Chapter 115 - Albion's Simple Question
"Ahem, Master..." Cao Wudi suddenly called
"Hmm?"
Albion glanced over.
Seeing Cao Wudi having something to say but hesitant to say it, Albion asked, "What is it, Wudi?"
"Uh... you know how we have not met in two dozen years, and you also previously said that I failed the recruitment test, right?"
"Doesn't that mean that you are no longer my master since I was abandoned? There's no need for me to be here in that case, right?"
Cao Wudi glanced at Albion with one last hopeful gaze of hopping off this bandwagon of death.
"You cannot put it like that, Wudi. As the proverb says; a teacher for a day is like a father for life. I will always be your master," Albion continued to speak calmly in Old Demon's voice.
Shortly after, he nonchalantly added, "Besides, you know too much already. If you really want out, I won't stop you. Do you want to eject yourself into space, or should I do it for you?"
"It... It was just a joke, Master... Why would I want to leave you?" Cao Wudi immediately spoke with a half-crying half-smiling expression while massaging Albion's shoulders with his fists, buttering up to him.
At the same time, he mentally sighed, 'I'm dead.'
Albion could not help curve his lips into a smile before he said with reassurance, "Don't worry, Wudi. You have been stagnant at the Early-stage Initiate Realm for too long. I will train you into a mighty person, so you don't have to be concerned about dying again."
"I don't need to be powerful! I just want to live! Please, Master, your training nearly killed me on numerous occasions!" Cao Wudi protested with all the courage he could muster.
Recalling the days when he was left with a breath of life left in him each time he undertook the suicide training, he was horrified.
Nevertheless, Albion looked at Cao Wudi calmly and asked one simple question, "But did you die?"
"I..."
Cao Wudi's lips twitched repeatedly, struck speechless by Albion's question before he uttered weakly, "I nearly died..."
"But did you die?" Albion pressed.
"No..."
On the side, Polemos's eye twitched slightly, seemingly also recalling his time training under the Lord.
"Perhaps, we should lower the training difficulty for Wudi, my Lord?" Polemos suggested.
"You mustn't show him compassion. It is not beneficial to him, Polemos. Remember these words; what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger."
"Yes, this subordinate will remember them. Thank you for wise teachings, my Lord."
Polemos made a solemn bow of respect before flashing Cao Wudi a glance, 'Sorry, Junior. Your Senior tried.'
'Senior...'
Cao Wudi glanced back with eyes that wanted to cry, seemingly understanding Polemos's silent message.
They could reach a tacit understanding as fellow students who suffered under the Dark Emperor's training.
Sometime later, the group of three disembarked from the spacecraft under Polemos's lead.
"We welcome the Emperor's return!"
"We welcome the Emperor's return!"
Dozens of subordinates immediately greeted Polemos after waiting patiently in the hangar bay for his majestic figure to reveal himself, showcasing their loyalty and reverence.
However, Polemos's expression abruptly changed before barking, "Nonsense! You are to greet the Lord with the utmost respect before greeting me!"
"This..."
The subordinates were immediately stunned before shifting their gazes to the two people following behind Emperor Polemos.
One was a young man with buzz-cut white hair and a lackadaisical expression, seemingly unconcerned with anything. He looked like the Emperor's bastard child that just got picked up.
On the other hand, following beside the young man was a tall and burly middle-aged man walking with an upright stature while wearing a solemn and grim yet imposing expression.
"We welcome the Supreme Lord's return!"
"We welcome the Supreme Lord's return!"
The subordinates immediately greeted Cao Wudi, whose figure matched their imaginative figure of the Supreme Lord in their minds.
Little did they know, Cao Wudi's expression and walking posture were all due to the pressure of walking with two titans he never thought would have anything to do with, causing him to be stiff and rigid.
Nevertheless, Polemos did not notice anything wrong with the subordinates' greeting and nodded with satisfaction.
"Your Majesty, you came back at the right time! We have a growing problem on our hand!" a subordinate stepped forward to report.
Emperor Polemos furrowed his brows slightly before inquiring, "Is it a problem with the trespassing aliens in our solar system?"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"Alright, take me to command center at once," Polemos stated coolly.
After receiving the subordinate's compliance, Albion and Cao Wudi also followed Polemos to Damocles' main command center.
Once they arrived at the site, a large screen depicting the image of the alien mothership was shown.
"What seems to be the problem?" Polemos asked calmly.
"This was the image we captured an hour ago," a subordinate proceeded to explain before nodding to another person before the screen changed to another image, "And this is what we captured in 5 minutes ago, Your Majesty."
Polemos's calm expression quickly turned into a frown before he muttered, "Such efficiency. To think that the aliens could repair their mothership to such degree within such a short time frame."
"They have noticed the benefits of Phantasmium from hunting the nearby interdimensional creatures in space and begun evolving at an alarming rate."
"We have been picking strong pulses of psionic energy, which also suggests that this alien race is very endowed with psychic abilities."
"It is just a matter of time before they complete their reparations and turn their spearhead towards us, Your Majesty."
After the subordinate spoke, Polemos rubbed his chin thoughtfully while muttering, "That does sound like a big problem..."
"But..." Polemos gave his Lord a glance before he continued, "Problems that can be solved with fists are not problems for the Lord."
"Still, we can't trouble the Lord for such trivial matters. Begin deployment of battle droids to the asteroid belt region and form a defensive line there."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Once the order was handed down, the command center became bustling with activities.