After all these days, news of the Life Base being attacked had spread. The burly man believed the reports, then eyed him skeptically, "Can you really produce a thousand points?"

Shao Qi laughed, "Of course. If I can't, I'll work off the debt."

"Pssh! With you looking half-dead? Who'd want you?" the burly man muttered but didn’t press further, leading him to a truck.

"Let's be clear: a thousand points only cover transportation. Food costs extra."

"Understood," Shao Qi promptly agreed.

Not long after boarding, Shao Qi fell asleep. The other passengers observed him for a while, noticing a young, once-handsome man whose face had been burned, wrapped in peculiar, pungent leaves.

By evening, when they reached a rest camp, Shao Qi groggily woke up. A man playing games in the driver's seat, feet propped up higher than his head, grinned at him, "Hey, wake up and wash up. Your stench knocked a few people out in the truck."

"Sorry, I had to camouflage myself in the forest," Shao Qi explained.

"I get it. But what kind of plant are those leaves from? Effective against mutated beasts?"

"It's from the Snake Grass Vine. Its pungent odor helps mask human scent."

Stepping off the truck, Shao Qi saw the team camped beside a small stream – a favorite spot for outbound groups. The water was clear, with non-aggressive fish, providing a vital water source.

There were around fifty of them, all appearing to be martial artists of various ranks. The leader seemed to be the man he spoke to earlier.

After cleaning up and changing into fresh clothes – which unfortunately were two sizes too small, making him look rather comical –

No one could connect him with the grand Marshal. While the group wasn't overtly friendly towards him, they didn't bully him either. Seeing him eat just compressed biscuits, they even shared a bowl of meat soup with him.

After eating, Shao Qi approached the captain to borrow his phone. However, these folks were still using old-fashioned phones which were useless for communication in the wilderness. His plan to contact Zhou You was once again thwarted.

"We're headed to the Wei River Base. Do you have friends there?" the man asked, pocketing his phone.

Shao Qi nodded, "I have a few old colleagues there. I could reach out to them when we arrive."

"What are their names? Not to brag, but I know every warrior at the Wei River Base. My name is Liu Kai."

How could Shao Qi tell him? The people he knew were high-ranking military officials, and he had no intention of seeing them, especially in his current state. Revealing his identity would be akin to signing his own death warrant.

"They're civilians. You wouldn't know them. I used to work in financial investments."

Captain Liu chuckled and did not press further. After all, this man couldn't even lift a sword now. He posed no threat. If he dared to deceive Liu, Liu could easily kill him and feed him to the wild beasts.

"It's getting late, get some rest. The Wei River Base is just two days away. If you can't produce compensation in two days, I'll tear you apart!" Liu Kai threatened and then went to rest in his vehicle.

Shao Qi pondered deeply on his next steps. Once at Wei River, he'd first try to contact Zhou You. If successful, he'd relay the information and wait there.

The outside world must assume he's dead by now. The marshal's position might have changed hands. This might not be a bad thing; there could be tough battles ahead.

Once his injuries heal, if he can't train in martial arts, he'd live discreetly as a civilian. Changing his name and identity was an option.

Zhou You... Would Zhou You despise him? After all, he despised his current self.

No matter, he needed to see Zhou You to find peace. A face-to-face meeting was necessary.

Chapter 226: A Name From The Past

Zhuo Hao led a team to clear out the mutated beasts from the base. Many buildings were destroyed, but fortunately, the items they were searching for remained intact. After spending a day organizing, they concluded their tasks.

Zhou You once again stepped onto the blackened ground. This time, they had specialized equipment for the search, including life detectors and devices capable of analyzing human ashes. They searched far and wide, finding no survivors, but plenty of ashes.

An expert mixed the ashes with a solution and used an analyzer. He determined that over ten individuals had perished here. Beyond that, no further valuable information was extracted.

"Look what I've found!" A researcher ran over with an analysis report on his display. Zhou You and others quickly gathered around, looking perplexed at the data.

The researcher quickly explained, "We believe this pit is where the bomb detonated. Both human and beast remains were found in these ashes, and it's hard to differentiate. However, we detected that one set of ashes belongs to a weapon."

An older expert took a glance and deeply inhaled, "The blade named Yong An was once world-renowned. Master Fan recorded data on this weapon, and it matches the data we have here."

Zhou You's expression froze. He murmured, "It's just a blade. How is its ash different from any other weapon?"

"Weapons nowadays are made from a myriad of materials. Yong An is unique in its composition," the expert replied.

Zhou You remained stunned. He thought, "How could this be? That blade was incredibly hard, much more so than human bones. How could it have been turned to ash?"

If even Yong An had turned to ash, how could anything or anyone have survived?

He lowered his head in sorrow, letting people around him collect and pack the identifiable ashes.

Although they couldn't locate the Marshal's remains, they could at least erect a cenotaph with the ashes.

The pain in Zhuo Hao’s heart was no less than his, "So, this means... boss, Miao Miao, Xiao Qin, Brother Yao... they’re all... this can’t be!”