Chapter 285: Imperial Ranking War: The Third Hunt

--

The Deep Blue God Empire Team had spent the entire previous day waiting for an attack that never came.

At first, they had been certain that Heavenly Bronze would arrive. Two teams had already been eliminated in two consecutive days, and with the forced confrontation underway, there was little reason to believe that the top-ranked empire would suddenly become merciful. Their enemies had every advantage necessary to continue hunting, and leaving the remaining teams alive would only give them more opportunities to cause trouble.

Yet the sun had risen, crossed the sky, and disappeared beyond the horizon without a single Heavenly Bronze representative appearing near their base.

Even now, the following morning, they still had no idea why.

"Are they waiting for something?"

A young man sitting beside the campfire asked the question that had been troubling everyone. His armor was already fastened, his weapon rested within reach, and the dark circles beneath his eyes made it obvious that he hadn’t slept properly.

Nobody answered him immediately.

The team had spent the previous night changing guard shifts, checking their surroundings, and sending scouts to inspect the nearby terrain. Every unusual noise had drawn their attention, and every returning scout had been questioned repeatedly. They had accomplished little besides exhausting themselves.

Their captain finally spoke.

"It doesn’t matter what they’re waiting for. We cannot assume they’re leaving us alone."

The others nodded, although none looked particularly relieved.

They had reached the same conclusion long ago. Heavenly Bronze wasn’t going to stop simply because two days had passed without another announcement. If anything, the silence was probably part of their plan.

But what exactly was that plan?

The Deep Blue God Empire Team had discussed the question repeatedly, yet they couldn’t produce an answer that satisfied everyone. Some believed their opponents were gathering intelligence before launching a decisive assault. Others thought they were deliberately waiting for the remaining teams to lower their guard. A few even suggested that Heavenly Bronze had suffered losses they weren’t announcing, although nobody could explain how that would account for the effortless destruction of two entire teams.

Their biggest problem was that they didn’t understand how Heavenly Bronze had found its previous targets.

Neither Berserk Mountain God nor Free Heavenly Paradise had been given enough time to prepare for a proper defense. Both had been eliminated before they could accomplish anything meaningful, and the speed of those defeats suggested that Heavenly Bronze had known exactly where to find them.

That was the only explanation that made sense.

How else could one team locate two different enemies and eliminate them on consecutive days?

They couldn’t have been relying on luck. Even if the secret realm wasn’t particularly large compared with the territories outside it, finding fifty people in its wilderness was no simple task. The landscape was vast, monsters wandered freely, and the survivors had spent six months learning how to avoid unnecessary encounters.

Yet Heavenly Bronze had found them anyway.

The Deep Blue God Empire Team had no idea how Ren’s sensory network worked, nor could they imagine that a single person was observing the movements of every surviving representative in the realm. As far as they were concerned, Heavenly Bronze possessed some unknown method of tracking its opponents.

The Burning Firmament Empire Team had undoubtedly reached the same conclusion.

Once the enemy knew their location, it was only a matter of time before they came.

And they did.

The first warning came from a scout stationed on a rocky outcrop overlooking the eastern approach.

"Movement! Fifteen people, approaching from the east!"

The shout immediately brought the entire Deep Blue God Empire Team to its feet. Weapons were drawn, armor was secured, and the representatives rushed toward their designated positions. Their captain climbed onto a raised platform and looked toward the distant figures.

He could see them clearly.

Fifteen people were walking across the open terrain without attempting to conceal their presence. They weren’t hiding behind trees or moving through the valleys to avoid detection. They didn’t seem particularly concerned about being spotted, either. Their formation was orderly, with enough distance between each member to prevent a single attack from catching several of them at once.

There were no traps waiting along the approach, at least none that the scouts could identify. No explosions erupted beneath the ground, and nobody was being followed by an unseen group preparing to strike from behind.

For the first time since the confrontation began, Heavenly Bronze had made no effort to hide its arrival.

It was a direct challenge.

The captain’s expression darkened.

"They’re confident."

"Should we retreat?"

"And go where?" he snapped. "They already know where we are."

The question silenced the man who had asked it.

Retreating might have been an option if they could lose their pursuers in the wilderness, but their enemies had demonstrated that ordinary methods of concealment were useless. If they abandoned their current position, they would merely be running toward another battle on unfamiliar ground.

Besides, there was no guarantee that the approaching team would allow them to leave.

The captain looked at the fifteen figures again, studying their equipment and formation. They were still too far away to identify every individual, but several stood out immediately.

A tall woman carrying a massive shield walked near the front, her silver hair flowing behind her. Her armor was well-fitted and maintained, with no visible signs of the prolonged hardship that had defined the previous six months. Beside her was a young woman with cherry-pink hair tied into a high ponytail, a slender rapier resting at her side.

Further back, a swordsman carried himself with the confidence of someone who had spent years mastering his weapon. Another combatant held a spear, his posture balanced and his movements economical.

The captain’s eyes narrowed.

He recognized some of them from earlier encounters and information gathered during the competition.

Diana Eunice Lunareigh.

Lily Anne Heartveil.

Adrian Arclight.

Lucian.

These weren’t ordinary representatives selected to fill the numbers. They were among the strongest combatants Heavenly Bronze possessed, people who could stand at the front of a battle without needing others to protect them.

And there were eleven more.

The captain suddenly understood why Heavenly Bronze had only sent fifteen people.

They didn’t need fifty.

"Everyone, prepare for combat!" he ordered. "Archers in the rear! Defensive fighters at the front! Don’t let them break our formation!"

The Deep Blue God representatives moved into position, attempting to establish a defensive line before their opponents reached them. Their captain knew that fighting on their own ground was preferable to being chased through the wilderness, and if they could force Heavenly Bronze into a prolonged engagement, their numerical advantage might finally become relevant.

Fifty against fifteen.

On paper, they should have had the advantage.

Unfortunately, paper didn’t fight.

Diana’s squad continued advancing.

She had no intention of wasting time on unnecessary maneuvers. Ren had already provided their target’s location, estimated strength, likely defensive arrangements, and the routes through which they might attempt to escape. They had spent the journey reviewing the plan, but there was no need to turn this particular engagement into another elaborate hunt.

Their opponents had seen them coming.

Good.

Let them prepare. Let them gather their strongest fighters and arrange their formation. Let them believe that their numbers might be enough to stop the approaching squad.

The outcome wouldn’t change.

Diana raised her shield slightly as the distance between the two teams narrowed. Behind her, Adrian rested one hand near his sword, while Lucian adjusted his grip on his spear. Lily’s expression remained composed, her peach-blossom eyes fixed on the enemy formation.

None of them appeared nervous.

That alone was enough to make the Deep Blue God representatives uncomfortable.

Their opponents weren’t behaving like people who were about to fight fifty enemies. They weren’t exchanging hurried instructions or checking their equipment for the third time. Their breathing remained steady, and their movements showed none of the tension that had plagued the defenders since the confrontation began.

They looked ready.

Not merely prepared to survive, but prepared to win.

As the two groups finally entered striking distance, the captain of Deep Blue God stepped forward.

"Why are you doing this?" he demanded. "You already have an overwhelming lead. Why not leave the rest of us alone and finish the competition?"

Diana stopped.

For a brief moment, she studied him through the narrow opening of her helmet.

"Because the competition hasn’t ended."

Her answer was simple, almost disappointingly so.

The captain’s jaw tightened. "You could at least give us a chance to fight properly."

"We’re standing right in front of you."

The captain had no response.

Diana lowered her shield and drew her sword.

"Begin."

The first wave of attacks came from the Deep Blue God side. Arrows streaked across the open ground while several martial artists surged forward, their chakra gathering around fists, blades, and reinforced limbs. They had decided to strike first rather than allow the enemy to dictate the pace of the engagement.

Diana met them head-on.

The leading attackers concentrated their blows on her shield, hoping to overwhelm her with their combined strength. The impact sent a heavy shock through the ground, but Diana’s stance barely shifted. She absorbed the first wave, stepped forward, and drove the edge of her shield into the nearest opponent’s chest.

The man flew backward into two of his companions.

Before the others could recover, Diana’s sword swept across the gap. One representative barely managed to raise his weapon before the strike shattered his defense and sent him tumbling away. Another attempted to attack her exposed side, only to discover that her shield had already moved to intercept him.

She didn’t fight like someone trying to survive an assault.

She fought like a wall that had decided to advance.

The Deep Blue God representatives had expected their combined attacks to force her backward, even if only temporarily. Instead, every exchange cost them more than it cost her. Her armor protected her from glancing blows, her shield disrupted their formations, and her sword punished anyone who approached without a clear plan.

Then the rest of Diana’s squad reached the battlefield.

Adrian drew his sword, and the difference between a skilled swordsman and a swordmaster became painfully clear. His movements were economical, without unnecessary flourishes or wasted effort. Every swing threatened a vital opening, and every defensive motion flowed directly into a counterattack. Opponents who tried to overwhelm him with repeated strikes found their weapons redirected before his blade cut through their defenses.

He wasn’t stronger merely because he could swing harder.

He understood the sword well enough to make his opponents’ movements work against them.

Lucian was just as dangerous from a different distance. His spear controlled the space around him, its tip appearing wherever an enemy attempted to advance. The weapon thrust forward with frightening precision, forcing attackers to defend themselves before they could even bring their own weapons into range. When several martial artists tried to surround him, he adjusted his footing and swept the spear across their approach, breaking their coordination before they could complete the maneuver.

Neither man needed to chase his opponents.

Their opponents had to cross the distance themselves, and every attempt brought them into a range that the two masters controlled.

Lily, meanwhile, moved through the battle like a fleeting shadow of pink and gold.

Her rapier was not designed to clash head-on against heavy weapons, and she had no intention of doing so. She slipped between larger attacks, using the brief openings created by Diana’s advance and Adrian’s counters to reach vulnerable targets. Her movements left faint, beautiful afterimages that resembled cherry blossoms caught in a sudden breeze, but there was nothing gentle about what followed.

A thrust pierced an exposed joint.

A second strike found the gap beneath an opponent’s arm.

When one man turned to flee from Diana, Lily crossed his path and ended his attempt before he could take more than a few steps.

She was no longer the timid young woman who hesitated whenever the situation became dangerous. Her confidence had grown alongside her strength, and she no longer wasted time doubting whether she belonged on the battlefield.

Every movement had a purpose.

Every thrust was meant to end a fight.

The other members of Diana’s squad were equally disciplined. They didn’t scatter in pursuit of individual victories or abandon their positions to chase fleeing enemies. They supported one another, covered openings, and kept the Deep Blue God representatives from regrouping.

The defenders had numbers, but they couldn’t bring those numbers to bear effectively.

Their front line was being pushed backward by Diana. Their strongest fighters were occupied by Adrian, Lucian, and the other elite combatants. Meanwhile, anyone who attempted to reinforce a struggling position found another Heavenly Bronze representative waiting to intercept them.

It was a coordinated assault without the appearance of one.

And the longer the battle continued, the more obvious the gap became.

The captain of Deep Blue God finally understood.

This was why the previous two teams had been eliminated so quickly.

It wasn’t merely because Heavenly Bronze had ambushed them. An ambush could explain an initial advantage, but it couldn’t explain the complete absence of meaningful resistance. What he was witnessing now was proof that the difference ran much deeper.

Heavenly Bronze knew where its enemies were, while its enemies had spent the last two days wondering when they would be found.

Heavenly Bronze had rested, trained, and prepared in a secure base, while the other teams had exhausted themselves guarding against attacks that never came.

Heavenly Bronze possessed superior equipment and well-maintained weapons, while the other teams had spent months struggling to survive the secret realm’s calamities.

Its representatives were clean, well-fed, and rested. They entered the battlefield with clear minds and coordinated plans, while the Deep Blue God Team was already worn down by fear and sleepless nights.

And now, the strongest members of Heavenly Bronze had arrived to finish the job.

Information.

Preparation.

Equipment.

Combat ability.

They had lost in every category that mattered before the first blow was exchanged.

The captain clenched his teeth and forced himself forward, gathering his remaining strength for one desperate attack. If he could defeat one of the enemy’s leaders, perhaps his people would regain enough confidence to fight back.

Diana saw him coming.

She turned to face him, shield raised, and accepted his attack without giving ground. His weapon struck the shield with everything he could muster, but the impact did little more than slow her for a moment. Before he could recover, she stepped into his space and drove the shield into him, breaking his stance.

Her sword followed.

The captain fell.

For a brief moment, the surrounding battle seemed to lose its rhythm. Several representatives looked toward their fallen leader, and the last of their confidence began to crumble. Some continued fighting, but others hesitated, unsure whether they should retreat, regroup, or attempt to protect the captain.

That hesitation was fatal.

The Heavenly Bronze squad pressed forward, and the remaining defenders were overwhelmed. Within minutes, organized resistance collapsed into scattered individual struggles. The last few survivors tried to flee, but they were intercepted before they could escape the battlefield.

There was no dramatic reversal.

No hidden trump card.

No miracle.

The Deep Blue God Empire Team had fought with everything it possessed, and it still wasn’t enough.

When the last representative fell, the battlefield finally became quiet.

Diana lowered her sword while Lily wiped her rapier clean. Adrian returned his blade to its sheath, and Lucian rested the butt of his spear against the ground. The fifteen members of Heavenly Bronze regrouped, checking for injuries and confirming that the engagement had ended.

They had accomplished their objective.

Then the World System’s announcement rang across the secret realm.

[The Deep Blue God Empire Team has been completely eliminated.]

[All fifty participants have been removed from the Imperial Ranking War.]

[The Deep Blue God Empire’s participation in the Imperial Ranking War has ended.]

The announcement echoed through the wilderness, marking the third complete elimination since the forced confrontation began.

But before the surviving observers could fully process the news, another announcement followed.

[The Burning Firmament Empire Team has been completely eliminated.]

[All fifty participants have been removed from the Imperial Ranking War.]

[The Burning Firmament Empire’s participation in the Imperial Ranking War has ended.]

For a moment, nobody knew what to say.

Diana looked toward the sky, her expression tightening slightly. Adrian and Lucian exchanged glances, while Lily turned her attention toward the distant horizon.