Chapter Sixty: Miracle

As he spoke, Pan Weilun’s mismatched eyes glared as he reached for the officer’s cap on the rack.

“Commander Pan, please calm yourself! The counteroffensive at Beiyuan has just begun, and most of the elite troops from the 73rd Brigade have been dispatched to the Shanlong Pass. The problem might simply be due to a shortage of manpower.”

It was rare for Sun Jianheng to speak up on someone else’s behalf.

“Do you think the Grand Marshal will listen to such excuses?” Pan Weilun was truly furious this time. He donned his cap, flung his wool coat over his shoulders, let out a cold huff, and stormed out of the office.

“Hurry! Commander Pan will definitely summon me! Drive faster!”

In the city.

A military jeep barreled down the main street of Juntun City, its horn blaring incessantly, drawing the ire of pedestrians. Yet, seeing the high-ranking officers inside, none dared voice their displeasure.

Besides the driver and a young adjutant, a burly middle-aged man with thick eyebrows sat in the back seat. He wore a gleaming iron chain mail, a mechanism-laden chestplate, and at his waist hung a red-gold saber. This was Feng Zhengwei, the current commander of the patrol battalion, responsible for the defense and new recruit assessment patrols of Juntun City.

Before long, thanks to the driver’s aggressive maneuvering, Feng Zhengwei caught sight of the martial academy’s main gate.

But to his surprise, a hardtop military jeep came straight toward them. Upon recognizing the familiar license plate, Feng Zhengwei’s expression changed at once. He slapped the headrest of the driver’s seat urgently. “Stop! Stop now!”

With a screech, the driver slammed on the brakes.

Feng Zhengwei hurried out, jogging to the academy gate, straightening his helmet, and greeting with an obsequious smile, “Commander Pan.”

The hardtop jeep rolled out the gate and stopped beside him.

Pan Weilun rolled down his window. Seeing Feng Zhengwei, he instantly understood why Sun Jianheng had spoken up for him. These two had been classmates at the officer’s academy, and both had climbed the ranks in the 73rd Brigade, sharing a long-standing camaraderie.

“You still have the nerve to smile!”

“So you know already, Commander Pan…”

Feng Zhengwei hung his head in shame. “But it’s not entirely my fault—most of the 73rd Brigade’s main force was redeployed by the Grand Marshal, leaving the city’s defenses stretched thin. After the incident in the city, I’ve had to look after the academy, maintain public order, and patrol the new recruit assessment grounds all at once. I… I can’t do it all, Commander Pan…”

“So you’re blaming the Grand Marshal now?”

“I wouldn’t dare! Commander Pan, I wouldn’t dare!”

Pan Weilun’s face remained cold. He snorted, “The elite trainees are the army’s most valuable new blood. Every year, we rely on them to replenish our officer corps. If anything truly happens to the 173rd class of recruits, you’ll be facing a firing squad!”

The words hit Feng Zhengwei like a bucket of icy water, soaking him to the bone. Watching Pan Weilun’s car drive away, he nearly collapsed onto the ground.

Luckily, Sun Jianheng, who had gotten out ahead of time, rushed over to catch him.

“Old Sun, help me! You have to save me!”

Feng Zhengwei’s eyes were vacant, unable to comprehend how disaster could strike so suddenly while he was sitting safely within the city. And it was the kind of disaster that could cost him his life!

“I’ve already spoken on your behalf to Commander Pan, but it was useless,” Sun Jianheng sighed, shaking his head. “What you need to do now is quickly dispatch a full company to Qingshi Mountain for rescue, and send a machine gun platoon with them—save as many as you can. I’ll have the Special Services platoon temporarily cover the city walls patrol.”

“Thank you, Old Sun!” Feng Zhengwei straightened up, gazing anxiously in the direction of Qingshi Mountain. “I just hope those kids are holding on. Please, let there not be too many casualties…”

That was what he said. But both Feng Zhengwei and Sun Jianheng knew that the entire purpose of this assessment was to push the elite trainees to their limits, both physically and in terms of their air supply, simulating all the extreme conditions they might face on a real battlefield.

Thus, it was common for most trainees to run out of air halfway through, or to arrive at the test site just as their air tanks were depleted.

Without their maneuvering cables, these trainees were like tigers missing a leg—their combat effectiveness plummeted instantly.

Against the attack of a major demon, they stood no chance of survival.

Feng Zhengwei could only pray for a miracle.

...

Qingshi Mountain.

A group of trainees finally burst from the forest, tumbling down to the foot of the mountain.

They gasped for breath, cold wind biting at their throats and lungs, as if only the pain could confirm they were truly still alive.

“You can let go now,” said Du Huaishan, landing in the snow.

“Thank you,” Xu Yuan replied, nodding as she let go. A gust of wind made her shiver. She had to admit, clinging to him had been rather warm.

Just then, a cloud of white dust rose in the distance as three transport trucks barreled down the slope—trainees from the second supply point. On one truck, a dozen patrol battalion soldiers stood guard, clearly responding to Lai Yanlong’s urgent telegram and arriving from nearby.

The trucks soon pulled up in front of the trainees.

“Huaishan! Old Wu! You’re both alive, thank goodness!” Yang Anfu leapt from the cab before the truck had even stopped, throwing his arms around them. “You have no idea—when Lai Yanlong’s urgent message came in, I thought I’d have a heart attack. Tan Hai, Tingyu, thank heavens our whole Eighth Squad made it out. Hahaha… Wait, where’s Sun Tian?”

Yang, flushed with excitement, hugged Du Huaishan and Wu Ming, counting heads—only to realize Sun Tian was missing.

As he looked around, the faces of Du Huaishan, Tan Hai, and the others were somber; their eyes were red with unshed tears.

“What’s going on?”

“I’m sorry, Yang. I couldn’t protect him.” Du Huaishan bowed his head. “Martial Academy, Class 173, Eighth Squad, member Sun Tian—fell in battle at Qingshi Mountain at two o’clock this afternoon.”

A hollow buzzing filled Yang Anfu’s mind.

Sun Tian hadn’t spoken much, but he was always easygoing. It was always he who mended everyone’s torn or worn clothes in the dorm.

“How could this happen? We were just sleeping side by side last night. He even asked me to snore more quietly…”

Yang seemed to lose his soul, mumbling to himself.

The other trainees watched, their own eyes brimming with tears as they thought of their fallen comrades.

For a moment, sorrow, dejection, and grief swept through the ranks of over three hundred elite trainees.

“All trainees, board the trucks immediately—return to the martial academy!” A patrol soldier leapt from the truck, shouting the order.

“We’re saved.”

“We can finally go home.”

“But… what about Instructor Lai and the others? The mountain is crawling with demons—they’re only three people…”

One trainee started to speak, then fell silent.

In an instant, the entire crowd was hushed.

“Huaishan, what should we do now?” Wu Ming turned and asked.

Immediately, Xu Yuan, Tan Hai, Guo Tingyu, Li Anqi, and even Xing Zhenhao—all those who had just fought by his side—looked to Du Huaishan.

His performance on the rear mountain battlefield had been witnessed by all, especially that final shot which felled a Level 14 calamity demon—a true miracle for a recruit.

Unconsciously, everyone now looked to Du Huaishan as the center of their group.