Chapter 504: Is It Always This Intense?
"That was awesome! In all my years as a mercenary, this was the most satisfying fight I've ever had!"
"Yeah! I killed nearly ten thousand ghost slaves this time! I even leveled up twice! It feels great!"
"These merits will keep me comfortable for a long time!"
"It's all thanks to that non-specialist from the Dragon Kingdom! Without him, we definitely wouldn't have won so easily!"
"I heard he alone wiped out 15 million ghost slaves! Is that true?"
"Huh? I heard he only killed 10 million ghost slaves. Was my info wrong?"
"No way! I heard he killed 17 million ghost slaves!"
"Alright, alright, where are you guys even getting this info? Did he really kill that many? I think it's more like 7 or 8 million, tops!"
"Wanna bet? I'm telling you, that guy definitely killed more than 10 million ghost slaves!"
"Bet it is!"
"..."
This overwhelming battle had left the members of the various legions completely satisfied.
Recently, there had been a lot going on at the Hundred Ghost Fortress.
First, there was the chaos caused by the Demon Arrival in Fusang Kingdom, which led to the appearance of a monster called 'corpse ghosts' in various cities.
These monsters had human-like intelligence, loved feeding on humans, and disguised themselves as normal people, making them very difficult to detect.
At the worst point, one of the ministers beside the King of Fusang was almost attacked. If it weren't for the king's personal guard sacrificing his life, the cowardly king would have been devoured.
As for the previous king of Fusang...
He was assassinated at close range by a gunner who blasted him to pieces.
Adding to that, the front-line battlefield had been in decline.
The legion members had been in low spirits for a while.
But.
Today's battle had completely reignited their morale!!
It had been a long time since they felt this good!
In one swift stroke, their spirits were restored!
At the same time.
Ling Zhan's name spread once again, and many began to see the new captain of the Dragon Kingdom's Ninth Squad in a whole new light.
Many of his exploits began to circulate as well.
More and more people were discussing this non-specialist who fought like a god on the battlefield.
"Everyone, head back to base."
"All the merits from this battle will be distributed among the squad members."
With the battle over.
The Dragon Kingdom's Ninth Squad boarded the same magical airship and returned to the Hundred Ghost Fortress.
Upon their return, Ling Zhan didn't even hold a debriefing meeting. He simply dismissed the squad and told everyone to rest.
"Captain Ling, farewell..."
"See you, Captain Ling..."
After Ling Zhan dismissed the squad.
All the senior members politely and respectfully said goodbye to Ling Zhan.
"If it were the previous captain, we'd be stuck in a long meeting, listening to him drone on, bragging about himself..."
Some couldn't help but compare Ling Zhan to the former captain.
The previous captain was strong and earned the respect of the squad, but he was too arrogant.
And he had a tendency to pass the blame.
After every mission, if it was a success, he would take the lion's share of the merits, leaving only a small portion for the rest of the squad.
But this new captain, who had been parachuted in, chose to evenly distribute the merits.
In fact...
Even if Ling Zhan had taken 90% of the merits for himself, no one in the squad would have complained.
Because they all knew that the mission's success was entirely due to their captain's efforts.
Without him, they would have been forced to change their landing point, making the mission much more difficult.
Forget about successfully breaching the city; they probably would have had to retreat in failure.
"Alright, enough about the old captain. He's gone, so let it go."
"From now on, when we're on the battlefield, our job is simple—don't ask why! Just follow the captain's orders!"
"Got it?"
Zhou Xue'er gathered everyone and scolded them.
The main issue was that Ling Zhan was too indifferent.
Even though he was the captain, he didn't seem interested in managing the squad.
But Zhou Xue'er knew that, in Ling Zhan's eyes, none of them were truly important.
They were just 'tools' that could be replaced at any time.
Take today's mission, for example. Ling Zhan had handled all the difficult parts.
All they had to do was kill ghost slaves and destroy the control rooms in Liuli City.
Any other squad could have done the same.
And Ling Zhan's attitude was clear.
He never restricted his team.
But if your performance was subpar.
He would replace you without hesitation.
However, if you performed well, he wouldn't bother you at all, and you'd even get an equal share of the merits.
"Yes!"
The squad, which had once been defiant.
Was now a group of obedient soldiers.
"Also, even though Captain Ling doesn't push you, don't slack off!"
"You need to maintain a proper training schedule! And keep improving your skills!"
"If you don't want Captain Ling to erase your name from the Ninth Squad, then you'd better keep up!"
"Don't think I'm joking! And don't even think about trying to get on Captain Ling's good side!"
"Anyway, I've said my piece. It's up to you now!"
With that.
Zhou Xue'er turned and left the camp.
"Vice-captain, where are you going? Your quarters aren't that way, right?"
Ying Tong asked.
"Where else? To train!"
Zhou Xue'er responded without looking back.
Everyone: "..."
This...
The squad members, who had planned to go out for food, drinks, and fun in the fortress city, suddenly froze and looked at each other.
These third- and fourth-year students weren't official legion members, just special 'reserves.'
So there were no restrictions on their activities. After battles, they could go into the fortress city to enjoy food, drink, and entertainment.
Some even planned to explore Fusang Kingdom's infamous red-light districts.
But now.
The vice-captain was heading to train.
This completely killed their desire to have fun.
"If you want to stand out, get stronger, and not fall behind..."
"Then you'd better push yourself hard!"
"This is our growth phase! Not a time to relax and enjoy ourselves!"
"I'm going to train too..."
Ying Tong, the deputy, also headed toward the training grounds.
Leaving the others standing there, looking at each other.
"Uh... are we still going for drinks?"
"Hell no! We're going all in on training!"
"Let's go! All of us, to the training grounds! Damn it!"
"..."
In no time, the members of the Dragon Kingdom's Ninth Squad were all heading to the training grounds.
Leaving the members of other special squads from various nations completely stunned.
Holy shit!
Is it always this intense?