Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 185 Becoming the King of Elden!
"What do you know!!"

O'Neill's voice was hoarse, like a broken bellows, and his aged body trembled violently.

"A mere brat! Have you ever experienced the despair of a royal court collapsing?! Have you ever felt the pain of your subordinates melting and rotting in corruption?! Have you ever witnessed the shame of your former lord, whom you swore to serve to the death, personally turning everything to nothing?!"

Lu Mingfei remained silent for a few seconds.

He had not personally experienced that catastrophe and could not fully comprehend the despair that penetrated to the bone.

“I do not understand your pain, General.”

Lu Mingfei's voice lowered.

"But I can see your pride. Even when you were the only one left on the battlefield, you still held the military flag high, regarding yourself as the last part of this battlefield, and never ran away."

He withdrew the sword's edge slightly, but it still maintained its deterrent effect:

"You have witnessed the downfall of the royal court twice and survived to this day. Now, are you going to run away?"

Are you going to rot silently in this mud, like a homeless stray dog ​​wagging its tail and begging, 'Kill me,' is that it?

Even Lu Mingfei himself trembled slightly upon hearing those words. They were too harsh, but he knew that unless he gave the old man some drastic measures, he wouldn't change his mind.

Lu Mingfei forced himself to continue:

“Even if you die here, when I go out I will only tell others that you committed suicide here. You did not die by a warrior’s sword.”

"A stray dog...wagging its tail and begging for mercy..."

O'Neal's eyes widened suddenly, instantly becoming bloodshot, and a terrifying light burst forth from his turbid pupils.

Lu Mingfei unconsciously held his breath a little.

He knew he had stirred up a hornet's nest.

"You... ignorant and arrogant little brat!!"

O'Neill's voice seemed to be squeezed from his chest, a low growl like that of an enraged beast:
"How dare you... use a soldier's dignity to humiliate me?!"

He trembled violently, and the battle flag and halberd lying in the mud seemed to sense their master's rage, the scarlet tattered cloth on the flag fluttering slightly.

His chest heaved violently, and his eyes revealed a murderous glint. It was as if the last veil of self-respect had been ripped away from him.

Seeking death might indeed be a form of escapism, but the boy's words were like a sharp sword, piercing his heart.

O'Neal stared intently at the young knight, his anger rising until it reached its peak.

He looked at the knight's gleaming silver armor, the dragon carvings on his head, the horns on his shoulder armor, and the thorns and dragon patterns.
He suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon, his anger completely vanishing, leaving only exhaustion and bewilderment.

Lu Mingfei stared nervously at O'Neill. He had used the provocation tactic to its extreme, even resorting to vicious humiliation.

He was prepared for a furious counterattack, but the expected storm did not materialize.

O'Neill let out a long sigh, as if all his energy had been drained away.

"That stubborn mule," he muttered, his eyes vacant, "was he better than me in the past, and had a better vision than this defeated general trapped in the mire?"

His gaze shifted to the tattered battle flag that Lu Mingfei had removed.

The military flag, a symbol of past glory, lay silently in the scarlet mud, as insignificant as his determination to die.

“Boy,” O’Neill’s voice regained some of the calmness befitting a general, “you’re right, to seek death is indeed to escape, and it is the greatest cowardice in the world.”

He struggled to raise his calloused hand, palm up, and painstakingly felt inside his heavy breastplate.

Amidst the soft clanging of armor, he pulled out a small item.

It looks simple and unadorned, just a delicate gold needle about an inch long. The needle is slender and tough, with a pure and spotless golden color, exuding a holy aura that is out of place with the surrounding scarlet and decaying.

It certainly looks like a treasure, however, it seems to have been completely broken in two and rendered useless.

"take it."

O'Neill's voice was weary as he whispered, "Lady Michaela, I have done my best. The mission you entrusted to me ends here."

Lu Mingfei did not answer immediately.

"A promise is the beginning of a journey."

O'Neill's cloudy gaze swept over Lu Mingfei:
"Do not break your knightly oath."

He pushed the gold needle forward:
"Use it where it's needed... to cut through the crimson."

Lu Mingfei scratched his head, but still took the pure gold needle, casually tucked it into his pocket, and tentatively asked:

"Aren't you seeking death?"

O'Neal nodded, then shook his head:
"You've turned the old man into a prisoner, and I no longer belong to the Holy Tree Legion. And many years ago, when the Storm Court fell, I didn't end up like your master. So, I have nowhere to go now."

Kid, you need to give me a reason to live.

"Uh"

Lu Mingfei was speechless at this soul-searching question.

A reason to live?

His gaze began to drift involuntarily toward the swamp, his mind a complete mess.

"Uh... well..."

Lu Mingfei stammered, his fingers unconsciously tracing patterns on his helmet:

"It's so good to be alive. Look, you can look at the blue sky, catch up with old friends, or even rekindle your past life with your master."

He himself felt that this reason was weak and completely fabricated.

O'Neill stared intently at him with a look as if he were looking at a piece of unintelligent, rotten wood.

Lu Mingfei felt his scalp tingle from being stared at so intently that he almost surrendered and said something like, "You can do whatever you want, sir."

The veteran's lips suddenly curled into a sly smile.

"Hmph, you smooth-talking brat, can't you come up with anything now?"

O'Neill said calmly:
"Weren't you just speaking so fluently? 'Begging for mercy like a stray dog ​​that can't find its home'?"

Lu Mingfei was drenched in sweat.

The old man suddenly changed the subject:
"What you said isn't entirely wrong."

Lu Mingfei was taken aback. Could this nonsense really pass muster?
"Is that Grik's Great Rune?"

O'Neill raised his arm, pointed a finger at Lu Mingfei's chest, and asked slowly.

Lu Mingfei nodded subconsciously.

"Heir of the Storm, holding the destiny of the Great Rune in your hands, isn't that enough for you to understand?"

"Young man," O'Neill slowly uttered, "the storm has chosen you, and the power is in your hands. You don't want to bear my fate? Fine, I accept it. Then I will not be a soul under your sword."

But you must give this old man a reason to 'live on,' no, to 'keep going!'

The old general straightened his long-hunched back, and beneath his tattered armor, a fighting spirit that transcended eras seemed to be rekindled.

"Go find the throne!"

"Go hunt down those demigods!"

"Take the power of the storm and let it go where it's meant to be!"

"—Become the King of Elden!"

(End of this chapter)