The Long Journey

"Doctor Zhang, I'm so sorry."

Bei Chen now looked disheveled, holding Xue Ming's arms as he led the doctor to wait on the other side of the Great Beck Stadium.

"Winter break is just around the corner, and before the exhibition, I have a few words to say to the students. Doctor Zhang, if you don't mind, could you wait for me for a while?"

Xue Ming nodded, holding the medical records, and sat down on the lawn with the children.

The instructor of the knightly combat skills adjusted his Tang suit, rolled up his sleeves, and pushed the projector towards him.

It's clear that Bei Chen's mental state isn't good. Since retiring from the front lines, he's been tormented by mental illness. It's a pathological condition affecting the brain, not just a bad mood, and it's something he can't control.

"Children! I have something to tell you today!"

Bei Chen shouted loudly.

"No more practicing martial arts, no more running laps, no more physical training, we won't even go to the supermarket, no more reciting texts, and no more teaching the Six Arts!"

"Let me tell you my story, tell you about this illness in my brain, how it came about."

Most of the students sitting on the lawn hugged their knees, silent, looking at the disheveled middle-aged man and their homeroom teacher.

Bei Chen opened the storage compartment under the projection screen, picked through the items, and selected a dusty USB drive. The USB drive was attached to a file bag and contained the combat log of UB503 Hill—a memory of Bei Chen fighting side by side with the gunsmith.

He never had the courage to reopen the yellow file folder, nor dared to look at it again.

The doctor came today, and with this safety net in place, he has to prove himself. He's a swift-knife warrior, a brave Red Stone People, whose courage, even after being destroyed, still has the fearlessness to challenge the disease.

"October 10, 2029, is a joyous day for District 37!"

"Like the blazing sun piercing the sky, like <Sunny Day>."

"As a member of the Quick Blade Special Operations Corps Combat Company, I came to Yunmengze City with 119 brothers to support the Nameless One at UB503 Highland."

"The enemy has twelve battle groups, more than 31,600 combat personnel, and countless logistics teams and arsenals. This high ground, easy to defend and difficult to attack, is an impregnable fortress. Zero Platform stands at Jinkemu, on UB503 High Ground. District 37 originally belonged to the Greenstone People, and also had my Chinese compatriots. The first people to come here to reclaim the land were a group of hardworking Chinese who loved farming."

"The Nameless Ones' last joint operation began in the spring. This protracted tug-of-war has driven many remnants of war gangs from Districts 36, Thirty-first District, and 17 here. They are attempting to regroup their forces, absorb the strength of the fleeing enemies, and reunite in one place for a decisive battle against the Nameless Ones."

"Those who know the background should understand how difficult this battle was."

"Our nameless agents cannot carry out airborne decapitation strikes. The enemy's defenses are well-prepared. If we cannot take UB503, an unimaginable Spirit Calamity may erupt in District 37. The Flash Butterfly will once again descend upon this land, shattering the earth and causing the mountains and rivers to tremble. Tentacles of the Original Seed will extend from the bottom of the endless abyss."

"The situation was urgent. When Quickblade contacted the Gate of Wonders to send the Special Operations Combat Company to the front lines, remnants of the Madness Butterfly Sect's War Gang were lying in ambush at the Yunmengze passenger station. The company commander immediately ordered each squad to engage in battle, but outnumbered, we suffered heavy casualties, inflicting over 1,200 casualties on the War Gang, and finally broke through successfully. When we arrived at UB503 high ground, the 1,200-strong combat company was reduced to only 16 men, and we were out of ammunition and supplies."

The battle footage was projected onto a blood-red dome, with billowing crimson mist and smoke rising into the sky along with the surging heat.

"When I met the gunsmith, he had lost an arm, a leg, and was blind in one eye."

"I didn't bring the company commander, nor the Universal Elixir, only fifteen brothers. The gunsmith's injuries need urgent treatment, and the defense of Jinkemu is crucial. This is where three routes converge. If we can hold out until our comrades from the Griffin Regiment arrive to support us, we can definitely turn the tide."

"But the Madness Butterfly didn't give us a chance to catch our breath. On the northwest slope of UB503, between Outpost 101 and Outpost 103, a battle line spanning 1,800 meters, there was no one left."

"We feel despair because there are at least four thousand enemies entrenched at Zero Platform, and more than fourteen thousand scattered battle gangs awaiting orders from the Madness Butterfly Sect in the capital of Yunmengze. They are scattered in the farms and fields around the highlands, and the warriors searching the Abyssal Railway in the mountain tunnels. The more than four hundred warriors from the White Peacock Battle Group have all been killed in battle."

"This infuriated me. I believed there must be a traitor within the chapter, some officer or officer of the White Peacock Chapter who betrayed these warriors. But the gunsmith didn't say much—"

"--After he briefed me on the enemy situation, he began assigning tasks and formulating a detailed battle plan."

"His arms and legs cannot be treated, and he can't aim with only one eye. It's a pipe dream to fight off enemies attacking from both sides."

"But we..."

The projector emitted a continuous stream of gunfire, screams, and the whistling of shells flying low overhead.

"We won! We will win! I came back alive from UB503!"

"The plan is as follows: starting at 2:00 AM on October 10th, the Griffin Squadron's intelligence team will send out observation balloons as decoys, while drones will bombard the enemy forces at the foot and halfway up the mountain, maintaining contact with our radio."

"The Gunsmith and the soldiers of the White Peacock Legion are leading the vanguard deep behind enemy lines. The other Nameless Ones dare not rush to their aid after learning that the vanguard has been wiped out. Quickblade is the Nameless Ones' suicide squad. Our mission is to get to the Nameless Ones' side and ensure that they can continue to complete their combat mission."

"At 3:15, the enemy launched their first assault on the hill. My brothers and I, along with the eight machine gun turrets that occupied the 103rd outpost, tried to buy time with our defensive fortifications. However, the enemy had bomb-dropping drones. At the moment when Quick Knife was injured or killed, Gunsmith moved back and forth between the supply depots within an 800-meter radius, working with my company to repel this wave of attacks using RDX explosives, grenades, and other projectiles."

Around 3:30, the enemy continued their advance up the mountain, with about 140 men forming the vanguard and over 300 men observing from the rear.

"My company retreated from the defensive perimeter, vacating the 103rd outpost, and planted bombs to wound or kill more than 80 enemy soldiers. When the defensive perimeter shrank to the 101st outpost, my company was left with only six men."

"The three main facilities of Jinkemu were the water tower, the barracks, and the power station. The water tower and the barracks had already collapsed under the enemy's heavy bombardment, leaving only parts of the power station that could be used as cover."

"At 3:45, the gunsmith's radio reported that the main force of the Griffin Squad had entered the city, but there was no extra armored force to support UB503 Hill. There was a 40-meter-high rock wall at the Film Factory in Yunmengze that could be used to set up artillery positions."

"At the same time, starting at 5:00, as an observer, I noticed that small groups of enemy fighters were driving towards the power plant from the direction of Zero Platform, trying to surround us."

"The gunsmith made a decisive decision: the artillery positions were to fire at the power plant—after the types of ammunition, coordinates, wind drift data, firing altitude, and range were explained, we began to gamble with our lives against the enemy."

"At 4:00 AM sharp, over 400 enemies surrounded the power plant. This time, we won the gamble."

"At exactly 4:10, the gunsmith, the last five comrades and I dug defensive fortifications. It took us 26 minutes to build two bunkers from the No. 1 workshop of the power plant to the empty waste pool. Immediately afterward, the gunsmith called for a second round of artillery fire."

"At 4:15, the remaining enemy forces at the power plant were wiped out, and we won our second gamble."

"Around 4:48, the enemy seemed to have regained their morale and closed in again—determined to take the power plant at any cost. The gunsmith called for artillery fire once more."

"By six o'clock in the morning, we had gambled six times, and we won every single time, every single time."

"At 6:01, we learned that the artillery positions had simultaneously captured the resistance forces at the City Hall, and the vanguard had reached UB503. I, along with five other survivors and the gunsmith, survived."

At this point, the three-hour-long battle to defend the screen had only just begun.

Bei Chen sat with the students, watching this arduous and brutal "movie," things that seemed very far removed from these children.

"Back at the city hospital, the gunsmith came to see me immediately. I don't remember how many shrapnel bullets were in my body, and I couldn't hear what he was saying."

"I was even a little confused, as if the entire Quick Knife combat company had been wiped out overnight."

"Why did I come here to fight this battle? I don't know, I haven't even had time to think about it."

"The hospital was overflowing with wounded patients. The corridors and floors were packed with people—ordinary civilians as well as surrendered war gang henchmen."

There are so many children, so many children.

"The beasts of the Madness Butterfly Sect, when faced with battle, use children and women as human shields, and before disaster strikes, they even drag one or two innocent civilians down with them."

"I saw four or five children your age crammed into one bed in the next room. They were covered in blood."

"The Universal Elixir and White Lady's products are not enough, not nearly enough, not even ordinary medicines are available."

"Before the White Peacock Legion arrived, the city seemed to have been subjected to warning shelling from UB503 Hill, meant to instill fear, to make ordinary people understand who was in charge here, and to drive the legion away from the innocent masses—looking out from the ward, the foot massage parlor across the street had completely collapsed, and the city had a landmark building called Lu Xun Square, where there were homeless people."

"Every time I think about all this, and take another look at this Human Hell today..."

Bei Chen's hands trembled. In Balason, a region with extremely low concentrations of Spirit Calamity, he also began to experience allergic symptoms of the Vita Imprint, a complication of ballistic shock syndrome. His Madness Index was rising rapidly, and he was about to be dominated by fear.

Click--

Jiang Xueming turned off the projector.

"Why was it turned off?! Why?!" Bei Chen suddenly became agitated, his eyes red. "Why? Doctor! What are you doing?!"

Jiang Xueming: "Repeatedly reliving these painful memories won't desensitize you. This isn't a scientific treatment method; it's ineffective—Brother Bei Chen."

"I just want these children to remember! I'm afraid they'll forget!" Bei Chen had lost control of his emotions; he began to scream hysterically, "I'm afraid they'll forget. I'm afraid. I'm terrified."

Jiang Xueming: "I can continue playing this combat record, but you can't watch it."

"I want to defeat it! I..." Saliva dripped from Bei Chen's lips, his face twitching uncontrollably. "I... I don't want to lose to myself. I... The gunsmith is dead now, what am I supposed to do? I can't not touch a gun, I can't."

How could I possibly talk to someone who's afraid to even touch a gun?

Jiang Xueming found a wooden toy gun in the projector cabinet and threw it into Bei Chen's arms.

In Bei Chen's eyes, that thing was like a venomous snake. He was so frightened that he crawled back several meters, feeling as if he had a piece of burning coal in his arms. He moved away from the students and finally shed tears that he couldn't control.

Jiang Xueming helped Bei Chen up. At first, he couldn't lift him, but then he simply grabbed the homeroom teacher by the armpits and dragged him to the stadium stands. He gave Bei Chen a bottle of water, then returned to the projector and asked the children about the incident.

"Does the teacher often do this?"

A bold boy replied, "No! This is the first time I've seen the teacher like this. He's usually very energetic!"

This was the first time Bei Chen had revealed his weakness in front of his students. A part of his soul remained forever in Yunmengze Capital of District 37, forever on that land.

For Jiang Xueming, this battle was just one of many large and small battles on the expedition. Because the mission on his shoulders was too heavy, he had no worries like Bei Chen suffering from shock syndrome - he had to face all the hardships and dangers on the road, even if it meant dying in battle.

When Xue Ming returned to Bei Chen's side, she took out her older brother's medical records from previous years and slowly flipped through them page by page. Over the years, Bei Chen had undergone a lot of psychological counseling and intermittent drug treatment, but with little effect.

This man had never married. After being released from prison in Hedland, he didn't try to transfer to the personnel department at the train station; instead, he went straight into battle.

"Brother, you are a war hero." Jiang Xueming spoke casually of the past, "You have the Divine Deer Medal personally awarded by the Governor of Yunmengze—it would be a first-class merit even in the mortal world."

"I know," Bei Chen, his emotions calming down somewhat. He stared blankly into the distance. "It was bought with the lives of my comrades."

Jiang Xueming: "Don't think like that. We all have our own missions. The Quick Knife Combat Company should have been mentally prepared when we set off, and so should the Nameless One."

Bei Chen: "."

Jiang Xueming: "I understand that a few words won't really get to your heart. If you could cure an illness just by talking, what would be the point of having doctors? Right?"

Bei Chen: "."

Jiang Xueming: "Let's find the root of the problem. Is it the treacherous environment of UB503 Hill that makes you feel afraid?"

Bei Chen: "Yes, we have them all."

Jiang Xueming: "In a short period of time, too many people around you have died. It's not just the physical harm, but also most of the mental harm from the psychic reaction. When these spirits leave their bodies, they create a special spiritual pressure environment. Is it the passing of these lives that makes you feel afraid? Is your will not strong enough?"

Bei Chen: "We have everything."

Jiang Xueming: "Later in the city, when you were receiving treatment, what you heard and saw—the victims around you, the dead, the wounded in the hospital corridors with no cure—touched you?"

Bei Chen nodded. "Yes, I think so."

Jiang Xueming: "There's another thing, kids. Your current pace of life and your mental state are out of sync. I originally thought you shouldn't continue teaching in Galahad. All the instruction related to combat skills will involuntarily remind you of your time in the military—I originally thought you wouldn't continue teaching courses related to gunnery and martial arts."

"I don't want to resign," Bei Chen immediately explained, "I don't want to. I don't want to."

After returning to the Nine Realms, the warrior came into contact with the other comrades of Quick Blade. He also met his colleagues who suffered from mental illness. This kind of torment would last a lifetime; physical wounds are easy to heal, but mental wounds are difficult to cure.

He didn't want to end his career like this. The impact of the Madness Butterfly Sect on his mind was too strong. It seemed that he had returned to teaching in Galahad, but in reality, the battle for Bei Chen was not over yet. He had always been vigilant and prepared, and he never wanted to see the new generation of children throw themselves into the embrace of the Madness Butterfly Church again.

This torn feeling of both fear and longing almost split him in two.

During class, he would boast about his military exploits, and afterwards he would experience auditory hallucinations. He would come across secret methods for defeating the enemy, and when he saw familiar weapon illustrations, he would immediately associate them with the experience of artillery fire, and immediately enter a stressful state of risking his life.

"You don't want to give up your care, right?" Jiang Xueming knew that forcing the issue wouldn't work. "Then I have an idea, do you want to try it?"

Bei Chen was at a loss and quickly asked, "What should we do? Don't just talk the talk, walk the walk! You can feed me two pills, but do something else!"

Jiang Xueming took out his wallet from his pocket.

"It's Thursday today, come on."

A banknote was delivered into Bei Chen's hand.

"--ah?"

Jiang Xueming explained, "I'll treat you to KFC."

Bei Chen was completely bewildered. His salary wasn't low, but to be honest, he was still quite happy to have someone treat him to a meal.

Jiang Xueming took out another banknote. "You felt it? Your mind is gradually calming down?"

Bei Chen took the banknotes again. "What's the explanation this time?"

"A little gift for the war hero." Jiang Xueming continued pulling out more banknotes, "This one is for the hard work of the teacher in educating the children. The next one is for your overtime pay on New Year's Day. If Galahad gives you one, I'll give you another one. I'm bothering you again on your last class of the semester, so I think you deserve it."

"Oh! Oh, oh, oh." Bei Chen gradually smiled, "Oh! You're too kind, too kind, too kind!"

Jiang Xueming then took out his money. "I need to ask you a few questions; this is the consultation fee."

Bei Chen took the money. "Go ahead and ask me."

Jiang Xueming: "Have you gone to see the BOSS? Should we ask him to arrange a waiter for you?"

Bei Chen quickly shook his head. "No, no, no! I'm sick! And with a waiter pulling at me, I... I'm afraid I'll inconvenience them."

Jiang Xueming then slipped more money into his hand. "Have you ever thought about finding one from the school?"

Bei Chen stuffed a banknote back into his pocket and asked, "Doctor, what do you mean by always trying to find me a partner?"

Jiang Xueming continued to stuff money into his hand, "It's just what I was thinking. I've researched this gunsmith."

"Explain yourself?" Bei Chen continued to stuff money into his hand.

Jiang Xueming: "His personality model—we have people in our circle who specialize in this research—shows that love is a very important factor in his developmental path. His experiences with Waiter 9527 changed him—you know you can't fight your inner demons alone, so you might as well find someone to borrow a lot of emotional debt from."

Xue Ming handed over the last banknote from his wallet.

"I'll pay it back slowly over the rest of my life."

Bei Chen was stunned--

He had never thought about this. After losing contact with the Red Stone People Triads, he couldn't even find a brother to chat with. During his time in the Quickblade Combat Company, he had many friends, but now they had all become painful memories on the Divine Deer Medal.

"Take a step forward, Brother Bei Chen. I still need to go to the exhibition. If you have time, you can come find me at Wumingshi. I won't force you to leave your post, I won't change your mind, and I'll try to find a way to help you and prescribe some medicine."

"Um..." Seeing Zhang Congfeng to leave, Bei Chen suddenly called out, "Doctor, wait a minute! Doctor..."

Xue Ming turned around. "Hmm?"

Bei Chen suddenly became shy; this man, nearing forty, was somewhat bashful.

"No, I just wanted to say that there's another reason why I've been feeling down lately."

Xue Ming: "The gunsmith is dead? The person who went through thick and thin with you suddenly passed away?"

"Yes, that's the reason." Bei Chen pursed his lips, unsure what to do with his hands. "I suddenly feel empty inside, as if a very important piece of the puzzle in my life is missing."

Xue Ming was still unaware of Bei Chen's implied meaning.

"Doctor, you look very similar to the Gunsmith." Bei Chen licked his lips. "I have a favor to ask. Ever since the battle of UB503 ended, I haven't dared to visit the Gunsmith. I still have that man's image in my heart."

Xue Ming exclaimed in English, "Excuse me?"

Bei Chen: "To be honest, I'm considered an oddball by the Triads brothers. I was originally a martial arts master, and the gang elders thought highly of me. But because of this special factor, I was later forced to take the blame."

Xue Ming: "Brother Bei Chen, you wouldn't be..."

"Yes, actually I've always liked men." Bei Chen finally confessed, "I haven't dared to tell anyone. I've always felt guilty. I call myself a pervert, and I even whip myself in private. But when I'm with my comrades, especially with the gunsmith... you can't deceive yourself. There's no way around it! It's an inherent trait God gave me, like a disease in my brain that even Universal Elixir can't cure."

"Look! Ah! It's Principal Lupin! What brings you here!" Xue Ming suddenly beamed with joy and pointed to one side of the audience.

Bei Chen turned around and looked back.

The stands were completely empty.

When he turned around, Zhang Congfeng grabbed the medical records and fled in panic.

Xue Ming had already run to the school gate, his voice loud and his steps steady, and he called out back.

"Let's keep in touch next time!"