-"You really want to do this?"
Chen Luo looked at Galahad, his voice sinking slightly. He still wanted to confirm it one more time, even though he had already more or less guessed the answer. This was not something that could be decided casually, much less a choice someone should make on a moment's impulse.
-"I don't have any other choice. I'm already a dead man, after all. Being able to keep living here is a form of torture for me. I owe them far too much."
Galahad stared at the short blade in his hand. A difficult-to-describe resentment and killing intent seemed to linger on its edge. He remained silent for a moment before slowly returning it to its sheath.
-"I don't want to drag this out any longer. Some debts cannot be treated as though they never existed, no matter how long you try to run from them."
Galahad's voice was not loud, but every word carried unwavering determination. He had been thinking about this for a long time, and his conversation with Chen Luo the previous night had only made his resolve clearer.
After hearing him out, Chen Luo was left with a jumble of conflicting emotions. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he could not find the right words. He understood Galahad's choice, and he also knew he had no right to decide on the man's behalf.
-"If you've already made up your mind, then I won't stop you."
That was all Chen Luo could say.
The two then returned to the base together. Chen Luo kept the matter completely to himself, not letting anyone know about their conversation. After all, what Galahad was about to do was utterly insane, but it was his own choice. Chen Luo had done what he could; the rest was not something he could decide for him.
When the two returned, everyone immediately approached and asked what kind of weapon Chen Luo had made for Galahad. After all, everyone had received new equipment, and they were naturally curious about what someone like Galahad would use.
-"Galahad, what did you get?"
-"Just a knife with a few special features."
Galahad gave a brief answer and showed no intention of explaining further. The others did not think much of it, assuming it was simply a weapon suited to his strengths. After a few words, they returned to their usual tasks and continued preparing for the coming battle.
No one noticed anything unusual.
But somewhere else, an eye was still watching all of them.
The woman who had observed Chen Luo before had also seen him hand the knife to Galahad. When she recognized the weapon, she could not help feeling astonished. It seemed that even she could hardly believe Chen Luo had managed to make something like that.
-"Your Majesty, that knife..."
-"I know. It has been bathed in the souls of the Hell Cauldron. But how...? It even carries a demonic soul?"
-"A demonic... soul?"
The subordinate standing beside her was startled. He had never heard of such a thing, much less understood why a weapon could draw the Demon Empress's attention so completely.
-"A demonic soul is one that has lost its way back to the mortal world. Such souls are usually sealed in the Nine Hells of the Nether, beneath the Hell Cauldron. Aside from certain upper regions of the Hell Cauldron whose special structures are connected to the Nine Hells of the Nether, nothing can be tainted by their evil aura and killing intent."
The Demon Empress paused, her eyes still fixed on the knife Chen Luo had just given Galahad.
-"The reason they were sealed there was the great war that took place in the Hell Cauldron tens of thousands of years ago. Ordinary souls simply cannot fall into the Nine Hells of the Nether by any means. Therefore, the appearance of such an aura on a weapon is not something to take lightly."
-"If that's true, then how did that lord obtain it?"
The subordinate watched the weapon, full of questions. He could not understand how Chen Luo had obtained something that even the souls in the upper regions could not easily come into contact with.
-"It seems someone gave him a fragment of a soul from the Nine Hells of the Nether. Otherwise, this weapon could never have been put back into its sheath like that."
-"But... why that one?"
As she said this, the Demon Empress narrowed her eyes slightly. The soul she sensed inside the weapon made her expression grow solemn. It was not merely an ordinary trace of evil aura or killing intent. However, she said nothing more and continued staring at the knife in silence.
At the same time, in a certain palace within the Hell Cauldron...
-"Are you certain?"
-"Yes. That person was carrying the token of that lord and went to a rather distant city."
-"Where was he last seen?"
-"On the bridge leading out toward the wilderness. After he left, there was no further trace of him."
A figure seated on a throne shaped like a human skull quietly questioned a subordinate about the information that had just been gathered. Upon hearing the words "token," the figure seemed to confirm something and immediately signaled for the messenger to leave.
The subordinate did not dare ask anything else. He bowed his head and quickly left the room.
-"......"
-"......"
-"......"
The conversation continued inside the room. News about Chen Luo had now reached the ears of those with even higher standing. No one knew exactly what they were discussing, because the sounds within the room had been completely sealed off.
At first, the conversation seemed to revolve around another matter. But after the messenger entered, its focus gradually shifted. Several new issues were raised, changing the atmosphere in the room entirely.
Back with Chen Luo, everyone was still actively practicing how to use their new equipment. No one wanted to wait until the Blood Moon appeared before discovering that they could not handle the weapons in their hands.
Zhang Zewei's group, in particular, had been brought to the three-way intersection that Chen Luo had named "Reaper's Bulletstorm." A large amount of machine-gun firepower had already been deployed there, along with weapons specifically designed to deal with gigantic targets or flying monsters.
Under Chen Luo's guidance, they gradually learned how to operate these weapons. Their basic military training already gave them an understanding of how heavy firearms worked. Compared with ordinary weapons, what they were now handling was genuine heavy weaponry, both in weight and in firepower.
-"Can this thing really be used against giant monsters?" someone in the group asked, unable to keep his eyes off the gun in front of him.
-"Just follow Chen Luo's instructions. We're already familiar with heavy firearms. There's no reason we shouldn't be able to use this." Zhang Zewei replied while checking the equipment.
-"I'm just thinking that if we can bring this onto the battlefield, those monsters definitely won't have an easy time."
-"Don't celebrate too soon. Get familiar with it first. If you make a mistake when the fighting actually starts, no one will be able to save us."
Despite those words, there was no denying that everyone was excited. Being able to hold such powerful weapons in their hands, and having the chance to use them directly in the coming battle, was an experience that people with military backgrounds could hardly pass up.
Standing to one side, Galahad quietly watched his comrades and the others training with such enthusiasm. Seeing that they could still laugh and talk, still prepare eagerly for the coming battle, finally eased some of the regret in his heart.
Whether this battle ended in victory or defeat, he still had to do it.
Galahad had prepared himself for his choice. What made him nervous now was not the prospect of taking part in a major battle, but the knowledge that after everything was over, he would have to say goodbye to everyone.
He looked at the familiar faces before him and silently committed every moment to memory. Perhaps this was the last time he would be able to stay by their side like this.