Chapter 2

Boom!

A bolt of lightning split the sky, transforming into several blue arcs that struck the barren hill with only one tree, tearing the only tree, as thick as a bowl, in half.

Xiao Lan sat up abruptly, staring blankly at the remnants of the tree just a few meters away. His first feeling was not one of narrowly escaping death, but of confusion.

The thunder continued to roar, but the sound gradually faded away.

Xiao Lan looked up at the distant sky, which was a hazy gray. Some tall buildings, now only faint outlines in his eyes.

"Chirp..." An unknown bird let out a mournful cry, streaking across Xiao Lan's blurred vision and disappearing into the depths of the gray concrete skyline.

Just as Xiao Lan felt something was amiss, his head began to throb painfully, preventing him from thinking any further.

Boom! It felt as if the ground beneath his feet had been struck by something, causing a violent tremor.

Xiao Lan, still not fully awake, instinctively looked for a place to lie down. The next moment, he stared blankly at the distance. In the hazy sky, one white light column after another appeared, not falling from the sky but rising from the ground, filling his vision and even making the polluted gray sky brighter.

An earthquake? No, this scene is so familiar, it happened once before…

"Xiao Lan…" A clear and urgent voice called out, followed by a slender figure running up the hill.

When Xiao Lan saw the delicate face of the person approaching, he instinctively called out, "Qin Qin…"

As the girl in the light yellow dress drew closer, Xiao Lan's memories gradually became clearer, and the intense pain in his head eased somewhat.

Qin Qin, his wife, but that was how many years ago?

Right, this is Haiyang Medical University, I'm Xiao Lan, and I'm a senior this year…

Before Xiao Lan could think further, Qin Qin was already standing in front of him. "Xiao Lan, was that an earthquake just now? But why were there light columns?"

Only then did Xiao Lan realize that the white light columns had already disappeared, and the sky had returned to its hazy gray.

Xiao Lan was still stunned by the previous scene and Qin Qin's sudden appearance, unable to react for a moment.

Qin Qin didn't seem to mind Xiao Lan's odd behavior and continued, "I'm glad you're okay. That was just a minor thing, you really have a strong sense of self-esteem. Come on, let's go back together."

By this time, Xiao Lan had recovered his composure. He stood up again, brushed the dust off his clothes, and said with a smile, "Qin Qin, thank you for worrying about me. I'm really fine, I don't care about that anymore. I just came here to reflect on my life. Don't worry, you go back first, I'll sit here for a while longer."

"Ha ha, remember, you're only eighteen. You're a senior because you're in the Haiyang Medical University's Young Talent Program. So, forget about reflecting on your life. Also, you've become quite smooth-talking after just one day. Qin Qin isn't a name you can call. Since you want to reflect, do it slowly. I'm leaving now." From Xiao Lan's expression and tone, Qin Qin could tell he was really fine, and her worry was unnecessary.

But those eyes… Qin Qin shook her head. Xiao Lan, the youngest student in the class after transferring to the Young Talent Program, couldn't possibly have such a world-weary look. She must be mistaken.

Xiao Lan stood still. Qin Qin isn't a name he can call? He had been calling her that for twenty years. He sighed inwardly, just waving his hand, "It's fine, go ahead, I'm fine."

Looking at Xiao Lan, Qin Qin suddenly smiled, "Do you want me to bring you a paper cup of water, so you can sit down while shaking your hand and say you're fine?"

"Do you have one? If you do, I can imitate Star Sir." Xiao Lan chuckled.

"Ha, looks like you're really fine. See you later." Qin Qin turned and walked a few steps, then turned back, "Xiao Lan, do you think the sky will turn blue again?"

Xiao Lan looked up at the hazy sky and smiled brightly, "If I can come back one day, I'll make the sky blue again."

Qin Qin was taken aback, then said, "I don't want to talk to you anymore, just keep writing your poetry." She quickly left, clearly not taking the ground tremors and light columns seriously. Her question to Xiao Lan was just a casual remark. Xiao Lan's response made her feel puzzled, thinking he was being overly dramatic.

Watching Qin Qin's retreating back, Xiao Lan's smile slowly faded. Looking up at the still gray sky, he couldn't understand why he had suddenly returned to twenty-one years ago. This day was his birthday, and it was also the day he fell deeply in love with Qin Qin. But he knew clearly that in this life, he and Qin Qin would never be a couple again.

The gray sky wasn't due to occasional fog or darkness, but because the entire Earth was polluted by industrial waste. Even on sunny days, the sky was a lifeless gray.

Xiao Lan once thought this was the most terrifying thing, and he even regretted studying medicine. He wished he had studied a field that could change Earth's pollution, making the planet better.

Later, Xiao Lan realized that this wasn't the most terrifying thing. The most terrifying was the seventeen-year nuclear war…

After that nuclear war, humanity was enslaved, and Earth was on the brink of destruction, heading towards an endless abyss with no hope of redemption. The air polluted by industry? In a decade, it would be a luxury. By then, the air would be polluted by nuclear fallout.

He would never forget the scene: watching Qin Qin open her mouth and fall in the nuclear-contaminated ruins, looking at him with tears in her eyes, filled with despair…

And he could only guess from her mouth movements that her last words were, "I'm sorry, I have to go first…"

He understood why Qin Qin said sorry to him. She married him not because she truly loved him. Even as she died in the nuclear-contaminated ruins, she never loved him, Xiao Lan. Saying sorry was because he, Xiao Lan, had given her his life as love, but she, Qin Qin, never loved him, even in her last moments, so she felt sorry for him.

Love isn't something you can give just because you want to, and it's not something you can get just because you give.

Lightning flashed again, piercing the smog-covered sky. After a while, the rumble of thunder followed. The last scene of his previous life flashed before his eyes: he was being drowned in the sea. After Qin Qin left, he was in a daze, then forcibly dragged away to treat a person of considerable importance. He didn't have the heart to say he couldn't cure him…

Xiao Lan clenched his fists, looking at the distant gray sky, and said firmly, "I will not allow it…"

In this life, he would not allow the nuclear war on Earth to happen again. He would not allow Qin Qin to suffer through that hard life with him. He had to learn to let go.

The nuclear war could be prevented because it wasn't a war between nations on Earth, but a war to stop an alien invasion.

Unfortunately, even with the nuclear war, Earth couldn't escape being enslaved by the invaders.

Xiao Lan took a deep breath, his gaze piercing through the gray, polluted city. Although he couldn't see anything clearly, he knew he had to act now to prevent a global nuclear war.

(Last time I started a new book was in 2018, almost three years ago. Time flies so fast. Today, I'm starting a new book. New book release, please recommend and collect!)