“Hmph, kid, you should thank God. What I’ve been teaching you lately is something you’ll never learn at the military academy…”

“A direct transmission from The Warrior, huh? I get it.” Brian Carter interjected.

“Very good. Before actual combat, let me tell you something: battle is no child’s play. It’s either you or him—when you strike, you must be precise. The rest, I’ll teach you slowly, as long as you obey orders!”

“Heh, apparently The Warrior, even when the Zago tribe surrounded me, I survived. I’m hard to kill—just wait and see!”

The first time… or rather, the second time, Brian Carter faced a low-level spider-type Zago again. He pierced the bug’s belly in one move, but he still felt a bit proud, because even if a Zago’s head is blown apart, it can still struggle for a while. So his belly got slashed—any deeper and its guts would have spilled out.

Apparently, The Warrior only left one sentence: instead of feeling proud, you’d be better off giving the enemy another punch.

Brian Carter remembered this—it was a lesson written in blood.

Chapter 8: Encirclement

The problem is, the lesson kept repeating itself. Over the past month, Brian Carter had accumulated more than twenty wounds, almost one a day. Many things really are only understood through practice. Everyone knows the theory, but when it comes to real combat, problems arise—either the timing is off, or things don’t go as imagined. But Brian Carter survived, and was growing more mature by the day.

He had cleared out most of the lone Zagos in the area. Just a couple of days ago, he even took down a high-level flying Zago. These guys love to impale humans and toss them into the sky, seeming to relish the screams as they fall. That one was probably on patrol when Brian Carter skewered it with his iron rod.

Now, within a one-mile radius of the base, it was considered Brian Carter’s hunting ground. Even if five or six Zagos attacked together, they weren’t his match. Especially now that he understood the Zagos’ cunning nature, Brian Carter’s combat skills were steadily improving. Although he got scolded by apparently The Warrior every time, and it annoyed him at the time, once he calmed down, he realized it made sense.

People make mistakes, but making the same mistake twice is just foolish.

That was the only time Brian Carter got hurt in the same spot, and apparently The Warrior scolded him with utter contempt.

Brian Carter wanted to argue—he’s not a machine, after all—but seeing apparently The Warrior’s expression, he could only swallow his retort.

If you don’t want to do something, you’ll find one or countless excuses. But if you do want to do it, you’ll find one or countless ways!

Brian Carter was no coward. On the contrary, he was stubborn to the core. When he was a child, he often slacked off while practicing the Blade Technique. Back then, the old drunkard only said one thing: “Didn’t expect you to be a coward, kid.” That look in his eyes deeply stung Brian Carter.

So he would never make excuses. As long as he set his mind to something, he would see it through!

The Zagos nearby were no longer a threat to him. Of course, apparently The Warrior still looked down on him—getting cocky over killing a few grunts was shameful in itself. So Brian Carter couldn’t really feel any sense of accomplishment, and could only occasionally brag to Black Charcoal about his exploits. After all, he was young, and no matter how much he pretended to be mature, he still had his youthful emotions.

In fact, what he was doing now was already astonishing. Without activating nuclear power, let alone any powered armor, he could still kill Zagos. Maybe it was nothing to a real expert, but Brian Carter was just a fifteen-year-old kid.

Brian Carter patrolled his territory as usual, his range constantly expanding. Black Charcoal by his side was responsible for receiving signals. Unfortunately, the occasional sparks in space proved that humans and the Zago tribe were still locked in fierce battle—it had turned into a war of attrition.

Suddenly, Brian Carter froze. He sensed danger—a kind of instinct. He extended his mental sense… Damn, he was surrounded!!!

His string of sniper kills had finally caught up with him. That flying Zago was actually a scout for the Zago tribe. Although Brian Carter took it out, he had drawn attention. The Zago’s crawler troops had arrived, clearly seeing Brian Carter as a threat.

A rough scan—hundreds of them. This time, he was in real trouble. No hesitation—one word: run!

The Zago tribe was smart and alert. They seemed to sense Brian Carter’s intentions and immediately charged from all directions, closing in on him.

Apparently, The Warrior popped up again, “Kid, I told you, never let your guard down. Even I can get caught off guard, let alone a rookie like you!”

There were a lot of Zagos, but with Brian Carter’s speed, he could still make it back. Maybe to avoid alerting him, the Zagos had set their ambush far away.

But the biggest problem was that Black Charcoal was much slower. In the blink of an eye, it was already more than twenty meters behind Brian Carter, while the Zagos surged in like a tide.

Brian Carter had been overconfident. He really shouldn’t have brought Black Charcoal out. He hadn’t expected…

Never say you didn’t expect it—because that’s exactly what the enemy is counting on!

That was apparently The Warrior’s original words, and now he understood.

So he stopped.

“Kid, are you crazy, are you…” Before apparently The Warrior could finish, Brian Carter had already turned around and started running back.