103: Chapter 103 The List from the Future

In the cellar.

Chen Xi stood up.

The smell of mold mixed with the scent of damp earth, wafting into his nostrils and making his recently settled stomach churn once more.

He tightened his grip on the [weeding sickle] in his hand.

The cold sensation of metal traveled from his palm straight to his brain.

Good.

This feeling was good.

(I've calmed down.)

(Now, let's get to work.)

There were no complex plans in his head.

Only a single, most primitive and direct thought.

Get out.

Find those beasts in the khaki uniforms.

Then, shred them, one by one.

Just as he raised his foot, preparing to leave this temporary hiding spot—

Buzz.

The system interface before him lit up without warning.

A golden dragon head emblem flashed frantically on his retina, carrying a supreme priority and a force that brooked no refusal.

[Descendant of the Dragon].

(...Annoying.)

Without a second thought, Chen Xi moved to close it.

He was in no mood to communicate with anyone right now.

"Ghost! Stop!"

A majestic voice, tinged with a hint of urgency, exploded directly in his mind.

It wasn't through his sense of hearing.

It was a higher-dimensional, direct information link.

Chen Xi's movements froze.

Ghost.

No one had called him by this codename since the day he took off his military uniform.

He slowly lowered the hand he had raised to close the communication.

"Something the matter?"

His voice was hoarse and dry.

Like the grinding of rusted gears.

On the other end, there was silence for a few seconds.

Then, Elder Long's familiar voice rang out again, this time carrying an unmistakable weariness and weight.

"I know what you want to do, child."

"I want to do it too."

"Everyone in the Command Center wants to."

"But killing alone is useless."

There was no expression on Chen Xi's face.

"Then what is useful?"

"Protection."

Elder Long's voice was resolute.

"Don't let anger consume you. We have more important things for you to do."

Before his voice had even faded...

...an encrypted file popped up directly.

On the cover of the file were several heavy, large characters that looked as if they had been written in blood.

"Jinling Spark Project - Grade A Rescue List"

Chen Xi stared at those words and didn't move.

"Open it."

Elder Long commanded.

Following the order, Chen Xi opened the file.

Rows of black-and-white photos, accompanied by names, identities, and last known locations, slowly surfaced before his eyes.

There were no high-ranking officials or nobles.

Nor were there any military or political bigwigs.

They were all ordinary people wearing long gowns and glasses, looking refined and scholarly.

"Liu Guowei, thirty-seven years old, fluid mechanics expert, Head of the Department of Aeronautical Engineering at Central University..."

An aged, hoarse voice replaced Elder Long's, echoing in Chen Xi's mind.

It was Elder Qian.

"He was a classmate of Mr. Qian Xuesen and the founder of our country's first generation of aero-engine theory. If he can survive, our aviation industry could be advanced by at least twenty years."

"History records that he died on December 15th. On his way to the refugee shelter at Ginling College, he was bayoneted to death by the Japanese Army."

The image switched.

It was an elderly man with a thin face but exceptionally firm eyes.

"Chen Yinke, forty-seven years old, historian, linguist, academician of Academia Sinica. When the Japanese Army entered the city, he refused to evacuate to protect tens of thousands of precious ancient books moved south from the Palace Museum, choosing to live or die with the national treasures. On December 18th, the Japanese Army broke into the basement where he was hiding and burned him along with those tens of thousands of volumes."

The image switched again.

A young girl with braided hair and a shy smile.

"Li Pe, twenty years old, a student at Ginling College, our future 'Mother of Applied Linguistics.' She..."

Elder Qian's voice stopped there.

In its place was an uncontrollable, painful sigh.

Chen Xi watched silently.

He listened.

The cold, dead killing intent in his chest did not dissipate.

Instead, it was burning.

It was burning frantically in a more violent and resolute manner.

(...I see.)

(The massacre... isn't just physical.)

(It's also a decapitation strike against civilization.)

He understood.

He completely understood what Elder Long and Elder Qian meant.

Revenge was certainly important.

But even more important than revenge...

...was protection.

It was to rescue those sparks of civilization that represented the future from this hell destined to be scorched earth.

"Your mission is to find them under the Japanese Army's butcher knives, protect them, and let them live at all costs."

Elder Long's voice rang out again.

"You can kill."

"But every time you kill, it must be for the purpose of saving people more effectively."

"This is the method of revenge we have chosen for you."

Chen Xi slowly closed his eyes.

He engraved the appearance, name, and life story of every person on the list deep into his mind like a branding iron.

When he opened his eyes again...

...the last trace of struggle in them had vanished.

"I understand."

He uttered those three words.

His voice wasn't loud.

Yet it was incredibly clear.

His killing intent had not diminished.

But that violent urge to destroy everything was now guided in a more precise and purposeful direction.

All killing was for the sake of protection.

He closed the communication.

His gaze fell back on the first name on the list.

Liu Guowei.

[Mission Update: Jinling Spark Project]

[Current Objective: Rescue fluid mechanics expert, Liu Guowei]

[Target's Last Known Location: Central University Ruins, Library Basement]

The cold system notification overlapped with the gentle and refined face in his mind.

Chen Xi hesitated no longer.

He pushed open the rotten wooden door of the cellar, and his figure flashed, disappearing into Nanjing's cold, blood-soaked night.