Chapter 111 - Ambitions of Color

A split second before the collision, Bai Ji was already imagining Han Qingyu plummeting to the ground after the strike. He had been assured of this outcome from the beginning, and naturally, he believed in it.

Then their blades met.

The cracking of bones and the ensuing agony stabbing up Bai Ji’s arms immediately told him something was wrong.

It was over.

At that moment, both still suspended in midair, Bai Ji’s eyes widened in disbelief. How-how can this be?! Didn’t they say I would win in a head-on clash?! That my source energy surge is far more powerful than his?!

Bai Ji tried to muster one last surge of source energy to fight back.

It was hopeless. The source energy surging from Han Qingyu’s dead iron straight blade was a monstrous wave, crashing down upon him.

This was Han Qingyu’s first time unleashing the liquid source energy in his body alongside that from the maneuvering device in a combined surge against another person. In truth, he wasn’t certain about the intensity or power such a surge would unleash. He only knew that it was beyond that scoundrel Bai Ji’s capabilities to resist.

After all, this was the same technique he had once used to slice open a Sharpie’s mask with his twin blades.

***

From the audience’s perspective, the fight from beginning to end unfolded along these lines:

Han Qingyu launched himself forward at lightning speed, hurling the blade in his left hand.

Bai Ji had deflected that spinning blade with his broadsword.

Continuing his forward charge, Han Qingyu unexpectedly leaped into the air, gliding forward as he swung his blade down. Bai Ji responded in kind, leaping forward and sweeping his broadsword out in a head-on clash.

Their blades collided in midair.

The force of the swing forced both Bai Ji’s arm and body back. The large broadsword in his hand slammed against his chest as though there were no resistance.

Blood sprayed through the air.

This entire sequence of events unfolded in the blink of an eye. It was so fast that many spectators only managed to catch the final moment.

The outcome.

A single head-on strike determined the victor of the battle.

Bai Ji’s massive body arched backward in midair. Then, under the force of Han Qingyu’s descending blade, crashed straight down toward the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

Dust billowed across the field from the impact.

The onlookers had to blink away the dust from their eyes before they could finally make out the sight before them.

It was Bai Ji’s shoulders that betrayed the true depth of his loss.

That was because they couldn’t see much else of his body besides his shoulders, and even those were at least a third buried.

A single head-on strike from Han Qingyu had been enough to smash Bai Ji into the sandy ground.

If not for the maneuvering device—and perhaps his own physical abilities—Bai Ji would likely be dead by now. Of course, he wasn’t in much better shape as things were either.

His massive body was almost entirely buried in the ground, unable to move. Only his chest occasionally rose and fell as he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

This was the clash of the so-called prodigious recruits.

The result ?was clear for all to see.

He Tangtang took the sight in with utter shock. Little Qing had actually avenged him, and with devastating swiftness at that.

At that instant, he suddenly recalled Little Qing’s earlier words, “Actually, none of you have ever seen my full strength.”

He was right. We really hadn’t!

Qin Guowen of the Gold Erasers was also stunned. Turning to stare blankly at his platoon leader, Shao Xuan, he said, “Platoon Leader Shao, it seems... he held back against you too.”

The teasing didn’t faze Shao Xuan. “Mhm, he concealed the true depth and intensity of his source energy... and to a ridiculous extent.”

Shao Xuan’s heart ached at the revelation.

Before this, he had simply thought it a real shame that the kid had ultimately decided against joining the Gold Erasers. It wasn’t until this showdown that Platoon Leader Shao realized the devastatingly heartbreaking loss of it all.

The only way to ease his heartache was to glance back at the deathly pale faces of the White Erasers.

Platoon Leader Shao burst into mad laughter. “At least I didn’t make a fool of myself.”

In this short while, everyone watched as Han Qingyu calmly crouched down, carefully retrieved two source energy cores from Bai Ji’s body, and tucked them into his pocket.

He carried this out with a composed ease, as if it were the most natural thing in the world to be doing. And in his mind, it was. The source energy cores were the prize for winning the recruit combat assessment. As the winner, he saw no reason to feel embarrassed about taking them.

Besides, he’d already made it amply clear that he would take the prizes for himself. This was simply a matter of keeping his word.

“How, how could this be...” Bai Ji finally regained consciousness. Still lying half-buried in the ground, he turned his head slightly to gaze at Han Qingyu with disbelieving eyes.

Han Qingyu had already stood up and was staring down at him with a placid smile.

“You say you wanted to see just how terrifying I am, right? Now you’ve seen it. So, tell me, how terrifying am I?”

A chorus of low chuckles came from the crowd.

Bai Ji could only struggle feebly at Han Qingyu’s words, letting out a pained cry.

“Sorry, accidents are bound to happen while sparring, but lying here injured is also a part of growth, right? Grow well.”

Han Qingyu returned every word that Bai Ji had used to justify his attack on He Tangtang, along with his earlier taunts, all verbatim.

Bai Ji had no response to that.

“It actually doesn’t matter whether we’re from the same batch. As the army commander once said, each of us represents the future of our planet, Azure. So let’s all do our best and not be petty or act like a crybaby,” Han Qingyu concluded, once again echoing Bai Ji’s exact words in the second half.

With that, he left, sheathing the blade in his right hand on his back. When he reached the side of the field, he bent down, picked up his left blade, and continued walking.

His pace was measured, and the soles of his shoes crunched against the sandy ground with every step. As he walked with his head down, he sheathed his left blade.

Everyone could only wonder where he was headed.

Regiment Commander Li had been so engrossed in his argument with Yang Wudong earlier that he hadn’t actually heard the news that Han Qingyu wasn’t joining the Gold Erasers. Tracing a line with his hand to Han Qingyu, he mentally blanked when he realized the kid was walking straight to him—to them.

“He’s probably just coming to thank us and say his goodbyes,” Li Wangqiang muttered to himself.

Mira smiled silently beside him.

Liu Shiheng’s eyes sparkled as he beamed eagerly.

“Probably,” Lao Jian agreed blankly.

Regiment Commander Yang Wudong of Regiment 439 actually had a strange foreboding, but seized the opportunity to force out one last dig. “Of course! You can’t possibly think he’s coming back to join your Regiment 425, can you?!”

At the same time, Han Qingyu raised his head to smile enthusiastically at the crowd of veterans and recruits surrounding him. “Regiment 425 is forming a new platoon, Platoon 1777. We’re recruiting right now. I hope you’ll all consider joining us.”

It was rare for anyone at the Coalition to see such passion from Han Qingyu. The only exception was when he was dealing with energy cores.

So, when some of the old foxes saw this uncharacteristic display before a crowd, they naturally assumed he had an ulterior motive.

Regiment Commander Li unthinkingly asked, “What did he just say?”

“He said...” Lao Jian woodenly paused. “I think I misheard him.”

“He said that the 425th Regiment is forming a new platoon, Platoon 1777, that we’re recruiting right now, and that he hopes they’ll consider joining us,” Mira clarified with a smile.

Us? Us! Regiment Commander Li gasped, crouching down with tears streaming down his face.

He sprang back up just as quickly, leaning into Yang Wudong’s face as he taunted, “Ha. Ha. Ha. No wonder Xiao Nan rejected you!”

No one bothered puzzling out how that was remotely connected to the present situation, for at that moment, Regiment 425 had gone wild. They filled the entire training ground with their cheers.

Another star recruit from the same regiment, He Tangtang, had since come to stand beside the group. He stood at attention and saluted. “He Tangtang, recruit from Regiment 425, requesting Platoon Leader Lao’s permission to join Platoon 1777.”

“Huh?” Lao Jian didn’t know what expression to make. Perhaps the only way for him to truly convey his feelings would’ve been to spit out a mouthful of blood.

“Right, welcome, welcome.” Platoon Leader Lao finally managed.

He Tangtang nodded, walked over to his side, and suddenly hacked up a mouthful of blood.

What’s going on? Blood Gourd Boy froze. You don’t have to join the team in that way too...

He Tangtang staggered and collapsed to the ground. It had actually taken everything he had to hold on for this long.

The relief of seeing his revenge exacted and joining his platoon had him relaxing to the point of collapsing.

Lao Jian hastily ordered someone to help shoulder him to get medical treatment.

He was then astonished to find S-19 approaching them.

A strange premonition flashed through his mind.

Lao Jian was naturally aware of S-19’s sheer might. It was likely stronger than Han Qingyu. At the very least, it was stronger than he had shown before this fight, having served as a sparring partner for the recruits during their training period.

Isn’t it the only advanced robot in the whole army? What’s it doing here? Could it be?!

“Serial number 771943, requesting permission to join the platoon,” S-19 said in a young woman’s voice.

It can talk?! Lao Jian was dumbfounded. Aloud, he stammered, “Is this—Is this an intelligent robot? Then, can we—are we even allowed to take it?!”

“Who cares? Let’s just take it first,” said Regiment Commander Li, the brasher of the two.

“Alright, we’ll take it. Welcome, welcome.” Lao Jian was about to step forward to shake its hand, but held back on second thought.

“Thank you.”

With that, Shen Yixiu joined the group.

In truth, she hadn’t actually wanted to show up directly at an event like this. Not long ago, she had been hiding in a side building with her grandfather, peeking out at the happenings outside.

That was until they heard Han Qingyu smilingly tell the crowd that his platoon was recruiting.

Her grandfather had briefly fallen silent, then said, “Go on. You should formally introduce yourself to that platoon and announce your ID number. Your public joining will make it easier for his expectations and ambitions to be realized.”

With that push from her grandfather, she had walked right out.

As she did, though, she couldn’t help but turn his words over in her mind. Did Grandpa just use the word “ambition?”

At that moment, Platoon Leader Shao of the Gold Erasers also grasped why Han Qingyu had opted not to go to the combat arena and instead chose to fight before everybody at the training ground. It was the same reason he had crushed his opponent with a single strike, only to put on a warm, friendly mask while recruiting.

He was building momentum, using the convenience of a new platoon to cast a wide net and recruit powerful soldiers.

Perhaps behind all this lay an ambition that had long been hiding deep in that young man’s heart—the ambition to recreate the glory of Regiment 425’s Color Erasers.