Azure, of course, was not blind to something even the old village chief of Fenglong'ao, with merely three winters of village schooling, could figure out.
For the human world of this era, no matter how dire the predicament, having Major Qing step forward was undoubtedly an answer.
Whether that solution was achieved through his formidable martial might or his immense prestige.
Speaking solely of the past three to five years, the global reach and indelible impression Stream Blades' Major Qing had cultivated among the general populace had even surpassed Huaxia's historically undefeated Commander Chen.
This was because, during Chen Buer's era as the God of War, Azure's resistance had remained almost entirely covert. In modern times, stories of his martial exploits lived mostly in legend.
Han Qingyu, on the other hand, had repeatedly spearheaded engagements throughout recent years of public resistance warfare, turning the tide again and again. His record was so illustrious that none could even hope to match it.
Of course, in humanity's source energy martial world, those who wielded truly top-tier combat power and those in the know harbored a rough estimate in their hearts. They understood that in terms of actual fighting prowess, the gulf between Han Qingyu and Chen Buer at his peak was still too vast to easily quantify.
To them, no matter how formidable Han Qingyu's combat strength was, it was still measurable. An equation such as how many Great Spike Daie he could take on single-handedly might not yield an exact figure, but they at least had a rough approximation in mind.
As for the sheer intensity of Chen Buer's ultimate eruption of power, they could never even begin to imagine it.
One had to remember: that old man possessed no Yanxiu.
In the century since the birth of humanity's source martial civilization, aside from the anomalous modified human Rusty Sister, Commander Chen Buer was the only confirmed individual among those of Super rank and above who possessed no Yanxiu.
In other words, relying solely on mortal flesh to wield source energy, he had dominated an entire era amidst a field of Yanxiu possessors, remaining undefeated for over forty years—a reign that had not yet come to an end.
Thus, in recent years, when ordinary civilians across the globe—along with many young Azure recruits—ardently debated who was stronger between Major Qing and Invincible Chen...
...Wen Jifei, He Tangtang, Shu You, Christine, Bochen, and the like would occasionally chuckle and discuss: if Chen Buer struck Han Qingyu with his legendary ultimate slash, how many times would Han Qingyu die, and would he even get the chance to scream "ah"?
In fact, from Wen Jifei's vantage point, he still wasn't confident whether Qingzi could even put up a decent fight against the mutated Ne.
Furthermore, General Jiang Longchi, who had partially emerged from the debilitating sequelae of his Yanxiu, was terrifyingly strong. If he could completely shake off those adverse effects and break free of his predicament, his combat power would likely reach this echelon as well.
And then there was Azure's traitor, Ye Jian. Rumors held that this man, designated as Chen Buer's successor over two decades ago, had never fought at full strength since. Moreover, after paying the price of treason, he had very likely gained something from Snow Lotus and Ne.
Could he, perhaps, reach this tier too?
All these figures, all these actual assessments of combat strength—they knew them all too well... But they could not let Pegmont know.
"It's best if Peg thinks Han Qingyu is invincible under the heavens."
"It would be even better if he woke up one day and suddenly became convinced Han Qingyu could cut Miwang down with a single slash."
"Yeah. Pity that Qingzi was gravely wounded this time, and right before his eyes."
...
During the peak of the chaos, when things were spiraling out of control, Azure's high command had indeed considered having Han Qingyu make an appearance to steady the situation through his influence.
However, given the circumstances, having him rush back to Blue Star was simply impractical. In the end, Azure still preferred that Major Qing accompany the Martian Expeditionary Force straight to the Moon on their return voyage to help locate the skeletal remains, rather than heading back to Blue Star first.
As for having him address the public via a remote broadcast, it certainly wouldn't accomplish much under the current climate. What was more, Wen Jifei had bluntly informed Azure's leadership that Major Qing's current condition was bad—so bad that he was probably unfit to appear before the people of Blue Star.
Setting aside the desperate holding actions and mortal combat across the broader Martian battlefield, at the core engagement—leaving aside the aerial battle delaying Great Spike reinforcements—Han Qingyu and Pegmont had fought in the deep valley virtually by themselves to destroy that super towing field.
Both had suffered heavy depletion and severe injuries.
To make matters worse, while fusing with the Yanxiu had boosted Han Qingyu's combat strength, it had also stripped him of the astounding regenerative capability he once possessed.
Previously, whenever he was wounded, as long as there was an ample supply of source energy, the Yanxiu and that half-set of skeletal remains would awaken and take the initiative to heal their host.
Now, the two had merged into one, and the Yanxiu had completely lost its independent consciousness. If he was gravely injured, the Yanxiu was equally gravely damaged.
Qingzi's recovery had consequently slowed down.
And to make things even worse, Pegmont knew this... Thus, Pink Peg logically deduced that he too must be gravely wounded. Moreover, as a human who had endured such grueling hardship alone on Mars for so long and was so frail, his condition ought to be even worse!
Just like that, both primary pillars of combat strength in the Martian Expeditionary Force were bedridden.
"Fortunately, once we wrap up the loose ends, we can head home," Wen Jifei had told General Yelgena at the time. It meant humanity had won yet another gamble on the roulette wheel of destiny.
In truth, long before Azure's supreme command issued new directives for lunar exploration, the Martian Expeditionary Force had already been hastening their battlefield clean-up in preparation for the journey home.
They—especially those tens of thousands of retired Azure veterans who had returned to service—had never expected to make it back alive when they arrived. Now that survival and return were within reach, their eagerness and longing for home were overwhelming.
Cleaning up the battlefield did not require mopping up the vast numbers of routed Great Spike remnants scattered across the other side of Mars. Leaving them on Mars posed no threat whatsoever. In fact, one day in the future, once passage construction was perfected, Azure might even turn this place into a live-combat base and proving ground for new recruits, just like Antarctica two years prior.
What truly mattered was taking the Great Spike craft. Any ship that could be repaired or refitted had to be piloted away, and even those beyond repair had to have their source energy drive cores stripped and salvaged.
These were the true spoils of war—the resources humanity needed and valued most.
Furthermore, as long as these were hauled away, the routed Great Spikes left on Mars could never rebuild a towing field to threaten human safety, allowing humanity to leave them stranded here without worry for the time being.
Originally, because the expeditionary force had few maintenance crew and engineers with them, the repair, refitting, and salvage of the craft proceeded at a relatively slow pace. Neither Wen Jifei nor General Yelgena had been in a rush, thinking they could use the downtime to let Han Qingyu and Pegmont recover, thereby ensuring a safer return voyage.
However, they soon received Azure's transmission concerning the skeletal remains along with orders for the entire force to swiftly evacuate Mars and advance toward the Moon.
Upon receiving the news, every last person in the expeditionary force was undeniably shocked, overjoyed, and practically beside themselves with excitement.
Those were Yanxiu skeletal remains—a massive hoard, potentially every last piece of Yanxiu skeletal remains left from Blue Star.
No one understood better than these soldiers on the front lines, who had stared down Great Spikes for so long, just how brutal the battle between humanity and the Great Spikes truly was, and how decisive the strength and numbers of top-tier combat power were in this war of civilizations.
Nor did anyone know better than the comrades around Han Qingyu how massive a boost skeletal remains could bring to humanity's high-end combat power.
After all, even Han Qingyu—the strongest combatant standing at the apex of humanity, a near-miraculous existence—possessed only half a set of skeletal remains, which he had fully integrated only recently.
"Perhaps humanity truly is about to usher in a brand-new era," General Yelgena had murmured with tears streaming down his aged face upon receiving the message.
"Yes. Only perhaps... everyone except Old Man Chen." Wen Jifei muttered the second half quietly with a smile. As for why he said that, he couldn't quite explain it himself at the moment.
Chapter 934