The First Order

"Bro, I want to go out to hunt too."

Ren Xiaosu looked at the young man walking towards him after slowly getting off the Wolf King's back. It felt like the words Yan Liuyuan had said to him were still resonating in his ears.

In the blink of an eye, Liuyuan had grown taller. In the past, Little Liuyuan only reached up to his chest. But now, he was nearly as tall as him.

Nothing had seemingly changed between the two of them. Ren Xiaosu could still feel the eagerness in Yan Liuyuan's eyes.

However, he had on a fierce-looking faceplate and was no longer that little sidekick who followed him around. He was now the new king of the steppe.

Ren Xiaosu smiled and said, "You've grown taller."

Yan Liuyuan took off his faceplate and revealed his handsome face. "Bro, you've gotten a little tanner."

With that, Yan Liuyuan quickened his pace and hugged Ren Xiaosu.

Yang Xiaojin came out of her sniping spot in the distance and put away her black sniper rifle before walking towards them. However, she did not interrupt the two brothers' reunion.

She understood Ren Xiaosu quite well, so she clearly knew how much he had been longing for this day to come.

When Xiaoyu saw Yang Xiaojin, she wiped her tears with her sleeve and went up to her. "Xiaojin, you haven't changed at all. You're still as beautiful as ever."

At this moment, Yang Xiaojin switched from her usual intimidating self and started blushing, as though she was embarrassed to meet the "parents." "Big Sister Xiaoyu, you also haven't changed at all."

Xiaoyu pulled Yang Xiaojin aside. While taking a stroll, she took a gold bracelet out of her pocket and put it on for Yang Xiaojin. "I knew that we would definitely find y'all when we came to the South this time, so I had Hassan specially make this gold bracelet. Consider it a gift for our long-awaited reunion."

Now that Yan Liuyuan was already the lord of the steppe, they were definitely not lacking any gold. So Xiaoyu was very generous with the gift. The heavy gold bracelet probably weighed more than 200 grams…

If they were in the Central Plains, only the rich families could afford the betrothal jewelry necessary to plan a marriage.

Xiaoyu felt that while Ren Xiaosu and Yan Liuyuan used to be poor, there were probably not a lot of people in the entire Alliance of Strongholds who could compare to their status as they progressed further in life.

Therefore, they would have to make it a grand affair when Ren Xiaosu and Yan Liuyuan married and had children in the future.

They would also become an influential family in the future, and maybe people might even think they were a rich family when someone mentioned them.

In front of the sheepish Ren Xiaosu, Yang Xiaojin would often tease him verbally. But when facing Xiaoyu, she acted much more reserved, like she was afraid of leaving a bad impression on her.

The two ladies walked away, leaving Ren Xiaosu and Yan Liuyuan behind to catch up.

No one noticed that Xun Yeyu was still lying in the wilderness a distance away and muttering, "What's the situation now? Can I come out yet?"

When Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin teamed up to kill Black Robe, they had made him hide here, and he was told not to come out without Ren Xiaosu giving him the word.

But in the blink of an eye, everyone had forgotten about him.

At this moment, Ren Xiaosu checked on Black Robe's body and gave it a few more stabs after confirming it was dead.

Honestly, this guy was such a relentless spirit. Even the nuclear bomb did not kill it, so Ren Xiaosu was really afraid it would suddenly get up and run away again.

Only when this devious creature was completely dead could they feel at ease.

Ren Xiaosu looked at Yan Liuyuan. "How did y'all end up on the steppe?"

The two of them found a large rock and sat down side by side on it. Yan Liuyuan explained, "Back then, I saw you get pierced in the abdomen by the spear. When the flood was about to hit, the wolf pack suddenly appeared, and the Wolf King picked Big Sister Xiaoyu and me up in its jowls before heading to the North. Later on, I wanted to avenge you, but I felt that I should establish my own forces first. I thought of what you told me previously, that the people living in the grasslands were still ignorant, and it happened that my power was suited for creating 'gods' there."

"Was it tough to unify the grasslands?" Ren Xiaosu asked.

Yan Liuyuan shook his head and said with a smile, "Not at all. Initially, we were supposed to be in for a tough battle, but we got quite lucky. The Pyro Company actually came and captured the most powerful khan in the grasslands…."

Ren Xiaosu did not know whether to laugh or cry. "I only went to the Sacred Mountains after hearing about this kidnapping. I didn't expect that it was actually just a big misunderstanding!"

Yan Liuyuan was taken aback. "What happened?"

"The Pyro Company and Anjing House happened to have their goals aligned and claimed that the Pyro Company had caught the No. 001 Experimental." Ren Xiaosu explained, "At that time, I was under the impression that you were the No. 001 Experimental, so I went to the Sacred Mountains because I wanted to save you. But that was just an assumption anyway. Since we both can't remember anything about the past, I hope you don't take this matter to heart."

But Yan Liuyuan suddenly fell silent. He asked in a soft voice, "Bro, have you recalled anything?"

Ren Xiaosu shook his head. "No, why are you suddenly asking about this?"

"It's nothing." Yan Liuyuan said with a smile, "It always feels strange to have part of my memory blank. By the way, how'd you end up becoming Fortress 178's future commander?"

"Oh, after I was swept away by the flood, I was saved by Wang Shengzhi, who then brought me to Fortress 178." Ren Xiaosu said, "Later on, Mr. Zhang Jinglin told me that he could help me take revenge since they happened to be sending troops to attack the Zong Consortium. Thus, I joined Fortress 178's Razor Sharp Company and killed my way to the North. It was also in that war that Fortress 178 wiped out the Zong Consortium. After that, I left the Northwest and went to the Central Plains to search for your whereabouts."

"Have you found Uncle Fugui and the others yet?" Yan Liuyuan asked.

"Yes." Ren Xiaosu said with a smile, "They're doing business in the Northwest now and it's thriving. We've also found Ms. Jiang, Wang Yuchi, and the others."

"That's good then." Yan Liuyuan nodded. "You and sister-in-law are now—"

"Hahahahaha," Ren Xiaosu interrupted. "You're still a kid, so don't be asking such questions."

The two of them fell silent. Ren Xiaosu immediately felt that he might have been a little tactless. Yan Liuyuan was no longer a child but the new king of the steppe.

Although he was still his younger brother, Liuyuan had grown up.

After a long while, Yan Liuyuan finally said, "Actually, I found out about your news a few months ago. I saw those words in the Hope Media newspaper when we attacked Stronghold 176, but I didn't go and look for you."

"Why?" Ren Xiaosu was surprised to hear that.

Yan Liuyuan said, "While unifying the grasslands, I killed a lot of people, and some of them were even people who I shouldn't have killed. But in order to establish my authority, I killed all of them. Many civilians in Stronghold 176 also died because of me when I didn't restrain my subordinates. That nearly led to a tragedy of the city being massacred. And after seeing the 'don't let the sorrows of our era become your sorrow as well' in the newspaper, I felt that I might be unworthy to meet you again."

Ren Xiaosu could not hold back his laughter. "Do you really think you went overboard with all that? If you knew what I did, you'd probably try to persuade me to be kinder…."