"So," his voice was filled with weariness, "as long as this competition continues, we will end up with nothing. So what's the point of our efforts? We might as well just quietly wait for that moment to arrive."

As Kaka spoke, he cradled his head with his hands and lay down on the ground.

"Nonsense." Liu Ying simply couldn't stand his defeatism and cursed in irritation.

Setting aside whether this theory was right or wrong, there was such a small probability that by the time it happened, she would have already retired.

To a person's short life, this theory was nothing but rubbish.

But what if the timescale was extended?

What about a guild?

What about a dynasty?

Or what about a civilization?

Or, placing it on an even greater scale, in this vast universe, was it really so?

A strange thought suddenly flashed through Liu Ying's mind, but she quickly shook her head, casting out the peculiar idea. She thought to herself that she must be crazy to be going mad along with him.

She yanked him up from the ground and said through gritted teeth, "You better work seriously for me!"

"Alright, alright, alright!" Kaka raised his hands in surrender.

The Clockwork Fairy fluttered its wings in the dark, vibrating at a high frequency, though the sound did not carry far.

It resembled a dim orange fruit, hanging upside down beneath a branch of a Fenris oak, its narrow field mode occasionally switching like a dark eye blinking.

And in that eye was reflected a line of Invokers advancing.

In total, twelve people.

Leading were twin Nightingales, followed by two Dual-Wielding Swordsmen, then a Great Sword Warrior, an Iron Defender, and behind them, five Archers with longbows.

Following the Archers, at the end of the team, was a short Healer.

This vanguard team was well spread out, each member well-trained, stern-faced, and exceedingly vigilant, moving through the forest as quietly as real predators.

The twin sisters always walked at the very front of the team, maintaining a reverse triangular formation with the swordsmen behind them, ensuring they could see each other. In Eteliria, this was a classic scouting formation, designed to ensure that if any of the front two points were ambushed, the others could relay the information back to the team.

But with a "click"—a soft sound.

The Clockwork Fairy above their heads recorded this scene and sent it back to the rear.

The quiet valley formed a V-shaped gentle slope at its exit, among the shadows of shattered rocks, the Blood Oath Alliance's attack squad was hidden.

Xia Sheng was also crouched within one of the rock crevices.

She turned off the image transmitted by the Summoner's System, raised her head—a complicated expression on her face as she looked towards the direction of the forest, knowing that his Clockwork Fairy was there, but she had never understood how the other party managed to send the Clockwork Fairy thousands of meters away.

The Captain had told her that it was a capability all top Combat Artisans had, but she couldn't help feeling unsatisfied; if Combat Artisans could detect enemies from thousands of meters away, what was the need for Nightingales?

When she asked this question, the Captain looked at her amusedly.

Of course, he could understand her feelings; anyone who could become a member of the Elite Brigade was prideful. He thought for a moment and replied, "I'm talking about top Combat Artisans, how many such people are there in the world?"

So Xia Sheng remembered him, a youth who, despite his odd hobbies, possessed capabilities beyond her reach.

Once again, the youth's rustling voice came through the communicator, "Be careful, they've advanced about a hundred meters, and now they're very close to you."

Xia Sheng didn't reply.

Or rather, no one in the entire team spoke up; everyone turned towards their Captain, who raised his right hand and gestured to the right with his palm.

"Let the established scouts go ahead; Group B attacks first."

All nodded in agreement.

Xia Sheng quickly recorded this order and transmitted it to the other side of the battlefield. She attempted to be as careful as possible because she knew that the opponent's scouts were Rain Listeners, and possibly, like them, they were members of the Rain Listener's Elite Brigade—"Storm."

Nevertheless, she was somewhat shocked.

Storm's capabilities were only on par with theirs; if facing the enemy directly, it would be difficult to gain such a significant advantage.

But with the help of that genius youth from the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team, they had obtained the much-coveted initiative. In Eteliria, both Nightingales and Rangers were outstanding scouts, yet their scouting abilities were based on their perception abilities.

Sound, color, and smell, through specific training, a Summoner's System with related skills can be tens to hundreds of times more sensitive than a normal person.

They capture the target, then outline the target for the Summoner. If scouting related skills and talents are high enough, they can even predict the possible direction of the target's movement.

But the members of Anlan were all hiding behind rocks, not showing themselves or observing, making no noise, and with just the sounds of breathing and heartbeat amid the background noise of the forest, even a top Ranger of level 30 or 40 wouldn't detect them without getting closer to a certain distance.

Therefore, the Rain Listener's team could certainly not detect them; the opponents almost unknowingly entered their ambush zone.

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