The Night Before Departure! Final Preparations

One week remained until the God Valley hunt.

Hachinosu entered an unprecedented state of readiness for battle. The training ground was never idle from morning to night, and Kaido and Bullet increased their daily sparring matches from twenty to thirty.

"Ororororo... harder! Hit me harder!" Kaido swung his club down. Bullet dodged sideways and drove a fist into Kaido's stomach. Kaido staggered back two steps, then charged again.

"Don't you fucking know how to get tired?" Bullet wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"Tired? I never get tired!"

The two started fighting again.

Two

King trained nearby. Standing at the edge of the training ground, he raised a hand and crooked a finger at a boulder in the distance. The boulder slowly rose and hovered in midair. He exerted more force, and it began to spin, faster and faster, until it slammed into the ground with a boom, leaving a huge crater.

"Still not fast enough." King frowned.

"That's enough." Lin Yuan walked over. "You don't need that much speed on the battlefield."

"Then what do I need?"

"Precision," Lin Yuan said. "You need to be able to send things exactly where you want them, not just smash them down wherever."

King fell silent for a while, then continued practicing.

Three

Moria trained in the basement. There was no light there, only darkness. He closed his eyes and felt for his shadow. In the darkness, shadows did not exist, but he had to make his shadow exist.

"Shadow Horn Spear."

In the darkness, a long black spear thrust out of thin air, piercing the wooden post in front of him.

"I did it." Moria opened his eyes, his forehead covered in sweat.

"Still not enough." Lin Yuan's voice came from outside. "You need to be able to use it on the battlefield, even while the enemy is attacking you."

"I know."

Moria closed his eyes and continued practicing.

Four

Kuma's training was the quietest. He stood alone by the sea, striking at the surface with his palm again and again. Air cannons blasted into the water, sending sprays of water dozens of meters high and stunning fish that floated to the surface one after another. Ginny gathered them from the shore, filling a whole bucket.

"That's enough, Kuma! Any more and we won't be able to eat them all!"

Kuma stopped and turned to walk back.

"Is that enough?"

"More than enough." Ginny carried the bucket back. "I'll make you all something extra tonight."

Kuma said nothing, only nodding.

Five

Nobody could make sense of Lin Yuan's training.

He stood in the center of the training ground with his eyes closed. The space around him twisted constantly. Sometimes he vanished from where he stood and appeared in front of a wooden post seventy meters away. At other times, he swept a hand through the air, leaving a black rift with edges sharp enough to cut through Seastone.

"Space Folding. Seventy meters."

"Space Cutting. Can now cut through Seastone."

"Spatial Perception. Two-kilometer radius."

He silently noted his progress, then opened his eyes.

"Still not enough."

"What's not enough?" Kaido walked over, drenched in sweat.

"Distance. The folding distance is still too short. Seventy meters isn't enough on the battlefield."

"Then keep training."

"There's no time." Lin Yuan shook his head. "There's only a week left. I can't improve much more."

"Then what do we do?"

"Rely on you."

Kaido froze for a moment, then laughed.

"Ororororo... all right. Rely on us."

Six

Ginny's intelligence reports grew increasingly frequent. She placed the last document in front of Lin Yuan.

"I got the guard deployment map for God Valley. There are three high points on the island, and the Celestial Dragons' headquarters is on the highest one. The prize warehouse is below headquarters and heavily guarded."

"What about the civilians?"

"They're gathered in the lowlands on the eastern side of the island. Once the hunt starts, they'll run west. The Celestial Dragons will chase them from the east."

Lin Yuan stared at the map in silence for a long time.

"Here's how we'll do this."

He picked up a pen and drew several circles on the map.

"Kaido, you'll land from the west and draw the marines' fire. Bullet, Kuma, you'll flank them from the south and north and draw CP0's attention away. King, you'll come in by air with me and head straight for the prize warehouse."

"What about Moria?" Kaido asked.

"Moria will go east. Save the civilians."

Moria looked up.

"On my own?"

"On your own. Your shadow can hold off the pursuers and cover the civilians' retreat. You're the best suited for this task."

Moria was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"All right."

Seven

Ginny folded the map and looked at Lin Yuan.

"Are you sure you want to do it this way?"

"I'm sure."

"It's too risky. There are only six of you."

"That's enough," Lin Yuan said. "On the battlefield, it's not about numbers. It's about timing."

Ginny said nothing more.

Kuma walked over and stood in front of Lin Yuan.

"Lin Yuan, there's something I want to ask you."

"Go ahead."

"If we run into Celestial Dragons on God Valley, what will you do?"

Lin Yuan looked at him.

"Kill them."

Kuma's eyes lit up for a moment.

"Good."

Eight

At night, Lin Yuan sat alone on the terrace, gazing at the starry sky.

Ginny came up, carrying two glasses of water.

"Still not asleep?"

"I can't sleep."

Ginny handed him a glass and sat down beside him.

"Lin Yuan, what do you think we'll be like after God Valley?"

"I don't know."

"Aren't you afraid?"

"I am. But I have to go anyway."

Ginny fell silent for a while. She took a sip of water and looked at the sea in the distance.

"You're always like this."

"Like what?"

"Shouldering everything yourself." Ginny turned to look at him. "You have us, you know? You're not alone."

Lin Yuan didn't reply.

Ginny stood up.

"I'm going to bed. You should get some sleep too."

"Okay."

Ginny left.

Lin Yuan continued gazing at the starry sky.

The waves beat against the rocks, again and again.

Tomorrow. They would leave tomorrow.

Nine

Dawn.

Lin Yuan stood at the harbor, with Kaido, Bullet, King, Kuma, and Moria behind him. Five people, six including himself.

"Everyone ready?" Lin Yuan asked.

"Ready," they answered in unison.

Lin Yuan raised his hand and opened a huge door in front of him. Beyond it lay the waters around God Valley. The sea breeze rushed in, carrying a salty, briny scent.

"Let's go."

He stepped through.

The five followed close behind.

The door slowly closed.

Peace returned to Hachinosu. The waves still beat against the rocks, again and again.

(End of Chapter 33)