuan held the young beast in his arms and walked step by step down the empty street. Behind him, the world was gradually collapsing—buildings on both sides dissolved like faded illustrations, fading away into nothing. Yet Tang Mingxuan seemed utterly oblivious to it all.
He walked through the puddles, eyes fixed on the distant sky, brow furrowed tightly...
Suddenly, a streak of brilliant white light streaked across the aurora boundary, flying directly toward Tang Mingxuan.
The moment it appeared, the flooding on the streets seemed guided by some invisible force, rapidly receding into the nearly dry riverbed. The heavy rain visibly diminished, and a faint ray of sunlight pierced through the thick clouds...
At this, Tang Mingxuan relaxed, his entire being letting go. A bitter smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
In the drizzling rain, Bai Ze stepped onto the wet ground, stopping slowly before Tang Mingxuan. Its glazed eyes had returned to normal, the earlier madness and frenzy nowhere to be seen.
"Sorry, Captain Tang Mingxuan..." Bai Ze spoke with a face full of regret.
"...I should be the one apologizing—it was my failure to protect you all properly." Tang Mingxuan smiled wryly, shaking his head as he passed the young beast to Bai Ze. "Take good care of it. After this incident ends, I probably won't be able to stay on as captain of the 007 Squad anymore... I'll be leaving Huanghai for a while."
Tang Mingxuan watched the young beast perched on Bai Ze's head, curiously playing with its horns. In that moment,恍惚中 he seemed to glimpse his wife and daughter, who had long departed from him.
He was silent for a moment, then tenderness surfaced in his eyes. "However... I don't regret it."
Bai Ze carried the young beast on its back, its gaze toward Tang Mingxuan filled with complex emotions. It bent its forelegs, lowering its head.
"If not for your years of shelter and protection, my Bai Ze lineage would surely have perished from this world. You are our eternal benefactor...
May I ask you to name it?"
Name it?
Tang Mingxuan stared at the adorable young beast with its round eyes atop Bai Ze's head, momentarily stunned.
The drizzling rain rippled across puddles. Tang Mingxuan lifted his gaze to the dispersing rain clouds above, speaking softly:
"Because of this little one's birth, Huanghai City experienced the heaviest rain in a century... Let's call it 'Rain's Birth'."
The moment the words fell, both Tang Mingxuan and Bai Ze's forms began to fade within the dissolving world, gradually turning into a vast expanse of white light before vanishing entirely...
...
Island.
On the eastern reefs.
Rolling waves crashed against the rocky outcrops, sending up white spray. A delicate young man in a white shirt with heavy headphones around his neck sat motionless at the water's edge, listening to the rhythm of the tides.
Tang Yusheng remained unaware of the saltwater soaking his clothes, his gaze fixed on the Sky-Piercer Halberd standing beside him in the sea. He slowly closed his eyes...
"Mother..."
His whisper dissolved into the crashing waves, twin streams of tears tracing down his face and merging with the white surf.
After a long while, he let out a sigh, rose from the reef, and vanished into the waves.
...
"Qiye!?"
"Qiye!!!"
In the devastated valley, Baili Pangpang and the others clustered around the unconscious Lin Qiye, calling out anxiously.
"Gun-ge, what's wrong with Qiye?" An Qingyu turned to the approaching Li Kengqiang, his expression grave.
Li Kengqiang studied the unconscious form with concern. "This kid... I specifically told him not to go beyond the boundary. Why does he have to be so reckless?"
"What exactly is 'beyond the boundary'?"
Li Kengqiang considered the question. "To put it simply—my [Virtual Reconstruction] projects my memories into your consciousness, allowing your minds to move freely within that space. But human consciousness is intricate. Crossing the boundary means breaking through the safety limits I've established, pushing directly into the edge zones of consciousness... Once you enter there, getting out isn't easy."
"The edge zones of consciousness?" An Qingyu frowned. "What would be the consequences?"
Li Kengqiang glanced at Lin Qiye with a complicated expression. "If luck fails you... you might directly end up as a vegetable."
Hearing this, Baili Pangpang and the others felt their hearts sink.
An Qingyu's frown deepened. He gritted his teeth, pulled out a set of surgical instruments from his chest, and strode directly toward the unconscious Lin Qiye.
"What are you doing?" Li Kengqiang questioned.
"I have some expertise in brain structure. I want to try performing a craniotomy—maybe I can wake him up..." An Qingyu stated firmly.
Cao Yuan, newly emerged from his berserk state, winced. He试探性地 raised a hand. "Qingyu, maybe reconsider?"
Before An Qingyu could respond further, Lin Qiye's eyes snapped open. He sat up sharply, gasping like a drowning man, his face pale and ashen.
Lin Qiye's sudden revival startled everyone, then relief washed over them!
"Qingyu! Your method actually worked—Qiye was scared awake!" Baili Pangpang started applauding.
An Qingyu: ...
"Qiye, are you alright?" Jiang Er drifted to his side, worry evident in her voice.
Lin Qiye shook his heavy head. After a long while, he spoke hoarsely: "It feels like I had a dream... but I can't remember the content..."
"The important thing is you're back, you're back!"
Li Kengqiang finally let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. If Lin Qiye had truly fallen into a coma because of [Virtual Reconstruction], he didn't know how he'd explain it to General Huo...
Lin Qiye took a moment to compose himself. His gaze swept across the surroundings:
"How did we come back? Has [Virtual Reconstruction] ended?"
"It's over." Returning to this topic, Li Kengqiang's gaze toward them carried a complicated mix of emotions. "Huaihai City escaped disaster. Bai Ze not only gave birth successfully but also returned to its normal state... You've all done remarkable work."
Li Kengqiang paused, glancing toward the island's eastern side, and sighed deeply.
"If only back then... we could have been like you..."