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"You can hit me now!"

This shout seemed to tear apart the eve of dawn, to tear apart the darkest hour.

One after another, prisoners threw out protein bars they had hidden on their bodies.

Some of them, even when thrown into the pigsty, will fall outside if not thrown accurately.

In the past, some people would pick up a discarded protein bar and immediately put it in their mouths to eat it first.

Long-term malnutrition has made them light up at the sight of any food.

But this time, no one tried to grab the protein bars that had fallen to the ground.

Someone might pick it up, but they'll just throw it back into the pigsty.

More and more Qing clan intelligence agents threw the protein bars they had hidden to Qing Chen. They knew that a large-scale search would definitely be conducted in the prison area after today, and if they didn't throw them away now, they would be taken by Shen Dai...

Those beasts who were in charge of guarding them will certainly not allow the prisoners to hoard food after what happened today.

The other prisoners didn't know until this moment.

These seemingly apathetic intelligence agents of the Qing Clan actually had their inner flames reignited the moment Qing Chen arrived.

The prisoners, who had been numb for who knows how long, didn't know what had gotten into them, and acted as if they were enjoying a long-lost freedom.

They shoved the Shindai soldiers to stop them from whipping the Kei clan's intelligence agents.

They belong to different factions, and some don't even belong to any faction, but here they all carry a sense of desolation and want to try to resist.

The soldiers of the God Era called for reinforcements from the military camp; they wanted to suppress the area by force!

"Do you think a few lashes will make everything alright?" Kamiyo Yunzhi slowly walked out of the military camp, sneering, "If that were the case, people would think this is some kind of charity."

When the prisoners saw Kamiyo Yunzhi appear, they all fell silent.

She was too afraid to look him in the eye.

For a long time, Kamiyo Yunzhi has been the biggest shadow in their hearts.

"Break the legs of the two instigators," Kamiyo Yunzhi said. "Break them in front of Qing Chen, then hang them outside the pigsty for a few days. Whether they survive or not depends on their fate."

There are no laws here; Kamiyo Yunzhi wants to break someone's leg, he can break it.

Except for Qing Chen.

Qing Chen chewed the protein bar in his mouth carefully, pondering why Shendai hadn't directly harmed his body. Was it to possess him? But the news that he couldn't be possessed should have already reached Shendai.

Or has the Age of Gods developed new methods that allow them to still become targets of possession?

He probably had a guess in his mind, because there weren't many reasons to explain the behavior of the gods.

Qing Chen silently watched as the two Qing clan intelligence agents were pinned to the ground, about to have their legs broken by the soldiers of the Divine Era.

He can't do anything now; the shackles that weigh thousands of pounds in total restrict his freedom.

He did not roar, because roaring was useless.

He wasn't angry, because anger would be useless.

All Qing Chen can do is wait for his return, and then use all his efforts to come back and retaliate against the Gods.

But... we have to do something.

The boy lowered his head, holding a stone in his hand, his wrists were shackled, and his feet were in dirty mud.

However, at that moment, the two Qing clan intelligence agents who were being held down on the ground suddenly turned to look at him and smiled, saying, "It's alright."

"Commander Qing Chen, it's alright, it's my duty."

Success doesn't have to be achieved by me.

Qing Chen was stunned.

It's okay.

These four words were spoken by him, and now the other party has returned them to him.

Qing Chen felt as if he had been pulled back to the Takamanohara, where he and Zhang Wenqi sat side by side, alone, watching their fate unfold.

For the sake of the saying, "Success doesn't have to be mine."

Zhang Wenqi is dead.

Two of Qing's intelligence agents were willing to have their legs broken just to throw him a protein bar.

At first, Qing Chen was not moved by Zhang Wenqi's death.

Because he wasn't a member of the Qing family, and he didn't identify with the Qing family at all.

But at this moment, he suddenly thought of a problem: he could not consider himself a member of the Qing family, but those intelligence agents placed the honor of the Qing family on him.

And then, for this ethereal and elusive thing, they selflessly and unhesitatingly dedicate everything.

Is this the Qing family?

Is this the foundation upon which the Qing family stands in the Federation?

Qing Chen seemed to understand something.

With a snap, the cold butt of a Shindai soldier's rifle slammed down, breaking the leg bone of a Kei clan intelligence agent.

The gun butt was so brutal that the broken leg bone protruded from the skin, making it look exceptionally gruesome.

The Qing clan's intelligence agent couldn't help but scream at the top of his lungs, like a wild beast roaming the wilderness whose thigh bone had been broken by a huge animal trap.

From then on, his fate was inevitably death.

Qing Chen watched as two intelligence agents were suspended by ropes from the roof beams of the pigsty by the soldiers of the Divine Era.

Swaying in the cold wind.

He suddenly bent down and continued building his stone wall.

The soldiers of the God Era laughed wildly, "You got your legs broken and are hanging here for him, what do you think he can do? Do you see even a trace of anger in his expression? He's like a castrated bull, he's lost all will to fight!"

"Terrible!"

The Qing clan intelligence officer, who was being held up, spat a mouthful of phlegm onto the face of the Kamishiro soldier, and was then met with a fierce beating.

Kamiyo Yunzhi sneered, "Stop hitting them. Just leave them hanging here. They're trying to provoke you into wanting to die, but I won't let them have their way. I want them to feel pain and cold here. Anyone else want to throw protein bars? If you do, you can hang here with them."

The prisoners shrank back when they saw the two intelligence agents from the Qing clan.

Qing Chen acted as if he hadn't heard anything and continued building the stone wall.

At night, Qing Chen stopped building the stone wall and suddenly stood at the edge of the pigpen, asking softly, "What are your names?"

"Zhao Mingke".

"Wang Yuchao".

"How long have you been here?"

"Nineteen years, three months and three days. I counted the days on my fingers every day, afraid that I would forget them one day and my mind would become muddled."

Is it worth it?

"There's no question of whether it's worth it or not. I'm so hungry every day, I don't have time to think about these things."

"Um."

"Commander Qing Chen, do you regret it?"

No regrets.

"Do you know Zhang Wenqi?" Qing Chen asked.

"Sir, you know Zhang Wenqi too? That guy used to be one of the guards at A02 Base. He gave us a real dressing down, but he was a little more restrained when he actually attacked us."

"Yes, before he died, he also said the six words 'Success doesn't have to be mine'," Qing Chen calmly, gazing at the starry sky.

Zhao Mingke suddenly said, "Sir, you know the meaning of these six words, right?"

Qing Chen shook his head. "I don't fully understand yet."

Zhao Mingke a deep breath and said, "It not only tells us soldiers not to be afraid of sacrifice, but also tells commanders not to be soft-hearted. For a certain goal, sacrifice and bloodshed are inevitable. If we are afraid of sacrifice and bloodshed, then any victory we achieve will be a false victory."

Qing Chen thought for a moment and said, "I understand."

He continued to build the stone wall with his head down, leaving Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao hanging in mid-air.

Suddenly, they heard Qing Chen muttering something, but the howling wind made it impossible for them to hear clearly.

At one point, the night wind stopped.

They heard the sentence clearly.

The countdown to the return is on its fourth day.

Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao had lost their enthusiasm for chatting. Their heads were drooping, blood was flowing from the wounds on their legs, and they could barely stay awake.

All the prisoners walked past them without being able to bear looking at them.

And the boy named Qing Chen continued tirelessly building stone walls time and time again.

Three days until the return.

Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao have fallen into a coma.

However, even while they were unconscious, they were still muttering to themselves.

No prisoner dared to approach and listen to what they were saying.

And that boy named Qing Chen is also on the verge of collapse.

There was food, but the biting cold wind was still too much for a seriously injured person to withstand.

Qing Chen's face was flushed, a symptom of a persistent high fever.

This was the first time he had fallen ill since becoming a knight.

Even a knight's body is starting to give out.

Day two countdown to the return.

Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao's breathing was barely audible, but they were still muttering something.

The Qing clan's intelligence agents among the prisoners risked being whipped as they strained to listen.

In the cold wind, Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao whispered to each other, "But you must understand, my friend, we cannot face the darkness with gentleness, we must face it with fire."

The Qing clan intelligence agent was stunned. He silently wiped away a tear and continued walking towards the quarry.

As always, they carried the ceaseless mountain rocks.

They lived a life of endless suffering.

The countdown to the return has just ended.

Qing Chen gazed at the night sky once more in the darkness.

The vast starry sky is as deep as the sea.

"I'm sorry," Qing Chen said.

He said this to Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao, without further explanation, just those two words.

I'm sorry to have dragged you into this.

I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do to save you.

Zhao Mingke and Wang Yuchao were on their deathbeds when he heard those three words. As if in a final burst of energy, he opened his eyes again and smiled through his long-cracked lips, saying, "It's alright."

Then silence.

These four words again.

He told the Qing family's intelligence agents twice, and they returned the message to him twice.

However, this time the other party paid with their life.

Qing Chen felt no sadness. He continued to pile up stones, feeling the desperate power within his muscles, trembling, twisting, and surging.

The body, which was about to be used to its limit, suddenly gave the boy a feeling of exhilaration.

At one point, just when he felt he was about to collapse.

Somewhere deep within the body, a pure, burning power was suddenly activated and spread to every part of the body.

It was as if a warm ocean surged into the icy ocean of the Operation Extreme Night.

Qing Chen was stunned for a moment.

He quickly realized what it was.

This is the God's Blood injected into him by the person who saved him in that valley.

A drop of God's Blood was diluted to five milliliters and then injected entirely into his body.

This is something that even a master like Kamiyo Yunhe, who could hunt down and kill, would want to secretly keep half of.

Qing Chen had heard of the God's Blood; to be precise, the Federal Consortium's family secret history only acknowledged that one god had ever existed in this world...

Ren Xiaosu left his name at a height of 599 meters on the Green Mountain Cliff.

This is a god that all conglomerates are willing to acknowledge, simply because his blood can turn decay into magic, and his will is vast and boundless.

Therefore, if this is the God's Blood, then it must be the blood of Ren Xiaosu.

It is said that he was the first human to unlock his Gene Lock potential and coexist with cancer cells throughout his body, with all his cells transforming into heteromorphic nuclei, dazzling and magnificent.

Some have speculated that the emergence of extraordinary individuals in this world is due to Ren Xiaosu's overwhelmingly powerful will, which has had a profound impact on the entire world.

Before Ren Xiaosu awakened, there weren't many Awakened in the world; it was only after his awakening that Awakened gradually appeared.

After Qing Chen injected that drop of God's Blood, it only stabilized his injuries at the time.

He thought that was the end of it.

But at this moment, as Qing Chen's will reached a certain critical point, the diluted God's Blood reappeared, nourishing his body with the great power of the god.

The God's Blood is not something anyone can absorb at will; only those who are qualified are worthy of absorbing it.

Although Qing Chen has only absorbed one-tenth of it so far.

Qing Chen thought silently that, given the relationship between the Federal Consortium and Ren Xiaosu, the only families that could receive the gift of God's Blood were the Li family and the Qing family, because they had fought alongside the gods.

Therefore, the person who saved him and then abandoned him to the Age of Gods must have come from one of these two families.

But none of that matters.

Qing Chen felt the cold wind and the complex emotions deep within his heart, feeling his body, which was about to decay yet bursting with power.

The world was plunged into darkness.

But you must understand, my friend, we cannot face the darkness with gentleness; we must face it with fire.

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