Chapter 44: Star Realm Army's New Designation

Deep within the Heberia Nest Area.

Far from the front lines, there is little gunfire here, nor a dense Imperial garrison.

Only countless civilians curl up in every corner of Nest City, watching the legal department's law enforcers in heavy armor, holding shotguns, and arbiters walking back and forth.

But unlike before, recently, even deep within the relatively safe Nest Area, large numbers of Star Realm Army troops and even Astat have begun to appear.

A few fully armed Kadia soldiers passed by; the law enforcers glanced at the troops and then simply ignored them.

Such soldiers have been seen a lot these past days; the higher-ups told them not to inquire, so the law enforcers pretended not to see.

Until another young officer in a colonel's uniform, wearing a wide‑brimmed hat, walked by; the crisp sound of his hard boots crushing blood‑stained floor echoed, and the law enforcers glanced up, then all stood straight:

"Lord Xisi!"

The law enforcers were respectful; although they belong to a different department, in the current state of this Alert Star, they are merely a bit later than regular troops to the front line.

Xisi casually raised his hand in return, his gaze swiftly sweeping over the well‑equipped law enforcers, then over the masses of civilians lining both sides of the corridor.

To be precise, the civilians were intermingled with countless corpses.

In the long corridor, only the law enforcers and soldiers could still walk back and forth; the other civilians could barely even stand.

At this moment Xisi looked at the succession of fallen bodies at his feet, while the corpse‑collecting carts, shoved aside in panic to make way for him, were already filled beyond count.

The civilians pushing the carts cast cautious, respectful glances at Xisi, and in their clouded, numb eyes, specks of light called "hope" reflected from him.

Looking at the waist of these cart‑pushing civilians, where a transparent small water bottle held a thin layer of murky water, Xisi recalled what he had seen on the road and knew this was their payment as corpse collectors.

With the clean water supply almost completely cut off, Kaerjia now only cares about the army and has utterly stopped attending to civilians.

Most of these civilians did not starve; most died of thirst.

And as a reward, the starch supply in the Heberia Nest Area during this period is extremely abundant!

As Xisi walked by, more and more civilians cast feeble gazes, and under his sweep, a woman gasping for breath suddenly collapsed to the ground.

The surrounding civilians hurried to surround her, but the scene of mutual aid Xisi imagined never came; instead, a group produced knives and, trembling with excitement, slit the woman's still‑unclotted veins.

A group of people possessed the bodies of civilians who might not even be dead; they made obvious swallowing motions, and huge satisfaction showed on their faces as they lifted their heads, closed their eyes, and looked blissful.

Although the blood could not truly stop a cough, when they rose with mouths full of fresh blood, that liquid was enough for them, at least for that moment.

Watching this group of civilians like "vampires", Xisi did not blame them; he merely felt the clear clean water sloshing in his waist‑bottle and, with some helplessness, withdrew his gaze.

Then, the sound of heavy‑armored boots trampling the floor came, and amid the satisfied civilians, a trigger was pulled.

The shotgun shells killed the civilians who dared such desecration; the blood that had just entered their stomachs hadn't even had time to turn into water, and they collapsed, bright red blood streaming from their necks.

When Xisi looked again, he saw only the law enforcers standing at the front, blocking the corridor view, and they again looked at him with respect.

Civilians, it seems there is no safe zone...

When Xisi returned to the Regiment's garrison near Chaodu Konggang, the veterans were conducting vigorous training with the newly arrived recruits.

The mortals who have held out until now, though the overwhelming majority are broken soldiers, still possess individual qualities far beyond the new recruits Xisi previously conscripted directly from civilians.

In just a little over ten days, they have become remarkably well‑trained.

"Regiment Commander, Lord Daiweiluo has arrived."

An officer saw Xisi and hurried to his side to report.

The soldiers wore brand‑new black fully enclosed combat suits; the 101 designation on their shoulder boards had faded, ready to be replaced at any moment with a new Star Realm Army number.

Xisi took out the supply permit retrieved from the Senate, bent over to sign it, and said:

"Daiweiluo? Did he say anything?"

The officer shook his head:

"Lord Daiweiluo did not inform."

Xisi was speechless, stood up, handed the signed supply permit to the logistics officer, and replied simply:

"Understood."

It's not that he didn't inform; Daiweiluo is too lazy to bother ordinary mortals.

Soon, when Xisi arrived at his office, a tall Astat was examining the Refined Power Armor that had been urgently repaired by the Mechanical Church.

Looking at the still obvious cracks even after repair, Daiweiluo, with his back to Xisi, let out a slight admiration:

"Lord Xisi, as a mortal, you truly earn my admiration."

Daiweiluo turned around after speaking, his face showing genuine acknowledgment.

After all, when Xisi completed the entire external campaign with near‑perfect actions and, under the eyes of all, stormed back to Heberia, Kaerjia spared no effort in promoting it.

When numerous genuine battle records were revealed, even veteran steel‑hearted warrior Daiweiluo had to admire the terrifying foes Xisi had cut down along the way.

Facing this "comrade" with many shared combat experiences, Xisi still poured him a cup of crystal‑clear water.

"Lord Daiweiluo, you probably aren't here to flatter me."

Taking the huge cup from Xisi's hand, while his own cup was tiny, Daiweiluo took a sip and then nodded:

"Lord Kaerjia demands that each Jump Brigade include at least one Astat; I have signed up for Lord Xisi's Regiment."

The normally casual Xisi was startled, stared blankly at the relaxed Daiweiluo, then his expression grew solemn:

"Welcome, old comrade."

Mortals may not know, or know little, but Daiweiluo could not be unaware of what the Jump Brigade's revenge spirit signifies.

Choosing to stand with Xisi under these circumstances fully merits Xisi's respect for him.

Seeing this, Daiweiluo casually waved his hand, finished the clear water earnestly, and then set the cup down.

"Additionally, the Military Affairs Department asked me to bring Lord Xisi his new Star Realm Army number."

He pulled a military order from his chest, and Daiweiluo placed it carefully on Xisi's desk.

Xisi looked at the newly issued order; being promoted within the Star Realm Army was not merely a change of number, but meant that as a commander he now possessed authority to command, and even fully lead, the vast majority of mortal forces worldwide.

Moreover, with Daiweiluo's request and Kaerjia's personal involvement, Xisi's initial rank was already high, allowing him to command large numbers of Star Realm Army and almost all Planetary Defense Force units at a senior rank.

Combined with direct logistical support from the Military Affairs Department, Xisi instantly shed his cannon‑fodder status in the Planetary Defense Force, becoming an elite field army of the Empire spread across the galaxy.

Of course, it also avoided having to encounter the Chicken Thieves, Chaos demons, and even the post‑rebellion cleanup of the Regiment.

Xisi let out a sigh of relief, likewise solemnly took the general's order, only skimmed it; the earlier sections were fine, but when he saw the final assigned number, his expression froze.

Daiweiluo's face showed smugness:

"After all, it was submitted by the Death Watch, and Lord Sisi's beginnings also started with cooperating with the Death Watch."

"Therefore, based on the Regiment's experience, the above formally names Lord Sisi's new number as:"

"Black Watch!"