# 1473
Chapter 1474: Nightmare of the Future
"Qingyu?" Lin Qiye was stunned. "What about him?"
"The Wang Mian from the future who traveled back in time to the present—this fact should be clear to you."
Lin Qiye nodded. "Yeah... What does that have to do with him?"
"Before coming to this point in time, he went even further into the past and found Yuanshi Tianzun, delivering a warning... telling us to be wary of one member of the [Night Watch] squad. In the future, that person would become this world's nightmare.
That person is An Qingyu."
Hearing this answer, Lin Qiye's brow furrowed even tighter.
In his mind, the scene from back then suddenly surfaced—the elderly Wang Mian sitting in a small boat on the misty sea, blocking the path of the [Night Watch] squad... It was also at that time that the [Night Watch] squad was scattered by him and drifted into the Japanese "Human Enclosure."
Could his target back then have been An Qingyu?
"That's impossible." Lin Qiye shook his head. "He's my deputy squad leader. I know him. How could he possibly become that kind of person?"
"I didn't believe it either, but Wang Mian has no reason to lie to us... Besides, who can say for certain what will happen in the future?"
"Just because of this vague prophecy, the Heavenly Venerable is confining us on the Island?"
"The process behind this is far more complicated than you imagine." Zuo Qing shook his head. "The Heavenly Venerable is not the kind of person who acts on rumors. For a long time, he was investigating An Qingyu... I don't know what the Heavenly Venerable discovered, but he must have found some decisive evidence before taking these actions."
Lin Qiye's brow was tightly knit. "I've known An Qingyu for several years now. If he had a problem, it would have been impossible to hide from me."
"Truly nothing?" Zuo Qing looked into Lin Qiye's eyes. "Then let me ask you—what is his Forbidden Ruins?"
"Of course it's [Only Correct Answer]..."
Lin Qiye stopped mid-sentence.
In his mind, he suddenly recalled that conversation with An Qingyu in the dark sewer:
...So, have you ever looked into what your Forbidden Ruins actually is?
I've looked into it, but... in the existing Forbidden Ruins sequence, mine doesn't seem to exist. There's only a similar one—Sequence 315, [True Sight Eye]—but even that's only similar, with completely different functions.
In other words, this is an entirely new Forbidden Ruins that has never appeared before?
It should be... My Forbidden Ruins isn't in the Forbidden Ruins sequence, and no one has possessed it before. I named it... [Only Correct Answer]!
"..."
[Only Correct Answer] was the name An Qingyu himself gave this ability. What exactly this ability that could analyze and imitate everything was—An Qingyu himself didn't know, let alone Lin Qiye.
"Lin Qiye, your talent is already absolutely top-tier, but think about it—how about An Qingyu?" Zuo Qing stared into his eyes, calmly saying, "You awakened your Forbidden Ruins after joining the Night Watch and completing the Nanda Serpent mission. Yet his current realm is even higher than yours.
He can endlessly dissect 'mysteries' to improve his own power without limit. Do you truly believe his existence is reasonable?"
Lin Qiye opened his mouth, but still said, "This only proves his talent is higher than mine? His Forbidden Ruins is unprecedented? Surely there must be other Forbidden Ruins that weren't recorded in history, right?"
"I understand your point, but in some matters, we have no choice but to be cautious."
Zuo Qing sighed. "In any case, since the Heavenly Venerable left you a chance to leave that island, it shows he still has hope for An Qingyu. Telling you this is also because I hope you'll watch him more closely in the future. You're the captain of [Night Watch]. Your people, you must manage well."
Lin Qiye was silent for a long moment, then nodded:
"I understand."
...
Great Xia.
Chennan Pass.
Two days had passed since the disappearance of the Gods of Great Xia.
"Qingyu... you don't think Qiye is really never coming back, do you?" Jiang Er's voice came from the speaker.
Sitting on the edge of the watchtower on the busy outer wall, An Qingyu gazed silently at the mist-shrouded border in the distance, saying nothing.
After Shao Pingge arrived, he immediately mobilized a large construction team to head to Chennan Pass to rebuild the battered outer wall. At this moment, numerous construction vehicles were operating beside the wall, rumbling the surroundings, yet a large group of figures still stood guard atop the outer wall, gazing toward the distant border, as if waiting for something.
During these two days since the disappearance of the Great Xia gods and the Human Apexes, everyone was deeply worried. Even though Chennan Pass had achieved victory in two consecutive rounds of divine battles, there was no celebratory atmosphere within the pass. Instead, it was oppressively heavy.
An Qingyu didn't answer. He took a silent deep breath, stood up, and walked toward the foot of the wall.
"Where are you going?" Cao Yuan asked immediately upon seeing An Qingyu leave.
"Instead of waiting here doing nothing, I might as well try to find Qiye and the others' location." An Qingyu pushed up his glasses as he walked. "Whether it's time or space, once a change occurs, it will leave traces... Yuanshi Tianzun is searching the whole world for them. Perhaps I can contribute some strength as well."
"Do you have a method?" Cao Yuan's eyes lit up.
"...No."
"..."
"But methods are devised by people, aren't they?" An Qingyu glanced at the distant border. "Having no method now doesn't mean we won't have one later... I need to find a place in this pass to set up a temporary laboratory. I'll start by investigating the soil near the area where they disappeared. I might discover something.
If they don't come back, I'll just stay here researching. After all, with Qiye gone, [Night Watch] can't carry out other missions anyway."
Hearing the determination in An Qingyu's tone, Cao Yuan nodded. "Alright, just let me know if you need any help."
For fighting, Cao Yuan could certainly be useful, but in terms of research and investigation, he was truly helpless.
An Qingyu seemed to have thought of something. He suddenly stopped and turned to look at him.
"Come to think of it, there is something I might need you to do..."
"Go ahead."
"There's something I left at my temporary station in Shangjing City. I need you to retrieve it for me."
"What is it?"
After An Qingyu gave a brief description, Cao Yuan couldn't help but furrow his brow slightly. "Are you sure... that thing can help you?"
"Maybe. Right now, we can't let any possibility go to waste."
"...Alright, I'll go find Captain Shao right now. The war has ended, so applying for a brief departure shouldn't be difficult." Cao Yuan nodded and walked directly toward the command center.