Chapter 472: Demonstration

The crocodile-man Jerron saw his subordinates' faces turning pale and bluish.

He stepped forward, his heavy, boiling spirituality repelling the cold, icy negative energy.

His deep-brown eyes, with clearly defined irises, radiated a primal and ruthless aura.

He glared at Lyle, barely holding back the words "worthless."

To be outmatched by a mage one rank lower—when I get back, I'll make him regret it.

"Mr. Luo De, dragon-slaying has never relied on numbers. This ghoul lady's forces are indeed formidable, but necromancers always suffer from a lack of elite troops; under a flying dragon's breath and scales, they stand no chance."

Jerron stepped forward again.

Lyle's defeat in the earlier contest had left him deeply displeased.

This mission takes place in a remote border town, where locals have far less experience than our seasoned mercenaries.

So he must prove his strength to extort even more Jin Along.

Boom—

A sudden surge of spiritual pressure slammed toward them.

"Many believe dragon-slaying requires high-rank spells, artifacts, or offensive treasures to weaken or break the scales—but that is not the only way."

"Dragon-slaying demands experience, understanding of the dragon's habits, and the synergy of suppression and endurance!"

He felt the crocodile-man's terrifying aura erupt.

"Seventh rank?"

Pan Ni's face changed.

She instinctively wanted to retreat.

But as head of the Forest Security Corps, how could she retreat in front of her master?!

Her wool coat stirred without wind, dark and icy energy rising together.

"Take a rest."

Just as she was about to act, her master pulled her back.

"Master…"

"Each has his specialty, Pan Ni. Your strength lies in mass troop deployment on large battlefields—no need to fuss over this. Besides, the forest isn't short of other girls."

"Huh?" Pan Ni looked up, innocent and bewildered.

No sooner had he spoken—

Magic and spirituality clashed in the air with a roaring hum.

Compared to Pan Ni's earlier negative energy, the sky now plunged into utter darkness.

Instead, a vast, sky-obscuring projection of the Tree Realm appeared.

The Tree Spirit Vivian's eyes blazed with brilliant white light as she looked down from above.

"Forest, force, forbidden."

Boom!

A distant explosion erupted.

The female orc Amy crushed the ground from afar, leapt in a supreme bound, arced through the sky, then slammed down again.

She carried the crystal cleaver on her shoulder, grinning fiercely with battle lust.

Meanwhile—

Shadows on the ground surged like a swirling ocean vortex, swallowing all present into darkness.

As the shadows churned, Tally stepped slowly out.

Today she wore a maid's outfit: a black long dress with a lace-trimmed white apron, modest yet accentuating her chest, now fuller and more rounded than before.

"Why didn't you wake me up~ So mean, Master~~"

As she spoke, she shoved Pan Ni aside and squeezed into Luo De's arms.

Meanwhile, the arachnid elf Yuna had already appeared beside them.

She steadied the stumbling ghoul lady and bowed gracefully to Luo De.

The zombie Selena, with the mind flayer Hart behind her, silently emerged at the forest's edge.

She sighed and floated slowly upward.

Blue translucent force fields shimmered over her two brass prosthetic limbs.

Not far behind, the rabbit-girl Oona's wary gaze tracked the mind flayer Hart.

Only when she reached the forest's edge did she wave cheerfully at Luo De.

Behind her—

The banshee Krist revealed half her head and waved at her master too.

This one was sneaky—she'd deliberately waited to appear alongside Oona, the highest-ranked.

"Humans, don't bring strangers into the forest."

On the other side—

A voice, clear as a mountain spring, rang out.

The elf Kalist arrived with the rat-girl No. 3, unhurried and calm.

As usual, her face was sour.

But then she suddenly lifted her gaze to the hillside, softened, and gave a slight nod.

There stood the halfling Lily, kicking her feet in a cute, precise march.

She nodded back at Kalist, then looked down at the crowd.

"Trouble, Luo De? Call me for help!"

As more girls gathered around,

Jerron's expression shifted.

His gaze toward Luo De grew serious and tense.

Eight seventh-rankers—

Each far from ordinary, each possessing more stable, solid magic or spirituality than others of the same rank.

And those two— the rabbit-girl mage and the mind flayer—whose true strength he couldn't gauge.

Is this really not an ambush by enemies?

And why does Luo De have so many girls backing him?!

Is he living off women's money? Why?

Oh. He does look quite handsome.

His build is good too, seventh-rank mid-tier, his spirituality… hmm? Something's hiding it—even I, an eighth-ranker, can't see through it?

Jerron's face twitched.

He forced himself to speak again:

"I said dragon-slaying doesn't rely on experience, coordination, or understanding habits. I admit your individual strength is formidable—it could make dragon-slaying easier—but… forget it. How about one million five hundred thousand Jin Along?"

Luo De smiled.

Cut in half at once.

Such a drastic drop—your bottom line must be much lower than you let on.

It also proves you were just bluffing earlier.

"To be honest, the reinforcements from Shi Ying Town aren't limited to those you've seen. As for all your dragon-slaying techniques… hmm, I must mention that the adorable halfling lady over there recently slew a young, vigorous green dragon in Deepwater City. Also, that elf gentleman has dragon-slaying experience himself."

"Mr. Jerron, everything you've claimed, we can replace perfectly—we simply prefer a more secure, total-effort approach."

Luo De took two steps forward.

He slightly eased his spiritual pressure, his aura firmly overpowering the crocodile-man before him.

Jerron's face changed.

He stared at Luo De as if seeing a ghost.

He realized with horror that he instinctively feared the man before him.

As a beastman—

Born with powerful animal instincts, the fact he felt this fear meant the opponent likely possessed the strength to defeat him.

A seventh-rank mid-tier defeating me, an eighth-ranker?

Are you kidding?

Hss—

At that moment—

A wooden arrow without an arrowhead shot from deep within the forest, slicing through the sky and landing steadily between Luo De and Jerron.

Hanging from the shaft was a small magic ring.

Click. The magic ring cracked open.

A clear, trembling voice began to play—Little Ko the half-deer:

"Don't misunderstand! I'm not doing this for you! Little Bond begged me—I only did it for him! Honestly! I'm not doing this for you!

Listen carefully: Jerron, crocodile-man, leader of the Blizzard Mercenary Company, eighth-rank early stage;

Deputy leader, Brandy Jones, seventh-rank early stage;

Chief captain, Lyle Ford, seventh-rank mid-tier;

First squad captain, Cord Olson, seventh-rank early stage; second squad captain, Villy Reynolds, sixth-rank high stage."

82 heavy infantry, 33 archers and ballistae operators, 18 wolf cavalry, 11 mages.

Jeroen grew more and more uneasy as he listened.

Isn't this our mercenary company's exact composition?!

Prophecy? There are people in the forest who specialize in prophecy?!

The audio continued playing:

"The overall commander, Lyle Ford, and the captain, Jeroen, spent all their savings from the past six months on gambling last month. The deputy captain, Brancie Jones, was discovered by her husband to have been unfaithful."

"Enough!"

Jeroen roared in fury.

(End of chapter)