great-warnovel Chapter 308 Don't Overstep the Line for the Captain's Position
Chapter 308 Don't Overstep the Line for the Captain's Position
The tremors of the Beast Court were pushed back into the depths of the abdominal cavity. The three hundred and sixty array plates were still attached to the hull of the ship, and the bearing scale stopped at the last level. The Beast King lay in ambush outside the array, and the nine beast hordes guarded the gap.
Yang Jian picked up his three-pointed double-edged sword and stepped into the west passage without looking back. The blade scraped against the stone bricks, leaving a long trail, and headed straight for the coordinates of the Europa ruins carved on the inner armor.
"The cracks in the Europa Gate are still being filled with water, and the main body of the Twelve-Winged Sacred Core is hidden there."
Lu Yan sent the coordinates back to Yang Jian's terminal.
Yang Jian didn't connect to the terminal; he simply patted the inner armor of his left arm, where the latitude and longitude of the Bell Tower's underground location were already engraved.
"Keep the coordinates, I'll find my own way."
The western passage swallowed his back, the knife marks extended all the way into the stone gate, and at the end came the sound of armored boots rubbing against the gravel.
Nezha put away the Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon), tossed the copper whistle twice in his palm, and then flipped over and mounted the back of the Zhenya (a mythical beast).
The tattered banner of Yuxu was inserted into the back frame, and the wind blew down from the vent above the Beast Court, causing the tattered banner to unfurl the old military pattern.
"I'm going to loosen up those guys on the outside."
The three beast heads of the ferocious beasts lowered their heads, and the nine beast groups turned in sequence toward the outer layer of the Ten Thousand Beast Cave. The Broken Horn Beast picked up the chain, and the Bone Wing Beast spread its wing bones along the cave wall.
Nezha raised his bronze whistle, and the order to return to the chasm passed through the crack, causing the Jade Void Army patterns under the feet of the beasts to light up segment by segment.
"Don't let the outer engineering battalion step into the ground."
Zhao Leiguang spoke, supporting his double shields.
Nezha turned around and glanced at him.
"Make them stand further back; my troops eat a lot."
As the herd of beasts entered the outer ring passage, their carapaces collided with the rock walls, and their footsteps quickly dispersed into the deeper parts of the Beast Cave.
Lu Yan put away the Void Disc and turned to look at the remaining six people.
Zhao Lei leaned against the shield, panting heavily. Two silver fragments were still stuck in the crack in his shoulder armor.
Wen Yue leaned against the stone wall, rubbing her wrist as she held the crossbow. There were only a few spare arrows left in the quiver.
Qin Wuyi wiped the blood from his chin with his sleeve, pressed the main plate against his knee, and the red lines of the Northwest Formation were still visible on the plate.
Shen Xinglin removed the outer locking bar of the lance and inspected the buckles section by section. There were scratches left by animal claws on the armor plates.
Xiao Qianyu planted the Dragon King Halberd into the ground, and a crack appeared in the outer layer of the wrist guard, revealing that the spatial beacon inside had gone out.
Lin Chuxue sat by the broken pillar, folding the lollipop wrapper into a small square. Her staff leaned against the rock wall, the staff still warm from the blood explosion array patterns.
Su Yunqing put away the sensor, and the shield pattern retreated from between the people's armor seams back to the top of the staff.
Lu Yan announced, "The Kunlun phase of the mission is complete. The first squad will withdraw to the North District base for three days of rest."
Zhao Leiguang raised his head.
"Three days?"
"The mission log has been written."
Lu Yan looked at him.
"Anyone who works overtime without authorization will have their rest time deducted from their own account."
Zhao Leiguang slung the two shields behind his back.
"Then I'll apply to work overtime in the cafeteria and help the chefs test the dishes."
Lin Chuxue stuffed the candy wrapper into her pocket.
"If you take both shields and queue up, the cafeteria staff will close the window first."
Shen Xinglin fastened the locking lever back onto his lance.
He would stand in front of the pot.
Qin Wuyi handed the main array panel to the arriving engineering battalion array masters. The array panel's access was divided into three sections: one for monitoring the Beast King's abdominal cavity, the outer crack, and the ship's central axis.
Lu Yan left behind the evacuation coordinates and firing window, and the subsequent containment of Kunlun was handed over to the Longwei North District War Preparedness Department.
As the transport planes departed the Beast Cave, only the sound of engineering mechs' tracks and the bugle calls of the patrolling beast hordes remained in the heart of Kunlun Mountain.
Su Yunqing stood in the middle of the cabin, and several basic healing beams of Yao Guang descended, sweeping over the damaged armor one by one.
The beam of light passed through Zhao Leiguang's shoulder, the scab fell off the edge of the wound, and the rolled-up flesh closed up again.
Zhao Leiguang looked down at his shoulder armor.
"Yunqing, leave this injury for now. Take a picture of it when we get back to the logistics department. We need to get a certificate of work injury."
Su Yunqing pressed the therapeutic beam into the crack.
"They'll take your work injury certificate and put on a nail guard, but they won't leave you with the wound."
Wen Yue leaned against the bulkhead and gestured with her chin toward Zhao Leiguang's double shields.
"Repair your shield first, let the wind run from the inside out."
Zhao Lei patted the shield.
"This is called battle damage texture."
Su Yunqing withdrew the beam of light.
"This is called a draft."
Lin Chuxue bit into the lollipop and asked a question indistinctly.
"Can I skip fighting monsters on the first day of my vacation?"
Wen Yue placed the crossbow on her lap.
"You should wash your staff clean first. Once the Blood Explosion Array is in the dormitory, the cleaning staff will give you special attention."
Qin Wuyi leaned against the cabin wall and closed her eyes to rest. Qin Zheng's dog tag was tucked deep inside the inner armor, and the dog tag no longer made a sound like the return flag.
Lu Yan sat by the cabin door, his terminal on the offline interface of the seventh gate of Chang'an, the outer blockade still in operation.
"Rest and recuperation approved; Level 1 communication to remain in the earpiece."
The transport plane passed through the clouds over the northern region. Inside the cabin, the sounds of gunfire and animal roars were gone, replaced only by the low hum of the engines.
The helipad of the North Base appears below, with two rows of ground guide lights leading the transport aircraft into the main hangar.
The hangar doors slid open to both sides, revealing a red carpet that stretched from the bottom of the stairs all the way to the edge of the tarmac.
The Dragon Guard stood on both sides of the red carpet, their uniforms brand new, their shoulder boards flat, and their boots so clean they weren't even dusty.
Zhao Leiguang stopped on the third step of the elevator.
"When did the North Hangar start hosting victory celebrations?"
Wen Yue slung the crossbow back behind her.
"Some people spend their budget on a walking backdrop."
Lu Yan descended the cabin stairs first, leaving two rows of boot prints of varying depths on the red carpet.
At the end of the red carpet stood several middle-aged military officers, their chests adorned with layers of medals, smiling as they stepped forward to greet the arriving officers.
The person at the front raised his hand and patted Lu Yan's shoulder armor.
Lu Yan took a half step to the side, and the hand landed in empty space.
The officer paused, then withdrew his hand.
"Captain Lu, you've done a great job sealing off the Kunlun fleet, protecting the Beast Cave, and reclaiming the Nine Lotus Lantern. You've really brought honor to the Northern District."
Another officer took over the conversation.
"The General Headquarters held an emergency meeting overnight, and the tactical records of the First Squad will be included in the training cases for the entire army."
Lu Yan did not respond.
A black armored vehicle was parked outside the red carpet. Wei Xinghe leaned against the car door, looking down and turning a gold-inlaid dagger.
His custom-made combat suit was completely undamaged, his combat boots were spotless, and the edges of his armor were polished smooth and shiny.
A blue crystal was embedded in the hilt of the dagger; such decorations are not found in military regulations, but they are commonly seen at auctions.
An officer raised his hand in a gesture of acknowledgment.
"Wei Xinghe, Special Instructor from the Joint Training Office."
Wei Xinghe did not look up.
The officer took the document from the adjutant and handed it to Lu Yan.
"The General Command has arranged joint guidance and exchanges. Advisor Wei will be assigned to the first squad starting today and will participate in subsequent operations with the team."
Zhao Leiguang stood at the bottom of the ladder, his two shields pressing out two marks of rock and mud.
The officer was still talking.
"Advisor Wei is only missing a top-tier team coordination resume. If you lead a few more missions, his file will look better."
Wen Yue raised her head.
"If we use battlefield experience to enhance someone's resume, should we reserve a line for them on the list of the dead?"
The officer's smile froze on his face.
Lu Yan didn't touch the documents, but turned to the gold-inlaid dagger at Wei Xinghe's waist.
Wei Xinghe sheathed the dagger in the holster on his leg, crossed the center line of the red carpet, and stopped in front of Lu Yan with his chin raised.
"The observer process is too slow."
He raised his hand and tapped the First Squad emblem on Lu Yan's chest.
"Joint guidance requires a unified command interface. The team leader's command authority, tactical terminals, and action review should all be handed over to me."
Zhao Lei took a step forward.
Shen Xinglin raised his hand and pressed down on his shoulder armor.
"This is the hangar."
Zhao Lei turned his head to the side.
"He stood in front of me and wanted to break up the team."
Wei Xinghe looked at the two shields behind Zhao Leiguang.
"On the front lines, rules prevail, not who shouts the loudest."
Wen Yue snorted, and the World-Destroying Thunder Crossbow spun halfway in her palm.
The arrow landed on the stone ground an inch in front of Wei Xinghe's boots.
"Keep your boot heels outside the line, and don't let the captain cross the line either."