101: Chapter 101 I'll come see you again when I have time

A week passed in the blink of an eye. Chen Mo, now fully recovered, stood in front of the medical department and stretched.

The offensive from Baiye City had been repelled—or rather, the faction known as Baiye City no longer existed from this point on.

Venerable Bai Ye's erroneous decision had completely doomed the future of Baiye City. He was meticulous by nature, but he had overlooked the characteristic of the Great Xia people: when one side is in trouble, support comes from all directions.

Commander Shen remained missing, though no one was worried about the safety of an Eighth-Grade Martial King.

This attack had caused some losses to Luofeng Fortress, but fortunately, the casualties were not severe, and the financial losses were acceptable.

"Chen Mo, do you have a moment?"

Zhang Lianqi walked up beside Chen Mo and asked in a calm tone.

"What is it, Captain Zhang?"

"Why do you have time to come to the medical department?"

Chen Mo paused for a moment. Shouldn't this Scout Squad captain still be in the Abyss handling the aftermath?

"I found three letters at my father's place. One of them is explicitly addressed to you."

"There are three in total: one addressed to 'My Son,' one to 'Big Brother,' and one to 'My Friend Chen Mo.'"

No sorrow could be seen on Zhang Lianqi's face, but Chen Mo could still see deep pain within his dark eyes.

"Also, my father has already been buried. It's a cenotaph."

"He was buried right next to his brothers from his former Scout Squad."

"..."

Chen Mo took the envelope. Seeing the somewhat messy handwriting, he realized this letter was written by Old Zhang just before he decided to make his move that day.

A final letter...

"Captain Zhang, I would like to pay my respects to Old Zhang."

Chen Mo tucked the letter into his pocket and looked down at Zhang Lianqi.

"Of course. My father liked you very much, and today is the seventh day after his passing. It would be good for you to go see him."

Zhang Lianqi nodded and prepared to take Chen Mo to pay his respects to Old Zhang.

"Wait a moment, I need to prepare some things."

Chen Mo didn't follow immediately; instead, he turned and headed toward the Cooking Squad.

Zhang Lianqi opened his mouth; he seemed to have guessed what Chen Mo wanted to do.

Before long, Chen Mo walked out carrying a metal lunchbox in his right hand and holding a black plastic bag in his left.

"Let's go."

Zhang Lianqi didn't ask what Chen Mo had prepared; he still had that much tacit understanding.

Soon, the two walked into the somewhat desolate Martyrs' Cemetery.

Old Zhang's tombstone, inscribed with 'Zhang Youfu,' was quite conspicuous, as it was the newest one in the entire Martyrs' Cemetery.

Zhang Lianqi didn't disturb Chen Mo, simply standing in the distance watching as Chen Mo sat right down on Old Zhang's grave.

"Old Zhang."

"You and I met on the train. You were trying to trick me back then."

"Forget it, what's the point of saying all that?"

"I came to see you today. I might not be able to come again in the future."

After saying that, Chen Mo opened the metal lunchbox, revealing the steaming stir-fried pork and braised pork belly inside.

"You loved these two dishes, so I went and made them for you."

"And this wine."

He opened the black plastic bag, which was filled with cheap, bagged rice wine.

"Eighty cents a bag. Even if you hadn't died in battle, you would have drunk yourself to death."

"But you liked it, so I prepared it for you."

Finally, Chen Mo took out a small metal box containing a clump of golden tobacco.

"Lastly, here is the Toad Tobacco."

"I don't know how to smoke, so you'll have to smoke it yourself..."

Lighting three hand-rolled cigarettes to serve as incense, Chen Mo sat on Old Zhang's grave and opened his final letter.

The content was very simple, but after reading the letter, Chen Mo felt a deep sense of discomfort in his heart.

'My friend Chen Mo, by the time you see this letter, I should have already completed my glorious end and gone below to find my brothers.'

'Do not be sad, do not hesitate. With your talent, you will surely reach the pinnacle in the end.'

'This is my mission. I died long ago in that moment of cowardice; right now, I am merely fulfilling the duty I failed to uphold back then.'

'Your stir-fried pork and braised pork belly were delicious. If it were possible, make them for me one more time.'

'To have met you, a friend across generations, in the final leg of my life can be considered a stroke of good fortune for this old man.'

'Finally, cherish those around you. Never be a coward, and never do anything that you will regret.'

His throat felt as if it were being churned by a dull blade. The sound he made was hoarse and broken, no different from the sound Old Zhang had made before he vanished.

"You old bastard, even after dying, you still have to make me feel terrible."

Chen Mo took a deep breath, carefully folded the letter, and placed it in his innermost pocket.

The three hand-rolled cigarettes burned down. A gentle breeze blew by, scattering the ashes.

"I'll come see you again when I have time."

"Rest assured, I will cherish those around me."

Chen Mo patted Old Zhang's tombstone, left the cheap wine and lunchbox, and turned to nod at Zhang Lianqi.

"My father... was he a Poacher?"

Zhang Lianqi, his eyes red, tucked away his own letter and asked, unable to believe it.

"No, the Poacher was Black Dog."

"Your father was a war hero, a war hero who saved everyone."

Chen Mo shook his head. He now understood why the man with the gold-rimmed glasses had said that.

"Good."

The two stopped speaking and simply left the Martyrs' Cemetery side by side.

As they walked to the gate of the Martyrs' Cemetery, Chen Mo turned back for one last look at Old Zhang's tombstone.

His vision blurred, and he seemed to see a little old man with a mouth full of yellow teeth smiling at him beside the tombstone.

"Damn old man."

This National Joint Examination was broadcast live almost entirely, which meant everyone had seen the incident that occurred at the end at Luofeng Fortress.

Naturally, this included the entire process of the candidates fighting back desperately and Chen Mo punching the Abyss Venerable to death.

News reports and clips of the live stream began to spread like snowflakes. Before anyone knew it, Chen Mo's nickname had changed from 'Super Hundred-Ton King' to 'Berserker.'

In everyone's impression, the Grandmaster realm was akin to a terrestrial immortal, a type of existence that was absolutely invincible.

Yet, Chen Mo not only dared to throw a punch at an Abyss Venerable, but in the end, he even smashed one to pieces.

Of course, only Chen Mo and the surrounding candidates knew what had actually happened, but they all tacitly agreed not to reveal the truth.

"Do you think I count as a fake hero?"

On the train, Chen Mo rubbed his chin and turned to ask Wen Wan.

"No, you are a great hero."

Wen Wan smiled gently, and the people around them were frozen in place by that smile.

"You are a great hero~"

Lin Ye cheekily imitated Wen Wan, only to be punched in the forehead by Xia Li.

"Can you stop being a jerk? You finally recovered from your injuries; if you keep it up, Chen Mo will embed you into the ground again!"

Xia Li rolled her eyes. Her childhood friend was good in every way, but his jerkiness was very annoying.

"Shen Zhou, it's understandable that Lin Ye and the others are traveling with me; we are all from Henan Province."

"Why did you and Wen Wan come along?"

Chen Mo did not continue the previous topic but turned to ask Shen Zhou.

"I have nowhere else to go."

Shen Zhou shook his head. His lease on his place in Shanghai had long since expired.

He had thought he could move into the dorms at National Martial Arts University immediately after the National Joint Examination ended, but it turned out there was a gap of more than ten days in between.

Plus, he had no money left in his pocket, so he could only follow behind Chen Mo to see if he could mooch a place to sleep.

"Fine..."

Chen Mo sighed and finally looked at Wen Wan.

"Uh..."

Wen Wan scratched her little face, feeling a bit awkward, not knowing how to explain it.

"I'm representing the Wen family of Yanjing to pay a visit to Chenguang Orphanage."

"I've already brought the resources and funds; I can't just give up halfway..."

Wen Wan's little brain worked rapidly, and she finally came up with an excuse that wasn't really an excuse.

"Well, you are certainly welcome!"

Chen Mo grabbed Wen Wan's small hand, and the young girl's face turned red instantly.

"I wonder what the young lady of the Wen family has brought for the children at Chenguang Orphanage. We usually live very frugally."

"It would be best if there were some martial arts resources; those children have quite good talent."

"Do you know my sister, Xueni? She was admitted directly to National Martial Arts University through a special exception. She's even more impressive than her brother here..."

With her face almost cooked, Wen Wan lost the ability to think and could only nod repeatedly.