It was the third day of the countdown.
In the wee hours of the morning.
The autumn rain had stopped for a short while, but the smell of soil lingered in the air after the rain.
At the third echelon of defense line where the command tent was located, the sound of gunfire from the second echelon of defense line could still be heard.
The abyssal crevice that traversed the ground was blocking the path of the second echelon of enemy troops in the Northwest. The artificial intelligence soldiers on foot would have to march for at least a day to get around the crevice that was dozens of kilometers long.
Yan Liuyuan had single-handedly fended off the greatest crisis at the Line of Dawn.
When Yan Liuyuan arrived at the defensive line from the north with the nomads, Ren Xiaosu immediately noticed Yan Liuyuan's short, ascetic-like hair.
He was stunned for a moment before asking Yan Liuyuan, "What's with your hair?"
"Oh, it's nothing." Yan Liuyuan smiled and explained, "It'll grow back again. Bro, I have more than 20,000 warriors from the tribe here. They might be able to help you. "
Next to him, P5092 shook his head and said, "There's no need. The Line of Dawn is planning to retreat. If you have the strength to spare, help us bring some of the wounded away."
Yan Liuyuan thought for a moment and said, "Sure."
Other than the troops of the third echelon of defense line, the only ones who could leave alive at this defensive line were the wounded who had been evacuated.
It was not that P5092 had suddenly become a humanitarian, but that these wounded could not continue fighting even if they were left at the defensive line. It was better to bring them back to the rear and keep them as kindling for humanity.
At this moment, a group of specialized troops were responsible for transporting the wounded. They were going to the various positions to count the number of wounded before retreating with them.
At Position 141, the soldiers had just repelled a group of enemy troops and were able to take a short break.
The commander of the Second Division's Iron 2 Battalion, who was in charge of this position, was getting his wound bandaged by his orderlies.
In the middle of the night, during a surprise attack, a shot came out of nowhere and hit him in the arm, breaking the bones in his arm.
There were splints in the military camp that were specially used to fix bones in place, so there was no need to use wooden sticks to fix them in place.
When the battalion commander was bandaging his wound, he broke out in a cold sweat from the pain, and his lips turned pale.
Even the tough men of the Northwest couldn't bear the excruciating pain of broken bones.
At this moment, a young soldier from the front ran over. He said to the battalion commander with a look of surprise, "Battalion Commander, the rear has requested that all of the wounded retreat. I heard they're retreating to Fortress 178. Hurry up and let them take a look at their injuries. Only the injured can retreat now. Sister-in-law is still waiting for you at home. "
In fact, the second echelon of the Northwest Army already knew that they couldn't retreat. They had to buy time for their comrades behind them to retreat.
How could he buy more time? Use your life.
Everyone was quite upset at first, but for some reason, everyone accepted this reality overnight.
No one was responsible for giving them ideological advice, and no one came to trick them into thinking about their country. Everyone just felt that since they were soldiers of the Northwest Army, they should not be afraid of death.
The words "Northwest Army" seemed to evoke an indescribable emotion. It seemed like soldiers of the Northwest Army did not receive much special treatment. Instead, when they were living in the stronghold, they had to give way to others. They even had to give up their seats to the elderly and children on the streetcar for fear of sullying the epaulets on their shoulders.
Just like this young soldier, he was not from Fortress 178. He was conscripted into the Northwest after it was unified.
He did not know why, but when he saw the bright red banner at the conscription office that day, he went to sign up.
When Stronghold 144's trade was booming, many of his family members advised him not to join the Northwest Army as a soldier and to follow his uncle to do business instead. He could earn more than being a soldier.
But every time, he would just smile and not say anything. He did not know how to answer them, but he just wanted to stay in the Northwest Army.
It was the same now. Although he knew he would die if he stayed, he just wanted to stay with his comrades at the front.
There was no reason for him to do so. He just felt this was what he should do.
But it was different now. The wounded had a legitimate reason to leave. The young soldier knew the battalion commander had two children and his wife was still unemployed, so the family could not live without him.
Therefore, he thought the battalion commander could take this opportunity to leave the second echelon's defensive line and retreat with the rest of the troops.
This was not because he was afraid of death, but because the battalion commander's arm was really not suitable for him to continue fighting at the front.
At this moment, footsteps came from outside the tent.
The young soldier saw the battalion commander take off the splint on his arm and use his uniform to cover the wound on his arm.
Someone walked in from outside. It was an unfamiliar face. He said to everyone, "I heard there's a wounded soldier here. We're going to evacuate them with us."
But before anyone could say anything, the battalion commander said, "It should be a misunderstanding. We don't have any wounded soldiers here."
The soldier in charge of evacuating the wounded was stunned. "Really?"
He looked at the battalion commander skeptically. Actually, even if the battalion commander removed the splint, his complexion would still not be that of a normal person. Therefore, he could tell the battalion commander had been injured.
The battalion commander hesitated for a moment before saying, "Bro, I want to be with my brothers. I can't go back by myself."
The soldier in charge of evacuating the wounded was silent for a few seconds. Then he stood up straight and saluted the battalion commander before turning around and leaving.
They did not say much to each other. They were all soldiers of the Northwest Army. If they were in his shoes, they might have made the same choice.
After the soldiers evacuated the wounded left, the young soldier looked at his battalion commander and said in a daze, "Battalion Commander, don't you want to go back? You're really injured, not pretending to be injured. That's not because you're afraid of battle. "
The battalion commander cursed, "Fuck, it hurts! Hurry up and fix the splint back in place. By the way, tell those bastards outside to buck up. We have to fight this final battle beautifully."
The battalion commander did not answer the young soldier's question.
Such incidents were happening many times throughout the second echelon's defensive line, so much so that the eyes of the soldiers in charge of evacuating turned red.
The sky was still dark, and the troops at the third echelon's defensive line began evacuating towards Fortress 178 while the satellite visibility was low at night.
Before everyone left, they saluted in the direction of the second echelon's defensive line.
As the First Army evacuated from the defensive line at dawn, Ren Xiaosu, Yang Xiaojin, Yan Liuyuan, and Sister Xiaoyu stood at the edge of the defensive line and looked out at the night sky.
Yan Liuyuan looked at Ren Xiaosu and said with a smile, "Bro, are you hesitating?"
Ren Xiaosu sighed and said, "You know what I'm thinking?"
"Mhm." Yan Liuyuan nodded. "The AI seems to be unstoppable. I still haven't thought of another way to resolve this crisis. So it seems like there's only one way out."
The way Yan Liuyuan was talking about was for Ren Xiaosu to transform into the will of the world and cut off Zero's future from the root.
No matter how powerful Zero was, she was still in this world and could not fight against the world itself.
So when disaster struck, the problem always seemed to be between sacrificing others or sacrificing oneself.
Ren Xiaosu said in a low voice, "Sometimes I think that since there's only one choice, I might as well be more decisive. That way, fewer soldiers from the Northwest Army will die. The more I hesitate, the more people will die because of this disaster. But Liuyuan, you know that I've always been a very selfish person. Before this, I've never thought of sacrificing myself for anyone, unless it's for Xiaojin, you, or Sister Xiaoyu. "
"Mhm, I know that." Yan Liuyuan said in a low voice, "That's why I rushed over here this time because I wanted to stop you. Bro, let's get out of here. This world is very big. No matter how powerful Zero is, there's still a place for us to stay. Alright, I know I might be lying to myself by saying this, but Bro, I really don't want to see you sacrifice yourself for the world when it's clearly so unfair to you. "
Ren Xiaosu said, "Can you let me talk to Xiaojin alone?"
Yan Liuyuan and Sister Xiaoyu looked at each other and left in silence.
Ren Xiaosu took out a tarpaulin from his storage space and laid it on a raised platform at the edge of the trench. He and Yang Xiaojin sat side by side on it and looked at the dark night sky.
"You don't want me to end up like that either, do you?" Ren Xiaosu asked.
"Mhm." Yang Xiaojin said firmly, "Xiaosu, do you know that no one should sacrifice anything for this world?"
"Liuyuan has always felt that this world doesn't treat me well. But I feel that I'm actually quite lucky to have such a beautiful girlfriend and such a powerful person. In the past, I thought my parents had abandoned me. But after I went to the Sorcerer Nation, I realized how much they had sacrificed to keep me alive. That's why I don't feel that I have anything to be miserable about at all. I heard that my father died trying to save everyone during The Cataclysm. Now that I think about it, I'm actually a little impressed by his courage. In fact, after hearing his story from the Knight, I realized that he was a more qualified leader. I'm just a child without much ambition. "
Yang Xiaojin shook her head. "You don't necessarily have to do what he did."
"But there's no other way. Xiaojin, you have to stay alive," Ren Xiaosu said with his head lowered.
Yang Xiaojin turned around and realized that Ren Xiaosu's expression was hidden in the shadows. She could not see it clearly.
Ren Xiaosu continued in a low voice, "If I hesitate any longer, you might die too. I thought about it all day yesterday, but I suddenly realized that I can't accept this outcome. I don't have to save the world, but I have to save you. We both have to admit that Zero's power has grown to such an extent that we'll have to face it sooner or later. Perhaps we can temporarily escape to the Sorcerer Nation or live on our own in a faraway place. But every time we escape, it will become even more undefeatable. "
Yang Xiaojin stared blankly at Ren Xiaosu. In this cruel battlefield, under the sky, he had suddenly used simple logic to say the most unforgettable words of love. She was a little overwhelmed by this.
"But you still can't sacrifice yourself," Yang Xiaojin said.
Ren Xiaosu said with a wry smile, "I don't want to do this either. If I can really live, who would want to die?"
"Promise me. Since Qing Zhen said we'll wait for nine days, we'll wait until the ninth day and see what happens." Yang Xiaojin said, "If he doesn't succeed on the ninth day, I'll accompany you no matter where you go."
…
Most of the Northwest's 1st Army had already retreated from the Dawn defensive line. According to P5092's plan, the second echelon of defense would hold off the artificial intelligence for nearly a day.
They were still about 131 kilometers away from Fortress 178. Based on the speed of the artificial intelligence troops, they would have a decisive battle at Fortress 178 on the last day.
Whether they lived or died would all be revealed on that day.
On the way back to the defensive line, Wang Yun suddenly asked among the tens of thousands of people, "Eh, where's P5092? Didn't he watch us retreat together just now? "
As he spoke, Big Bluff and the others also looked around for P5092.
At this moment, Ren Xiaosu, who knew P5092 the best, turned around and ran back to the defensive line without a word. When he rushed all the way into the commander-in-chief's tent, he happened to see P5092 aiming a gun at his chin.
Ren Xiaosu's palm passed through the Shadow Door and slapped the muzzle to the side. A gunshot rang out. If Ren Xiaosu had been any slower, P5092 would probably have died.
"What are you doing?!" Ren Xiaosu said in surprise, "Why are you committing suicide?"
P5092 said, "The final mission at the Dawn Defensive Line has been completed, so my mission is also complete. In the upcoming battles, it won't matter much whether I'm around or not. On the day of the decisive battle at Fortress 178, what we relied on was not strategy but courage. "
"So you're going to die?" Ren Xiaosu frowned and asked, "Why?"
"Because I personally sent the Black Fox and the others on the most dangerous mission, and because I refused to allow the frontline soldiers at the Dawn Defensive Line to retreat." P5092's eyes were filled with exhaustion.
For the sake of victory, P5092 had made the most ruthless decisions and issued one cold-blooded decision after another.
However, it was for the sake of victory, not for himself.
If he did not have the conviction to carry the Pyro Company on his back, he might have made other choices.
P5092 said softly, "On the day I parted ways with the Black Fox, I always wanted to be like the commanders of the other troops. I wanted to live and die with the soldiers and fight alongside them. However, I knew I was needed at the Dawn Defensive Line, so I couldn't die. But as their commander, I've let them down. "
Ren Xiaosu fell silent. He did not know how to comfort the military genius in front of him.
P5092 was clearly born for war, but he had a benevolent heart.
But the kinder he was, the more painful it would be for him to make every decision.
This pain kept accumulating, and in the end, P5092 had the thought of committing suicide. He wanted to accompany his soldiers because he was the one who had personally sent them to their deaths.
Even if he had a very legitimate reason for doing so.
Ren Xiaosu put P5092's gun away in his palace and said coldly, "After we win this war, I'll naturally think of a way to use the Temple of Martyrs to wake the Black Fox and the others up. But if you commit suicide by then, you'll be separated by death. That's because the Temple of Martyrs can't summon suicidal people."
P5092 was stunned. He suddenly thought of Ren Xiaosu's superpower. "But the Pyro Company troops led by the Black Fox number more than 10,000! Luo Lan's Temple of Martyrs can only summon 12 people. "
Ren Xiaosu said earnestly, "That's because Luo Lan can't do it. It's not that his superpower can't do it."
At this moment, the artificial intelligence seemed to realize that the Northwest Army at the Dawn Defensive Line was withdrawing.
All of a sudden, the defenders at the second echelon of defense felt the pressure multiply. It was as though a majestic tsunami was coming at them.
Even the troops that had been stopped by Yan Liuyuan's Abyss started advancing at a jogging pace.
In the southwest, the two Kyung Clan troops heading north had actually abandoned some of the supplies they had brought with them in order to increase their speed again.
The raging tsunami was about to flood the Dawn Defensive Line and engulf Fortress 178 as well.
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