Ever since he became an Ascender, Huai Shi could be considered to have seen the world.
From the beginning until now, he had fought from the Present Realm to Hell and back again. He had secured so many victories and obtained so many results. Now, he could more or less be considered to be a top figure.
However, he had never experienced such a huge battle.
If things really came to a head, it would be a lie if he did not feel uneasy.
During this period of time, he had been running all over the border, acting as a tool to put out fires everywhere. However, they were all urgent special missions, such as the defense of local conflicts, the transportation of confidential goods, the guarantee of supply of resources, the elimination of aerial threats … He was far from having that much experience in such a large-scale war.
Even if he knew what he should do and understood how to deal with various situations, now was not the time to 'break through the defense line'. He himself was the defense line, so how the hell was he going to break through?
He had the geographical advantage, but he had lost the mobility that he had always been used to.
It was impossible for him to just leave if he could not win.
Even if the first sequence had dozens of support points now, and even without the Tower of Glory, it would not be in imminent danger. However, if he really lost such an important place, even if Huai Shi did not die, he would probably have to pack his luggage and go home.
In such a situation, it was natural for him to panic. It would be a problem if he did not panic.
Anyone in Huai Shi's position would have panicked as well.
However, since Richard felt that he could do it, and the Feathered Serpent also felt that he could do it, he would not belittle himself and think that he did not have the ability to bear this responsibility.
'I'm Yun Zhongjun, and I don't even need to pay to eat in a restaurant in the Gaia fragment. What's wrong with eating a watermelon in the Thunderbolt Sea?'
Thus, the wind blew, and the rain fell.
The days passed as usual.
Huai Shi did not lack in the slightest. He was not afraid that the other party would target him and seek revenge in the future.
Since he was already an MT, he had to pull the aggro more steadily. He was not afraid of the other party attacking him, but he was afraid that the other party would ignore him.
As the first sequence of the Solano Defense Line, the important unit that faced the enemy directly at the front, the Tower of Glory could not be left alone. Instead, it was directly connected to the defense line itself, forming a fulcrum of firepower like a bastion.
Apart from the Guardian Huai Shi and his mascot adjutant, there were also six Scholars and fourteen Ascendants, as well as hundreds of soldiers.
The Scholars were responsible for maintaining the framework and laws of the tower. Apart from that, the Tower of Glory itself was responsible for ensuring the safety of the tower.
All kinds of equipment and weapons were continuously moved into the tower and connected to the array, causing the dark clouds above the Tower of Glory to grow thicker and thicker.
The Tempest that Huai Shi had been nurturing for half a month now had a faint scarlet color in the darkness. Even though it was suspended high in the sky, not moving at all, it still made people feel stifled and uneasy.
However, to the allies, this uneasiness was a source of stability. After all, the stronger their own people were, the safer they would be. Everyone knew that.
However, the only inconvenience was that … this damned place was too damp!
In this hot and dry desert border, except for the isolation room where important equipment was installed, the humidity in the Tower of Glory was almost off the charts.
Moreover, there was a drizzle every hour. At night, there was no need to even keep watch, because layers of white fog had completely engulfed the area around the Tower of Glory.
During this period of time, the Crystal Squad had never been so comfortable.
There was no need to patrol, no need to respond to signals and run hundreds or thousands of kilometers for emergency rescue, and no need to be suddenly awakened by alarms in the middle of the night. Even though the remaining tasks were equally heavy, compared to the previous days, it was as if they had stepped into a gentle retirement life in advance.
Although they knew that war was close at hand, this group of heartless people still changed into underpants during their shifts and ran to the ditch behind the Tower of Glory to play diving.
It was as if they had come to a water park.
Although sometimes Sandra would get too excited and evaporate half the water in the pond with a punch, blowing away the people in it … it was quite fun at other times.
Sometimes at night, there would be other squads carrying beach chairs, stereos, and various other things over, and everyone would have a BBQ together.
And at the top of the tower, Huai Shi sat in his usual position, looking at the figures not far away who surrounded the fire and enjoyed beer while quietly enjoying the wind.
After a long time, he looked back at Crystal 1-7 behind him. "Are you sure you don't want to go down and take a look?"
Crystal 1-7 shook his head silently and lowered his head to continue wiping his power armor. Ever since Huai Shi helped him repair the damaged parts of the kinetic skeleton, he had been wiping this thing every day.
Just like the bartender in the bar, he would never get tired of wiping it.
As the captain of the squad, Crystal 1-7 had a prestige that was difficult for others to reach in the eyes of his own team members. Huai Shi felt that even he might not be able to compare with him.
After all, he was just a person who came out of nowhere, and Crystal 1-7, to them, was the officer who had accompanied him through fire and water, and had saved him many times from quagmires.
However, despite this, he still seemed to deliberately keep a distance from his team members and did not participate in their lives more deeply.
Similarly, he also kept his own.
He still maintained the work and rest habits of the former Crystal Squad. He did not slack off because he was the last survivor, but he also did not force the new team members to keep up with this set of overly harsh standards outside of the daily training.
And those cumbersome armor maintenance and boring training day after day seemed to be the only link left between him and his former comrades who had passed away.
For the rest of the time, he had nothing to do to kill time.
It was as if he was waiting for something.
Waiting for war, or death.
"Do you want a can?"
Huai Shi took out a can of beer from the box at his feet. It was the 'offering' that Sandra would occasionally remember that she still had a superior after 'looting' the parties below.
Now, Huai Shi casually shook it, and a layer of ice crystals climbed onto the body of the bottle.
It was cool and refreshing.
Crystal 1-7 did not pretend to be indifferent. He took it, raised his head and drank half of the can, and let out a long breath. "Phew, refreshing, thank you, sir."
"Why do I always feel that you don't like to talk?"
Huai Shi asked curiously, "Is it my imagination?"
"The rule of the Iron Cast Legion is silence, sir."
Crystal 1-7 replied, "Soldiers only need to carry out orders and do not need to speak. From the beginning of the new recruits' service until they are transferred to other departments, we have been taught this.
They say that the more you speak, the more mistakes you make. "
Among the four major legions of the Astronomical Association, the Iron Cast Legion was the largest in number. It was even many times more than the other legions combined.
Unlike the other legions with their own functions, the Iron Cast Legion did everything except for frontal assaults on the battlefield. They were like universal tools. They had the largest number of soldiers, and at the same time, they sacrificed the most.
Compared to Huai Shi, a newcomer who came out of nowhere, they were the real veterans and the important cornerstone of the border defense line.
Those wars and hardships did not defeat him. Even if the other victims had already passed away, Crystal Lattice 1-7 still retained some of the characteristics of the past.
Calm and firm, like real steel, unshakable.
Even if the sky fell and the earth cracked.
With such a companion, everyone would feel at ease from the bottom of their hearts.
"To be honest, I originally wanted to let you relax a little, but you don't seem to need this boring care."
Huai Shi sighed and handed over another can of beer. "As half an old acquaintance, I want to do something for you, but I'm afraid you don't need it.
So, I'm afraid the only thing I can guarantee is that beer is enough. "
"Beer is enough."
The corners of Crystal 1-7's mouth seemed to curl up slightly. "Thank you for always remembering them, Mr. Huai Shi."
"…"
Huai Shi did not answer.
Because he was not sure whether he remembered them or not.
That was just a short encounter on the Stellaris.
They wore combat goggles and masks, and their entire bodies were covered in armor, not revealing any part of their faces. In those 20 minutes, other than the logo on their shoulders, there was nothing left for Huai Shi to remember.
Now that he recalled, there was only one name left — Crystal Squad.
They were 1-1 to 1-13.
As for their names? Gender? Age?
Those materials had long been sealed in the Secrecy Administration of the Command and Control Bureau, waiting for the pile of old paper to wither and rot little by little. Perhaps one day, they would be able to see the light of day again after 60 or 70 years.
Did this count as remembering?
They were all nameless people, just like the people who had sacrificed themselves in the war, no different from the huge sacrifices of the past.
It was difficult to even be remembered.
"It's really difficult to make people remember names." Huai Shi sighed softly. "Don't you feel sad?"
"We didn't come here to be remembered, sir."
Crystal 1-7 calmly replied, "From the recruit camp to the Cast Iron Legion, we had six opportunities to quit, but there were very few people who gave up each time.
My instructor once told me that there will always be an end, but sometimes, the end will be more meaningful. "
He pulled open his collar, revealing the black tattoo on his collarbone, which made Huai Shi stunned.
Yoo Dong-ri once told him that among the Four Great Legions, apart from the orphans of martyrs, one of the most important sources of soldiers was the existence that was jokingly called the 'Atonement Army'.
The Command and Control Bureau had a department that was responsible for selecting people in the dark corners of the entire territory, opening the door for many prisoners and criminals. They would carefully evaluate the situation of each selected person, and if you were judged to be worth saving, then the doors of the Four Great Legions would open to you.
And you would have the opportunity to atone for your sins.
Let your mud-like trash life once again have meaning —
"As you can see, I wasn't born a righteous person."
Crystal 1-7 leaned against the armor behind him and whispered self-deprecatingly, "I made some mistakes, some unforgivable mistakes, so much so that I lost everything … …
Some people told me that people can stand up again, but I don't believe it, because things like forgiveness and rebirth are too far away for me. "
He paused and said seriously, "But if there's a chance to become a hero, who wouldn't want it?"
Even if he was forgotten, it didn't matter.
This was the first time Huai Shi saw Crystal 1-7's smile, so relieved that he was speechless.
Yes, who wouldn't want it?
Didn't he also have unrealistic dreams to reach where he was now?
"Let's drink to the heroes."
He raised his beer.
"Cheers."
Crystal 1-7 raised his beer and drank it in one gulp.
Under the dark clouds, they quietly looked at the bonfire in the distance, shared the last of their beer, and enjoyed the last of their leisure and time.
After a long time, the light of the bonfire gradually dimmed.
Apart from the guards on duty, everyone fell into a deep sleep.
And in the latter half of the night, Huai Shi opened his eyes from the chair.
The alarm sounded.
The wind of war blew from the distance.
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