Chapter 123: Farewell, My Brother

Chapter 113: Goodbye, My Brother

Young Dragon Star

"God! There are just too many of them! EVA! Hold on!"

"Damn it! Why is this system becoming so sluggish!" Monkey grew anxious.

Shortly after Liu Shaoyu had left, EVA suddenly detected that they were being locked onto by a massive fleet of warships. Then, the nightmare began—an overwhelming sea of vessels.

Monkey had never seen these ships before, but their insignias and designs clearly identified their origin: Huaxia!

"Who the hell is it!" Monkey had asked this question no less than a hundred times. The answer seemed to point to only one place: Earth!

Liu Shaoyu had been picked up by a mysterious ship, and then the attack had come. The question wasn't actually that difficult. But, who exactly was it? And why were they doing this?

Monkey would likely never get the answer, because EVA was severely paralyzed, and all planetary orbital defenses had been destroyed.

"I’ve decided!" Xu Meng suddenly clenched his fists and stood up from the command chair.

Busy at the command console, Monkey spun around at the sound of this. "Sit down! If anyone is going, it’s going to be me! It’s not your turn!" Xu Meng could clearly see that Monkey’s eyes were bloodshot.

It was too tragic; half the fleet had already been sacrificed. The result was predictable. Faced with such a disparity in firepower, let alone half of the Young Dragon fleet, even a main force of the Seventh Army would have faced the same fate.

The enemy was like a swarm of insects from a hive, forming a dense, endless offensive line, wave after wave, as if they were inexhaustible.

In fact, Monkey was on the verge of a breakdown. He had never fought such a stifling battle, nor had he ever faced an assault from his own military.

"Do you really want us all to die here?" Xu Meng’s emotions were no better. The fallen crew members were people he had fought alongside; they weren't clones. They were flesh and blood! Xu Meng had deep feelings for them.

"No! We won't all die here!" Monkey answered resolutely. Yet, even if he had a single way out, he couldn't bear to watch his soldiers die piece by piece.

"Then let me go! I’ll fight them to the death!" Xu Meng uncontrollably lunged forward, only to be shoved back into his seat by Monkey.

"I said! If anyone goes, it’s me. I promised! None of you are dying first." Monkey spoke every word clearly. He had never said this to anyone else, but he had repeated it in his heart countless times. Monkey had sworn that he would never again watch any of his own kin die before his eyes.

At this moment, was Xu Meng his kin? The answer was yes. Every person in the fleet was like family. Xu Meng was his kin.

Xu Meng felt a sharp pain, then lost consciousness. Hua Qiang caught the fainting man from behind.

"Watch over them. I’m heading out first," Monkey patted the silent man.

This man he considered reticent was Hua Qiang. It was true, he didn't say much, but he knew what needed to be done.

As Hua Qiang placed Xu Meng back in his seat, he suddenly lunged, swinging his arm toward the position he remembered from his training. But it didn't go as expected. Hua Qiang felt his arm being clamped.

"Brother, you’re still a bit green." Monkey had already shifted his position, holding Hua Qiang’s arm in his hand. Had it not been for that move, would Monkey have fainted just like Xu Meng?

"I just feel that the value of your life is greater than mine," Hua Qiang’s voice remained low.

"This isn't about value. Leave this to me. Have you forgotten? I love to show off the most." Monkey’s smile at that moment looked just like his usual self—cynical, always making people feel he wasn't serious.

But who could know the true heart of that cynical monkey? Only he himself, perhaps?

Hua Qiang felt that same pain, then lost consciousness.

"Watch over them. Get far away. You know I don’t want to do that to you again," Monkey said to the person in the corner.

"You know you can't beat me," Long Ruyuan said, watching everything unfold.

"And you know that it’s better for you to stay than for me. I love to show off, remember?" This was the second time Monkey had said it.

"Give me a reason, and I’ll let you go." Long Ruyuan’s voice turned low, just like Hua Qiang’s.

"I’ve had my eye on your thirteenth girlfriend for a long time. Is that reason enough?" Monkey said with a smile.

"Bastard! Get the hell out of here!" Long Ruyuan cursed. But for some reason, the curse was accompanied by a sob.

"Hey, don't say I didn't warn you! You’ve got twelve girlfriends now, right? When are you going to find a thirteenth concubine?"

"Thirteen? I figure by then I’ll have a daughter."

"True, they say a daughter is a father’s lover from a past life. Hey, how do you know it will definitely be a daughter?"

"Like you said, out of twelve girlfriends, one of them is bound to be a daughter, right?"

"Alright then, leave your thirteenth concubine for me to marry! Hahaha! Father-in-law!"

"Get lost! You’d have to live to see that day."

Memories of the past surfaced, making the old joke sound so heartbreaking now.

On the screen, a massive warship pushed toward the enemy formation under the cover of the remaining escorts. Having exhausted the last of the escort ships, the carrier finally thrust itself into the enemy line. Then, a dazzling blue light erupted.

"You idiot, you still love to show off. You even used two ice-crystals for a self-destruct," Long Ruyuan watched the blinding screen as the radio waves grew unstable. The image vanished.

"Initiate forced jump."

A massive freighter vanished from the crumbling Young Dragon Star. The immense blue halo provided the ship with a brief window for a jump.

It wasn't that Long Ruyuan had accepted Monkey’s reason; it was that Long Ruyuan knew he couldn't pull off such a high-difficulty suicide mission.

"Son of a b****! Even in death, you’re so flamboyant! Only you could do that!" Long Ruyuan continued to curse, but the person he was scolding could no longer hear him.

Long Ruyuan received a data transmission. The figure he had just seen appeared on the screen.

"Hahaha! Did you see that! Doesn't that just fit my image perfectly! You guys, hurry up and run! Just don't let me die in vain! Alright, look, I’m almost there. Remember this scene. Goodbye, my brother." The camera turned to the front of the command cabin, the moment the shields shattered. Immediately after, there was a blinding blue light. Then, the video cut out.

"Goodbye, my brother. You always loved to show off."

For some reason, Long Ruyuan remembered the oath he took when joining the Seventh Army: *I harbor no expectations that the cold stars will understand; I offer my blood to serve the nation.*

But now, not even Long Ruyuan knew if, when he took that oath, it was truly meant for the day he would have to face his own country’s military.

"There will come a day when you will pay for this," Long Ruyuan swore, carrying his vow within him, determined to keep living.