Ding-a-ling-a-ling——!!
A sharp, piercing whistle rang out, and Lin Qiye opened his eyes, quickly got out of bed, and began to put on his military uniform.
Across from him, Baili Pangpang also sat up in bed, snoring with his eyes closed, but his hands didn't stop dressing.
He finished dressing, and his body began to sway slightly, as if he were about to fall asleep again.
Lin Qiye grabbed a slipper and threw it at his head, which snapped him out of his daze.
The two pushed open the door and ran quickly towards the training ground in the distance.
"Haaah~~~Yawn~~"
While yawning, Baili Pangpang sighed, "After staying outside for so many days, I've found that the bed in the camp is still the most comfortable to sleep in..."
Then, as if remembering something, he spoke with surprise:
"Wait a minute, wasn't our physical training session over? Why do we have to get up so early?!"
Lin Qiye rolled his eyes. "The end of physical training doesn't mean the end of intensive training. Apart from not having to carry weights from morning till night every day, everything else is the same as before."
"Okay~"
Soon, everyone gathered on the training field, their movements swift and synchronized.
This time, not only Instructor Hong was standing on the training platform, but all the other instructors were also present. Yuan Gang stood in front of the instructors, calmly looking at Lin Qiye and the others below.
Unlike before, today all the instructors were dressed very neatly, and many of them wore medals on their chests, some large and some small, and all different colors.
Of all the instructors, Yuan Gang had the most medals, including three deep blue ones that were the most exquisitely crafted; upon closer inspection, one could almost see a magnificent star within them…
"Qiye, don't you think... there seem to be a few fewer instructors?" Baili Pangpang's gaze swept across the stage, a look of doubt appearing in his eyes, and he asked in a low voice.
Lin Qiye nodded slightly, "Three are missing."
After spending half a year together, he remembered all the instructors. At this moment, three people were missing from the instructors' ranks, and Lin Qiye could tell at a glance. He could even accurately name the three missing instructors.
"Where are they?"
"I don't know, but I doubt it will end well."
He still clearly remembered the missiles that fell from the sky when the new recruits were being transported out of the camp. He didn't believe there wasn't a traitor in the camp, given how accurately the enemy could track their movements.
If nothing unexpected happens, the three missing instructors should be the moles in the camp. What good can a mole do?
Yuan Gang didn't seem to explain the missing instructor's meaning. He glanced at everyone and said in a deep voice:
"Today's morning training session is canceled..."
Upon hearing this, everyone present was slightly taken aback. Then, Yuan Gang's next words made their breathing become heavy.
"The main reason I've gathered you all here is... to award medals to some of you."
Awarding medals?
They were just new recruits who hadn't even left the training camp, yet some of them had already received honors?
Just then, one of the new recruits realized something and turned to look at Lin Qiye.
Nearby, Lin Xi Chen kept muttering "Not me, not me, not me" under her breath, causing Lin Qiye to smile helplessly; after all, his sister detested standing out and always strove to keep the lowest possible profile. That was, however, before she acquired Lucifer's Divine Ruin.
Those who were in the same bus with Lin Qiye leaving the camp at the time all saw the black light that blocked all the shrapnel. Even if some people didn't realize what had happened at the time, they later guessed what had happened.
Lin Qiye then remembered that when they were at Hong Ying's house, Instructor Hong had mentioned that he should be awarded a medal this time...
"Considering that some people may not be clear about how the Night's Watch's merits are divided, I'll give you a brief introduction here..."
"Our Night's Watch's honors differ from those of regular armies; they are divided into four types, ranked from easiest to hardest to obtain: the 'Starfire' Medal, the 'Starfall' Medal, the 'Star' Medal, and the 'Sea of Stars' Medal."
Yuan Gang casually removed a light red badge from his chest. "This is the 'Starfire' Medal, the easiest medal to obtain. It's usually awarded after completing important, mysterious extermination missions or protecting the lives of a large number of people."
He hung the Starfire Medal back on his chest and took off another light blue medal.
"This is the 'Starfall' Medal. Compared to the 'Starfire' Medal, it is much more difficult to obtain. It can generally only be obtained after defeating an extremely high-risk mystery or quelling a large-scale disaster."
Finally, he removed the most exquisite, deep blue medal, its crystalline surface shimmering with a faint starlight under the morning sun.
"This is the'Star' Medal, which can only be obtained after killing a 'Boundless' level mystery or quelling a major event that could cause social unrest. It is extremely rare, and less than 1% of the entire Night Watch organization can obtain this medal."
Yuan Gang solemnly hung the Star Medal back on his chest and continued, "As for the 'Starry Sea' Medal, it is the highest honor a Night Watchman can obtain. No more than ten people in the entire Great Xia Dynasty possess this medal, and even the higher-ups of the Night Watch cannot give a specific standard on how to obtain it."
"Report!"
"Speak."
"Instructor, if there's no set standard, how do we determine if someone is eligible for this medal?"
"When everyone thinks you deserve it, they will naturally award it to you," Yuan Gang said calmly. "If we have to use a standard, the only person who has received the 'Star Sea' medal in the past five years is Wang Mian from the Masked Squad."
"Five years ago, the Yamata no Orochi, a god of sequence number 040, landed in the East China Sea. Wang Mian sacrificed his own lifespan to travel through time, returning to an hour before the Yamata no Orochi landed. He ordered the evacuation of people in several surrounding coastal areas and led the 'Masked' squad in a desperate battle against the Yamata no Orochi for half an hour, holding out until a human being descended, saving tens of millions of people..."
"If any of you feel that you have made a greater contribution than him in the future, you may apply for the 'Starry Sea' Medal."
Everyone in the audience fell silent. Lin Qiye was also secretly surprised. He hadn't expected that the Mythical Landing in the East China Sea had actually happened five years ago. He vaguely remembered reading a news article about a massive tsunami in the East China Sea five years ago. He never imagined that the truth behind the events was like this...
What he never expected was that the gentle and taciturn man had performed such a feat.
"Next, I'll announce the first person to receive the medal..." Yuan Gang took a small black box from the instructor behind him, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, and calmly began to speak.
"Lin Qiye acted decisively during the missile attack, saving over fifty new recruits and preserving the future of the Night Watch. He then severely injured the Ancient God Church's [Snake Woman] and fought alongside Squad 136 to kill Han Shaoyun, the thirteenth seat of the [Believer]..."
"Hereby awarded the 'Star' Medal!"