“So, the first test was for each family to send a representative to defeat your pet fish...” They pointed at Ghostie as they spoke.
Ghostie threw a black bun at them.
The uncles continued to explain, “Whoever won would stay as a defender and accept the next challenge. Everyone agreed not to use their superpower, except Damon. He is still a child after all, and his superpower can be used in a fight. We hope you can understand...” They smiled obsequiously.
I looked at Ghostie while he shook his head helplessly, eating his black bread while he supported his head with one hand.
Suddenly, there was a tumult outside. Someone blocked the entrance, saying, “Don"t go in, don"t go in!”
“Out of the way!”
Suddenly, someone pushed the Ghost Eclipsers at the entrance away and a bunch of cleanly-dressed teenagers walked in with rage in their eyes.
The leading boy had short, light blue hair and a pair of blue eyes that resembled clear blue skies. His features looked rather familiar to me, and reminded me of Xue Gie.
“Get up! Don"t embarra.s.s us!” The boy looked about eighteen years old. He furiously pulled the uncle who knelt in front of me to his feet, while the other boys and girls came forward to pull the other uncles up.
Ghostie and Lucifer watched while eating, as if they were watching a movie.
“Go back!” The uncle suddenly shouted sternly, losing the ingratiating tone he had before.
The three uncles stood up imposingly. “Stop fooling around! Go back!”
The boys and girls stood there frustrated. Then, the blue-haired boy strode forward towards the bearded uncle. He glared at him loftily, saying, “How much longer are you going to remain a coward?! You acted like this when the Ghost Eclipsers came. You acted the same way when the people from Silver Moon City came, too. We don"t need you to protect us. We can protect ourselves!”
“What do you know!?” The uncle shouted. Then, he turned to me and chuckled, saying, “The kids are naive. Please don"t mind them.”
The boy sneered at the bearded uncle. “Are you afraid that she will slaughter everyone in the city? We will fight her until the end if she does that! We would rather die than submit!”
The boys and girls clamored angrily, “Yes! We would rather die than submit!”
The bearded uncle immediately raised his hand and slapped the blue-haired boy.
The boys and girls were all stunned.
“Now I understand.” I stood up. The uncles looked at me anxiously and the teenagers were alert.
I looked at the bearded uncle, saying, “You are the bravest among your people. It takes a lot of courage to put aside your ego, to yield and surrender to your enemies.”
The uncles looked at me with shock.
The boys and girls looked puzzled.
I looked at them calmly, “It"s because you are protecting your children who can"t fend for themselves yet…” I swept my gaze across those rebellious teenagers. I had seen many teenagers along the way. In truth, I too was one of them. It was just that I had matured a little faster than them, because I had gone through the baptism of war.
I walked in front of the uncles and looked at the leading boy. “Let"s fight without using our superpowers. I will leave immediately if you win. You, on the other hand, will shut up if I win. From then on, I will have the final say here.” I looked at him coldly.
His sky blue pupils tightened as he replied, “Alright!” He turned around and I followed behind him.
Walking out of the house, I realized that the place was actually a village by the sh.o.r.e. We seemed to be on relatively high ground. The plaza in front of me was built from wood, and I could look into the distance. It was a small piece of land, but it had every necessity I could think of. There were also familiar-looking black rye plants growing by the water.
I was a little absent-minded, lost in a strong sense of familiarity.
Did the black rye from Noah City spread to this place? The black rye here actually looks a little coa.r.s.er, though, not quite like the variety in Noah City.
“Come on!” The boy shouted at me, raising his fist.
I beckoned him over and he charged at me. I didn"t dodge, but instead slapped my palm down on his chest, stimulating the acupoints around his heart. He gasped, unable to breathe, and collapsed.
“Bang!” He fell to the floor, stunning the crowd.
I clapped and smiled. “I have never lost a duel fought without superpowers. I"ll stay here from now on...” I looked at the teenagers around me, as well as the fake Ghost Eclipsers who pretended to be fierce. “...but I"ll leave once you repair my s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p.” They looked as if they had just escaped from h.e.l.l.
They were probably relieved that a ma.s.sacre wouldn"t occur.
Wherever the Ghost Eclipsers went, they burned and looted cities, or destroyed them completely.
When the war had started, Silver Moon City and the Aurora Legion had attacked the Ghost Eclipsers" territory and ma.s.sacred everyone as well, aiming to leave no Ghost Eclipsers alive.
It was hard to blame them for being afraid when they realized I was the North Star, Luo Bing. I was the one who had ma.s.sacred Steel Ghost Town, and I believed that this tale would be pa.s.sed on for a very long time.
This place was Koont Village, a very small village that had almost been ignored by the Ghost Eclipsers because it was located in a relatively remote area along the expedition route and had difficulty providing supplies. That was also why it didn"t show up on the expedition route map.
However, it was rather close to the place I had rested at, and it was within the radiation zone too. Consequently, the people in the village were all metahumans who could resist level three to four radiation.
We would stay for a time, because they had destroyed my s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p and were now responsible for fixing it.
The residents became curious about me after hearing that I wouldn"t ma.s.sacre their village, but they always looked from afar.
One side of the village was by the water, while the other side of the village was against a mountain. Buildings rose a short distance up the mountainside.
Ghostie had to stay near the water, so we stayed at the top of the mountain where there was a clean water source.
We stood in a manual wooden lift as they sent us to the top of the mountain. A skylake came into view on our way up. There was a waterwheel by the side of the lake, sending clean water into a waterway.
It was such a miracle for them to have a great water source in this radiation zone.
The skylake was surrounded by wooden houses. I saw quite a number of women was.h.i.+ng clothes.
The women looked at me cautiously from afar. My intuition told me that the women were metahumans too, and that they knew how to fight.
I wonder how many fake Ghost Eclipsers lived here.
Among the Ghost Eclipers" territories that we had taken down back then, had there been any Ghost Eclipsers who had surrendered to save their lives, too?
The bloodshed of war always blinded people, blurring the line between good and evil. All that would be left in an endless war were allies and enemies.
Our rooms were located next to the water. Ghostie leaped and dived into the water. He seemed to have been dehydrated for quite a while. Lucifer sat on the sh.o.r.e, watching Ghostie curiously.
The bearded uncle looked more relaxed now. He leaned on the wooden fence by the sh.o.r.e, taking out a cigarette. Somehow, his expression reminded me of Elder Alufa.
I warned him coldly, “I won"t be merciful if you sell me out!” I didn"t trust them, but I was sure that they didn"t have the courage to lay a finger on me. Our relations.h.i.+p was interesting.