Without an immediate response, Shen Heng stared directly at Elder Zhou.
"Why?"
"You're a smart kid, you should know what's most important for us right now," Zhou Zhenguo said sharply.
Shen Heng paused for a moment, then did not reply.
Zhou Zhenguo looked at him sternly and continued:
"I know you want to get everything sorted out here before moving on to the next thing."
"But you must understand, right now, the most important thing for us is not how many Calamity Beast we defeat or how many people we find, but finding a way out!"
"After all, none of us know what will happen next."
"Perhaps this space suddenly collapsed? Perhaps the location of the entrance you found through another dimension has changed? Or perhaps a large number of Calamity Beast have suddenly gathered here?"
"Perhaps the probability of these things happening is very small."
"But those of us in this situation have to consider it!"
"Therefore, the most important thing for us now is to find a way out!"
"For this, everything else can be temporarily set aside! Including..."
The conversation ended there.
Zhou Zhenguo looked at Shen Heng, his tone becoming increasingly serious.
"Those of us who have already been rescued, and those who haven't yet been rescued!"
Silence.
Shen Heng sat in his seat, deep in thought.
Zhou Zhenguo looked at Shen Heng and continued in a stern tone:
"Moreover, this isn't just for getting out, it's also for the warriors in other dimensions."
"After all, judging from the current situation, there are at most only three or four hundred warriors scattered throughout this space."
"We don't know how many warriors have been transported into spaces like this!"
"What if there were 70,000 or 80,000 people, or even more?"
"Based on the number of people scattered throughout this space, there must be at least two or three hundred more similar spaces!"
"If you meticulously handle every single space, how much time would that take?"
"One year, two years?"
"Let's not even talk about whether you have that much time to deal with it slowly. Even if you did, the other warriors scattered in the back space would have already been sacrificed to the Calamity Beast!"
"So, for you, the best strategy right now is..."
"Tomorrow, immediately head to the next space to find a way out. If there's no way, move on to the next one. If there's still no way, move on to the next one after that."
"Help the soldiers you encounter along the way find a relatively safe environment for them to build their city, and then leave them alone!"
"Otherwise, this will only severely slow down your work, and it will also harm the warriors in other dimensions!"
"Thump, thump..."
Tap your fingertips lightly on the table.
Shen Heng stared at the still steaming clear soup, lost in thought.
He seemed to have thought of this approach a long time ago, but it had been subconsciously blocked out.
After all, if things really went that way...
Before his eyes, a mighty river seemed to surge. He crossed the river by boat, but could only tell the soldiers who passed by which way to go that they might survive. As for whether they would survive in the end, it depended on their strength and luck!
However, this approach does seem to be the most rational one!
Thump!
His fingertips landed on the table again, but he didn't lift them up.
Shen Heng let out a soft breath, looked at Elder Zhou, and said:
"Okay, I understand. But the time will be slightly delayed. I'll still go out tomorrow as usual, but I'll leave tomorrow night!"
Zhou Zhenguo, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, frowned immediately upon hearing this.
Just as he was about to speak, he heard Shen Heng continue:
"There's some information I need to double-check."
"That's one space. Is it possible to have multiple portals leading to other spaces?"
"If this space has multiple portals to other spaces, then this situation is allowed; if not..."
Shen Heng paused for a moment, then continued:
"That can't be proven. It doesn't mean that other spaces definitely don't have multiple portals to other spaces, but it at least proves that some spaces only have one, or even none at all."
Hearing this, Zhou Zhenguo breathed a slight sigh of relief, then frowned again and asked:
"Can you finish dealing with this all in one day tomorrow?"
"Yes, I've explored about four-fifths of the boundaries of this space. I should be able to explore the rest by tomorrow!" Shen Heng nodded.
"Alright, in that case, you can make your own arrangements tomorrow!"
As Zhou Zhenguo spoke, he picked up the soup bowl in front of him and took a sip.
Immediately, it was placed down heavily.
"I just hope I don't see you again tomorrow!"
"..."
"Oh, right,"
Just as he was about to get up, he paused again, his gaze fixed on Shen Heng.
"Let me remind you again, don't waste too much time on other matters. If you encounter wounded soldiers, help them if you can. If you encounter disabled soldiers..."
The words paused for a moment, then resumed their heavy tone.
"Never mind!"
"..."
Silence. No reply.
As expected, Zhou Zhenguo looked up at Shen Heng.
"By the way, let me give you a piece of advice!"
Shen Heng raised his eyes.
Elder Zhou was looking at him with a serious expression.
"You're a very responsible guy, which is a good thing under normal circumstances!"
"But looking at the future, especially your future, this is probably not a good thing for you!"
"It might give you an extra weakness out of nowhere, or it might increase the pressure you face in the future..."
"Of course, I'm not suggesting you abandon your sense of responsibility, just that you lighten it a little, and try to learn to prioritize."
"You can bear the burden and feel guilty after giving up, but as long as you can adjust afterwards, there's no problem!"
"You..."
Zhou Zhenguo stared straight at Shen Heng.
"Did you remember?"
There was no response; Shen Heng remained silent, lost in thought.
"Responsibility...?"
He sighed softly to himself.
Then, he nodded.
"Okay, I've got it!"
After lingering his gaze on the face of the figure before him for a few more moments, Zhou Zhenguo nodded in satisfaction.
"Alright, since you've remembered it, that's for the best!"
As he spoke, he picked up his plate and stood up.
"Alright, I'm finished eating. You can eat slowly by yourself! Oh, by the way..."
Having already turned halfway, it turned back again.
"I'm telling you, don't let me see you come back tomorrow!"
There was no response, or rather, the only response was a helpless nod.
Zhou Zhenguo smiled, placed the tray in the designated spot, and turned to leave the cafeteria.
He walked all the way back to the administrative office.
Inside, there were still two soldiers, but besides Zhou Dehou, the other one had been replaced.
Zhou Zhenguo glanced around, his gaze settling on Zhou Dehou, and asked:
" Dehou, aren't you going to eat?"