A black-haired woman walked up to Thunderbolt as they landed. Her hair, which reached all the way down to her hips, framed a youthful face, whose eyes were filled with years of untold stories and feelings.

“Marshal Marie, Colonel Aziz, and the members of Thunderbolt Battalion, welcome to Feng-Lang. I’m Paragon Ying Xin, one of the overseers over the Feng-Lang battlefront. We thank you for your aid,” said the woman. “I understand that it has been a long flight from the Republic to the Easter Territories, so your lodgings have already been prepared for you.”

For Paragons, their appearances could be deceiving, and depending on the exact person, a Paragon could look like an elderly expert…or a youth fresh out of society’s cradle. Aziz didn’t want to guess which category this Paragon fell into.

She gestured at a building. At first glance, the colonel could tell that it was newly made, probably made for the sole purpose of housing Thunderbolt. Most of his men, who were paying attention to the Paragon’s actions, brightened up when they saw a pristine building clearly meant for their own use here. It was, by all accounts, a gesture that showed just how much the East valued their presence here…and to Aziz, just how desperately help was needed.

Marie nodded at the company commanders, who immediately began to yell out orders. Men broke up into small squads, forming up into neat little lines that marched towards their new barracks.

“Disciplined, your Thunderbolt,” said the Paragon.

“We’ll be making laughing stocks of ourselves otherwise,” said Marie. “We’re here to support your efforts. It won’t raise the morale of your troops much if my troops don’t live up to their elite statuses, right?”

“I see why they made you the Chief of Air, despite your young age,” said Paragon Ying Xin. “You have the qualities of a great leader.”

“The State Council attributes everything they see to me,” Marie replied, “but Colonel Aziz here has played a huge part in Thunderbolt’s training.”

The Paragon turned to Aziz. “You were the doctrine-maker for Thunderbolt? Interesting. If it’s possible, do share your experience with the commanders on my side. We haven’t had much time to train our fliers, not with this irregular war going on.”

Aziz shifted his eyes over to Marie, who nodded subtly.

“Of course,” said Aziz. “It’ll be my pleasure to help your forces.”

“Thank you so much,” said the Paragon. “As I understand it, Thunderbolt has supported multiple offensives during the Republic-Assembly war — your experience in supporting such attacks will be very crucial to the success of our planned offensives at the end of this month.”

“I’ll do my best to live up to your expectations, Paragon Ying Xin,” Aziz promised. “That’s what we’re here for, after all. To help the East. As for the aid from the other continents…”

“The North has sent a shipment of very powerful weapons, aimed at curbing the divine properties of the Lifespring’s troops. We have tested a random sample of them on the battlefield, and the results are astounding,” said the Paragon. “Naturally, we’ll be arming your battalion with these weapons. The troops from the Western Holdings will be joining us a week from now.”

Aziz mapped out the geography of the Five Lands mentally, and nodded in understanding. It would seem that the volunteer troops from the West had set off around the same time as them, but since they were so much further from the East…

“Still,” said Marie, “the Holdings have already settled the God of Earth’s incursion? That was quick.”

“Wrong,” said Paragon Ying Xin. “There hasn’t been much news of Rahwei’s invasion, because there hasn’t been one at all.”

“What?”

“What?”

“There are two reasons for this,” said the Paragon. “First, the God of Earth simply transmuted the seas around his Divine Kingdom into land, and continued expanding from there. Rahwei didn’t see a need to invade the Holdings. This news has been treated as rumour thus far, but the prescient have started heading towards the West as a result.”

“That’s…really lucky of them,” Marie replied.

“Tell me about it,” said the Paragon, a bitter tone in her voice. “The West has always been the luckiest continent throughout history. Rich resources, abundant in land, the mildest climate…the more I think about it, the more pissed I feel.”

“Paragon Ying Xin, your language!”

“These are honoured guests of the Plenum! You shouldn’t be this reckless!”

The people around her was clearly shocked by the use of coarse language in the presence of people from other countries, but the Paragon clearly didn’t give much of a damn.

“They’re soldiers, people on the frontlines,” said the Paragon. “They are the last people whom I expect to be shocked at the mild words I used just now. You’re insulting them by treating them as fragile people who place stock in the niceties. They’re fighters. Not flowers.”

“Be that as it may,” said a man, “the commanders of Thunderbolt are guests from afar. It’s not a matter of who they are and how they behave, but our standing and image before them.”

He sighed and turned to Marie. “My apologies for her crass words. Someone this detached from the world doesn’t really care about her image, so I beg for your understanding.”

“Jing. Xian.” Before the man could finish his bow, the Paragon had picked him up by the back of his shirt.

“It’s for your own good!”

“You mean the Plenum’s, no?” The Paragon lowered her stance, reminding Aziz of the time he used to play tossball as a kid, before throwing the man in her hand into the air. A scream, like that of a pig being butchered, echoed across the sky as the man soared upwards. There was a resounding boom, something like a thunderclap, as his departing figure vanished from sight.

She turned to the others. “Any issues?”

“N-no.”

“Good. And make sure it stays that way.” She turned to Marie and bowed. “My apologies for that unseemly display. Please, be at ease with the fact that the chains of command are highly respected in the East.”

The marshal smiled weakly, her eyes now on a tiny star in the sky. Paragon Ying Xin laughed. “Don’t worry about it. He’ll be back. He’s too insensitive to die on me. Just give him an hour or so — I threw him into the Paragons’ battlefield, which is currently empty.”

Aziz narrowed his eyes slightly at her words. As he’d suspected, the battlefield was split by cultivation realms…which may have some effect on Thunderbolt’s operations moving forward.

It was something he had to ask.

“Right,” said Paragon Ying Xin. “I’m aware that you two are here to examine our newest strategic initiatives. I’ll bring you to Gaius first, and then you can make notes from there. Unless, of course, you want to take a rest first…?”

“Let’s go see the new weapon,” said Marie. “We’re very interested in that.”

“Of course.” She nodded. “Follow me.”