Chapter 106 That Touch of Red

```

"Gao Yuan, you can't die, you still have to marry me. If you die, I'm going to find you down there, anyway, don't you dare think you can get rid of me."

"Gao, you scumbag, can you wake up already? I'm exhausted. Why are you so heavy? Stop slacking off on the stretcher; I really want to throw you down to see if you'll get up."

"Are you Yu Shunzhou?"

"Yeah, what's it to you?"

"Nothing, I just want to say, it's good to have a friend like you. You're a real pal to Gao Yuan. I've heard about Gao Yuan for a while but hadn't met him. Besides, Gao Yuan saved everyone tonight, so, of course, I hope he can survive, but saving just him means many others might die. For the others, what you're doing is..."

"What do I care about the others? Gao Yuan is the only friend I have left. Even if I could exchange the whole world for Gao Yuan's survival, I'd find it worthwhile. You can say I'm selfish, I don't care. I have only one principle: if I'm going to die, why should I leave this world in good shape?"

"You... Do you not care that hundreds of thousands of people died in the two Stonegate shelters?"

"Don't twist words and don't morally blackmail me. The entire annihilation of the two Stonegate shelters has nothing to do with me, does it? Does it have anything to do with Gao Yuan? It was the Serpent People's attack after Xinghe's arrival that caused it. Major sacrifices were made to protect Xinghe, but how does that relate to Gao Yuan and me? You were protecting Xinghe, not the medicine for Gao Yuan. Is Xinghe not fine now? Moreover, it was Xinghe who voluntarily offered the medicine to Gao Yuan, so whom can you blame?"

"Yu Shunzhou, right? Hello, I'm Panxin, 'new' as in 'new and old,' and he is Li Jingang. Everything is past now, let's not bring it up again. Actually, King Kong isn't a bad guy; don't hold it against him."

"Brother Pan, hello. Actually, I really admire you guys. I'm not heartless, I know you all are heroes and that you have no selfish motives. But Gao Yuan is my brother, I'm not as noble as you are. If I follow your nobility, he dies. I can't just watch him die."

"Mm-hm, Gao Yuan is lucky to have a brother like you. It's good to speak openly; just don't fight over this in the future."

"Brother Pan, once we reach the base, you won't report me, will you? Would I be in a lot of trouble?"

"We'll definitely have to report it as it is, but don't worry. It's all Xinghe's decision, and if he has said it, you'll be fine."

"Wei Dong, I knew you were here, so I came looking for you. It's great you're okay, do you have any food?"

"What happened? How's Gao Yuan? I'll get you some food. Has something happened to the shelter?"

Voices of people talking, dogs barking, Luo Xingyu's constant chatter, Yu Shunzhou arguing with someone, and Li Changfeng's sobs and cries.

Gao Yuan could hear everything, but he couldn't open his mouth, couldn't open his eyes, couldn't even feel his breath.

It was still a severe pain, deep into the bone marrow, but he couldn't faint, couldn't escape.

Gao Yuan couldn't pay continuous attention to the outside world because his will was tormented by pain with nowhere to rest. For most sounds, he could only automatically choose to filter out.

Only when Gao Yuan tried to use external stimuli to distract from the pain did he make an effort to try and listen clearly to what others were saying.

But Gao Yuan was quickly defeated by pain again, necessarily shifting his focus back to the pain itself.

Gao Yuan could only see darkness, but it seemed like he was losing the ability to perceive even the darkness.

All he wanted was to be free from the pain; nothing else mattered anymore.

The pain seemed to be getting lighter, he didn't know if he was getting used to the pain or if he was genuinely getting better.

Gao Yuan just felt very tired, in pain, and uncomfortable. He really wanted to escape it all, and now, it seemed like he really could escape it all.

```

Slowly entering nothingness, entering a world where there is nothing, Gao Yuan was losing perception, but he felt truly happy.

Many people think closing their eyes is nothingness, but it is not. That is just darkness—not nothingness. Darkness can still be seen by the eyes, but nothingness cannot be seen.

True nothingness cannot be seen, cannot be described, it can only be felt.

Close your left eye, open your right eye, and then try to see with the closed left eye. That way, the brain can perceive nothingness.

Gao Yuan was truly happy. He was willing to fall into nothingness, to completely rid himself of the unbearable pain, the intolerable pain.

The voice of Luo Xingyu didn't matter anymore, the voice of Yu Shunzhou didn't matter either, nothing mattered anymore; Gao Yuan just wanted to enter nothingness.

But in a daze, Gao Yuan heard a voice; he could always hear voices, but this time, he heard a sentence, so he focused his will on listening.

"You're the only one left from the Da Hong Third Company, the only one left in the whole brigade. You're the sole seed. If you die, the Da Hong Third Company will be no more."

"Xiao Yuan, please get well, Xiaoyu is waiting for you, Yu Shunzhou is waiting for you, I am waiting for you, and most importantly, don't forget your responsibility—you must survive, you have to survive!"

"Do you know? The army's losses are too great; too many units have been utterly wiped out. Rebuilding these units is almost impossible. Moreover, with the invasion of the Serpent People, the old military formations are no longer suitable for the new kind of warfare, so the Military Commission decided to establish a new military system and regiments. Units that have been completely sacrificed are being disbanded, their numbers are being canceled, and that's the truth. The orders have already come down."

"Commander Wang, Chief Zhou, the entire brigade is gone except for you; they and their old units have become history together. The Da Hong Third Company, this heroic unit, has become history. For us soldiers, this is the end of a legacy, Xiao Yuan. You are their only seed, their only hope. If you die, it's truly over."

Gao Yuan could hear Xiang Weiguo's voice; it was very distant, but he was hearing it more and more clearly.

Gao Yuan could no longer construct an image of Xiang Weiguo, nor could he conjure up an image of Luo Xingyu in his mind; he could not envision anything specific.

But there was a splash of red in Gao Yuan's mind, a bright red, red like blood.

He couldn't see it, but he could think of it, and being able to think of it was a tremendous victory.

Indignant, a strong sense of indignation.

Dare not, dare not forget the promise.

Gao Yuan re-experienced the pain, an extremely intense pain.

It turned out the pain had never disappeared.

But the red spot in Gao Yuan's heart grew larger and larger.

Not wanting to be a hero, but surviving was a responsibility.

The voice became clear again, he could see darkness again, and the pain grew more intense as well.

Gao Yuan decided to hold on a bit longer, for nothing else, but for that splash of red.

Until Gao Yuan could hear other people's words again, hear the voice of Luo Xingyu, hear the voice of Yu Shunzhou, understand their conversation.

Until he could ponder what their conversation meant.