Chapter 104: The Seed of Bloodline

A sudden roar echoed inside the airship: “Get out of the way! Let me do it!”

Wei Po Tian shoved the gunner aside, took the shooting position himself, and adjusted the cannon’s aim at a fleeing major. The gunner had missed twice in a row, which infuriated Wei Po Tian. He had his eyes on this man from the beginning, how could he let him escape so easily?

However, Wei Po Tian’s shot was even further off target. The ground below was covered in smoke and flames, and in the deepening night, the vision was distorted. The major disappeared in a blink, leaving Wei Po Tian fuming with rage as he pounded his leg.

The airship was virtually invincible in this battlefield, its thick armor impervious to even the fiercest attacks. It hovered in the sky, its guns continuously roaring, delivering a one-sided slaughter to the expeditionary forces below.

As the expeditionary forces fled in panic, Wei Po Tian grabbed a nearby attendant and bellowed, “Capture them all! Don’t let a single one escape, do you hear me?!”

The attendant gave a wry smile, “Young Master, we only have a hundred men, and we still need to guard the airship.”

Wei Po Tian snorted. Seeing the chaos below, his anger cooled slightly, and he knew it was impossible for a hundred men to catch thousands of fleeing soldiers. “Then capture as many as you can, and focus on the officers!”

“Yes, Sir!”

At Wei Po Tian’s command, the airship began to descend rapidly. When it was about a hundred meters above the ground, Wei’s elite guards each grasped a descent rope and leaped out. They released their ropes at twenty to thirty meters, landing in a roll to absorb the impact, then sprang up and chased after the fleeing soldiers.

Qian Ye stood on the town wall, signaling his troops to regroup. His soldiers were utterly exhausted, with no energy left to pursue. If any of them foolishly chased after, they might be annihilated.

The airship slowed its descent and finally hovered fifty meters above the ground. Wei Po Tian leaped out of the ship, landing with a thunderous thud that seemed to shake the town walls. Through the billowing dust, a flash of yellow light appeared, and Wei Po Tian nonchalantly rose, striding towards Qian Ye.

For a moment, both inside and outside the town, everyone was awestruck by Wei Po Tian’s formidable presence, except for Qian Ye. His nerves, taut for a day and a night, suddenly relaxed, and he almost laughed. With his night vision, he saw that Wei Po Tian’s face was abnormally pale; fifty meters was quite a drop for someone who couldn’t fly.

From afar, Wei Po Tian yelled, “Qian Ye, are you alright?!”

Qian Ye leaped down from the wall, “If you’re fine, how could I not be?”

Wei Po Tian felt a bit guilty, but he quickly recovered and walked up to Qian Ye, giving him a once-over, “Look at your face, and all these injuries. How can you say you’re fine?”

“If you had arrived a day earlier, none of this would have happened.”

Wei Po Tian ruffled his messy hair, “How could I have known? To arrive on time, well, that’s… expected.” He spoke with a hint of shame; in reality, he was nearly two hours late.

Qian Ye’s cold expression melted like snow under the sun, and he smiled, “If I hadn’t known you were coming, I wouldn’t have lasted this long!”

“True brothers!” Wei Po Tian pounced on Qian Ye, giving him a hearty bear hug.

A Wei family guard emerged from the shadows, “Young Master, we’ve captured some alive. Do you want to see them?”

Wei Po Tian’s face turned murderous, “Good! I want to see who has the nerve to mess with my brother!”

Soon, several lieutenants were pushed before Wei Po Tian, the highest-ranking being a captain.

Wei Po Tian was surprised by the number and rank, “Just these few? Where are the higher-ranking officers? Don’t tell me there are several battalions here without a single major! Are you telling me you can’t even capture a single expeditionary officer?”

The guard gave a wry smile, “Young Master, I asked them, and they said the officer casualties over the last two days were particularly high. The losses among the majors exceeded two-thirds. So, to capture these is already quite an achievement.”

“Two-thirds!” Wei Po Tian was shocked. He had been in battle and knew such losses meant one side had a devastating single combat capability.

The guard glanced at Qian Ye, his eyes showing a hint of respect, “I heard that most of them fell at the hands of your friend here, Young Master.”

Wei Po Tian looked at Qian Ye, exclaiming, “Well done, kid! You’re even better than me!”

Qian Ye merely glanced back, his expression clearly saying, “Of course, isn’t that normal?” Feeling belittled, Wei Po Tian started boasting about his own accomplishments.

Qian Ye smiled, listening quietly. Even on a blood-soaked battlefield, the presence of this often frivolous Wei family heir made him feel more at ease.

After his boasting, Wei Po Tian approached the captives, his smile gone. The prisoners were forced to kneel in a row.

Wei Po Tian walked from left to right, then back, stopping before a defiant, bearded captain.

The officer was a hardy one. Before Wei Po Tian could speak, he spat a mouthful of bloody phlegm, “This is the territory of the expeditionary force, and I am an active officer! Whether you’re from the Wei family or some other high noble house, I advise you not to mess around in the Evernight Continent. This isn’t a place for children’s games!”

Wei Po Tian crossed his arms, listened calmly, then nodded, “You make a good point.” Then he barked, “Men, execute this one!”

A guard immediately stepped forward, drew his pistol, and pointed it at the captain’s head. Seeing Wei Po Tian nod, he pulled the trigger. The captain’s head exploded, splattering brain matter and blood. The prisoners stirred, then fell silent.

Wei Po Tian, still expressionless, moved to the next officer, a lieutenant.

The lieutenant blurted, “I’ll talk! I’ll tell everything!”

“I don’t want to hear it!” Wei Po Tian said coldly, making a gesture for the next prisoner.

The guard stepped forward and shot the lieutenant.

Wei Po Tian skipped a few, stopping before a young second lieutenant, staring at him for a while before slowly saying, “Your rank in the expeditionary force means nothing to me. It’s just a scarecrow for children.”

The young second lieutenant’s face turned pale, his teeth chattering, fearing for his life.

Wei Po Tian finally said, “Tell me, what happened tonight?”

The second lieutenant spilled everything he knew, which wasn’t much. The real purpose of the attack on the mine within the 10th Division’s jurisdiction was never conveyed to his level. The most useful information he provided was the unit designations, the mobilization times, and the official reasons for the action.

Wei Po Tian nodded, then pointed to another officer who kept making eye contact with the second lieutenant, “I don’t like this one either. Kill him.”

The guard stepped forward and shot him.

Now, all the expeditionary officers cowered in silence, not daring to move.

Qian Ye watched from the side, seeing Wei Po Tian’s ruthless and decisive side for the first time. This carefree yet pure-hearted Wei family heir was not just talented; he was also well-versed in worldly affairs.

After dealing with the prisoners, the guards returned from chasing the stragglers. Wei Po Tian assigned them to clean up the battlefield and tend to the wounded, while he and Qian Ye surveyed the area. Upon seeing the surviving young seeds, especially the Wu siblings, one of the Wei family elders accompanying them showed surprise.

Once Wei Po Tian and Qian Ye left the seedlings’ area, the elder said, “These aren’t ordinary seeds! No wonder Wu Zheng Nan risked everything to ensure they didn’t survive.”

Wei Po Tian was curious, “Seeds come in different types?”

The elder stroked his beard, “Young Master, look at these seeds. There are several frontline soldiers among them. But more importantly, if my eyes haven’t failed me, these youths have different glows of origin power, indicating varied abilities. Being chosen as seeds means they naturally developed these abilities after igniting their nodes, not through secret techniques. These are bloodline seeds!”

“Bloodline seeds? So many?” Wei Po Tian understood, glancing at Qian Ye, who might not know about the deeper secrets of origin power, and explained briefly.

Bloodline seeds, regardless of their initial power, can be enhanced through dark race methods, shortening their growth cycles and selecting for stronger bloodlines. In a few centuries, a new subspecies with unique abilities might emerge.

Thus, bloodline seeds are far more valuable than ordinary seeds or slaves. A caravan with one or two is already considered significant. Having a dozen young ones is quite rare.

The elder added, “These seeds are hard to obtain. Wu Zheng Nan, with his limited resources, likely couldn’t gather so many. Perhaps several neighboring divisions were involved. From our intelligence, the value of the goods traded to Wu Zheng Nan seems too low. I suspect there’s a hidden agreement between them.”

Wei Po Tian commanded, “Investigate! Find out what that agreement is, no matter what!”

“Young Master, this…” The elder hesitated, glancing at Qian Ye.