Beyond the Zenith

“They probably won’t park at a base, so please observe further to verify before you make your report. We don’t want to start an operation only to end up tipping off the enemy,”[1] warned the person on the other end of the communicator.

When Han Qingyu considered that the person on the other end was likely Qi Shantong, he didn’t bother arguing. That man wasn’t the type to show consideration or give special treatment to anyone. As a self-proclaimed “Coalition Purist,” he prioritized the Coalition’s interests and strength above all else, even if that tended toward risk and extremes in practice.

It was the dead of night in late November. The group’s dilapidated van had stopped behind some greenery and wild shrubs, around seventy to eighty meters from the run-down street.

The prolonged observation and waiting were enough to make anyone drowsy.

He Tangtang suddenly turned to look at S-19 and whispered in an uncharacteristically cautious manner, “Hey, what does it sound like? Didn’t you say it could talk? Why doesn’t it say anything then?”

“Her voice? She sounds just like the artificial intelligence in Hollywood movies.” Wen Jifei went on to mimic the delivery, complete with a deadpan expression, peculiar pauses, and amusing intonations.

The teasing didn’t seem to upset Shen Yixiu, the sound of muffled laughter coming from beside Han Qingyu once more.

Han Qingyu asked with a smile, “Coming out is pretty fun, isn’t it?”

“Mm?” Shen Yixiu made a distracted sound, then, copying Wen Jifei, adopted the same AI-esque tone. “I think. You guys. Are really. Funny.”

Her impersonation was both far more convincing and endearing than Wen Jifei’s. She had evidently watched a lot of movies during those years of relative isolation.

“Th-that’s so high-tech!” Liu Shiheng exclaimed theatrically.

The dumbstruck He Tangtang nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Shen Yixiu couldn’t hold back another laugh at their reactions. It seemed the slightest thing was enough to have her in fits, perhaps because she’d rarely experienced such lighthearted fun before.

“Having fun?” Han Qingyu smiled at her. “You know, the only reason we’re this at ease and relaxed is because you’re here.”

“Yeah.” The other three voiced their sincere agreement in unison.

Shen Yixiu stopped laughing. Her whole body stiffened as she hesitantly glanced at them. After a brief silence, she gave a slow but firm nod.

Beneath her metal shell, she was smiling. It was a smile of heartfelt joy.

“Since you’re so advanced, let me ask you something,” Liu Shiheng said, genuinely treating Shen Yixiu as artificial intelligence. “Do the Wipers really want to die? If not, what makes them think that when the Sharpies come, they’ll take them in?”

This question was likely one that had confounded him for a long time.

Han Qingyu didn’t stop him from asking this, mostly because he shared the same confusion, perhaps to a greater extent. During that extended monologue in the corridor, Old Wu from Snow Lotus had sworn up and down that the Sharpies would bring about a new world, where they would evolve and gain longer lifespans.

“As an AI, I can’t give a definitive answer, but... Ne’s believers and followers all seem to be convinced of this. Some speculate that Ne realized something while researching a certain scientist’s notes, which led to him suddenly defecting from the Coalition, as well as everything that followed,” Shen Yixiu explained seriously.

While undoubtedly informative, her response still failed to address Liu Shiheng’s original question.

“Does Pure Purgatory also follow Ne?” Han Qingyu bluntly asked.

The consensus in the Coalition had always been that Pure Purgatory was nothing more than trash.

“They’re an offshoot of a faction in Snow Lotus, but most Snow Lotus members don’t recognize or accept them—wait, shhh...”

A car suddenly drove by. Everyone inside the van immediately went on high alert, but it simply continued speeding down the road after passing them.

Then came another long wait.

“Why don’t we take turns sleeping?” He Tangtang suggested with a yawn.

“No way,” Wen Jifei, Han Qingyu, and Liu Shiheng—his three roommates—objected in unison. “Your snoring will instantly give us away!”

Shen Yixiu dazedly turned her head to stare down the street seventy or eighty meters away. Picturing the scene in her head, she couldn’t help but giggle.

Han Qingyu followed her gaze out the window as well.

“Why don’t I go check it out?” he suggested, unable to bear waiting around any longer.

***

In terms of capability, the optimal mission configuration for the five of them would be for Han Qingyu and He Tangtang to go on reconnaissance, while Wen Jifei, Liu Shiheng, and Shen Yixiu stayed in the van, ready to drive out backup or rescue at a moment’s notice.

However, Liu Shiheng had insisted on joining the reconnaissance group. It was unclear whether this was because he trusted Han Qingyu more than he trusted S-19, or if he simply wanted to take this opportunity to build up his courage.

Weathered mud-brick houses lined the old, run-down street. The trio climbed up the back wall to the eaves, squeezed through the gap between where the roof met the ceiling of the top floor, and sneaked into the attic.

Using their source energy maneuvering devices, they crawled forward in near silence in search of light.

They soon came to a halt.

The lights were on below, and people were there—but not the two they’d been tailing earlier.

Through a crack in the door, they could see three young people in their early twenties, dressed in somewhat flashy attire.

Han Qingyu, He Tangtang, and Liu Shiheng were certain these were members of Wipers. The reason for this was simple: one of them was wearing a seventh-generation 3D device, which was shaped like a disc with a triangle on it.

The three youths aside, a roughly fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl also lay on the ground with her hands and feet bound and a cloth stuffed in her mouth, muffling her cries. From the schoolbag dropped on the floor next to her, she appeared to be a student. The terror in her eyes when she looked at the youths seemed to indicate that she recognized at least one or two of the three.

Liu Shiheng nudged Han Qingyu, pointing out another schoolbag on the floor by the bed. Blood was seeping out from under that bed.

The young girl before them wasn’t the first victim.

Han Qingyu’s group eavesdropped on the conversation below.

“Brother Zeng, is it really okay for us to do this?”

“Who gives a shit? The world is ending anyway. Didn’t you guys see the footage of those divine beings coming down to attack the army? It’s only been a little over a month. Once they arrive, we’ll be the only ones saved.”

“I’m just worried that if they haven’t arrived yet, the police—”

“The police? Hah, you think the police can take me?” The man, Brother Zeng, turned his head and patted the device on his body. “Even if they don’t come looking for me, I’m still going to go kill that old bastard who had me thrown in jail back then.”

After saying that, he walked over to the tied-up girl and crouched down in front of her, tutting. “Crying now, are we? I used to wait for you at your school gate after class, calling out to you and trying to hand you love letters, but you wouldn’t even take them back then... Remember that? The world is ending. You probably haven’t been with a man yet, so I figured I’d come specially to help you out. Are you going to be a good girl, or do I have to force you?”

The situation was crystal clear. These three obviously weren’t the valuable leads they were searching for, but there was almost certainly a recruitment hub for Pure Purgatory nearby.

Liu Shiheng and He Tangtang started discussing in urgent whispers.

“Should we take them out?”

“There could be more of them... What if we tip them off?”

“But we can’t just stand by and watch, can we?”

“True. If we just stand by and watch this, we’d be no better than animals.”

Han Qingyu didn’t contribute to their exchange at all. The moment the thug started unbuckling the girl’s belt, he smashed through the floorboards with a crack and dropped straight down.

Then came three thwack-thwack-thwacks in rapid succession.

In the blink of an eye, Han Qingyu knocked all three men unconscious with the flat of his blade.

While he wasn’t exactly the type to detest evil with a passion, he also hadn’t yet learned to prioritize the greater good over everything else either. He’d witnessed battles between humans and Sharpies, experienced the Sharpies’ slaughter of humans, and had even killed two men with his own hands, but this was the first time he’d encountered such cruelty toward an ordinary civilian.

It was sickening.

He Tangtang and Liu Shiheng jumped down from the attic as well.

Han Qingyu crouched on the ground, removed the energy core from the device on the man’s body, and gave it a quick check... not even a single drop remained.

“What do we do now? Finish him off or wake him up for questioning?”

“What about that girl? She saw everything. What should we do? Do we take her back with us?”

Han Qingyu shook his head. “No need. She didn’t see any Sharpies, and she’s still young. Let her focus on her studies.”

Approaching the terrified girl, Han Qingyu crouched down, his gaze and tone both gentle as he soothed, “Those three joined a terrorist organization and kidnapped you. They’re bad people. We just rescued you from them. We’re the good guys. Do you understand?”

He kept his sentences simple, as if speaking to a kindergartener, fearing the girl would be too frightened to think clearly.

The girl nodded vigorously, eyes fixed on him. Tears streamed down her face, sticking her hair to her cheeks, which only made her look more scared and vulnerable.

“We’re from a national intelligence agency in charge of cracking down on terrorist organizations,” Han Qingyu said, casually pulling out a badge and holding it up in front of the girl. “You can’t tell anyone about this, understand?”

He then removed the cloth gag from the little girl’s mouth.

“I-I understand... Thank you, all of you,” the girl replied in a whisper, nodding vigorously once more.

“Very good.” Han Qingyu smiled. Then, hearing faint footsteps on the roof—more than just one or two—he added, “We’re going to get you out of here now... but I need you to pass out for a while first. Do you mind?”

“Huh?” The girl looked bewildered.

Han Qingyu’s dead iron straight blade suddenly shot out before her eyes. Blood from one of the men he’d struck down earlier still stained the steel.

The little girl’s eyes widened, and she swayed unsteadily for a moment before fainting.

“I’m leaving her in your care. Don’t forget to take her schoolbag,” Han Qingyu said, turning to Liu Shiheng.

Carrying someone out was light work with the aid of the maneuvering device.

1. 打草惊蛇 (dǎ cǎo jīng shé) literally means to beat the bush and frighten away the snake. The idiom is used to describe rash actions that may alert the enemy or arouse suspicion. ☜