First Black War

Those who had never experienced war firsthand would never understand just how cruel it truly was.

"Beep! Beep! Beep!!!"

The glaring red light was painfully eye-catching.

Su Xuan's heart sank. The enemy was moving far faster than expected. Had they already forced the passage completely open?

The blue-haired maid stood beside Su Xuan, streams of data flowing through her pale blue eyes as she accessed surveillance feeds and reviewed information.

"Emma, have you found anything?"

Emma nodded. "The enemy appears to come from an undead-type world. Most of them are skeletons and liches, while some more powerful creatures have yet to appear. For now, the Divine Machine Battalion and the Flying Eagle Team should have no trouble dealing with these cannon fodder."

Su Xuan nodded. He had great faith in Emma's data analysis. As an exceptionally advanced AI, Emma's computational power was virtually unparalleled.

Su Xuan's pale golden eyes narrowed. "In that case, let's go take a look at the front lines."

Emma nodded. The magnetic field on the battlefield was severely disrupted. To receive the latest intelligence and issue new orders, they had no choice but to head to the front themselves.

Su Xuan quickly put on his custom-made battle armor: a set of plain silver armor that nevertheless looked exceptionally flashy and valiant. Although it might make him an easier target for concentrated fire, after discussing it with Emma, Su Xuan still felt that the commander-in-chief needed to look formidable in order to raise morale. Morale was one of the most important elements of war. Besides, Su Xuan's ability to preserve his own life was unquestionably among the best—teleportation formations for escape, the Land of No Dust for defense, the Power of Heaven and Earth to control the overall situation...

Just as Su Xuan put on the final piece of his helmet armor—

A beautiful silver-haired, purple-eyed girl walked in. "Brother, I want to join the battle."

It was Gu Yuena. Without even thinking, Su Xuan refused outright. What am I fighting so desperately against foreign enemies for? Isn't it to protect all of you? And now you're telling me you want to go to the front lines?!

"That's impossible, Na'er. I've told you many times already. No means no."

Su Xuan did not even turn around as he spoke coldly. He rarely used that tone with Gu Yuena; every time he did, it meant he was being exceptionally serious.

Gu Yuena bit her lip, a trace of disappointment appearing in her purple eyes.

Su Xuan gently stroked Gu Yuena's soft hair and whispered tenderly into her ear, "Na'er, be good, all right? Don't go to the front lines. It's far too dangerous. Brother will be back soon. Staying here obediently is the greatest help you can give me."

Stubbornness shone in Gu Yuena's purple eyes. She was clearly unwilling to accept it, yet she was afraid of truly making Su Xuan angry.

Su Xuan had a slight headache, but he still patiently persuaded her. "Na'er, listen to me. Brother doesn't have much time left. I need to go. Stay here and wait for me to return."

Seeing the increasingly anxious Emma at the door, Su Xuan's heart sank. The situation might be getting worse.

Su Xuan cast one final glance back at Gu Yuena. She stood where she was, watching the person she loved most head toward the battlefield, her eyes filled with hesitation and conflict...

Su Xuan stopped dwelling on it, because Emma's hurried, anxious voice had already reached him.

"Master, those skeletons..." Emma's expression was grave. "They can revive."

Su Xuan only felt his vision darken...

A bone arrow shot through the air, swift as lightning and wreathed in eerie, terrifying blue flames.

That was Yin Flame, as the members of the Flying Eagle Team called it. Unlike ordinary flames, it possessed neither blazing heat nor terrifying destructive power. It was something like a parasite clinging to the bone, sinisterly devouring one's life bit by bit. It would not go out until its victim died.

The Flying Eagle Team had only one way of dealing with it: severing the affected limb.

At that moment, such an arrow came flying over. A team member entangled by skeleton soldiers naturally had no way to evade it, but the Flying Eagle Team was a truly elite force. How could they possibly run?

The crew-cut, roguishly handsome man bared his teeth in a fierce, carefree grin and was about to ignite his martial soul and self-destruct.

But he was stopped. A man whose face was blackened beyond recognition stopped him from self-destructing. His body was covered in blood and grime, and there was a horrifying hole in his chest. By all rights, he should have been dead, yet with the cultivation of a peak Soul Sage and the unique nature of his wood-element martial soul, he had somehow stubbornly clung to life.

"Captain?! What are you doing?"

"Saving you, dumbass."

The "black man" casually struck down the skeleton that had been tangling with the roguishly handsome man for so long, then shoved him aside. The bone arrow wreathed in blue flame had flown for a long time, yet its momentum had not diminished in the slightest.

However, the "black man" merely gave a disdainful smile. He casually caught the terrifying bone arrow. The blue flames began to rot away his body, but green energy surged from within his heart, endlessly restoring his battered body wave after wave.

The roguishly handsome man's gaze sharpened. "Are you all right?"

The "black man" looked disdainful. "You're wounded, so get lost. Stop getting in the way of me earning merit."

His words were tough, but his body was beginning to weaken. The blue flames in the "black man's" hand flared up! As though enraged by the green glow, they abruptly doubled in size.

The man's eyes stung. If the captain had not saved him, how could he have suffered such injuries?

The man had always been fierce and combative. Every Flying Eagle Team training session ended with him battered and bloodied. He had always been his captain's pride. Ever since joining the team, he had taken first place in every newcomer assessment, bringing plenty of glory to that dumbass captain.

The man roared toward the sky, "Captain, I'll kill that bastard launching Sneak Attacks and avenge you!" He had always been impulsive. The moment he spoke, he activated his battle armor. Activate! Accelerate! Charge!

The "black man" was already in poor condition. The blue flames had nearly burned him into a human stump. All that could be heard was his low mutter, "Dumbass... I only saved you because your wife is pregnant with your child. I didn't want my godson to be born without a father... I'm all alone, so it doesn't matter if I die..."

But he was truly weak. Even his speech had become slurred, and his vision gradually blurred.

I'm going to die. The "black man" realized it clearly.

"There are no cowards in the Flying Eagle Team..."

The "black man" muttered as he endured the horrifying pain and rose to his feet.

He began burning his martial soul.

Relying on his natural combat instincts and polished fighting techniques, the man charged into the enemy ranks like a wolf among sheep.

Before long, the ground was littered with piles of skeleton bones.

But how could the enemy allow such an expert to slaughter them unchecked?

Soon, a skeleton far larger than the ordinary skeleton soldiers stepped forward.

It engaged the roguishly handsome man in battle.

The familiar bone arrow came again.

But the man had long been prepared. An experienced warrior would never fall in the same place twice. Besides, he had already mastered the cultivation technique taught by His Highness.

A spot of golden lacquer appeared on his forehead and gradually spread across his entire body. The roguishly handsome man gleamed gold from head to toe, his body as tough as copper and iron.

His strength and speed surged as he dodged the Sneak Attack. The man shouted with savage brutality, "Found you, you little bastard!"