"How does it feel?" Xiu'Er seemed to be stunned for a moment, then looked at interstellar world Shen Yu and suddenly smiled, "Is this also part of the front-line weapon trials and investigation?"

"No, it's just what I personally want to know." Shen Yu shook his head and said, "I know, before this, everyone here was actually guarding this place and sacrificing for a thoroughly illusory hope. But now, this illusion has become reality. I want to know how you look at this reality."

Originally, Shen Yu hadn't had such a question.

After all, in his imagination, people here endured torment and then suddenly saw hope—there'd be that excitement, that fervor.

No matter how exaggerated, it wouldn't be an overstatement.

But now, it looked like they had already come to terms with death, and were no longer afraid of it.

But what about their fighting spirit?

Fear and pain can sometimes become fuel for battle intent, too.

What Shen Yu wanted to know most was still this point.

Xiu'Er looked at this mysterious researcher, probably having already guessed some of the reason behind the question.

He suddenly grinned and laughed.

"Take a guess: if I went and said to everyone now—'Boys, put your cards down, the chance we've waited for has come, get ready to counterattack'—how do you think they'd react?" Before Shen Yu could answer, Xiu'Er gave his own answer, "First, they'd be stunned, then they'd seek to confirm it—then, they'd fall into fear."

"Fear?" Shen Yu hadn't expected that answer.

"Yes, the fear of death." Xiu'Er's smile grew brighter and brighter. "At least that's how I felt. After ten years here, except for the very beginning, I was never again afraid of death. But at that moment, I really got scared—scared that I'd die before we truly launched the counterattack, before there was real vengeance!"

"..."

Shen Yu fell silent, observing his expression and eyes.

Even though they were just simulated by electronic optics, in that instant, it felt as if he could really sense his emotions.

"That was truly the most terrifying thing for me in that moment—unprecedented fear. I believe they're the same," Xiu'Er turned to look at those soldiers, "These ten years, I've kept telling everyone around me, every new recruit that arrives: don't fear death, learn to compromise with death, to coexist with it. And they did it, but—fuck coexistence!"

The grin still hung on Xiu'Er's face, as if the curse hadn't come from his mouth at all.

However, he didn't stop speaking.

"We all know—compromise, coexistence, it's just self-comfort built out of desperation, self-protection in the face of hopeless reality. But death is so real. Every soldier who fell in these ten years, every comrade we knew who died, we remember them all." Xiu'Er turned back to Shen Yu and spoke each word deliberately, "Smiling in the face of it doesn't mean we don't care, or that there's no pain. We've just learned to suppress it—to bottle up all the pain and anger—so that when hope comes, we can ignite it all at once!"

At this moment, Shen Yu truly felt it.

That burning battle spirit, that fury for vengeance.

It was at its breaking point—until now, they'd just been suppressing it by sheer force of will.

They'd waited so long for this day, paid so much, and didn't even know if it would ever come.

But now—it was here!

"From the perspective of pure fighting spirit, the Docking Wormhole Corps in my estimation ranks highest in the entire civilization." The voice of the Goddess of Hope suddenly sounded in the ears of the two. "Over 99.98% of the corps' soldiers are willing to die to slay the Void Spirit and earn battle merit. They are not afraid of death—just of dying before they get revenge."

"Not even a hundred percent?"

Xiu'Er seemed dissatisfied with the numbers, but quickly switched back to his usual nonchalant self and looked at Shen Yu. "Okay, your question's answered. Suppressing this war intent is hard work, you know. So what else do you want me to do? Actually, I'm more curious about your 'new preparation.' Only if I know that can I organize the tactics—but with this high level of secrecy, it gets a bit awkward. Maybe you can swap me out for a higher-clearance commander?"

There was clearly a new technology to be tested on the battlefield, but they couldn't be told its predicted effects.

For a commander, that really did leave one lost for words.

If the effect was too great, it might even disrupt all the tactical arrangements.

So, even though it was extremely hard to relinquish command at a moment like this, unable to personally lead the revenge battle they'd waited ten years for, the outcome of the war still mattered most.

But the Goddess of Hope spoke again: "In truth, not a single individual in the entire civilization has sufficient clearance to learn of it in advance."

"..."

Xiu'Er, who had always been able to control his emotions, finally revealed a trace of shock.

No one in the civilization has that clearance?

That only means one level.

The supreme leader of Human Civilization!

That level has been vacant till now. No one has met the requirements—and even the next highest clearances are basically all 'acting.'

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