Chapter 1228: Killing
"Quick, follow me. If we're late, the General might get angry!" The warrior said, giving Ling Feng and the other three a push.
Ling Feng and his companions were surprised to find that it felt as though there was a force within their bodies driving them to move forward.
Following behind the warrior, Ling Feng and the others saw the wounded moaning, and the dense Evil Qi and bloodthirsty aura shrouding the battlefield!
"This place feels just like a real battlefield!" Daphne's voice reached Ling Feng's ears.
Ling Feng glanced at Daphne, noticing her face had turned pale, seemingly uncomfortable with the scene before her.
"My lady, are you alright?" the Western man beside Daphne couldn't help but ask.
Daphne shook her head, "I'm fine... I just recalled some unpleasant memories from the past!"
As she spoke, Daphne looked at Ling Feng.
Ling Feng frowned slightly, it seemed Daphne hadn't forgotten the scene of him saving her back then?
"Alright, we're here!" After following the warrior for a distance, they arrived in front of a gallows. In front of the gallows were four shirtless men tied up. Their bodies were covered in scars, and their somewhat youthful faces showed a gaze full of hatred.
"Hey, are these the new recruits?" A tall General approached, looking down at Ling Feng and his group saying, "Rookies, it's time for your initiation ceremony!"
With that, four long swords were tossed over to them by the warriors, and the General said indifferently, "A warrior should have Blood Qi, but since you're just rookies, I won't expect much from you. Pick up those long swords and kill those four captives for me!"
Kill them? Ling Feng was the only one whose heart didn't skip a beat among the group.
"Can't do it?" The General chuckled, "Know this, they are our sworn enemies. Don't be fooled by their young appearance; three years from now, they would become fierce warriors, causing severe harm to our empire! So, to prevent future troubles, you need to kill them with your own hands. Only by killing them will you be qualified warriors!"
A warrior on the side said flatly, "From left to right, each of you kill one, starting with that golden-haired guy!"
The golden-haired guy was indeed the Western man.
He took a deep breath, picked up the long sword from the ground, and walked to the first boy.
The boy suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with the gaze of a starving wolf, seemingly wanting to tear the Western man to pieces.
"Ah!" The Western man shuddered under that staring, stepping back involuntarily, his long sword slipping from his hand.
The General frowned, "Rookie, what are you waiting for? Kill him now!"
The Western man suppressed his inner panic, picking up the long sword from the ground once again. He approached the boy.
The boy's face showed a mocking smile, as if waiting for slaughter by fate was not him, but the Western man instead.
For some reason, under the boy's gaze, fear surged in the Western man's heart. He wanted to swing the sword to kill the boy, but he couldn't do it!
"Rookie, what are you waiting for?" The General barked, "If you can't do it, then leave; my unit doesn't need losers!"
The Western man gritted his teeth, then swung down hard, and with a crunch, a spray of hot blood splattered on him. He shivered, staring blankly at the fallen boy, his expression somewhat bewildered!
"Very good, promising material!" The General laughed, "Next one!"
The next one was the masked girl; she walked to the second boy. The boy raised his head, eyes filled with a pleading look, "Big sister, I don't want to die, please don't kill me, okay? I really don't want to die!"
The masked girl held the long sword, looking into the boy's pleading eyes, she closed her eyes and dropped the sword, "No, I can't do it!"
"Can't do it?" The General's face darkened, "He's the enemy, our sworn enemy, and you're telling me you can't do it?"
"In my eyes, he's just a child!" The masked girl raised her head, fearlessly staring at the General, "Besides... Killing an unarmed child, is that what you call bravery?"
The General said grimly, "Fine, fine! I never thought I'd encounter a merciful rookie! Rook, you don't want him to die, do you? I'll agree, but in exchange, you will die for him! How's that?"
Die for him? The masked girl instinctively glanced at the pleading child. The child dropped to the girl's feet, crying and begging, "Big sister, save me, please save me!"
Looking at the silent girl, the General scoffed, "If you can't do it, don't talk to me about your ridiculous mercy! This is the military, this is the battlefield, this is the human purgatory, not some flowery backyard, you got it?"
The masked girl slowly nodded, "I understand..."
"Since you understand, kill him!" The General said sternly.
A hint of a smile appeared at the corner of the masked girl's eyes, "General, I said I understood, so please, take my life in exchange for this boy's life!"
What? The General was momentarily stunned, then angrily roared, "What did you say? How dare you say such things to me? Are you defying me?"
The masked girl shook her head and said, "No, I'm just staying true to my heart! If it were in battle, I could kill him without any mental burden, but now, he's just an unarmed child, a child hoping to live; I will not do it!"
"Fine, fine!" The General said coldly, "If that's the case..."
With that, he waved his hand, a white light flashed, and the boy was suddenly freed from his bindings.
"Kid, kill her, and I will let you live!" The General said coldly.
The boy was overjoyed at these words, hurriedly picking up the long sword.
But when he saw the calm eyes of the masked girl, his body trembled, and the long sword fell to the ground.
"No, no, I can't do it!" The boy stepped back, shouting repeatedly, "I can't kill her! I can't!"
"If you don't kill her, you'll have to die!" The General said, "Don't you want to live? If you want to live, then kill her!"
The boy looked at the masked girl again, and she nodded, "Go ahead, if killing me allows you to live, then do it. But I hope, if you live on, you'll be a good person, and never return to this human purgatory!"
With a clang, the boy's sword dropped, and he fell to his knees with a thud, "If she dies I live, if I die she lives... Ha ha ha, someone can die for me, so what's it to die for her?"
With that, the boy fell forward with a crash, having shattered his own heart pulse! Yet there was no fear on his face, only a satisfied smile.