I'm Going to Find Them

He Tangtang's young yet tall, burly silhouette stood firmly in place. The plain, broad-bladed heavy sword in his hands was held level before him, while the Azure battleblade behind his shoulder hummed with faint, shuddering vibrations. *Hisss, hisss! Clack-clack-clack-clack-clack!* Blood flowed steadily from his chest. The Near-Death Surge was like an oceanic storm churning violently within his body, an unprecedented, colossal surge of source energy rolling continuously like monstrous waves crashing to swallow the sky and cleave mountains. He Tangtang knew he could not remain standing in this state for long. But he had to stand just a little longer. And if he could hold out, he would stretch it as long as he possibly could. By now, the two massive boulders that had blocked the canyon pass had been completely shattered by the shockwaves of three consecutive head-on clashes between He Tangtang and the enemy top combat power. Dark-brown and grayish-white gravel blanketed the ground. The mud pits looked as though oxen had wallowed in them. Beyond the rubble and the muddy craters, the footsteps remained dense and hurried. The enemy forces continued to converge, but having gathered and formed up, they muttered among themselves, hesitating to rush forward. This pleased He Tangtang greatly, even filling him with a touch of smug pride. He burst into wild, arrogant laughter. *I really should have shouted back to remind them—they have to tell Qingzi, Plague Chicken, Wu Xu, and Rusty Sister about this scene.* A pang of regret struck him. *I haven't even made this world remember my name yet.* Regardless, the feeling of silently earning respect and trust through blade and sword right now was wonderful. Behind him, the footsteps of his teammates were finally fading into the distance. As he ran, Qin Guowen glanced back one last time. Looking back on He Tangtang's unusual behavior throughout the night, he realized the boy had probably resolved to take this upon himself from the very beginning. Ever since he became the only one left in the squad from Han Qingyu's circle. *Baffling slackness and disregard for discipline.* *And a baffling sense of responsibility...* The mist in the canyon hung heavy. He Tangtang's figure vanished in the distance, disappearing from everyone's sight. Only the sounds of battle remained faintly audible for the moment. Source energy erupted and surged again and again. Dead iron clashed furiously. "Top-tier?! You're fucking injured! How dare you come here to throw away your life?!" A scream of agony. Stone shattered, crashing down in thundering falls or scattering with sharp hisses. "Fine, then you bastards can be the ones to remember..." "My name is He Tangtang—not 'sugar'!" "Azure! Sole Witness Legion, Squad 1777, Han Qingyu's brother! From now on, you'll need dozens of lives to remember that I'm even more ruthless than Han Qingyu!" The kid didn't care in the slightest whether the enemy understood Chinese. The sounds grew fainter. *** Under an overcast sky, it was a little past nine in the morning. Below the grass-covered hillside lay a modest riverside clearing. Two mobile medical tents had been pitched there, and someone appeared to be undergoing surgery inside. The rest of Squad 1777 were either sitting or lying outside the tents. Around the perimeter, roughly two hundred fully armed Huaxia Azure squad soldiers stood on guard. Han Qingyu and his three companions, having sprinted frantically the whole way, rushed down the slope and declared their identities. Hearing the commotion, the teammates beside the medical tents looked up, turning their gazes toward them... Nearly all of them were injured, and many seriously so. Han Qingyu pulled up sharply. It was as though he had finally realized: they had arrived too late. They were already late. This was the first time Squad 1777 had ever found itself in such a state since its founding. Once before, Han Qingyu had felt this utter helplessness. Back when he was still a recruit, he could only stand on the mountain, watching Zhang Dao'an, the members of Squad 1123, and the instructors... fight to the death, buying him time to destroy the tractor beam device, every single one of them dying in the end. And now, even though he had grown vastly stronger and had Rusty Sister and Wu Xu by his side... arriving late, he was just as helpless. "Captain Lao." "Yeah." "Our people..." "I'm sorry. I lost seven of them." Lao Jian was forty-two years old. The moment he spoke, his face twisted in agony, and tears spilled from his bloodshot eyes. "In the end... I left Tangtang behind alone to hold off the enemy. There was a top-tier over there, and so many of them..." As Lao Jian spoke, he coughed violently. Qin Guowen quickly stepped in, holding the map Lao Jian had been using, and gave a brief summary of how they had broken through the encirclement the previous night. "We don't know what happened to Liu Shiheng. Tangtang repelled their top-tier and made us leave while he stayed behind to cover our retreat..." "Near-Death Surge," Wu Xu whispered beside them, instantly explaining the cause of He Tangtang's explosive strength and its likely cost. "We're going to find him," Han Qingyu said, taking the map. Qin Guowen shook his head frantically, telling them about the Great Spike swarm and how they were likely in a state of chaotic frenzy... He also spoke of the elite squad that hadn't shown itself all night and the suspected super combat power. "They're probably waiting for you to walk right into their hands." "I know. I'm going to kill him." Han Qingyu understood the situation clearly enough by now, but emotionally, he was far from calm or rational. Even if the enemy were confirmed to be a super combat power, not just a suspected one, he would still go and try to kill him. Qin Guowen's expression contorted with pain as he said, "Call for reinforcements first! The squad leaders here just discussed it—to head over there, we need at least two thousand soldiers, and a lot of them have to be elites..." This was a hard fact. Under the current circumstances, the two hundred or so soldiers gathered from the surrounding area had no chance of getting through. Going there would merely be throwing their lives away. Call for reinforcements? Han Qingyu calmed down slightly. After a brief pause, he said, "Right. When you head back, remember to request to see Legion Commander Chen." With that, he paused, gave a slight bow to his teammates, and turned, leading his group toward the canyon marked on the map. To find He Tangtang, and to find Liu Shiheng. This time, regardless of whether Liu Shiheng had deserted, the fact that he had ultimately risked his life to come back and deliver the message meant he was still their brother. They had an obligation to find him. After a hesitation of two or three seconds, cries of "Qingzi!" rose behind them, filled with immense dread. Lao Jian scrambled to his feet and shouted, "Qingzi... Han Qingyu... Halt!" Squad 1777 burned for revenge and worried desperately for He Tangtang; Captain Lao felt it just as keenly, if not more so. Yet he had to remain rational. He could not allow Han Qingyu and the others to march into that area under these conditions. Han Qingyu looked back at him. Overwhelmed by his emotions, he had neither the heart nor the patience to explain or deliberate further. He simply pointed at the major's insignia on his shoulder. "Please obey orders, Captain Lao." "...You!" Just as Lao Jian was about to speak, Wen Jifei, who had lagged behind, wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug. "It's alright, Captain Lao. Truth be told, I'm just as worried, but no matter what, let him go. If we don't go now, if we don't let him look for Tangtang... he'll never be able to move past it for the rest of his life." Lao Jian stared at him. "Neither will I. I won't be able to live with it either." Wen Jifei turned his head, exhaled slowly, and whispered, "But Captain Lao, there's something I need to remind you of. Isn't the battlefield divided between two command posts right now? Remember, when you head back, don't go to the command post for the Xilang Peak perimeter battlefield. Go to the main peak command post." Lao Jian's expression instantly turned solemn. The underlying considerations were too intricate, with far too many uncertainties... Wen Jifei considered his words, choosing to bypass the hidden complexities: "We need elites for this. Looking at the bigger picture, I'm afraid Legion Commander Chen might not be in a position to issue a direct order to mobilize a massive force for a search-and-destroy mission. After all, defending against the mothership is the top priority right now. Sending out large numbers of troops just to search for two people would look inappropriate, and it would meet resistance." "Then what do we do?!" Qin Guowen asked anxiously from the side. "Ask for informal leeway, and then go borrow people from friendly forces. The Sixth Army's Long Blade, Mexico's Chichen Itza, Venezuela's Mérida..." Wen Jifei reeled off a string of over a dozen elite squads—all comrades who had forged bonds of friendship with Han Qingyu during the Flag War, or who owed him favors. "And our White Eraser." "Ask them if their circumstances allow it. If possible, have each squad spare a few people to come and lend us a hand." With that, he patted Lao Jian on the shoulder, then turned to Qin Guowen... After saying goodbye to his teammates and offering words of thanks and entreaty to the Huaxia squads present, Wen Jifei turned and hurried to catch up with Han Qingyu and the other two waiting for him.