Did he fear him?
Tang Zhishen let out a cold laugh, thinking she was overthinking it; he had no interest in her whatsoever.
Xu Qian set her alarm and prepared for bed.
Suddenly, her discarded clothes vibrated.
She closed her eyes and ignored it, but it vibrated again soon after.
This was a communicator from Hope Base, rarely used.
It wasn't as smart as the one from Bright Base, which could take pictures and send messages. This communicator was like an old phone, only capable of calls, not apps, and there were very few of them, possessed by only a handful of high-ranking officials.
It vibrated a few more times in quick succession, then gradually stopped.
Xu Qian waved her hand, storing the old clothes and the communicator into her space, and quickly drifted off to sleep.
4:50 AM.
"Deng, deng, deng—" A man descended the stairs, his footsteps echoing.
The young woman, legs crossed, slowly opened her eyes.
He was dressed in black, a full-face black mask covering his face. In the darkness, only his faintly glowing eyes were visible.
No need for glasses?
"Let's go."
Xu Qian raised an eyebrow and followed him.
Tang Zhishen selected a high-chassis black G-wagon from a pile of vehicles. Bringing nothing, he got in and they set off.
He drove fast but steady. Xu Qian glanced at him from the side and then looked away.
He was the leader of the base, and yet he was taking her out in the early morning... just the two of them to catch mutants?
She couldn't comprehend it.
Even Guan Weiyun would bring a large group when going out to fight enemies, if only for appearances, regardless of usefulness.
The car interior was exceptionally quiet. He didn't speak, and neither did she.
An hour later, they arrived at a black sea stretching as far as the eye could see.
Dawn was breaking, and visibility was poor.
The man put away the car with a wave of his hand, and a... manual wooden boat appeared on the sea?
Actually... she had a submarine in her space.
"Mutants are sensitive to sound, so we can only paddle manually."
Xu Qian nodded indifferently.
You're the employer, you call the shots.
They boarded the boat, one at the front and one at the back, paddling. The wooden boat was not large, and they were close enough that their thighs sometimes brushed.
Xu Qian didn't mind, and Tang Zhishen showed no reaction.
After paddling for nearly half an hour, they could vaguely make out an island shrouded in mist.
From a distance, the side of the mountain was lined with large yellow-white rocks, each about 2 meters long, with smoothed edges, clearly indicating regular habitation.
"Get in the water, swim over."
With that, Tang Zhishen jumped into the water first and swam towards the island.
Xu Qian, not one to be squeamish, jumped in with a splash.
Tang Zhishen led her to a very tricky corner. They could clearly see the large rocks, but they were invisible from other angles.
This corner was enclosed by reefs, just large enough for two people to stand. Their shoulders touched, their expressions unchanged.
After an unknown period of waiting, the sky began to lighten.
With a "splash,"
The two narrowed their eyes and lowered themselves.
A... middle-aged male merman leaped onto the highest yellow-white rock and perched on its side.
Following that, with more "splash, splash," mermen and mermaids of all ages jumped out of the sea.
The men were bare-chested, and the women wore shell bras that revealed their tender flesh.
They closed their eyes, awaiting the first rays of the sun.
Xu Qian observed closely and found that most of them had hair the same color as Fia's, and their features bore some resemblance.
They were truly Fia's family!
Tang Zhishen gently patted her shoulder. Xu Qian turned her head, and their eyes met.
He pointed to the smallest mermaid at the bottom and raised a fishing net that had somehow appeared in his hand.