Chapter 883 Once a Brother, Always a Brother
“Awoo… Woof!”
A beam of silver gray light flashed momentarily.
A big fat dog nimbly leaped into the air. It caught the falling Heaven and Earth Rings in his mouth, and then came to Li Mu.
Li Mu helped to keep General Qin Zhong steady.
“General, you … How are you feeling?” He could feel Qin Zhong’s vigor rapidly declining like sand flowing down in an inverted hourgla.s.s.
“General.”
The soldiers of the Armored Battalion came over immediately.
Just then, something strange happened.
The Yin Qi shrouding the whole parade square began to dissipate.
The dark clouds in the sky gradually disappeared.
“The Extraterritorial Demons have been exterminated. We’ve finished what we’re supposed to do,” General Qin Zhong straightened up, looking emotional and somewhat relieved. “We have survived the gauntlet of death, my brothers. We’ve earned a peaceful rest.”
A gust of wind blew.
The soldiers’ faces softened with relief and the gloomy atmosphere that engulfed them gradually disappeared, the smile on their faces suddenly injected with vim and verve.
“General, I’d like to remain at your disposal forever.”
Zhao Meng, a man with a set of shredded abs, had tears in his eyes, looking very excited.
“Long live the n.o.ble spirit of the Armored Battalion!”
Below the execution platform, w.a.n.g Dehu, Zhen Menglong, and other soldiers stood upright holding their weapons and saluting the general in high spirits.
Qin Zhong nodded in relief and smiled. “You’ve fought countless battles. Some have returned alive, and some have died countless times. While fighting alongside me alive or dead, you couldn’t enter the cycle of reincarnation. Even though you might perish, you still choose to fight alongside me instead of resting in peace. It is the greatest honor and pride in my life to have soldiers like you.”
The soldiers saluted Qin Zhong in a solemn and respectful manner.
Only real soldiers could understand such an atmosphere.
Li Mu was also touched by the atmosphere.
The soldiers would fight even if Death was already upon them.
It reminded Li Mu of the time when he was on the Heavenly Land Planet. The Great Moon Empire was on the brink of extinction, when soldiers of the imperial army fought valiantly without regret to save the empire just as these soldiers did.
“Li Mu, I have to thank you.”
Qin Zhong turned around and looked at Li Mu.
“Thank you for collecting the Heaven and Earth Rings despite after so many years. You freed me from the last cycle of death. With your help, we’ve defeated our sworn enemy and secured this city. My Armored Battalion comrades who have died in battle can finally rest in peace.”
He gently patted Li Mu on the shoulder.
The same way he did when he helped Li Mu escape from that seemingly illusionary world.
Only this time, however, the gesture wasn’t as aggressive or as warm as the last time. His entire self began to turn into nothingness.
He was not the only one. The soldiers of the Armored Battalion too were starting to vanish as if they were evaporating into thin air.
The air was thick with an inexplicable sensation of solemness and sanct.i.ty as if the Pearly Gates had just opened themselves to these soldiers.
“I used to be a member of the Armored Battalion,” said Li Mu, moved by the atmosphere. “Fighting alongside you today is one of my greatest honors.”
Qin Zhong said with a smile on his face, “As the former soldier in charge of watching the beacon, you have grown into a different person. Speaking of that, I don’t seem to remember how you were transferred to the Armored Battalion… Li Mu, I have a favor to ask of you. I hope you can consider it, if possible.”
Li Mu said without hesitation, “Pray tell, General.”
Qin Zhong said, “This place is very important. If lost, the human race would be in grave danger. Now that we’ve won this battle, my brothers and I are leaving this place forever. We can no longer fight here, so I sincerely request you to continue the Battalion’s mission and stay here to keep this gate safe for the next ten years.”
“Ten years?” Li Mu hesitated for a moment and then said, “Okay, I will do that.”
Ten years sounded like a long time, but it sounded short too.
Li Mu no longer had to worry about the fate of Earth, so it was not impossible for him to stay here for another ten years.
Qin Zhong said, “Thank you so much, Li Mu.”
He slowly raised his arm and snapped into a salute typical of the soldiers of the ancient Celestial Court.
“Salute!”
Zhao Meng shouted from below.
All the soldiers of the Armored Battalion saluted Li Mu with grat.i.tude and trust in their eyes.
Zhao Meng thumped his chest with his fist and smiled at Li Mu, saying, “Hail, brother.”
w.a.n.g Dehu and Zhen Menglong also smiled and called Li Mu the same.
Just as Zhao Meng did, all the soldiers of the Armored Battalion pounded their chests with their fists and said, “Hail, brother.”
It was not easy for them to call Li Mu brother.
Back then, when they were training on the drill ground, they agreed on this special way of expressing trust and respect as in addition to saluting. They would do so only when they meet someone who they truly trust, admire, and believe to be a real buddy that they can count on at the moment of life or death.
Li Mu’s heart was filled with joy and appreciation. He said loudly, “Hail, brothers.”
With that, he thumped his chest.
His heart beat furiously in his chest.
A gentle breeze blew.
Qin Zhong’s body crumbled into ashes and dispersed into the air like ebbing cinders borne away by the wind.
He was followed by the rest of the Armored Battalion, with every member disappearing the same way Qin Zhong did.
Their flesh and blood vanished with only their bones left.
Li Mu could no longer contain his emotions. Tears welled up in his eyes.
He couldn’t find the words to describe this kind of feeling. However, he believed that he would do whatever they ask, and he felt like he could even stay here for a hundred years, let alone ten years.
Just then, golden specks began flas.h.i.+ng on the ivory remains of General Qin Zhong, Zhao Meng, and the rest of the officers and men of the Armored Battalion.
These light spots looked like fireflies flying all over the sky. They slowly rose up into the air and drifted towards Li Mu. In the end, hundreds of light spots turned into a ball of golden light, which circled around Li Mu for a while and finally merged into his body.
“This is…”
Li Mu felt surprised and strange.
The golden light spots seemed to be some kind of power, but he had no idea what they were. When the ball of golden light merged into his body, he couldn’t feel it.
“Could it be the spiritual power of those warriors who have disappeared?”
Looking at the skeletons that had completely lost their vigor, Li Mu was at a loss. He knew very well that those warriors who defended glory and protected the Human Clan could finally rest in peace for good.
Li Mu stood quietly on the execution platform for a moment and then looked back at the people of the Thunder Clan and the Ghost Clan.
“Hey, Li Mu, how much energy do you have now?” The middle-aged scholar from the Thunder Clan asked in a provocative manner with a fake smile on his face.
Li Mu glanced at him and said coldly, “I’m in a bad mood now. You’d better get out of my way right now. Otherwise, do not blame me for being merciless.”
“Qin Zhong and his men fought to the death to safeguard the Human Clan.
“In contrast, these people from the Thunder Clan and the Ghost Clan act like evil ghosts even when they’re alive. Is it worth it for Qin Zhong and the warriors of the Armored Battalion to protect these people with their own lives and end up without being able to rest in peace?”
At such a moment, Li Mu didn’t feel like killing in front of the remains of Qin Zhong and other leaders and soldiers of the Armored Battalion.
That was why he told the people of the two Divine Clans to get lost as soon as they can.
However, if someone deliberately courted death, he wasn’t in the mood of showing too much mercy.
The middle-aged scholar rolled his eyes and laughed, saying, “Li Mu, do you know why this city is so important? Do you know why have those Ghost Soldiers been guarding this place for thousands of years when they could have just chosen to reincarnate and be reborn? Ha-ha, as a matter of fact, there is another door in this city that leads to the truth about the myth. Don’t you want to know that?”
Those words did little to stir Li Mu. He said, “How does that have anything to do with you?”
“I…” The middle-aged scholar’s face stiffened.
Without allowing him to speak, Li Mu raised a finger and said, “You have ten seconds to get lost, or you can be a permanent guest here to accompany my deceased comrades forever!”