Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei's War Journey

The interior of the log cabin was simply furnished, yet clean and tidy, filled with the warmth of burning firewood and the subtle aroma of mate tea.

Sergio hurriedly invited them to sit down at the rough wooden table, frantically trying to pour tea, but his eyes remained fixed on Nono's face.

"It's exactly the same as it was back then... It's unbelievable... Time seems to have stood still for you." Sergio's voice still carried disbelief.

Nono didn't explain much. She took a deep breath and cut straight to the point: "Mr. Sergio, we've come here to inquire about the boy who was with me back then. Did he... did he ever return here?"

"Which boy?" Sergio tried to remember.

"That thin-looking but stubborn-looking Eastern boy? No, he never came back. That day, after I took you to that house, I went to inform the people in town. When I and the Chilean officers returned, you had already disappeared, like a gust of wind, without a trace. This has become the biggest mystery here for decades."

"After you disappeared, the Chilean military found the wreckage of the plane on the snow-capped mountain the following year. However, a group of men in black took over the cleanup of the wreckage. They forbade anyone to approach, and I don't know what happened after that."

Hearing Sergio's answer, Nono's heart sank. Lu Mingfei had not returned to this place where it all began.

The trail seemed to have ended there, and a brief silence fell over the cabin, broken only by the crackling of burning wood in the fireplace.

"What's wrong?" Susie gently nudged the dazed Nono. She couldn't understand Nono's conversation with the old man opposite her, but it seemed that Nono did know him.

"He hasn't been here," Nono said, sounding somewhat downcast.

"Perhaps he set off later than us? Or maybe he chose a different route?" Susie tried her best to comfort him.

"Hmm, maybe." Hearing Susie's words, Nono forced herself to cheer up, unwilling to give up hope.

Susie glanced at the completely dark sky outside the window and changed the subject: "It's getting dark. Where are we going to spend the night? Should we find lodging nearby, or go back to the nearest town?"

"Let's go to a nearby town," Nono said after a moment of silence.

If she were alone, she wouldn't mind spending the night there, or even sleeping outdoors; the nights in the Andes were not unfamiliar to her. But Susie was there to help her, and she couldn't let Susie suffer with her.

She turned back to Sergio and said solemnly, "Mr. Sergio, if that boy ever comes here someday, please do your best to keep him here and call me immediately."

As she spoke, she took out a stack of Chilean pesos that she had prepared beforehand from her backpack, and handed them over along with a slip of paper with her phone number written on it.

Sergio looked at the stack of banknotes and waved his hands repeatedly, "No need, no need. If that boy really comes, I will definitely tell you immediately. This is a promise from us mountain people."

Nono insisted on stuffing the money and note into the old man's hand: "Please accept this as a token of my gratitude for saving my life back then."

Seeing Nono's earnest gaze, the old man finally accepted the note and the stack of Chilean pesos.

After saying goodbye to Sergio, the two drove to the nearest town, where the Andes Mountains looked like a sleeping giant in the night.

"So, what do we do now?" Susie asked softly as she carefully drove the vehicle, bumping along the rough dirt road.

Silence fell again in the carriage. After a long while, Susie seemed to have made up her mind and spoke softly, her tone cautious and tentative.

"Nono...would you...be willing to tell me your story with him? Maybe...it will make you feel better."

But Nono didn't reply, she just stared blankly out the window. Just when Susie thought Nono wouldn't speak, Nono suddenly said something.

"Come climb the snow mountain with me tomorrow."

"Okay." Susie didn't ask why, she just said that one word.

They found a simple hotel in the nearest town to stay in.

Just as dawn was breaking, Nono knocked on Susie's door. The two had a simple breakfast at the hotel and then went to the nearby city of San Fernando to buy hiking gear and food.

Then they drove again, heading towards the village from yesterday, but this time, their destination was deeper, at the foot of the snow-capped mountains.

When the off-road vehicle could go no further, the two got out, packed simple bags, and began their hike.

The cold morning wind felt like a knife against her face. Nono walked ahead, her steps steady, as if she were very familiar with the place.

Susie didn't know exactly where they were going, she just silently followed behind Nono.

The two walked in silence without saying a word. At first, Susie was quite surprised to see so much snow, but after a few hours, she became a little annoyed.

Susie didn't know how long she had been walking with Nuonuo, she only knew that it was getting dark.

"Let's spend the night here," Nono said, standing in front of a crevice in the rocks. The crevice blocked most of the cold wind, forming a relatively safe shelter for them.

Then she took out her tent and sleeping bag and started setting up camp. Susie helped her from the side. Watching Nono's steady figure in the snow, she suddenly felt that this usually flamboyant and enthusiastic girl was inexplicably in harmony with this vast snow mountain, both of them being cold and silent.

By the time the tent was set up and the two of them squeezed into the small space to share the food they had brought, it was already completely dark.

Outside the tent, the wind howled; inside, the two people breathed quietly.

"Is there... anything special about this place?" Susie finally asked softly, breaking the silence.

Nono gazed at the tent roof, lost in memories, and said, "He and I once rested in this crevice. Back then, we didn't have a tent, only sleeping bags made of airplane insulation material. We had no food, and it was snowing heavily outside. We could only huddle together for warmth."

Susie immediately understood that Nono wasn't searching blindly; she was retracing the path she had seen during her spiritual vision.

"So we're now looking for the wreckage of the plane from back then?" Susie continued to ask.

"Susie, can I trust you?" Nono asked in a low voice.

"Of course." Susie paused for a moment, then said decisively.

"I can tell you my story with him, but you can't tell anyone else."

Nono looked directly into Susie's eyes, as if to confirm whether this trust was worthwhile, and Susie looked back at her with a firm gaze.

"I swear, everything you said tonight will stay buried in my heart," Susie said softly, making a closure gesture at the same time.

Nono took a deep breath, and the sounds of wind and snow outside the tent seemed to fade into the distance. She began to speak, her voice calm but trembling uncontrollably.

"That wasn't a dream, Susie. Lu Mingfei and I... we really experienced that plane crash. It wasn't a hallucination we saw through a psychic vision; it was the real Andean air disaster that happened in 1972."

Susie's pupils contracted slightly, but she didn't interrupt; she just listened quietly.

"The plane crashed in the snow-covered mountains. Of the 45 passengers, only about 20 survived. We struggled to survive in the freezing cold of minus 30 degrees Celsius. There was no food, no rescue... In order to survive, some people started to eat the bodies of the victims," ​​Nono said in a low voice.

Susie gasped and instinctively covered her mouth.

"Only Lu Mingfei and I didn't eat the meat," Nuonuo continued.

"Then something terrible happened. A hybrid among the survivors, capable of impersonating others, incited the others, claiming that we, the pure ones, were a threat to them, and that they wanted to force us to become like them."

"Lu Mingfei killed those people to protect me."

Susie stared at Nono in shock; the truth was far more cruel than she had imagined.

"In the end, he carried me on his back for countless days through the blizzard before we finally made it out of the snow-covered mountains. But after we were rescued, we suddenly returned to the present, as if we had just woken from a dream."

She looked at Susie firmly and said, "Do you understand now? I must find him."

Susie remained silent for a long time, then reached out and grasped Nono's cold hand, saying with equal firmness, "I understand. I will help you. Wherever you go to find him, I will be with you."

"Go to sleep. I'll keep searching with you tomorrow. Since he was able to lead you out of that desperate situation, I believe he must still be alive, waiting for you somewhere," Susie said softly.

Nono nodded, a relieved smile appearing on her face for the first time. Sharing this heavy secret with someone she trusted made her feel much lighter.