Chapter 239: Internal and External Troubles
“Sister Xiao Han, you should just sleep directly today and regain your energy. If anything happens, I’ll call you.”
“Is that so…”
“Yes, yes! Sister Xiao Han, you are our strongest combat power now, so you need to rest well. We’re safe here in the War Fortress during the night watch!”
“Okay then, thank you all.”
I didn’t hesitate in this regard; after all, I trust the defensive capabilities of the War Fortress. Even if it’s damaged, it’s still a huge object that can’t easily be breached.
Moreover, I’m used to going to bed early. I only slept half the night last night, so I indeed feel a bit tired. On the contrary, Minian and the others seem to be in good spirits.
I hope tonight will be peaceful.
I don’t know if the other academies managed to rest last night, but I can tell that today is indeed a little easier than yesterday.
Inside the fortress, it was still a bit shaky. After it was repaired, we continued on our way.
Our goal was to cross the Ancient Battlefield and reach the border of the forest at the Aphhemia World Tree.
We didn’t expect to spend so much time, so we could only wait at the final location. Tan Han and the others would definitely be very fast. If they haven’t arrived, we can just head back in their direction.
“Sister Xiao Han, you’ve fallen asleep so quickly…”
“Don’t disturb Sister Xiao Han. You know what she’s been through today. It’s best for her to sleep early.”
“Speaking of which, during the previous competition, there were even memes of Sister Xiao Han’s sleeping face going around. It’s a shame they can’t be captured in dreams.”
“What a pity! After this exchange competition, I’ll ask if anyone saved them.”
Inside the War Fortress, there’s a section designated for resting.
However, it’s quite a luxurious act to carve out a space for rest in such a large structure. But at this moment, it’s coming in handy.
Everything on the Witch Academy side is relatively smooth, but on the Elf side, things aren’t so good. After compiling various intelligence reports, they are now quite certain that the previous information they gathered is largely accurate.
Those witches are really leading the ancient phantoms to corrode the entire map! And the one leading them is Tan Han!
They have little contact with Tan Han, and understand more about Yang Yuelan, but they still know quite a bit about Tan Han, even if it’s only theoretically.
The current top of the Witch Academy, even that one named Yang Yuelan, has to take a back seat. But that doesn’t stop them from imagining Tan Han’s power, which is probably on par with Yang Yuelan in trouble-making potential.
Moreover, she has even defeated Yang Yuelan before.
Now that Tan Han has started to exert her strength, the Witch Academy is really beginning to show its fangs.
Similarly, the elves also understand the predicament they are facing. If this situation continues to develop, they, the elves, would really find themselves besieged from all sides.
On one side, the fire is spreading; on the other, the corrosion of the Ancient Battlefield is advancing. They don’t even know if their previous cooperation with the Sea Tribe can still succeed.
They had previously heard that the sea was severely polluted. Now, it depends on whether the Sea Tribe chooses to advance and retreat together with the elves to resist the witches, or hold onto their seas and abandon the elves, leading to a final showdown with the Witch Academy in the ocean.
But Mengna, as one of the leads among the Aphhemia elves, understands that opposing the witches must be done in alliance. Even the Witch Academy, didn’t they team up with the Dwarves Academy?
She had learned from her conversation with Enara that they could battle the witches on equal footing in the seas, but what if all the witches mobilize?
Without an alliance, the outcome would just be waiting for d*ath. This is an exchange competition; they cannot allow such an embarrassing stalemate to happen.
Meanwhile, while the elves are worrying, the Sea Tribe side is also in disarray because of the so-called pollution.
The original marine area has been corroded, the water quality is murky, and even the once-vibrant seaweed, fish, and corals below the sea have turned into weathered sand, devoid of any vitality. If they didn’t know this was underwater, they would think it was a desolate desert.
And from this seabed, undead creatures originating from the Land of the Fallen have surged forth, attacking even underwater. Although the seawater slows them down, their sheer numbers can send chills down one’s spine.
Moreover, they discovered many mutated sea beasts in the polluted waters. Originally, these creatures were very friendly to the sea tribe blessed by the ocean, but now, they charge forth to bite them.
The marine beasts are far more terrifying than the savage beasts on land.
“These monsters… seem like ancient phantoms…”
“But aren’t ancient phantoms supposed to be from the Central Ancient Battlefield?”
“I don’t know; they’re just really strange…”
Enara also arrived at the polluted waters at the first moment at night for an inspection. Although she didn’t want to believe it, the looks of these monsters that had been killed match the descriptions of ancient phantoms according to the rules. Whether they are the undead of the seabed or those mutated marine beasts, they are all ancient phantoms!
This was the intelligence she had gathered from the elves. Those witches are leading ancient phantoms to corrode the map!
But… she never expected that the corrosion in the Ancient Battlefield would extend to the ocean as well!
This is the ocean!
And the more critical the situation, the calmer Enara becomes. All sources point to the Land of the Fallen; however, the distance from the Land of the Fallen to the places where the witches had previously operated, like the Dragon’s bl**d Nest, is still quite far. Could it be a split operation?
Regardless, they need to first resolve the immediate problem.
“Eliminate this wave of ancient phantoms; otherwise, if the ocean keeps getting corroded like this, we will be doomed!” Enara stated.
“B-but… if all these are ancient phantoms… there are so many, we can’t defeat them nor finish them off…”
This is a very serious issue they have to face, for they missed the optimal rescue time. This pollution has already expanded from a single point to a fan-like area. The longer it spreads, the longer the contaminated edge becomes; this is no longer something they can stop.
At this moment, Enara also realized that she didn’t have time to hesitate. This deadlock… she never thought she would face such a dilemma; indeed, plans cannot keep up with changes.
“Leave some people to eliminate the ancient phantoms to slow down the pace of corruption. The rest come with me to conduct the Sea King Ceremony!”
As soon as Enara finished speaking, the sea tribe began to understand her plan. They also have a ceremony!
Thinking about it, this might actually be the final solution with no other alternatives.
Whether the tsunami triggered by the Sea King Ceremony counteracts the area corrupted by the Ancient Battlefield or ultimately used to face the final showdown, it holds decisive power.
“Let’s go meet the elves again to see if they can support our plan. We still need too much time to hold our ceremony.” Enara looked up, gazing at the moon that had risen into the night sky alongside the starry expanse. Tonight is another sleepless night!
If we can’t rest easy tonight, will they have tomorrow?
However, special circumstances require special attention. Enara popped a bottle of invigorating potion and resolutely headed towards the elves.
She knew the elves were also looking forward to her return.
At this moment.
The dwarves took turns resting as they drove the War Fortress towards the Aphhemia World Tree.
They once fantasized about crushing the World Tree and the Wizard Tower with their War Fortress, bombarding the floating islands, but all of this seems to have been done earlier by the witches.
Minian, who gets along well with the dwarves, couldn’t stop talking, especially with Aiko. They chatted about all kinds of gossip, especially during this lonely night travel period.
They listened to the witches’ glorious achievements in the competition, setting forests on fire, flooding the Land of the Fallen, driving away the Holy Angel Academy, and cleaving the Wizard Tower with their swords. Each story made their bl**d boil, as if they too had participated.
Of course, they also complained about reporting to the wrong academy. The Dwarves Academy mostly focuses on forging, and even if they aren’t a forging academy, they can’t escape the need for sacred artifacts.
“Thank heavens, there’s actually a safe spot without natural disasters in the Ancient Battlefield. I see a dark shadow in the distance; could that be the Aphhemia World Tree?”
“I’m not too sure; it’s too dark. But if the direction is correct, we should be almost there. Not bad! You guys’ big guy is moving so fast?” Minian said from the cockpit, as this is where she could first detect dangers. If there’s danger, she would go resolve it, and if she couldn’t, she’d call Sister Xiao Han.
By this time, it was already deep into the night. As the distance closed, everyone finally confirmed it was a forest, and under the moonlight, they saw the so-called Aphhemia World Tree stretching its branches, bathed in moonlight, safeguarding this forest.
“It seems we’ve reached the boundary; should we continue on? If we do, we might run into those elves directly.”
“Let’s stop for now.”
Minian said, since this isn’t the time for a formal showdown with the elves, and Sister Tan Han hasn’t returned yet. It’s not that she doubts Sister Xiao Han’s strength; she just doesn’t want any accidents.
Moreover, at this last moment, having fewer people does feel like something is missing.
And Sister Xiao Han is currently sleeping soundly, so the big showdown is best left for tomorrow.
Additionally, their War Fortress is so massive that lingering here would soon attract attention. This distance is clever; it won’t allow the opposing force to mobilize everyone from so far away, but they can’t just ignore it.
The intelligence of their arrival here will quickly reach the elves, creating urgency for them, ensuring they can’t sleep well, and then they can crush them the next day when they are well-rested!
Before long, as expected, they were soon discovered. However, it wasn’t by the elves; the unfortunate part was that the opposing force ran away too fast to get a clear view.
But not long after, someone from the elves arrived.
At this moment, with Sister Tan Han absent and Sister Xiao Han asleep, Minian transformed into the leader of the Witch Academy and, along with a group of dwarves, directly exited the War Fortress, standing atop it to confront the elves.
It was already late at night, yet the atmosphere was very tense, feeling as if it could erupt at any moment.
This is also Minian’s first time facing such a situation. She had only seen Sisters Tan Han and Xiao Han lead large-scale confrontations before. According to the habits of the two sisters… there should be some banter and trash talk now, right?
“What are you dwarves and witches teaming up for here?”
“That’s none of your business! The map isn’t created by your Aphhemia Academy, so why do you care where we go?” Minian began to retort without holding back. After all, she was responsible for making the elves sleep uneasily, and the rest was all just in the flow!
She figured that the elves wouldn’t dare to act first.
“You! You are simply too arrogant! Don’t think that just because you have such a big guy, you can do anything you want!”
“We are doing whatever we want! What will you do about it? Looking at your demeanor, you’re clearly not the leader among the elves. Where’s your leader? We spent so long getting here; no one is here to welcome us?”
“We only welcome guests, and witches aren’t our guests. Besides, who are you to have no reputation at all? What about Tan Han and that Yang Yuelan?”
“Oh, spying on intelligence is so low-skilled. Do you think we’ll tell you? You ask, and I’ll say they’re all resting below; I’m responsible for making you sleep uneasily!”
“You! You shameless witch! Just as the rumors say, you’re disgusting!”
“Sure, just take that as a compliment.”
Minian and the group of witches and dwarves readily accepted the opposing insults. This opportunity was rare; they couldn’t sleep at the moment anyway. Even if they were tired, a bit of invigorating potion would suffice. So what if they didn’t sleep at all for a night?
They could naturally stay up late, but now was a perfect chance to irritate the other academy.
Witches are all about the night life; at this moment, they still didn’t know how many of their seniors in the Witch Academy were watching their performance.
As they guessed, those seniors who were awake at night were indeed watching the scene here, considering that everyone knew the exchange competition was nearing its end, and the excitement was not as high as before.
Moreover, some academies, like the Holy Angel Academy, had already seen all their members eliminated.
But there were also those who weren’t focused; while watching the witches trade insults, they had started a live stream of Xiao Han’s sleeping face and were going crazy.
After all, the Witch Academy is so large, and with so many seniors, there’s bound to be some with unique tastes.
At this moment, Enara returned to the elves’ side once more.
This was also why Mengna didn’t engage in bickering with the witches; she didn’t have clone techniques.
At this time, Enara could be said to be bringing good news for the elves, but she was also surprised that the ocean would also be corroded by the so-called Ancient Battlefield.
Indeed, those witches are a bunch of lunatics capable of anything.
“So I hope you elves can send some manpower to help us the Sea Tribe complete the ceremony. You know the exchange competition is now reaching its final stage; the Sea King Ceremony will be our greatest trump card.”
“I understand; I’m very grateful that your Sea Tribe wishes to ally with us elves. But you saw just now, those witches are currently at the border between our forest and the Ancient Battlefield. Although it’s still a fair distance away, we also don’t have many people to spare…”
“I naturally know that. But if they haven’t launched a strong attack yet, it only means they are trying to wear you out at night!”
“But we also can’t afford to gamble. The fewer people there are at the frontlines, the more likely they will really team up with the dwarves to attack us!”
“You elves don’t seem sincere about this…”
“Sorry… but the reality is indeed like this. I will discuss it with the Elemental Elf Academy.”
At this moment, Mengna was in a panic. If the elves couldn’t connect with the Sea Tribe, the latter might abandon them and turn to the Beast Academy!
Mengna knew that there was communication between the Sea Tribe and the Beast Academy. At present, the Beast Academy had joined forces to form a Beast Academy Alliance, and practically all Beast Academy schools had joined in.
This is a force not inferior to the elves. Even if the Beast Academy’s strength is generally not strong, their numbers far exceed those of the elves.
However, the obstacles in the Beast Academy are probably significant. After all, none of the academies there have successfully held ceremonies. Watching the Sea Tribe gain points and occupy the second rank among the academies, how could they just let this happen?
Thus, the chances that the Beast Academy would support the Sea Tribe in completing the ceremony are slim; they would be lucky if they didn’t interfere.
But the game between academies is often like this: any hesitation or rashness could lead to complete failure.
Especially as the exchange competition has reached such a critical moment.
“Look! A ceremony has been sparked over there; it looks like it’s from the Sea Tribe.”
At this moment, the light column of the ceremony rising from the ocean is remarkably conspicuous in the night sky, also representing the Sea Tribe’s intentions.
“It seems the Sea Tribe is planning a final effort. The elves still haven’t seen their leader; it’s highly possible they have some sort of secret deal with the Sea Tribe. Why don’t we try firing a few shots at their forest?”
“The chances are considerable… but what if we pull the trigger on the final battle directly? Moreover, Sister Tan Han still hasn’t returned…”
“Is it possible that something happened to Sister Tan Han? Sorry, I’m just a bit worried.”
“She won’t! Sister Tan Han isn’t dead; how could anything happen? She’s probably just sleeping.”
Just as the witches were discussing, a figure approached the War Fortress without anyone noticing.
“It’s really you! You actually came over here!” A voice came through.
“Huh? You scared me! I thought it was an enemy ambush. Su Ningmu, you’re back? Where’s Sister Tan Han?”
“We split up to look for you. Since you’re here, help send a signal… um… where’s Sister Xiao Han?”
“Sister Xiao Han is asleep; I’ll go wake her up right now!”
“Uh, just sending a signal shouldn’t wake Sister Xiao Han, right?”
“But we also don’t have the kind of magic use like Sister Xiao Han.”
“Sorry, but the meeting time we agreed upon is based on Sister Xiao Han’s fireball signal to gather… I didn’t expect Sister Xiao Han to fall asleep so quickly.”
“That’s how it was last night… Sister Xiao Han shouldn’t blame you.”
“Anyway, you should rest first. By the way, tell us about your results. Do we need to support you now?”
“No need… Sister Tan Han estimated that even without our intervention, by tomorrow morning, at the latest noon, the corruption of the Ancient Battlefield will completely surround the forest. That’s why we returned early.”
