Beryliu continued, "He died in battle in the Shengyuan system last year. The Freedom Army fighters recovered his body and buried him on a dwarf planet a hundred light-years from Sumi's homeworld. We kept his death a secret."
That was probably why the Empire hadn't made any announcement.
Still, the Sumi Freedom Army's split couldn't stay hidden for long. Once the Imperial Army got wind of it, there'd be no hiding Hong Lan's death either.
By then, even if every dog in the Celestial Council were leashed, they'd still strike at the Freedom Army's divided factions.
Of course, that wasn't the only bad news Beryliu had to share.
He went on to tell Yu Lian that of the nearly fifteen hundred comrades who had joined forces to hunt down the Great Tortoise at the War God Festival, more than half had joined the rebel army through various channels.
And now, four years later, fewer than two hundred of them were still alive.
Of those whose names Yu Lian could still remember, only Zhexing and Beryliu remained.
Mr. Starfish was still in the promising business of interstellar shipping. Thanks to the fame he'd gained at the War God Festival, he'd reportedly attracted some investors and had become a fairly well-known trader. Still, he hadn't forgotten his comrades from the festival and was always finding ways to transport supplies and people for the rebel army.
But as the war broke out and the Empire intensified its crackdown on the rebels, Zhexing had stopped his operations. According to Beryliu, he himself hadn't seen his old comrade in nearly two years.
"He's a businessman, after all, not a wanted rebel like us. The fact that he did even that much makes him a true friend." Beryliu was at least fair enough to say that.