At the main training base of the Galactic Federation, in blazing heat, soldiers were facing a ruthless light net. Their combat uniforms were filthy, hair underneath the transparent helmets matted down with sweat, but the soldiers stood ramrod straight. Their eyes stared at the light net field ahead, as they waited intently for their commanding officer to give the word.
The commanding officer was a young sergeant, a shiny new Grade II medal pinned to his chest, glimmering in the light. He was in his early twenties, with dark skin and a slightly tender face. His expression, however, was completely grave.
“Crossing the light net, prepare!” The sergeant commanded.
The soldiers moved in unison, inserting machine guns into the holsters on their back, crouching down, readying to charge.
“Go!” The sergeant roared. Like speeding bullets, the soldiers rushed towards the light net fifty meters away.
Layer after layer of crisscrossing red razor lines, the light net was the main armament Galactic Federation soldiers usually faced while in battle. They must practice how to get through it if they hoped to survive for long in the field.
The first soldier approached the net, and it sliced against his arm. White gas burst out of his suit in an instant. In a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, and without the protection of his clothing, the soldier promptly collapsed.
“Medical!” The sergeant yelled expressionlessly.
Two young nurses, in white protective suits, ran to carry the soldier away.
The remaining soldiers were still moving forward. Bending, crawling, jumping. They had to cross the 100 meter long net in five seconds.
“Aaah!” Another fallen soldier to be dragged away.
The closer to the finish, the fewer soldiers there were. In the end only ten, out of the one hundred soldiers, crossed through the net. And even then, it had taken them more than five seconds.
The sergeant’s face was ashen. “Is that your speed? Snails would be faster than you!”
One of the soldiers, who had managed to cross, griped at the sergeant’s words. “Sergeant? This training is impossible. I don’t think anyone could do this.”
“Isn’t there talk of peace? After that, there won’t be war in the future. Right?”
The sergeant’s stern face revealed a hint of dissatisfaction: “Who says the peace talks will be successful? War can appear at any time! Everyone! Pay attention, and watch me navigate the net.”
The sergeant went the starting point, carrying a machine gun, and shouted at himself: “Crossing the light net, prepare!”
At his own order, the sergeant cleanly holstered his heavy gun. He crouched, angling his body. Even in his thick combat uniform, he was agile as a cheetah.
“Go!” The second he shouted it, the sergeant sprinted towards the net.
The tail-runner of his dark gray combat suit fully opened, blue flames spewing out behind him. The sergeant was a meteor racing through the sky. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the light net.
Squatting, jumping, sloping every which way,—a series of beautiful movements like an artful dance, the red lines constantly changing, sometimes sliding parallel, sometimes meshing together, as if to cut the sergeant to pieces.
The blue booster flame weakened, and the sergeant suddenly increased his speed, flying through the net like a gull braving a stormy sea. Or like a snake swimming through a grassy river bed. Quick-witted and fast.
Bang!
The sergeant landed safely, a timer on the side showing his speed: 4 seconds.
“Who said it was impossible to cross the net in five seconds?” The sergeant’s voice rang out severely, as his eyes swept over the surrounding soldiers, their heads bowed.
“There is no impossible! Only lacking willingness to work hard! You’ve already been taught the essential moves, what’s missing is sweat and hard work!” The sergeant was trying to keep his admonishment from being too rough.
“Yes!” The soldiers chanted back.
Slightly satisfied, the sergeant nodded and ordered again: “Everyone, line up!”
The soldiers quickly obeyed. Even the soldiers who had been carried away by medics returned to the queue, already repaired.
“Crossing the light net, prepare.” The sergeant’s calm voice deeply serious.
The soldiers immediately readied themselves.
But at that moment, a glider flew down from the sky, silver-winged, with a half-moon surrounded by five blue five-pointed stars, the Galactic Federation symbol.
And whoever could ride in that glider, their rank would not be low.
The sergeant halted the training, issuing the order: “Stand and salute!”
The soldiers saluted as the glider landed in front of the sergeant, while an uniformed lieutenant general walked down the glider’s ramp.
Behind him followed a lieutenant commander and a civilian officer.
The lieutenant general appeared to be in his thirties, frowning slightly. Although his face wasn’t old, his hair had a lot of gray strands.
“Lieutenant General!” The soldiers paid their respects.
Preoccupied, the lieutenant general didn’t pay attention to the troops as usual, but strode directly to the sergeant.
The sergeant stood at attention, giving a standard salute: “Sergeant Wu Xingyun, 52nd Division, 3rd Regiment, and 5th Battalion of the 3rd Army Corps of the Galactic Federation reporting.”
The lieutenant general eyed the sergeant up and down several times, finally asking: “You are the battle hero Wu Xingyun?”
“Yes!”
Reaching out a hand, the lieutenant general patted Wu Xingyun on the shoulder, saying in a dull, slightly frustrated voice: “Boy, come with me. There is a mission for you to accomplish.”
Having said that, the lieutenant general marched straight to the base office building, while Wu Xingyun trailed behind with the other two officers walking beside him.
Once inside the base office building, the group took an elevator to a conference room one kilometer below. No one was in the conference room. The room was large enough to hold tens of thousands of people, compounding the emptiness.
The lieutenant general picked a seat and waved at Wu Xingyun, still standing on the side: “Sit down, I’m here on behalf of the Army Ministry to talk to you about something.”
Talk about something? Wu Xingyun’s mind calculated. He was just an insignificant sergeant. How could there be anything for the lieutenant general to personally communicate?
Wu Xingyun stood back up, snapping another salute: “Please instruct!”
Lighting a cigarette, the lieutenant general again motioned for Wu Xingyun to be seated.
The lieutenant general took a deep drag of his cigarette, then slowly stated: “The higher-ups have decided to negotiate with the enemy. They’ve agreed to the other side’s request, that you…marry ‘that man.’”
“What!?” Wu Xingyun, so taken aback that he bounced off his chair.
‘That man’ was the legendary demon, the ‘devil’ foe of the Galactic Federation, able to navigate outer space without relying on a spacecraft. Some said ‘that man’ was a human mutation, others claimed he was a new species of the universe.
In any case, ‘that man’ clearly hated humanity, and the Demon Legion he led was the terrible enemy of the Galactic Federation, a never-ending nightmare.
Learning to cross the light net, assault landing training, anti-matter action training, it was all to fight against ‘that man.’
The slogan was-‘defeat the devil, defend humanity.’
Why now, would the top brass not only negotiate with the demon, but also agree to marry him, Wu Xingyun, off?!
Was he just not smart enough, Wu Xingyun wondered. What was he missing? Wu Xingyun stared blankly at the lieutenant general in front of him, the one and only great General Hong who had won over thirty campaigns.
General Hong flicked ash off his hand. “Soldier, I can understand your mood. I strongly opposed this matter myself. After all, we’re fighters, we want to win glory on the battlefield and defeat the enemy. But the councilors already approved our Federation President to start negotiating the details of your marriage. You’re just going to have to…Make sacrifices for the peace of mankind! Like those old-time historical princesses.”
“But why is it me?” Wu Xingyun still couldn’t understand. If someone had to get married, for the ‘peace of mankind,’ how did it fall to him, an insignificant soldier?
“I don’t know,” General Hong shook his head, “It was the other side who named you. I heard that, in battle last month, when you were Ghost fighting, you injured that man?”
DPM Chapter 1-Professional Soldier Part 2
Translated by Snowfall77
Wu Xingyun’s eyes darkened. Last month, after working up round after round, he had become the top level Ghost soldier in the army.
Ghost soldiers had special magnetic field equipment. They could be invisible, and their main purpose was usually to lurk and assassinate. A Ghost soldier also needed high mental strength. After a mission they mandatorily rested for three months, only then were they considered fit to be sent out again.
While waiting for his recovery from last month’s ghost-lock mission, Wu Xingyun had been ordered to train infantry.
Even now, he still remembered every detail.
The Galactic Federation had dispatched a total of one hundred ghost-lock soldiers, but most of them were found approaching the enemy camp and killed. Only he had succeeded in reaching the edge of the camp.
There, he happened upon ‘that man.’
With no hesitation and no consideration of being exposed, Wu Xingyun had fired the particle gun in his hand at the man.
The battle started. By end of it, Wu Xingyun found out his shot hadn’t killed that person, only seriously injured.
Still, Wu Xingyun had been awarded a Grade II medal for his outstanding performance in the field.
With the enemy commander wounded, the Galactic Federation army faced a great opportunity, however the two sides teetered at a stalemate. The enemy army still had a slight advantage, so when they extended an olive branch and asked for peace talks, the Galactic Federation agreed.
The news had spread, and every soldier knew that peace negotiations were under way. How could Wu Xingyun have guessed though, that the results of the talks would be him getting married to a big old man!
General Hong said: “That man’s vindictiveness is strong, I think. He’s negotiating for the marriage in bad faith. You hurt him, and he just wants to capture you and take revenge. But…No matter what I say, the bastards on the Council think it’s a good opportunity.”
Wu Xingyun lowered his head as General Hong fell silent.
Finally General Hong spoke again. “Don’t be too pessimistic, the President is discussing the conditions there. Your life should be safe after you’re married, just…” General Hong took a deep breath, crushing his cigarette butt under his black leather boots, then added in a serious tone: “Soldier, are you confident to complete this mission? Marry that demon and use your best efforts to maintain this fragile peace?”
Instinctively, Wu Xingyun gave a standing salute: “Will resolutely complete this task!”
He said the words, but inwardly he was in a daze. That man was the enemy of humanity, a most terrible demon, and the nightmare of the Galactic Federation. Like princesses of old, Wu Xingyun was being given away. But he was just an ordinary soldier. Wu Xingyun sighed. Because he had done his job too well, he was suffering such a fate.
At the main training base of the Galactic Federation, in blazing heat, soldiers were facing a ruthless light net. Their combat uniforms were filthy, hair underneath the transparent helmets matted down with sweat, but the soldiers stood ramrod straight. Their eyes stared at the light net field ahead, as they waited intently for their commanding officer to give the word.
The commanding officer was a young sergeant, a shiny new Grade II medal pinned to his chest, glimmering in the light. He was in his early twenties, with dark skin and a slightly tender face. His expression, however, was completely grave.
“Crossing the light net, prepare!” The sergeant commanded.
The soldiers moved in unison, inserting machine guns into the holsters on their back, crouching down, readying to charge.
“Go!” The sergeant roared. Like speeding bullets, the soldiers rushed towards the light net fifty meters away.
Layer after layer of crisscrossing red razor lines, the light net was the main armament Galactic Federation soldiers usually faced while in battle. They must practice how to get through it if they hoped to survive for long in the field.
The first soldier approached the net, and it sliced against his arm. White gas burst out of his suit in an instant. In a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, and without the protection of his clothing, the soldier promptly collapsed.
“Medical!” The sergeant yelled expressionlessly.
Two young nurses, in white protective suits, ran to carry the soldier away.
The remaining soldiers were still moving forward. Bending, crawling, jumping. They had to cross the 100 meter long net in five seconds.
“Aaah!” Another fallen soldier to be dragged away.
The closer to the finish, the fewer soldiers there were. In the end only ten, out of the one hundred soldiers, crossed through the net. And even then, it had taken them more than five seconds.
The sergeant’s face was ashen. “Is that your speed? Snails would be faster than you!”
One of the soldiers, who had managed to cross, griped at the sergeant’s words. “Sergeant? This training is impossible. I don’t think anyone could do this.”
“Isn’t there talk of peace? After that, there won’t be war in the future. Right?”
The sergeant’s stern face revealed a hint of dissatisfaction: “Who says the peace talks will be successful? War can appear at any time! Everyone! Pay attention, and watch me navigate the net.”
The sergeant went the starting point, carrying a machine gun, and shouted at himself: “Crossing the light net, prepare!”
At his own order, the sergeant cleanly holstered his heavy gun. He crouched, angling his body. Even in his thick combat uniform, he was agile as a cheetah.
“Go!” The second he shouted it, the sergeant sprinted towards the net.
The tail-runner of his dark gray combat suit fully opened, blue flames spewing out behind him. The sergeant was a meteor racing through the sky. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the light net.
Squatting, jumping, sloping every which way,—a series of beautiful movements like an artful dance, the red lines constantly changing, sometimes sliding parallel, sometimes meshing together, as if to cut the sergeant to pieces.
The blue booster flame weakened, and the sergeant suddenly increased his speed, flying through the net like a gull braving a stormy sea. Or like a snake swimming through a grassy river bed. Quick-witted and fast.
Bang!
The sergeant landed safely, a timer on the side showing his speed: 4 seconds.
“Who said it was impossible to cross the net in five seconds?” The sergeant’s voice rang out severely, as his eyes swept over the surrounding soldiers, their heads bowed.
“There is no impossible! Only lacking willingness to work hard! You’ve already been taught the essential moves, what’s missing is sweat and hard work!” The sergeant was trying to keep his admonishment from being too rough.
“Yes!” The soldiers chanted back.
Slightly satisfied, the sergeant nodded and ordered again: “Everyone, line up!”
The soldiers quickly obeyed. Even the soldiers who had been carried away by medics returned to the queue, already repaired.
“Crossing the light net, prepare.” The sergeant’s calm voice deeply serious.
The soldiers immediately readied themselves.
But at that moment, a glider flew down from the sky, silver-winged, with a half-moon surrounded by five blue five-pointed stars, the Galactic Federation symbol.
And whoever could ride in that glider, their rank would not be low.
The sergeant halted the training, issuing the order: “Stand and salute!”
The soldiers saluted as the glider landed in front of the sergeant, while an uniformed lieutenant general walked down the glider’s ramp.
Behind him followed a lieutenant commander and a civilian officer.
The lieutenant general appeared to be in his thirties, frowning slightly. Although his face wasn’t old, his hair had a lot of gray strands.
“Lieutenant General!” The soldiers paid their respects.
Preoccupied, the lieutenant general didn’t pay attention to the troops as usual, but strode directly to the sergeant.
The sergeant stood at attention, giving a standard salute: “Sergeant Wu Xingyun, 52nd Division, 3rd Regiment, and 5th Battalion of the 3rd Army Corps of the Galactic Federation reporting.”
The lieutenant general eyed the sergeant up and down several times, finally asking: “You are the battle hero Wu Xingyun?”
“Yes!”
Reaching out a hand, the lieutenant general patted Wu Xingyun on the shoulder, saying in a dull, slightly frustrated voice: “Boy, come with me. There is a mission for you to accomplish.”
Having said that, the lieutenant general marched straight to the base office building, while Wu Xingyun trailed behind with the other two officers walking beside him.
Once inside the base office building, the group took an elevator to a conference room one kilometer below. No one was in the conference room. The room was large enough to hold tens of thousands of people, compounding the emptiness.
The lieutenant general picked a seat and waved at Wu Xingyun, still standing on the side: “Sit down, I’m here on behalf of the Army Ministry to talk to you about something.”
Talk about something? Wu Xingyun’s mind calculated. He was just an insignificant sergeant. How could there be anything for the lieutenant general to personally communicate?
Wu Xingyun stood back up, snapping another salute: “Please instruct!”
Lighting a cigarette, the lieutenant general again motioned for Wu Xingyun to be seated.
The lieutenant general took a deep drag of his cigarette, then slowly stated: “The higher-ups have decided to negotiate with the enemy. They’ve agreed to the other side’s request, that you…marry ‘that man.’”
“What!?” Wu Xingyun, so taken aback that he bounced off his chair.
‘That man’ was the legendary demon, the ‘devil’ foe of the Galactic Federation, able to navigate outer space without relying on a spacecraft. Some said ‘that man’ was a human mutation, others claimed he was a new species of the universe.
In any case, ‘that man’ clearly hated humanity, and the Demon Legion he led was the terrible enemy of the Galactic Federation, a never-ending nightmare.
Learning to cross the light net, assault landing training, anti-matter action training, it was all to fight against ‘that man.’
The slogan was-‘defeat the devil, defend humanity.’
Why now, would the top brass not only negotiate with the demon, but also agree to marry him, Wu Xingyun, off?!
Was he just not smart enough, Wu Xingyun wondered. What was he missing? Wu Xingyun stared blankly at the lieutenant general in front of him, the one and only great General Hong who had won over thirty campaigns.
General Hong flicked ash off his hand. “Soldier, I can understand your mood. I strongly opposed this matter myself. After all, we’re fighters, we want to win glory on the battlefield and defeat the enemy. But the councilors already approved our Federation President to start negotiating the details of your marriage. You’re just going to have to…Make sacrifices for the peace of mankind! Like those old-time historical princesses.”
“But why is it me?” Wu Xingyun still couldn’t understand. If someone had to get married, for the ‘peace of mankind,’ how did it fall to him, an insignificant soldier?
“I don’t know,” General Hong shook his head, “It was the other side who named you. I heard that, in battle last month, when you were Ghost fighting, you injured that man?”
DPM Chapter 1-Professional Soldier Part 2
Translated by Snowfall77
Wu Xingyun’s eyes darkened. Last month, after working up round after round, he had become the top level Ghost soldier in the army.
Ghost soldiers had special magnetic field equipment. They could be invisible, and their main purpose was usually to lurk and assassinate. A Ghost soldier also needed high mental strength. After a mission they mandatorily rested for three months, only then were they considered fit to be sent out again.
While waiting for his recovery from last month’s ghost-lock mission, Wu Xingyun had been ordered to train infantry.
Even now, he still remembered every detail.
The Galactic Federation had dispatched a total of one hundred ghost-lock soldiers, but most of them were found approaching the enemy camp and killed. Only he had succeeded in reaching the edge of the camp.
There, he happened upon ‘that man.’
With no hesitation and no consideration of being exposed, Wu Xingyun had fired the particle gun in his hand at the man.
The battle started. By end of it, Wu Xingyun found out his shot hadn’t killed that person, only seriously injured.
Still, Wu Xingyun had been awarded a Grade II medal for his outstanding performance in the field.
With the enemy commander wounded, the Galactic Federation army faced a great opportunity, however the two sides teetered at a stalemate. The enemy army still had a slight advantage, so when they extended an olive branch and asked for peace talks, the Galactic Federation agreed.
The news had spread, and every soldier knew that peace negotiations were under way. How could Wu Xingyun have guessed though, that the results of the talks would be him getting married to a big old man!
General Hong said: “That man’s vindictiveness is strong, I think. He’s negotiating for the marriage in bad faith. You hurt him, and he just wants to capture you and take revenge. But…No matter what I say, the bastards on the Council think it’s a good opportunity.”
Wu Xingyun lowered his head as General Hong fell silent.
Finally General Hong spoke again. “Don’t be too pessimistic, the President is discussing the conditions there. Your life should be safe after you’re married, just…” General Hong took a deep breath, crushing his cigarette butt under his black leather boots, then added in a serious tone: “Soldier, are you confident to complete this mission? Marry that demon and use your best efforts to maintain this fragile peace?”
Instinctively, Wu Xingyun gave a standing salute: “Will resolutely complete this task!”
He said the words, but inwardly he was in a daze. That man was the enemy of humanity, a most terrible demon, and the nightmare of the Galactic Federation. Like princesses of old, Wu Xingyun was being given away. But he was just an ordinary soldier. Wu Xingyun sighed. Because he had done his job too well, he was suffering such a fate.
