Tang Fei glanced at the old man. Conjuring friends out of thin air?
Whatever topic men might be discussing, if they start with that phrase, it’s likely about themselves...
Tang Fei suspected the old man was spinning another tale. If it really were just a story, he would leave without looking back and never trust him again.
He had listened to his two stories, and he did not want to listen to a third...
"From a very young age, his dream was to become a General."
"I was the opposite of him; I was afraid of death, afraid of bleeding, and didn’t dare to go into battle and fight, so I wanted to work behind the scenes, designing Intelligent Armor or weapons to help him in his battles..."
"We both had made a promise early on, striving toward that goal. He battled through the bloodshed at the front, and I backed him up by crafting the most powerful military weapons and Mecha."
"He was a Martial Arts prodigy, entering the Grandmaster Realm at a young age, the youngest Grandmaster in the history of the Phoenix Empire, and the man most likely to reach the peak of Martial Arts and become a Great Grandmaster... those so-called March Seven Stars are no match for him, they aren’t even worthy to carry his boots..."
"Back then, New Star was rather unstable, with frequent wars erupting between nations, especially as our nation and the Aus Empire fought to the death over resources and land. On several occasions, a nationwide mobilization order was issued..."
"In such troubled times, heroes emerge. My friend started as an ordinary Mechanical Soldier and quickly became the commander of a Mechanical Camp, leading them to numerous extraordinary military feats, achieving one military miracle after another..."
"His rise through the ranks was incredibly fast. Taking command of a division, then an army, he became the Grand Marshal of the Empire before he turned forty... Second to none, above tens of thousands..."
"Although he came from a noble family, he didn’t carry any of the arrogance or pretense of those high-born young masters. He was as close to every soldier as brothers... Always leading the charge in battle, always the last to retreat..."
"He never once abandoned any of his comrades, always telling them, you are your parents’ child, the parents of your own children... The General is human, you are human, the General has a family, and you have one too..."
"Such actions are actually quite foolish, for the battlefield is ever-changing. A moment’s neglect could land oneself in grave danger. Yet, it was this ’foolishness’ he persisted in for decades, and he saved countless lives... No matter where he was in command, the soldiers adored him, proud and honored to be his troops..."
"My wife was a medical soldier. During one rescue mission to the front line, their medical chopper was intercepted by Aus Empire forces. All the medics were captured..."
Tang Fei looked at the old man with surprise and asked, "You were married?"
The old man had never mentioned his family, let alone his marital status.
Tang Fei had also asked the old man where he came from, and he said from a faraway place.
At that time, Tang Fei didn’t quite grasp the concept of ’faraway,’ thinking Lingyang City was already distant enough.
Without answering Tang Fei’s question, the old man seemed completely immersed in reminiscing, solemnly saying, "Everyone knew, given the hostile relations between the two countries at that time, falling into the hands of soldiers from the Aus Empire meant those medics had a slim chance of survival... It was likely they would suffer inhuman torture and humiliation and wish for death..."
"Upon hearing this, he led his Mechanical Camp in pursuit, slaughtering the Aus Empire forces, which outnumbered his own, and completely rescued the medical team..."
"I asked him why he did this. He said that as the commander of the camp, it was an extremely risky and irrational act. But as my brother, he couldn’t stand by and watch a brother’s family fall into enemy hands and be destroyed without doing anything..."
"If there was nothing to be done, then that would be it. But to watch indifferently out of concern for one’s own safety when something could be done would haunt him for life..."
"Back then, I was just a mechanic in the equipment department. I thought I didn’t need to go to battle, so there was no need to practice or learn those boring Ancient Martial Body Techniques... It wasn’t until then that I realized how insignificant and vulnerable I was..."
"There was another incident where a batch of supplies from the equipment department had issues. Weapons intended for our Imperial Army somehow appeared on the black market and were first used by Galaxy Mercenary Army... The Military Department was furious and began to investigate who had sold the supplies... And after all the searching, it came back to me, my signature on all the sales lists..."
"I was arrested, and with the evidence and those signatures... all accusations pointed toward me, privately trafficking Military Weapons during wartime was a capital offense. Awaiting me was only the death sentence. The trial verdict came swiftly, and three months later, I was to be executed by injection..."
"In such a critical moment, my family couldn’t stand up for me to avoid suspicion and for their own protection... Because at that time, people didn’t believe it was just me, but considered it to be the collective act of our family..."