Chapter 0561: Lan Lan's Team, Retreat!

The awe-inspiring battle had ground to a halt with this development. The avatar behind Lan Lan began to pause. The technique was not released and the offensive was unceremoniously brought to a stop.

All because Jing Taixu was a hostage in Li Luo's hands.

If Jing Taixu were to be eliminated, the rules dictated that their team would lose a portion of their points, an amount greater than what could have been earned from conquering this level three city.

The path to victory would be an uphill climb, and recouping the lost points would be no easy feat.

All of these considerations raced through Lan Lan's mind as he felt incomparably irritated. These arbitrary rules were frustrating to no end.

Whoosh.

Even the ever cool Lan Lan heaved a heavy sigh at this situation. Calming himself down, he glared icily at the party pooper Li Luo.

It was mind-boggling that Jing Taixu could have been crushed so quickly.

He would not have been surprised if Lu Jinci had been the unfortunate one. All of this seemed preposterous. The difference in strength should not have been so large.

"Good job, Li Luo!" the First Princess praised. An expression of joy could be seen on her beautiful face, and she had similarly never expected this result.

She had resolved herself of the heavy price necessary to resist the Three Kowtows of the Enlightened Sage. Luckily, Li Luo had become the harbinger of fortune, turning the situation on its head.

The situation had changed, and now that Jing Taixu was in their hands, so was the initiative. Lan Lan's hands were tied as he had to consider his decision carefully.

"It looks like we've got the upper hand in this clash, Lan Lan." The First Princess beamed radiantly.

"You must understand that we are only fighting for the sake of points. If we truly were to put everything on the line, there wouldn't be much difference between us." She continued speaking with the intent to provide Lan Lan a way to back down. There was no need to tear up all pretenses of cordiality over something so minor.

Lan Lan calmly retorted, "It seems that Sister Gong's team is truly my greatest opponent. If we were to eliminate you here and now... that might actually be a good thing." Coupled with the provocative words, he remained battle-ready, the avatar behind him fully primed. It was clear that he truly was considering the situation extremely carefully.

Unsurprisingly, the response he received was a cold snort and a frigid expression from the First Princess. She grasped the jade scepter tightly, similarly unwilling to relent if this was the case. "Then go ahead and kowtow. Let's see what happens then. I'm not afraid. Try me! If I don't make you pay a heavy price, then why am I even here?"

Lan Lan's gaze narrowed as his fingertips moved together in the shape of a hand seal.

Simultaneously, the avatar behind him began to radiate frightening pressure.

Boom!

Just as the situation reached an explosive climax, a loud explosion could be heard. A pitiful shadow had been sent flying by a blast of resonant energy, leaving behind a hundred-meter ditch upon landing.

The originally spacious road was now cleanly cleaved into two.

This sight gave Lan Lan another unpleasant surprise. There was a fleshy lump of meat that went by the name of Lu Jinci lying within the muddy debris.

Swoosh!

At the same time, a radiant Demonbane Nail began to descend once more, directly penetrating his arm, resulting in pitiful cries and a miserable expression. "Senior Lan, please make your decision quickly. Fight if you want to or run if you don't! The quicker, the better!"

A certain Jiang Qing'e then landed by his side, her heavy sword pressed right atop his head, instantly causing him to zip his mouth shut.

His courage had truly been beaten out of him.

He had the misfortune of being soundly beaten twice in a single Holy Grail Meet. Furthermore, Jiang Qing'e loathed his very presence, never pulling her punches. On top of that, the Demonbane Nails could not be resisted by mightier individuals, much less him!

Another sigh escaped from Lan Lan's mouth.

Both of his teammates had been captured, and if they were eliminated, he'd lose a good half of his points. That would truly be a penalty he could not afford to pay. Attaining first place would be impossible then.

Sacrificing so much for a mere level three city was not a smart move. It would make even less sense to continue his attack on the First Princess.

Thus, he made his decision. He immediately released the avatar, and the horrific encompassing pressure it exuded upon the surroundings immediately receded.

"Well, fellow student Gong, you've won. You truly have two great teammates," Lan Lan helplessly replied.

"Oh? Do you finally agree? As I said, this doesn't mean much. The real competition only really starts at the Russet Rock City. Who knows, we might even have to work together then." Russet Rock City supposedly possessed a Greater Heavenly Disaster Class Other, a Heavenly Resonance Stage opponent. Unfortunately, it was likely that none of the teams in the competition would be able to take it on alone. Plus, with the intel from Thunderpeal Mountain, the crimson knight-general was also going to be there, and thus there was definitely a need to remain on cordial terms.

"Perhaps." Shaking his head, Lan Lan glanced towards Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e. "My two friends, could you kindly release my teammates?" Jiang Qing'e sheathed her sword and flicked her finger, dissipating the Demonbane Nail that had been stabbing into Lu Jinci. The pitiful soul quickly scrambled to his feet with a face full of tears. "Sister Qing'e, I beg of you! Please stop using that resonant art on me!"

Jiang Qing'e glared at him momentarily before cooly replying, "We're enemies. Why should I be lenient?"

He continued pleading with a bitter smile. "Sister Qing'e, that's not true! You don't need to vent your anger on me! All those bad rumors came from that bastard Jing Taixu! Yes, that scummy guy! Not me! If you really are angry, why don't you find a chance to beat him halfway to the pearly gates instead?"

Jiang Qing'e shook her head. "He's not worth my attention." After which, she turned away from Lu Jinci, calmly walking away.

On the other side, Li Luo was also smiling happily as he put away his Onyx-Elephant Blade whilst staring at the seemingly soulless Jing Taixu. It seemed as though he had been traumatized from the lightning-fast confrontation. Or perhaps he simply did not want to face reality.

Before this fight, Jing Taixu firmly believed that Li Luo's previous victory was a fluke! Mere luck. However, Li Luo had metamorphosed into a monster easily capable of dealing with him. Just how could the arrogant Jing Taixu take it lying down?

"You don't need to worry... To be honest, that last blow wasn't even me at my peak! The gap between us is actually muuuuuuuuuch larger than this," Li Luo continued to console.

Hearing such vicious words caused Jing Taixu's eyelids to flutter, seemingly awakened as he gritted his teeth. "I simply did not expect you to have strengthened by so much in such a small amount of time! I won't let you off so easily next time!"

"Mhm. Work harder, young one. Your efforts will definitely pay off in the future," Li Luo sagely said as he grinned widely. No longer paying attention to him, he turned to walk towards the First Princess.

This once epic nemesis had now fallen into the annals of history. He had been completely surpassed.

Jing Taixu had a heart full of grievance, but his only option was to snort in retort, slinking back towards Lan Lan.

On the other hand, Lan Lan did not blame his teammates. After cupping his fist towards the First Princess respectfully, he turned to leave and gave up on the struggle for the level three city.

The First Princess watched Lan Lan fade away in the distance before heaving a sigh of relief. That great opponent had finally been repelled.

Despite the victory, she did not directly enter the level three city, instead turning to face the rabble within the forest, whose presence had long been felt.

Now that her hands were not tied up in dealing with the troublesome Lan Lan, she was free to investigate these third parties' intentions.

If they were looking to snatch the level three city, she'd be more than happy to give them the welcome they deserved.

Yet with the sight of Lan Lan retreating, the rest of the opportunists lost the confidence to go against the First Princess' team. They quietly dispersed too.

Gong Shenjun did not choose to appear either, taking his team away to another city that had not been purified. Although it was not of a similar level, it was better than nothing.

Furthermore, these cities would open the path towards Russet Rock City, where everyone would congregate.

Everything would be decided there and then.