Speechless, I stared at the purple-faced general, unable to utter a single word. What was supposed to be an airtight excuse had become the biggest loophole in this situation.

  Seeing me in a dispirited state, General Purple Face suddenly waved his hand and coldly said: "Alright... I've already told you the reason, believe you can die with your eyes closed, come on... drag him out and behead him!"

  Wait!

  I abruptly stretched out my hand, stopping the knife-wielding guard who was about to pounce from behind. My sharp gaze locked onto General Purpleface: "What did you just say? That we're at war with the Empire of Fragrance? Then... even if I die! I'll die on the battlefield, and for every person from the Empire of Fragrance I kill, it's one more breath out for the dwarves who have died."

  As I stared at him intently, General Purpleface's face turned even purpler, his eyes flashing with a cold light as he sneered: "What? Are you thinking of trying to resist?"

  I slowly shook my head, opposing the general was simply seeking death. Without strength above that of a swordsman, no matter who you are, even if you're the emperor's father, don't think about becoming a general. That's absolutely not something I can resist right now.

  I shook my head and calmly said: "I am not a spy, if I were a spy of the Fragrant Empire, would I not know that the Sunset Empire has no villages?"

  Yes!

  The purple-faced general was indeed an open-minded person... If he were truly a spy sent by the Fragrant Empire, he would have had an absolutely legitimate identity. How could he possibly make a mistake in this most basic aspect?

  He looked the young man up and down, humph... his outfit was strange and unusual, his hair was a rare black color, and his eyes were also black. Even if he had asked an idiot to pick out a spy, they probably wouldn't have chosen someone like this, it's too obvious.

  It's fine if it's just obvious, maybe others want to take advantage of your thinking mode and make you mistakenly think they're not spies. However...such a foolish act of forcing one's way into the city gate is absolutely unjustifiable, there's no reason at all.

  Here is the translation:

  Thinking of this, General Purple slowly lifted his head and solemnly nodded: "Indeed... the possibility that you are a spy is very small, but... during wartime, we absolutely cannot take risks. In other words... even if there's only a 1% chance, you will still be suspected, and we absolutely cannot just let you go like this. Do you want us to lock you up for life? Or until the war ends?"

  I shook my head expressionlessly: "No... I don't want to be locked up, I have something very important to do, so..."

  The purple-faced general frowned: "What do you want? Am I supposed to let you go just because of your business? That's absolutely impossible!"

  Not in the least intimidated by General Zifa's displeasure, I calmly said: "Whether or not a spy, the battlefield is probably the best testing ground. I want to join your army and prove with my actions that I am not a spy!"

  The purple-faced general looked at me up and down in surprise, saying in a low voice: "Have you thought it through? You should know... because your identity is unclear, so... you can only join the Dead Rush Squad. In that case, would you still want to join the army?"

  I nodded coldly, it's better to die in a blaze of glory than be locked up for life, and... the battlefield has always been the best place to temper oneself, I may not necessarily die!

  Seeing my natural face, General Purple Face was slightly stunned and said in shock: "Don't you know the meaning of the Dead Squad? That's completely different from regular soldiers!"

  I lifted my head in astonishment and looked at General Purple Face. To be honest, I really didn't know what a "hurry-up-and-die squad" was, and I had never heard of it before.

  Seeing my astonished appearance, General Purple Face showed an expression of "as expected", and in this moment, he believed even more that the boy in front of him was not a spy, perhaps... he really did come from some small mountain village!

  The General with a purple face explained kindly: "So-called 'dead squads' are usually composed of death row prisoners, some slaves, and some exiled nobles. Their role is to go to the battlefield to die!"

  Seeing me still looking puzzled, General Purple Face seemed to have come up with a topic of conversation and continued: "When the battle begins, we usually use the Hurry-to-Die Squad to attract the enemy's archers and mages' first wave of firepower. When the archers and mages are in the interval between their next attacks, that's when our regular army charges forward. This is common practice in all battles on the continent, don't you even know this?"

  I silently shook my head, secretly sighing in dismay. This is too inhumane! Isn't this just sending people to their deaths? No wonder it's called the "Death Rush Squad", isn't this just rushing to one's death?

  The purple-faced general saw my astonished face and nodded silently: "That's right... the dead squad is a dead squad, it's the big army driving them to death. If they retreat, someone will kill them, if they advance, someone will also kill them, left and right are all deaths!"

  Pausing for a moment, General Purpleface continued: "Among the people who managed to survive after being chased to death, basically one in ten thousand would be left, and that person would still be covered in injuries, having barely been rescued!"

  Staring at me tightly, General Purple Face said in a low voice: "How about it? After knowing what kind of team the Dead Squad is, do you still want to join?"

  I nodded silently: "Yes... I still want to join, because... I absolutely can't be locked up indefinitely... I have important things to do, I just want to know how I can gain my freedom!"

  The purple-faced general looked deeply at the boy in front of him, and by now he had basically completely believed that he was not a spy. But what did it matter? The rules were unchangeable, and all he could do was to treat him as fairly as possible.

  General Purple Face smiled and said: "Good... Since you have the courage to choose the Dead Squad, I will also give you the full treatment of the Dead Squad!"

  Eyes lit up, General Purple Face said loudly: "As long as you don't retreat in battle, charge forward bravely, and survive the war, you can leave the Dead Rush Squad and become a regular soldier. Then... after serving for three years, you can gain your freedom!"

  I quietly lowered my head, carefully thinking about what General Purple Face had said. Hmm... it's acceptable. Locking me up is absolutely not allowed. If I join the Hurry-Up-and-Die Squad, I still have a glimmer of hope!

  Thinking of this, I resolutely lifted my head and firmly said to General Purple Face: "Alright! I'll join the Hurry-to-Die Squad, only... I hope you can keep your promise!"

  Bang! Bang!

  General Purple Face patted his own chest with a proud smile, saying: "I, General Zi Qian Hao, am the great general of Daybreak City. What I say can't be taken back. If you really survive the first battle, I will naturally follow the rules and make you an official soldier. And if you achieve more merits in the future, you will be rewarded according to the military regulations of the Empire of Dusk!"

  As for the so-called Zi Qian Hao, the reward mentioned by General Zi Da is not what I'm after, because my ambition lies elsewhere. Now, I only want to take on responsibilities, and as long as it's related to the Fragrant Empire, I won't let go of any opportunity.

  Perhaps someone will say that I implicated the innocent, but... when they were killing the dwarves' kin, did they ever hesitate, did they ever consider whether they had wrongly killed good people?

  Looking at General Purple Face, I said in a low voice: "You are an excellent general, I believe you... You absolutely are a man of your word."

  Closing my eyes, I continued: "Now...please take me to the dead squad, but before that, I want to tell you, I will definitely come back alive."

  After finishing speaking, I resolutely turned around and quickly left the grand hall under the lead of four knife-wielding guards. Watching the group's silhouettes gradually disappear, Zi Qian smiled and said: "Hmph? A very interesting cold-blooded young man, but... he has a very military demeanor, soldiers should indeed keep their emotions in check!"

  At this point, General Zi Qian Hao furrowed his brow slightly, muttering in puzzlement: "But...this kid doesn't look very old, only fifteen or sixteen years old. What makes him so indifferent, so cold-blooded? After talking for half a day, not even a smile, and not even an overly surprised expression, this is abnormal!"

  Actually... I'm only 11 years old now, and my mental endurance is basically the same as that of children of the same age. After experiencing the tragedy of the dwarf tribe, how could I still have a smile on my face? And what kind of thing can surprise me again?!

  Under the lead of four sword-bearing guards, I headed westward into the city. After passing through a long street, a continuous military camp appeared in front of me, with countless soldiers practicing and shouting loudly, their voices carrying far away!

  It's different... I can clearly feel it, although it's the same training, but... there's something in these soldiers' momentum that I don't understand, yet it sends shivers down my spine. It's completely different from when we trained with our companions in Dwarf Village!

  Carefully feeling, experiencing, finally... I shuddered all over, I knew what they had more than the dwarves' children - it was murderous aura! Bloodthirsty murderous aura!

  Hehe, I'm already very satisfied now. Now I just hope that next week's new book can go up a bit on the charts or recommended list. I don't know if it's possible! Thanks for your help, haha...

  Additionally, this Sunday from 12:00 AM to 1:00 AM, all comments will be rewarded with bonus points, including spam comments. Friends who want to earn points, come quickly! Additionally... In order to coordinate with the ranking rush, Sunday's update will also be after 12:00 AM!