Late August 1991. The Asian Plate, the Xilang Peak battlefield. After thirty years, a Red Shoulder had reappeared.
Even though the forward command post had deduced from the very beginning of the battle that a Red Shoulder might be aboard the dreadnought, when it truly manifested, the spreading news still struck nearly everyone's heart like a plummeting stone.
In the history of humanity—or rather, Azure—the records concerning the Red Shoulder were simply too dark, steeped in far too much agony.
Azure’s traditional Monument Day had originated from it.
According to previous speculations regarding their ranks, a Red Shoulder was most likely a Tuokouna (intermediate warrior) or a Daie (advanced warrior) within the Great Spike warrior hierarchy.
Chen Buer personally leaned toward the former, an opinion based on the Shattered Star Insignia engraved on the Great Spike’s iron armor.
However, the exact truth depended on whether the blue-sheened Great Spikes constituted an independent rank of their own, or whether they possessed a concept analogous to soldiers transitioning into non-commissioned officers, before anything could be definitively established.
In other words, it was also possible that the blue-sheened Great Spikes were the Tuokouna.
In short, even if a Red Shoulder were a Daie—an advanced warrior—there were still at least two ranks above it: Puda'er (super warrior) and Miwang (god of war).
Yet the Red Shoulder was already the strongest Great Spike humanity had ever encountered.
In the battle thirty years ago, the mere appearance of a single Red Shoulder alongside four blue-sheened Great Spikes had once plunged Azure into utter despair.
In the end, it was Chen Buer—who at the time held no military rank whatsoever, yet was the Huaxia Front’s foremost god of war—who rushed in to intervene. Personally leading a suicide squad onto the field in a bloody battle, he struck with that saber strike of his, slaying the Red Shoulder upon that blood-drenched wasteland.
Now, the moment the news broke, all eyes in the room turned toward Chen Buer.
On this matter, no one possessed greater authority to speak than this legion commander of the Huaxia Front's Sole Witness Legion.
"Rest assured. Lü Moyi can't kill it, but getting away shouldn't be too much of a problem," Chen Buer said, his tone fairly composed.
Over the years, the old man had consistently maintained a calm, resolute demeanor to instill in people the concept of humanity's growing martial strength and their faith in ultimate victory.
"And what if its target is Qingzi?"
A voice that sounded calm, yet concealed immense dread and worry, asked from the far end of the long conference table.
The crowd turned to look. Xin Yaoqiao stood there, looking earnestly at Legion Commander Chen.
"Then... I don't know, either," Chen Buer replied, meeting her gaze. To the others, his answer sounded like mere consolation, barely holding onto a shred of hope.
"Right... Not knowing is fine too." Xin Yaoqiao's reply was even more unexpected. Having spoken, she numbly sat back down, head lowered and lip bitten, as she continued sketching symbols on the paper.
The pen tip rustled rhythmically against the pages.
Both her paternal grandfather and maternal grandfather grew worried for the girl, yet they had no idea what to say. In martial matters, they were laymen after all.
The atmosphere in the conference room froze.
Moments later, Chen Buer found an excuse to step out of the room.
The old staff officer followed him.
One behind the other, the two elderly men walked to the end of the corridor and leaned against the aged railing. The old staff officer lit a cigarette for the legion commander, then lit one for himself.
Drifting wisps of smoke blended into the moonlight.
"Actually, I've had a conjecture for some time now that the boy has, in all probability, already touched life source energy," Chen Buer spoke up.
The old staff officer was taken aback. "Touched super level?! But he's... only been at it for a year!"
His words inadvertently linked life source energy directly to super-level power.
In truth, after Chen Buer unleashed that single Twilight Strike all those years ago, beginning with a portion of the people present who witnessed the slash, humanity's martial strength underwent a dramatic elevation. The fundamental reason lay in the discovery of life source energy and its utilization in battle.
This meant that almost every super combat power today was, at minimum, twin-turbocharged: the three-dimensional apparatus and life source energy.
As for individual peculiarities—whether one had a third turbo, what it might be, or what unique talents they possessed—no one would casually go around talking about it.
"It's best not to say anything," Chen Buer shushed him with a smile. "I'm afraid he doesn't even know the specifics himself yet. I think it's best to just let him keep growing like this."
One year—it was simply too astonishing. While he might not necessarily be the fastest-growing person in the world or the only one to grow so quickly, keeping it quiet was for the best if it didn't have to be publicized.
"Right... then why hasn't he aged?" In his excitement and joy, the old staff officer blurted out the question.
Unable to hold back, Chen Buer glared fiercely at his old partner and snapped irritably, "Well, didn't I stop aging afterward too? Otherwise, just how old would I look by now?!"
"Fair point, heheh," the old staff officer chuckled sheepishly.
"It varies from person to person. Unless it's an extreme or exceptionally intense outburst, the changes won't be overly obvious. If an individual's own foundation or subsequent replenishment is sufficient, and their vitality is robust, it's enough to stabilize things," Chen Buer explained briefly.
Yet his focus remained squarely on genuinely putting one's life on the line—in other words, actively mobilizing life source energy in battle.
This meant that even Chen Buer was unaware of the unique circumstance surrounding Han Qingyu. Han Qingyu didn't actually know how to actively mobilize life source energy in combat at all. His method was to pile up metal blocks until his body became stuffed in a short period—so stuffed it could take no more—causing the life source energy to overflow on its own, and then fight using that overflow.
Other people were genuinely risking their lives; he was risking metal blocks.
It was a good thing Chen Buer had held back from actively teaching or guiding him back then. Had he tried to teach him... Han Qingyu probably wouldn't have been willing to learn anyway. He hadn't even married a wife yet, and he was terrified of dying.
"Speaking of which, do you remember that unsettled case of mine from back then? The one that's kept the Alliance Council suspicious and uneasy about me ever since?"
After a brief silence, Chen Buer spoke again. Because he had stirred up far too much trouble over the years, he added that extra clarification himself.
The old staff officer managed a bitter smile, nodded, and said, "Of course I remember."
That unsettled case from those days—allegedly, Chen Buer had once severely wounded NE and had the opportunity to kill him, but in the end, he didn't do it.
"That incident is true," Chen Buer said suddenly.
The old staff officer turned his head, staring in shock at his legion commander, Chen Buer—his old companion of over twenty years.
"First, because killing him would have meant dying myself. Under the circumstances back then, I couldn't afford to die." For over twenty years, he had never deigned to pay heed to or explain that matter, yet tonight, Chen Buer explained it to his old comrade in a tranquil voice.
"And the second reason?" the old staff officer asked.
"Second, Snow Lotus had already stabilized at the time, but its path ahead remained undecided. If NE were killed as its leader and someone else stepped up to take the reins, the disaster caused by Snow Lotus might have ended up even worse than it is now." Chen Buer paused, then added, "Of course, those are merely my own arbitrary judgments. You can also view it as an excuse I dreamed up to absolve myself."
"Oh. Is there a third?"
"Actually, there is." Chen Buer smiled. "But I'm just an uneducated old shepherd from the countryside, you know. Some principles are blurry even in my own mind, let alone something I could articulate."
"Oh... so that's how it is. Then I understand. Though whether I know or not doesn't really matter anyway." Without pressing further or inquiring into that fight and conversation between Chen Buer and NE, the old staff officer looked up with a smile. "Speaking of which, I was originally planted at your side by the Alliance back then."
The legion commander hadn't spoken those words to the Alliance; he had spoken them to an old friend. He disdained explaining himself to the Alliance, nor did he think it appropriate to voice such things to them. The old staff officer knew this, and he too felt there was no longer any need to report to the Alliance Council... not to mention he had long since been cast aside by them.
Chen Buer nodded. "I knew that from the very beginning."
"Are you bragging?" Leaning back slightly, the old staff officer said, "You knew from the start? With that careless mind of yours, I find that a bit hard to believe."
Like two old bickering codgers, Chen Buer insisted earnestly, "I really did know from the start."
"Then tell me, how did you find out?"
"They claimed you'd spent ten years on the front lines. Total nonsense. When your mother-fucking self first arrived, even your swearing sounded like someone reciting from a textbook. The authentic flavor you have now was learned right here beside me."
"..." The old staff officer thought it over, then burst into laughter. "Hahahaha..."
Why had the legion commander brought this up out of the blue today? It was likely because he too felt that, in humanity's century-long struggle, a new chapter of history was about to begin.
The Great Spike dreadnought had arrived, and the Red Shoulder had reappeared. And after that, what else would come?
Perhaps a Puda'er, perhaps a Miwang... Ahead on the road, there would eventually be some mountain of despair waiting for the Red-Slaying Saber of the old fellow standing before him.
Chapter 254