The lights were still dim, but the night sky suddenly began to drizzle. Old Yu's house was shrouded in the cold wind and rain.
Old Yu lay quietly on the bed in the room, as if he had fallen asleep. His wrinkled face looked like a piece of bark that had been gnawed by wind and rain for many years under the light. Ding Meng silently stared at his face, lost in thought.
Old Yu wasn't really asleep. In Ding Meng's field of vision, Old Yu's neck and temple each had an inconspicuous bruise. Clearly, he had been knocked unconscious by the black-clothed man. Fortunately, he wasn't seriously injured.
However, he was an old man with one foot in the grave. He had experienced too much in his life and couldn't withstand any more torment. It was already fortunate that he was able to keep his life.
The only thing Ding Meng felt at this moment was gratitude. Ever since he came to planet TT12, Old Yu was the only person who didn't care about his identity and helped him selflessly. Ding Meng could never forget those who helped him without asking for anything in return.
Xiao Si, Old Yu, Yu Man, Miss Qu, Teacher Zhao … and many, many more people. Ding Meng suddenly felt that he was actually very lucky. Only now did he truly realize that it was easy for a person to die, but difficult to live on. Moreover, relying on oneself alone wasn't enough.
The purpose of living wasn't necessarily to do those so-called "meaningful" things, but he would definitely do his best to repay those who helped him.
Thinking of this, Ding Meng moved the box of Deca nutrient solution that had a capacity of 3000 + to his bedside. He hadn't used up too much of it during this period of cultivation. With his current physical fitness and Origin Energy strength, his desire for nutrient solutions wasn't as urgent as it was on Planet Dome. There were about 120 vials of nutrient solution left in the box, enough for Old Yu to use for a long time.
After doing all this, Ding Meng got up and walked out the door. Xiao Qiu couldn't help but ask, "Where are you going?"
Ding Meng didn't even turn his head. "Take care of Old Yu."
Xiao Qiu realized that he was preparing to leave. "Ding Meng, can I … go with you?"
Ding Meng stopped. "Oh?"
Xiao Qiu was a little timid. "I … I have nowhere to go. If I stay, I'm afraid … I'll implicate Old Yu."
Ding Meng sighed inwardly. He had decided to leave because he was afraid that he would implicate Old Yu. Although Xiao Qiu was not easy to get along with, he was not a bad person. He was also aware of the stakes involved.
Little Rascal suddenly said, "Ding Meng, you can actually take her with you. She's quite powerful, so she won't be a burden to you. Also, you can ask her what kind of cultivation method she's using in the future. It might be beneficial to you."
Ding Meng nodded. What Little Rascal said made sense, but more than that, it was because he had a special feeling for workers. Xiao Qiu's situation was probably similar to Xiao Si's, so he could not bring himself to reject Little Rascal.
He could be said to be merciless to his enemies, but he could not harden his heart to the people around him. He could only nod. "Then let's go together."
The two of them walked out of the courtyard. Ding Meng looked longingly at the small wooden hut beside him. Although this wooden hut was converted from a cow pen, it was still personally built by Old Yu. Xiao Qiu's wooden hut was the same.
Although the wooden hut was simple and even a little ugly, Ding Meng once felt warmth and care from it. It was condensed from the blood, sweat, and tears of others. It was no longer as simple as a wooden hut. It was a trace of Ding Meng's memories and thoughts.
Old Yu, if I'm still alive in the future, I'll definitely come back to see you, Ding Meng silently said in his heart.
Another round of night rain came. The lights in the courtyard suddenly blurred again. Ding Meng and Little Rascal's figures disappeared into the depths of the cold rain.
On the other side of the curtain of rain, a faint dot of light streaked across the sky. It passed through the pouring rain and slowly floated up along the river. Not long after, the dot of light suddenly grew bigger and turned into a ball of light. It was a small transport ship called Mystic Bird, but there was no sign on the hull of the ship.
Mystic Bird's undercarriage was already open, and it slowly landed in the middle of the field. After the hatch opened, a group of fully-armed soldiers jumped out with all kinds of guns.
These guns had a common characteristic, and that was that when the left side of the gun was pulled open, what was revealed was not the barrel but a small blue screen. On the screen was a simple scan. This was clearly a mini version of a detection device.
The leader of the team was wearing a pair of black goggles. He directed a group of people to search the field. Unfortunately, they could not find anything because a soldier had already come up to report.
"Sir, other than that house, there are no signs of human life in the vicinity."
The leader was clearly thinking. "Is there an error in the coordinates?"
The soldier shook his head. "There is no error. We carried out a precise landing according to the signal provided by Commander Salazar."
The leader decisively turned on his wristwatch and raised the screen. The image of a handsome officer in uniform appeared on the screen. This person was none other than Jia Hua.
The Sea Heaven's Pole Island starship did not dare to enter the Empire's star sector. It was still in space. The starship only sent out ordinary civilian cargo ships with the Empire's logo on the outside. They then used the cargo ships to load the Mystic Bird transport ships and used the method of layer by layer to avoid the detection of the space station and sneak into planet TT12.
They only dared to do this on peripheral planets. If it was really the central planet of the Empire's core star sector, Jia Hua would not dare to come even if he had ten thousand guts. The instantaneous communication between the planet and the starship in space also relied on quantum transmission. This was actually very risky because it would alert the space station if it took too long.
Jia Hua naturally attached great importance to the leader turning on quantum communication. He even frowned. "Can't find anyone?"
"Yes!" The leader replied affirmatively.
Jia Hua was silent for a long time before he gave the order in a dignified tone. "Turn on the ion scanner and control the range to one kilometer. Search the area and see if you can find the body."
His words did not have any special meaning. They were similar to normal orders, but the leader's heart was in turmoil. What did he mean by looking for the body?
It was definitely not looking for Ding Meng's body, but Commander Salazar's body.
Commander Salazar was the man in black from before. He was a light-speed Origin Energy Warrior. If all the Origin Energy Warriors were killed by the target, then this group of Origin Energy Warriors was undoubtedly here to deliver food.
Although he was surprised, the order still had to be carried out. The five bodies were placed at the leader's feet in less than ten minutes. The most conspicuous of them was the headless body, but the leader still recognized who it was.
The night rain was heavy, and the blood of the body had long flowed out. It mixed with a large amount of mud and weeds, and the body looked dirty and messy. One could imagine how tragic Commander Salazar's death must have been.
The leader's whole body was cold, but he still had to do what he had to do. After a simple examination of the body's wounds, he had to turn on his wrist device again to report.
"It is confirmed that Commander Salazar's time of death was one hour and twenty-two minutes ago."
Jia Hua, who was on the starship, obviously saw the clear image. His face did not look good. This result was beyond their expectations. According to the original plan, Salazar had landed on planet TT12 three days ago and sent a signal after arriving at Ding Meng's specific coordinates.
The Sea Heaven's Pole Island also sent people to pick him up. After subduing Ding Meng, he immediately returned on the Mystic Bird and finally met up with Jia Hua. The mission was completed.
However, no one expected things to turn out like this. It seemed that Salazar did not subdue Ding Meng. Instead, he was "subdued" by Ding Meng, and in such a miserable way. It was enough to show that this Ding Meng's methods were cruel. He did not leave any chance of survival.
"Did you find the head?" Jia Hua finally spoke.
The leader could only shake his head. "No, it was probably taken away by the target."
Jia Hua immediately refuted him. "It is impossible for him to carry a head around and arouse suspicion. It is very likely that he threw the head into the river and washed it away."
The leader immediately said, "The target does not have any means of transportation. He should not have run far. If we act now, we can definitely catch up with him."
Jia Hua shook his head. "Verdant Tarn Town is in front of you. If you go any further, you will alarm the locals. We are taking a risk. At this stage, we cannot make any more noise. Besides, if he can kill Salazar, he can definitely kill you. If we catch up with him, we will just die in vain."
The leader seemed unwilling. "There is still a living person in the house over there. He is the target's refugee lodging family. The head of the household is surnamed Yu. Should we bring the head of the household back?
He may know some clues. "
Jia Hua was silent for a long time before he waved his hand. "No."
"Not bring him back?" The leader did not seem to understand.
Jia Hua muttered, "If the head of the household knew something about the target, he should not continue to stay in the house at this time. Instead, he should have escaped with the target or been taken away by the target. The head of the household obviously does not know."
This analysis was undoubtedly very reasonable. This was also Ding Meng's intention. Old Yu would only be safe if he left here. If he really stayed, it would cause endless trouble.
The leader bowed his head and said, "Sir, what should we do next?
Please give us instructions. "
Jia Hua said lightly, "The operation is over. Return to the Sea Sky Pole Island immediately."
The leader did not have time to be surprised before the communication was cut off. Of course, he would not see the situation on the starship at this moment.
Jia Hua's face turned green after he hung up. Faiers looked at him with a malicious smile. This operation plan was planned by Jia Hua, but Faiers did not agree. For a captain with rich sailing experience, this kind of plan was completely without knowing the depth of the enemy's strength. To put it bluntly, it was risking his life. This was completely different from Chu Yifeng's style of "having it in the bag".
But now that things had turned out like this, Fels could not laugh at him. He could only sigh. "Let Master Feng make the decision."
Jia Hua could not help but ask, "What does Master Feng mean now?"
Fels looked at him. "Master Feng has already given Miss Bing full authority to deal with this Ding Meng. Just wait for Miss Bing to give the order. We just need to cooperate."
"What plan does Miss Bing have?" Jia Hua was still not satisfied. If this kind of low-level operation could fail, no one would be satisfied.
Faiers shrugged his shoulders. "That's not something I can know. Just follow orders."
"That is the only way," Jia Hua said bitterly.
In his subconscious, although Miss Bing was not weak, she might not be stronger than him in terms of planning, judging, and commanding on the spot. After all, she was a woman. Some flaws and weaknesses were innate, but men did not have these problems.
But when he thought of Miss Bing's beautiful face, Jia Hua's gaze became a little dazed.