IRCDM Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Hope, The Seventeen-Year-Old Dawn Star

A modified off-road vehicle was parked in the shopping mall, but the fragile glass couldn’t withstand the onslaught of wind and snow. It shattered in the cold, and the messy shelves in front of the car, frozen into hard iron lumps, became obstacles to escape.

The vehicle body was shaking violently from the blizzard, and Xu Yunyan huddled in the corner, shivering.

“Boss, at this rate, we’re definitely going to freeze to death.” One of the underlings’ teeth chattered. “We… we should have kept following… following Li… Li Yao’s car.”

Deng Meng’s stiff fingers, encased in a protective suit covered with a thick layer of frost, fumbled with a frozen cigarette. He tried to light it several times without success. He threw the cigarette down in frustration and pointed at Xu Yunyan, “Damn it, you come over here!”

Xu Yunyan crawled over weakly, but Deng Meng kicked him to the ground.

After Liang Huan saved him, he gave him the hovercar. He sold it at a second-hand car shop for some money, but that led Deng Meng to track him down. Under duress, Xu Yunyan, terrified of being beaten, eventually told them Liang Huan’s address.

Who knew that Liang Huan was protected by a formidable mercenary? Deng Meng was extremely frustrated. Since he had been to the outer districts a few times before, he decided to form a team to tail Li Yao and Liang Huan’s car, planning to ambush them. But it was like Li Yao had eyes in the back of his head; he managed to shake them off several times. This time, they finally caught up, but the other party drove into the garage and closed the door. The next second, a blizzard suddenly struck.

Deng Meng had only followed mercenary teams as a helper during his previous visits to the outer districts, and he had no experience dealing with blizzards. He felt a wave of despair, knowing that they were doomed this time.

“B-Boss, w-w-we might as well b-b-burn this… this kid to keep warm.” An underling with earrings flashed a malicious glint in his eyes, staring at Xu Yunyan. “I-It’s all h-his fault!”

Xu Yunyan almost fainted in fright.

“What did you say?!” Deng Meng turned his head and stared straight at the person who made the suggestion, kicking him away. “We’re debt collectors! Debt collectors, understand?! Not running an incinerator!”

He chased Liang Huan out here just to get revenge, maybe cut off one of Liang Huan’s hands, but killing someone was against the rules.

Boom!

A violent shaking suddenly came from underground. Before Deng Meng and the others could react, a section of the off-road vehicle’s floor suddenly bulged, making a sickening cracking sound.

“What the hell?” Deng Meng took a step back.

The underlings were even more cowardly than him. The one with earrings said, “B-Boss, it s-s-sounds like something expl-expl-exploded.”

“D-Do you think I don’t know?!” Deng Meng cursed viciously. “If you stutter again, you’re out of here!”

“B-B-But I’m n-n-naturally—”

“Shut up!” Deng Meng yelled at him.

The one with earrings sniffled and silently shut his mouth.

Cracks appeared on the off-road vehicle’s heavy floor, and the surrounding area began to turn red, as if melted by high heat. The cracks grew larger and larger. In the terrified gazes of the crowd, a blood-red hand stretched out from the crack, followed by an arm, a bloody head…

“Ahhhhhhh—” Screams echoed through the vehicle.

Xu Yunyan barely managed to stand up, only to meet the gaze of the bloody humanoid monster in front of him. His vision went black, and he fainted with a thud.

Without any weapons, the car doors were frozen shut and couldn’t be opened. The others were so frightened that they wanted to cling to the windows. Deng Meng, holding a pulse gun that had long since malfunctioned due to the cold, trembled uncontrollably. “What… what are you?”

Liang Huan coughed up two mouthfuls of blood, some minced meat, he couldn’t tell it was the Heteromorph or his own. He grabbed a blanket next to him and wiped his face. He realized it was an acquaintance.

He smiled politely, “Hello Deng Meng, do you remember me?”

This monster can speak.

“Ahhhhhhh, Mom!” Deng Meng was so terrified that his liver and gallbladder split apart. He raised the gun and smashed it at him, but the next second, he was kicked away, smashing a human-shaped dent in the car door.

Ten minutes later, Liang Huan washed his face and wrapped himself in the only heated blanket in the car. Even so, the car was still terrifyingly cold, not even half as warm as Li Yao’s car. Unfortunately, the broken protective light sphere was embedded in the bottom of the car, and the instantly condensed thick ice blocked Liang Huan’s path back to the underground garage.

Now, the only thing in the entire car that could provide warmth was the burning abandoned protective light sphere.

Deng Meng, with a bruised and swollen face, and his five underlings kneeled obediently in a row, watching Liang Huan sitting on the seat with trepidation, unsure of what he wanted to do.

“B-Brother Liang, why are you here?” Deng Meng felt like his bones were broken, but he gritted his teeth and didn’t dare to utter a sound.

Liang Huan unscrewed his bright yellow thermos, blew on the wolfberries inside, and slowly took a sip. Thanks to the protective light sphere and the protective suit, the cup wasn’t broken, but the tea inside was already cold.

“Passing by.” Liang Huan thought he might be blown away, but he didn’t expect to blast through the upper level of the underground garage and land right in Deng Meng’s car. He couldn’t help but sigh, “What a small world, Deng Meng. You and I are destined.”

Deng Meng was close to tears. “Y-Yes… yes.”

As the abandoned protective light sphere burned, the air in the car gradually warmed up, and the bloody smell on Liang Huan became stronger and stronger. But clearly, this wasn’t a good time for a bath. Liang Huan could only suppress his disgust for the time being, and while heating his thermos on the abandoned light sphere, he listened to Deng Meng and Xu Yunyan explain the whole story of how they got here.

“I see.” Liang Huan took a sip of water. “So good people really don’t get rewarded.”

Xu Yunyan’s face was as white as paper. “B-Brother Liang, I’m sorry, I’m sorry for you… I’m sorry…”

Liang Huan waved his hand. “You’re weak and can’t protect yourself. Who doesn’t want to live? I understand you. If there’s a chance in the future, you can atone for your sins. What’s with the crying?”

He smiled and helped Xu Yunyan up.

Xu Yunyan looked at him in disbelief. “You… you don’t blame me?”

Liang Huan patted him on the shoulder. “Sit down. You don’t have to kneel either. This is the New Era. What does it look like? Get up, all of you. I’m not going to kill you.”

Deng Meng and the underlings looked at each other. After a long while, they helped each other up. Liang Huan had almost beaten them into dogs just now, so these words sounded even more terrifying.

“The underground garage is warm, but it looks like we can’t get in for a while.” Liang Huan turned to look out the car window. Some octopus Heteromorph tentacles were blasted up with him. After a little thought, he said, “Deng Meng, take some people to carry back a tentacle.”

Deng Meng didn’t want to go. Going out in this weather was death, but seeing Liang Huan looking at him with a smile, he felt like death wasn’t far away either. He forced a smile and said, “Brother Liang, the car doors are frozen shut. W-We can’t get out.”

Liang Huan picked up the gun at his waist and fired two shots at the car door. The heat caused the car door to open in response. He looked at Xu Yunyan, “Little Xu, are you willing to go?”

Xu Yunyan’s eyes were still red at this moment. Hearing this, he nodded vigorously. As if to prove his innocence, he gritted his teeth, wrapped his protective suit tightly, and rushed out. But unexpectedly, the temperature nearby wasn’t that low, and even the fragments of the octopus tentacles were very hot. He couldn’t carry anything too heavy on his own, so he chose a piece of tentacle about half his height and tried his best to carry it back.

“Well done.” Liang Huan sat cross-legged on the ground, took a knife to dissect the tentacle, removed the flesh inside, cut the outer skin into several pieces, and used some thread he found to make a simple cloak, which he handed to Xu Yunyan. “Try it on.”

Although the “cloak” didn’t smell good, the tentacles were warm. Xu Yunyan stammered, “Brother Liang, you wear it, I don’t need it.”

“My protective suit is more advanced than yours. It’s not that cold.” Liang Huan smiled. “You need it more. Put it on.”

Only then did Xu Yunyan wrap himself in it. Warmth instantly spread from his chest and back, and his stiff hands and feet gradually warmed up. There was also some color on his pale face.

“This grease should be able to be used as fuel.” Liang Huan put the extracted grease into the abandoned light sphere and sighed. “Unfortunately, there’s too little.”

“Brother Liang, we’ll go! We’ll go get it!” Before Deng Meng could speak, the underlings rushed out one after another, carrying the tentacles back. Seeing this, Deng Meng also rushed out without hesitation.

But the number of tentacles blasted up was limited, only enough to make two or three cloaks. Seeing that they were about to fight over them, Liang Huan simply let them all be made into vests.

“Protect the torso, and the hands and feet will slowly warm up.” Liang Huan methodically distributed the vests to them.

Only after Deng Meng put on the “vest” did he feel alive again. The extracted grease sizzled in the protective light sphere, and the remaining octopus skin was used to block the drafty gaps in the car. In an instant, the car became warm and cozy.

Deng Meng glanced at Liang Huan, who was only wearing a protective suit, and felt a little sorry. “Brother Liang, aren’t you going to wear one?”

Liang Huan had internal energy and wasn’t afraid of the cold at all. He smiled slightly, “As long as you guys aren’t cold, that’s all that matters. Don’t worry about me.”

Deng Meng was almost blinded by his smile. He hesitated, and an underling had already come closer. “Brother Liang, wear mine.”

“Brother Liang, wear mine! I can handle this temperature in the car!”

Xu Yunyan directly took off the cloak. “Brother Liang, I don’t need it, you wear it.”

Liang Huan motioned for them to be quiet. “The Heteromorph just died, and the flesh still has residual heat. And this grease probably won’t last for more than a few hours. We don’t know when the blizzard will end. We have to find a way to keep the temperature up.”

The few people were at a loss. Even Deng Meng couldn’t think of a solution. “Brother Liang, tell us what to do. As long as we can survive, we’ll listen to you.”

Just based on the fact that Liang Huan gave up the octopus skin to them and found a way to burn the grease, they were already convinced.

Liang Huan glanced at them. “Zombie crystal cores and Heteromorph grease can both be used as fuel. This flesh can attract zombies, and burning corpses can attract Heteromorphs… Are you willing to listen to my commands?”

The group nodded their heads like chickens pecking at rice.

The temperature inside the car gradually restored the weapons, and Liang Huan’s headset, which had been silent for several hours, finally emitted a crackling current sound. Then came Li Yao’s furious roar: “Liang Huan! Liang Huan! Can you hear me? Liang Huan!”

Liang Huan rubbed his ears, which were being deafened by the yelling, and said softly, “I can hear you.”

Li Yao’s anger value soared. “Where did you run off to?! Did you take the last heavy-core thunder from me? Blizzards can kill people, do you understand?! I’ve been searching for you in the pile of corpses in the underground garage for six whole hours!!! I was about to climb on the ceiling to find you!”

“I was indeed blown out from the top of the garage. I accidentally got swallowed by a Heteromorph, so I had to set off a thunder to kill it.” Liang Huan said calmly, “After I came out, I tried to contact you, but the temperature was too low and the headset didn’t work.”

“…You’re amazing.” Li Yao took a deep breath in exasperation and gritted his teeth. “Where are you now?”

Liang Huan glanced at Deng Meng and Xu Yunyan and said gently, “I should be in the mall above the underground garage. Luckily, I met some friends and took refuge in their car. Don’t worry about me.”

“Friends? Where did you get friends!” Li Yao, carrying a gun and stepping on the corpse of an octopus Heteromorph, was extremely angry. He didn’t notice Mao Ming and Pei Zhong’s slightly condemnatory gazes at all. “The people in the outer districts don’t count as people. It wouldn’t be surprising if they burned you for firewood. Send me your location immediately. I’m coming up to find you!”

Liang Huan sighed. “I’m really safe. It’s too cold outside. Wait for the snow to stop and then come out and find me.”

“Bullshit!” Li Yao cursed. “I have more experience than you. I’ll settle the score with you after I find you! Liang Huan, if you don’t send it, you’re finished.”

Liang Huan had no choice but to send him the location and told him, “Be careful—”

Pa.

Li Yao directly cut off the communication.

Liang Huan smiled, only to find Deng Meng and Xu Yunyan looking at him with strange expressions. He asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

“Brother Liang, your headset is leaking sound. It might be because the temperature is too low.” Xu Yunyan hesitated.

Deng Meng was more direct and somewhat indignant. “Brother Liang, who is this person? He’s so rude to you, ordering you around. It’s too much!”

Liang Huan smiled. “My husband.”

“Ah?” Deng Meng instantly petrified on the spot.

Xu Yunyan’s face was a little unsightly. “Brother Liang, you… you’re married?”

Liang Huan nodded. “Li Yao is good, but he’s a bit fierce and has a temper.”

Deng Meng felt like the sky was falling. “Is that the Li Yao who’s ranked number one among the mercenaries?”

“What, is there a problem with him?” Liang Huan asked curiously.

Deng Meng looked at him hesitantly. “Brother Liang, are you two in love? Do you like him?”

“Not really.” Liang Huan smiled slightly. “I had to marry him due to certain reasons.”

Deng Meng breathed a heavy sigh of relief, and a glimmer of hope rekindled in Xu Yunyan’s eyes. He deliberately moved closer to Liang Huan.

“Brother Liang, this Li Yao…” Deng Meng looked at Liang Huan’s gentle smile, steeled his heart, and lowered his voice. “This person is actually a traitor to the military. He killed many people. After being released from prison a few years ago, he joined the mercenary organization and is a ruthless character there, killing countless people. He’s not a good person.”

“Oh?” Liang Huan looked at him with interest. “How so?”

Deng Meng tapped on the chip on his wrist, and a simulated paper news report popped up. “I followed Mr. Yu for a while a couple of years ago and know some inside information. Look.”

The simulated paper news report was a little yellowed. On it was a holographic 3D photo. The young military officer was wearing a crisp, straight black uniform with a golden medal hanging on his chest. His handsome eyebrows were high-spirited, and his sharp eyes stared directly at the camera. His chin was slightly raised, but the corners of his lips were pressed very flat, making him look meticulous and full of youthful vigor.

The large-format headline was particularly eye-catching: [Seventeen-Year-Old Dawn Star, Hope of Double 3S+ Humanity]

[January 1, New Human Era 127, Dawn Star Medal awarded to the youngest colonel in the Eastern District, Yi Hengchen…]

[…Colonel Yi Hengchen entered the Mecha Department of the Central District United Military University at the age of thirteen. At the age of seventeen, he successfully completed his doctorate in the Command Department. He is currently the only known active military officer with a Double 3S+ mental and physical strength… He will also serve as the captain of the Dawn Vanguard Team, ushering in a new chapter in the era of interstellar navigation…]

Although the name was different, Liang Huan recognized the person in the photo at a glance.

It was Li Yao.