# 1056
Chapter 1057: Border Defense
Pamir Plateau.
Kongur Peak.
"Loki is here?!"
In the temporary base at the mountain summit, Baili Pangpang's eyes went wide with shock after hearing An Qingyu's description. "Holy shit!"
Cao Yuan's expression beside him also grew grave. "Where's Qiya? Is he alright?"
An Qingyu sat cross-legged on the ground, trimming his caveman-like fingernails as he replied, "I didn't see him at Kunlun Ruins, but now that Commander Zuo and Mr. Lu are jointly hunting Loki, nothing bad should happen."
Upon hearing this, the other three present felt relieved.
Only a few hours remained until the final day for the new recruits to cross the Pamir Plateau. The recruits who hadn't been eliminated yet had all entered the final stretch of the journey—they just needed to trek through the last few kilometers before beginning their ascent of Kongur Peak.
Jiang Er and the others, who had been responsible for the earlier sections of the route, had also returned to the temporary base on Kongur Peak. Only Shen Qingzhu remained at the summit, holding the final checkpoint.
"But it's been several days now—why hasn't Qiya come back?" The worry on Baili Pangpang's face was evident.
"The situation inside Kunlun Ruins is far more complicated than we imagined. Perhaps he encountered some opportunity in there." An Qingyu's mind recalled the Peach Banquet where countless immortals gathered as he spoke calmly.
"The new recruits will be finishing their assessment soon. If Qiya doesn't return to take command, things will get tricky."
"By the way, what about the eliminated new recruits?"
"They're still working as volunteers at the border defense company." Baili Pangpang peeled a segment of tangerine and popped it into his mouth, sighing. "I wonder how many of them will have come to their senses after all these days..."
...
Western border of Great Xia.
Kayuishi Border Defense Company.
The biting cold wind howled from the edge of the barren land, stirring up fine dust that mercilessly struck Su Zhe's reddened cheeks.
He wore a thick military cap, shouldered a rifle, and his lips trembled slightly in the cold wind. In just a few days, that originally fair and delicate face had become rough and weathered.
He swallowed hard, hunger constantly surging through him. He wanted to check the time, but his neck ached from stiffness.
Just then, a hand patted his shoulder.
"Shift change, rookie. Go eat."
Su Zhe felt as though he'd been granted amnesty. As he stretched his stiff muscles, he turned to smile at the border defense soldier behind him in military uniform. "Hard work."
The soldier waved him off, a faint flush on his ruddy cheeks.
The starving Su Zhe rushed into the cafeteria, grabbed a tray from the metal rack, loaded it with some lukewarm dishes, and found a table alone. He began devouring his food.
"Slow down, you look like you haven't eaten in days." Su Yuan set his tray down across from him, silently rolling his eyes. "During training camp, I never saw you this hungry."
"That's different. At training camp, we ate Instructor An's miraculous fish cakes—we could train all day without getting hungry." Su Zhe pointed at the food on his plate. "The food here... has too little oil."
Su Yuan said nothing, just picked up his chopsticks and began eating in silence.
"By the way, tomorrow should be the final day of the assessment." Su Zhe seemed to remember something and wiped the corner of his mouth.
"Yeah."
"After tomorrow ends, what are your plans?"
The hand holding Su Yuan's chopsticks paused slightly. "I don't know."
"Do you think we'll really be sent home?" Su Zhe glanced around, puzzled. "If we really have no hope of staying, why did Instructor Lin send us here? What is he trying to do?"
"Instructor Lin said that after elimination, the real lessons would begin." Su Yuan said calmly. "He must want to convey something to us through this place..."
Before they could finish, a voice came from behind them.
"You two siblings really do have a close relationship." A middle-aged man with high cheekbones and a stocky build smiled, sitting down beside them.
Su Zhe recognized this man—his name was Ke Changlin, and he slept in the bunk above him. He was a border defense soldier at this outpost, and after Su Zhe arrived, it was Ke Changlin who personally showed him around and helped him get familiar with everything.
Ke Changlin pulled out a piece of oiled paper from his chest and set it on the table, unwrapping it to reveal several roasted flatbreads resting on the surface.
"My amana just came to visit me and brought some homemade sheep milk cakes. Have a taste."
"Amana?" Su Yuan looked confused upon hearing these words.
"It means mother." Su Zhe explained. "Uncle Changlin's mother is from an ethnic minority and his father is Han. He grew up on the plateau."
Su Yuan nodded, thanked him politely, then picked up a flatbread and took a bite.
"I say, you two soft-skinned young folks, why'd you come here to be volunteers?" Ke Changlin watched Su Yuan's refined eating manner and couldn't help but laugh. "The border is harsh and cold, the conditions are poor—normally people would run away from a place like this. I've never met young people like you who actively seek it out."
Su Yuan and Su Zhe exchanged a glance and默契地没有回答这个敏感的问题，而是反问道：
"We're just volunteers, but Uncle Changlin, you know the conditions are so harsh—why did you choose to guard the border?"
Ke Changlin smiled. "Me? My family lives right here on this plateau. Just over that mountain behind us is where they are. The closer I am to them, the easier it is for my amana to come visit me.
Besides, you both know this mist has been hanging over the border for so long—who knows what kind of strange creatures might come charging out from it?
If I stand guard here, my amana and my two younger brothers can live more at ease."
"Could something really come out of the mist?" Su Yuan asked with feigned innocence.
The border defense company wasn't an organization like the Night Watch, specifically tasked with handling "mysteries." It was merely a military border outpost. Over a hundred years ago, before the mist descended, this border defense company was already fulfilling its duty of guarding the nation.
The soldiers stationed here weren't supernaturals with Forbidden Ruins—they were just ordinary people who had received military training, and they didn't even know of the existence of "mysteries" or deities.
"Who knows?" Ke Changlin shrugged. "The news says all the creatures in the mist have died. But seeing such a huge expanse of mist every day, you can't help but feel unsettled... It's that kind of fear of the unknown, always feeling like some monster might suddenly leap out."
Su Zhe nodded and couldn't help but ask: "But whatever monsters could come out of the mist must be terrifying, right? With our firepower here, could we even kill them?"
"Can't kill it, we've still got to fight." Ke Changlin slapped the table, pointing with his other hand toward the rear. "If the border breaks, what happens to my family?"