Chapter 55 - 54: Garrison Officer Lin Xuefeng

Chapter 55: Chapter 54: Garrison Officer Lin Xuefeng

Zhou Qian bent down and carefully picked up the text made of Ice Sculpture.

In the slightly warm room, not only did the Ice Sculpture show no signs of melting, but the frosted condensation forming the words remained clear and dreamlike.

Other than an extremely powerful Water Ability User, no one else could possibly achieve this.

The Ice Sculpture was bone-chillingly cold to the touch, further confirming his theory. He stared at the line of text, his gaze suddenly turning sharp:

[Thank you for your Rose — Lin Xuefeng]

"Lin Xuefeng? Garrison Officer Lin?! How do you know him?!"

In that instant, many thoughts flashed through his mind. From Huai Yu living all alone in the Wilderness, to her wealthy and potentially powerful relatives... A myriad of suspicions intertwined and grew.

Huai Yu was somewhat surprised that he was a Garrison Officer.

She wanted to ask about him, but if Lin Xuefeng turned out to be a household name, asking would only expose her ignorance and raise more questions.

After some thought, she finally replied in a low voice, "He passed by here on the night of the rainstorm. He used two hundred points to buy a handful of soybeans from me, then asked if he could have the flower, saying it was very romantic.

"Then, he left this behind."

A rainstorm, the dead of night with no witnesses, and the fugitive with a shriveled head who had inexplicably appeared at the camp’s entrance the next day...

Zhou Qian instantly discarded all other thoughts, his mind solely focused on piecing together this string of clues.

However, even if he wasn’t privy to the affairs of the higher-ups, he knew that if Lin Xuefeng had retired due to injury, he should currently be resting in the Imperial Capital.

In the six years since the Cataclysm, he was the strongest Water Ability User—no, he was the strongest Superpower User, period.

Rumor had it that he had requested his retirement himself.

But why on earth would he travel all the way to Flower City in secret, especially when he was supposedly perfectly fine?

Zhou Qian abruptly raised his head and looked out at the Rose Corridor.

Beyond the Rose Corridor, which protected Flower City like a fortress wall, lay the vast Wilderness that connected to all the surrounding cities of Xia Country.

Retired due to injury... Retired due to injury...

It was just a simple phrase in the news, but it turned out the hero had already made his choice.

To fall in an unknown battle—was this who Lin Xuefeng was?

The group exchanged glances, the atmosphere suddenly growing heavy.

A moment later, Zhou Qian carefully squatted down and placed the small Ice Sculpture back, taking extra care with the angle he set it down.

Huai Yu hesitated before asking cautiously, "Will he... be in danger?"

Zhou Qian shook his head, forcing a slight smile. "No."

Before Huai Yu could ask anything else, he quickly changed the subject.

"Did the Rose Corridor give you that flower?"

If so, her Wood Element Affinity was incredibly high! For so many years, none of them had ever managed to successfully approach it.

Huai Yu nodded. "She’s very pretty. I asked if I could try cutting a branch to bring back for a flower arrangement."

Zhou Qian was rendered speechless.

However, his heart was no longer calm. He finally just waved his hand, and the team tacitly began to file out the door.

Just as he was about to step outside, he suddenly asked, "Where is the ginseng you planted?"

Huai Yu paused for a moment, then stepped aside and pointed to a grayish-white Square Hole Brick on the ground.

There was a row of them. Inside the bricks was black mud, and sprouting from the top was a thin stalk with wispy leaves sticking out. It looked like it had absolutely nothing to do with ginseng.

Everyone’s curious gazes drifted over, which quickly morphed into a much more awkward silence.

Zhou Qian couldn’t help but ask, "This Mutant Value..."

"Twenty-three." Huai Yu said cheerfully, "I bought eight of them for only twenty points."

Twenty-three. It was a number so terrible that even a dog wouldn’t touch it. No wonder this ginseng looked like an inconspicuous weed, or perhaps a deformed carrot seedling.

The group grew even more silent.

Zhou Qian, however, was curious. "Where did you dig up the soil?"

Huai Yu pointed out the door, her voice dropping. "Um... from the base of the Rose Corridor... The soil there might be more fertile..."

Everyone was speechless.

Their tense expressions suddenly relaxed. Zhou Qian let out a long sigh of relief and ordered, "Log the reason."

He then looked at Huai Yu, half-warning and half-resigned.

"The temperament of plants is unpredictable. Don’t do something so bold again just because you have a high affinity. If something really goes wrong, you won’t even have time to call for help."

Huai Yu nodded obediently. Seeming to realize that she was the cause of tonight’s trouble, she replied weakly, "I’m sorry, Zhou Qian. I won’t dig there next time."

Zhou Qian sighed.

After finishing the log, the group filed out of the house one by one.

Huai Yu kept her head down, following closely behind Zhou Qian. Suddenly, a warm hand rested on top of her head and ruffled her hair like one would pet a puppy.

"This ginseng is quite nice.

"But don’t plant it again next time."

Huai Yu thought of the ginseng hidden in the row of Square Hole Bricks on the ground. She then remembered how she had been forced to give all her energy to the Rose Corridor right when she started accelerating the growth of her first ginseng. She let out a heavy sigh.

She felt incredibly exhausted.

Just as she had finished purifying and accelerating the growth of the ginseng in her hand, the alarm had sounded. To pacify the Rose Corridor, she had drained every ounce of her strength.

She hadn’t been forced to kowtow, but draining her body’s energy felt far more exhausting than kowtowing ever would.

Afraid that the ginseng would be discovered, she had hastily shoved it into a Square Hole Brick with some mud before the Defense Army arrived. Now, the crisis had finally passed.

The Rose Corridor was way too greedy, wasn’t it?

Next time, she definitely couldn’t let things happen like this again.

Seeing everyone get back into their vehicles, Huai Yu finally couldn’t help but ask before Zhou Qian opened his car door, "Zhou Qian, about Lin Xuefeng..."

She hesitated, stopping herself mid-sentence.

Zhou Qian seemed to understand and comforted her. "It’s fine. He came here for personal matters; it has nothing to do with you.

"You did a great job keeping this a secret. We will report this confidentially and won’t publicize it, so as not to encourage other retired veterans to follow suit...

"Furthermore...

"Huai Yu, for the six years since the Cataclysm, Lin Xuefeng has always rushed to the front lines and suffered countless injuries. Even though he... retired due to his injuries, he will forever remain a Garrison Officer in all our hearts."

His expression gradually turned somber as he almost muttered to himself, "So he actually likes flowers... If you’re fortunate enough to see him again... If we’re fortunate enough to find him..."

He swallowed the rest of his sentence and simply smiled at Huai Yu. "Kids shouldn’t worry about adult matters, or you’ll stop growing."

Huai Yu looked at herself in confusion, also trying to dispel the heavy feeling in her chest. "I should be around 1.65 meters tall now, right? I don’t need to grow anymore."

Zhou Qian chuckled. "You look so scrawny, like an underage sixteen- or seventeen-year-old. How pitiful! Take good care of yourself and eat better food."

He got into the car and gave one last piece of advice.

"Do not train your abilities, and do not come into contact with any heavy pollution sources. All advancements in a Superpower are accompanied by endless pain.

"Huai Yu, a new life has begun. You must live as long as you possibly can.

"Surviving is the most important thing."