Tempest of the Battlefield

No one was willing to back out of Wang Tong’s plan. Although they were young girls, they possessed more courage than most men.

“Very well! From this day on, let us forge our bonds in the fires of hell. Till death do us apart!” Wang Tong joked.

“From THIS day on? I thought we were already bonded!” Xiao Ling exclaimed dramatically

Michaux heard the banters and laughter while he stood outside; he knew the girls had made their decision. He knew that all of his field medics were fearless heroines; otherwise, they wouldn’t have made the cut in the first place.

If not for other duties that Michaux had to attend to, he might have joined Wang Tong’s plan himself.

“Thank you, Michaux! I think it is time for me to leave.”

“There is no rush. Let them pack up so you can leave with them tomorrow.” Michaux suggested.

“Haha, sure! Might as well.” Wang Tong nodded. The sun was setting, and traveling alone in the dark could be dangerous.

Although Xiao Yuyu was excited about the upcoming mission, she had to spend the night making arrangements to cover her shift while she was absent.

“Young master, Zhang Guangming requests an audience.” A soldier reported to Michaux.

Michaux furrowed his brows and murmured, “What is he doing here?” The insolent princeling had been a thorn in his side ever since his uncle passed away. For the sake of his uncle’s name and reputation, Michaux had been cleaning after Zhang Guangming’s mess and enduring his arrogance.

“I will meet him with you. It probably has something to do with me anyway.” Wang Tong smiled wryly. He knew Michaux had a soft heart, and was easily taken advantage of by unscrupulous dipsh*t such as Zhang Guangming.

Wang Tong hopped that Zhang Guangming had his wits about him this time.

When Michaux saw Zhang Guangming in the meeting room, the latter looked much more relaxed than he was during the day.

“Guanming, what’s up?” Michaux greeted him like an old friend. Zhang Guangming shot Michaux a sidelong glance and then said, “I come here to apologize. I shouldn’t have done that earlier today. Your slap was a wake-up call for me. I want to dedicate myself to the war against the Zergs from now on.”

Michaux was pleasantly surprised, as he smiled earnestly. “I am so happy that you think this way!”

“Mr. Wang Tong. I am sorry! It was very rude of me earlier today.” Zhang Guangming apologized to Wang Tong sincerely.

“That’s it! Haha! Let’s move beyond the past and always remember the teaching of our Divine Master.” Michaux said ardently. He had grown up with Zhang Guangming, and therefore, had always wished that the two could work together as brothers.

Wang Tong cracked a smile and then nodded. “No worries. Mr. Zhang is straightforward and outspoken gentlemen, so no hard feelings.”

“I wager that you are here for some urgent matters. Let me know if you need my help. I will try my best to redeem myself of what I have done.”

Even after Wang Tong and Michaux had sat down, Zhang Guangming stood still, his head slightly lowered. It seemed that Michaux’s slap had made him take a long hard look at his actions, and he was genuinely sorry for the damage he had inflicted over the years.

“Michaux had offered me help already. Thank you for the offer.”

“It will be my honor to serve the heir of the Blade Warrior. I felt ashamed of my actions earlier, and I promise that I will strive to make a positive contribution to our world!”

“Haha, Guangming, you have changed so much since this morning!” Michaux laughed. He still found it hard to believe that a hopeless brat could have changed himself so utterly. If he knew his slapping was so effective, he should have done it many years ago.

Zhang Guangming scratched his head and said, “I am surprised by myself too. I was so mad at you at first that I returned the tower and was going to… beat up someone to vent. But, the tower lit up all of a sudden, and I felt a voice calling me and telling me what I should do. After that, I felt so terrible for all the things I had done. It hit me like a wrecking ball! ”

It finally occurred to Michaux that it was the spirit inside the tower that had affected Zhang Guangming. He was the late Divine Master’s last of kin. Bonded by blood, Zhang Guangming could have been easily affected by the energies inside the tower.

“It was in part my fault too. I should have stopped you or give you a stern warning much earlier. However, it is still not too late! Let’s work together and save our people on Mars.”

“Well said! Let’s toast for the final liberation of all human in the world.” Zhang Guangming said as he raised a cup and chucked the content down his throat.

“Very well!” The joy in Michaux was beyond description. It was his sworn duty to look after the kin of the late divine master. He couldn’t have expected a happier ending than this.

Pa!

With a sweep of the hand, Wang Tong knocked the cup in Michaux’s hand onto the floor. Its contents sizzled as soon as they reached the carpet, and a few wisps of toxic flume rose from it.

“What’s the meaning of this!” Michaux exploded.

“Michaux, not everyone is a gentleman like you. People never change. You need to be careful.” Wang Tong studied Zhang Guangming knowingly.

Zhang Guangming felt the glare on his face, but he didn’t flinch, and neither did he felt the slightest shame. He straightened his back and asked, “How did you know? Did I not sound sincere enough when I apologized?”

“Quite the contrary. You sounded too sincere, almost overwrought. It made some sense to be repentant toward your brother Michaux, but me too? That’s over-the-top acting. Plus, the moment you walked in here, I knew exactly what you were after.” Wang Tong shrugged. Having been raised in the darkest allies on the earth, he had seen too many dirty deeds, and was more wary of people than the gullible young master.

“Why? ” Michaux asked testily.

“Are you kidding me, Michaux? Is it not obvious enough for you? I should be the young master. You had taken over my position using guile and deceit! ” Zhang Guangming opened his arms and shouted. “All of this should have belonged to me! I am the savior of the world!” He about turned and shot both warriors a searing glance. “Very well! I will do away with both of you tonight!”

It was apparent that Zhang Guangming didn’t come here alone as shadows emerged from the dark corners of the room. Zhang Guangming had hired many deadly fighters over the years, and it was time to put into use.

Many powerful fighters inside the sect disapproved of Michaux’s overly benevolent methods, and they had double-crossed the young master and joined Zhang Guangming. None of those fighters were the true believers of the Divine Path, and neither did they care about the human’s suffering on Mars.

There were twenty assassins in the room, surrounding their targets. Five of those twenty were of the legendary level, and the other fifteen were level twenty. This was the elite unit that Zhang Guangming had gathered over the years.

Zhang Guangming was convinced that Michaux would not stand a chance while fighting five legendary warriors at once, and he had never considered Wang Tong a serious threat.

“Did you join him willingly?” Michaux asked calmly.

“Young Master, you and I are going after very different goals. It’s nothing personal.”

“Stop wasting your time talking to him. He is no longer the young master. He is a traitor! He colluded with this earthling and tried to dismantle our Sect from the inside. Kill him! I will be your lawful master!” Zhang Guangming barked.

Wang Tong rose from his seat slowly; he could not stand the prick any longer.

“Michaux, let me help you with your ‘house-cleaning.’ ”

Michaux shook his head. “This is an internal business of the sect. I will have to do it myself.”

Wang Tong waved an okay and shook his head as he lamented the doomed fate of these fighters.

“KILL!”

The members of the sect heard an explosion coming from the young master’s room. Their knee-jerk reaction was to rush there and protect the young master. After all, Michaux was the last hope for saving the Martians.

While the sect warriors stormed through the street towards the tower, Lie Jian lolled in a large sofa and was sipping a cup of tea.

“My lord, should we take a look?”

“For what?”

“Zhang Guangming had taken a group of soldiers with him, I am afraid…”

“Do you know why I was always friendly to that dipsh*t?” Lie Jian asked with a smirk. “Because I wanted his ego to grow bigger, and bigger, and bigger… and then PUFF! Haha! He is trouble. I knew it from the beginning, but I can’t get my hands dirty. So, I have found a creative way of getting rid of him.”

“But what about Michaux? He is unprepared.”

“He has Wang Tong.” Lie Jian remarked lightly.

By the time the sect soldiers reached Michaux’s residence, the building was already gone. Michaux had built a tomb for the twenty-one souls using of the large pile of rubble.