Chapter 379 - 170: "Uncle Liu! I, Shao Qiu, I’m fucking back!

Chapter 379: Chapter 170: "Uncle Liu! I, Shao Qiu, I’m fucking back!

...

「The next day.」

Eternal Night Calendar, Year 380, July 7th.

Shao Qiu led his team aboard the High-speed Rail bound for the Guandong Plain. The train cars were not capped with an Energy Shield; instead, they were fitted with Soul-Devouring Sculptures. The Domain Lord had commissioned a colossal High-speed Rail with over five hundred cars.

And every single car was fitted with two Soul-Devouring Sculptures.

「Around noon.」

The High-speed Rail slowly departed the Mortal Realm, following the tracks south through Jiangnan until it reached the Guanxi Plain. Watched by the curious eyes of various factions, it continued its journey south, heading for the Guandong Plain.

This was the first time a Mortal Realm High-speed Rail had traveled without flying the Mortal Realm Banner.

The Guandong Plain and the Guanxi Plain were both immense in size.

Especially with fewer merchant caravans traveling between them, the flow of information between the two areas was almost zero.

While the Mortal Realm had become common knowledge in the Guanxi Plain, very few people had heard of it in the Guandong Plain.

...

「As dusk fell.」

The usually quiet No. 7 Defense Line began to bustle with activity. Eternal Night was about to fall, and preparations had to be made.

The middle-aged man who had lost both legs followed his usual routine. He hobbled on his crutches, got his meal, and walked to a nearby table to eat. He planned to go to sleep right after, as he had no duties at night. His responsibility was recruiting new personnel during the day.

He was of little help on the No. 7 Defense Line after nightfall.

This time, he only got one portion of food.

"..."

After getting his food, Uncle Liu looked at the empty seat across from him. He couldn’t help but glance back over his shoulder, feeling as if that kid was standing right behind him, greeting him with his usual grin.

But amidst the bustling crowd behind him,

that kid’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

Realizing his mistake, he shook his head with a self-deprecating smile, picked up his bowl and chopsticks, and began to eat. He was much older than the kid, but in a place like this, friendships that transcended age were common.

When he looked at that kid, it was like seeing his younger self.

Fearless, brave, and confident.

Just like him in his youth.

’But he’s smarter than I was back then. If I had run, I wouldn’t have lost my legs.’

Just then—

The surrounding crowd suddenly grew noisy. Uncle Liu froze for a moment, putting down his bowl and chopsticks to look instinctively toward the defense line. ’Could the Ghost Tide be attacking before nightfall?’ But he quickly realized everyone’s gaze was directed behind him.

He turned to look.

A long, serpentine shape was racing across the Guandong Plain at incredible speed, heading right for them with its horn blaring continuously.

"BLARE! BLARE! BLARE!!!"

The piercing sound cut through the gray fog.

It brought a spark of life to the otherwise dreary No. 7 Defense Line—a change the likes of which hadn’t been seen in months.

Discussions erupted all around.

"What is that? I’ve never seen anything like it."

"Could it be reinforcements from the Eternal Night Hall?"

"Are reinforcements finally here? Does this mean we have a chance of surviving this rainy season?"

"..."

Uncle Liu didn’t speak. His eyes just reddened as he leaned on his crutches, trying his best to stand up straight. He looked at the long train and let out a laugh, his voice trembling as he cursed with a smile, "That damn kid."

In the very first car of the long train,

that kid was leaning out, grinning just like he always did, waving and shouting at him.

"Uncle Liu!!"

"Uncle Liu! It’s me, Shao Qiu! I’m fucking back!"

...

The Mortal Realm High-speed Rail came to a stop about a thousand meters from the No. 7 Defense Line.

This was the end of the line.

Many members of the No. 7 Defense Line crowded around. Uncle Liu swung his crutches forcefully, trying his best to push to the very front.

"Uncle Liu."

Shao Qiu jumped down from the High-speed Rail and grinned at Uncle Liu. "It’s been a few days. Miss me? Hope you weren’t too pissed that I left without saying goodbye."

"I’m a bit old-fashioned. Once I’ve sworn allegiance to a master, I have to listen to what he says."

"My master took me in when I was at the lowest point in my life."

"My master learned about the situation at the No. 7 Defense Line."

"So he sent me here with reinforcements."

"Here."

He pointed to the long line of train cars behind him, all filled with sculptures. "Soul-Devouring Sculptures. They can reduce turret Ammunition Consumption by 40%. This batch is enough to cover the entire No. 7 Defense Line."

As his words fell, the surrounding members of the No. 7 Defense Line grew still, their eyes wide with disbelief. It took them a moment to react, and then they began excitedly slapping each other on the back, their mouths opening and closing as if trying to speak, but no words came out. All they could do was hit the person next to them.

A forty percent reduction in Ammunition Consumption.

This wasn’t a supply of Ghost Stones.

But it was far better than Ghost Stones. This meant an unimaginable amount of Ghost Stones would be saved.

It meant they might actually survive this rainy season.

"Quick... Quick..."

Uncle Liu’s lips turned pale, and his whole body trembled with excitement. He looked at the person beside him and urged frantically, "Quick, go get Elder Qi! Quick!"

He had wanted to say something else, but after hearing the effect of these incredible Soul-Devouring Sculptures, he couldn’t think about anything else.

Elder Qi was the overall commander of the No. 7 Defense Line.

It wasn’t a name.

It was a title.

Whoever became the commander of the No. 7 Defense Line was called Elder Qi.

"No need to look. I’m here."

The crowd parted.

A white-haired old man, followed by two or three others, rode up quickly on Skeleton Horses. As he neared the crowd, he dismounted with a nimble flip, his eyes slightly red as he looked at Shao Qiu and spoke in a raspy voice.

"Can they really reduce turret Ammunition Consumption by 40%?"

"Without a single shred of falsehood."

Shao Qiu said with a serious expression.

"How many are there?"

"One thousand. Enough to cover the entire No. 7 Defense Line."

"Are you all reinforcements sent by the Eternal Night Hall?"

"No."

Shao Qiu shook his head. "These are reinforcements from my master. However, due to special circumstances, my master does not wish to reveal the name of his faction. He also hopes that you, Elder Qi, can keep this aid a secret from the Eternal Night Hall. Just say you found them in the wild."

"Of course, of course, of course."

The white-haired old man’s lips were trembling, and tears welled up in his eyes. He looked at the neatly arranged Soul-Devouring Sculptures in the hundreds of train cars and said in a shaky voice, "No matter which faction you come from, every single member of the No. 7 Defense Line will remember this kindness."

"It’s just that..."

"We can only defend the No. 7 Defense Line. We can’t help you with much else. I’m afraid it will be very difficult for us to repay this kindness."

"Defending the No. 7 Defense Line is the greatest kindness you can show us. It’s also the greatest kindness to the Four Areas Jiangbei and the Two Areas of Guanxi."

"..."

Elder Qi froze, suddenly choking up. He took a deep breath to compose himself before forcing a smile. "Come, this way, please. I’ll have someone prepare a banquet right away."

"No need for a banquet."

Shao Qiu shook his head and pointed to the darkening sky above. "Night is falling. It would be better to set up the Soul-Devouring Sculptures quickly. The sooner they’re set up, the sooner we can start saving Ghost Stones."

"What do you say, Elder Qi?"

"We’ll do as you say!"