Return to Xilang Peak

The chill of a September morning was something one felt in the flesh as much as one saw with the eyes. The white lines of the runway stretched out into the distance, vanishing into the fog. The aircraft tasked with flying the Commander-in-Chief to Xilang Peak was draped in mist as well. It was neither excessively large nor small; it was surely one of Azure's most advanced models, though Han Qingyu and the others knew nothing about such things. They were merely fortunate enough to hitch a ride. "If we get a chance later, should we try bringing that up?" Carrying the thick, elongated Milla 9 sniper rifle, his blades, and heavy ammo pouches, Wen Jifei stood beside Han Qingyu and asked in a low whisper. Han Qingyu carried standard-issue twin blades and a long, rectangular black wooden box. It looked cumbersome, yet distinct. 'A Major The Qing ought to have an iconic look anyway,' onlookers across the airfield thought to themselves. Gazing into the dense fog in the distance, Han Qingyu nodded. "Yeah. I was just thinking about it—for now, we only mention the suspicious points. Let's not claim anything with certainty." So Qingzi was still worried, after all. Anyone could see that the vortex would be massive. It might entangle not just two long-renowned recipients of the Star of Azure and a widely acclaimed young man poised to receive one, but could potentially drag in the Huaxia Front and various European fronts as well... With a solemn expression, Wen Jifei nodded. "Alright. We'll leave it at that for now." About five or six meters away, Yang Qingbai walked over, furrowing his brow and looking at them with a wronged, mournful gaze. "So I'm really not coming back with you guys?!" "Yeah, stay behind. You can't fly helicopters over there. Word is a few shuttle craft are still circling overhead, and the aircraft the front line sent to aid the search were all rammed and downed." Han Qingyu had only just learned this news, which was why he decided to leave Yang Qingbai behind. Against shuttle craft, helicopters stood no chance whatsoever, and neither did fighter jets. Civil aviation routes around Xilang Peak had been under a total flight ban for a while now. Moreover, without helicopters, relying entirely on ground troops for the search would make sweeping the battlefield exponentially harder... Who knew where Squad 1777 had reached by now? "Then I can drive for you! Don't forget, I'm still the God of Cars," Yang Qingbai said, reluctant to give up. He wished Azure could deploy aerial combat craft sooner. Lately, he had heard too many thrilling stories and taken part in several squad rescue missions. His blood was boiling, at that stage where he craved the battlefield most, yearning to charge into the fray alongside Qingzi and the others... and ideally become someone of a little importance. "But you don't know how to fight. If you go, someone will have to look out for you. Besides, out there, chances are high you'd have to abandon the vehicle at any moment. You wouldn't be able to keep up, and we wouldn't dare leave you alone... Don't look at me like that, I don't need anyone babysitting me. I'm strong now, and I can drive too." Wen Jifei slung an arm over Yang Qingbai's shoulder, steering him back toward the crowd of well-wishers while saying, "Actually, there is a side task you can handle when you head back to base." "What task?" Yang Qingbai asked. Wen Jifei lowered his voice again. "You know that mother and daughter locked up in the building by the training grounds at our base, right?... Yeah. Go find them when you get back, and tell the older one, Shang Nianhua, that Captain Lao got injured on Xilang Peak. Keep an eye on how she reacts—does she care? Is she worried?... Best if you can make her anxious." A mischievous grin broke across Wen Jifei's face as he added, "Captain Lao really did get wounded, after all." Yang Qingbai caught on instantly and chuckled along. "To be fair, Captain Lao definitely has something going on there. Those of us holding the fort talk about it all the time. Aside from not letting them out, nobody dares mistreat them." "Exactly... If we don't nudge things along from the side, waiting for Captain Lao to overcome his embarrassment and make a direct move would take until the year of the monkey." Wen Jifei clapped Yang Qingbai on the shoulder and turned back to Han Qingyu and the other two. It was time to depart. Though it was early morning, a sizable crowd stood at the edge of the airfield. A quick glance revealed a sea of heads, easily nearing a thousand people. Most of them were likely here to see off the Commander-in-Chief. Chen Buer's trip to Xilang Peak was primarily meant as a deterrent, so there was no need to keep his itinerary secret. At the same time, although Han Qingyu had asked yesterday to collect all his medals at once so he could leave quickly, these were Azure medals, after all. They couldn't simply be shoved into his arms in a single messy pile. "Let's go," Han Qingyu called out upon spotting the ground crew gesturing in the distance. The four strode forward. Soldiers holding medal boxes adorned with emblems of different colors lined both sides of the path, standing at attention with their heads held high. "Azure Huaxia Front... Squad 1777, Major Han Qingyu. For leading an isolated force in a desperate rescue and slaying multiple formidable foes during the assault on Medical Station 101 of our front... awarded the Gold Azure Guard." Amid applause, a medal box engraved with a golden emblem was presented to Han Qingyu. Han Qingyu took it and weighed it in his hands. It was quite heavy and fairly large; aside from the medal itself, it likely contained the initial lump-sum reward of source energy blocks. The soldier saluted and returned to ranks. "Azure Huaxia Front... Squad 1777, Lieutenant Wu Xu. While still serving outside the official establishment, held the squad's station alone against more than thirty enemies, fought to the death, and slew the head of the Yu clan, Yu Yindou... Additionally, during the assault on Medical Station 101, fought shoulder-to-shoulder with Major Han Qingyu to eliminate enemies. Awarded the Gold Azure Guard." Amid another burst of warm applause, another box bearing a golden emblem was presented to Wu Xu. Yu Yindou had led men in attacking an Azure supply depot and later posed a direct threat to the squad's station; Wu Xu had claimed virtually all the credit for that kill. Later, during the incident at Medical Station 101, his contributions had fallen little short of Han Qingyu's. Taking the box, Wu Xu turned his head to look at Han Qingyu. "The Yu clan is in the past," Han Qingyu said. "You owe them nothing." "Mm," Wu Xu replied. Not far away, the presiding officer's voice rang out again: "Azure Huaxia Front... Squad 1777, Major Han Qingyu. For outstanding contributions during the incident regarding Research Institute 2 of our Huaxia Front, awarded the Gold Azure Guard." The crowd erupted into an uproar: another medal box, another Gold! That brought Major The Qing to three Gold medals already... and he had only been in Azure for one year. In truth, this Gold also caught Han Qingyu by surprise; he had practically forgotten about the incident at Institute 2. 'Looking at this, the discovery of the mutated serpent and the massive metal block must have received an extraordinarily high evaluation. And the fact that the citation is phrased so vaguely probably means they uncovered some classified major breakthrough,' he thought, stacking the box on top of the first. "Han Qingyu... for raiding the He clan, breaking the seven-family conspiracy, and slaying Snow Lotus High Actuary Stan, awarded the Silver Azure Guardian Medal." "Wu Xu... awarded the Silver Azure Guardian Medal." "Shen Yixiu, for outstanding contributions during the incident regarding Research Institute 2 of our Huaxia Front, awarded the Silver Azure Guardian Medal." The citations continued, box after box handed into their arms. As if struggling to remember, the presiding officer glanced down at his notes before continuing, "Azure Huaxia Front... Squad 1777, Second Lieutenant Wen Jifei..." "There's even something for me?!" Wen Jifei spoke with dramatic flair, an easy grin on his face, but his hands unconsciously wiped against the sides of his trousers. Preparing to receive his box, Second Lieutenant Wen lowered his head, then lifted it again, letting out a quiet, long exhale. He was keeping his emotions in check so as not to appear flustered. He was a Dice who had once been advised to quit. "Double Silver Azure Guardian Medals," the officer finally announced in a resounding voice. Two boxes bearing silver emblems were handed to Wen Jifei at once. While it looked quite impressive, he had actually drawn the short straw. Wen Jifei's situation was roughly that he had a hand in everything and made contributions to each, but fell just a little short of earning a Gold Azure Guard... The higher-ups had likely factored that in and awarded him two Silvers instead. "Two medals, nice! Come Medal-Wearing Day, I can tease Rusty Sister all I want." Wen Jifei was quite content himself, grinning smugly as he glanced pointedly at the two boxes in his hands and then at the single box in Shen Yixiu's. Rusty Sister looked down at hers, then lifted her head toward Han Qingyu with a slight pout of grievance. Truth be told, her luck with medals was fairly poor. She had been through countless life-and-death battles, yet her contributions rarely fit the mold of a standout, singular act; achievements like racking up rescue missions were mostly measured collectively. "Don't worry. Your medal from Xilang Peak will be coming soon," Han Qingyu said, pointing to the golden emblem on his box to comfort her. If he truly did receive the Star of Azure this time, then Wu Xu and Rusty Sister, who had stood by his side the whole way on Xilang Peak, would undoubtedly receive a Gold Azure Guard each. And so, the party of four, carrying eight medal boxes, boarded the plane bound for Xilang Peak along with Commander-in-Chief Chen Buer and his entourage. Unpacking the boxes right there on the plane to gather the medals together, Han Qingyu now possessed three Golds and two Silvers—five Azure Guardian Medals in total. Meanwhile, their small clique's stash of blue crystal source energy blocks had surpassed four hundred. On top of that, Han Qingyu carried twenty-six metal blocks on his person. 'Still too few metal blocks,' he thought, resolving to get his hands on more once they returned this time. "What do we do, Qingzi?" Wen Jifei nudged Han Qingyu's arm with an elbow, gesturing toward the shut cabin door ahead. They had been partitioned off from the Commander-in-Chief and his inner circle. From the moment he boarded, Chen Buer had been behind closed doors in a meeting with officials from the Alliance. And the matter concerning the Alphonse family definitely could not be brought up in front of the Alliance delegates. "Let's see if there's a chance once we get off the plane." Han Qingyu reclined his seat back, intending to catch some sleep first. In dreams, anything was possible. This time, however, the plane did not land directly at the wartime airstrip within the Xilang Peak combat zone. It touched down far away instead. After disembarking, they were immediately picked up by vehicles sent from the front line. Chen Buer, naturally, was in a different vehicle. "Only now do I realize that when it comes to major occasions, getting a private word with a big shot is practically impossible." "You don't think the Commander-in-Chief will go straight into another meeting when we arrive, do you? Are we supposed to wait?" As the vehicle jolted over the bumpy road, Wen Jifei craned his neck, watching the car ahead with a sigh... when he suddenly called out, "Hey, it stopped... The Commander-in-Chief is getting out... Stop, stop, driver, pull over for a second!" Chen Buer had to take a leak and decided to relieve himself by the roadside. Under such circumstances, naturally, no one dared trail behind him. Yet just as he unzipped his pants, he noticed a figure pull up on his left and another on his right, taking positions beside him. Wen Jifei. Han Qingyu. Both of them were unzipping their pants as well. 'What are these two brats doing? Taking a leak together? Don't tell me they want to compete over who can pee the farthest?' Chen Buer was in his sixties. He pondered for a second: 'Should I channel source energy and shoot it dozens of meters?!' In the eyes of the entourage watching from behind, the three stood with their backs turned in a neat row. "Are they seriously having a contest to see who can pee farthest?! It sure looks like it." Splish-splash, trickle-trickle... "Can you take Alphonse in a fight, Commander-in-Chief?" Wen Jifei suddenly asked, eyes staring straight ahead. "Huh?" Chen Buer grunted. "If a recipient of the first Azure Guardian Medal—the Pride of Europa—went bad, that would be pretty messy, wouldn't it?" Wen Jifei pressed on. Chen Buer's gaze darkened. "I took part in the trial at the Third Fixed Exploration Site in Nepal, and I felt something might be wrong there... They seem to be collecting the corpses of young geniuses," Han Qingyu said. Taking a leak had turned into a monumental incident. Chen Buer remained silent for a moment. "Anything else? Do you have evidence?" "Nothing else. No evidence for now." "Fine, I got it. But we can't rush this," Chen Buer said in a low, brisk voice. "Understood." "Then finish up and scram. I haven't even managed to pee yet. In the future, just come straight to me if you have something to say." Chen Buer paused, then muttered, "Don't pull stunts like this... It puts too much pressure on me."