Abby frowned in confusion. "Why are these Tacet Discords imitating the Jinzhou Riverside Games from ten years ago?"
Jiyan sighed. "All of this... must be connected to that temporary squad."
"I rarely speak of this, but ten years ago, I was also a member of that temporary squad. At the time—"
Before Jiyan could finish, the sound of a tolling bell echoed through the space, its origin unknown.
Jiyan: "That's the sound from the Plaza... Let's go in and take a look."
With that, Jiyan took the lead, stepping deeper inside.
Lucian took a playful nip at Rover's neck before holding her delicate hand and following along.
As they ventured further, they saw a city in the distance turned upside down, as if the entire space had been inverted.
Countless indistinct silhouettes flickered at the edges of their vision, their presence fleeting—
But unfortunately, these were nothing more than lingering memories, impossible to communicate with.
"What's going on with Command? Sending a bunch of rookies as reinforcements!"
"These kids have barely seen battle—how are they supposed to handle this?"
"Could it be... have the other defensive lines been breached? Is there no one else left?"
Judging by the uniforms resembling those of the Midnight Rangers and the words they left behind, these were the memories of soldiers from the battlefield.
"Could this also be a memory from ten years ago?" Lucian wondered aloud.
Jiyan's expression turned solemn as he gave a slight nod. "Correct. The Tacet Discords have devoured the frequencies of the fallen, absorbing these memories."
"At the time, multiple defensive lines were attacked simultaneously. We were severely undermanned, and the situation was dire. We had no choice but to send in fresh recruits as reinforcements."
"Many of them... never returned."
As he spoke, Jiyan's expression grew heavier. Back then, he had been one of those recruits.
"That kid really is the best of the new recruits... but he's only been on the battlefield a handful of times..."
"The commander actually handed our unit's authority to him before leaving? Can he really handle it?"
"Retreat or hold... what will he choose?"
"There's no choice! If we retreat any further, we'll be at Jinzhou City's gates! Holding the line is the only way to buy more time... but who stays? How do we hold? These are all problems!"
"Whoever stays behind to defend... probably won't make it back."
"If we really have to hold this line with our lives, I'll stay. Otherwise, the pressure on the rear will only grow worse!"
"But can he really make such a decisive call?"
Though the words never explicitly stated it, it wasn't hard to deduce—the one who had taken command back then was none other than Jiyan!
And this battle was none other than the Battle Beneath the Crescent—what happened afterward was something Lucian and the others already knew.
Lucian recalled the scenes from the northern campaign. "To save as many as possible, the defensive line had to be held at all costs. That's why the Desorock Highland never fell."
Jiyan gave a slight nod but said nothing further, continuing onward instead.
Clearly, everything they encountered in this domain was stirring up memories of that battle from years ago.
The group soon arrived in a mist-covered area, where faint silhouettes flickered as if calling for help.
"Save me... Don't come closer... Help..."
But in an instant, these pleading figures dissipated.
The next moment, a large number of Tacet Discords emerged from the mist. However, with the combined efforts of the group, these remnants didn't last long before being wiped out.
Standing in the mist, Jiyan sighed. "We won that battle in the end... but the losses were severe."
"Everyone lost something... something that couldn't be measured by the outcome of a single battle."
"This space... might have been constructed from the Reverberations they left behind."
Lucian frowned. "But as we've been moving forward, the Tacet Discords have been imitating the soldiers from back then..."
Jiyan nodded slightly. "The Tacet Discords have been merging with their frequencies, gradually convincing themselves that they are the Midnight Rangers... repeating the events from their memories day after day."
"However, I believe that deep within their frequencies, they're still subconsciously resisting the Tacet Discords."
Abby clapped his hands together. "I get it! So these Midnight Rangers' frequencies must still retain a bit of subconsciousness, right? After all, they probably didn't want to become Tacet Discords either..."
Lucian patted Abby's head. "See, spending time with smart people really does make you smarter."
Abby: "?"
"Are you complimenting me or yourself here?"
Rover mused, "The bell led us here... Could it be calling for help?"
Jiyan nodded. "I believe so. The tolling... must be their way of guiding us."
Abby scratched his head in confusion. "But this happened ten years ago. Why are they only calling for help now?"
Lucian shook his head. "Turns out, even if being around smart people boosts your IQ, there's still a limit."
Abby bristled. "What's that supposed to mean?!"
Lucian shrugged. "The Riverside Games back then had a temporary squad, and this year's Riverside Games are the same."
"These silhouettes must have been drawn to the similarities between the two scenarios."
Rover nodded thoughtfully. "Lucian's IQ really is much higher than Abby's."
Abby: "???"
The group pressed onward, and the space inverted once more—this time, they found themselves standing on what seemed to be the ceiling.
Lucian sighed dramatically. "Science no longer exists."
Rover smirked. "The end of metaphysics is science. Let's go down!"
With that, everyone leaped down from above. The chaotic cries for help filled the entire space.
A Tempest Mephis blocked their path.
Lucian yawned, slipped a comical eyepatch onto Jiyan's face, and then pushed Jiao-Jiao forward. "Jiao-Jiao, I choose you! Use Divine Dragon's Tail! Let's finish this quickly!"
Jiao-Jiao: "?"
Jiao-Jiao glanced back and saw the ridiculous eyepatch firmly covering Jiyan's eyes. She sighed. "Rover really has spoiled you rotten."
In the next instant, Jiao-Jiao transformed into Jué—and with a single strike, she obliterated the Tempest Mephis.
A bewildered Jiyan regained his vision only to find that nothing seemed to have happened at all.
Jiyan: "..."
He gave Jiao-Jiao a strange look. No wonder Mr. Lucian keeps her by his side—she's a weapon of mass destruction...
If only I could've seen how this little girl fought, maybe I could've learned something...
To eliminate a Overlord-class Tacet Discord in the blink of an eye... How intriguing...
Lucian nodded in satisfaction. "As expected of my—"
Jiao-Jiao narrowed her eyes. If Lucian dared to say something inappropriate, she'd smack him over the head in the next second.
Lucian chuckled awkwardly before declaring loudly, "Haha... As expected of my best partner!"
Jiao-Jiao tilted her head thoughtfully. "Partner...?"
"That word... feels nice."
Rover nodded in agreement. "Yeah, partner."
She clapped her hands together. "Alright, the Tacet Discords are dealt with. Let's get out of here."
Jiyan nodded. "The situation here has already exceeded our current understanding. The Waveworn Phenomenon is still evolving."
"I've recorded the frequency samples of this place with the terminal. For now, we should head to the Huaxu Academy."
As the group exited the Sonoro Sphere, Lucian stretched lazily under the open sky and let out a playful shout. "Yahoo! From now on, let's leave the fighting to Jiao-Jiao—we'll be Jiao-Jiao's Commanders!"
But no one responded. Rover poked Lucian's side.
Confused, Lucian looked ahead—only to see Jinhsi, Changli, and Sanhua staring at him with unreadable expressions.
Lucian: "?"