Colonial Suit

“The strength of the heart…”

Blood Pupil’s expression shifted as he softly repeated the words. ┃- ┃

He didn’t dwell on Dirk’s subsequent words, but focused directly on this key point: the battlefield nightmare was meant to make its user stronger. But the strength wasn't in their bodies, nor their minds, and certainly not their wills. It was in their hearts. The strength of the heart was the true strength.

But what kind of heart could be considered strong?

At this moment, Blood Pupil recalled the strong individuals he had encountered: Hensel, Heck, Leia, and even Dirk… Without exception, they all possessed a powerful heart. Perhaps their strengths varied, but this one aspect remained constant. Only in this way were they worthy of being called strong… worthy of being called legends…

“That’s right… that’s how it is…” Watching Blood Pupil’s pensive face, a hint of a smile flashed in Dirk’s eyes. He pointed to the endless sea of blood before them and said softly, “Do you think this sea of blood is mine?”

“Isn’t it?” Blood Pupil asked, startled.

“Of course not.” Dirk shook his head. “This sea of blood isn’t mine, nor does it belong to anyone. It is a sacred object in the hearts of all Krodians. The blood of every Krodians who dies in battle returns here. Perhaps some of them have a large amount of blood, but most have only a grain-sized drop. Little by little, it accumulates to become this endless sea. What do you think supports them in doing this?”

“Is it faith? Or something else?”

“Neither.” Dirk’s gaze gradually drifted into the distance, uttering words that shocked Blood Pupil. “It is expectation.”

“Expectation for future generations, for them to become strong.”

“You asked me what the difference is between treating our descendants like this and treating them like beasts. I can tell you that the difference lies in the fact that we disdain using a woman’s weakness to protect the next generation. That is the choice of the weak. What we must do is teach our descendants how to survive in this universe, how to gain their own dignity.”

“So they will no longer be slaves!”

When he spoke the last sentence, Dirk suddenly emphasized his tone, revealing an indescribable meaning. At this moment, how could he still resemble a remnant of consciousness? In Blood Pupil’s eyes, he was like a demon god from hell, exuding infinite pressure from the inside out. In front of him, Blood Pupil felt as small as an ant, even experiencing fear.

No longer… slaves…

Blood Pupil silently chewed on these words, faintly sensing the bitterness, bloodshed, and unyielding spirit contained within them. Through these words, he seemed to see generations of Krodians fighting, resisting, just to obtain a place under the stars. They conquered and expanded, just to accumulate strength, to say no to some irresistible existence. And for this goal, they removed all weak elements from their civilization, implanting iron will and stubbornness into the genes of the next generation.

They didn’t know how to care for their descendants, wouldn’t cry like women, but they knew how to teach the next generation the most important things in this universe.

Dignity.

Was this the price paid by the Krodians, the strongest fighting race in the universe? And what were they fighting for, to pay such a cruel price?

Blood Pupil didn’t ask, because he knew that even if he got the answer, it would be meaningless. Even the Krodians, who were so strong in the beginning, had to pay the price, so what could he do even if he knew why? What’s more, the Krodians no longer existed. Now, only he remained, a survivor, a lonely ghost.

But Blood Pupil wanted to ask another question, a question related to his life and death.

“How can one obtain a powerful heart?”

“That question is rather complex.” Dirk smiled slightly, turning his head to look at him. “Everyone has a different method for strengthening their heart. Some need an ideal, some rely on faith. And some… need to create a weakness for themselves. But no matter what, their ultimate goal is only one: to find a reason not to retreat.”

“Among the warriors I know, most people choose to create a weakness for themselves. Because it is the simplest and easiest to achieve. With a weakness to protect, they will have a reason to fight. However, the disadvantage is also obvious, because a weakness is a weakness, and even if you protect it carefully, you will pay the price at certain times. In this universe, no weakness is unassailable.”

“Alternatively, finding an ideal for yourself is also good, but there is also a problem. That is the choice of ideal. You should know that an ideal is the foundation for supporting the heart. If it is too simple, how can your heart be strong? But if it is too difficult or impossible to achieve, you will lose hope. In the end, you will gain nothing. So this method is also a dead end.”

“Finally, there is faith. To be honest, this method is actually the best.” Dirk raised his head, as if recalling something. “I remember that among the strong at the time, especially those energy civilizations, they liked to use this method very much. They used faith to gather strength, and faith to strengthen their hearts. There were once many extremely powerful guys. Even I had to admire their hearts of the strong.”

“Faith…” Blood Pupil lowered his head, and the shadow of Robbie appeared in his mind. “Fighting for the sake of justice in one’s heart?”

“Heh…” Dirk laughed, revealing a hint of appreciation. “It seems you already know the essence of this method. That's right, the so-called faith, whether it is a legend or a god, is actually the justice in one’s heart. Only by fighting for justice can one be fearless and without confusion. This is also why those guys were so strong for a time.”

“So, faith is the best choice for strengthening the heart?” Blood Pupil fell silent, considering whether he should learn Robbie's teachings.

But at this moment, he heard Dirk give him a negative answer.

“No.”

“What?” Blood Pupil was stunned. “Are there other ways?”

“There are many ways. In fact, because everyone's heart is different, the methods they can choose are also different.” Dirk replied calmly. “But I can only tell you one method. It is also the method I chose.”

“The path you chose!?” Blood Pupil was immediately startled, his eyes revealing a look of horror.

He would not forget who he was facing now. Pluto Dirk, even a fragment of him, had caused Heck to flee in embarrassment. The first man to kill a stellar-level being during the Great Chaos. The universally recognized strongest man. Such a man, even if he said something casually, would be an invaluable treasure to him at the moment. But what did he hear? Pluto Dirk was actually going to teach him his method of strengthening his heart. This… was this a dream?

“Don’t be so surprised. Actually, the path I chose is not a secret.” Dirk smiled dumbly, seemingly understanding Blood Pupil's mood, and shook his head repeatedly. “It’s just that this path is very difficult, so many people at the time thought I couldn't do it. If you want to learn this method, you will also face these challenges.”

“Will you give up?”

Speaking of this, Dirk calmly met Blood Pupil's gaze, waiting for his answer.

Give up? Of course not. Blood Pupil shook his head. Although he was confused inside, he was not a weakling. From X35 to today, every step he took was full of difficulties and tribulations. His body and will had long been forged harder than alloy. Difficulty… was never a reason for him to consider a problem.

Just like what Leia had said, adversity is the ladder to growth, and pain is the motivation to move forward. Although Blood Pupil could not yet understand these words, he was putting them into practice with action.

So he showed a serious expression and bowed respectfully to Dirk. “Please teach me.”

A gust of wind blew, and the waves on the sea of blood grew larger. Unknowingly, blood-colored clouds appeared in the sky, just like the sea of blood beneath their feet, full of a bloody meaning.

Pluto Dirk looked at Blood Pupil with a serious expression and nodded slightly.

“My method is actually very simple. That is to have no goal.”

“No goal?” Blood Pupil was stunned. What kind of method was that? If that was the case, what was the difference between him and his current state?

“That’s right. It is to have no goal.” Dirk replied affirmatively. “But this doesn’t mean we don’t have a reason to fight.”

“If you tear away the false appearance, you should know that the heart of the strong is actually the meaning of battle. The several methods I mentioned before were all to find these for yourself. But what I want to tell you is that no matter what method it is, it is actually the choice of the weak. Because they all pinned their goals on external things. Such as weaknesses, such as ideals, such as faith. Everything is fought for things that do not belong to oneself.”

“This behavior itself is an escape, a choice of cowards. Can you imagine me telling you now that the meaning of your battle is to rebuild the Krodian civilization? If that is the case, would you still have the motivation to persevere?”

“No.” Blood Pupil replied honestly. Nonsense, no matter how much heritage he inherited from the Krodians, at the end of the day he was still the poor boy who came out of the apocalypse. Expecting him to rebuild a civilization, wasn’t that a joke?

Was it like randomly finding a child, throwing down a few martial arts secrets, and telling him that the responsibility of defending world peace was entrusted to him?

Please, this wasn’t writing a novel.

“Look, we’ve found some common ground.” Dirk smiled slightly, appearing extremely relaxed. “So after understanding those guys, I really disdained being with them and made a choice for myself.”

“I don’t need hypocritical reasons, I only fight for myself!”

“Don’t use rules to restrain me, don’t use reason to influence me. I only fight for myself! I am my own faith, I am my own goal. I stand there, and that is the lighthouse for others, I go wherever, and that is the path for others! I don’t want to cater to any shackles imposed on me. Instead, I want everyone to look up to my will!”

“I am the god, I am the devil!”

“This is called…”

“The Path of the Overlord!”