Chapter 1183: Seed of Hope (1/2)

Song Zining had also learned of Lin Xitang’s fall at this point. He gazed at the outwardly calm

Qianye and could only sigh. The two merely exchanged a silent glance for they had nothing to say.

Language had never been so empty and useless before. It was also painful, and even the slightest touch was almost unbearable.

Dark Flame was a majestic fleet when it arrived, but it was fairly empty upon its return. Most of the transports were empty, and some didn’t even have enough crew to man them.

After some discussions, Song Zining and Qianye decided to sell most of the transport vessels to the Empire. Although Evernight had taken grave losses in this battle, the Empire also realized the benefits of a large-scale landing of transports. The transports from the neutral lands might be old and shabby, but they were superior in their sturdiness and ease of repair, a good fit for military use.

There were so many mercenary and Zhao clan corpses that it was difficult to identify them individually and differentiate them from the enemy’s. Those who had fallen on the Martyr’s Palace were also buried in the void.

The Empire followed its usual traditions and collected all the name tags they could find. Then, they cremated all the corpses and buried the ashes under a large stele where Whitetown used to be.

At the end of the simple but solemn ceremony, Qianye led the surviving veterans on their journey back.

The battlecruiser served as the flagship with the corvettes guarding the wings and the large transports taking up the center. Almost every vessel in the fleet was damaged, so progress was rather slow. Qianye sent the Martyr’s Palace back to the Northern Continent ahead of them, to reorganize and undergo repairs. In addition, the Northern Continent’s mild atmosphere would serve as a good place for Caroline to recuperate.

The journey was calm and peaceful as the fleet slowly drove toward the neutral lands. Despite their slow pace, home was in sight after several days on the road.

Qianye stood gazing out the bridge window, toward the vague silhouette of the neutral lands at the ends of the void. From a distance, it looked like a scattered collection of islands enveloped in a hazy mist. Only from a distance could one see the traces of the fallen Void Valley Star.

As the destination was drawing near, the captain put the fleet on a new flight path. With the battlecruiser at its lead, the massive fleet turned slightly and moved toward the neutral lands.

“Damn, this again!” Cursing, the captain released his origin power to shield the control room. “What are you all staring at? Check and repair! Switch out the damaged parts and see if we have replacements for them. Oh and look for older models, the older the better.”

The crew flew into action. The captain rushed them a couple more times before arriving at Qianye’s side, saying, “Sire, we’ve already replaced a batch of components on our way out, but looks like it still won’t work.”

“The neutral lands is always like that. Don’t worry, your opponents here are all antiques. I’ll also arrange a suitable place to land the airship,” said Qianye.

The captain’s expression improved slightly. “Sire, I’m not complaining, but my heart aches when I see her like this.”

With that, the captain left the bridge to patrol the entire vessel.

The battlecruiser was the Empire’s latest model, the darling of every captain’s heart. Although it had undergone modifications for the neutral lands, the shipyard still ended up underestimating the adverse environment here. The mist Qianye had sensed contained a clear aura of destructive corrosion, mixed with void origin power. The material used in ordinary origin arrays simply couldn’t withstand the decay.

What happened on the battlecruiser was just a small interlude. The airship drove through two continents to arrive at an unusually large piece of land that was the Eastern Sea. At this point, every mercenary could already recognize their way home. The airship made a beeline for Southern Blue, shooting through a cloud layer as the silhouette of the city appeared far off over the horizon.

A mercenary beside Qianye was filled with delight. “We’re finally back!”

Qianye sighed from the bottom of his heart. “Yeah, we’re back.”

An officer said in a loud voice, “Qianye, Sire, you really must lead us to do greater things after we get back!”

Qianye was woken up by this. Looking back, he saw that the mercenaries in the cabin were all happy, excited, and exuding an extraordinary momentum. In addition to the generals, several of them looked like they were about to break through to the champion realm.

Qianye hadn’t imagined that they would say something like this. Glancing over, he saw the mercenary survivors looking at him with eyes full of radiance and passion. Those at his side were all survivors of Whitetown, most of whom were on the verge of a breakthrough after experiencing the great tribulation.

With nine out of ten men dead, Qianye had thought that the survivors would be depressed and mournful. He was expecting most of them to stay away from the battlefield even if they didn’t quit the corps. Who would’ve thought the great battle would thoroughly ignite these men, instead?

“So many of our brothers have died this time. At first, I thought you guys would want to take a long break before making a decision,” Qianye said.

The mercenaries glanced at one another and, at last, pushed a general in his thirties forward.

This man was the leader of a smaller mercenary band whom Ji Tianqing had threatened into joining with all his men. He wasn’t all that outstanding among Dark Flame’s generals, but he miraculously survived the battle of Whitetown. He was pushed forward since his original position was the highest, and he was also the strongest among the survivors.

He bowed toward Qianye and said, “Sire, mercenaries like us spend our lives on the blade’s edge. How can we expect a good ending? Dying on the battlefield is considered a good way to go. What we’re most afraid of are growing old with injuries, unable to join the battle, and living a meaningless life. The mercenary corps would usually take care of us and make sure we don’t go hungry, but it doesn’t get any better.”

Qianye nodded. This was the most common ending for the mercenaries of the neutral lands, a natural law according to Song Zining. In order to adapt and survive, humans in the neutral lands possessed greater reproductive abilities, and their strength growth was also faster. But the neutral lands couldn’t house so many people, so cruel battles were the only way to reduce the population.