If I made you a special forces soldier, would you become a terrestrial god?

Gao Cheng felt like his throat was on fire.

He stared intently at the web of death woven from countless red beams of light in front of him, his mind racing at an unprecedented pace, each word he uttered brief and clear.

"Left foot, half a step forward, stop!"

"Right foot, brushing against the left heel, move sideways, slowly!"

"Alright, lean forward, yes, like that, crouch down! Go under that beam of light!"

The person he was guiding was Wu Liuyi.

The most unruly soldier in the Seventh Steel Company was now blindfolded, each step incredibly difficult, sweat soaking through the black cloth covering his face. He completely trusted Gao Cheng, but his body's instincts were frantically resisting stepping into that unknown and dangerous area.

Not far away, Shi Jin's voice was gentle yet firm, like an invisible rope pulling the stumbling Xu Sanduo along.

"Sanduo, don't be afraid, I'm here."

"Yes, lift your left foot, take a smaller step... very good!"

With each step Xu Sanduo took, it seemed as if he had used up all his strength, muttering to himself, "Squad leader... I'm scared... I'm scared I won't walk well..."

"Don't worry, if you don't make it, I'll be eliminated with you," Shi Jin comforted softly.

On the other side, Cheng Cai seemed to be in complete control. His guide was a soldier he didn't know, but the two worked together remarkably well. Cheng Cai could always anticipate the other's intentions half a second in advance, and his movements were as light as a cat's.

Just as Gao Cheng was directing Wu Liuyi to complete the final evasive maneuver and his feet touched the solid ground of the safe zone, a gunshot rang out, almost grazing his ear.

Gao Cheng shuddered and quickly shrank back.

A bullet struck the ground where he had just been standing, kicking up a small cloud of dust.

"Damn it!" Gao Cheng cursed under his breath.

These snipers are like an ungrateful pack of wolves, always striking when people are most relaxed.

As more and more teams successfully crossed the minefield, the safe zone at the finish line gradually became lively.

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Gao Cheng ripped off Wu Liuyi's blindfold, and the latter was panting heavily, his whole body soaked, as if he had just been pulled out of the water.

"Company commander, I...I didn't hold us back, did I?"

"Nonsense, would the soldiers I lead be a hindrance?" Gao Cheng punched him, his words tough, but he was secretly relieved.

Just then, a voice, tinged with amusement and yet somewhat familiar, came from the side.

"Hey, isn't this the Seventh Company Commander? A top student, what brings you to this godforsaken place to suffer?"

Gao Cheng looked in the direction of the sound and saw a major wearing the same training uniform, with a lazy smile on his lips, leaning against a rock and looking at him.

Gao Cheng was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled: "Yuan Lang? You old A, why aren't you staying in your lousy A brigade? What are you doing here causing trouble?"

Beside Yuan Lang, a tall, stern-faced captain named Qi Huan was warily surveying his surroundings.

Behind Yuan Lang stood a middle-aged officer with the rank of senior colonel. When that man saw Gao Cheng, he also showed a surprised expression.

"Xiao Gao?" The colonel walked over.

Upon seeing him, Gao Cheng immediately straightened up, his arrogance diminishing considerably: "Minister of Railways? What brings you here..."

"Just like you, here to be a newbie." Railway chuckled self-deprecatingly, patted Gao Cheng on the shoulder, "Not bad, kid. That command just now had the flair of your father back in the day."

"Please don't flatter me." Gao Cheng grinned.

He and Tie Lu certainly knew each other. Tie Lu had once been a fierce general under Gao Cheng's father, and later transferred to the A Brigade. The two were old acquaintances in the military who knew each other well.

Shi Jin and Wu Liuyi were all shocked to see that their company commander was so familiar with the bigwigs of the A Brigade. They quickly stood at attention and saluted.

"Don't be nervous. Once we get here, our ranks are invalid. We're all in the same boat." Railway waved his hand, signaling them to relax.

Yuan Lang also walked over. He looked at the men of the Seventh Steel Company with great interest, his gaze lingering on Xu Sanduo for a couple of seconds longer.

"Hey buddy, is this the Steel Seventh Company you always talk about, the one that says 'Never give up, never surrender'?" Yuan Lang's tone was somewhat scrutinizing.

"That's right." Railway nodded, his eyes filled with admiration. "A cowardly soldier is a coward, but a cowardly general makes a cowardly army. Although Gao Cheng is a jerk, the soldiers he leads are all tough guys."

Gao Cheng didn't know whether to be happy or curse after hearing this.

He introduced them to each other: "This is our squad leader Shi Jin, this is Wu Liuyi, that taciturn guy is Xu Sanduo, and that clever guy over there is Cheng Cai."

Then he pointed to Yuan Lang and the others: "These are the legendary 'Old A,' the aces of the special forces. This is Captain Yuan Lang, this is Qi Huan, and this is the Minister of Railways."

The members of the Seventh Steel Company, including Cheng Cai who always thought highly of himself, looked at Yuan Lang and his group with awe and curiosity.

That's the elite A unit! A place every regular soldier in the entire military region dreams of going to!

"I didn't expect to run into you all here." Shi Jin smiled somewhat awkwardly.

"Why call me 'Commander'? Just call me by my name, or 'Rookie' is fine too." Yuan Lang's smile was very approachable, but his eyes were like an eagle's, as if they could see right through people's hearts. "Speaking of which, we have the same goal, we're all aiming for Kunlun."

The atmosphere at the scene changed instantly when the word "Kunlun" was mentioned.

Everyone's breathing became somewhat heavy.

"It's fucking weird," Qi Huan said in a muffled voice. "Did you see that? Those who were eliminated are all like they've taken some kind of magic pill, full of energy and going back home. We who fought our way through to stay are like wild kids left unattended."

These words expressed what everyone felt.

The stark contrast between their expectations and reality fueled a burning anger within them.

"An elixir?" Yuan Lang chuckled. "I think it's more like a selection process, or rather... an investment."

"Investment?" Gao Cheng frowned.

"That's right." Yuan Lang's eyes gleamed with wisdom. "They used what they considered a low-cost 'gift' to win the loyalty of three thousand elite soldiers, and at the same time, they used these three thousand living examples to provoke the remaining four thousand of us. They told us that as long as we could stay, we would get much more than they did. It was a brilliant scheme."

The railway nodded in agreement.

These veteran scouts always see things more deeply than others.

"No matter what his scheme is, I only know this: I'm staying here!" Wu Liuyi clenched his fists, a defiant flame burning in his eyes. "I want to see just how much Kunlun can turn people into!"

"Yes! Stay!" Xu Sanduo echoed softly but firmly.

Seeing the eagerness in the soldiers' eyes, Gao Cheng felt a surge of excitement in his heart as well.

He recalled the awe-inspiring scene on the tarmac, and the young general Su Chen who stood before everyone like a god.

He suddenly spoke, his tone somewhat complicated: "Tell me, what kind of person is the brigade commander of Kunlun? He seems... like an ordinary person."

Upon hearing this, both Yuan Lang and the railway fell silent.

Yes, someone who can produce gene enhancement fluid, produce that kind of "miracle pill" that can bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded, and devise such a bizarre and efficient selection program, how could such a person be an ordinary person?

"It must be a deity descending to earth," Yuan Lang said half-jokingly.

Unexpectedly, Gao Cheng shook his head and uttered a strange sentence.

"A deity? Not really."

"When we were kids in the military compound, he even snatched my marbles."

The words fell.

The whole world seemed to have been muted.

Yuan Lang's smile froze.

The railway worker's movement to light a cigarette froze in mid-air, his mouth slightly open.

Qi Huan's perpetually icy face now looked as if he had seen a ghost.

Even the soldiers of the Steel Seventh Company themselves—Shi Jin, Wu Liuyi, Xu Sanduo, and Cheng Cai—were all petrified on the spot, their eyes wide open, staring blankly at their company commander, their minds completely blank.

Snatched...snatched the marbles?

What kind of outrageous language is this?!

The Kunlun Brigade Commander they fantasized about, who was high above, mysterious and unpredictable, like a god, had... stolen marbles from people when he was a child.

And the one who stole it was his own company commander?!

The amount of information was so vast that it caused their CPUs to overheat and burn out instantly.

It took Yuan Lang a good ten seconds to find his voice. His tone was dry and filled with unprecedented disbelief.

"Gao Cheng, what the hell did you just say?"

"I said," Gao Cheng looked at the astonished expressions on everyone's faces and felt a strange sense of superiority rise in his heart. He cleared his throat and deliberately repeated each word slowly and deliberately, "I know Su Chen, the brigade commander of Kunlun. We grew up in the same compound."

"boom--!"

If what happened before was just a CPU overload, now it's as if everyone's brains have been hit directly by a nuclear bomb, blown to smithereens.