Ou Zhanpeng naively believed that dreams were a golden finger bestowed by mysterious entities, allowing him to perfectly replicate alien warships through guidance within them.
However, after dreaming of the alien warships' past and present, the continuous dreams abruptly ceased. From then on, he slept soundly until dawn every day. Every morning upon waking, he would stare blankly for quite some time.
It seemed all the preceding dreams were meant to prove the authenticity of that final dream.
Xu Qing remained oblivious. Seeing his state, she thought something was wrong and tried various ways to persuade and guide him, but without success.
Ou Zhanpeng knew his condition was not right, nor did he want to cause unnecessary alarm. Yet, the disappearance of his dreams had too severe an impact. Affecting himself was a minor matter, but delaying the grand scheme was something no one could afford – he had never thought he would one day have the ability to influence humanity's future, but the unexpected had indeed happened to him.
The problem was, since it had arrived, why couldn't it persist? What was the meaning of its disappearance halfway through?
Dan Qiuyu, upon receiving the news, was utterly bewildered, wishing he could immediately seize Ou Zhanpeng and crack open his head to see what was inside.
Other influential figures, whether aware of the situation or not, also lamented this outcome.
They thought they had struck gold, only to find it was merely a consolation. No one could calmly accept such a turn of events. Kuaishuge.com
But whether they sighed regretfully or flew into a rage, they could not change the outcome.
By late September, Ou Zhanpeng had not dreamt of anything for over a month. Both he and the base had completely given up hope.
On this day, his personal terminal suddenly displayed a notification: You have new mail, please check!
Ou Zhanpeng was a little confused. Expedition Two was currently far away in the asteroid belt, and the warship only maintained a one-way communication with the base. Civilian mail simply couldn't be received, and military documents wouldn't be sent to personal terminals. Where had this mail come from?
Upon clicking it open, he saw that the person appearing on the screen was Ling Xiao, much to his shock and delight.
However, Ling Xiao did not appear well. His face lacked the usual frivolousness, only displaying a deep solemnity.
"Fatty Ou, are you alright? I heard you've boarded Expedition Two. First, congratulations on escaping the sea of suffering, and second, congratulations on embracing your beauty." As Ling Xiao spoke, he immediately regained his former demeanor. "Today is September 24th, the 461st day since we left Earth."
"The alien species is approaching Jupiter, but we are still on our way. We expect to arrive in January next year," Ling Xiao's voice carried an undisguised weariness, and he looked worried. "The atmosphere on the ship now is very strange. It should be extremely somber, but in reality, everyone is very relaxed... We've cast aside all our burdens. Everyone knows what fate awaits them. Since the decision has been made, there's nothing to be apprehensive about."
At this point, Ling Xiao's expression grew even more somber. He paused for a moment before continuing, "I'm telling you this for no other reason than to say goodbye. A tree may grow a thousand feet tall, but its leaves will fall back to its roots. When you reach Jupiter, if you have the chance, I mean if you have the chance, please bring me back to Earth. You know where to bury me... That's all. We were brothers for a lifetime, and I hope we'll meet again someday."
Having said this, Ling Xiao finally gave Ou Zhanpeng a familiar, carefree smile. Then the video ended, without any lingering sentimentality.
Xu Qing happened to return to the dormitory and noticed his unusual expression. She asked with concern, "What's wrong? You look so pale, are you not feeling well?"
Ou Zhanpeng shook his head. "I'm fine. Ship One might be in trouble. I need to go to the bridge!"
Before he finished speaking, he had already drifted out of the cabin.
Hearing this, Xu Qing's heart sank. "I'm coming too!"
The two hurried to the bridge as quickly as possible. Liu Wenwen raised an eyebrow curiously, "Why are you two free to come see me?"
Ou Zhanpeng gave her a look, and Xu Qing immediately understood, pulling Liu Wenwen aside.
Captain Liu jokingly remarked casually, "Hey, hey, what are you doing? Planning to be a matchmaker for your Ou Zhanpeng?"
Xu Qing nodded without hesitation, "Yes, my Ou Zhanpeng likes people like you!"
Liu Wenwen blinked her eyes, not backing down, "Then I won't be polite!"
"Stop messing around, there's important business," Ou Zhanpeng had to interrupt. If he let these two silly women continue their nonsense, who knew what outrageous things they might say.
Liu Wenwen paused slightly, "What is it? Do you need me to officiate the wedding?"
Xu Qing pinched her lightly. Why was Liu Wenwen saying so many strange things today?
Ou Zhanpeng felt she was doing it on purpose. He completely ignored whatever she was saying and directly asked, "Did something happen to Ship One?"
Liu Wenwen immediately dropped her smile, "You already know!"
Ou Zhanpeng nodded, "I guessed. What happened exactly? Can you tell me?"
Liu Wenwen sighed softly, "The base issued a return order to Ship One, but Ship One refused."
"Return?" Ou Zhanpeng and Xu Qing asked in unison, their eyes reflecting the same expression.
They both knew the situation of Ship One well, knew that the supplies on board were far from enough to reach Jupiter, and knew even more clearly that from the very beginning, the comrades on Ship One had prepared for the worst.
Yet, when the moment arrived, they both still felt an extreme sense of unwillingness.
Liu Wenwen nodded, "The base had this idea for a long time, but due to various considerations, it was postponed until now. Now that Ship One has consumed over half of its supplies and cannot continue its voyage, it must return immediately. However, everyone has refused to turn back; they want to fly to Jupiter even if it's a one-way trip."
Perhaps not everyone was willing, but in the end, everyone on Ship One made the same decision.
As soldiers, Ou Zhanpeng and Xu Qing deeply understood that sacrifice was not just a slogan shouted aloud or spoken from the mouth, nor was it the life-and-death struggle on the battlefield, but rather something that quietly existed in the life of every soldier.
It was the towering, resilient figures on the plateaus, known as forbidden zones for life; the years of steadfastness on sparsely populated islands; the silent contributions in every ordinary post; the receding figure of a beloved girl; and also the unspoken yearning for distant parents, and the unbridgeable guilt towards wives and children separated by distance.
As soldiers, they were blameless before the country. Facing ferocious enemies, they would bravely lay down their lives, guarding the nation's borders from danger.
But also as soldiers, they were ashamed before their loved ones.
This was something that truly existed but was difficult to express in words. Only by personally experiencing it and making the choice would one understand what kind of feeling it was.