A crimson moon hangs in the clear sky, overlooking all living beings with indifference. Under its radiance, everything is tinted with a faint red hue. The solitary griffon beats its wings lazily, standing on top of a mountain and gazing up at the moon. Packs of spotted hyenas move around, their sharp cries piercing the air and none of their prey can escape their sharp teeth. Tiny and unremarkable ants toil away, carrying back the scraps dropped by the hyenas to their underground nests to nurture the next generation and expand their colony. Inside a cave, a two-horned snake has grown small fingers that are the length of a human fingertip since it was born. Countless young snakes hide in the warmth of the burrow, growing with the yolk still inside them, waiting for the end of the freezing season and the arrival of the warm sun.
The newly joined Fan Lanting was a very capable assistant. He claimed that his strength was only above average in the melee combat reconnaissance unit, but this was just his modesty. As a reconnaissance soldier under Captain Auston, his strength should not be underestimated, although he was not as powerful as Ryan.
Auston looks at the current configuration of Ryan’s team, which includes the king of the melee combat troop, Derrick, who earned his title in the triennial Crusader’s Army tournament; Harriet, the ringing rose who is known for her agility and flexible use of weapons but lacks endurance and physical stamina; and reconnaissance soldier Fan Lanting, who performed outstandingly in battles against the Zerg. He once remained motionless in the Zerg’s nest for 26 hours, successfully delivering ammunition and destroying countless eggs. After this battle, he was awarded the second-class merit and promoted to the rank of captain.
Ryan…
Auston gazed at the man who smiled tenderly with a hint of shyness, he is a mystery!. Despite being an excellent graduate from the military academy, he became a low-level kitchen worker. He did not complain, and worked diligently in the small kitchen, while still maintaining his physical fitness during breaks, which remained at its peak. After being assigned to the Xingtian ship, he specialized in mechanical engineering, that matched his expertise. Auston had once observed him coldly, thinking he would climb higher in the field of mechanical engineering, but he unexpectedly said that he said that he would apply for the exam of mecha engineer. It turned out that he had long taken this as his goal.
When Ryan entered the mecha engineering team, he became a member of the commonly known “bottom-tier cleaning group” without his intervention. He worked tirelessly as a “cleaner” and even discovered the true essence of this work, giving a boost to the low-spirited team members. Now the cleaning group has become the team with the best morale in the entire mecha engineering department.
Those who have received guidance from Ryan can’t stop quoting him every now and then, saying things like ‘Ryan said…’ and ‘Ryan said…’ Even Arthur, who used to have an attitude towards Ryan, became Ryan’s devoted fan and got into a fight to defend him.
And then there was this Competition. Ryan will surely bring astonishment to Auston time and time again.
Auston, who seems cold and unemotional, has been quietly paying attention to Ryan’s changes and has become fascinated with his excellent abilities.
“Found it!”
Fan Lanting shouted, immediately attracting everyone’s attention, and they all gathered together.
Fan Lanting, who was lying on the ground, moved aside the dense and fallen weeds, revealing a fist-sized small hole. The hole was deep and bottomless, and he grinned, saying, “The treasure is hidden inside.”
The tracks of a two-horned snake are easy to find, but its nest is very difficult to locate. They like to stay in natural pits about 7-8 meters underground to lay eggs, hatch their young, and survive harsh winters. Without good eyesight and scouting ability, it is difficult to determine their location. Snakes do not dig out exposed nests with large and spacious passages. Their passages are small and narrow, with many twists and turns and false tunnels that conceal people’s ears.
Harriet squeezed past Fan Lanting and knelt down beside him to look into the small hole. A faint air blew out from the hole, bringing a nauseating stench. Instead of backing away, Harriet’s eyes brightened, and she laughed happily, “It’s here, it’s really stinky. Haha, we’ve finally determined the location before 10:30 pm, and we can go to bed with peace of mind. We’ll come to dig the snakes before dawn tomorrow.”
She complained, “There’s not even a folding shovel in the backpack. How can we dig without it tomorrow?”
Auston thought about the importance of equipping a folding shovel. It would increase the load while also improving the maneuverability of individual soldiers. He nodded and said, “I’ll consider it.”
Harriet “…”Damn it, I forgot about the boss.
Derrick “…” The backpack should contain a roll of duct tape, so he could seal Harriet’s mouth.
Fan Lanting “???” What’s going on?”
Only Ryan followed Auston’s train of thought. The engineering shovel used to be a kind of folding shovel that was extensively equipped by the army in the ancient Earth. After thousands of years of improvement, the modern engineering shovel has more diverse functions and is lighter in weight. Its strength, abrasion resistance, corrosion resistance, and heat resistance have been improved by leaps and bounds. A single engineering shovel now has functions of a shovel, a pickaxe, a crowbar, a saw, a knife, and even a cooking pot.
However, unlike a laser gun or a lightsaber, it does not have a strong killing power and has gradually been phased out. Only a small number of ground combatants in the entire Golden Crusade Legion are equipped with it for ground combat.
Actually, such a useful equipment could easily become standard equipment for melee personnel. While advanced weapons are important, we cannot forget the wisdom of ancient humans. In ground operations, a utility shovel is much more useful than a laser gun. Can a laser gun dig holes or fry eggs?
Ryan, “With a utility shovel, melee troops can excavate more valuable things during their missions. Instead of complaining about the taste of nutrient packs and compressed food, they can use the utility shovel to cook for themselves.”
Auston nodded. “Indeed, I neglected the use of ancient weapons. We should not only focus on updating modern weapons, but also explore valuable things in history. Knowledge accumulated over thousands of years is the crystallization of human wisdom. Harriet’s suggestion is excellent, and practice makes perfect.”
Harriet wanted to cry. She wished she could go back a few minutes and strangle herself to death before speaking up.
Derrick was tired and didn’t want to talk.
Fan Lanting: “???” Hey, the new team is a bit strange, always saying things that I don’t understand. Why is the atmosphere always weird?
After placing a hidden mark at the snake lair, the group headed towards Yiyi Lake, which was a twenty-minute journey from there. The second and minute hands continued to move, advancing the time forward to the coldest part of the night on the Ice grassland. Ryan raised his hand to check the real-time temperature on his personal terminal, which showed minus 28 degrees, and the temperature was still dropping. Everything on the grassland seemed frozen, with a frosty color covering everything, even the moonlight appeared to have become solid.
The grass blades became fragile, and countless green branches and leaves broke as they walked, emitting the sound of thin ice crystals breaking. The group all wore face masks, wrapped their hats, and tied their collars, cuffs, and pants tightly. There was a layer of silicone film on the front edge of the hat that could be pulled down to cover their eyes; otherwise, their eyes would be exposed to the continuously cooling air, which could be prone to frostbite.
Their footsteps were very fast, and in half the time, they arrived at Yiyi Lake. At this moment, the real-time temperature had dropped to minus 31 degrees, and the coldest two hours of the night were about to arrive. The shivering cold wind of minus 40 degrees was blowing, and it was a time when many nocturnal beasts dare not act at will.
Upon reaching the lake, Ryan and the others immediately started a campfire without any chatter. After using torches to dry the ground, they lay down to rest. Their combat uniforms were made of materials that allowed them to move freely and sleep in the range of minus 100 degrees to plus 100 degrees, essentially functioning as a sleeping bag.
Ryan and Auston slept on the left side of the campfire, and the other three people slept on the right side. A thin layer of ice had already condensed on the surface of the calmly flowing lake beside them.
Facing the other three people, Ryan naturally lay behind Auston, letting him fall asleep in the warmer position by the campfire. Humans are visual animals, and watching the fire always feels warmer and more comfortable. Ryan didn’t do anything out of the ordinary, but he couldn’t bear the jealousy in his heart and quietly supported Auston’s lower back with his hand. In the quiet environment, he thought of Sierra, and how Sierra was Auston’s exclusive engineer, and how the two had spent six years together. The jealousy made him grit his teeth, and this restless arm had its own will and gradually wrapped around Auston’s waist, holding him a little tight… When Ryan regained some rationality, it was already like this, so he decided to pretend to be asleep.
“Ryan,” Auston called softly.
Ryan, whose little trick had been exposed, blushed and didn’t let go of his grip, hugged him even tighter. He leaned over and kissed Auston on the back of his head through his hat and said, “Goodnight, baby.”
Hearing the affectionate nickname, Auston’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. Not good at dealing with emotions, his limbs stiffened and his breathing became irregular. Two clusters of crimson uncontrollably rose to his cheeks. Perhaps it was because he was in a different environment and there were people around him, he was more overwhelmed than usual.
What should he do now?
All the books he read taught him how to be an excellent leader, how to be a general that meets the needs of the empire and the desires of the people, and how to become an excellent soldier.
There was no course or book that taught him how to publicly fall in love, he doesn’t even know how to fall in love at home.
Feeling the awkwardness and stiffness from Auston, Ryan’s face turned red too, and his breath became hot. Why did he have to say intimate words in front of their companions? This was totally out of character for his shy personality. It was all because of jealousy, making him want to declare sovereignty to the heavens and earth.
The two of them remained motionless and silent, but the temperature around them kept rising, even more intense than the fire.
Harriet covered her face and screamed in her mind, Ahhhhh!
Derrick :”….” Pretend to be nonexistent, Pretend to be nonexistent… Shouldn’t the passionate one supposed to be me? Ryan Smith, you stole my character!
Fan Lanting, who had his eyes closed but his ears perked up, “???” Why is my mind full of question marks again? This isn’t logical.
The two of them snuggled together, how could they fall asleep now? If they didn’t say anything to break the weird atmosphere, who knew where the plot would lead. Besides, doing anything inappropriate in the wilderness was forbidden. Ryan cleared his throat, and the people on the other side of the fire perked up their ears. Would they hear more lovey-dovey words?
Hehe, No way. Ryan won’t give them the chance.
His fingers found Auston’s hand and gently tapped on the back of it, dot, dash, dot, dash, pause… This was Morse code of the ancient Earth, a signal code that had been obsolete in the military for a long time but was famous in another field. It was used by the protagonist in a novel written by his cousin Connor to express love. Connor, who had a large number of fans, easily started a trend, and now young people all over were expressing their emotions with “.. .-.. — …- . -.– — ..-” in Morse code.
Ryan: I love you.
Auston moved uncomfortably, then after a while tapped back: I love you too.
His speed was very slow, as if struggling with a shy whisper.
Encouraged, Ryan grinned silently and continued his efforts: Shall we talk for a while?
Austin stubbornly replied: Soldier, you are on a mission.
Ryan fidgeted with frustration: I know, but I can’t sleep. All I can think of is you, your voice, your scent, your warmth…
After finishing the Morse code message, Ryan’s body temperature rose again. He was embarrassed yet sincere in his feelings.
Auston breathed out and then awkwardly moved his hand to tap on Ryan’s hand, “Soldier, mind the occasion!”
Ryan sighed loudly in response.
Auston felt guilty. Could he have hurt Ryan’s feelings….? He tapped slowly and gently on Ryan’s hand, “Now is not the time.”
Ryan responded with a gentle kiss on the back of his head.
If the onlookers’ brainwaves could connect, it would have looked like a bunch of garbled characters.
Harriet: Ahhh, what are they doing? I really want to know. Should I open my eyes and take a peek, just one peek?
Derrick: Uh-oh, this is bad. Having seen what love looks like, I don’t want to get married even more.
Fan Lanting: Ryan is strong enough to flirt during the mission. Haha, I like it. Hahaha, I’m finally not a question mark anymore, hahaha…
On the left side of the campfire, Auston was so embarrassed that he reached out and angrily pinched Ryan’s leg. He was glad that he was wearing a mask, otherwise it would be too embarrassing, shameful…
Ryan: “Hiss.”
It hurt so much, still he wanted Auston to touch it….
Ryan, you need to have some self-control!!!
This time, Auston coughed and made Harriet, who was struggling to open her eyes, Derrick, who was tangled in his mind, and Fan Lanting, who had his ears pricked up, remained speechless and motionless.
Fan Lanting: “????” Today he couldn’t get past the question mark. The cough just now gave him a feeling of Deja vu, but he couldn’t remember where he had felt it before.
Auston, who had just coughed, completely forgot about his lethality. He grabbed Ryan’s hand and lightly tapped on it: “I’ll tell you about Sierra.”
Recognizing that Auston was deliberately changing the subject, Ryan reluctantly agreed, “Okay.”
Auston began to continuously make dots and lines.
In fact, the process was lackluster, and Auston even forgot many details. Looking back, it was dry and had no extra color.
Six years ago, after another cruise, Auston came to the Imperial capital planet to attend a meeting, and visited the Imperial Mecha Research Institute with several other generals after the meeting.
Mecha, as the cutting-edge scientific research and the highest threshold of the national military strength of an entire country, was a top priority for attention from the Imperial Head of State to ordinary citizens. In order to enhance the country’s military strength, the overall strength of the military, and its applications in various fields, the Empire’s investment of resources, funds, and materials in the Mecha Research Institute was unprecedented, especially for the Imperial Mecha Research Institute in the center of the capital planet.
Every time military leaders from various regions gather on the central star, they always request to visit the mecha research institute, to take a look at those treasures under construction, as if a few more glances could equip their own armies with them.
Auston was equally passionate about mechas. He had long wanted to expand the mecha lineup of the Golden Crusade Legion. During one of his visits, he met Sierra, who was serving as the commentator at the time.
Sierra was wearing…
Ryan interrupted Auston teasingly, “You actually remember what he was wearing? Didn’t you say you forgot many details?”
Auston replied, “He was wearing a uniform, but obviously much thinner and the uniform looked like it was hanging on a wooden rack.”
Ryan: Indeed, he is very thin.
Auston didn’t know why he breathed a sigh of relief. Ryan’s jealousy was hard to resist, but he continued to reminisce.
It didn’t matter what Sierra wore. What was important was his commentary, which was on point and took into account that the generals were not experts in the field, so it was easy to understand. After the visit, they had lunch at the research institute, and Sierra sat next to Auston with his plate, taking the initiative to ask about interesting things about the cruise and talking about the vastness of the universe.
Auston’s life was simple, and he had nothing interesting to share, but didn’t know why, Sierra listened to it with gusto.
In the afternoon, the generals could personally try out the latest biomechanical mechas. The mechas and the drivers’ frequencies rose by eight percentage points, reaching 96.8%, which was a qualitative leap and a perfect embodiment of the will of Emperor Qin Feng Anderson inherited by Master McAryan.
The moment Auston boarded Number Zero, he was trembling all over, and the trembling in his soul made him uncontrollably raise his hands, kick his legs, do front flips and backflips… The difficulty of his movements increased, and he and Number Zero were perfectly integrated. He was the most perfect one among all the test drivers present.
He confirmed that Number Zero should belong to him.
After leaving the research institute, Auston reported to the Military Commission, requesting the ownership of Number Zero. After multiple approvals, rejections, and re-applications, he finally obtained Number Zero and named it Code Zero.
Auston tapped out Morse code: Sierra contributed a lot in my process of obtaining Code Zero, and when he offered to follow me to the Xingtian battleship, I agreed. I didn’t expect him to have feelings for me. When he first proposed, I clearly rejected him. The second time he asked, I told him my genetic sequence is X, but Sierra didn’t care. He pursued true love, not reproduction, and didn’t care about genetic sequences. Later he confessed many times, and I refused every time, until a few days ago when he saw the moon rose you gave me.”
Ryan: I see, he’s very persistent.
Holy sh*t! Ryan couldn’t help but swear. The arrival of the Code Zero actually had the hand of Sierra. That means he must design and manufacture a more excellent mecha than Code Zero, so that Auston could dominate the battlefield while piloting it.
Auston: I’ll talk to Sierra again after the battle is over.
Ryan: It’s useless, he’s a persistent person. He still clings to you even after you rejected him so many times. Don’t worry, I’ll let Sierra know that he’s not worthy.
So what if he is as good as him, there are still people who are better than him in the world, only the best can stand beside Auston and stand shoulder to shoulder with Auston..
Auston smiled: Okay
He will wait expectantly.
After their conversation, their bodies had returned to normal temperature. It was getting late and they should be sleeping. While Auston and Ryan fell asleep, the three others by the fire on the right were carrying various activities in their minds. Eventually, it was only after Derrick who sat up and gave them all a nod that they stabilized their emotions.
As well-trained soldiers, learning to quickly enter a state of sleep was also part of their training. Once they regained inner calm, they quickly fell asleep.
When they opened their eyes again, it was exactly 4:30 in the morning. The sun had not yet risen and the crimson moon hung high in the sky. The awakened group quickly washed up, ate a few bites of nutrient supplement to satisfy their hunger and prepared to set off for the lair.
When they set off, Ryan led them into the forest and found two shovels under a tree that looks no different from the other trees.
Derrick, Harriet and Fan Lanting: “…”
If it weren’t for their trust in Ryan’s character, they would have suspected that he had hidden the shovels there in advance.
It was impossible to hide things, as the military regulations on the ship were not just for decorations.
Ryan: “The shovels were left here by the old hunters, and we have to return them when we’re done using them.”
Fan Lanting asked, “you also went to the old hunters?”
Ryan nodded, “Yes.”
Fan Lanting: “Why do all the old hunters I approach remain tight-lipped and unwilling to share any information with me?!” After much persuasion, he managed to obtain some topographical maps.
Ryan said : “Perhaps I am more friendly.”
Fan Lanting protested, ‘I also worked very hard to express my kindness.”
Harriet sniped, “Ryan is handsome. What about you?”
Fan Lanting: “….” Speechless. He was good-looking, but compared to Ryan, he was not in the same league.
Forget it, there will always be someone better, he decided to give himself a way out.
The group of five went to the snake lair and quickly got to work after finding the marks. With the right tools at hand, they could get twice the result with half the effort. The four of them took turns using the shovels to dig holes. During the process, Fan Lanting looked over at Ryan’s partner, who was standing to the side like a Supervisor, and then quickly averted his gaze without saying anything. If Ryan was willing to do more work for his partner and make things easier for him, then he had no business saying anything.
When they had dug almost to the top of the snake’s lair, a line of daylight had already appeared in the far east, indicating that it was almost dawn.
The five of them stood on a specially marked spot. Ryan plunged his shovel into the ground and said in a low voice, “I (inserted) it in.”
The others nodded as they watched Ryan use his shovel to break through the top of the nest, revealing a hole the size of a watermelon. The stench of the cave and the sound of squirming snakes filled their ears without any obstruction. The one who couldn’t stand it the most was Derrick, who gritted his teeth and silently rubbed his arms.
The process was too hard to describe, but the harvest was great. They worked from morning until three in the afternoon and had a few mouthfuls of nutrient supplement for lunch at noon.
The young two-horned snakes that hatched after spending a long winter had horns that were only as big as a section of a little finger. The backpacks they carried had more than 2500 pairs of horns, but they hardly took up any space. Their backpacks used super-nano technology and could expand as needed. However, the things stored inside did not reduce the weight, and the collection task was actually a disguised weight-bearing task.
The large pit that they dug has already been filled back in, as the old hunter mentioned that the natural cave below can be reused. In the near future, a new batch of two-horned snakes will come here to lay eggs and new baby snakes will appear.
The grass cannot be replanted in the filled-in pit, so a few people sat in a circle next to the bare pit, sharing the spoils.
“You don’t need to prepare mine,” Auston saw that Derrick and the others were dividing up the snake horns, including his own share, so he hurriedly stopped him.
Derrick looked at the general and received a positive answer from those calm black eyes, so he silently took back the share he had distributed and divided it into four small portions, equally among the four.
Fan Lanting, who didn’t understand the situation, raised his eyebrows, a little confused about the role of Ryan’s partner in the team.
Translator’s little theatre:
At night, camping in the wilderness
Baby Ryan (hugging his wife) : Why does it seem like there is too much light in here?🤔
Shy General : It’s because the lights bulbs are glowing 😳
The glowing Light bulbs (Derrick, Harriet & Fan Lanting) : 😵🤭🤪
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Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152
Please Harriet reaction is exactly mine!! They’re too cute I be fighting not to open my eyes and peek at them.