1309 a.s.sumptions.

Those people that didn’t know the three candidates well, especially Qi Long, clicked on the screen in front of them and started reading the information.

In the military, major generals weren’t highly regarded. There were just too many of them, probably more than a million, so to them Qi Long was just an unknown insignificant major general. He didn’t achieve any amazing merits, wasn’t the one who changed the tides of the war and wasn’t the one who led the victory (someone like Ling Lan). To the soldiers, they didn’t think much of those soldiers who rose to major general rank according to routine. There were many major generals who didn’t have any power too, making their t.i.tle just a t.i.tle.

But, soon, many people were astounded. Qi Long was young but his track record was even more outstanding than the other two generals who were twice his age. Whether it was during the battle on Planet Haijiao, the battle in the Nebula boundary, the Twilight escorting mission, or the war with Twilight, Qi Long’s performance in them was amazing. He killed multiple ace operators of their enemies and also killed a few enemy imperial operators who were registered in the database of the Federation.

Why didn’t they discover this outstanding youngster in the past?

Then, they looked at the prefix of these battles and discovered in every battle he fought the leader was Ling Lan. Then they were enlightened. Ling Lan was just too exceptional. The other outstanding soldiers in his clan were totally overshadowed by his light. This time, without Ling Lan, they were finally able to see how excellent the other soldiers of the Lingtian Independent Army were.

The track records of the deputy commanders, the various brigade leaders of the mecha brigades, and the head of the different departments were all stunning. Any one of them could be a high-ranking official of any clan they join in the Federation.

The people who initially looked down on Qi Long due to his young age now saw him in a different light after looking at his track records.

“Now, let’s invite the three candidates on stage to answer everyone’s questions.”

Qi Long stood up. Yang Mingzhi also stood up after him and patted his shoulders to calm Qi Long down. He encouraged him to remain calm.

Qi Long nodded gratefully at Yang Mingzhi. He turned and looked at his comrades who were looking at him encouragingly and felt warm in his heart. He clenched his fist secretly and reminded himself that he must remain composed. He mustn’t embarra.s.s Boss.

No matter what the result was, he must protect the Lingtian Independent Army for Boss.

The three candidates were all impressive. However, Qi Long stood out with his handsome figure and youthful looks. He captured everyone’s attention the moment he went up. Without Ling Lan sheltering them, Qi Long had to remove his honest facade and reveal his real personality which he had been hiding so that he could take over Ling Lan’s position and protect his comrades. This was Lingtian’s tradition. The baton would always be pa.s.sed down. It would never end.

The entire place was silent. For a while, no one knew what to ask. Based on their track records, everyone had the ability to be the commander of the Lingtian Independent Army.

Finally, someone opened his mouth.

“Can the three candidates explain your future plans for the Lingtian Independent Army?”

This was just empty talk but from their statement, they could determine the ambition and aspiration of the candidates, as well as their understanding of Lingtian.

The three candidates exchanged glances with one another. Qi Long took a step back and raised his hand in front of him.

Luo Zhiqun, smiled at the candidate from the 6th Division, Zhou Lirong, and nodded. He took a step back too.

In the end, Major General Zhou Lirong shook his head. He was the oldest here. Qi Long’s actions indirectly caused them to speak according to their age.

The audience members who knew Qi Long’s ident.i.ty smiled at Qi Yaoyang secretly. They were jealous that Qi Yaoyang had such an outstanding son. He wasn’t nervous in front of a huge audience and he had also shown that he had good manners for someone his age. This was rare.

Qi Yaoyang smiled as though he was accepting their praises and compliments. But, in reality, he felt bitter in his heart. His oldest and second oldest son was groomed by him but they performed average in his eyes. It would be difficult for them to hold great responsibilities. His youngest son was stubborn ever since he was young. No matter how he reprimanded him, he wouldn’t bow down. In the end, he had no choice but to let go of him and let him mixed around with Ling Lan. At that time, he just wished that Ling Lan would hold him back from creating trouble. Yet, unexpectedly, his youngest son was the most successful out of all his sons. Once the time was right, he would soar above everyone else.

Ling Xiao was really the favoured child of G.o.d. His talents were better than him and he knew how to groom his child better too. Moreover, Ling Lan was as outstanding as Ling Xiao, even Ling Lan’s friends were exceptional too.

Qi Yaoyang sighed in his heart as he thought of this. Ling Xiao was too perfect. This might be the reason why the world couldn’t accept him, forcing him to meet disasters time and time again until he met his death.

Zhou Lirong walked to the front of the stage and opened his mouth. “I’m honoured to be one of the candidates for the position of commander in the Lingtian Independent Army. After I received the notice, I immediately went to do my own research on the Lingtian Independent Army carefully. I have deep respect for the first commander of Lingtian, Lieutenant General Ling Lan. He groomed an ordinary mecha clan into a powerful ace mecha clan. Then, he led his ace mecha clan to become an independent army with ill.u.s.trious military exploits. He achieved all these in less than three years. I believe that none of us here are able to emulate his leaders.h.i.+p.”

“If I can become the commander of this legendary independent army, I feel excited but glad. In terms of personal ability, I can’t be compared to Lieutenant General Ling. However, I’ve been the deputy brigade leader for more than ten years so I do have some experience with integrating a team. My plan is to turn Lingtian into a mature integrated army. I’ve looked at the composition of the Lingtian Independent Army and noticed that their main focus is the mecha brigades, with the logisticians supporting these brigades. Although they’re able to maintain Lingtian’s amazing battling capabilities, it is detrimental to the future development of Lingtian.”

In order to turn Lingtian into a complete independent army, all the soldiers must be strong. If I take over Lingtian, I’ll cover up this loophole. I’ll make sure that in five years, the independent army will complete the requirements for a division. In ten years, it’ll become a mature integrated independent army.”

Zhou Lirong’s speech won him a round of applause. The current Lingtian Independent Army was called an independent army but in fact, it was just a huge mecha clan. Besides their mecha operators who were outstanding, the ability and number of the other soldiers were lacking. This wasn’t the kind of independent army the military needed. The military allowed Lingtian to become an independent army because they wanted more integrated divisions to replenish the lack of soldiers in the Federation. Without a doubt, Zhou Lirong’s speech gained the approval of some representatives who had the same thought.