"I’ll first find her a room to rest."
Gu Shen looked around and sincerely said, "As for other matters, we’ll discuss them after she has rested."
...
...
The mansion complex built by the Blazing Wave Church appeared retro and elegant, reminiscent of the architecture in Snow Forbidden City...
Gu Shen found a small courtyard for Xiaoman within the mansion, but in fact, the technology in these estates was not outdated at all, with many artificial intelligence devices present.
However, after the awakening experint comnced, Deep Sea had disconnected from the Sangzhou Cave.
Now that Gu Shen was staying, Deep Sea resud its services.
Gu Shen sat outside the mansion while Chu Ling took over the program and helped the little one wash up. When they ca out again, the dirt on Xiaoman’s face was all gone, and she’d changed into a neat, brand new, snow-white long robe.
Most of the clothes prepared in the Blazing Wave Church’s mansion were of this style... This robe had been tailored with all the Church’s symbols removed, leaving no trace of its "faith affiliation."
Xiaoman looked much cleaner, but because she had been hungry for so long, her complexion was poor, her face was sallow and thin, and even her hair was dry yellow.
There was a drone parked in the courtyard, suspending a large full-length mirror. Xiaoman held up her robe, looking at her own reflection, her eyes full of unfamiliarity.
After being tailored, the robe was still a bit too long...
She had no choice but to hold up so of it, lest it beca inconvenient to walk.
The little one had a peculiar expression; she looked at the "clean" version of herself in the mirror, feeling quite uneasy.
Although the robe was comfortable to wear, sohow her old muddy clothes seed more appealing?
"Brother Gu Shen..."
Xiaoman carefully uttered this address, hesitantly asking, "Should I perhaps change back to my old clothes?"
"..."
Gu Shen sighed lightly. The clothing Xiaoman had taken off had already been sent for cleaning by a robot... In fact, cleaning it was unnecessary; it could have been discarded directly.
Xiaoman had fallen nurous tis along the way, and that garnt was now riddled with holes, unwearable anymore.
"Tomorrow, I’ll bring you clothes that fit." Gu Shen said softly, "You won’t need to wear the previous ones anymore."
Xiaoman pursed her lips, sowhat in a daze.
"Those people I just t at the mansion..."
Gu Shen pondered for a mont before speaking. He waved his sleeve, projecting the spiritual images of Zhuang Su and Qi Mo, as well as so onlookers, "Do you rember the last parade in Area E0?"
The little girl nodded earnestly.
Of course, she rembered!
If not for that parade in Area E0 with its gongs and drums, she wouldn’t have escaped... Those protesters took to the streets, smashed the drones, and broke through the city gates. Although she left through the south gate, she heard the sounds of the other two gates opening. The scale of that parade was vast, too significant to be a coincidence.
"It wasn’t just who saved you."
Gu Shen said gently, "They also sacrificed a lot..."
Xiaoman was very smart; upon hearing this, she understood.
She murmured, "That parade, it was organized by them..."
"Yes."
Gu Shen nodded and said, "If you had ever heard the word ’Neutral’ while living in Area E0, you should know what kind of people they are..."
Xiaoman’s eyes dimd a bit as she spoke hoarsely, "I know the ’Neutrals’... They are all good people..."
Gu Shen found himself.
The Neutrals opened the city gates.
However... that parade was destined to be a fleeting firework; many would perish within it, as the Law Enforcers of the Source Tower didn’t care about these people’s lives.
"Were many of those people... already dead?"
Xiaoman clutched her sleeve, speaking softly.
This question left Gu Shen montarily stunned.
"...Yes."
He could only answer truthfully, exposing the bloody and brutal truth to the child.
Xiaoman softly asked again, "So did they... die for ?"
"Yes... and no."
Gu Shen lowered his gaze, speaking slowly, "These people were more so fighting for their own freedom. If they didn’t break the city tonight, it would be harder to find another day to breach it... Instead of dying like that, it was better to try breaking free from the cage. Like a moth to a fla, they died for the light, and also burned for themselves."
Xiaoman listened, sowhat bewildered.
"So..."
She pursed her lips, thought for a long ti, then mustered the courage to ask, "Did you save ... to have avenge them? Against the Church, against the Source Tower?"
Gu Shen looked a bit surprised but soon understood.
A child who grew up crawling in the mud of Area E0, how could she believe in the existence of true goodness in this world?
The law of the jungle is brutal.
Contests, alienation, deceit, exploitation...
"Saving you, has nothing to do with what you do in the future."
Gu Shen smiled softly, "I hope you live well, as for revenge... You’re overthinking it."
He snapped his fingers.
Chi Huo surrounded her.
Xiaoman felt a gentle press on her forehead, making her sit back, and when she looked up again, she saw a grand world—a Pure Land with snow floating, a towering tree almost reaching the sky.
She gazed blankly at this magnificent scene, feeling her spirit swell.
The young girl took quite so ti to co back to her senses. She looked at Gu Shen, who was squatting in front of her with a smiling face... That man, under the care of countless golden twigs and leaves, seed to be the center of the entire Pure Land World.
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