Azure Alliance Headquarters, the press station.
Ian and Ashleia were not originally correspondents for the Alliance's main bureau. They had arrived here because of their battlefield coverage during the Flag War, which had earned them special medals and widespread acclaim.
The official evaluation from the Alliance press department stated:
"Through their near-blind penetration into the combat zone and their fearless efforts, Ian and Ashleia prevented a piece of great history from becoming hollow."
"They are not warriors. Yet they are also warriors, fighting in their own way for this era and for a new era that may soon arrive."
Regarding the war that had taken place just days ago, Ian and Ashleia had much to take pride in, but they also harbored many regrets.
For instance, if only they had reached Xilang Peak a few days earlier—right from the very start.
Then they could have documented far more facets of that great conflict. For example, those other deeds surrounding The Qing... the heroic sight of him sprinting across the snowy peaks with five hundred Great Spikes trailing behind him, or how he had suddenly snatched away the Red Shoulder's column sword.
Word of the war's sudden aftermath had arrived only moments ago.
After urgently processing the immediate reports on hand, the press headquarters was now organizing the registration and selection of war correspondents for the second half of the war.
The Azure press department was already preparing for the day when the Great Spike civilization's invasion, the existence of Azure, and its century-long history of resistance would have to be revealed to the world.
If all of this ultimately had to be confessed and laid bare before humanity, what they, as journalists, needed to do was use their reporting to give this world strength and conviction, inspiration and hope.
"I've signed up... I doubt they have any reason to turn me down." Ian had resolved to return to Xilang Peak. As he walked out of the registration room, he ran into Ashleia once again.
Ashleia paused, smiled, and said, "Me too."
"So, partners?" Ian suggested with a chuckle, teasing, "Assuming Miss Ashleia doesn't mind that I'm not any stronger than you, of course."
Those were Ashleia's own words from when they had argued beneath the circular defensive position on Xilang Peak over who would film from the front line... She laughed. "It's the truth, Ian. That's why you turned down my offer of combat sparring, isn't it?"
Ian gave an awkward laugh. He really didn't want to get beaten into the dirt by the woman standing before him—not in the slightest.
"Even so, you still always try to protect me." Ashleia stepped forward, nodded slightly, and extended her hand with a warm smile. "Thank you, Ian."
She was tall.
Ian reached out to shake her hand. "You really don't need to thank your partner, Ashleia. In fact, as long as you don't go filing a grievance against me with the committee members for gender discrimination, I'll be more than grateful."
Back beneath the circular position, Ian's justification for stopping Ashleia had been that he was a man and she was a woman. Ashleia had accused him of gender discrimination on the spot.
Both of them burst out laughing.
"Still, you definitely suffer from the issue I mentioned, Ian," Ashleia insisted.
"No, I don't." Ian shook his head. "You know what? Later on, I chatted with an old veteran from the Huaxia Front. Before joining Azure, he was a fisherman... He told me that where he came from, whenever there were heavy winds and pouring rain, the male fishermen would head out to sea alone. Only on calm, sunny days would they bring their wives along to help."
Ashleia turned to look at him, her eyes carrying a meaningful glint. "And so...?"
"It's not discrimination. I simply happen to possess that same noble virtue." Ian laughed heartily with pride... though inwardly, he felt thoroughly spineless.
As the two walked toward the exit, chatting and joking, the journalists gathered along the corridor were passionately discussing that Huaxia warrior. Regarding whether The Qing would be awarded the Star of Azure, each reporter had leveraged their personal connections to dig for every scrap of information.
"I heard the Council is currently deliberating."
"Yes, deliberating. It's already in the second round. I don't understand why they still need to hesitate. Nor do I see any logic or necessity for hesitation."
"Just as they say, the bloated size of the council and the endless clash of opinions are making the Council inefficient and fraught with contradiction."
"Shh."
After a brief silence, another journalist rushed over, carrying fresh news and speaking with unconcealed excitement:
"The Qing was just promoted to major at the Huaxia Front's All-Army Conference! So from now on, please address him as Major The Qing. Or if anyone's like me, I prefer to call him Major The King."
The room erupted in clamor once more.
"If you don't know already, I have another piece of news that might be even more shocking," another reporter said with an air of mystery. "He shattered Ye Jian's blade. Major The King broke Snow Lotus Ye Jian's blade!"
A collective gasp and murmur of astonishment swept through the crowd.
"Yes," amid the uproar, another reporter who had already received the dispatch chimed in. "However, I believe Ye Jian is actually still the stronger one..."
He wanted to explain other details from the scene he had learned.
"Nobody said he wasn't." The previous reporter frowned in annoyance, cutting him off. "The Major isn't even a Super yet. But what we're discussing is that a twenty-year-old Major The King unleashed those three strikes on Xilang Peak... and after that, he went and broke Snow Lotus Ye Jian's blade."
"The pinnacle of human martial strength seems to be ascending to an entirely different tier," someone murmured in awe.
"In that case, I also believe our twenty-year-old Major King, just one year after enlisting, is destined to become far more awe-inspiring than Ye Jian in the future... and I mean in terms of pure martial prowess."
A trace of debate began to stir through the crowd.
"So give him the Star of Azure already, hurry up, good grief," a pale, bearded veteran journalist laughed heartily and said. "Then broadcast the footage Ian took and publish the photographs Ashleia captured... He'll win the hearts of countless young women all over the world."
His remark dispelled the tension.
At the same time, hearing their names mentioned, Ian and Ashleia, who had been standing off to the side, strolled over.
Ashleia picked up where the veteran reporter left off: "And then have every single one of them get rejected by him?"
Her remark caught everyone off guard. The journalists turned to look at Ashleia one after another, wondering whether she, as the only person present who had actually spent time with Han Qingyu, was about to drop a massive scoop regarding Major Qing's love life.
"Trust me, he'll always find an excuse—all kinds of excuses," Ashleia said, offering no further explanation, only a confident, knowing smile.
That day on Xilang Peak, she had actually eavesdropped on Yin Caixin's confession, comforted her afterward, and listened to the whole story straight from the person involved.
Soon, the two took their leave and began preparing for their journey.
'Good grief... did Ashleia confess to Major Qing? And then get turned down?' Ian felt a little heartbroken.
Chapter 303