Nagano, Gu Clan Hall.

The afterglow of the long night dissipates, and the dawn sweeps in along with the warm breeze.

This warm wind traveled through the streets and alleys, picking up fallen dead leaves like fireflies, making it difficult to catch the traces.

"Mr. Zhou, today is a good day."

Duwei pushed the wheelchair with a faint smile on his face.

The soft morning light falls on the body, accompanied by the breeze, which is refreshing and warm all over the body.

"yes……"

After Zhou Wei retired from the Beizhou battlefield, he returned to Nagano to recuperate.

Today, the Safety Committee has been given full authority to Du Wei. The "successor" he chose is very good. After the advent of the extraordinary era, the difficulty of the Safety Committee's supervision tasks has increased dozens of times, but Du Wei is the one who unites the three institutes. The entire Jiangbei area was managed obediently.

Zhou Wei had to submit to his old age. Now the wave of the extraordinary era is sweeping over him. Things have changed, people have changed, and the speed of system changes is too fast.

He knew that even if he were thirty again, he wouldn't be able to do what Du Wei was like.

Mr. Zhou Wei had a faint smile on his face.

Today is indeed a good day.

Gentle breeze and warm sun.

The most important thing is... the old guy who has been fighting in Beizhou and refuses to go home with his tough words is finally back.

In fact, Zhou Wei had long wanted to come and see Gu Qilin.

It's just that he had several bones broken on the battlefield in Beizhou, and he had to rest for a hundred days. His every move was watched by Du Wei, and there was someone to help him even when he got out of bed, let alone sneaking out. .

In the past few days, he finally recovered from his injuries. Accompanied by Du Wei, he went to Gu's ancestral hall to visit his old friends.

Back then, the Gu clan's ancestral hall was always lively, but it was different now.

Nowadays, almost all the young geniuses and mainstays of the Gu family are going to the two major battlefields.

As for the "Night Watchmen" who are famous in the five continents, more than 90% of them participated in the Battle of Gubao on the Beizhou battlefield...

As a result, the alley leading to the ancestral hall became a little deserted.

After Mr. Gu returned from Beizhou, the clan hall became even more deserted.

Without him, the old man likes to be alone, so Gu Nanfeng ordered the night watchman to wait at the entrance of the ancestral hall. If there is nothing important, no one is allowed to enter the ancestral hall and disturb the old man's rest.

"Morning."

Mr. Zhou and Yan Yuese greeted the two night watchmen at the door.

He is certainly not "an idler."

Everyone on the night watch knew that Mr. Gu was not happy to see anyone, but this old friend was the only one whom he cherished deeply and wanted to see each other every time.

"Mr. Zhou!"

"Mr. Zhou, Mr. Du Wei!"

The two night watchmen bowed and saluted.

Du Wei was pushing the wheelchair forward with a smile, but his eyes accidentally caught a glimpse of the big banyan tree at the door. He frowned and said: "I remember some time ago, this banyan tree was still full of leaves. How come it was only a few days ago... Has it started to wither?"

This sentence attracted Zhou Wei's attention and also aroused the curiosity of the two night watchmen.

"It's indeed a bit weird..."

A night watchman murmured softly: "It seems to have happened in the past few days."

They remembered that when they escorted the old man back to the ancestral hall a few days ago, the banyan tree was not what it is now.

Another night watchman joined the Gu family at a very old age.

He said in a daze: "I remember that a similar scene seemed to have happened many years ago..."

Overnight, the branches and leaves of the banyan tree in Gu's ancestral hall withered and scattered all over the ground.

There has always been a saying among the Gu family that "the banyan tree wards off evil spirits". That time the banyan tree lost all its leaves, everyone thought it was the big banyan tree that prevented a disaster for the Gu family.

Zhou Wei's eyes suddenly darkened.

"Let's go. Send me to Gu Qilin."

He slapped the back of the chair hard, his voice extremely exciting.

The sealed object barrier in the Gu clan's ancestral hall is very powerful, and spiritual power is prohibited from being scattered around.

As soon as this statement came out.

The night watchman and Du Wei all realized that something was wrong, and they all rushed to the artificial lake where Gu Qilin often fished.

…

…

The long night burns away, and the sun is soft.

The gentle breeze blows, and the surface of the artificial lake is filled with sparkling lights.

The old man curled up in the chair was still holding a long fishing rod.

The waves are sparkling and the fishing line is swaying, but no one is lifting the line.

The old guy closed his eyes and slept peacefully. His white hair on the temples, thin clothes, and easy wooden chair all swayed with the warm wind.

"Squeak."

"Squeak."

This warm breeze made my heart feel chilly.

Du Wei stood there in a daze, and the faces of the two night watchmen were as pale as ever in their lives.

Gu Qilin's spiritual aura has dissipated...

The gentle breeze with the temperature of sunlight blew across his face, but it could not wake up this cold body.

After all, he fell asleep in the dim starry night and did not see the approaching dawn.

Gu Qilin... is dead?

Du Wei's mind was spinning. He wanted to speak, but couldn't say a word.

He subconsciously lowered his head to look at Mr. Zhou Wei, but the old man in the wheelchair was as quiet as a sculpture. At this moment, he was pushing the wheelchair alone and moving forward slowly.

Du Wei could only see a desolate and lonely figure...

He stretched out his hand to stop the two night watchmen who were about to step forward to check. Their eyes met. Duwei shook his head, his eyes full of sadness and determination.

The three of them silently took a few steps back, leaving the pier of the man-made lake free.

The old guy looked at the old guy, the man-made lake was eerily quiet.

No one knew what Zhou Wei was thinking.

…

…

Gu Nanfeng was awakened by the sunlight. At this moment, he was sitting on the high tower of the Tundra Prison, with Mr. Xue guarding him silently.

He hasn't "asleep" for a long time.

Just last night, he had a very cold dream, feeling like he had fallen into an ice cellar.

After opening my eyes.

The first thing Gu Nanfeng did was to look at the "Celestial Sheath Core Area". Last night he escorted Baixiu and Zhonggui into the 【Snow Cage】 and waited quietly on top of the tower. Endless fog covered it, and no one knew what happened... This fog lasted all night and has not dissipated yet.

"What happened last night?"

Gu Nanfeng gathered up the Kirigakure cloak given to him by Mr. Rusty Bones, with a tired look on his face.

"My lord, there was a strong wind, heavy thunder, and heavy rain last night."

Mr. Xue said softly: "Other than that, there is nothing special."

"Is it?"

After hearing Mr. Xue's answer, Gu Nanfeng felt a little more relaxed. He was worried that he had missed something... thinking that he was probably too tired.

The tundra was very cold, which was probably the reason for his nightmare last night.

"Are Baixiu and Tsukauki still in the 'core area'?"

Gu Nanfeng stood up and felt sore all over his body. This feeling had not occurred for a long time.

more importantly……

The cold feeling left behind by that nightmare has not dissipated yet.

He felt that there was a bone-deep coldness lingering in his heart, and even if he used the breathing method, he could not get rid of it.

"Yes." Mr. Xue's voice was interrupted by the scream of the communicator.

"Hold on……"

Gu Nanfeng cast an apologetic look and connected the communicator.

From the communicator, only a few simple words came.

Gu Nanfeng's figure suddenly turned into a sculpture.

The man standing on the high tower silently looked at the heavy fog in the core area.

Mr. Xue felt "uneasy" in this silence.

For more than ten years, since Gu Nanfeng became the young master, he has never lost his composure.

"Click..."

And after the communication just ended.

The communicator in Gu Nanfeng's hand was squeezed until it cracked, and the next moment it exploded.

"boom!"

Gu Nanfeng silently lowered the hand that was holding the communicator tightly.

A cold wind blew from the tower.

There were broken electronic components everywhere.

"I... will go back to Nagano."

Gu Nanfeng's voice was hoarse. He felt that the real world at this moment was much colder than last night's nightmare.

"You...don't wait any longer?"

Mr. Xue was a little surprised.

Escorting Shirasuke and Tsuka Oni is a very important task.

As the guardian of the Tundra Prison, he naturally knew Gu Nanfeng's arrangements.

If tonight goes well.

Then, the general attack on the Tower of Source will soon begin! At such an important moment, what happened in Nagano that made the head of the family rush back?

Gu Nanfeng looked pale and staggered slightly as he left the tower.

There was one word in Mr. Xue's words that struck a chord with him.

"I... can't wait any longer."

Gu Nanfeng shook his head, and then murmured to himself with a voice that only he could hear: "This time, I really can't wait."

…

…

The Gu clan's ancestral hall, which has always been deserted, hasn't had so many people come to it for a long time.

The scorching sun is high and the hot wind is blowing.

There were huge crowds of people, and the silence was like silence.

Although many people came, it was not "lively" at all.

Gu Nanfeng, who took off his Kirigakure cloak and put on black mourning clothes, stood silently in front of the lake. Behind him was the night watchman from the Gu family in Nagano, and beside him was the weathered old man Zhou Wei.

"...Condolences."

Gu Nanfeng stood silently. He and Mr. Zhou were silent for a long time, but it was he who finally broke the silence.

"..."

Zhou Wei said nothing and silently shook his head.

Where is the word "sorrow" that Gu Nanfeng should say to himself?

This little guy has been so kind his whole life.

Even if I lose the most important person, I don’t forget to express my condolences to others.

"I should have come earlier."

Zhou Wei looked at the lake in front of him and spoke with endless regret and melancholy.

His voice was very slow, and he even laughed as he spoke: "We made an appointment to go fishing and watch old movies from sixty years ago, but when two grown men get together, who will actually watch the movie? I hid him There are a lot of ugly photos. If I had come earlier, I could have ridiculed him with photos of him being half-dead by a bomb blast..."

"Then he will be so angry that he will jump to his feet."

Gu Nanfeng lowered his eyes and said softly: "The battle of South Staircase Fortress is an embarrassment that he never wants to mention in his life."

In that war, Gu Qilin almost died.

"He and I met when we were fourteen. The young men were high-spirited, and we were tit-for-tat with each other. We have been enemies for half our lives."

Zhou Wei sat in a wheelchair and murmured: "I never thought in the first half of my life that I would become friends with such a person in the next few decades..."

In his youth, Gu Qilin was domineering, brutal, and arbitrary!

As the leader of the Safety Committee back then, what he couldn't stand the most was such a troublemaker who violated laws and regulations everywhere!

That era was very turbulent. Beizhou's imperial power was changing, and Dongzhou was also involved. Naturally, the five families could not escape...

Of those people back then, only Gu Qilin survived until now.

It turns out.

Gu Qilin's behavior is correct. In troubled times, only people like him can survive to the end and have the last laugh.

And those who survive to the end...will naturally become friends.

Zhou Wei laughed jokingly, his fingers sinking deeply into the flesh and blood of his palms.

He raised his head and laughed hoarsely: "I never imagined that the death of this old guy would make me so sad... He really deserves to die... How about living for a few more days? Wait until I finish laughing at him before leaving. It’s not too late, or wait a little longer, let’s hit the road together, maybe we can still be friends down there.”

Gu Nanfeng couldn't bear to listen any more.

He took a deep breath and turned to leave.

"Wait, Nanfeng!"

Zhou Wei suddenly called his name: "That day... is coming soon, right?"

Gu Nanfeng's body froze.

He turned back with a complicated expression and looked at the old man sitting in the wheelchair.

Of course he knew which day Zhou Wei was referring to by "that day".

Zhou Wei and Gu Qilin are close friends of life and death.

The two people's positions and concepts are basically the same. They are both looking forward to the final battle when the Three Continents Alliance launches a general attack on the Tower of Source!

Bang bang bang!

Zhou Wei smiled and turned the wheelchair. Facing Gu Nanfeng, he puffed out his chest, then stretched out his palms, clenched them into fists, and beat his chest hard. This action was extremely childish, like a twenty-year-old showing off his youth and strength. Young people in their early years.

"Well, my health is almost better! You should understand what I mean, right? Look, I can go to the battlefield again!"

The tip of Gu Nanfeng's nose felt sour.

He shook his head, turned around and spoke to Du Wei, who was not far away, and said: "Mr. Du Wei... please take Mr. Zhou away and let him have a good rest."

Du Wei, who had been looking at Zhou Wei, sighed at this moment.

He quickly came to Zhou Wei's back, pushed up the wheelchair, and started to take steps.

"Duwei, I don't need you!"

Zhou Wei scolded him with a frown, and Du Wei had no choice but to give in.

Just like that, Zhou Wei pushed his wheelchair in a long circle and came to Gu Nanfeng again.

This time, he no longer puffed out his chest or pretended to be high-spirited.

He is old.

When you get old, you get old, and no matter how talented you are, you have to accept old age...

"Nanfeng... In this life, people always have to live for some obsessions."

Zhou Wei forced out a smile again.

"If I could choose my own ending, I hope I die in battle, and I don't want to fall in the cold night before sunrise. That ending would be too cold. Gu Qilin...that old guy, always laughed at me for being a deserter... …But now he is the deserter.”

"Do you understand what I mean?"

Gu Nanfeng couldn't bear and didn't dare to look at Zhou Wei again.

He wanted to escape and leave this sad place.

But at this moment, the news of 【Snow Cage】 that he had been waiting for all night came from the spiritual sea.

So Gu Nanfeng took a deep breath.

He made a lot of determination and then slowly squatted down and looked at Zhou Wei.

"If you are... really ready, then please come with me."

Zhou Wei was stunned.

Gu Nanfeng's next words made the blood boiling in his chest become hot and hot.

"Because that day has already come."