"Can... can I go back now?"

"You've already survived genetic modification. What's the point of going back now?"

"So you're saying I should abandon my wife and children and just live like this?!

"Brother Li, that's not what I meant. It's just..."

"My children are only a year old this year, and my wife is in poor health. They definitely won't be chosen. Are you telling me to watch them all die at the hands of the Zerg? I'd rather die with them!"

Mingmei and Mu Chen hadn't even reached the slave quarters when they heard the sounds of argument. Mu Chen and the others had just informed everyone about the Zerg, using the excuse that space pirates had been discovered.

That included the people on the starship who had survived the disaster.

They didn't know about the commotion below, but there was already unrest brewing on the starship.

Some people were already crying and demanding to go back, even though they knew it was a dead end.

But as the man who was sobbing said, he didn't want to live alone in the world. His family was down there. What kind of mindset was he supposed to have while staying here?

Mingmei couldn't help but turn her head away, unable to bear listening to these words.

Mu Chen put his arm around Mingmei's shoulders, turning her around to leave. As they turned, they saw Hu Yue standing not far away.

Her expression wasn't good either.

She didn't know what kind of reactions and decisions the people below were making, but she had heard all the wails of those above.

When one person shouted that they wanted to leave, it was like a spark that could ignite a prairie fire. One after another, people started clamoring.

Saying they wanted to go back and didn't want to stay here anymore.

Clearly, they were a small fraction who had managed to survive among hundreds of thousands of people, but at this moment, they would rather give up this opportunity. They wanted to go back.

Even worse, some were trying to take advantage of the situation, claiming they wanted their families to come up.

A few calm people in the crowd couldn't help but curse them as idiots.

"I can understand Brother Li wanting to go back. He risked his life to come up here for his family. Now that he's been told that the goal he's been striving for will soon be gone, of course he's going to make a fuss about going back."

The girl who had been complaining about how she got here earlier was chatting with the boy who had been pushed to the ground by Brother Li, while glaring at the others who were making a fuss about going down.

They watched as the man broke free from the others and stumbled out, and the girl couldn't help but sigh softly: "If others had Brother Li's determination, and really wanted to go back, wouldn't they be able to, instead of just sitting here crying and saying they want to go back?"

"Didn't the broadcast say that it's very rare for someone to survive genetic modification?"

The boy didn't agree with the girl's words, saying, "Even if they don't really go back, it doesn't mean they don't have real feelings... The reality is that maybe they're the only ones who survived in their family. Their family would be happy that they were able to survive. If they gave up everything and went back, they would be sad, too..."

The boy's words made the girl, who was still at an age where things were black and white and her likes and dislikes were clear-cut, curse under her breath and turn her head away, no longer speaking.

She looked at the sea of clouds outside, and a hint of disappointment flashed in her eyes.

She was the most useless member of her family, which was why she was sent here...

...

As Mingmei and Mu Chen left the slave quarters, Mingmei asked him worriedly, "What if they riot?"

"They won't riot after they've already rioted." Mu Chen didn't seem worried about it.

"But, aren't some of them making a fuss about going home? Are you really going to let them go back?"

Mingmei was worried about Mu Chen's mission.

"I said they could go back, but I didn't say they couldn't come back. There are indeed some who sincerely want to go back and die with their loved ones and family, but would their family and loved ones be happy about that?"

When Mu Chen's affectionate eyes met Mingmei's clear eyes, he suddenly said, "If it were me, I really wouldn't want you to die with me. Even if you were willing."

"Why are you talking about dying at a time like this?"

Mu Chen's sudden words reminded Mingmei of the time in the game when Mu Chen had secretly self-destructed. She said with a straight face, "Whether I want to live or not is entirely up to me, not you. Your reluctance is useless!"

Her words sounded fierce, but Mu Chen chuckled softly and raised his hand to touch the top of Mingmei's head, gently stroking her forehead with his thumb and whispering an almost inaudible, "Understood."

...

"You've gotten bold, haven't you? Taking my pass to go fly a fighter jet?! If you want to go up, just say so. Do you have to be so sneaky?!"

Ye Qing felt like she had lost all her face!

How could she have believed that these three idiots had the ability to fly a fighter jet?

Stealing her father's pass, Ji Junyuan, you're really something!

Ye Qing glared at Ji Junyuan, who was standing outside the iron gate with his head almost touching the ground from the scolding, and then looked at the other two, who looked like cowards. It was clear that they all knew who the man outside the door was.

Ye Qing secretly glanced at the middle-aged man, whose presence as a superior was very strong, and sighed in her heart. No wonder these three idiots were so confident that they could get a fighter jet.

Although they were caught before they could even get on it.

"If you want to go up, just tell me. You just want to go up, right? Tomorrow, you guys pack up and go line up."

"Huh?"

The four of them were shocked to hear the last sentence.

"Dad, are you not letting me go?" Ji Junyuan looked blankly at his father, the NPC of his in-game identity, a man with a significant position in the military. He had clearly been scolded bloody a few days ago when he secretly signed up, but why was he suddenly letting up now?

"I'm not going..."

Ye Qing opened her mouth, wanting to reject the idea, but the look in his eyes was so intimidating that she finally changed her mind in a small voice: "If you insist, then I can go too."

"Then it's settled. You guys continue to reflect here tonight. Tomorrow, I'll send someone to take you there."

After saying that, the middle-aged man looked deeply at his son, who was still a little dazed, and then quietly turned around and walked outside, while instructing, "Don't leak the news that's been circulating outside today to them."

It was thanks to the four of them sneaking into the deepest part of the base today that they missed the declaration about the Zerg invasion. It would be good if they just left here like this.

The middle-aged man took a deep breath as he left the prison, picked up his phone, lowered his eyes slightly, and answered the phone with a smile: "Wife, I want to eat the fish soup you make tonight, with some frozen tofu and pickled peppers. Whether he can eat spicy food is none of my business, it's me who wants to eat it, not your son..."

The man muttered, exhaling a puff of white mist. He held up his phone, listening to the woman's voice coming from the other end, and the corners of his mouth, which had been suppressed just now, finally turned up.

Even though they had been an old married couple for so many years, he suddenly realized that the person he missed the most was still her.

"It's nothing, I just miss you a lot..."

The four of them, who had been confused by the "letting up" behavior just now, were sitting in the room facing each other, and for a moment, they didn't know what to say.

"That, your dad, that NPC, I feel like something's wrong with him today?"

"Yeah, your dad, I remember you almost got scolded to death when you secretly signed up with us before, right? Why is he being so nice today?"

"I don't know either. He was especially against me at first."

Ye Qing sat a little further away from the three of them, listening to them discussing with Ji Junyuan, but after listening for a long time, these three idiots didn't come to any conclusion, which made Ye Qing speechless.

She walked to the door and shouted at the person outside.

Calling over the staff member who was guarding them, Ye Qing asked, "Has something happened outside today?"

Who knew that as soon as the other party heard this question, they would immediately shake their head like a rattle.

Ye Qing: "Can you be any more earnest when you lie?"

Guard: "Isn't this earnest enough?!"

Ye Qing: "You said that yourself."

Guard: "..."