Tempest of the Battlefield

Lewinsky was ready. He wagered that even at level twenty, he should be able to unleash at least one powerful attack. He didn’t plan to impress anyone with fancy moves, so he decided to attack Wang Tong using the simplest, the most effective attack he knew—Belligerent Dash!

Zing!

The sharp blade went through Wang Tong’s body, but there was no blood or sound; Lewinsky knew that his attack had missed. Before he was able to gather himself, he heard a wave of cheer, and it wasn’t until a few seconds later he realized what they were cheering.

It had occurred to Lewinsky that his blade was gone; it was in Wang Tong’s hand.

“Mr. Lewinsky, would you like to try one more time?” Wang Tong asked as he tossed the blade on the ground in front of Lewinsky. The latter picked it up and then said, “There is no need. The goods will arrive Maersa in three days. Please fulfill your end of the deal by then.”

The citizens of Maersa cheered again. They were determined to fight against the Egypt City till the end. As long as everyone was united under Wang Tong’s leadership, they would win this fight for justice.

The soldiers from the Egypt city lowered their heads for now. Their mission was to see to it that Maersa released their young lord. However, the City of Maersa was much more powerful than they had thought, and this convoy lacked the strength to counter the might of the warriors of their host. They stayed put inside their hotel, keeping their heads low as they waited for the arrival of the shipment.

This incident had made a name for Wang Tong, and he was praised as a tough and unyielding leader. The lesson that he gave the Egypt city had deterred many other factions leaders who were eyeing Maersa City, mistakenly thinking of him as a pushover. Here on Mars, only the fittest survived; being able to let others fear him was paramount in preventing unnecessary conflicts.

Three days later, the shipment from the Egypt City arrived as promised. As soon as Aamir cleared the inventory list, Lewinsky took Han Dun and fled the city. News spread quickly to the ears of every business partner of the Maersa City. Fearing the same fate would be bestowed upon them, they hurried to pay up what they had owed Wang Tong. A balanced accounting book quickly made Aamir the happiest man on Mars.

“Captain’s approach to things is very similar to us Martians, don’t you think?” Ever since they joined the force, Aamir and Marcos and practically joined at the hips as they suddenly found a lot of common interests.

“Hehe, Maersa is a new faction, so we need to act tough. Otherwise, no one will take us seriously. Although Wang Tong is younger than us, he is more prudent and shrewder. Both of us had been focusing too much on rapid expansion, but failed to realize the importance of patience and strategy.” Marcos said as he extended a cigar to his friend.

“Yes, I am not worried about him at all.”

“I know that you worry about House Lie. Xiao Yuyu’s departure is a sure sign that they have taken notice of us.”

“Exactly! If House Lie decides to make a move on us, the sect will not hesitate a second to join forces with Lie Jian. We will be doomed if that happens.”

“I doubt they will make a military advance against us yet. However, it’s difficult to say what will happen under the table. I bet you that someone was behind that little prick from Egypt City.”

“Haha… Why should we trouble ourselves with this farce? It’s beyond our pay-grade now. To tell you the truth buddy, I really want to see what will happen to Wang Tong in the end. I like that boy. Ever since I joined him, I felt like I have become ten years younger. It’s great!”

“Same here… Haha! He is what anchored us down and tied us together. I like him a lot too, and I thank him for what he has done for us.”

“Very well! Let’s work together to ease his burden so that he can progress his plan faster.”

…

On the Skynet, the altruistic yet controversial actions of the mysterious Einherjar were a topic of much debate. Many legendary warriors supported him and praised his selfless act of saving the innocents while putting his life under grave danger.

However powerful those golden dark ones were, they were not invincible. A legendary warrior would be able to eliminate them in a one on one combat. However, as soon as the Zergs learned about the existence of a legendary warrior, they would insistently harass the settlement with more powerful Zergs for days on end until they knew the legendary warrior was either gone or had been killed.

The Zergs had spared no expense in their goal of eliminating powerful legendary warriors. Therefore, staying put during the Zerg raids was a much wiser option than killing them. All legendary warriors were renowned soldiers in their own circle of friends, and therefore, egotism rendered it impossible to persuade them to stay put once they had embarked on the path of self-destruction.

People debated fiercely over the skynet. Eventually, most people reached a consensus that fighting back should not be outright banned, but the timing of the strike should be chosen carefully.

As the discussion furthered, more and more people started to blame the current situation on the policymakers: House Lie and the Sect. As the de facto leaders of Mars, they had failed to prevent the Zergs from infiltrating behind the lines and wreaking havoc. In addition, their silence over the issue also made them look irresponsible and indifferent to the well being of Martians.

The dissidents turned in to anger, and the situation quickly reached to the point where Michaux and Lie Jian could no longer ignore it. Lie Jian was a calculating leader with a stone-cold heart. He believed that the sacrifice of the civilians’ lives in order to preserve strength was simply a battle tactic. Human lives were nothing but numbers to him. To win the war, he would need the combined strength of all legendary warriors, and therefore he could not afford to lose them to save a few peasants…

His rules had been working well before the mysterious Einherjar stirred things up. Once the public awakened to their rights and started to demand it, they wouldn’t stop until Lie Jian gave them a satisfactory answer. Lie Jian knew that it was dangerous to ignore the public’s demand.

“Father, do you think we should pull back a few of our elite soldiers to guard the city?”

“Tell me, what you plan to do?” Lie Jintian nodded and asked. Ever since the Divine Master had sacrificed himself during the fight against Moye, Lie Jintian had become the most powerful human warrior on Mars.

“I want to call back ten level twenty-one soldiers from the front line…”

“Hehe, do you think it will work?” Lie Jintian cut his son short.

Lie Jian furrowed his brow as he sensed his father’s disapproval.

“I have been watching you these couple years, and your actions have been satisfactory overall, but not perfect. This issue, for example, you should have handled it much earlier.”

Lie Jian chewed on his father’s words for a while and then finally realized what he meant. “You mean, I should be that mysterious Einherjar and save the people?”

“Hehe, you are not stupid after all. What are ten soldiers going to do now? The key job of a leader is to establish the right and wrong for his people. Zergs are our sworn enemy. So, we should never let the public see us faltering in front of the Zergs.”

Lie Jintian’s words had helped the latter see things much clearer. It occurred to him that his father didn’t expect him to save everyone in every city; the key was public perception. If Lie Jian could do what the mysterious Einherjar had done in just a few cities, he would be able to convince the public that he was a benevolent and caring ruler. And, that was all that mattered.

The support of the people was the number one priority for Lie Jian, especially when the world’s existing order had fallen apart and loyalty could be as fragile as an eggshell. Lie Jian was a smart person; he would not forget about the golden rule of the leader.

But, what was the ultimate goal of this mysterious Einherjar? The Martian lord never liked things that he could not control. Luckily, his other problem, Wang Tong, had been acting very predictably ever since he took over the Maersa City. Lie Jian already had him under 24/7 secret surveillance. He was biding his time for the perfect opportunity to use Wang Tong’s power to his advantage.

However, Lie Jian simply could not stand the Mysterious Einherjar that challenged the status quo. He was a real deal, that one; a real Einherjar, so people treated him like a god. Bah! They even called him the God of War. His appearance at the Apollo City had directly resulted in the city to go astray from the leadership of House Lie.

However, soon after his appearance, he was nowhere to be found while both House Lie and the Zergs were searching for him.

…

The retaliation from the Egypt city never came, and Han Dun had become a laughing stock of everyone around him. However, the Maersa City needed to thank Han Dun for giving the people of a city something to fight for.

As days went by, the city started to prosper thanks to everyone’s hard work as well as the help from Syracuse. Wang Tong had repaid Syracuse’s assistance with spell crystals, which fetched a handsome return for the businessman.

“Haha…Mr. Syracuse, I want to thank you for your help on behalf of the city and its people.”

“Haha… You are welcome! I am here to bring you good news. I have finally found an expert on GN force crystals guns. However, I have to warn you. I have seen too many start-up projects that tried to archive the same thing but go nowhere. This could potentially be very costly.”

“It’s alright; I am willing to give it a try.” Wang Tong smiled and then continued, “Thank you for your continuing support. Maersa City needs you.”