The Two Most Underrated

The Legion Commander disappeared along with the airborne Needlefish craft. All that remained in the frozen frame was that ruined swath of buildings. From high towers, a brick or roof tile would occasionally tumble down in silence. Then there was the wreckage and debris of Great Spike craft strewn everywhere. As well as the red and blue blood splashed across the ground and walls. The broadcast, which had consumed vast transmission resources, ended there as well. ...This scene would change many things. For instance, the nerves of all mankind had just suffered a crushing blow from the arrival of the Great Spike swarm, plunging them into darkness and despair. Now, however, through humanity's own display of might, they received another shock that defied comprehension—a shock that brought exhilaration. It would bring conviction, burning blood, and a yearning to battle beneath the vault of the sky. The despair of an apocalyptic catastrophe was gradually being replaced by the fervor of war. When humans believed they were powerless to resist and could only wait for slaughter, that was a dark apocalypse. But once the majority began to realize and believe that humanity could actually fight, that they stood a chance to win, that despair turned into wartime resolve against invasion. This was immensely important, and priceless. At the same time, order would be preserved to a certain degree. Those evils swelling in human nature—given free rein because people felt the end of days was here, that all restraint was gone, that wickedness carried no price—would once again give way to fear. For they saw that the world was still upheld, and evil could still be brought to account. Terror of power and retribution made them shrink back trembling, like rats that had just ventured toward the sunlight. This, too, was equally vital. Otherwise, just as Azure had always feared, humanity might perish at its own hands before falling to the enemy. "Beep, beep." A call sounded over the communicator on a reconnected frequency. Yang Qingbai answered it. Feeling a twinge of awkwardness, he was about to ask about Wen Jifei and the others. "How is the Legion Commander?" Han Qingyu asked from the other end. "Uh," Yang Qingbai stammered, thinking: *Can't you ask him yourself?* He was no good at assessing such things. Glancing back at Chen Buer, he replied, "The Legion Commander says he's fine. Um, he looks fine too." "That's good." Han Qingyu's voice sounded calm. "What about Plague Chicken and the others? Are they okay?" Yang Qingbai asked hurriedly. "Those two are fine, just Rusty Sister took some injuries." The reason Rusty Sister and Wen Jifei were safe was that Wu Xu had split the battlefield, and before leaving, fought desperately to gravely injure the red-shoulder left behind. Han Qingyu paused before adding, "But Xu'er hasn't been found yet. He left alone, wounded, drawing away a red-shoulder, and we have no idea where he is right now." Finding Wu Xu was too difficult. "..." Hearing the summary, Yang Qingbai froze for a moment. But his hand on the control stick trembled, causing the entire Needlefish craft to shudder. Chen Buer reached over and switched the call to his line. "Wu Xu... you said a red-shoulder?" The old man stumbled over his words. Compared to his understanding of Han Qingyu's prowess, Chen Buer knew little about Wu Xu's specifics. He only vaguely knew that he had reached the super level less than two years ago, was quite strong, and possessed an indomitable fighting will. Yet facing a red-shoulder alone—especially when he was already wounded from dividing the battlefield—that was far from enough. "Is he... still alive?" Chen Buer asked in a heavy voice. In truth, at this moment, most of the voices coming through on the Legion Commander's own sub-channel were grim. "He's alive! Xu'er has to be alive!" The voices of Rusty Sister and Wen Jifei came through from the side, tinged with emotion. Rusty Sister's voice in particular was choked with tears as she pleaded, "Grandpa Legion Commander, can you give an order to have the people in the Shenghai War Zone help look for him too? We heard that over in Shenghai, the Great Spikes have shifted to defense." According to current intelligence, the Great Spike swarm above Shenghai had indeed adopted a temporary defensive posture, but the Shenghai War Zone headquarters still dared not relax in the slightest, much less act on its own initiative. The enemy was right above them, and the switch between defense and offense could happen in the blink of an eye. "Reporting to the Legion Commander: Wu Xu is definitely alive," Han Qingyu's voice came through, steady and formal. "Because I've always believed Wu Xu is one of the two most underrated among the world's high-tier combatants." In Han Qingyu's eyes, the two most underrated high-tier combatants in this world. One was Ye Jian. Even though he was already ranked tied for seventh on the Dome Leaderboard with Shu You, that disgrace of Azure Huaxia was still underestimated. Because later on, he might never have fought with all his might again. Han Qingyu had only realized this later, upon recalling it after growing stronger. Back then, Ye Jian had been pursued and attacked by Jiang Longchi on the Legion Headquarters plaza. At the time, it had looked as though General Jiang held the upper hand the entire time, while Ye Jian was in mortal peril, barely holding on, before finally making a narrow escape with the help of a traitor. Yet looking back now, General Jiang had been unleashing his full power continuously, whereas Ye Jian had not. Even when everyone thought he was about to die, he had not burst out with everything he had... That could only mean one thing: he actually had the situation under control. "The other one is Wu Xu." The world knew too little about Wu Xu. Han Qingyu continued, "In fact, if he were an enemy and we fought to the death, there is over an eighty percent chance he could drag me down to die with him." Han Qingyu was not lying. There was indeed a gap in raw combat power between Wu Xu and himself, but Wu Xu's characteristic was extremely unusual—it was tailored for desperate, fatal battles. On top of that, he had the Near-Death Surge, which could dramatically elevate his combat power... So when Wu Xu fought to the death, very few people in this world could survive. Hearing these words, the people on Chen Buer's sub-channel were struck dumb. For they all knew full well what level Han Qingyu had reached today. "Therefore, Xu'er is definitely still alive," Han Qingyu concluded with conviction. "Good. Alive is all that matters. As long as he's alive, we will find him." After speaking, Chen Buer switched back to the sub-channel and ordered the Shenghai War Zone to dispatch part of its forces to begin searching from north to south. Meanwhile, the Needlefish craft began descending, circling and sweeping the area. Han Qingyu also contacted the elite squad that had escorted the students and faculty of Yuejiang University away, directing them to search from south to north. ... Knowing Qingzi and the others were likely searching for him, Wu Xu felt rather embarrassed. If not for the red-shoulder still chasing him from behind, that embarrassment—which he usually kept hidden within himself—would have been far worse. Not long ago, as he was running, his foot suddenly stepped into empty air. *Splash!* Now he was at the bottom of the Yangtze River. He was heading downriver toward the estuary (though he didn't know this himself, of course). In a state of source energy, super combatants had an extremely low need for oxygen, but low did not mean needing no air at all... His body was already nearing its limit. Wu Xu cast a backward glance as he ran along the riverbed. *This thing really doesn't seem to need to breathe at all.* So he couldn't drag this out any longer; dragging it out would only drain him further. *Whoosh!* The black spear whipped around in a turnaround thrust. Deep at the river bottom, against the current, the spear shaft bored through layers of water, blasting straight at the red-shoulder behind him. *Clang-thrum!* The red-shoulder blocked horizontally with its column sword. Centered on the point of impact, violent ripples surged outward. *Boom!* The butt of the Binggu Spear kicked up, and Wu Xu surged upward along with the spear, leaping out and bursting through the surface of the river. It was already the estuary. The water was deep and vast. A colossal water column blasted violently upward, churning tens of meters into the air. "Report! Signs of intense combat detected at the Yangtze Estuary!"