The heavy rain pounded down on everyone, and silence enveloped them. It felt like each of them carried a determination pushing them onward toward safety. 

The return journey was different from their earlier journey. When they traveled earlier, everyone was mainly focused on searching for things, which inevitably wasted a lot of their time. However, on the way back, everyone’s goals were clear. They need to significantly cut down the time needed to return. 

As they walked through the forest, Su Ge had already noticed that the stream, which had once been concealed deep in the woods, seemed to have changed its course. 

The water had split into smaller streams, twisting and turning. One of these smaller streams even followed the same path back to the safety zone. 

This discovery filled Su Ge’s heart with unease. The thought weighed heavily on her, making it hard to breathe. If this path led to the safety zone… 

No, hopefully, their luck wasn’t that bad. After all, the situation was already dire. If the water flowed towards the safety zone… Su Ge didn’t dare to dwell on it further; it was too distressing. 

Clearly, the God of luck wasn’t with them this time. It felt as if someone were laughing at them, standing on the other side of the river and amidst that laughter, they found themselves back at the safety zone once more. 

No, this couldn’t be called a safety zone anymore. 

Everywhere they looked, the landscape had transformed into a swamp. The river water rushed against the mountainside, forming whirlpools that stirred up muddy, sediment-filled water, creating a scene of destruction in front of them. 

Most of the residences within the safety zone were now barely visible, with only a few elevated platforms in sight. Even so, there was no campsite left 

“Search for survivors,” Rong Shi said, gazing at the current state of the safety point. It was impossible not to be shocked, but he was a soldier. He had faced worse situations before, so he quickly regained his composure and addressed everyone, “Split into two groups. We’re going to search for survivors!” 

“Whether we find anyone or not, we need to meet up at this spot!” Rong Shi had picked a meeting place that was beyond the safety zone, on a high ground untouched by the heavy rain. They could see the whole safety zone from there, so it was a pretty safe spot. 

Quickly, everyone divided into two groups. Su Ge glanced at the personnel distribution and made a slight adjustment, saying, “Zigmadar and Amphit, you two split into separate teams.” 

Both of them were among the strongest individuals in the group. In such circumstances, it wouldn’t be wise to have them in the same group. Otherwise, if one group encountered any obstacles, the other would be helpless. 

Finally, Su Ge led one team with Zigmadar towards the left. Just before they parted ways, Rong Shi suddenly called out to her, and Su Ge turned to face him. 

“Be careful! You must be careful! If…” Rong Shou’s voice trembled slightly, indicating that what he was about to say was difficult for him. After a moment of hesitation, he continued, “If you encounter an irreversible situation, call the organizers!” 

No matter what, you must preserve your lives. 

As Su Ge quietly watched Rong Shi, she pursed her lips and then gave a faint smile. She raised her hand and waved to him, her tone surprisingly light, “See you later.” She paused for a moment, “Rong Shi, take care of yourself too. Be cautious, everyone! If…” 

“If everyone returns safely, we’ll have spicy hotpot this time!” 

In the pouring rain, amidst the muddy river water continuously pounding the banks, Su Ge’s words were like a gentle breeze after a storm, soothing everyone’s tense nerves. At that moment, they couldn’t help but smile. 

Although some laughed until tears streamed down their faces, everyone echoed and responded, “Alright, this time we’ll definitely feast like kings!” 

They turned and walked away. 

The two groups headed in different directions, as if venturing towards opposite ends of the world. 

The rain was so heavy that visibility was extremely poor. Perhaps only ten meters were visible, or maybe just four or five. Beyond five or six steps, everything was completely obscured. Su Ge led Zigmadar, Abing, Glaki, Li Ya, and Sela along the difficult path behind the safety zone, observing the situation inside as they walked. 

The safety area looked completely different now. The river water had flooded most of it, smashing all the makeshift houses. Tree branches created rough shelters along the banks and in whirlpools, but there wasn’t a soul in sight. 

Abing was filled with worry and unease, but she couldn’t utter a single word. She tightly sealed her lips, afraid that if she opened them, many questions she shouldn’t ask would come out. 

Many others shared her thoughts, so everyone remained silent. 

In the pouring rain, only Su Ge’s occasional voice could be heard: “Be careful on the left; that rock seems loose, don’t step on it.” 

Or perhaps: “There’s a ditch ahead; let’s see if there’s a way across.” 

In normal times, Su Ge might have been perceived as a girl who wouldn’t let anyone bully her, a bit feisty, fond of teasing others, but also capable of cooking. Just an ordinary girl. 

But now, in the pouring rain, her steady voice continuously reached everyone’s eardrums, tapping gently on their hearts, simultaneously calming their frantic minds. 

It was only now that everyone seemed to realize that this seemingly ordinary girl was actually extraordinary. Her calmness and rationality in the face of adversity were qualities far beyond those of an average girl. 

Everyone felt fortunate that they were led by Su Ge at this moment. 

“Did any of you hear that?” Suddenly breaking the silence dominated by Su Ge’s voice, Sela halted in his tracks and asked everyone. 

Sela’s talent lay in reconnaissance and scouting; his hearing was exceptional, and he rarely misheard anything. This had been proven in many previous situations, so when he spoke up, all eyes turned to him. 

“What sound?” Su Ge immediately inquired. 

Sela listened carefully for a moment before shaking his head gently. “The sound of the rain is too loud; I can’t really make out what the sound is. But I’m sure there’s something different happening in that direction.” 

When Sela referred to “different sounds,” she meant the chaos caused by the rain and the strange noises that came with it. 

Su Ge followed Sela’s indicated direction. 

It was a dense curtain of rain, with only a vast expanse of silver mist visible. Apart from that, nothing could be seen. 

Su Ge lowered her gaze, wiped her face gently, then raised her head again. Without hesitation, she trusted Sela. “Let’s head in that direction.” 

Sela was actually quite unsure himself. He thought he might have heard something, but with the interference from the rain, it wasn’t very clear. 

In this situation, if Su Ge, as the leader of the team, made a wrong judgment, it could spell disaster for everyone. So, even though Sela seemed to have heard something different, he didn’t dare to insist on his judgment to Su Ge. After all, the responsibility was too great. 

Sela was surprised when Su Ge accepted his suggestion in the end, which made him trust Su Ge even more. His lips trembled slightly, unable to express his gratitude. 

“Sela,” he said, “are we going the right way? We might be wrong,” Sela’s opinion differed slightly from the direction Su Ge initially led everyone, and Li Ya looked uneasy, peering into the dense rain curtain. 

“No, we’re not.” Su Ge’s voice remained calm as always, but beneath that calmness, she hesitated slightly, injecting a hint of forced ease into her tone. “If we’re wrong, we can always turn back. Searching for survivors requires exploring every possible direction.” 

“Okay.” Li Ya nodded, feeling deeply reassured by Su Ge’s calm and unruffled voice. 

“It’s all right. I’m here with you.” Su Ge turned to look at the group, her face breaking into a radiant yet solemn smile. 

To be honest, Su Ge looked far from attractive at this moment. She was drenched from head to toe, her clothes smeared with mud of various colors. Her normally lush black hair was now plastered to her head by the rain. In the heavy rain, her face seemed somewhat surreal, but her smile was so genuine. 

At this moment, everyone’s hearts were stirred by such a smile, filled with an indescribable sense of trust and safety that spread and enveloped them all. 

“Zigmadar, there are two fallen logs over there. Drag them over and set them up here,” Su Ge pointed to a trench in front of them, which was over a meter deep and rapidly flowing with dangerous river water. 

Zigmadar agreed and went to retrieve the logs, while the others also pitched in to help. 

In fact, Su Ge found it quite strange. Since they had started, the previously sluggish individuals suddenly seemed revitalized, as if they had all been injected with energy. They became agile and proactive whenever she gave them a task. 

“Is someone coming over there?” After being soaked in the water for a long time, Nalita looked frail. To make her more comfortable, the three men took turns letting her lean against them. From her current position, she could see into the distance. 

Following Nalita’s direction, they indeed saw several blurry black figures emerging from the dense curtain of rain and mist. They seemed like people. 

This revelation excited not only Nalita but also Flynn and Meng. Saro stood up abruptly and rushed a few steps towards the direction of the approaching figures. Standing at the edge of the high ground where they were, he carefully observed. When he confirmed that it was indeed people approaching, he shouted in excitement, “It’s people! They’re coming back! They’re coming back to us!” 

He waved his hands vigorously towards the distant figures and called out loudly. 

Their current location was on a small high ground near the safety point. It was a slight slope, and although they wouldn’t be submerged by the river water here, the heavy rain had eroded a shallow ditch on the slope. As the rain continued, the ditch deepened and widened, eventually trapping them on this high ground. 

They only had a few large stones that could barely shelter them from the rain. They had no tools or wood to bridge the gap of the deep trench. Their situation had become quite dire. 

They couldn’t go into the water because they didn’t know where it would carry them. They couldn’t cross the deep trench either; even if someone managed to leap over, it would be impossible for the sick Nalita to do so. 

In this situation, they had been holding out for several hours. All hope seemed to be fading. The four of them had even agreed that if the surrounding trenches continued to deepen, the water kept rising, and the rain didn’t stop, they would contact the organizers. 

Although the show was good and the opportunity rare, it wasn’t worth sacrificing their lives, was it? 

And just when they thought they might not see the sun tomorrow, someone arrived. 

This is undoubtedly a huge hope for the four of them, reigniting the extinguished sparks within each of them at this moment. 

In the vast curtain of rain, it’s impossible to clearly discern the small black dots steadily moving towards them, but just knowing that someone is coming fills them with excitement. 

Narita lowered her head, leaning quietly on Flynn’s shoulder as tears freely flowed down her cheeks, “Flynn, Meng, are we saved?” 

Flynn’s voice was low and gentle, devoid of the sharpness of earlier, revealing his inherently mild nature as he nodded firmly, “Yes, Nalita, we are saved.” 

“I wonder who’s coming,” Meng supported himself with his cane, struggling to stand. Despite Lana’s dedicated care and the doses of medicine from Su Ge, his leg had improved significantly over the days. However, the rain inevitably soaked his wound, causing it to sting again. 

“Could it be Rong Shi?” Nalita, a faithful fan of Rong Shi, couldn’t help but express her hope, “It must be Rong Shi coming to rescue us!” 

Meng’s lips twitched. Although logic dictated that this was the most likely scenario – aside from Rong Shi, no one else had the audacity or capability to rescue them in such dire circumstances – another name emerged from the depths of his mind, gradually becoming clearer in his thoughts. When he opened his mouth, it was another sentence that came out, “Not necessarily.” 

“You really like to keep us waiting. Who else could it be except Rong Shi?” Nalita is very weak now, but even so, she still wants to call her idol. 

Before Meng could respond, they heard Saro’s shout in the distance. Meng attempted to leave the shelter of the rocks to see what was happening, but Flynn stopped him, “You both stay here out of the rain. Saro and I will handle that side.” 

With that, he helped Meng sit down and hurried over to Saro. 

Saro was bent over, adjusting a huge log that had been placed from the opposite bank, under the slope. 

The distance between the two sides had narrowed considerably, perhaps only three or four meters. Flynn could clearly see the figures on the other side: the tall figure of Zigmadar who was struggling to control another log, assisted by several others – likely Li Ya, Sela, and the short Glaki – who were working hard to lower the log towards their side. 

“Make sure the log is wedged tightly, just adjust it a bit. We can’t risk it slipping!” Zigmadar’s voice sounded relaxed now that he had spotted the others. Even his speech sounded lighter, showing his relief. 

Despite the rain curtain obscuring their view and making the voice somewhat blurry, Saro seemed to intuitively grasp the message, like they shared some telepathic connection. Together with Flynn, they worked on adjusting the angle of the log, while also placing more rocks to secure both ends tightly, preventing any potential slipping hazards when people walked across. 

Once Zigmadar confirmed that both logs were securely wedged, he turned to Su Ge, who stood at the rear of the group, and said, “As per the old rule, I’ll go first, you cover our rear.” 

They had built several such log bridges before, but unlike this one, the previous ones didn’t have anyone on the other side to secure them. So, Su Ge was quite confident about the safety of this bridge. 

As Zigmadar reached their destination, Saro and Flynn couldn’t contain their excitement. They immediately embraced Zigmadar as if he were a beloved god. 

“Thank you so much for coming to rescue us!” Flynn intended to express his gratitude properly, but his voice choked up uncontrollably. 

Saro, standing beside them, was hardly any better. If it weren’t for the pouring rain, his tears would have been evident to all. 

Zigmadar patted both of them on the back with his massive hands, laughing heartily. “No need for thanks, we’re all in this together. Why all the formalities?” 

He glanced back at the others who had gradually arrived behind them and chuckled again. “If you really want to express gratitude, it shouldn’t be to me. I’m just the muscle. It’s someone else who brought us back here and unwaveringly found you.” 

“Who? Rong Shi?” Saro asked. Although Flynn didn’t speak, his gaze followed the approaching crowd, indicating his thoughts aligned with Saro’s. 

However, as each person descended and appeared at the back of the group, Flynn’s expression became slightly conflicted. 

He stood there, mouth slightly agape, hardly believing the person he saw. Meanwhile, Zigmadar’s voice rang in his ears, “It’s Su Ge. We were supposed to take a different route, but Sela said he heard something different, and Su Ge steadfastly chose this path.” 

“Oh, you have no idea. Getting here was no easy feat. If it were up to me to lead the way, I probably would’ve given up several times along the journey. But Su Ge kept encouraging us, insisting we’d find you. Thank goodness you’re really here! Otherwise, I think I would’ve lost it!” Zigmadar casually recounted the arduous journey they had just undertaken. 

“Is it… that… Earthling?” It took Saro quite a while to find his voice. He watched Su Ge calmly walking towards them, already halfway across the single log bridge, while those who had arrived were turning back to reach out for her. The scene left him speechless for a long time. 

Zigmadar seemed somewhat dissatisfied with Saro’s choice of words. With a click of his tongue and a furrowed brow, he remarked, “Earthling or not, we all live here now. Are you Pilarian folks supposed to be nobler or something?” 

Saro was at a loss for words, silenced by Zigmadar’s response. He shook his head repeatedly, “No, that’s not what I meant.” 

Zigmadar glanced meaningfully at Flynn. “Here on this crisis-ridden and desolate planet, we must remember one thing: there are no fifth-class races or first-class races. Living here, we’re all the same. We all have only one life.” 

“Today, Su Ge insisted on going back, not because she thinks the lives of first-class planet are more valuable, but because, in her eyes, in all of our eyes, everyone is equal. There’s no superiority. I believe, even if it weren’t you here today, if it were someone else, everyone here would still come to your rescue.” 

“See, we all think alike. Therefore, we’re all the same, all possessing noble souls.” 

Normally, Zigmadar was carefree and gossipy. But now he seemed to speak these words as if they were thunder striking Flynn and Saro’s hearts. It’s profound and resonating. 

Flynn watched silently as Su Ge approached them step by step. She looked disheveled, yet inexplicably, at this moment, Flynn felt as if she radiated a dazzling light, so bright that it was impossible to look away.