On the last day.
In Fortress 178.
All of the residents were waiting by the radios to hear about the current battle situation.
Those who did not have radios at home would gather at their neighbors' houses and hold their breaths as they waited for the occasional piece of news to be broadcasted.
The male announcer's voice was very pleasant to the ears, but the news on the radio was always bad news.
The entire Northwest Army had been wiped out in battle. Sometimes, everyone would fall silent as they listened to the news. Sometimes, when they heard a news report about a unit being wiped out in battle, earth-shattering wails would ring out from the radio.
That was because their families might have been among the troops that had been wiped out.
The streets of Fortress 178 were quiet.
After the autumn rain, the weather gradually turned a little cold. Everyone could not help but shrink their necks as they walked on the streets.
Qing Zhen looked at his watch at his residence. There were only 12 hours left before the countdown began.
He put on his white suit and said to Luo Lan, Zhou Qi, and Xu Man, "Let's go. It's time for us to get to work. Don't let down the hopes of the Northwest Army."
After saying that, he turned around and left his residence. A vehicle from the Northwest Army was already waiting at the entrance.
After the four of them got into the vehicle, it drove straight to a quarry to the west of the fortress.
At some point in time, martial law had been imposed on the quarry. The surroundings were filled with soldiers in the quarry's uniform who were quietly on guard.
Xu Xianchu was waiting outside the quarry. After he received Qing Zhen, he turned around and led everyone inside without saying a word.
A woman in a red dress was already waiting inside the factory. She was the person who had negotiated with Zhang Jinglin on behalf of Qing Zhen. She was also the person who had carried out the entire plan.
At this moment, there was no machinery or equipment in the quarry that was used to blow up the mountain. Although it looked very simple on the outside, it was extremely high-tech on the inside.
Upon entering the factory, one would have to change into a white dust-free suit. There were a large number of sophisticated instruments and 1,374 busy researchers inside.
Qing Zhen, who was wearing a dust-free suit, asked the woman in the red dress beside him, "Is everything ready?"
The woman in the red dress nodded. "Everything's ready."
Xu Xianchu asked Qing Zhen, "You said that there might be a missile attack here, so I came to guard this place. But I don't see any missile attack."
Qing Zhen shook his head and said with some confusion, "If we calculate the range of the Wang Clan's missile troops, this place should already be within range. Also, the artificial intelligence should be able to analyze that there's something unusual here, so there's no reason for them not to bomb this place. I'm not sure what exactly happened, but someone must have made an effort to help us. "
Luo Lan gave it some thought and said, "Will our plan really work?"
"Whether it succeeds or not depends on whether Ren Xiaosu can hold on for the next 12 hours." Qing Zhen said, "If he can't, then all our previous efforts will be in vain."
"Do you think he can last until then?" Zhou Qi asked.
Luo Lan shook his head. "I'm not sure, but he's never disappointed me."
For this day, the southwest had also paid an enormous price.
Some people died on the Tri-Mountain Defense Line, such as Qing Yi.
Some people died to pass on the message, such as Tang Zhou.
But there were also too many nameless pawns who died for the same goal and for the same hope.
They had once accompanied Qing Zhen up Mt. Ginkgo together and watched as the ginkgo trees on the mountainside were dyed red. They had died for the glory of the Kyung Clan.
Aside from the war, there were also the 1,374 researchers from the Kyung Clan who were working in absolute secrecy. No one knew what they were working hard for, not even their families.
Qing Zhen felt that if the plan failed, no one would know the hard work these people had put in.
Therefore, they could not afford to fail.
…
On the retreat route.
"The AI's Southwestern troops did not stop us." P5092 was a little puzzled. Based on his calculations, they should have encountered the enemy troops blocking the way ahead by now.
But at this moment, there was still nothing in front of them. There was not a single person to be seen.
Someone must have stopped the enemy troops in the south. But P5092 could not figure out who would have the ability to stop the AI's army of nearly 10 million troops.
At this moment, Ren Xiaosu suddenly realized something. "If someone really stopped Zero's two Southwestern troops, then after eliminating all the impossible reinforcements, the only one left would be Li Shentan."
Ren Xiaosu was doing a process of elimination because the only person who could possibly appear and help the Northwest at this time was Li Shentan.
When all the impossibilities were eliminated, the only option left was the truth.
Nonsense had previously said that Li Shentan had gone to fulfill his promise to Ren Xiaosu.
What did Li Shentan promise? Li Shentan had promised Ren Xiaosu that he would use the redemption of the devil in exchange for Chen Wudi's return.
Therefore, Ren Xiaosu suddenly realized that his disciple, Chen Wudi, might have already returned!
Thinking of this, Ren Xiaosu got a little excited. But in the blink of an eye, his mood turned gloomy again. That was because he knew very well what the redemption of the devil represented.
When Nonsense mentioned Li Shentan, he looked a little lonely. Presumably, Nonsense also knew the answer very well.
"Another friend has left," Ren Xiaosu suddenly said.
At this moment, a soldier in front of them suddenly shouted, "We've reached Fortress 178!"
Ren Xiaosu turned around and looked ahead. He was surprised to see the lofty silhouette of the fortress in the distance. It felt so familiar and dear to him.
The wide walls were like the sturdy back of a giant. It gave people a sense of security just by looking at it from afar.
Although everyone knew they had only seen the fortress, it would take them at least another six hours to reach it if they continued retreating.
As Fortress 178 was too tall and majestic, there was still quite a long way to go before their silhouettes appeared in their vision.
But no matter what, seeing Fortress 178 meant that they saw hope.
But before the soldiers could rejoice, they suddenly received news from the rear that the enemy's mechanized troops had appeared on the horizon. Furthermore, the enemy's infantry and land troops would probably catch up soon.
When this news was relayed, Ren Xiaosu looked around and realized many of them had a look of despair in their eyes.
They only needed to delay the enemy for nine days, but it seemed like they were going to fail on the last day.
Everyone knew it was impossible for them to stop the enemy on such a flat terrain because there were simply too many of them.
They were only one day away, or perhaps just half a day away, and they might have achieved the final victory.
Although everyone did not know what kind of plan Qing Zhen and Commander Zhang had, since Commander Zhang said he trusted Qing Zhen, it meant the plan was feasible.
However, it seemed like no one could wait for that moment to come.
Ren Xiaosu stood silently in the crowd and watched as the hope in everyone's hearts faded away. He suddenly felt like doing something.
This war was too tragic.
At the Sanshan Defense Line, the Kyung Clan troops were dying one after another. But before their deaths, the Kyung Clan soldiers were thinking of how to drag a few more enemies down with them. They had bought the most critical data and time for the Dawn Defense Line in the Northwest.
The soldiers of the 6th Field Division were attacking the enemy's rear in order to buy two more days for the Dawn Defense Line.
The soldiers of the first and second echelons at the Dawn Defense Line were dying one after another. Some of them were even injured, but they were unwilling to retreat with the 1st Army.
Everyone was only fighting for a glimmer of hope for victory. But it seemed like even this hope was about to disappear.
He had to do something.
He had to do something.
He had to defend this hard-won hope.
P5092 said, "Wang Yun, help me relay my orders. The entire 1st Army is to stop advancing. Find cover and prepare for battle! Commander Zhang, Ren Xiaosu, continue advancing with the wounded. I'll stay behind and lead the others to fight a blocking battle! "
"We'll die if we stay behind to fight a blocking battle," Wang Yun said seriously.
P5092 smiled. "So what?"
"There's no need." Yan Liuyuan, who was sitting on the Wolf King's back, jumped down and said with a smile, "Continue retreating. Leave the rest to me."
Everyone was stunned. No one expected Yan Liuyuan to suddenly say that.
Yan Liuyuan said with a smile, "Why? Don't you believe me? I'm also a demigod supernatural being."
Next to him, Sister Xiaoyu grabbed Yan Liuyuan's arm nervously. "Liuyuan, you can't use your power anymore. You really can't use it anymore. Otherwise, you'll die."
Yan Liuyuan looked at Sister Xiaoyu quietly and could only sigh. The person he could not let go of the most was still Sister Xiaoyu. In his heart, Li Xiaoyu was already his biological sister.
But at this moment, the Wolf King suddenly looked up and howled.
A moment later, the Wolf King turned around and charged at the enemy while the wolf pack slowly followed behind it.
Yan Liuyuan shouted twice, but the Wolf King did not turn around.
The silver wolves started running faster and faster. Their fur fluttered in the wind and looked extremely resplendent.
P5092 said calmly, "Continue retreating. Don't stop!"
Suddenly, Ren Xiaosu summoned the steam locomotive and drove it back to Fortress 178 alone at full speed.
The soldiers of the 1st Army were stunned. What was going on? Why did the Young Marshal leave by himself when he heard that there were enemies behind them? Was he running away or was there something else going on?
The steam locomotive whipped up a huge gust of wind as it sped away in the wilderness.
No one knew what Ren Xiaosu was up to.
Wang Fengyuan looked at the steam locomotive as it left. He looked at Zhang Jinglin in surprise. "Commander, this …"
Zhang Jinglin shook his head. "I don't know what he's up to either."
As they continued retreating, there was a lot of discussion going on within the 1st Army. Everyone was guessing why the Young Marshal had left by himself.
Some people guessed that the Young Marshal had other plans, but there were no reinforcements coming from Fortress 178. Even if the Young Marshal rushed to Fortress 178, what could he do?
The steam locomotive was traveling at full speed and getting closer and closer to Fortress 178. When the garrison soldiers on the walls of Fortress 178 saw the train, they hurriedly shouted, "It's the Young Marshal! Open the gates!"
The gates slowly opened, but Ren Xiaosu's steam locomotive did not stop. It passed through the gates and headed straight for Bronze Bell Square.
It just so happened that it was 3 PM sharp. The bronze bell in Bronze Bell Square was rung thrice, and the sound of it was melodious.
When the residents of Fortress 178 saw the steam locomotive, they took the initiative to make way for it. When they saw the Young Marshal sitting alone at the front of the train, he looked grim and did not say a word.
"It's the Young Marshal. Why did he suddenly come back by himself?"
"The steam locomotive is heading towards Bronze Bell Square. What's the Young Marshal doing there?"
The steam locomotive came to an abrupt stop in front of Bronze Bell Square. More and more residents who did not know what was going on chased after it out of curiosity. More and more people gathered outside Bronze Bell Square. Under everyone's watchful eyes, Ren Xiaosu jumped off the steam locomotive and strode over to the bronze bell.
Ren Xiaosu looked at the bronze bell and said, "When you guys asked me how old I was, I told you I was over 200 years old. Actually, I wasn't joking. You guys might not believe me, but I'm really over 200 years old this year.
"I'm the No. 001 Experimental. I fell into a coma more than 200 years ago due to cancer and genetic mutations. My father is Ren He, the founder of the Knight Project. Therefore, I'm a little older than all of you.
"I've seen the most glorious era of human civilization. Almost everyone had food to eat, and people in the land of Nine Regions lived and worked in peace, enjoying a brand new era.
"In that era, the Internet and technology were developed. It seemed that everything was better than now.
"In this era, many people don't even have enough to eat. There are no LCD televisions, and most people's entertainment life is listening to the radio. The so-called rich people's lives are not worth mentioning in my opinion. No one has ever gone further. At that time, it would only take about ten hours to travel from one end of the world to the other.
"I once said not to let the sorrow of the era become your sorrow. That's because I think this era has completely decayed.
"However, when I saw everyone dying one after another for that glimmer of hope, I suddenly realized that this era is not that bad. In absolute darkness, a new light is really born.
"I don't have much ambition. In the past, I always thought that it would be good to have a small family. I don't want to be the Young Marshal of the Northwest Army, and I don't want to be the commander of the Northwest Army in the future. I always feel that someone like me is not cut out to be a commander.
"However, if someone wants to take away this last glimmer of hope, then I want to ask … the more than 200,000 human pioneers under this bronze bell, are you willing to become heroic spirits and fight back with me?
"Although becoming heroic spirits is a little unfair to you, after all, you have done so much for the Northwest, but now you have to become the vassals of someone else's ability. Moreover, once you become a heroic spirit, there is the possibility of dying again. When that happens, it will be eternal silence, and you won't even be able to read the newspaper. "
According to Luo Lan, heroic spirits are not immortal. Once they suffer damage that exceeds their limit, they will still dissipate.
This is also the reason why Ren Xiaosu and Luo Lan have always been very restrained against this ability.
However, Ren Xiaosu continued, "But I really want to show the AI what it means to be proud of humanity."
Ren Xiaosu stood alone in Bronze Bell Square and waited silently for the response of the 270,000.
At this moment, the residents outside Bronze Bell Square were also looking at Ren Xiaosu in surprise.
They did not know what had happened either. All they knew was that after the Young Marshal entered Fortress 178, he suddenly went to Bronze Bell Square and said a lot of things for no reason.
As they were far away, they did not even know what Ren Xiaosu had said.
The residents of Fortress 178 did not know what Ren Xiaosu was doing.
But a moment later, a voice rang out from the center of Bronze Bell Square. "We are willing to go."
"It's our duty to do so."
"We've been waiting for this moment for a long time."
This was no longer a voice that only Ren Xiaosu could hear. Everyone could hear it.
A golden figure walked out from the center. It was Commander Li, who had the highest reputation among the 270,000 martyred spirits.
Then the second, the third, the thousandth, the ten-thousandth, the ten-thousandth …
Ren Xiaosu had thought that summoning 10,000 martyred spirits would be his limit. However, he did not expect that his limit was actually limitless.
More and more golden martyred spirits walked out of Bronze Bell Square like a sea of gold.
Gradually, Bronze Bell Square could no longer accommodate them. The large number of martyred spirits pushed the residents to the neighboring streets.
The residents did not know what was going on, nor did they know where these golden figures had come from.
At this moment, a young-looking martyred spirit suddenly said to a woman in her thirties, "Darling …"
The woman stared blankly at the young soldier in front of her. He was wearing the uniform of the Northwest Army and looked exceptionally handsome. She had seen her heroic father in photos more than once.
Seventeen years ago, when she was about to go to school, her father gave her a candy and told her he was going on a long journey.
In the end, he left for seventeen years and never returned.
When she was young, she hated him, but when she grew up, she no longer hated him. This was because her lover was also from the Northwest Army.
Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar face in front of her, the woman's eyes filled with tears. She finally knew what was happening at this moment.
On the other side, a middle-aged man in his forties looked at a young martyred spirit in front of him and asked in puzzlement, "Fang Yuan?"
The martyred spirit named Fang Yuan suddenly turned to look at him. After half a minute, he asked hesitantly, "Lin Ke?"
Lin Ke, who was in his forties, suddenly burst into tears. "You've come back to life. I've been dreaming every day for the past seventeen years. I dreamed that I wasn't transferred away from the outpost on the day the war started. I dreamed that I would die in battle with all of you!"
Fang Yuan grinned and said, "You're really f * cking miserable."
Gradually, everyone understood what was going on.
The Young Marshal in the middle of Bronze Bell Square was resurrecting all the martyrs of the Northwest Army!
"The martyrs of the Northwest Army have all come back to life."
"The martyrs have followed the Young Marshal to save Fortress 178!"
Loud cheers erupted outside Bronze Bell Square. Almost everyone had only one expression amidst the cheers. They were so excited that their eyes were brimming with tears.
The martyrs who had shed their blood for the Northwest had all come back to life.
Ren Xiaosu felt like the blood in his body was boiling again.
He turned around and walked out of Fortress 178 with all the golden martyred spirits following behind him.
A martyred spirit shouted to the residents behind him, "Does anyone know Wei Zilu's Liu Xu? Tell him that his father has come back to life and is about to go into battle to kill the enemy."
Another martyred spirit muttered, "I thought this kid would be easy to deal with, but it turns out he's an old monster who's over 200 years old. He's fucking acknowledged an ancestor!"
"Now that we've become martyred spirits, does that mean we can beat him up after the war is over? That guy has always been disgusting to us …. "
"Yeah, don't forget about that!"
Ren Xiaosu did not listen to what the martyred spirits behind him were saying. His pace got faster and faster until he started running.
The golden torrent followed behind him, killing its way out of the city. It charged in the direction of the enemy from afar.
This was the first time Ren Xiaosu was using the power of the Temple of Martyrs. It was also the first time he had his own martyred spirit. Although Luo Lan's martyred spirit had a certain increase in physical fitness, the increase was actually very limited. It was only about 1.5 times stronger than before. After all, Luo Lan was not that strong himself.
But it was different for Ren Xiaosu. He was much stronger than Luo Lan in the first place.
The Heroic Spirits sensed their new bodies and felt that they were filled with power. This was a powerful experience that they had never experienced before. Almost everyone's power had tripled.
This was a T3 unit with 270,000 soldiers, and they were all the bravest and best warriors in the history of the Northwest Army.
Ren Xiaosu was running at the forefront of the golden torrent. Looking down from the sky, the golden torrent behind him looked magnificent and majestic.
It was filled with a murderous aura.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
