"Hmm... I didn't expect you to be this kind of captain. I'm so ashamed. I actually thought you were a coward."
"Captain, come back quickly! If we're going to die, we'll die together!"
"Yes, we'll stand together through thick and thin."
The crowd shouted enthusiastically at Lancelot's retreating figure, and some even stepped forward to fight alongside him.
Lancelot turned his head helplessly to look at Damu and Vermila beside him, "What are you two up to?"
"Please forgive my previous dejected words. Your approach is the right one. We Holy Sword people will die on the path of battle, even if it means death. We are invincible, and we are not the enemy." Vermila gazed at the approaching Sea Clan Epic, her soul seemingly undergoing a sublimation, and a special aura awakened within her.
This momentum, like billowing smoke, suddenly broke through an invisible barrier and reached a completely new level.
This girl actually broke through!
Advancement to the Tier Seven! Becoming High-Rank Transcendent.
Lancelot was stunned. Good heavens, a breakthrough in the heat of battle?
Is this the power of self-manipulation?
I never said I was going to sacrifice myself.
"Phew... I never expected to break through at this time. Heaven has finally been kind to me..." Vermila murmured to herself.
Seeing the girl beside him with a look of grim determination, Lancelot put a hand to his forehead.
After shaking his head helplessly, he said nothing more, raised his head, and looked directly at the Epic Sea Clan that had come before them.
It has a humanoid form, is about seven meters tall, and its skin is covered with diamond-shaped fish scales. It is ugly, with bulging eyes, protruding fangs, and thick arms holding a trident-like weapon. Its bare feet are even wider, resembling fish webs, and have protruding bone spurs at the joints.
As the epic Sea Clan Epic approached, it felt as if a mountain was pressing down on everyone's shoulders.
"This guy is messing with us!" Damu gritted his teeth, sweat pouring down his forehead, his bones groaning from the pressure.
"The Alliance's genius..." Langbein's face was somber, his voice hoarse and filled with chilling killing intent.
Since the establishment of the Crimson Alliance, the two sides have been in constant conflict with the Sea Clan due to the problem of ocean pollution. The conflict has escalated from bloodshed to a life-or-death battle, and they have finally become mortal enemies.
However, as the Crimson Alliance grew stronger, the Sea Clan alone was no longer able to resist, so they had to enlist the help of Dragon Island. Only by working together could they stabilize the situation.
As mortal enemies, they would stop at nothing to weaken each other: espionage, assassination, kidnapping, terrorist attacks...
In this ambush of the Alliance's geniuses, the Chosen Ones were only the most visible force; Dragon Island and the Sea Clan also participated.
"You lowly humans, have you felt the fear of death?" Langbein grinned, showing no qualms about bullying the weak.
In true warfare, the strong defeat the weak; the chivalrous spirit of fair duels has long been buried in the dust of history, and even professional knights no longer adhere to it.
Looking at the Epic of the Sea Clan before him, Lancelot's expression was playful. "I didn't feel any fear of death. I just want to ask this Sea Clan lord a question: Are you ready to get a beating?"
"Um?"
Langbein stared wide-eyed at the little guy in front of him in disbelief. How dare he talk to me like that?
"You've got guts, kid. I admire you. Well then, I'll send you to be the first one to die!" Langbein, his trident wreathed in azure spirals of water as he stabbed it fiercely at Lancelot.
But just as the tip of the trident was about to touch Lancelot, a blinding black light appeared on the latter's chest.
Immediately afterwards, a deafening, domineering tiger roar swept across the sky and the earth.
A drop of silvery-black blood flew from Lancelot's chest, spinning rapidly and releasing waves that firmly held the trident in place, preventing it from advancing even an inch.
Then, the blood began to writhe, and in the blink of an eye, it transformed into a tiger with interwoven silver and black stripes.
"Steel Tiger Kamori..." Upon seeing the tiger, Langbein, the Epic of the Sea Clan, subconsciously took a step back. Involuntarily, he recalled the scene from decades ago, and the fear of being dominated resurfaced in his eyes.
After Director Steel Tiger appeared, he quickly looked at Langbein, his eyes lighting up. He stuck out his tongue, licked his lips, and smacked his lips. "It's you, that big-headed fish that luckily escaped. Your fins taste pretty good. What, knowing I'm craving something, you specially delivered them to my door?"
Director Steel Tiger seemed like a cat that had smelled blood; he paced back and forth, his tail twitching slightly, his gaze shifting over Langbein as if choosing a place to bite.
Langbein's body stiffened, and he began to back away, but he quickly realized something was wrong.
Given Steel Tiger's personality, he should have pounced on me right now, why is he wasting time talking to me for so long?
Something's strange...
Thinking of this, Langbein stopped his backward steps and looked at Director Steel Tiger with a suspicious gaze.
A moment later, the smile on the Sea Clan 'Epic face widened wildly. "So it was just an avatar. No wonder the ruthless Steel Tiger Kamori has changed his ways today. Looks like this kid is important to you."
"Since that's the case, then I'm even more determined to kill him!" Langbein grinned maliciously. After learning that Steel Tiger was a clone, his courage swelled rapidly, and he charged forward with his trident in hand.
Splash--
In an instant, boundless seawater surged in from all directions, the water twisting and deforming into all sorts of sea monsters, which attacked Lancelot and the others.
Steel Tiger's eyes turned serious. After saying, "Protect yourself," he lowered his body and opened his mouth to let out an extremely domineering tiger roar.
Visible sound waves swept across like a raging storm, instantly shattering all the sea monsters and dissipating the surrounding surging seawater.
Having done all this, Steel Tiger soared into the sky, its sharp claws flashing with black light, and with lightning speed, it viciously grabbed at Langbein's head from above.
The latter's eyelids twitched, and he dared not be careless. He quickly raised his trident to block, and the aftershocks from the collision tore the ground into countless ravines.
Lancelot and his group quickly took cover.
At this moment, Vermila and the others finally realized what was happening, and their gazes once again turned to Lancelot.
"So that's why you stepped forward; you were so confident!" Vermila said, hands on her hips, annoyed. "And I was willing to live and die with you!"
"I never said I was going to stop the Sea Clan's Epic myself, did I?" Lancelot shrugged and blinked. "Besides, isn't this misunderstanding a good thing? At least it helped you break through your bottleneck. How does it feel to be High-Rank Transcendent? Awesome, right?"
"Uh... this is really awesome! From today onwards, we second-year students of Holy Sword will no longer have to be bullied by the other three major academies." Vermila laughed heartily.
"That's true. It seems like Gosdo and the others are about to collapse. If they fall, you'll become invincible." Lancelot pointed to the blood-red world in the distance.
Everyone looked over and saw that above the crimson world, another Sea Clan Epic was entangled with a dark shadow.
The dark shape emerged from Gosdo's body.
It seems that not only Lancelot, but also the top student of the second year at the Infinity Academy, is receiving special protection.
Seeing this, Vermila couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.
They were both top students in the second grade, so why didn't she receive special protection?
Fortunately, neither Keaton of the Radiant Sun nor Cage of the Constellation had any special protection, which made Vermila feel much better.
However, although the Epic Sea Clan were stopped by the shadows, Gosdo and his companions in the Crimson World were still in grave danger, overwhelmed by countless blood shadows, and had already suffered numerous casualties.
"We must provide support as soon as possible, otherwise the Alliance will suffer huge losses." Vermila said with a solemn expression. Although she wanted to defeat Gosdo and the others to vindicate the second year of the Holy Sword, she did not want to do it in this way.
"It's no use going there. Are you confident you can break through that blood-red veil?" Lancelot shook his head.
"No, but at least give it a try." Vermila clenched her fist.
Looking closely at the girl, Lancelot suddenly realized that Vermila not only resembled Zyra in appearance, but also shared some of the latter's courage.
Lancelot patted the girl's soft shoulder and chuckled, "The idea is good, but it's best to avoid taking risks unless absolutely necessary."
"You mean you'd just stand by and watch someone die?" Vermila's expression changed.
Lancelot held up his index finger and wagged it, making a no-go gesture. "No, no, no, what I mean is, if the sky falls, let the tall ones hold it up. We're too short; we can't hold it up."
"What do you mean?" Vermila asked, puzzled.
"It means... Come out, Zyra!"