'Jingliu' endured Celenova's murderous glare and squeezed onto her flagship.
"...What exactly are you trying to do?"
Celenova couldn't figure her out.
Did she want to get involved, or didn't she?
If she really wanted to help the Xianzhou Alliance, then why hadn't she made a move against Celenova herself?
And just let her run around freely like this.
Plus, with that intel about Phantylia, she'd only asked for a name and that was it. No follow-up.
If she didn't want to get involved, then why bother cornering her to dig for info about Phantylia in the first place?
'Jingliu' laughed when she heard that.
"Just take it as me keeping our deal, alright? You give me info, and I won't fight you before the battle starts."
"Heh... you're that kind of person? Who'd believe that?"
Celenova let out a disdainful chuckle.
The one who tied her up and took photos to humiliate her—how could someone like that possibly be some old-fashioned fool who followed martial honor?
'Jingliu' didn't care, leaning back in her chair and spreading her hands: "See, you're just biased against me. When have I ever broken a promise I made with you?"
"..."
Celenova was momentarily speechless.
A look of extreme discomfort flickered across her face.
It was that kind of feeling—where, sure, the person in front of you was a total jerk, but what she said was actually true.
To the point where she couldn't even find a single argument to refute it.
So she could only sit there, stewing in silent frustration.
"See? Nothing to say now~"
"..."
Fist. Her fist was clenched tight.
Celenova decided to shut up, and just pretend the woman didn't exist.
--+--
Meanwhile.
Phantylia, who had already tricked those Denizens of Abundance into a large-scale advance, received a message from Celenova.
It said Bai Ming had their eyes on her.
"...?"
Phantylia's first reaction upon receiving the message was confusion.
Why would that person target her?
Shouldn't they be after Celenova?
And she, Phantylia, was hidden so deep—how did the other party even know about her?
After a few more exchanges, Phantylia was almost amused, though also a bit irritated.
"Celenova, you just sold me out?"
"They already knew about you. They came at me right away asking if you were behind this. You should be asking yourself if you slipped up in front of them somewhere."
"...Impossible? I've never even met them."
Phantylia's brows furrowed tightly.
How had she been exposed?
It wasn't that she was completely airtight, but she really had zero interaction with this Bai Ming person.
For them to blurt out her name like that—it was clearly abnormal.
Soon, a clue struck Phantylia:
"No, wait. Do they know Elio? That woman Jingliu is close with Bai Ming."
Celenova wasn't too concerned about this, but hearing Phantylia's guess, she nodded along:
"Probably. Anyway, they're with me now. If you have any plans, you'd better arrange them quickly."
"..."
How are they still with you?
Be honest with me—were you captured, or did you defect?
Phantylia really wanted to ask that.
But after thinking it over, she held back.
Her rationality told her that Celenova probably wouldn't do something like that.
But the question remained.
What plans could she even make...
Wasn't Bai Ming supposed to be busy over at Amphoreus?
And she'd heard that several Genius Society members had joined forces to start some new project there.
How did they have the time to focus on her situation over here?
Phantylia couldn't wrap her head around it.
Even rushing from one set to another wasn't this hectic.
They had no connection or relation to the Xianzhou Alliance, so why be so proactive?
And the Denizens of Abundance's army was already on its way.
The momentum was set; there was no time for her to arrange much else.
Calling Celenova over as an exception was already an insurance measure.
She couldn't exactly call in someone else.
She still had her pride to think about.
Tsk. Honestly, Phantylia never expected the Denizens of Abundance to win anyway.
Now it all depended on whether the battle could drag on long enough to maximize the number of casualties.
In Phantylia's original plan, she never counted on the Denizens of Abundance actually managing to take down a Xianzhou ship.
In her eyes, those brainless fools, aside from their ability to survive, had basically no merits.
Shuhu, who was willing to lead their charge, had died centuries ago and these guys still dared to think about attacking the Xianzhou.
To Phantylia, they were just a bunch of disposable tools, blinded by instinct and desire.
"Tsk... If only I could drag the Luofu into this. If I remember correctly, the Luofu's got a big Heliobus locked up."
Phantylia clicked her tongue.
Too bad the Ambrosial Arbor had already been cut down. On the Luofu now, aside from the Borisin still hung up on Hoolay imprisoned there, no other Denizens of Abundance were willing to attack it.
It simply wasn't worth the trouble.
And war waits for no one.
The Denizens of Abundance always moved fast.
Just two days after Phantylia contacted Celenova.
Just as the Xianzhou side was finishing its preparations.
The Abundance alliance had already assembled, and even brought that revived Living Planet with them, charging straight for the Xianzhou Fanghu.
The Luofu and the Yuque, being closest, had no choice but to send reinforcements.
Jing Yuan volunteered for battle on the eve of conflict. So, led by the Luofu's General and the Yuque's Master Diviner, the reinforcements from both Xianzhou ships raced to aid the Fanghu.
The Yaoqing's General, Yueyu, was still personally leading the charge, but there was no way they'd arrive in time.
They could only hope the Xianzhou Fanghu could hold out until the Yaoqing's support arrived.
--+--
'Jingliu' followed Celenova onto the battlefield.
Only then did she see the true scale of this Abundance force.
"Whoa, the number of Denizens of Abundance here is even bigger than the legion you led before."
Countless living ships were linked together, stretching beyond the visible horizon.
The most conspicuous was that rather disgusting-looking living planet.
It brazenly withstood the Xianzhou's long-range fire, forcing its way closer.
Showing a disgusting determination to drag the Xianzhou into close combat.
But compared to the unified Antimatter Legion, these Denizens of Abundance, gathered from various races, seemed quite chaotic.
And those living ships, products of biological technology, always gave 'Jingliu' an indescribably eerie feeling.
"Aren't you going down? If you end up forced to join the Destruction side, don't say I didn't warn you."
The appearance of Celenova leading her Destruction Legion made both sides, which had just begun their long-range exchange in space, pause momentarily.
Originally, Celenova hadn't planned to show up this early.
She'd intended to wait until the Xianzhou and the Denizens of Abundance were locked in battle, then step in as a third party when the fighting intensity dropped.
Thus achieving the goal of escalating the conflict.
But!
There's always a 'but'.
Just thinking about 'Jingliu' sticking by her side made Celenova feel like ants were crawling all over her.
The key thing was, 'Jingliu' seemed to do it on purpose, always coming to provoke her.
These past two days of 'togetherness' had truly tormented Celenova.
So, even if it meant ruining the plan, Celenova couldn't wait to get to the battlefield, just to kick this woman out.
'Jingliu' acted as if she couldn't hear the disgust in Celenova's voice.
"Eh, is that concern for me?"
"Bleh—!"
Seeing Celenova get so triggered she forgot her image and made such a reaction.
'Jingliu' could barely hold back her laughter.
But before Celenova could reach full 'red-hot' status, 'Jingliu' quickly scurried out of her starship.
Then.
That massive, pitch-black Lightning Lord spread its wings and soared, appearing out of thin air with a colossal surge of imaginary energy!
The enormous greatsword, brimming with boundless might, came crashing down upon the beast ship at the center of the battlefield that was almost touching the Xianzhou alliance!
A violent tide of imaginary energy, carrying a sharp rebuke, rapidly spread to both armies:
"Denizens of Abundance, halt! Or face death!"
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL