Chapter 690: Commander Red
Translator: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ
The heavily-guarded border between Jadeite Forest and God Nation.
Lu Siyan was on her usual patrol. She was not exactly good looking, with her wide face and thick eyebrows. She had a heroic demeanor and only revealed her girlish side when the corners of her eyes turned up in a smile. Most people thought that she was a strange girl. While other girls focused on their appearances during physical training, she never once bothered with such things.
Her day to day behavior was similar to that of the other men. She never complained about hardships and led a carefree life without worry. Anyone who thought she was easy to bully would, however, get a good taste of her iron fist.
Nobody understood why Commander Red would pick such a weirdo as his deputy. Everyone knew that Commander Red was deeply in love with the princess inside the Devil Palace, but did not feel that that was reason enough to pick a tomboy as his deputy.
Would it not have been better to pick someone prettier since they were going to meet every day?
Besides being a tomboy, everything else about Deputy Lu was great. She was valiant, strong, diligent, and followed Commander Red's orders to the letter.
Take patrolling for instance.
It was highly unlikely for any incidents to happen since the Jadeite Forest must be in chaos after the battle between Grandmasters. There was no way Deputy Lu did not know about this, yet she continued checking all the guard posts diligently. Nobody else dared to slack off after seeing that.
Someone went to confront her about it and asked her to cut them some slack. Deputy Lu raised her eyebrows and retorted that there was still a threat. What if Le Buleng came?
Everyone was dumbstruck by her response.
This newly promoted Grandmaster was reportedly extremely temperamental. It would be terrible if he came over and wrecked their encampment on a whim. What's more, this new Grandmaster was very open about his hatred towards blood elementalists.
On the other hand, what could they even do about a Grandmaster?
Deputy Lu seemed really annoyed and looked as if she was ready to hit someone. Nobody dared to make any more comments after that, but they all thought the same thing.
Would there be a difference whether they were on guard or not?
Everyone was relieved that the days of being on edge had come to pass without incident.
What's more, Commander Red was around. Even though he could not compare to a Grandmaster, Commander Red surely had the means to put up some resistance. Back when Commander Red took command of both the god dragon and god shaman divisions, he used a simple yet violent method to gain control. Every high ranking exponent in the two divisions were beaten up by him.
Since then, the two large god divisions listened obediently to Commander Red.
Lu Siyan only returned after patrolling the entire camp.
News had arrived from the other side. It was reported that something big had happened, and that there were devastating losses incurred. Even Commander Ye's whereabouts was unknown.
Prior to this, Lu Siyan was very bitter about not being able to gain merits out on the front lines. Now, she was glad that she did not get sent up front.
Commander White and Commander Red were often referred to as the Red and White Commanders. Ye Baiyi was Commander White, while Red Devil was Commander Red. Commander White was higher ranked than Commander Red, something evident from the number of God Divisions under their charge.
In terms of power, everyone felt that Commander Red was slightly weaker as well.
Commander White established the six God Divisions on his own and was renowned and respected throughout God Nation.
Commander Red's greatest strength was his valor. Everyone had the impression that he was a man of great valor, and the incident with the two God Divisions strengthened it.
Lu Siyan used to think the same way, but after spending such a long time by his side, her admiration for him grew with each day. Sometimes she would wonder why people had that impression of him since he never did anything particularly valiant. But in that case, why did she feel admiration for him?
After completing her patrol, Lu Siyan prepared to report her findings to Commander Red.
She entered the tightly guarded commander's tent to find him alone inside.
The tent was minimally furnished since Commander Red did not pay particular attention to hedonistic pursuits. Because of that, nobody under his command dared to lead an extravagant lifestyle.
Commander Red always had the same unfeeling mask on no matter the occasion. The black and red mask combined with his ocean blue pupils gave an exquisite sense of beauty. It adequately captured the mysteriousness of an ocean, the dark night, and an unending flame.
Lu Siyan made her report as usual, but she felt that Commander Red seemed rather distracted. She wondered if there was an emergency. Lu Siyan was a woman of candor, and hence easily vocalized what was on her mind. "Sir, is there something wrong?"
Red Devil looked as if he was roused from a deep sleep. He shook his head. "Nothing's wrong."
After hearing his reply, Lu Siyan did not ask anymore questions. She bowed and said, "I'll take my leave then."
Red Devil suddenly shouted, "Hold on.".
Lu Siyan stopped in her tracks. Her mind was filled with even more questions since she had never seen Commander Red like this before.
Red Devil muttered, "Instruct the others to be on high alert.".
Lu Siyan promptly asked, "Is Grandmaster Le on his way?" .
Red Devil laughed bitterly. "Le Buleng isn't coming, but His Majesty has just entered Jadeite Forest.".
Lu Siyan was dumbstruck. Her face was drained of color as she stumbled out of the tent in a hurry, forgetting to salute her commander.
Her brain was buzzing with activity. Was there going to be another epic battle?
Biting cold winds blew tirelessly above the clouds. While rivers flow ceaselessly back to the sea, winds blow ceaselessly with no end in mind.
An ocean of clouds with no end in sight filled the sky. Large clouds rolled across the sky like pure, white waves; some vanished in the wind, while others formed spontaneously. This endless cycle rendered the skyscape ever changing.
Two figures stood facing each other amid the strong winds.
Like a majestic mountain, the Holy Emperor stood loftily with his back perfectly straight. His observant eyes looked down from high above, crushing those beneath his gaze with immense pressure.
Le Buleng was vastly inferior in stature. He was stooped, thin, and wore ragged clothes, much like a common farmer in the rural countryside. The Sun was clearly at its zenith, yet there was nothing but darkness in the small area around him. It was as if the sunlight was being consumed by something.
The Holy Emperor said ruefully, "To think you were actually able to defeat Dai Gang.".
His voice was dignified and imposing.
Le Buleng shook his head. "He lost to himself."
"Lost to himself?" The Holy Emperor asked, deep in thought. His eyes regained clarity in an instant. "Congratulations, Brother Le, on fulfilling your wish."
Le Buleng sneered, "Being addressed as Brother Le by the great Holy Emperor is too much praise.".
The Holy Emperor did not get angry. "Brother Le, you've earned your place as my equal and are as such truly worthy of being addressed as so."
Getting impatient, Le Buleng replied, "I believe you're not here to talk about brotherhood. Come, let's fight!".
The Holy Emperor smiled. "Why are you putting on a show, Brother Le? If I'm not wrong, you're quite badly injured.".
Le Buleng laughed out loud. "Nothing escapes those sharp eyes of yours. However, we're both in similar states. An Muda's last gift feels good doesn't it.".
The Holy Emperor responded leisurely, "It's getting lonelier now that there are fewer Grandmasters. What say we have a merry drink and a good chat? I bear no grudge with Brother Le.".
Le Buleng was irritated. "Cut the crap. Such a small mind within a dignified shell, are you here to pick up scraps?"
"Looks like Dai Gang isn't dead." The Holy Emperor laughed. He continued, "I don't quite understand why you're protecting him. Aren't you enemies?"
Le Buleng answered seriously, "I challenged him because I genuinely wanted to defeat him, not because I hate him. I have yet to defeat him, so how can I hand him over to you?"
"Looks like he really lost to himself then…"
The Holy Emperor furrowed his brows. He felt both puzzled and relieved.
Le Buleng was becoming increasingly irritable. "I don't wish to waste any energy on you. But I can't help it if my hands get too itchy, so you'd better leave soon.".
The Holy Emperor had gotten the answer he wanted. Satisfied, he chuckled. "Brother Le has such a noble nature! I'll make a move first then. We shall meet again!".
He left right after saying his piece.
Le Buleng had a complex look in his eyes as he watched the Holy Emperor leave.
Lost in his thoughts, he turned around to look at the Jadeite Forest.
The people on the Pinwheel Sword were exhausted beyond belief. Everyone's faces were filled with anxiety, and the atmosphere was one of panic.
They had yet to find any traces of Ai Hui despite having been out searching for a couple of days.
Something must have happened to him!
Everyone knew Ai Hui very well. He would never leave them unless something went wrong. The bloody glow that day inevitably brought them all to the same disturbing speculation.
If Ai Hui had really become a blood elementalist…
Nobody dared to say it out loud, but they could not help but think about it constantly. This made them worry about Ai Hui even more. They were not worried about the ramifications that such a transformation might bring, they were anxious about Ai Hui's ill-fatedness.
Those that formed the backbone of the Central Pine Faction knew very well the unspeakable pain and misfortune that Ai Hui had endured during the battle of Central Pine City. What would happen to Ai Hui if he really became a blood elementalist?
They shuddered to think that this was what fate had in store for him.
Lou Lan hung his head in guilt and regret. It was Lou Lan's idea to use the sword formation to absorb the blood beasts' flesh and blood. He was now aware that absorbing all that blood might have resulted in negative consequences.
"Something's up over there!" someone suddenly shouted.
Everyone on the Pinwheel Sword immediately looked up.
Shi Zhiguang turned the rudder and made the Pinwheel Sword draw a beautiful arc as it flew toward the northwest. He did not need to be told where to go. The target location was simply too eye-catching.
A large, black pit sat in the middle of a mountain cluster.
It was not hard to imagine the intensity of the battle that took place here!
Lou Lan's eyes lit up. "I sense Ai Hui's lingering presence here!".
Everyone's eyes lit up. All of them jumped off the Pinwheel Sword before it even stopped.
"What a strange elemental energy wave!"
"Feels like the Sky Leaf Division's elemental energy."
"There's another type here. The Assembly of Patriarch's fusion elemental energy that Ai Hui mentioned?"
"This place reeks of blood…"
That sentence alone made the whole group completely silent. The member that said it was immediately filled with regret and would gladly give himself two tight slaps.
Lou Lan's eyes flashed red as he scanned the area.
The sand core [Midnight] was operating at full speed to analyze all the available information.
An unusual wave was transmitted from afar.
The sand core [Midnight] stopped with a clank.
What was happening? This was the first time Lou Lan had experienced something like that.
Before he could react, [Midnight] started functioning again. Out of control, it began operating at a much greater speed than ever before.