Chapter 718: The Dark Sentinel 29

Hearing Tang Wan’s question, Lu Tong frowned slightly, his tone low but steady. “I don’t know yet. When we go back, we’ll test it again.”

Tang Wan nodded. “Alright.”

No matter what, this time she would not allow things to end the way they had before.

When the two returned, General Li and the others were already waiting. The moment they saw them, their expressions lit up with excitement and relief.

“You’ve both worked hard! This victory is all thanks to you!”

Lu Tong remained as indifferent as ever, offering no response, but Tang Wan smiled politely and stepped in. “It’s what we should do. It wasn’t hard work, but Tongtong is quite exhausted after dealing with those double S-level sentries and guides. I’ll take him back to rest first. If anything comes up, you can contact us again.”

“Of course, of course!” the generals quickly agreed.

With the enemy’s core forces shattered, the remaining threats were no longer a major concern.

Tang Wan nodded, then casually looped her arm through Lu Tong’s as she led him away. Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought he had suffered serious injuries, judging by how carefully she handled him.

Once the battle report reached the imperial capital, the emperor was overjoyed.

After hearing that Lu Tong had eliminated dozens of double S-level enemies in a single engagement, he immediately turned to the Secretary-General. “Inform the research institute to produce nine hundred and ninety-nine eternal lovers!”

The Secretary-General’s expression twitched slightly, but he still bowed. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

At the Institute of Time-Space Technology, however, the scientists were far less enthusiastic.

Professor Sun frowned as he heard the order. “What is His Majesty thinking? Using our time-freezing technology for something like this?”

Eternal lovers, though valuable, were essentially decorative items. They were occasionally auctioned off to generate funding, but from a research perspective, they were trivial.

Now they were being asked to mass-produce them.

It was absurd.

Seeing his dissatisfaction, the Secretary-General quickly explained, “Professor Sun, this is a reward for a frontline admiral who has made extraordinary contributions. Thanks to them, we’ve achieved a major turnaround and secured the empire’s safety.”

The moment those words were spoken, Professor Sun’s expression changed.

“I see.”

His tone softened immediately.

“If it’s for someone like that, then it must be done properly. Please reassure His Majesty, we’ll handle it with the utmost care.”

If it were merely for decoration, they wouldn’t bother. But for someone who had turned the tide of war, that was a different matter entirely.

Meanwhile, after resting for a night, Tang Wan and Lu Tong returned to the battlefield the following day.

This time, however, their goal was not direct combat.

It was testing.

Lu Tong resumed his sniping position, extending his perception just as he had done before. His awareness spread outward, locking onto distant targets with precision.

At first, everything seemed normal.

But after some time, the same signs appeared again.

His focus deepened too far, his consciousness stretching past its safe threshold, and the faint instability began to surface once more.

Before it could worsen, Tang Wan acted.

Her mental thread slipped into his awareness, steady and firm.

“Tongtong. Come back.”

The moment her voice reached him, his perception halted and began to retract. His mental state stabilized, and clarity returned.

Tang Wan observed him carefully before speaking, her tone thoughtful.

“Forty-six minutes and seven seconds.”

Lu Tong looked at her.

“That seems to be your limit,” she continued. “The maximum time you can maintain that level of focus without losing control.”

His gaze darkened slightly as he processed her words.

After a brief pause, he nodded. “Tomorrow, we’ll test again. We need to confirm whether distance is also a factor.”

“Alright.”

Tang Wan agreed without hesitation.

This time, they would figure it out completely.

And they would not allow history to repeat itself.