# 983
Chapter 984: Ten Days
Shangjing City.
The winter sun hung far in the gray sky, the cold wind brushing across the bustling streets, dusting the damp ground with a thin layer of white frost.
Beside the dark brown, bare tree trunks, countless pedestrians wrapped in thick down jackets lowered their heads toward their frost-reddened palms, blowing out a puff of warm air, complaining about the weather, then shoving their hands into their pockets and hurrying away.
Zuo Qing held a cup of hot tea, standing before the floor-to-ceiling window. Wisps of steam rose from the cup, condensing into a cloud of white mist against the glass.
His eyes gazed into the distant sky, lost in thought.
"Heavenly Court has emerged..."
He paused, letting out a long sigh. "This peaceful time was always going to end eventually... This New Year won't be a good one."
On the sofa behind him, an elderly man in white robes held a black chess piece between his fingers, gently placing it on the tea table's chessboard, and smiled faintly.
"Reluctant to let it go?"
"Of course. Who wouldn't enjoy peaceful times?" Zuo Qing spoke slowly. "But since war has come to us willingly, we can't just sit here and take it... Once we win, peace will return."
He turned around, walked over to sit across from the elderly man, took a white piece from the chess bowl, and placed it on the board.
"Grand Marshal, what are our odds of winning?" Zuo Qing asked.
Jiang Ziya didn't rush to answer. He picked up a black piece and placed it again. On the board before him, there were now four black pieces surrounding that single, lonely white piece.
"If we only defend passively, at most ten percent."
"And if we take the initiative to attack?"
Jiang Ziya's eyes narrowed slightly. He lifted that white piece and moved it one space to the side, sending the black piece closest to it flying off the board.
The white piece broke through the encirclement, fighting one against three.
"...Thirty percent."
"That doesn't sound like good news." Zuo Qing sighed.
"War isn't simply a contest of strength. Besides direct victory, there are many factors that can affect the outcome of battle." Jiang Ziya spoke unhurriedly.
He extended his hand and pointed at the three black pieces.
"Who can guarantee that these three black pieces won't encounter some other complication?"
Zuo Qing stared at the three black pieces and the one that had been knocked off the board, falling into deep thought.
"Grand Marshal, how much time do we have left?"
"Ten days."
Ten days, then...
Zuo Qing nodded.
Just then, two knocks sounded at the door. The office door swung open, and a Night Watch soldier walked in.
"What's the matter?"
"Commander Zuo, [Nightfall] squad has returned."
Upon hearing these words, Zuo Qing's eyebrows rose, a smile flickering across his lips.
He lifted his teacup and took a sip of the hot tea, his anxious heart relaxing slightly.
These kids came back at just the right time...
"They also brought back a Human Apex from Japan who carries a divine artifact." The Night Watch soldier紧接着 continued.
Pffff—!!
The hot tea Zuo Qing had been holding sprayed out of his mouth, landing precisely on Jiang Ziya across from him.
Jiang Ziya: ...?
"What did you say?!"
...
Night Watch Cemetery.
The cold wind stirred up snow-white petals, like the first snow of winter, dancing among the stark tombstones.
A figure in a black suit held a bundle of white flowers, standing quietly before a brand-new tombstone.
Deeply carved into that tombstone were several large characters:
— [Blue Rain] Squad Member, Deputy Captain of the Cangnan City Station's 136th Squad, Wu Xiangnan's Grave.
Lin Qiye gazed at the tombstone for a long while, then bent down and gently placed the white flowers before it, letting out a long sigh.
Night Watch tombstones are carved by the deceased's teammates—this is an unwritten rule within the Night Watch. Zhao Kongcheng's tombstone, back then, was carved by Hongying personally.
Now, the entire [Blue Rain] squad had been wiped out, and among the Cangnan City's 136th squad, only Lin Qiye knew that Wu Xiangnan had fallen in battle. So the deputy captain's tombstone could only be carved by Lin Qiye's own hands.
This was the first time Lin Qiye had ever carved a tombstone for someone else.
Because Wu Xiangnan's physical body had become the Dao, leaving no corpse behind, the grave before him now contained only an empty tomb.
In the desolate Night Watch cemetery, only his solitary figure stood motionless in the cold wind.
A moment later, a second figure entered the cemetery.
"Commander Zuo." Lin Qiye turned and saw who had arrived, speaking first.
"Mm." Zuo Qing walked to his side, his gaze falling upon the tombstone. Complex emotions flickered in his eyes. "I heard about Wu Xiangnan on my way here... To be honest, I still can't believe it. The three of you killed a god."
"It was Vice Captain Wu who killed the god." Lin Qiye glanced at the tombstone. "Captain Wang and I merely did our best to help him fulfill his final wish."
"Each and every one of you was remarkable." Zuo Qing said. "Besides the posthumous honors for Wu Xiangnan, based on your battle achievements alone, both you and Wang Mian deserve a Personal Star-Sea Medal. Given the current special circumstances, we won't be holding a ceremony, but I'll have someone deliver them to you."
Zuo Qing bent down and placed the flowers he had brought beside Lin Qiye's offering. After paying his respects, he walked out of the cemetery together with Lin Qiye.
"Commander Zuo, Heavenly Court has descended." Lin Qiye said.
"Mm, I know."
"What happens next?"
"...Even I'm not entirely sure." Zuo Qing was silent for a moment before speaking. "In this maelstrom of war between gods, there's so little we can do. Our most important mission is to protect the ordinary people behind us, to defend Great Xia.
If the gods of Great Xia are the first line of defense, then we Night Watch are the second line of defense standing before all living beings—and the last.
No matter what happens, we cannot fall into chaos."
Lin Qiye nodded silently.
Zuo Qing was right. If a full-scale divine war truly erupted, those who hadn't reached the Human Apex level wouldn't even have the qualifications to participate. Though [Nightfall] was a special squad, they were still far from being able to take part in wars between gods.
All they could do was hold the final line of defense.
"What do you need us to do?" Lin Qiye asked.
Zuo Qing seemed to have already made arrangements for this, speaking calmly: "War is imminent, and there's no time left for the greenhorns in training camp to grow slowly anymore... I'm giving you ten days. After ten days, they must graduate from training camp and be assigned to various Night Watch squads. Only then can we mobilize enough veteran soldiers to the front lines.
In the coming years, these new recruits will be the backbone maintaining order within Great Xia.
In these ten days, no matter what methods you use, you must turn them into qualified Night Watch soldiers.
Can you do it?"
Ten days?
Hearing these two words, Lin Qiye's heart sank slightly, but he didn't hesitate long before nodding.
"Yes."
Since Zuo Qing had named the figure of ten days, it meant that after that, something significant was bound to occur. The crisis premonition lingering in Lin Qiye's heart grew even stronger.
Their time was running out.