114: Safely leave the safety tower

After walking for half an hour, the group finally reached the top of the tower.

Ai Yue and the others exercised daily, so their physical fitness was exceptionally strong, but even so, they were all exhausted.

"This tower is damn high, I'm exhausted!" Ai Guosheng wiped the sweat from his nose, unable to help but exclaim.

"You complain too much! I think you still need more training," Li Shilan said, annoyed.

"Yes, yes, yes, my dear wife is right. My dear wife has such good stamina, not even breathing heavily. I really do need to train more and learn from my dear wife!"

Ai Guosheng's repeated calls of "my dear wife" made Li Shilan feel embarrassed in front of the children, and she quickly stopped him, "Alright, alright, just shut up, be careful you don't attract attention!"

Ai Guosheng quickly closed his mouth, which was still about to speak.

Ai Yue walked to the railing and gazed into the distance; it was pitch black, with only a few scattered lights within the base.

It was the perfect time to quietly leave!

Ai Yue waved her hand, and four sets of black-tech single-person flying devices appeared out of thin air on the ground.

The group said nothing, fumbling in the darkness to put them on.

Ai Yue carefully checked each person again, and finding no issues, she waved her hand and was the first to jump off the top of the tower.

Ai Guosheng and the other two also didn't hesitate, following suit and nimbly jumping down.

Pressing the switch, their falling bodies instantly floated in the air.

With a hint of excitement, the group controlled their black-tech single-person flying devices, rapidly flying out of the base.

Due to the sufficient height and speed, they did not attract the attention of the night watchmen inside the base.

Even the dense mass of Ancient Centipedes outside the base had no significant reaction; only one or two looked up at the sky, not even moving their bodies, before continuing to lie on the ground, feigning sleep.

It wasn't until the fuel was almost depleted that the four landed on a hillside fifty kilometers from the base.

"Sister, this is great! When can we fly into the sky again?"

Ye Rui, who had just landed, excitedly said to Ai Yue.

Ai Yue was also in a good mood and casually replied, "Next time we're escaping for our lives!"

"Ah..." Ye Rui instantly wilted like a frost-bitten eggplant.

Li Shilan, however, didn't think that way. She prayed she would never have to wear it and fly again; her heart was still pounding fiercely.

It was simply too thrilling, so thrilling that she couldn't quite handle it. Plus, she suddenly developed acrophobia when she flew into the air. If not for her improved physical fitness from years of exercise, she would have fallen headfirst long ago.

Li Shilan, still shaken, took off the black-tech single-person flying device, refusing to look at it again.

Ai Yue waved her hand, put away the flying devices, and the group quickly descended the slope.

Ai Yue didn't delay, taking out the kaibaihe battle shield from her space. The group quickly got into the car and continued driving into the distance.

Their current destination was the Plant Research Base Ai Yue had discovered.

Ai Yue and the others planned to live a secluded life for a while, undisturbed.

At this point, they no longer encountered robbers on the road. Ancient Centipedes were everywhere, but fortunately, they only appeared sporadically.

The roads were also badly damaged by the Ancient Centipedes, making normal vehicle passage difficult.

They could only bypass obstacles step by step, clearing the way as they went.

Ai Yue drove the car, and the group traveled intermittently for three days, covering only one hundred kilometers. This was already their fastest speed.

Ai Yue and her family's secret departure from the Safety Tower was not discovered by Mo Li until the third day.

He had sustained a minor injury during the last encirclement of the Ancient Centipedes and had intended to seek Healing from Li Shilan, but the unpleasant events that followed made him abandon the idea.

After two days of recuperation with no major issues, he went to Ai Yue's home early in the morning, intending to rekindle their relationship, only to find no one answered the door, no matter how much he knocked.

Feeling something was wrong, he forced the door open, only to discover that the house was empty, and apart from some large items, everything else was gone.

Mo Li had a bad feeling and hurried to find Gu Xiheng.

Gu Xiheng was greatly alarmed after hearing what Mo Li said and rushed to Ai Yue's house to investigate.

The two inspected the house, their expressions grim.

"It looks like they left about two days ago!" Gu Xiheng pursed his lips tightly, his eyes narrowed, and his tone dangerous.

"It's all your fault! If you hadn't led the attack that injured Ai Yue, why would she have been heartbroken and run off with my Ye Rui!" Mo Li slammed his palm against the wall, his face full of anger.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Ai Yue isn't that kind of person. If she risked secretly leaving just because of this, then she wouldn't be Ai Yue."

"Then tell me, why did they leave secretly without even saying goodbye?" Mo Li questioned repeatedly.

What else could it be?

It must have been what Gu Xiheng said before he left that day that frightened Ai Yue, causing her entire family to flee overnight.

However, Gu Xiheng had no intention of telling Mo Li, merely prevaricating, "How should I know? Alright, don't dwell on why they left. Instead of that, you should think about how their family of four managed to leave the base without anyone knowing!"

"That's right, Xiheng, how did they get out of the base without alarming the Safety Tower's night watchmen, and without disturbing the Ancient Centipedes outside?" Mo Li asked, scratching his head in confusion.

This was also Gu Xiheng's point of confusion. Every control point, both inside and outside the entire base, was guarded.

Logically, not even a fly could have flown out silently.

But Ai Yues family of four had done it, which was utterly perplexing!

Gu Xiheng could only shake his head helplessly and turn to leave!

"Hey, where are you going?" Mo Li quickly inquired.

"To investigate how Ai Yue flew out of the base!" Gu Xiheng said casually, striding away.

"Slow down, wait for me..." Mo Li, clutching his injured waist, grimaced as he trotted to catch up... Meanwhile, Cheng Siyu was accompanying Gu Xitian in her soil research.

"Xitian, it seems you truly love geology!" Cheng Siyu sat beside Gu Xitian, quietly watching her conduct research.

"Of course! Otherwise, with my Peking University degree, why would I choose geology for my postgraduate studies? It's because I truly love it."

Gu Xitian said with a proud expression.

"Yes, yes, yes, you're so smart, you'd achieve great things in anything you study. It's just a pity..."

At this point, Cheng Siyu paused, looking regretful.

Gu Xitian's movements involuntarily stopped upon hearing this, and she sighed, "Alas, if everything were normal, I would surely have become a rising star in the geological world by now, and you... by now you would have certainly started a family with my brother, and perhaps even have a baby."

Cheng Siyu's face showed longing for a moment, then turned melancholic.

"Now, anything we say is futile. As things stand, you can still continue your geological research, but I... I fear there's no longer any possibility between your brother and me."