Chapter 283: Swords Drawn, Bows Taut (Revised)

The atmosphere instantly grew tense, yet Lin Yifan agreed to Ruan Qingtan, making it impossible for him to break his promise to her.

Even though the Dawnlight Alliance is powerful, Lin Yifan would not let Aeri Liya take him away if Ruan Qingtan is unwilling.

At this moment, although only Aeri Liya remains on the Dawnlight Alliance side, Lin Yifan does not dare to underestimate her at all.

Of course, Lin Yifan is not panicked.

Not to mention the many people on his side, he also still has Yin Mian standing behind him!

Although Lin Yifan does not yet understand why Yin Mian would help their Humans.

But his sixth sense tells him that Yin Mian is trustworthy!

At least more trustworthy than Aeri Liya!

And the Survivors on Lin Yifan's side are equally unwilling to be outdone; though just recovered, they all stand up, their momentum fierce, saying:

"You alien, although you helped us before and we are grateful, Miss Ruan is our fellow, also a compatriot of our District; as long as she does not consent, no one may take her away!"

"Miss Ruan is not only our compatriot, she just helped us; anyone who dares to cross her, I definitely will not agree!"

"Exactly, anyone who dares to bully Miss Ruan, to force her into something she doesn't want, I will fight you to the death!"

…

The originally weakened Ruan Qingtan, hearing everyone stand before her to protect her, was deeply moved, quickly stood up, and thanked the crowd:

"Thank you all for protecting me!"

After saying that, she turned her head toward Aeri Liya and said:

"Princess Aeri Liya, you have helped us many times; although there were some minor frictions before, we will never repay this kindness unjustly."

"But going with you to the Dawnlight Alliance, I truly cannot do; I am Human, if I go with you, what difference is there between me and a traitor?"

"Therefore I'm sorry, I cannot agree to this, but I can promise you that as long as the Dawnlight Alliance and our Humans can coexist peacefully, whenever you have a request that I can assist with, I will not delay."

"As for anything else, please do not force me! Now we are friends, I don't want even that to fail."

Ruan Qingtan's words were polite, but the firmness on her face and the resolve in her tone let everyone see her determination.

Aeri Liya's expression turned extremely sour; she coldly looked at Ruan Qingtan and said:

"Miss Ruan, I see your resolve, but I ask you not to decide so hastily; you know too little about the Dawnlight Alliance and too little about this world."

"If you knew enough, you would know that only our Dawnlight Alliance can give you the best resources, allowing you to become a Holy Mage in the shortest time."

"Your Human race is strong, but the inheritance of the God of Light belongs to our Dawnlight Alliance; you possess the Holy Light Body, making you the most suitable heir, so you must return with me to the Dawnlight Alliance; this is not up to you nor me, it is something you must do."

Lin Yifan's brows formed a furrowed line; he truly did not expect Aeri Liya to be so persistent.

But regardless, he had promised Ruan Qingtan, so he walked slowly to her front, his face cold and hard, saying:

"Princess Aeri Liya, we have already made everything clear; if you still force it, we will see the truth under our hands!"

"Your opponent is not just me." Aeri Liya's brows said.

"Your opponent is all of us!" Lin Yifan pointed at the people behind him and said lightly:

In fact, the atmosphere had already reached its final tense moment.

It seemed as if they would act in the next second!

Then, just as the conflict was about to erupt, a strange buzzing sound suddenly came from deep within the cave.

Immediately, the flesh‑forged steps began to shake violently, causing everyone to be thrown to the ground, unable to even stand.

Someone even slipped off the steps, falling straight into the darkness below, unknown whether dead or alive!

"Bad!" Yin Mian's face changed dramatically, shouting anxiously:

"We have spent too much time on the lower level of these steps; we have already exceeded the rule limits of this second layer. We must climb the stairs immediately, otherwise we will suffer the ultimate punishment."

"There really are such rules!" Li Yifan's face also turned terribly pale, but seeing Aeri Liya still standing unyielding before him, he could only patiently say:

"Princess, you can see the current situation; this is not the time for discussion. Even if you truly want Qingtan back to the Dawnlight Alliance, we must survive first."

"So let's first reach a consensus: before we are out of danger, we remain a single alliance, absolutely no conflict. What do you think?"

Lin Yifan actually does not want to cooperate with Aeri Liya, but he has no other way now.

Aeri Liya's combat power is impressive; turning against her now would only hurt his side.

After all, his side has many people, most with average combat strength; internal fighting now would make them even more troubled.

So a temporary ceasefire is the best choice!

This reasoning, Aeri Liya naturally understands, and she glared fiercely at Lin Yifan:

"Fine, we'll discuss this later, but I still say, the Holy Light Body belongs in the most suitable place, which is our Dawnlight Alliance."

After saying that, she turned and began climbing upward, leading the way.

Lin Yifan, seeing this, was unwilling to fall behind.

In the chaos, he scooped up the weakened Ruan Qingtan and whispered, "Hold on to me!"

He turned his head to Yin Mian, trying to soften his tone, "I still need you to lead the way!"

Yin Mian nodded, sprinting upward, "Everyone, hurry up the stairs; we must climb at least past the 50th step to survive!"

The Survivors rushed forward, one after another.

Behind them, a chilling roar echoed from deep within the cave, as if some ancient horror was awakening.

The whole staircase's shaking continued, each step stumbling and faltering.

However, Ruan Qingtan released the shackles on everyone's steps, so although each step was hard, they managed to climb up.

Lin Yifan, who had been at the front with Ruan Qingtan, found that carrying a person caused the resistance to multiply.

This multiplication was not due to weight; with his current strength, a few hundred jin of Ruan Qingtan is essentially weightless to him.

The real resistance he felt came from the rules of this second layer!

What truly makes him feel resistance actually comes from the rules of this second layer!