# 1077
Chapter 1078: Different
Pamir Plateau.
"The Great Xia gods are in Egypt?"
After hearing the Queen Mother of the West's words, Lin Qiye asked in shock, "From the very beginning, Great Xia's target was the Sun City?"
"If it were a few days ago, this would still be a secret, but now that Heavenly Court has likely made its move, there's no harm in telling you." The Queen Mother of the West spoke calmly. "Only by exposing Odin's true face, plunging Asgard into internal chaos, and then decisively wounding the Egyptian pantheon can Great Xia escape its current predicament... In this way, the alliance of the four great divine kingdoms will be reduced to three, and Asgard without Odin, like Olympia in internal turmoil, will see its combat strength greatly diminished."
"I see..."
After hearing all of Great Xia's arrangements, Lin Qiye couldn't help but sigh, "It seems everything has been calculated by Heavenly Court. Our concerns were indeed unnecessary."
"But even with all these steps taken, it only slightly improves Great Xia's odds of victory." The Queen Mother of the West reminded him. "Asgard and Olympia are only temporarily in trouble, not completely incapacitated. The three divine kingdoms that Great Xia still has to face remain formidable... Moreover, the attack on Sun City might actually accelerate the process of these three divine kingdoms forming an alliance. That will be the truly difficult part of this war."
Lin Qiye nodded, then as if remembering something, asked:
"Your Majesty, I have another question."
"Speak."
"In the silhouette of a hundred years ago, I remember one of the National Guardian Steles transformed from the Great Xia gods was near here. Why can't I see it now?" Lin Qiye looked around, puzzled.
"The National Guardian Stele has always been here; it just concealed its appearance."
The Queen Mother of the West raised her finger, and a strand of divine light shot out, gently landing on a certain spot at the border of the Mist. As the divine light spread, a corner of the black National Guardian Stele was revealed within the wind and snow.
"This is a deception set up to prevent mortals from discovering it. But to the gods, its presence can be easily sensed. The divine power fluctuations it emits across this snowfield are as dazzling as the sun."
As the Queen Mother of the West finished speaking, as if sensing something, she glanced in a certain direction.
"This queen has other matters to attend to. You may leave on your own."
Before Lin Qiye could say anything more, the Queen Mother of the West stepped forward, her form turning into a streak of blue light that vanished at the horizon.
Lin Qiye stood alone at the original spot, turned his head to look at the border of the Mist once more, at the black stele gradually hiding within the wind and snow, and let out a long sigh. He then walked toward the direction of the border defense company.
The place he was at wasn't far from the Kayumush Border Defense Company. This time, Lin Qiye exceptionally did not use his abilities to travel; instead, he chose to walk back step by step with his own legs.
His mind was in chaos.
Perhaps because he had just personally experienced that poignant history, his mind kept flashing back to the scene of the Great Xia gods flying like moths into the flame, slamming into the stele.
They all seemed to be radiating a certain kind of radiance, a radiance that did not come from divine power, but from the soul... This kind of radiance had nothing to do with being human or god, or even with being a person or object. Even on those thirty million swords that rose into the sky at the command of Lingbao Tianzun, he had also seen this kind of radiance.
That radiance came from dedication, from sacrifice, from the resolve and determination in their eyes as they fought for all living beings.
As his thoughts wandered, countless figures appeared in Lin Qiye's mind.
Zhou Ping, who despite being on the brink of death, still stepped forward to slay gods with his sword.
Wang Mian, who turned back time and wagered all his lifespan to change history.
Lu Qiu, who透支了潜力，exhausted his potential, used the Coat of Arms to desperately deliver a message, saving the entire Sunken Dragon Pass.
Chen Muye, who after death and rebirth, with a body of miracles, stood alone guarding Cangnan.
...And General Zhao, who in that rainy night, swung his blade to kill the masked men and saved Lin Qiye's entire family.
They were all Night Watch. Their bodies radiated the same dazzling radiance as the Great Xia gods.
Lin Qiye was also a Night Watch.
But he always felt... that he was different from them.
Different in what way? If one day a crisis came and it was his turn to sacrifice himself to save the countless millions behind him, would he do it?
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Qiye affirmed this answer.
He would.
The choice he would make was the same as these Night Watch and the Great Xia gods.
So what was actually different between them?
Lin Qiye lowered his head, walked silently through the wind and snow, staring blankly at the footprints he left behind, moving forward like a puppet.
He was pondering, he was confused.
His thoughts traced back along memory, piece by piece... the Shangjing incident, the journey to the Human Enclosure, defending Sunken Dragon Pass, the formation of [Nightfall], joining the Night Watch...
He recalled every bit of the past, when suddenly, a flash of lightning crossed his mind!
His thoughts returned to that rainy night once more.
In his arms was the heavily injured, dying Zhao Kongcheng. Behind him was a low, dilapidated hut. Beside him was a reviving masked man's corpse.
On that day, he made a ten-year pact with Zhao Kongcheng's corpse. On that day, he bowed farewell to his past. On that day, he pulled out the Straight Blade Zhao Kongcheng had stabbed into the ground, personally killed the masked man, and stepped onto the path of the Night Watch.
That was the beginning of everything.
At this moment, Lin Qiye knew what was different about him.
He made the ten-year pact, drew his blade to kill the masked man, joined the Night Watch... He did all of this not to save the world and all living beings within it. The only thing he truly wanted to protect was his aunt in that low hut behind him, A Jin, and the dream of that cold man's corpse when he was still alive.
From the very beginning, his original intention was selfish.
Even though he had come to where he is today, even though he had become the captain of the Special Squad, deep in his heart, he was still that selfish Lin Qiye. He would raise his hand, pointing to the neon-bright city center in the rainy night, and ask the dying Zhao Kongcheng, "For them, is it worth it?"
The dead Zhao Kongcheng did not answer, and the current Lin Qiye still could not answer.
He could give his life, give everything he had, to protect the countless millions... But that was only because it was his duty, because it was what he, as a Night Watch, should do.
Deep in his heart, he was not a selfless person willing to protect all living beings. Perhaps this was the reason why he was different from them?
Lin Qiye, lost in thought, stumbled. A gleaming Coat of Arms fell from his chest and landed in the thick snow.
Lin Qiye froze.
The deep crimson cloak fluttered in the wind and snow. After hesitating for a moment, he bent down to pick up this Coat of Arms, wiped the snow from its surface with his thumb, turned it over, and looked at the four lines of text engraved on its back.
He stood silent for a long time, then苦涩地笑了笑，苦涩地笑了笑：
"I... am truly selfish after all..."