In the face of his brother's tit for tat, Lan Qing chuckled. "Fine, I agree.
But there's a condition.
Let's fight, in front of the warriors of the two legions. "
Lan Jue blinked, then snapped. "You want to torture me?"
Lan Qing's response was irritated. "You're asking us to fight, aren't you?"
Lan Jue rolled his eyes. After a moment he nodded. "Alright, I agree.
Losing to my brother isn't a big deal, I'm not afraid of losing face.
But you're a Paragon, and fighting an Adept isn't something to be proud of.
I want to fight with Qian Lin. You don't mind, do you?
Two of us against one of you. "
"Alright!" Lan Qing agreed.
He really didn't want to torture Lan Jue. Ever since he'd become a Paragon, he hadn't had the chance to spar with anyone at his level.
His strength had risen to a new level, but he hadn't had the chance to show it. Even with his calm demeanor, he couldn't help the itch in his heart.
"Tomorrow!" Lan Jue said decisively.
Lan Jue wanted to see for himself how strong his Reflection of Heaven and Earth brother was.
The memory of Lan Qing's breakthrough was still fresh in his mind.
However, the Eastern Alliance had done a good job of hiding the news. They only announced that An Lun was experimenting with a new defense system.
The Bloodiron Khans had been depressed lately. They'd lost two battles in a row against Star Division, especially the second one under Lan Qing's command. It was a blow to their morale.
Although they trained even harder, they also knew how difficult it was to surpass those with extremely powerful individual combat strength.
At this moment, they suddenly received a message.
Star Division's downsizing was imminent.
They couldn't help but feel a strong sense of grief and indignation.
They were the Bloodiron Khans, when had they ever been looked down upon like this?
But the truth was in front of them, and they had no choice but to accept it.
Early in the morning, the two armies assembled on An Lun's training field.
Star Division's soldiers were in high spirits.
They were all Arcanists and had their own pride.
When they first joined Star Division, it was more about profit than anything else.
At the same time, he felt a sense of belonging to Skyfire Avenue.
But as time went on, they swept through the Shattered Starfields, defeated the Bloodiron Khans, and built up a strong bond.
It made them feel more like a part of the legion.
At the same time, and more importantly, after joining the army, their strength improved much faster than before.
Every team had a Rank 9 metahuman as the leader, and the leader would guide the team members.
Sparring with each other, along with the Avenue's resources, allowed them to sense the fluctuations of Paragon protogenia. All of it was much easier than cultivating on their own.
Under such circumstances, even if they were asked to withdraw now, they wouldn't be willing.
Who didn't want to become stronger?
The smarter ones knew that it would be a difficult battle against the aliens in the future.
And in a war, the stronger the person behind one's back, the more powerful the person was.
Star Division was a force to be reckoned with. Star Division was a force to be reckoned with.
If they couldn't keep themselves safe here …
Then humanity wouldn't be far off from extinction.
Star Division's morale was high, and they were united.
The Bloodiron Khans were as disciplined as ever, but if you looked closely, you'd see a hint of sadness in their eyes.
Every now and then, their eyes darted to Star Division.
Not without a trace of hostility.
The enemies they couldn't defeat had left a shadow in their hearts.
Lan Qing and Lan Jue appeared on the field at the same time.
The two brothers looked very calm.
The only difference was that Lan Jue was holding Qianlin's hand. The two of them had come together.
The National Eastern University A.R.C. students stood among the Star Division's soldiers.
Only a few of them knew that Lan Jue and Zhou Qianlin were together.
Ever since they learned of Lan Jue's true identity, their respect for their Demon Drillmaster had lessened. After all, he was their etiquette teacher!
Qianlin's disappearance had been a source of confusion for many.
Now that they saw her again, they couldn't help but stare wide-eyed.
Tan Lingyun's eyes darkened. She was hot-tempered, but she was still a woman.
From the way Lan Jue looked at Zhou Qianlin, she knew she didn't stand a chance.
There was no point in thinking about it now. All she could do was keep improving herself.
To reach the pinnacle of strength.
"The purpose of the Division War is to improve ourselves.
Lan Jue and I discussed it and decided that we'd do it every other day for the next month.
All of the Bloodiron Khans against half of Star Division.
Based on the results of the battle, we'll decide if Star Division should increase its numbers.
If you want to reclaim your glory, you'll have to rely on yourselves. "Lan Qing's voice was calm, but his words sent the Bloodiron Khans' morale soaring.
Everyone's eyes were filled with viciousness.
Lan Jue and Zhou Qianlin stood at Lan Qing's side. They said nothing, but his warm smile and the encouragement in his eyes were enough to make Star Division proud.
They had defeated the undefeatable An Lun Super Soldier!
"The role of Adepts in this war is becoming more and more obvious. In a moment, Commander Lan and I will be participating in an individual Adept duel.
I hope it'll inspire you all.
Everyone, sit down. "Lan Qing's voice was low.
The soldiers of the Bloodiron Khans sat down in unison. Star Division, however, didn't make a move.
Lan Qing was the An Lun Super Soldier, the God of Wisdom, and the Admiral of the Eastern Alliance. But he wasn't Star Division's commander.
"Everyone, sit." Lan Jue ordered.
Star Division took their seats. They looked at Lan Jue with shining eyes.
The Driver, the Bartender, and the Coffee Master looked at Lan Jue with pity.
They knew Lan Qing had become a Reflection of Heaven and Earth.
They didn't know why Lan Jue had challenged Lan Qing, but the result was predictable.
She'd asked for it!
They'd have to wait for the Division Wars to come.
Lan Jue turned to Lan Qing and gestured for him to sit.
Lan Qing opened his communicator and issued an order. "Seal off all satellite signals."
The fight between him, Lan Jue, and Zhou Qianlin couldn't be carried out in the sim pod. The pod couldn't handle protogenia bugs.
That meant their fight had to be carried out in the real world.
Outside An Lun, in space.
The reason the satellite signal was blocked was to prevent the Northern Alliance and Western Alliance from monitoring An Lun from afar.
Lan Qing gave Lan Jue a long, meaningful look. Then, with a shake of his body, he transformed into a beam of cyan light that shot up into the sky and disappeared.
Lan Jue looked at Zhou Qianlin, and gripped her soft hand tightly. The two of them rose into the air. Lan Jue's body glowed with a blue light that wrapped around her and Zhou Qianlin. She shot up into the air, chasing after Lan Qing.
Both fighters disappeared in the sky. In front of the two armies, a giant holographic projection appeared. It followed the figures of Lan Qing, Lan Jue, and Zhou Qianlin.
This allowed all the warriors present to see the battle clearly.
It was only now that they understood what was going on. This was going to be a battle between the strongest of the strongest!
At this moment, they temporarily forgot about the confrontation between each other and focused all their attention on the confrontation between the holographic projections.
Especially the soldiers of the Bloodiron Khans. They were looking forward to this fight. They had lost, but their marshal would not lose!
Lan Jue and the others were familiar with the situation. They had watched the Great Adept Tournament, and after the tournament the An Lun government had conducted a detailed analysis of the Adepts' performances. Of course, the most detailed analysis came from the champion, Lan Jue.
Now, the champion of the Great Adept Tournament was facing their Marshal Lan Qing, the An Lun supersoldier.
Who would emerge victorious?
Without a doubt, in the hearts of the Bloodiron Khans, the victor would be their marshal.
After all, their marshal was a Paragon!
Lan Qing flew out of An Lun's atmosphere. With his current strength, this was a piece of cake.
Lan Jue and Qianlin didn't have to exert much effort to keep up with him.
Under the protection of the blue lightning, the pressure of the planet's atmosphere crumbled. It was no slower than Lan Qing's.
Lan Jue's eyes flickered with excitement. Lan Qing wanted to use him as a test of his strength. How could he not want to use his brother as a test of his hard work?
He and the Driver were already halfway through the process. Lan Jue's speed was far superior to the Driver's, because his body was stronger than the Driver's.
Lan Jue could feel his and Zhou Qianlin's bodies evolving as they absorbed the immortal qi from the thunder essence.
It was a fundamental change, starting with the genes.
The changes in the last few months were the most obvious. Lan Jue could feel that his body was different than before. It was on a completely different level.
(To be continued)