If she hadn't noticed something was amiss with Weng Quan earlier.
If she hadn't been able to directly stop Weng Quan's actions.
Weng Quan's shot would have hit Qin Chuan.
Would Qin Chuan retaliate?
Qin Chuan, without suffering any actual harm, was already close to losing his temper and killing Weng Quan. But if Weng Quan had truly harmed Qin Chuan,
Without a doubt, Qin Chuan would definitely fight back.
When a person's life is threatened, and the bullet has not yet entered their body,
They can suppress their fear and feign cooperation with the other party through sheer willpower and effort to buy time.
This can also be seen as a process where rationality triumphs over emotion.
But what if that bullet had hit Qin Chuan directly, without deviation?
I don't think many people could truly remain rational in that moment.
Based on Xu An's assessment of Qin Chuan,
If Qin Chuan hadn't dodged that bullet, he might have dragged Weng Quan down with him.
If both Weng Quan and Qin Chuan were to die here today,
It would undoubtedly cause a power structure upheaval for the Lighthouse's higher-ups.
On one side was Qin Chuan, representing the military strength of the Lighthouse, and on the other was Weng Quan, representing the Lighthouse's basic research and development.
In a sense, these two individuals were far more important than the City Lord, who held no real power.
But who would benefit the most from the Lighthouse descending into chaos?
Or, to put it another way, who wanted the Lighthouse to be thrown into chaos?
The answer was obvious, even though Xu An didn't want to believe it.
Even she didn't believe it herself.
But now, all clues pointed to that person, and only that person would do such a thing.
Xu An couldn't fathom anyone else besides Chu Yu wishing for the Lighthouse to completely fall into disarray.
Within the Lighthouse, the struggles between individuals should have remained internal.
But the only one who could conceive of causing widespread chaos in the Lighthouse was Chu Yu, who hadn't belonged to the Lighthouse from the very beginning.
Her gaze swept through the crowd.
As expected, she didn't see Chu Yu there either.
Her suspicions intensified.
Xu An even felt an intense aversion towards Chu Yu.
She still remembered their time at the Southern Base.
Although it was unintentional, Xu An had helped Chu Yu eliminate someone with ulterior motives at the Southern Base.
She didn't understand why, being fellow humans, Chu Yu insisted on destroying the Lighthouse.
Without the Lighthouse, disrupting the existing ecological structure,
Would the tens of millions of people on the Lighthouse perish along with it?
Xu An wasn't that saintly. It was just that among these tens of millions, there were people she cared about.
There were her family and her friends.
Even if she could take her mother away from the Lighthouse and survive using the supplies in her spatial storage,
What about Zhou Haimei?
What about Zhou Haimei's family?
What about the displaced children in the alleys?
Xu An could save herself and her mother, but she couldn't save so many others.
Calming her nerves, Xu An stared intently at Weng Quan's figure, constantly trying to find a solution.
"It would be best to knock Weng Quan out right now. Damn it."
Zhou Haimei couldn't help but curse.
"This is like bringing back a powerful deity. We can't kill him, nor can we injure him."
Xu An deeply agreed with Zhou Haimei's words.
Weng Quan was now a god of death in front of them, the kind who would slaughter indiscriminately,
While they, young and inexperienced, scrambled for cover, all while worrying about not hurting the god of death.
Xu An's expression also began to darken.
"I also want to know how to knock Weng Quan out. His back is against a huge pillar, and as soon as we get close, he starts shooting at us. How are we supposed to approach him?"
This question hit the nail on the head.
But no one could give Xu An an answer.
"An'an, think of something. What do we do now?"
Xu An observed the surroundings. This specially constructed building only had a long corridor.
In the corridor, there were only a series of tall, circular pillars.
Qin Chuan was hiding behind the pillars, dodging Weng Quan's attacks.
Perhaps because Weng Quan's attention was entirely on Qin Chuan,
He showed no hostility towards them, who were inconsequential people.
However, Xu An's kick earlier seemed to have placed her and Qin Chuan on the same side.
Now, any slight movement from Xu An would draw Weng Quan's sharp gaze towards her.
Xu An now deeply missed the days when Ze Yuan was around.
"Let's keep an eye on Weng Quan and stop him from going berserk. Qin Chuan should be contacting people already."
At this moment, Zhou Haimei suddenly spoke.
"It would be great if we had tranquilizer darts. Just shoot him with one."
Xu An agreed wholeheartedly.
Just as everyone was in a stalemate, from the crowd behind Xu An, a faint but still discernible voice reached her.
"Weng Quan is truly a lackey of the laboratory. To save his own people, he's willing to go this far. Qin Chuan is also a coward, being bullied by Weng Quan like this..."
The rest of the words were inaudible, likely because the speaker's voice was too soft, but Xu An couldn't hear them.
At first glance, it seemed like an inconsequential grumble from the crowd.
Watching idly and making snide remarks was a human vice.
In normal circumstances, it wouldn't be an issue.
But in this peculiar situation, it felt somewhat deliberate.
It was as if something flashed and disappeared.
Just as Xu An was about to grasp something, Weng Quan's previously dazed form suddenly lunged forward.
Because the City Lord had ordered an immediate retreat, only Xu An and Zhou Haimei were closely watching him.
But with his not-so-strong body, he shoved past both Xu An and Zhou Haimei, who were trying to corner him.
Xu An and Zhou Haimei were startled and reached for their weapons, only to realize they had entered empty-handed.
Although she had countless weapons in her spatial storage, Xu An couldn't expose herself to the public gaze at this moment.
Compared to the guns on Qin Chuan and Weng Quan, Xu An seemed like a playful child causing trouble in an adult's world.
Fortunately, seeing that the situation was dire, Zhou Haimei quickly shifted her position and moved to Xu An's side.
She handed Xu An a dagger.
Xu An took the dagger from Zhou Haimei without hesitation.
"Then what will you use?"
Zhou Haimei smiled slyly, "I still have a small laser gun, but its destructive power is too great. I hope I won't have to use it."
They both knew the immense deterrent power of the laser gun. Once fired, it would inevitably result in countless casualties.
Between the two of them, Xu An was more skilled with a dagger than Zhou Haimei, so giving the dagger to Xu An was considered the most reasonable distribution by both.