Chapter 2757: The Final Battle of Panlongcheng

The words were not yet finished when he saw the commander-in-chief turn his heel and stride into the tent.

On the round table sat a copper basin filled with water, and the others had already withdrawn of their own accord.

He Lingchuan approached the table and indeed saw a beauty reflected in the water, with a wall of firecracker blossoms outside the latticed window as backdrop, blooming noisily and explosively, as if they would exhaust their splendor in a single day.

Sun Fuling was smiling at him, a small wine dimple on her left cheek.

Her smile was more radiant than the flower wall behind her.

He Lingchuan stared unblinking, and in that daze he was transported back more than ten years to when they first met, she also standing beneath the flower wall and smiling at him, her clear eyes flowing.

That was truly the beginning of all that was beautiful in his life.

The restless, aggressive qi that had risen in He Lingchuan's heart due to the imminent great battle was suddenly driven away completely.

He even felt inclined to joke: "Master Sun, what brings you to seek me? Is the city no longer busy?"

For these past few months of Between Between Between Beijia's major invasion of the southern wilderness, Sun Fuling had every few days led teams and supplies to the front to comfort the troops, but both were so busy that they were always together briefly and apart for long.

With the enemy pressing hard at Mingsha Forest, the rear of Panlong was naturally under dark clouds pressing upon the city. Xu Shichu had already rushed to the front, and Sun Fuling was to lead the Shuomin Academy and organize the citizenry for logistics, busy to the point of not touching ground.

"There are still four batches of supplies to be transported to Mingsha Forest." Sun Fuling moved her pen as if signing, "Just now the white fat man from Lingyun Island came over, with a bitter face, donating over two hundred magical implements, all very useful. We are urgently packing them, and they will be sent to the front in fifteen minutes."

"Over two hundred items! He really hid them deep." He Lingchuan laughed helplessly, "The dead fat man finally brought himself to cut his own flesh."

"He is just too stingy, that's why his business never grows big."

The Pan-Bei war had lasted two and a half years, and the domestic war mobilization had gone through who knows how many rounds; most soldiers and civilians had donated all their possessions, and no one knew where the white fat man, that profiteer, had hidden his good things. But at the final moment, he finally came to his senses: if Panlongcheng fell, he too would be gone, and no matter how many treasures he had secretly hoarded, they would not belong to him in the future anyway.

Whenever the white fat man was mentioned, the atmosphere lightened. The two chatted as they used to, and he only needed a few words to make Sun Fuling laugh three times, the wine dimple on her face becoming ever more lovely.

It seemed as if what was coming was not a bloody and fierce war.

Sun Fuling bit her lip and said: "I also want to go to Mingsha Forest."

"You cannot come." He Lingchuan wore a stern expression, "If you come, I cannot focus. This battle is too important; you must consider the interests of all our soldiers, must you not?"

Sun Fuling could not help but laugh: "If we lose, shall we just blame it all on you?"

"What else then?"

Sun Fuling's beautiful eyes flowed: "You are quite good at shirking responsibility. Very well, let it all be blamed on me."

He Lingchuan said slowly: "If I had encountered such a matter fifteen years ago as I do today, I would certainly have slicked the soles of my feet and slipped away myself."

How much consideration for others could the young master of the He family fifteen years ago have had?

"If I had encountered such a war ten years ago, I would have tried to lure you away together."

"Now……" Now they could not leave, and the only thing that held them fast was precisely themselves.

People, being muddled and confused is not frightening; having a bit of belief and a bit of vision is what is truly deadly.

"This is also good now, with millions of people accompanying us." Sun Fuling set down her pen, gazing out the window at the profuse blossoms, "After tonight, no matter what, we will not be parted again, will we?"

She and He Lingchuan had always been together briefly and apart for long, and even on the eve of the final battle it was still so.

But to fight to the last moment for a shared ideal—how could that not be a kind of romance?

"Yes, after tonight, everything will be different." He Lingchuan lightly pressed his hand to the rim of the water basin, as if swearing, "Panlong shall surely welcome rebirth!"

Sun Fuling gazed at him without blinking, slowly gathering her smile: "I was just joking; you are the one who least understands how to shirk responsibility."

He Lingchuan followed her words and asked: "How so?"

"The life and death of Panlong is not your responsibility alone." Sun Fuling spoke softly, "The shackles you have placed on yourself are too many and too heavy. Panlong belongs to all of us; Panlong's fate ought to be shaped by all of us together."

"What should I do then?"

"Do your utmost, then heed heaven's mandate!" Her eyes flashed with gentle yet resolute light, "If, as you once said, Panlong faces a tragic destiny, then it likewise ought to be that we all unite in concerted effort to turn it around!"

He Lingchuan chuckled lightly: "Good, I will certainly heed Master's words."

The words had barely fallen when the ground suddenly shuddered violently, shaking left and right fiercely, objects on the table clattered, and the luminous spores rolled straight to the floor.

The earthquake came again, this time unprecedentedly violent. Even He Lingchuan grabbed the table corner with both hands.

Outside came the sound of rolling stones, and in the camp people and horses clamored.

After a few breaths, a dull rumbling came from afar, as if the earth itself were roaring.

That was not thunder, He Lingchuan frowned.

Only the water surface in the tent, having been treated with a technique, remained undisturbed, smooth as a mirror.

Sun Fuling's mouth corner broke into a faint smile: "An earthquake?"

"Yes, it shakes at an inopportune time; I hope it has not damaged the fortifications of Mingsha Forest."

"I have heard that the fortifications can grow and repair themselves."

"They can, but it takes time." He Lingchuan said, "If the damage is too severe, or if Between Between Between Beijia takes advantage to launch an attack, then……"

The words had not yet fallen when suddenly, from opposite Mingsha Forest, thunderous drumming erupted!

The war drums of the Between Between Between Beijia army are made from kui ox hide, without doubt; once struck, they shake heaven and earth within fifty li, and make everyone's heart leap with fear.

To some extent, is this not the footsteps of Death drawing near?

He Lingchuan could not hold back and burst out with an oath.

My own crow's mouth!

Sun Fuling's mouth corner twitched slightly, but that hint of a smile vanished instantly: "Has the war begun?"

He Lingchuan nodded: "The war has begun."

At this moment, he and Panlongcheng faced the final judgment of fate.

"We are Panlong, and Panlong is us." Sun Fuling gazed at him, "Go forth, and welcome rebirth together with Panlong."

"I am Panlong, and Panlong is I." He Lingchuan could not bear to move his gaze from the water surface, "I go to war; see you tomorrow."

Sun Fuling whispered softly: "See you tomorrow."

She lightly touched the water surface, as if pressing palms with He Lingchuan, but ripples immediately spread across the water, and her visage blurred at once.

The water mirror technique ceased.

Outside, a trusted aide's voice rang out: "Commander-in-Chief, the enemy is attacking from seven directions!"

He Lingchuan took a deep breath and strode out of the tent.

The moment the raindrops fell on his face, he cast aside all thoughts of love and longing:

"Open the gates and form ranks to meet the attack!"

Mingsha Forest has strong defenses, but now the Panlong Army must guard it with their lives.

"Yes!"

The commander's order was passed down layer by layer, and the Panlong Grand Camp sprang into action like a precision instrument.