The pub was packed with human soldiers. Strong and hard liquors were always the warriors' best friend after all.
"Dore, I had killed two dark ones and seventy spider Zergs!"
"Yeah, right. You think I believe that?"
"Haha…How many did you kill?"
"Our team had gotten a thousand primitives, and twenty-eight dark ones. I have killed three dark ones, one more than you."
"Oh crap! Haha!"
"Only three dark ones? My captain had killed eight!"
"Yeah, yeah. You are from Zambrotta's elite unit. Why don't you compare with some other elite units?"
"Yea, that's right!"
"Bah, whatever! Let's drink up!"
The door suddenly opened up; the squeak of the door hinges was so loud that it could be heard even against the din of the rowdy soldiers. The newcomers paused for a second after seeing how packed it was in the bar. The owner closed in before they decided to leave. "Come on in. It's cold out there. A bit crowded today, but everyone is in a good mood. "
"This will do. Let everyone come in and relax a bit." The young man nodded and walked in with another dozen human warriors in tow.
No one had seen this group of newcomers before, so they attracted a lot of attention. The clamor in the room turned down a notch.
The new guests were young, and the few girls' goddess-like features had caught all soldiers' attention and silenced the room. No one was expecting to see such beauties in this squalid little joint. However, there was also something else about these girls and their companions that unnerved the soldiers: they looked threatening and sinister.
These soldiers were battle hardened warriors, and therefore, they were particularly sensitive to threats. Although some of them still had a smile on their faces, they tried hard to fight back their fear.
The bartender offered every young guest a shot.
"Yuyu, Yezi, you should have some to warm up."
The dozen young soldiers pour the drinks down their throat without any hesitation.
"How much?"
"Haha, no worries! Whatever you want to pay. Which unit are you guys from? I think you will need a new set of armors." The owner of the bar said.
By then, the rest of the soldiers finally noticed the dilapidated condition these young warrior's equipment was in. However, no one laughed at them since these METAL suits were covered with Zerg claw marks, some of which were terrifyingly long and deep. What had they gone through?
"Thank you! " Wang Tong put four blues on the table and started toward the exit.
A dozen warriors followed their leader and filed out of the threshold. Other than the young leader who had spoken once or twice to the bartender, none of them had spoken a word. When they left the bar, a cold gust blew in, but even that felt warmer than those strange young warriors.
"Who are they?"
"Yuyu, Ye Zi... Those names sounded so familiar."
The silence of sudden realization hung in the air for half a second as the soldiers remembered who they were. Those two girls were the field medics, and the group they were with was the demon war band that the Zergs were so afraid of!
They were the three hundred person group that had destroyed seven Zerg cities in just one month. And, the leader of the pack was the Wang Tong, the Devil.
At that moment, the manager of the bar rushed to the door while holding a portrait. There were two most popular portraits of everyone's living room walls. One was that of War God, the mysterious Einherjar, and the other of Wang Tong, the heir of the Blade Warrior.
The owner squinted his eyes, trying to catch a glimpse of the young leader, and then he looked back at the portrait. "Yes, yes, yes! That it him!"
Everyone stormed out of the bar, trying to see him for themselves. But, Wang Tong and his demons had already disappeared.
Wang Tong and Guan Dongyang had encountered some difficulties with provisions before they reached Constantinople. The had already more or less solved the issue with food. Despite its bad taste, the Zerg meat was enough to provide all the nutrients a soldier would need. After they had scavenged a nutrient pill machine, eating became much easier.
However, Wang Tong decided to buy more variety of food while he was in the city, since Constantinople would be their only chance of getting any food that was not gross.
Wang Tong's problem was not about food; it was about the METAL suits. After countless hours of intense battles, the METAL suits were severely damaged. Unless the soldier was a legendary warrior, they wouldn't be able to cast any GN shields, and therefore, their METAL suit would have to take the brunt of the Zergs' damage.
Wang Tong's operation had delivered a blow to the Zergs, but the Zergs had also put up a fight. After Wang Tong had destroyed Samgha, his actions really got under the dark lord's skin, so much so that the dark lord was willing to sacrifice the advantage at the front line in order to capture him. Therefore, Wang Tong and his band had found themselves constantly at war with Zergs' scouting parties since then.
Although Wang Tong was prepared for such belligerent counter offense, he needed time to reflect on his plan. The battle had arrived at a turning point, and from then on, their mission would only become more difficult by the day. Therefore, he had given everyone a day off to let them enjoy the last bit of respite they could have.
"Hamir will handle everything, so stop worrying about it. Let's take a look at what is going on over there. " Guan Dongyang said with a lighthearted smile.
"Cool! I didn't know that Zambrotta was such a motivator! Everyone looks spirited here."
"In the old times, a war drum was used for exactly that, encouraging and motivating the soldiers. Zambrotta is the lord of the War Drum Hall, remember?"
Cheers and ovations swelled from the central plaza of Constantinople. Many soldiers surrounded a stage. Despite the biting cold of the Martian winter, the onlookers looked jovial.
"What is going on?" Wang Tong and Guan Dongyang closed in as the clamor had piqued their interest. When they were close enough to see the stage, they saw two warriors fighting against each other.
One of the soldiers was in his thirties, and the crowd cheered after his every move. Wang Tong knew immediately that the older fighter was a legendary warrior. Many younger soldiers challenged him, but were unable to best him.
"His sword attack was just so-so. I wager he is not used to using a blade." Wang Tong remarked.
"Hehe…I think Brother Tianzong's sword and shield technique is more impressive as well." Guan Dongyang agreed. Having improved his power after so many battles, Guan Dongyang had also gained a keen insight into other soldier's abilities and magnitude of power.
All the caster learned from Guan Dongyang, while the METAL warriors learned from Vorenus. No one even dared to attempt copying any of Wang Tong's moves.
And when it came down to swordplay, Yin Tianzong was the master of the masters. He used a shied together with the blade to achieve an incredibly balanced fighting style.
"Hey, friends. You two must be from other bands. Do you know who he is?" A large frame spoke to Wang Tong. He was wearing a uniform with a large drum symbol on it. Wang Tong and Guan Dongyang gave each other a glance, and they both smiled.
"Indeed, we are from other units."
"He is our vice general, Xiao Libie, the third disciple of Lord Zambrotta himself. If you two think you can best him, why don't you give it a try yourself?"
"Hehe…Thanks, but no. We are here to rest." Guan Dongyang said as he waved in dismissal.
"If you two have something valuable we could all learn from, why don't you go up there and show it to us?"
All the soldiers around the stage were all under Xiao Libie's command, and therefore, they got riled up after hearing Wang Tong's disrespectful comment.
On the stage, another young soldier fell to the ground. Xiao Libie turned toward the audiences and saluted.
"Well Dongyang, you might as well go up there and try it out." Wang Tong suggested.
Guan Dongyang grimaced. "I am too tired."
"Aren't you always complaining about not having enough opportunity to learn? Here you go, a golden opportunity to learn from the best." Wang Tong turned around to the hulking soldier beside him and asked, "Is there any reward for winning the match? Say...food or something?"
"Of course, you can eat to your heart's content. Haha!"
Everyone around Wang Tong laughed knowingly. But, neither Wang Tong nor Guan Dongyang had picked up the deeper meaning in their laugh.