Honkai, why do you only throw me into high-level battles?

Finding the location wasn't difficult for Lin Wei. Even with the revised route starting from the hospital, it was theoretically possible. However, theory and practice were often two different things.

"Lin Wei, are you sure about this?" Anna looked down at the half-collapsed hospital, barely recognizable. "The entire city has changed. It's all rubble and debris. Relying on a child's memory, from this high up…"

It felt like a waste of time. And wouldn't this just cause the little girl more pain if they failed? She would blame herself for misremembering.

"Relax, Anna. I know what I'm doing." Lin Wei twirled a black feather between his fingers, seemingly changing the subject. "Anna, do you know? For someone who has lost everything, 'hope' is both the most desired and the most doubted thing – especially when that hope is offered by someone else."

He reached out with his free hand and gently took the little girl's hand. "Wenwen, have you found it? Which way do we go?"

"Mmm…" The little girl leaned over the edge of the aircraft, her eyes scanning the devastated landscape below, searching for something familiar. She couldn't find it, and tears welled up.

Lin Wei smiled. The black feather in his hand glowed faintly.

"Ah! I found it! Over there!" The little girl's eyes lit up, and she pointed towards a distant pile of rubble. Her voice was a mix of sorrow and excitement. "That's my home!"

Sorrow for everything she'd lost, excitement at finding a familiar landmark, even in ruins. And that excitement only intensified the underlying grief.

"Waaah… Lin Wei… that's… my home…" She started crying again, but her finger remained pointed towards the remnants of her former life.

"A child abandoned by the world struggles to believe in hope, because they fear losing it again. And hope that isn't believed in, hope that isn't embraced, is meaningless," Lin Wei explained to Anna, gently stroking the little girl's head. "Unless she believes that this hard-won hope is the result of her own efforts. That's why she has to find the way herself."

That's why he hadn't simply read her memories. It would have been efficient, but ultimately pointless.

"You and I can only help her for now, not forever. Whether she wakes up screaming from nightmares every night, or wipes away her tears and faces the next day with courage, depends on this moment."

He had used a more subtle approach, guiding her memory, helping her find the path to her own salvation.

Only something earned through her own efforts would bring her true peace of mind, allowing her to sleep without fear of nightmares.

Anna listened thoughtfully.

"Good job, Wenwen. Let's go." He patted her head, wiping away her tears, then steered the aircraft towards the designated location.

They repeated the process at another set of ruins before arriving at their final destination.

"Lin Wei…" The scene below was as desolate as the rest of the city, the rubble stained crimson with dried blood, untouched by the cleansing seawater.

Could anyone have survived here? Anna wondered, her worry returning.

Even Lin Wei frowned. Could he really be dead? If so, all this would have been for nothing.

"Brother!" the little girl cried, her voice carried away by the wind, unanswered.

"Let's go down and have a look," he said, patting her reassuringly, then turned to Anna.

There were still too many Honkai beasts and zombies on the ground to land safely.

He lowered the aircraft and circled the area, having Anna fire her weapons to draw the enemies away.

Once the immediate vicinity was clear, he landed, holding the girl, and gave Anna a look. The rest is up to you.

The "rest" being the remaining Honkai beasts and zombies that hadn't been lured away.

"Hehehe, leave it to me!" Anna was eager to fight.

It felt like old times, their partnership on Coral Island. He solved the puzzles and pointed the way, and she cleared the path, eliminating any obstacles.

She smiled, a wave of nostalgia washing over her.

"Hey! What are you grinning about? There's a zombie right in front of you!" Lin Wei yelled, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Oh! Oh, right!" She blushed, embarrassed, then unleashed a flurry of attacks, wiping out the approaching zombies with ruthless efficiency, as if venting her frustration.

Girls are scary when they're angry, Lin Wei thought, watching her fight. A question popped into his mind. I wonder what Sakura looks like when she's angry?

Yae Sakura ignored him.

"Bang!" He casually shot a Honkai beast that had emerged from the rubble, then gently reassured the little girl in his arms. "Don't worry. Hold this. Tell us when you see a light on the screen. It will tell us where your brother is." He placed the life detector in her hands, giving her a task to distract her.

"Okay!" she nodded, her eyes glued to the flickering screen.

Hearing the gunshot, Anna returned, staying within a twenty-meter radius, eliminating any threats that approached.

"Bang!" A giant crab, its size astonishing, collapsed with a thud.

"Damn thing, that shell was tough!" Anna panted, exhausted.

"Good work, Anna." Lin Wei smiled, dismissing the black cross and the chains that had bound the creature.

"Divine Keys are so convenient…" Anna grumbled. The monster had been strong. She wouldn't have been able to defeat it without his help.

"Cough…" She suddenly stopped, her sharp ears picking up a faint sound from the rubble.

"I hear something!" she called out to Lin Wei. It sounded like a person!

Lin Wei's heart leaped. He hurried towards her.

"Beep, beep, beep…" A white dot appeared on the life detector. The little girl gasped. "Lin Wei, the machine is reacting!"

Anna rushed over, took the detector, and carefully scanned the area where she'd heard the sound.

"Beep, beep, beep…" The detector locked onto a location. "It's here!" she exclaimed.

She put away the detector and banged on a large chunk of concrete. "Hey! Are you alright in there?! Can you hear me?! Tell me where you are!"

"Mmm…" Trapped beneath the rubble, Chen Tianwu thought he was hallucinating, but he instinctively responded. "I'm… here…" His voice was weak. He wasn't sure if anyone could hear him.

"I found him! He's here!" His faint voice was enough for Anna. "Hold on! I'm coming!"

She started moving the debris, her movements frantic.

Doesn't she know how to ask for help? Lin Wei shook his head, walked over, and tapped her shoulder. "Move."

"Huh? Oh…" Confused, she stepped aside, clutching a large piece of concrete embedded with rebar.

Lin Wei, still holding the anxious little girl, casually planted his staff in the ground and projected the 9th Divine Key. With a series of grinding and scraping sounds, the debris above them rose into the air, defying gravity.

Anna dropped the concrete in her hands, watching in awe as it floated upwards.

"Divine Keys are so convenient…" she murmured again.

"What are you standing around for? Help him!" Lin Wei snapped, seeing her dazed expression.

"Ah? Oh! Right!" She snapped out of it and rushed into the cleared space, emerging moments later with a frail-looking young man on her back.

"I must be dead…" Chen Tianwu mumbled. "I'm seeing rocks float in the sky. You don't see that when you're alive…"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Anna scolded. "You held on long enough to be rescued. Don't you dare die now!"

"Oh… sorry." He was still weak, but he apologized sincerely. If this girl had really saved him, his words had been incredibly rude.

"That's better." Anna's tone softened. "Hold on. You're safe now."

"Brother! Is that you? Brother!" Despite the dust and debris obscuring his features, the little girl recognized her brother's silhouette. She jumped from Lin Wei's arms, stumbled, and fell.

Ignoring the pain, she scrambled to her feet and ran towards the young man, throwing her arms around him, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Brother… it's really you… waaaah…"

The joy of finding a lost loved one was immense. But to find a family member alive after losing everything, after descending into the depths of despair…

It wasn't quite heaven, but it was close enough. A moment of pure, unadulterated happiness she would cherish forever.

"Wenwen?" Hearing his sister's voice, Chen Tianwu's eyes filled with tears. "You're alive… thank goodness…"

Her presence here, alone, spoke volumes, and his heart ached with grief.

But in this hellish landscape, to find a surviving family member… wasn't that a miracle?

What more could he ask for?

I should be grateful… he thought sadly.

"Miss, could you… let me go? I'm alright now." He tried to free himself from Anna's grip, not wanting to be rude. "I want to… hold my sister…"

I'm scared… what if this is just a dream, a hallucination?

He needed to confirm that this was real.

"Oh… sure!" Anna, surprised that the survivor was actually the little girl's brother, quickly released him. "Be careful. Don't push yourself."

"Thank you…" He carefully withdrew his arm and embraced his sister tightly, tears streaming down his face. "It's really you… you're alive…"

The warmth of her small body in his arms, the wetness on his neck… it was real.

Thank goodness… He was grateful that fate hadn't taken everything from him. He was content, asking for nothing more.

He'd lost everything, but he still had family. He still had a home.

And as long as he had that, he had hope.

This is enough… isn't it?

"I never thought I'd see such a reunion…" Anna wiped away her own tears, not wanting to disturb the touching scene. She returned to Lin Wei's side and clutched his arm. "There's nothing more beautiful than this, don't you think?"

Lin Wei turned to her, studying her tear-streaked face, the bright smile that shone through the sadness.

"What are you looking at?" She self-consciously wiped her cheeks.

"Nothing." He smiled, gently brushing a stray strand of hair from her forehead. "You're right. There's nothing more beautiful than this."