Zheng Rong knocked on the door of the room shared by two girls. Xiang Yu was sitting on the sofa, casually chatting with Jin Puae.

Zheng Rong frowned without speaking, understanding immediately, and turned to leave.

"Stay," Xiang Yu said, "I have something to say, Zheng Rong!"

Zheng Rong turned back to Li Ying’s room and said, "Laini, open the door. I know you're in there!"

The doorknob turned, and Li Ying lowered his head slightly, sizing up Zheng Rong with an ambiguous smile. "Darling, you missed me?"

Zheng Rong said, "Laini, come out."

Laini lazily brushed her hair, looking a bit displeased. She stepped out into the corridor, and Zheng Rong closed the door heavily. Li Ying let out a sigh, leaning against the door and listening to their exchange with his ear pressed against it.

With her arms crossed over her chest, Laini said indifferently, "I was just asking him how it feels to have a biological bomb implanted in his brain, and where the surgical incision is."

Zheng Rong’s face was dark. Laini continued, "Save your usual talk; I want to save him more than you do."

Only then did Zheng Rong’s expression soften slightly. "What did you find out? That's exactly what I'm here to ask you about."

Laini fiddled with her ear, shrugging. "He told me he was anesthetized during the surgery; who knows? Maybe we should take him back to Northern Ireland for a check-up."

Laini added, "At least for now, our goal is the same—to keep him alive. Or maybe General Lance has another purpose, to extract some useful information from him."

"But no matter what, you need to let go of your prejudices," Laini said again. "Otherwise, I won't be able to communicate with you."

Zheng Rong's tone softened, though still somewhat stiff. "Okay, I trust you. I've been thinking about one thing these past few days: implanting anything into someone’s brain will destroy brain cells."

Laini nodded. "Yes, as far as current human technology goes, we still can't identify which specific part of the brain generates thoughts or how they are produced. We only know that the cerebral cortex is crucial for humans. To put a solid object into the brain—not just the cranial cavity, but the very center of the brain, as he described it!"

Zheng Rong said, "It could be very small."

Laini replied, "No matter how small it is, as long as it meets the critical conditions to withstand cranial pressure and trigger an explosion, it will inevitably displace brain cells and break the intercellular matrix, causing irreparable damage to the brain."

Zheng Rong said, "A trigger bomb could also be in a liquid state."

Laini thought for a moment. "It's possible. After all, we can't use human technological standards to measure alien technology. But I doubt they could achieve that. Think about it—three years ago, a thousand undercover agents were sent from the Special Forces camp..."

Zheng Rong immediately became tense. "Who told you that?"

Laini looked seriously at Zheng Rong. "Lance also wants to save him. There's emotion between them too, don't think that only you and Li Ying share a deep bond."

Zheng Rong said, "Continue."

Laini asked, "If implanting a bomb was easy, why is he the only one who has returned to our side so far? They could have just let the undercover agents return to the underground city quietly, then detonate the bomb at a military hearing and turn the top brass into minced meat..."

Zheng Rong fell into deep thought. After a long time, he asked, "Then what do you think is possible?"

Laini seemed to struggle for the right words, and only after a while did she speak. "I think there are two possibilities. One is that the Mayan aliens have mastered some kind of technology that breaks through space—the bomb is there, but not there..."

If Laini had said this to anyone else, few in the expedition team would have understood. But Zheng Rong immediately grasped the meaning. "Hyperspace technology, a bomb located in another virtual space that overlaps with his brain."

Laini nodded.

"And the second possibility?" Zheng Rong asked.

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Laini shrugged. "The second one is even more absurd: his brain is newly created. A completely new brain, serving as a storage for his thoughts."

Zheng Rong: "..."

Laini said, "This is very tricky, Zheng Rong. It’s not metal; with ordinary instruments, we can't even find where the bomb is. I don’t even know what it is. And even if we do find it, it would be extremely difficult to remove. Imagine cutting a person's brain in half, like deboning a fish..."

"Enough!" Zheng Rong rudely interrupted.

"The best thing would be to let him go, to let him live his own life," Laini said.

Zheng Rong was silent for a long time before finally replying, "I won't let him go. I'll personally send him to the operating table and watch him die."

Leaning against the door in the room, Li Ying's lips curled into a sweet smile.

Laini pursed her lips, tears rolling in her eyes.

"You men are all heartless, to yourselves and to those you love..." she said finally. "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep."

She knocked on the door and went back to her room. Zheng Rong sighed, preparing to go back to rest. Xiang Yu walked out from the girls’ room and said in a deep voice, "Zheng Rong."

"What?" Zheng Rong said. "I'm in a really bad mood right now. Can it wait until tomorrow?"

Xiang Yu said, "I’ll stay with you."

Zheng Rong crouched down, sitting on the carpet of the hotel corridor with his knees hugged to his chest.

Xiang Yu sat cross-legged beside him, took off his coat to cover Zheng Rong, and extended an arm to wrap around his shoulders, letting him lean against his shoulder.

Zheng Rong stared blankly at the elevator across the corridor as the floor numbers slid by one by one.

Xiang Yu whispered, "Li Ying is lying."

Zheng Rong replied, "Impossible. He’s never lied to me."

Xiang Yu said no more.

After a moment of silence, Zheng Rong asked, "How do you know he's lying?"

"Liar’s eyes always flicker," Xiang Yu said. "I've observed him many times. Every time I ask him a question, he doesn't know how to answer..."

"He’s pitiful," Zheng Rong said. "He's just trying to think of how to answer our endless questions without triggering the bomb in his brain."

Xiang Yu said in a deep voice, "There is no bomb in his body. That alone is the lie."

Zheng Rong didn’t have the strength to argue anymore. He said quietly, "Maybe he's lying to you."

"But he’s never lied to me. We've fought over this many times. Sometimes, he doesn’t even need to tell me the truth—he could make up any excuse and get away with it, and I wouldn’t question him."

"When we were dating, he even went to my brother and said, 'Zheng Feng, your brother has fallen in love with me, and I love him too...'"

Xiang Yu interrupted, "In my lifetime, I will try my best to love him, to take care of your brother, until the day I no longer love him."

Zheng Rong laughed. "Exactly. Did Li Ying tell you that?"

Xiang Yu fell silent.

"My brother was furious," Zheng Rong said, "not just because of our relationship, but also because of that so-called promise that didn't sound like a promise. Actually, Li Ying should have said, 'I will love Zheng Rong for a lifetime.' That would've been enough."

Xiang Yu said lightly, "Vows of eternal love are empty words. People can’t deceive their hearts. Who can make such grand promises of undying love?"

Zheng Rong nodded. "That’s why I think that although he's a combat expert, a killer... at his core, he’s like a knight. The last rule of the chivalric code is to vow: I will be loyal unto death to the one I love."

Xiang Yu was noncommittal. Zheng Rong stood up. "But hardly anyone can do that. He only proves it with his actions. In that sense, I trust that he wouldn’t lie to me."

Xiang Yu escorted Zheng Rong to his door, looked into his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "Zheng Rong, goodnight. What I said earlier was just casual talk; don't dwell on it. I will protect you."

Xiang Yu lightly kissed Zheng Rong on the forehead. Zheng Rong touched Xiang Yu’s face, pushed open the door, and went to sleep.

----------------------------------------

The Next Day:

Joseph and Ugos sat down, and everyone exchanged good mornings.

"Did everyone sleep well last night?" Zheng Rong reached for the coffee pot. Lance said, "No black coffee, add a little milk."

Jin Puae: "Very well."

"Quite well," Ugos said politely.

Joseph's hair was a mess, looking sleep-deprived. He yawned. "Aha, the bed here isn't bad... though I didn't sleep much. Miss Jin Puae, please pass me the sugar jar. Thank you. Would you like some, Ugos?"

"Too much sugar is bad for your health," Ugos said. "I must stay healthy for humanity."

They sliced ham and bacon, and the sound of knives and forks filled the room. Lance spread butter on Zheng Rong’s bread.

"Any new discoveries?" Zheng Rong asked.

Joseph pointed with his fork. "Please call me a genius. I've translated Moses' last words."

Zheng Rong said sarcastically, "Give me a Hebrew dictionary, and I might only need one night."

"Oh no," Joseph said, "You have to know that in their era, there were many homophones and metaphors. If you don’t study the language, you wouldn’t understand."

"Like what?" Xiang Yu asked.

Joseph turned to Xiang Yu. "I hear you've been learning English recently?"

Xiang Yu smiled and spoke in broken English, "Yes, learning bit by bit."

Lance said, "He’s very quick to learn and adapt."

Joseph used English with emphasis, "For example, 'I am the vine... my Father is the gardener. Every branch that does not bear fruit, I will cut off. Now that you hear my words, you are clean... You are in me, and I am in you...'"

"Enough," Zheng Rong said. "Mr. Savior, I'm more curious about the words on the stone tablet."

Joseph shrugged. "Nothing came of it. It’s not like our words or characters—just twelve symbols arranged together. I even doubt it's a sentence."

Zheng Rong asked, "What was Moses' will?"

The room fell silent. Joseph thought for a moment before reciting it; his memory was excellent.

"I climbed Mount Saint Catherine, and He showed me the Wheel of Fate. The wheel spun atop the heavens, emanating the light of life..."

"Wait!" Zheng Rong keenly asked the first question. "The character for 'God'?"

Joseph thought for a moment. "In Chinese, that's correct. In Hebrew, the word for God is distinct from third-person singular. You can consider it a reference to the Creator. Yes, that's exactly how Moses referred to Him."

Zheng Rong asked, "So Moses saw God?!"

"Oh, my dear," Joseph replied, "This is just the beginning. Maybe all he saw was a small spaceship. I promise you’ll be even more excited after hearing the whole story, so be careful not to drink water."

Everyone around the table fell silent, listening to Joseph recount Moses' last words.