A Call from the Military

While Hong Kun was talking with Yang Qian, Lu Feng received a call from the military.

The caller was Xie An.

"Officer, how did you get my contact number?"

Lu Feng was a little surprised. He had only met the man once, when the military came to inspect the club last time.

Xie An chuckled. "Do you think it would be difficult for me to look up a number?"

As the planet's highest authority, the military could easily obtain the contact information of an ordinary citizen.

"Is there something you need?" Lu Feng asked, frowning slightly.

Are they going to try to recruit me again?

"Lu Feng, have you heard of the Expeditionary Force?"

"I have. The Expeditionary Force is the main force of the Interstellar Alliance, responsible for expanding humanity's territory. Of the 312 planets humans currently inhabit, all except the Mother Star were conquered by the Expeditionary Force over the past tens of thousands of years."

That was common knowledge from high school classes. Even people who had never gone to school could look it up online.

"That's right. The Expeditionary Force is like humanity's sharpest blade. It has fought countless battles over tens of thousands of years to carve out this territory in the Morning Star System."

"But the Expeditionary Force isn't the only one that can wage war beyond their home planets. Ordinary Warriors from various planets also have a chance to qualify to join an expedition."

"Ordinary Warriors... can go fight on other planets too?"

That was the first Lu Feng had heard of it.

A few days ago, He Qing had explained the Martial Realm to him and mentioned that Grandmaster Realm Strongers could walk in a vacuum and travel through space without relying on technology.

That had filled him with admiration for High-level Warriors, as well as a keen interest in the worlds beyond the stars.

"Of course! There's a great opportunity right now. Your Skyfire Club has qualified to join an expedition. Would you be willing to go with President Hong?"

"Me?" Lu Feng was taken aback.

He was naturally tempted by the opportunity, but he was only a Second Realm Warrior. He was weak—what could he possibly do out there?

Besides, his younger sister had just had surgery and needed care. He had yet to avenge Teacher He, and his hatred for the Zheng Family still burned.

"If you agree, your name will be added to the Expeditionary Force roster. I'll send you the Military Region's procedures for joining an expedition. Once you've read them, you'll understand the benefits of fighting on an alien planet. I'm sure you'll find it eye-opening."

Soon, a file arrived on Lu Feng's Communicator.

But he didn't even look at it. "Officer, when will the person who killed my teacher be caught?"

Xie An was taken aback.

Of course he knew that He Qing had been killed. The military had once joined the investigation, then handed the case over to the Jinzhou Alliance Government.

After all, it was a civilian murder case, and the local government was responsible for handling it.

But the killer was an Innate Realm expert, quick and careful enough to leave no clues behind. The case had made no progress to this day.

"The case is still under investigation. I believe your teacher will get justice one day."

"What if you never find the killer? Will they be able to get away with it forever?"

"Well..." Xie An was at a loss for words.

Ever since the Martial Realm emerged, many cases involving Warriors had indeed ended up unsolved.

"So as long as someone is strong enough, they can kill whoever they want?"

"Of course not! You have to understand that there's always someone stronger. No matter how high a person's Martial Realm, if they behave recklessly, someone stronger will eventually bring them to justice."

"Then why hasn't the person who killed my teacher been brought to justice?"

"Lu Feng, I know your teacher's death hit you hard, but you can't let it drive you to extremes. All I can say is that your teacher's death... wasn't enough to draw the attention of those powerful figures."

The truly powerful cared about the overall order of human society. Of course they wouldn't concern themselves with an ordinary murder case.

"Then if I kill someone from the Zheng Family, I won't be held accountable either, right? The mere Zheng Family wouldn't be worth the attention of the powerful, would they?"

Lu Feng had previously told the military that the killer might have been connected to the Zheng Family.

But he had no evidence to prove it.

Xie An knew that ever since the Zheng Family had taken his place at Martial University, the boy had harbored the seeds of hatred.

Xie An sighed helplessly. "In theory, as long as you leave no evidence... nothing will happen to you."

In the Martial World, the strong ruled.

To put it plainly, as long as someone was powerful enough, they could escape the reach of the law—especially if all they did was eliminate a corrupt, powerful family.

"I understand. Thank you, Officer!"

Lu Feng seemed to have gotten the answer he wanted.

He hung up and began reading the procedures for "joining an expedition" that Xie An had sent him.

For civilian Warriors to qualify to join the Expeditionary Force on a campaign to an alien planet, they first had to join a civilian Martial Artist Club.

Before turning thirty, they had to raise their strength to the Third Realm Warrior level—the Meridian Condensing Realm.

Their club also had to accumulate ten thousand Military Merit Points to qualify to join an expedition.

Once approved, each club would receive five spots.

The selected Warriors had to report to a Military Base for three months of intensive training.

The core of the training was operating an Alloy Mecha.

Warriors were required to master the mecha's flight controls, weapons systems, and life-support system within three months.

After completing their training, they would board a military Interstellar Ship and officially set out on their interstellar journey.

Interstellar campaigns were often extremely long.

During this time, each Warrior had to learn in depth about their target planet's geography and climate, as well as the species of Exotic Beasts that lived there and their approximate strength.

Whenever the Expeditionary Force conquered a planet, its first priority was to mine ore—namely, Star Source Stones, which were rich in Cosmic Energy. This was the core purpose of the expedition.

During this time, all Warriors taking part in the campaign could freely absorb energy from the Star Source Stones.

If they absorbed and cultivated quickly enough, they had a chance to rapidly improve their Martial Realm in a short time.

Of course, opportunity came with risk.

They could encounter all kinds of unforeseen difficulties along the way.

It might be a powerful Exotic Beast that appeared without warning, or strange environmental changes unique to an alien planet.

Any sudden turn of events could put the entire Expeditionary Force in danger.

Death was the shadow that lingered closest to them.

One careless mistake, and they might be buried forever on a distant alien planet.

On August 30, the Skyfire Club finalized its list of five Warriors for the expedition and submitted it to the Jinzhou Military Region Base.

Lu Feng's name was on the list.

After learning the details of the expedition procedures, Lu Feng decided to take part.

Though the journey would be extremely dangerous, he wasn't afraid.

To Lu Feng, the countless Exotic Beasts on alien planets meant an inexhaustible source of energy. It was the best way for him to grow stronger quickly.

He wanted to destroy the Zheng Family not only because Zheng Tong had taken his place at Martial University, and not only to avenge Teacher He.

He was also doing it for his loved ones and friends from his previous life, and for the helpless version of himself who had once been unable to change anything.

If he hadn't been lucky enough to live a second life, there would have been no trace of Lu Feng left in this world.

Everyone in the Zheng Family deserved to die!