Beyond the Zenith

When Xin Yaoqiao was eleven, her mother brought her along on a visit to her aunt at Research Institute No. 1. That visit coincided with the integration level test for that year’s batch of recruits, so her mother figured they would take the opportunity for her to take it.

Xin Yaoqiao walked through the source energy field with the enthusiasm of a little princess touring a beautiful castle.

The result was A-rank.

Just like that, the Qu and Xin families, two great households within the Oriental Republic Army Group’s research division, produced their first martial genius in recorded history. Both grandfathers were absolutely thrilled.

Xin Yaoqiao had been put under a rigorous training regimen under a succession of specially appointed experts ever since. Even the S-ranker, the Legendary Lu, the hidden guardian of Research Institute No. 2, had served as her teacher for a few days.

Thanks to her mother’s private arrangements, which prioritized survival above all else, Xin Yaoqiao was especially skilled in escape and anti-tracking techniques. This meant she had noticed her three pursuers from the moment they had fixed their eyes on her at the street corner.

If she had wanted to run, she could have easily gotten away. She simply chose not to. Since they had marked her, she figured it was better to just kill them, and maybe get some information out of them while she was at it.

Also, she wanted to scratch that battlefield itch.

If Xin Yaoqiao was being honest with herself, deep down, she didn’t want to be a researcher at all. She wanted to be on the front lines, cutting down Sharpies.

Every year, she would use her latest speed and strength test results to calculate new combat movement formulas and cutting angle equations. Unfortunately, her grandfathers always told her the same thing: that her research was far more valuable than sending her to the battlefield.

Maybe they were right.

So, Xin Yaoqiao continued to work hard and had finally made some progress in deciphering the Sharpie’s language. What she hadn’t told her family, however, was that the phrase she most wanted to translate into Sharpie language and master was “I’ll chop your fucking head off and send you to hell!”

That particular sentence was probably going to be tough to figure out.

As for the three people tailing her, they weren’t ordinary thugs. Their bodies had likely been enhanced through source energy tempering. Still, the strongest among them was probably only B-rank at best.

Xin Yaoqiao figured she could try to take them. If it turned out she couldn’t handle them, she could always run.

If I really am as bad with directions as everyone says, then I’m actually the perfect person for escape situations. I don’t even know my escape route. I just run wherever my feet take me. How is anyone supposed to predict that?

Someone let out a few amused tuts behind her; their footsteps were unhurried and unconcealed. “Haven’t seen you in years. Our little Yaoqiao has really grown up. Look at that composure. That presence. That tone.”

With that, the person emerged from behind the trees. A deep disappointment immediately filled Xin Yaoqiao at the realization that she couldn’t kill him.

Her pursuers were Lu Wuzheng, the commander of the Ninth Army, accompanied by two aides. Although she had only met him a few times, the impression was still there.

“Oh, it’s you. Hello, Uncle Lu,” she greeted, walking over.

“Wait, wait, wait... Put the blade away first,” Lu Wuzheng said, taking two exaggerated steps back with a grin. “Your Uncle Lu didn’t become an army commander because of his fighting skills, you know.”

Xin Yaoqiao reluctantly sheathed her blade, though she kept her maneuvering device active.

“My grandfather...”

“That’s right! He’s been waiting for you this whole time.”

***

Chairman Qu Zhongshi finally received a call from Lu Wuzheng.

“You found her?! Good, good. So Qiaoqiao is...” Qu Zhongshi listened to the voice on the other end and froze. “What?! How did she get away again? How could you—”

“Well, Chairman, you didn’t tell me your little Yaoqiao’s an A-ranker! She’s just a young girl, how’s she this impressive?! You told me to keep it quiet, so I did. I only brought two of my personal staff to wait for her. I figured there’d be no need for force because she’s family. Even if force was needed, two B-rankers with four years of experience should’ve been plenty! The Coalition is steeped in rules and tradition. What army commander would dare use top-tier combat personnel as personal aides? The council would rip me apart!”

Qu Zhongshi fell silent. He had nothing to say to that. This was a private matter, and Lu Wuzheng’s reasoning was completely sound.

“Also, Chairman, you didn’t mention that your little Yaoqiao came here looking for one of my soldiers... A male soldier.”

“Oh, right.” Qu Zhongshi had been too embarrassed to bring that up before, but he no longer had it in him to care. “That soldier is there, though, so why did Qiaoqiao run? I never said she couldn’t see him.”

“The problem is that the soldier isn’t here. The 425th Regiment just left for a field exercise. If it weren’t for that coincidence, none of this would’ve happened,” Lu Wuzheng said exasperatedly. “When Yaoqiao asked me directly whether the 425th was in, well... I wasn’t on guard, so I said no, they’re out on a field exercise. Then she asked me where they went.”

“And you just told her?”

“Yeah. She said if I didn’t tell her, she’d resist. I was afraid of hurting her, so I told her, District 1123. Then she said, ‘Alright, I’ll go back with you first,’ but when I turned around, she bolted. I even laughed, ‌thinking it was cute that she thought she could outrun us. Turns out she really could.”

Qu Zhongshi was speechless.

“I mean, how was I supposed to know she was that fast?!” Lu Wuzheng was convinced that this whole mess was the Chairman’s fault for withholding so much information and was feeling very wronged. Only after venting all of this did he remember to calm his tone and tread carefully. “So... what do we do now, Chairman Qu?”

Qu Zhongshi thought for a moment. “It’s fine. Leave the rest to me. Just pretend nothing happened. I’m sorry about involving you in family matters. Qiaoqiao is willful and has caused you trouble. Also, we need to remember that this absolutely cannot get out. As long as it stays quiet, everything will be fine.”

“Understood.”

Despite his earnest answer, Lu Wuzheng was silently grumbling to himself. If you hadn’t meddled, Chairman, there wouldn’t have been any trouble at all. Qiaoqiao would’ve come straight to the Ninth Army on her own.

While Qu Zhongshi was giving his careful instructions to Lu Wuzheng, Xin Yaoqiao had just come to a stop in the wilderness after sprinting through the mountains.

I almost got caught. I’m already here, though, so I’ve got to see him at least once. Haha, I really am something. She marveled at herself as she carefully found a concealed spot.

After observing her surroundings for a while to confirm it was safe, she opened her combat case and removed the energy core, which still had about a quarter of its charge remaining. She then stowed it away and loaded a fresh one.

One had to be ready for combat or a long-distance escape at all times, especially when alone in the field. That was how they had trained her.

Fortunately, her backpack still contained ten fully charged blue crystal energy cores, which she had legitimately earned through her research contributions. She also had twenty thousand in cash, as well as water, food, and medical supplies.

The amount of money was likely overkill, but having all of it on hand made her feel secure.

So where am I right now? And where is District 1123?

Xin Yaoqiao glanced around blankly for a while before reluctantly pulling out a Coalition military map from her backpack. After studying it carefully for some time, she put it away and stood up.

It should be that way.

With that, she set off. It was getting dark, but fortunately, researchers weren’t afraid of ghosts.

If I encounter wolves, I’ll chop their fucking heads off.

***

The field exercise for Regiment 425 and 491, consisting of nearly six hundred recruits and twenty instructors combined, was on its second day at District 1123.

Field exercises were a longstanding tradition within the Only Witness Legion. As future battles would primarily take place in the wilderness, recruits had to familiarize themselves with various types of terrain, as well as the techniques and precautions for operating their maneuvering devices in different environments.

The district platoon garrisoned in the area, Platoon 1123, was supposed to be nearby, though there had been no contact with them so far.

According to Zhang Dao’an, the district platoon traditionally served two purposes during these exercises. They protected the recruits and, if the timing was right, the recruits could observe the platoon in actual combat.

Over ninety percent of the recruits had never seen real combat, so this was important.

That night, at around one in the morning, the recruits were nearly all asleep. The nighttime training exercises during the first half of the night had left them physically and mentally exhausted.

“Get up. Now!”

“Get up!”

“Gear up!”

The instructors’ voices rang out across the camp tents, almost simultaneously.

“Leave the tents and gear up! Hurry, get down the mountain and board the vehicles!”

“What’s going on?”

“Platoon 1123 received a Crow alert. A spindle-shaped aircraft has landed.”

“Whoa.”

Whether from nerves or excitement, the recruits immediately fell into formation. After calling out their numbers, they activated their maneuvering devices and followed the instructors in a dead sprint down the mountain to board the vehicles.

Nearly twenty military trucks rumbled through the mountain roads in a long convoy.

“It’s pretty far. Not sure if we’ll make it in time.”

“Yeah, Platoon 1123 should already be setting up the ambush. Let’s not interfere. We’ll wait for them to contact us.”

The chatter on the trucks carried a thrill of anticipation, though no one dared to say it out loud.

Suddenly, a sharp beep cut through from the vehicle’s communicator.

Zhang Dao’an recognized it as a wide-area broadcast across all nearby channels and said, “It’s not a direct call. Just listen. Don’t respond.”

The channel opened with resounding booms, the violent sounds of combat and agonized screams pouring through the communicator.

The truck went silent.

“Platoon 1123, requesting assistance,” an urgent voice called out. “Platoon 1123, requesting assistance from all nearby districts. Three of them. Three Sharpies. One was hiding inside the aircraft... After we split up to surround them, it jumped out from behind.”

Then the sound of a communicator hitting the ground.

“Platoon 1123, requesting assistance.” A different voice this time.

They couldn’t tell whether the communicator had been picked up or if a different one was being used.

“Platoon 1123, requesting assistance from nearby district platoons.”

The entire truck, perhaps all the trucks, had fallen into dead silence. The rumble of the engine was the only sound outside the screams, the desperate fighting, and the calls for help that streamed endlessly from the communicator.

“Platoon 1123, we’ve suffered heavy casualties. Requesting immediate assistance. We’re still engaging the enemy. We can hold them for now, but we need nearby districts to send help as quickly as possible. Requesting assistance...”