Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

The group finally reached the staircase smoothly and returned to the lower deck, only to find that no one was guarding this area.

This situation seemed highly unlikely for the Rikoku Cultivators, for the one thing most feared when overcoming the gatekeeper was being flanked from behind; thus, leaving someone to cover the rear or setting an alert was necessary—with neither being dispensable.

However, what defined the Allied Forces was precisely their extremely disparate composition.

Not to mention the difference between superheroes and Southeast Asian sorcerers—lacking a common language and culture, they were merely cooperating temporarily because they shared a common foe.

The former were primarily concerned with fame and commercial value; staying behind to help keep watch wouldn't bring them any additional fan popularity, so naturally, no one was willing to stay back.

As for the latter, there was no organization to speak of; everyone acted purely out of self-interest. How could they possibly be willing to make sacrifices for others?

As a result, the Rikoku Cultivators encountered no obstacles on their way back and smoothly retreated to the lower area, where they concealed themselves in nearby cabins.

With Chen Lingyun's Five Ghosts in charge of reconnaissance, no one even needed to pay attention to the outside situation. Everyone simply took their Elixir Medicine to recover their True Yuan and even had the mood for idle chit-chat.

"How is Deputy Team Leader Li feeling now?" Chen Lingyun asked with a smile, "Can you still hold on?"

"Quite alright," Li Minghu coughed a few times and held her chest, saying, "I'm feeling much better now."

Her action of holding her chest again drew unkind looks from the girls; it could only be said that when one has a bad impression of someone, it's like wearing tinted glasses—everything that person does seems negative.

"I know a bit of Runescript healing. Let me check," Su Yunjin said, unaffected, as she approached. Her Divine Sense, aided by True Yuan, swiftly scanned Li Minghu's entire body.

She wasn't really injured, just a bit frail with obstructed qi and blood circulation.

So, her earlier detour was not because her body couldn't bear it, but rather, she intentionally gave the team leader a chance to come to her rescue, right?

Secretary Su sighed inwardly for a moment; seeing her still wearing Yan Yu's coat now, she felt like saying nothing more.

Tired, let it be destroyed.

"You have a congenital defect in physique; liver fire attacking the lungs, you're simply unsuited to be a Cultivator," Zhao Yuanzhen spoke her mind without reserve, drawing a unified glare from the entire Qing'an battle team.

"Who says my sister isn't fit to be a Cultivator?" Li Zhaojiang protested first, "My sister just has a weaker constitution. Where does her swordsmanship fall short? What lacks in her awareness? Where is she insufficient in field composure?"

With the Annan Army's past recordings laid out, and everyone being insiders, they had to admit that aside from her physical shortcomings, Li Minghu's battle qualities were top-notch in all aspects.

"Sister Zhao's words are indeed inapt, but you have to admit that on the battlefield, sometimes the enemy will target your weaknesses," Lin Ning, with her straightforward nature, came forward to argue for Zhao Yuanzhen, "In short skirmishes, it might not be an issue, but what if it's a prolonged or attrition war, what then?"

"We're a team, we don't expect my sister to fight alone!" Li Zhaojiang retorted, "The greatest advantage of a team is to compensate for each member's shortcomings as much as possible!"

"All right, Ah Jiang," Li Minghu, who was tactful, could certainly sense the emotions of the girls around Yan Yu and said with a smile, "Don't worry about me. Although I'm physically weak, I will try my best to compensate for my weaknesses and make sure not to hold everyone back."

Even though she spoke gently, the poignant undertone in her words made the girls feel empathetic pity.

Indeed, how much competitiveness could a frail girl possess? Perhaps the team leader was only looking out for her out of pity, taking her along for convenience, and giving her his coat.

Looking at Yan Yu, the team leader was staring outside, completely indifferent to defending Li Minghu, prompting the rest to fall silent.

The atmosphere in the room grew heavy. Following the slight disruption, there was some awkwardness between the two teams, leading to silence; suddenly, Yan Yu broke the quiet:

"Something's not right."

"What is it?" Chen Lingyun asked with a smile.

"That Flood Dragon," Yan Yu said, "doesn't its aura seem to be getting stronger?"

"Aura?" Chen Lingyun was taken aback.

That aura was intangible and invisible—what exactly are you referring to?

Though perplexed, she quickly summoned back the Five Ghosts and questioned them, her expression immediately turning grave.

"The attack strength of the Flood Dragon is indeed intensifying."

"Mhm," Yan Yu nodded.

If the previous Giant with the Dragon Head had been assimilating the Flood Dragon corpse by devouring it, then the longer the time, the deeper the assimilation, and the strength would naturally rise steadily—it was an easy deduction.

If they continued waiting here, it would only weaken the strength of the Miti Allied Forces while enhancing the Mysterious Realm Gatekeeper's power. Therefore, it wasn't necessary to wait until everyone above was killed; finding the optimal moment to rejoin the battlefield was essential.

"How many are left above?" Yan Yu asked Chen Lingyun again.

"Ten," Chen Lingyun replied.

Originally, there were over a hundred Transcendents, but now ninety percent of them had been directly killed by the Flood Dragon—it just goes to show that if your strength doesn't meet a certain threshold, all the numbers in the world won't help. It's like being mere foot soldiers in a Dynasty Warriors game.

"Hmm..." Yan Yu pondered for a moment and then asked, "How do you feel about going into battle now?"

"We have no objections," the girls answered in unison. You're the captain; whatever you say goes.

Over at the Qingan team, everyone turned their attention to the captain and the vice-captain.

Li Zhaojiang hesitated greatly because he was worried about his older sister's health and wanted her to rest a bit longer... Of course, this reason could not be voiced out loud; after all, the other side had just been talking about how Li Minghu's staying power was a weakness. If he said the same thing, it would be like admitting it without being pressed.

Li Minghu noticed what her brother was hesitating about and, after a moment of thought, stood up, giving Yan Yu a soft smile:

"I support you."

She was well aware that, so far, Yan Yu hadn't made a single misstep in his decisions. More importantly, now that there were only ten people left on top, the numerical advantage of the Miti Allied Forces was no longer there, and charging into battle now was completely okay.

As long as she supported Yan Yu, her brother, who always heeded her advice, would surely support Yan Yu as well.

With that, the two teams would be able to reach a consensus immediately. There was no need to create any discord here.

However, a remark may be unintentional, but the listener may read more into it.

Not to mention the girls who had just shaken off their misgivings, even the members of Li Zhaojiang's team were now vaguely sensing something off.

Has our vice-captain put too much trust in Captain Yan? Why does it seem like she's putting him on a pedestal?

Of course, since they were in the midst of serious tactical decision-making, it wasn't appropriate to waste time on such trivial matters. So after everyone reflected for a moment, they expressed their agreement.

"All right," Yan Yu nodded and said, "After we enter the battle, Ling Yun will command our team, and Minghu, your team will take care of itself. Although our command systems are separate, we are in this fight together. If there's a chance to help each other out, let's make sure we do."

His words were actually aimed at the girls. Yan Yu was not the typical insensitive man; he had clearly picked up on the awkwardness and jealously in the girls' earlier words about Li Minghu.

You can form your alliances and play your games behind the scenes, but don't you dare drop the ball on the battlefield!

Chen Lingyun and Su Yunjin picked up on the subtext of his speech. The Princess smiled faintly, her attitude ambiguous; Secretary Su remained expressionless, as she was a kind-hearted girl to begin with, and had not targeted Li Minghu before—naturally, she had no intention of doing so later.

Lin Ning had a vague suspicion of his meaning, but since she felt no guilt—her words had been purely factual—she pursed her lips and stayed silent.

As for the fearless Demonic Sect Enchantress, Zhao Yuanzhen, although she hadn't concealed her annoyance at Li Minghu earlier, she was ironically the only one in the team who hadn't caught on to Yan Yu's implication, thus she impatiently said:

"Alright, alright! Wasn't it the same when we cooperated with the Dingbei Army before? You don't need to repeat yourself. Stop nagging and spewing nonsense!"

"Fine then," Yan Yu wasn't sure if she was genuinely oblivious or pretending to be, but since no one had objections, he was ready to opt for a courteous approach before resorting to force.

With a grand sweep of his arm, he declared boldly:

"Let's set off then! Let those foreigners witness for themselves who truly owns the South Sea, where the Treasure Ships of the Three Islands reside!"

When it came to the noble cause of defending the nation's territory, everyone's spirits were lifted. They put aside their personal affections, their morale soaring as they responded:

"Good!"

At this moment, on deck, the battle seemed to have neared its end.

Among the ten remaining on the field, there were six superheroes from the Miti Allied Forces and four sorcerers from Southeast Asia—all formidable first-rate warriors; otherwise, they wouldn't have survived until then.

The Flood Dragon, controlled by the giant with the dragon-head, was covered in wounds, bleeding profusely, and its life force had considerably weakened; it wouldn't have been surprising if it had collapsed dead the next second.

But the synthesis values of the two had actually climbed to a certain critical point, and now they were merely holding back their strength.

The global broadcast outside, with the help of some die-hard fans stirring the pot, had already prompted many impassioned citizens of Lu Country to start cursing furiously in the live chat. Continue reading at empire

They didn't want to see the Miti Allied Forces claim the final victory of the Mysterious Realm; their anger had nowhere else to go but to be vented on the Rikoku Cultivators who had yet to appear.

But precisely because the Rikoku Cultivators hadn't shown up, the "match" seemed not to have reached the point where the outcome was settled beyond a doubt; thus, no matter how annoyed and disgruntled they were, even resorting to complaints and insults, they had no choice but to keep watching, holding their noses.

Complain they might, but...

...please don't lose!!!