A heavy silence followed Yu Song's words. They weren't loud, but they landed like stones, deep and final.
Xu Tianming stepped up beside him. "Yu Song is right. Leader Qingran hasn't misled us once. If she says it can be done, I'll believe her."
Someone in the back mumbled, "What choice do we even have? Might as well die trying than sit and wait to be eaten."
That sparked a ripple of low murmurs but it was no longer hostile.
Qingran let the stirrings settle before she spoke. Her voice was calm, but it cut through the room with a startling clarity.
"Then let's gamble."
She looked around at the group. Her eyes didn't waver, and though her tone remained steady, there was something in it, something that made people listen without meaning to.
"We're not just fighting with our bodies. We're fighting with our lives."
She gave them a moment to absorb it before continuing.
