Tang Sui remained at the base, cooperating with inspections, and while waiting for the high-level meeting to convene, the entire world was already shrouded in a white mist.
The terrifying giant beasts that invaded this world along with the fog kept changing species, and along with countless soldiers and civilians who sacrificed on the front lines, they were presented as cold, lifeless video recordings for everyone to see.
The cruel reality was shown without any editing, in its most authentic recorded form on the big screen.
Tang Sui had been to the temporary shelters set up by the military base for disaster victims, and had also seen the videos that the higher-ups ordered to be shown to ordinary civilians as a warning and for education.
A single glance allowed one to feel the true hell on earth through the cold screen.
Those lucky enough to be rescued by the officials to the temporary shelters held their children tightly, tears flowing silently down their weathered faces.
Children without parental supervision also had tear-streaked faces smudged with dirt, their stubborn little figures standing before the large screen, which was used for issuing public commands or informing them of national conditions. Sorrow filled their eyes.
They missed the warm embrace that would always catch them, no matter what.
Unfortunately, after detaching from their fantasies, all they faced was the empty whistling wind, and they could no longer hear the daily, bothersome words of familiar people.
The female captain, assigned to watch over Tang Sui and monitor her, watched these heartbreaking scenes. Even she couldn't help but feel a surge of sorrow, struggling to suppress her tears. She exhaled a hot breath and looked at the large screen, which was still broadcasting the latest front-line news, and murmured, "If there is truly a god in this world, how I wish He could save them..."
She also had a lovely child.
But the disaster came too suddenly. While she was still in the army, her son's school had fallen.
How could tender children be a match for those monsters?
Even just one gray widow spider, even a small one, would be enough to kill many children.
She used to not believe in gods, but as a mother desperate to grasp at the last straw, she would do anything to save her son.
Hearing the female captain's murmur, Tang Sui, standing again at the temporary shelter, glanced at her heroic face, a mixture of despair and hope, and lowered her eyes, not responding.
Because of Tang Sui, the fox-faced mask and the others could feel the surging tides of sadness and oppression from the outside world, as well as the desperate yearning for salvation, even within their spiritual space.
As half-beings, the masks shared Tang Sui's emotional changes.
Sensing that faint, unusual emotion, the fox-faced mask spoke softly, "This is the sixth time."
The ape-faced mask said in a deep voice, "They are praying for a god to descend and save them from their suffering. If you were to step forward now and save these humans, they would surely worship you as their sole deity and faith."
Dafeng, who always thought of the worst-case scenario, disagreed, "Even if we desperately need more faith to break the seals, we can't be so impatient. Once the little mistress steps out and reveals her special abilities, humans will only become more demanding and try to exploit her, treating her as a rescue tool."
Fukujin also nodded in agreement, "Yes. When you're hanging off a cliff, you desperately hope someone will come to save you, but if someone does come, some people will still complain about why they took so long to arrive and couldn't have come sooner."
The fox-faced mask's narrow fox eyes lit up, flickering, and its tone was filled with deep mockery, "With great power comes great responsibility. But that's for good people, and for suckers. We're not do-gooders, why should we bear all this resentment? It's better to leave fate to humans to choose for themselves."
"After all, they don't lack people to lead them forward or goals to achieve, do they?"
Tang Sui raised her eyes and looked at the large screen, which had now switched to a leader's speech.
The old-faced mask spoke kindly, "If the little mistress feels pained, you can start by tackling the source of this world's abnormalities."
The ape-faced mask only agreed partially, "Cutting off the heresy at its source is paramount. The secondary objective is to win over more hearts. I know you disdain taking advantage of the situation, but the reality is that we need more power of faith. Benefits and risks are always balanced."
The masks chattered, trying to persuade Tang Sui. Su Dan Novel Network.
Tang Sui closed her eyes. After a few seconds, she opened them again, looked at the people enveloped in a bleak despair yet clinging to hope, turned around, and her dark blue eyes flashed with a faint light, but with more vitality than before. She was no longer as cold and inorganic as a porcelain doll, but like an impassive deity overlooking all beings.
"Although I dislike the feeling of taking advantage of the situation, I am not a righteous shadow who does good deeds and asks for no credit."
The masks fell silent and trembled.
"You've made up your mind?"
The ape-faced mask's tone could not hide its joy.
Tang Sui slightly raised her chin and stepped into the shadow of the corridor.
"Faith, I want it."
"Humans, I will save them. But I will not save trash. It depends on the person."
The fox-faced mask's narrow fox eyes flickered, "What if this leads to resentment?"
"Let them hate. I've had more than enough people resent me in my previous life and this one. Even if it accumulates bad karma, it doesn't matter. I'm not a good person anyway. And no one says gods have to be good gods."
She could also be an evil god.
Tang Sui replied dismissively, and the fox-faced mask chuckled softly.
...
The next morning, excluding Tang Sui, a total of twenty-one people and two military trucks, under the command of Lieutenant General Modi, were neatly lined up at the entrance of the military base with equipment and supplies.
Tang Sui was the last to walk out of the base.
She was still accompanied by the female captain sent by the higher-ups to monitor her.
The items she needed to carry were packed by the female captain under the watchful eyes of other personnel. The female captain, carrying a large black backpack, stood at the base's electrically protected entrance, took off the backpack, and silently handed it to Tang Sui.
Tang Sui reached out and took it.
The weight of twenty to thirty pounds was held by her slender wrists, leaving no red marks on her delicate skin.
This was within Tang Sui's expectations.
But the next second, the female captain's action surprised her.
She suddenly stood at attention, her long legs straight and together, raised her hand and gave her a military salute, her eyes filled with complex emotions, and said, "I wish you a safe journey."
The female captain said this after having researched Eastern culture for the past two days.
At the same time, a force of faith, invisible to the human eye, rose from her and entered Tang Sui's body.
The small opening previously made by Billy widened slightly again.
Although it was hard to believe, the fact was that even though Tang Sui had shown her special abilities, no one she had encountered at this military base trusted her; they only showed apprehension and complexity, not faith.
And now, it was actually an object of surveillance who would open this breakthrough.
Tang Sui closed her eyes, silently nodded at the female captain, and turned to walk towards General Modi without any hesitation.
Her plea, she had heard it.