Ian walked up to the old man and gently persuaded him, "It's dangerous here, you should hurry to a place of refuge."
The old man raised his head and gave Ian a faint look with his wrinkled face, his eyes filled with exhaustion and sarcasm, "Refuge? In today's world, is there anywhere else that is a true place of refuge?"
Ian froze at his words and was silent for a moment, then sighed softly, "Perhaps you are right, it is indeed hard to find a truly safe place anymore. But as long as people don't give up hope, even in the ruins, we can rebuild a new home."
The old man snorted coldly, a hint of resentment in his eyes, "Hope? Look at these corpses in front of you, look at this destroyed city! We were abandoned by this world a long time ago, and living now is nothing more than a lingering existence."
Ian was not intimidated by the old man's indifference and resentment, but slowly squatted down in front of the old man, calmly gazing into his eyes, his voice firm, "I admit, this world is cruel, even more desperate than we can imagine. But it is precisely because of this that we need to hold on to hope all the more, and it is only through our own belief that we can still perform miracles that we can truly overcome this despair."
The old man's gaze flickered slightly, and he asked rhetorically, still with sarcasm, "It's easy for you to say that. But do you really believe you can change the world? You're just a young man, what can one man do?"
Ian smiled quietly, his eyes filled with confidence and warmth, "I'm not naive enough to think that I can change the world on my own. But if everyone gives up out of despair, then there really won't be any hope at all in this world. All I can do is to do my best to protect as many people as I can, so that people can see that there are still people who are willing to stand up for themselves even in such a desperate situation. That courage and determination will be a spark of hope in itself, and sooner or later it will ignite the hearts of many more."
The old man fell silent and gazed at Ian for a long time, the coldness and sarcasm in his eyes gradually fading, replaced by a hint of thoughtful touch.
After a while, the old man finally spoke, his voice low and slow: "You know, young man, I too was once full of ideals and hopes just like you. At that time, we firmly believed that if we worked hard enough, we could change the world. But in the end, we only changed ourselves, and the world remained the same."
Ian listened quietly without interrupting, waiting for the old man to continue.
"I once did many things against my will for the future of mankind in exchange for great power, and I wanted to protect mankind and the world with my own power, but in the end?
Those who fought side by side with me in the beginning either died or gave up their initial ideals and became just as cruel and indifferent as their former enemies." The old man's eyes were filled with exhaustion and disappointment, "I've seen too many betrayals and compromises, and I've seen how too many ideals have been worn down little by little by reality. Now, what makes you convince me that you can do better than me?"
Ian slowly nodded his head, his expression serious and sincere, "I don't know if I can really do better than you, but I'm willing to try. You are right, reality is indeed cruel, and many people do choose to compromise and give up when facing difficulties. But have you ever thought that perhaps it is precisely because most people choose to give up that the few who persevere seem so lonely and helpless?"
The old man's brows furrowed slightly as he fell into deep thought.
After a long time, the old man slowly raised his head with complex emotions in his eyes as he gazed at Ian, as if he wanted to see through the heart of the young man in front of him, "Young man, your beliefs are very strong, but you'll find that the reality is far more brutal than you can imagine."
"I know the cruelty of reality, and I have also doubted myself in the face of despair." Ian said seriously, "But precisely because I have experienced despair, I understand the preciousness of hope. Maybe I can't change everything, but I can at least change what I can reach. How can we expect the world to change on its own if we are not even willing to try?"
The old man continued, "I hope you can remember what you said today when you encounter difficulties in the future."
Ian helplessly shrugged his shoulders, "My biggest difficulty right now is how I can get the three major powers to unite and defend the city together, up until now, I haven't even seen the faces of the three top executives but I'm still thinking of a way to do it and haven't given up."
After hearing this, the old man slowly pulled out a badge engraved with strange runes from his pocket and handed it to Ian: "Take this, give it to the Enlightenment Alliance leader, he should help you."
Ian took the badge, before he had time to say thank you, the old man had already disappeared, but the old man's words rang in his ears, "Young man, you're very much like me when I was young, I'll help you this time, the road behind depends on you, I hope that you can do what you say, I'll see you again in the future when I have the chance. "
Ian's heart was greatly shocked: this old man is a strong man, beyond imagination.
Ian began to survey the badge in his hand, not sure if he could really persuade the leader of the Enlightenment Alliance, but at this point he had no choice, the mutants were attacking again after just one day, and the attack seemed to be more violent as well, if he couldn't persuade the three major powers to cooperate as soon as possible, the City of Ashes wouldn't last much longer.
Regardless of whether it works or not, we won't know until we try it first!
Ian once again walked towards the Enlightenment Alliance headquarters.