After collecting his magazines from the armory and arranging to treat the quartermaster to a meal the next time they returned to Skyhold on leave, Tianyang said goodbye to the older man and walked through the corridors of the base.
Suddenly, Tianyang stopped.
He spotted Xun. The girl stood by a window, gazing out at the dimly lit base.
A car passed nearby, its headlights illuminating her face. In that instant, her beauty was like a night-blooming flower in the darkness.
Tianyang remembered how they had ended up in each other's arms when he braked yesterday, and felt a little embarrassed.
I should go apologize to her... Tianyang thought.
But suddenly, someone appeared beside her. It was a tall young man. Tianyang estimated that he stood a full head taller than himself.
His shoulders were broad, his body solid as a bull's. His well-proportioned physique exuded strength.
His sharply sculpted nose gave him a somewhat cold appearance. Though he was smiling, there was a hint of arrogance in his eyes.
He, too, wore the Nightwalkers' long black uniform coat. The matching second lieutenant's insignia suggested that he was probably an Ascender as well.
At that moment, the young man had one hand pressed against the polyester window beside Xun and was saying something to her. They seemed to know each other.
Tianyang could only abandon his plan to apologize.
He had just turned to leave when he heard Xun cry out. Looking back, he saw that she had tried to leave too, only for the young man to grab her.
Whatever the young man said next made Xun suddenly slap him across the face. He probably hadn't expected her to dare hit him. He froze for a moment, then his smile vanished and he raised his hand.
Almost without thinking, Tianyang's silvery-gray hair lifted slightly, faint motes of light drifting between the strands.
Light flickered deep in his eyes. The world in his vision abruptly blurred. When it became clear again, the young man's face, twisted with arrogance and anger, was right before him!
Surprise flashed in the young man's eyes, but his palm still swung down. Tianyang caught it, stopping it in midair just five centimeters from Xun.
Passing base personnel stopped to watch.
The young man's gaze shifted to Tianyang, and he said coldly, "What are you doing?"
"Nothing much. Just stopping you from getting violent with a girl," Tianyang said calmly.
"Are you blind? Didn't you see her hit me first? She's just a lowborn! Wanting to sleep with her is doing her a favor. She should be thrilled, but instead she dared refuse me-and hit me!"
Tianyang still had no intention of letting go. "In that case, I'd say she was right to hit you. A self-important bastard like you needs to be taught a lesson sometimes."
Both the young man and Xun behind him stared at Tianyang in surprise. The difference was that anger began to flare in the young man's eyes.
Xun's expression, meanwhile, was somewhat complicated.
"Are you crazy? You're actually speaking up for a lowborn? Have you forgotten that we have mating rights? The Fortress permits this! Are you going to defy the Fortress's laws?"
Tianyang smiled and released him.
The young man sneered. "I knew you wouldn't dare."
He reached for Xun.
Smack!
Tianyang knocked his hand aside.
The young man froze again. Then a hazy radiance began to shine around him, and an emblem resembling a magic circle appeared between his brows. Symbols flickered within it.
It was the emblem of an Elemental Heart. The number "2" at the center of the circle marked him as a rank-two Ascender.
"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you!"
Tianyang raised his hand, barring the way between the young man and Xun. "You just said we have mating rights. What a coincidence-I have my eye on her too. What do you suggest we do?"
Xun was startled at first. Then, as if she had realized something, she relaxed.
The young man, however, paused before raising his hand. "You're asking to die!"
Pale light rose from his hand and condensed into the shape of a spear.
Clang!
Before he could throw that pale spear of light, a pitch-black warblade was already resting against his neck.
His pupils contracted. Naturally, he recognized it as a high-vibration Particle Warblade! Never mind his neck-even an armored vehicle's plating couldn't withstand its cutting edge.
Tianyang's sword hand was steady as a rock. "The abilities of an Elemental Heart are tremendously powerful. But you have a weakness. Put simply, you're fragile."
Cold sweat broke out on the young man's forehead. "What do you want?"
Tianyang glanced at the spear in his hand. "Dismiss your ability. I don't want this getting out of hand. As for this girl, she's mine now. I assume you have no objections?"
With the Particle Blade's icy edge still pressed against his artery, how could the young man dare object?
He slowly withdrew his star essence, and the spear of light vanished from his palm. He snorted. "Satisfied now?"
Tianyang sheathed his warblade, took Xun's hand, and immediately left.
Only when they reached the base cafeteria did Tianyang let go of Xun. Somewhat embarrassed, he said, "Well, I only said that deliberately back there because otherwise I wouldn't have had an excuse to interfere. Please don't take it to heart."
To his surprise, Xun said, "I know. Thank you for getting me out of that."
"It was nothing. I'm really sorry about what happened in the car yesterday."
Xun smiled. "It's all right."
"I..."
"Xun, where are you? Hurry back and help."
Luo Shan's voice came from the communicator at the girl's waist. Xun stuck out her tongue and replied, "I'll be right there."
Then she bowed to Tianyang again. "Thank you again."
With those words, she walked away with the light-footed grace of a deer and soon disappeared from sight.
Three hours passed quickly. Following his orders, Tianyang arrived at the base's main gate to assemble.
He spotted the members of the Raven Squad from a distance, along with several other squads beside them.
Han Shu had said this was a joint operation involving other squads, so Tianyang wasn't surprised.
But as he approached, his heart sank. The young man who had tried to lay his hands on Xun was among them.
The man spotted Tianyang too and immediately gave him a meaningful smile.
Tianyang later asked Old Xu about him and learned that the bastard was called Zhou Wang, the Gray Pigeon Squad's fire support specialist!
They counted personnel and checked equipment. Once everything was confirmed to be in order, Han Shu shouted, "Move out!"
Sitting in the Falcon High-Speed Assault Vehicle, Tianyang watched the base gates slowly open, excitement stirring within him.
He was finally about to embark on his first official operation as an Ascender.
It was also a light combat vehicle, but compared with the Gathering Team's standard transport, the Falcon used by the Nightwalkers clearly boasted superior performance.
With its composite outer armor, this combat vehicle was engineered with astonishing precision. It adjusted its speed by expelling gas through propulsion exhaust nozzles, while a storage compartment for solid fuel blocks solved the problem of endurance. Its heavy star essence energy cannon gave it the ability to intercept large numbers of Children of Darkness.
Tianyang therefore felt quite safe riding in it. He even hoped something would happen along the way so he could witness the power of that heavy energy cannon.
Unfortunately, the journey was uneventful.
Three days later, the Inverse Realm city codenamed [Metropolis], which Tianyang had once explored as a member of the Gathering Team, appeared ahead of the recovery convoy!
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