Chapter 984
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Chapter 984 Ten Days
Beijing City.
The warm winter sun hung distantly in the hazy sky, as cold winds swept through the bustling streets, coating damp ground with a thin layer of frost.
Near the bare brown tree trunks, countless pedestrians wrapped in thick down jackets lowered their heads to their frost-reddened hands, breathing warm air onto them, complaining about the weather before hurriedly walking away with hands in their pockets.
Zuo Qing held a cup of hot tea, standing before the floor-to-ceiling window, where wisps of steam rose from the cup, forming a patch of white mist on the glass.
His eyes fixed on the distant sky, lost in thought.
“The Heavenly Court has emerged…”
He paused, letting out a long sigh, “These peaceful days are finally coming to an end… We won’t even be able to properly celebrate this New Year.”
Behind him on the sofa, an elderly man in white clothes held a black Go piece, gently placing it on the board on the tea table, with a slight smile.
“Feeling reluctant?”
“Of course, after all, who doesn’t enjoy peaceful times?” Zuo Qing spoke slowly, “But since war has come to us, we can’t just passively take the hits… Once we win, peaceful days will return.”
He turned around, sat opposite the elderly man in white, took out a white piece from the container, and placed it on the board.
“Grand Master, what are our chances of winning?” Zuo Qing asked.
Jiang Ziya didn’t answer immediately, but picked up another black piece and placed it down. On the board before him, there were now four black pieces surrounding a single white piece.
“If we only defend passively, at most one in ten.”
“What about taking the initiative to attack?”
Jiang Ziya’s eyes narrowed slightly as he picked up the white piece, moved it one space to the side, knocking the nearest black piece off the board.
The white piece broke through, facing three opponents.
“…Three in ten.”
“Doesn’t sound like good news.” Zuo Qing sighed.
“War isn’t simply about power struggles. Besides direct confrontation, many factors can influence the battle situation.” Jiang Ziya spoke leisurely.
He reached out and pointed to the three black pieces.
“Who can guarantee these three black pieces won’t face other unexpected changes?”
Zuo Qing looked at the three black pieces and the one knocked off the board, falling into deep thought.
“Grand Master, how much time do we have left?”
“Ten days.”
Ten days…
Zuo Qing nodded.
Just then, two knocks sounded, and the office door opened as a Night Watchman entered.
“What is it?”
“Commander Zuo, the [Nightfall] team has returned.”
Hearing this, Zuo Qing’s eyebrows raised, and a smile appeared on his lips.
He lifted his teacup and took a sip, his anxious heart slightly relaxing.
These kids, they’ve returned at just the right time…
“They also brought back a human powerhouse with a divine artifact from Japan,” the Night Watchman continued.
Pfft–!!
The hot tea in Zuo Qing’s mouth suddenly sprayed out, landing precisely on Jiang Ziya sitting opposite.
Jiang Ziya: …?
“What did you say?!”
…
Night Watchmen Cemetery.
Cold winds swept up white petals, like early winter snow, dancing between the cold tombstones.
A figure in a black suit, holding white flowers, stood silently before a new tombstone.
On that tombstone were deeply engraved words:
–[Blue Rain] Team Member, Changnan City 136 Squad Vice Captain, Wu Xiangnan’s Tomb.
Lin Qiye gazed at the tombstone for a long while, bent down to place the white flowers before it, and let out a long sigh.
Night Watchmen’s tombstones are carved by the deceased’s teammates, an unwritten rule within the organization. Years ago, Zhao Kongcheng’s tombstone was carved by Hong Ying herself.
Now that the [Blue Rain] team had been completely wiped out, and in Changnan’s 136 squad, only Lin Qiye knew of Wu Xiangnan’s death in battle, so the Vice Captain’s tombstone could only be carved by Lin Qiye.
This was Lin Qiye’s first time carving a tombstone for someone else.
Since Wu Xiangnan’s physical body had dissipated, leaving no corpse, the tomb beneath this stone was empty.
In the lonely Night Watchmen Cemetery, his was the only figure standing silently in the cold wind.
Moments later, a second figure entered the cemetery.
“Commander Zuo.” Lin Qiye turned to see the arrival and spoke first.
“Mm.” Zuo Qing stood beside him, his gaze falling on the tombstone, complex emotions appearing in his eyes, “I heard about Wu Xiangnan on my way here… Honestly, I still can’t believe that the three of you killed a deity.”
“The god was killed by Vice Captain Wu.” Lin Qiye glanced at the tombstone, “Wang Mian and I just tried our best to help him fulfill his dying wish.”
“It’s remarkable, all of you.” Zuo Qing said, “Besides the posthumous honors for Wu Xiangnan, you and Wang Mian each deserve a personal Star Sea Medal for this achievement alone. Given the special circumstances, we won’t hold a ceremony now, I’ll have someone deliver them later.”
Zuo Qing bent down to place his flowers beside Lin Qiye’s, paid his respects, then walked out of the cemetery with Lin Qiye.
“Commander Zuo, the Heavenly Court has descended.” Lin Qiye spoke.
“Yes, I know.”
“What will happen next?”
“…I’m not entirely sure of the specifics.” Zuo Qing was silent for a moment before saying, “In this whirlwind of war between deities, there’s little we can do. Our most important mission is to protect the ordinary people behind us and defend Daxia.
If Daxia’s deities are the first line of defense, then we Night Watchmen are the second line standing before the masses, and also the last.
No matter what happens, we must not falter.”
Lin Qiye silently nodded.
Zuo Qing was right. If a full-scale divine war erupts, those below human peak level wouldn’t even qualify to participate. Although [Nightfall] was a special team, they were still far from the level of warfare between deities.
All they could do was guard this last line of defense.
“What do you need us to do?” Lin Qiye asked.
Zuo Qing seemed to have already planned for this, and calmly said: “With war approaching, we no longer have time to let those rookies in the training camp grow slowly… I’m giving you ten days. After ten days, they must graduate from the training camp and be assigned to different Night Watchmen teams. Only then can we deploy enough veterans to the front lines.
In the coming years, these new recruits will be the core force maintaining internal stability in Daxia.
In these ten days, whatever methods you use, you must turn them into qualified Night Watchmen.
Can you do it?”
Ten days?
Hearing these words, Lin Qiye’s heart sank slightly, but he didn’t hesitate long before nodding.
“Yes.”
Since Zuo Qing had mentioned the number ten days, it meant that after that, something would definitely change. The sense of crisis lingering in Lin Qiye’s heart grew stronger.
They didn’t have much time left.
