Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

The night had grown deep, and the enthusiasm for conversation in the cabin had waned; everyone closed their eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Su Yunjin had gone to the rear cabin to find the medical team; she needed a female cultivator to help her use Runescript to treat the bruises covering her body.

Yan Yu, on the other hand, was checking the tactical wireless earpieces that had been distributed—they were said to have been tested and to work well within the Mysterious Realm, so they could be used for temporary command communications.

In fact, in Lu Country's past, the use of wireless earpieces among cultivators was very short-lived because everyone quickly discovered a more effective secret technique called "Transmitting Sound into Secret."

"Captain, you're not sleeping yet?" Having dealt with her injuries, Su Yunjin returned to the cabin and asked Yan Yu in a soft voice.

"We'll be landing soon," Yan Yu replied with a shake of his head and a smile, "Why sleep now?"

"Oh," Su Yunjin was silent for a moment before whispering, "Captain."

"What is it?"

"If you want me to execute the decoy strategy, I wouldn't mind," Su Yunjin said softly.

Yan Yu was silent for a while before responding,

"Rest assured, it wasn't just consideration for your feelings that led me to reject Chen Lingyun's plan."

"Actually, I think you can provide more value to the team than you could by executing the decoy strategy."

"More value, eh?" Su Yunjin pondered to herself.

She did not continue to inquire but quietly returned to her seat, secretly watching Yan Yu from a distance.

After a while, Su Yunjin withdrew her gaze and saw Lin Ning beside her turn over and continue to sleep quietly.

Once the plane arrived at the Chuzhou airport, everyone had to switch to a car to head for Longquan Prefecture. Even Yan Yu couldn't hold up and quickly fell asleep against the back of his seat on the road.

Around 3 a.m., the Zhendong Army Team finally reached Longquan Prefecture and checked into a local hotel.

At that time, the Annan Army Team had just landed at Chuzhou airport, and they decided to stay overnight in Chuzhou Prefecture and continue their journey to Longquan the next day. Enjoy new stories from empireNôv(el)B\\jnn

The urgent journey was uncomfortable for both sides; now it was a matter of seeing who could adjust their condition better.

The next morning, around 10 a.m.

Yan Yu gradually woke up and heard someone knocking at the door.

When he opened the door, it was the human alarm clock Lin Ning urging him to wake up,

"We're getting ready to go for breakfast; hurry up and change," she said.

"Next time if I can't wake up, you can get breakfast for me," Yan Yu yawned.

"It's already 10 a.m.," Lin Ning reasoned with him, "If you don't wake up, you'll just have lunch at noon. Why should I get breakfast for you then?"

"Then just bring me lunch back," Yan Yu said as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"I'll bring you leftovers!" Lin Ning retorted indignantly.

The group gathered on the ground floor of the hotel, went to a nearby diner to fill up on dumplings and noodles, and then set off for Longquan Mountain Scenic Area.

"The local news media don't seem to have reported that Longquan Mountain is closed off," Su Yunjin said in surprise as she scrolled through her phone.

"That's because the Spiritual Energy Resurgence is still not a topic we can discuss openly in the country," Chen Lingyun said with a smile.

"But..." Su Yunjin thought for a moment, still finding it strange, "Mitchi Country has already publicly promoted superheroes, so how much longer can we keep this a secret?"

"Until a consensus is reached," Chen Lingyun answered with a smile.

"A consensus between whom?" Su Yunjin asked, puzzled.

Chen Lingyun did not answer but turned to ask Yan Yu,

"Has the Annan Army team arrived yet?"

"Not yet," Yan Yu said, "They will probably have lunch after they get to Longquan Prefecture before heading over."

"Then why do we have to rush to the entrance of the Secret Realm so early?" Zhao Yuanzhen complained.

"Because we can get some fresh air," Yan Yu replied nonchalantly.

Everyone was speechless.

"Actually, it's like this," Chen Lingyun said with a smile, "He stayed up late last night, and it took a toll on his health, so he needs to go to the mountains ahead of time to breathe in some oxygen."

"Right," Yan Yu played along seriously, "If breathing in the fresh oxygen from the scenic area still doesn't help me recover, then let Miss Chen lead you guys into battle."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Lin Ning finally couldn't help but shout, "If the leader isn't participating, we might as well give up right now!"

Upon arriving inside Longquan Mountain, the military blockade was clearly much more organized and thorough compared to the previous Wuyi Mountain Secret Realm.

At the entrance of the scenic area, large signs had been erected, printed with oversized fonts stating that "a landslide occurred inside" and "it is temporarily closed and not open to the public." Several tourists were taking pictures at the entrance of the scenic area.

They switched to taking a helicopter nearby to enter the mountains, and soon, they could see the camp set up by the military.

The entrance to the Secret Realm this time was near a winding mountain road, even deeper in was the Wushi Forest Farm.

At this moment, the road had been cut off by the military, and tents of various sizes were set up, resembling a temporary command center on the front lines of a battlefield.

In a clearing where the trees had been cleared, the helicopter slowly descended.

After Yan Yu and the others got off the plane, he let the girls sit in a nearby tent while he followed the military officer in charge to inspect the entrance to the Secret Realm.

The entrance to the Secret Realm was in the woods beside the road, with purple void scars snarling and dancing, as if they possessed the magic to twist space—in fact, they seemed to, because the trees around had all been snapped, and the breaks didn't look like they were cut with sharp tools, but rather as if they were violently twisted by an external force.

"According to the intelligence, if the cultivators enter the Secret Realm through the entrance in different groups, they will appear at random locations within the Secret Realm," Captain Zhang explained, "So, we haven't gone in to explore. It would be quite troublesome to rescue if we lost contact once inside."

"Mhm," Yan Yu nodded, "Leave it to us."

In fact, the locations where personnel were teleported after entering the Secret Realm in different batches were not entirely randomly chosen, but selected sequentially from several fixed positions—set by the master of the Secret Realm. So, it was common to immediately experience a very warm welcome from someone with ill intent right upon entering.

But speaking of which, what exactly is the Secret Realm here in Longquan Mountain again?

I only remember that it should be related to swords... right, I think?

After recalling for a while and confirming that he didn't have much memory related to this Secret Realm, Yan Yu turned and left with Captain Zhang.

It doesn't matter, we'll know once Li Zhaojiang and his team arrive and we go inside.

Around 1:30 in the afternoon, the Annan Army team finally arrived here.

As Li Zhaojiang and his men entered the tent, they saw four girls gathered around playing cards, with Yan Yu boredly playing with his phone on the side.

"Yan Yu, hurry up and bring your people out!" Li Zhaojiang shouted arrogantly, "Let's beat you guys quickly. We still need to rush back to the King's Mansion for dinner!"

"Ah, Minghu has arrived." Yan Yu didn't even look at him, his gaze falling on Li Minghu who was behind him. He casually pulled a chair beside him and said with a smile, "You must be tired from the trip, why not sit down and rest a bit?"

"Get lost!" Li Zhaojiang hurriedly snatched the chair and wiped it a few times with a napkin, then turned and courteously said, "Sis, please sit."

Li Minghu sat down with a wry smile, and Li Zhaojiang started to press again:

"Yan Yu, don't you have any manners? We've come from afar, and you only offer one chair?"

"The chairs are outside, help yourself," Yan Yu pointed casually outside.

After thinking carefully, Li Zhaojiang realized this temporary camp was set up by the military, not by Yan Yu, so indeed he couldn't demand chairs from him, so he led the others outside to fetch chairs.

"Are you really okay?" Yan Yu asked Li Minghu again.

The Valkyrie's attire for combat this time was a sports shirt on top, sports pants on the bottom, and sports shoes on her feet—a standard outdoor trio. She probably wore it to exercise her cardiopulmonary function, usually worn for running, and then this time, news of the Secret Realm came suddenly, and she was called to the airport to board a plane while still halfway through her run.

"No problem," Li Minghu covered her mouth and coughed softly, "Cough! Cough!... My coughing has actually decreased a lot recently."

"If you can't hold on, remember to say so in time," Yan Yu looked at her with concern and advised, "A momentary win or loss is a small matter, but your health is of great importance."

"Don't worry," Li Minghu said softly with a smile, "We still have to fight for the win or loss. I'll try my best to take care of my health."

As the two made polite conversation, the four girls playing Dou Dizhu (Landlord) had lost all interest in their card game. They used their cards as a cover, stealing glances at the Lingnan girl talking to Yan Yu.

With fair and smooth skin, dense, slightly curly long hair, and speaking with gentle words, even her occasional dry cough, loud without phlegm, seemed to invoke even more pity. Even Zhao Yuanzhen, who was quite picky about looks and figure, had to admit that Li Minghu was indeed quite charming.

So, what exactly is her relationship with Team Leader Yan Yu?!!