"Is that the entirety of your engagement? A member of the Central Continent team was captured by you? The name is Zhao Yingkong?"

Aboard the flagship of the US Seventh Fleet in the Pacific, the East Sea team activated their communication device to link with the Heavenly God squad. With the ambush operation being nearly perfect, the moment had arrived to decide the fate of the East Sea team: whether to use this captive to negotiate peace with the Central Continent team, or to proceed according to Adam's plan. They had reached the point where a final decision was imperative.

"Yes, her name is Zhao Yingkong. Our psychic controller can probe her external consciousness; this simple personal data is easily confirmed," Miyata Kuraki nodded weakly, speaking in a tired voice.

Most of the black runes on this man's body had vanished, and the remaining ones were extremely faint. His complexion was abysmal, looking even worse off than Koinu Shinao, who was standing beside him with a severed arm.

"I am quite curious. Based on the data I have, this girl named Zhao Yingkong is a very capable member of the Central Continent team. She was apparently a genius from an Assassin family. Forgive my bluntness, but relying solely on your team's strength, I find it hard to believe you captured her, especially with just two of you," Adam's voice came across gently, yet the underlying implication made nearly every member of the East Sea team's faces turn ashen.

Miyata Kuraki hesitated for a moment before sighing, "The Ghost Swordsman has two branching enhancements. I enhanced the 'Mind.' As the saying goes, the blade cuts the flesh, but the mind cuts the soul. My special power focuses on attacks that target the soul. If caught off guard, even someone whose Genetic Lock is higher than mine can have their soul shaken. If the soul is inherently weak, or already flawed, knocking them unconscious is not impossible... Or are you suggesting this is a trap set by the Central Continent team?"

"Whether it's a trap or not is beside the point for now. First, tell me your intentions. What do you plan to do with this Central Continent team member?" Adam suddenly inquired.

Miyata Kuraki glanced around at his comrades, specifically looking at Cang Jingkong. When the girl nodded seriously at him, he slowly began, "Our intention is to make peace with the Central Continent team. Although we lost one person, our previous reward points are enough to offset the deficit. For this final battle, the East Sea team has prepared for a long time, and now we have captured a Central Continent member to use as leverage. So..."

"You can't be that naive, can you?" Adam's voice cut in. "Do you think any team would abandon tens of thousands of reward points and an S-E level or higher side mission? Even if they did surrender those, it would only be under conditions of equal strength. Do you truly believe a Reincarnation Squad without sufficient deterrence... will earn the respect of other teams?"

Miyata Kuraki fell silent immediately. It wasn't just him; the rest of the East Sea team members also had green faces. Only the bald, big man, already irritated by his missing arm, suddenly roared, "I remember you told us, didn't you? The Central Continent team, one of the Big Three in the Reincarnation World. They are exceedingly hypocritical. So, even if it's just for show, they wouldn't possibly abandon their comrade, right?"

"Indeed, I said that," Adam chuckled. "But... with your knowledge and wisdom, you can only repeat my words. That so-called hypocrisy depends on the enemy you face. Do you imagine the Central Continent team can maintain that façade when dealing with your East Sea team?"

"What do you mean?" Koinu Shinao asked, stunned.

"You Japanese like to call Chinese people... Shina-jin. Is that right?" Adam maintained that gentle smile. "I don't know what kind of education you received growing up, or what environment molded you, but respecting your enemy is respecting yourself. When you constantly shout slurs like Shina-jin, yet in a moment of weakness, you beg the other side to maintain their hypocrisy and spare you—don't you find such behavior somewhat shameless?"

"Alright, let's leave aside the topic of shamelessness. Just as force is a relative, two-sided action, so too is hatred. When you loudly use an insulting term like Shina-jin, do you think the Central Continent team's impression of you improved? The hatred between sworn enemies often seems ridiculous to outsiders, but those involved are blinded by it. You are both just idiots trapped in hatred. If you cannot let go of this animosity, do you still imagine the Central Continent team will treat you like any ordinary squad? You are sworn enemies! Even under the guise of righteousness, the Central Continent team absolutely intends to wipe you out completely!"

Koinu Shinao's face turned pale instantly, especially as the pain in his arm constantly reminded him that the captain of the Central Continent team was a monster. A fear of death immediately seized his heart, and his groans of agony became more pronounced.

Cang Jingkong, the young girl, also looked pale. After a long silence, she finally spoke, "Then... what about that Chu Xuan from the Central Continent team? He possesses wisdom similar to yours, doesn't he? Surely he would think through the problem? Losing a main combat member, and potentially suffering casualties in a fight against us—he should realize the implications, especially with the final battle looming so close..."

Adam interrupted her immediately. "It's simple. If operating under that emotionless man's logic, he would likely devise a method of combat requiring zero casualties and annihilate your entire team. If you still hold onto fantasies, still hoping for reconciliation with the Central Continent team... then first, drain the blood from your bodies. Stop carrying the blood of your Japanese Yamato race. Then, perhaps those Chinese men from the Central Continent team might spare you, as one spares a dog..."

"Shut up!"

Miyata Kuraki stood up coldly. He drew his Japanese sword and pointed it toward the communication device, then slowly stated, "You can kill us, you can set up traps or whatever else, but do not insult our souls... Perhaps this seems strange to you foreigners, perhaps you think our thoughts are diseased, but... I possess the Yamato Spirit in my heart! Even in death, I absolutely cannot accept insult!"

Adam's voice did not cease. He continued speaking, "That's right, the Yamato Spirit, isn't it? Coincidentally, your sworn enemies also possess their Chinese heart. What do you think? Will they spare you?"

Hearing this, Miyata Kuraki closed his eyes and took a deep breath before saying, "Adam... the future of the East Sea team cannot be entrusted to you. If the East Sea team survives, I hope we can cooperate with you in the Angel Alliance... true cooperation, not using us as mere guns to be fired." Saying this, he brought his Japanese sword down violently, slicing the communicator cleanly in two.

Most of the East Sea team remained silent. Only the bald man and a few others cried out in shock. Koinu Shinao wailed immediately, "Miyata Kuraki! Are you insane? You just destroyed Adam's communicator! How are we supposed to predict the Central Continent team's movements now? Are you trying to doom us all?"

"...Perhaps we really will die."

Miyata Kuraki turned to face the others. "Everyone, my mind is made up! If the Central Continent team wants peace, we will be peaceful. If they want war, we will fight! Even if it means death, we cannot beg for mercy like dogs. This is the only request I have for everyone; otherwise, I will perform seppuku and then have my head taken off for you." (A Japanese tradition where, after seppuku, someone must decapitate the person.)

"I will never abandon anyone. So, even if we die, let us die fighting together!"

At the same time, in Adam's world, he was smiling as he listened to the static crackling from the device before him. After a long pause, he pressed a button on the instrument to silence the sound.

"Adam, did Chu Xuan see through your maneuvering behind the East Sea team?" Song Tian, sitting beside Adam, murmured without opening his eyes.

"Not yet... No, perhaps he has, or perhaps he hasn't. It's quite ingenious: the void and the real, the real and the void. Merely by having one team member captured, my calculation against him has completely failed. Now I don't know what he is thinking, at least I don't know if he is aware of my existence yet," Adam waved his hand with a wry smile.

"Why?" Song Tian asked curiously.

"Because the person the East Sea team captured is someone who shouldn't have been captured. Given Zhao Yingkong's known strength, there are too many deliberate details in this capture. But precisely because of this, I cannot fathom what Chu Xuan is planning. Did he realize my existence? When did he know? Did he figure it out when the East Sea team showed their overt plan, or when they ambushed? Or perhaps he knew nothing at all, and merely set up the current situation based on habit?"

Song Tian opened his eyes, looked at Adam, and said, "Then forget it. The Central Continent team is the Central Continent team, after all. We will give it our all in the final battle. You've already done your part; you even managed to inflame the national sentiment of the East Sea team. They will definitely fight to the death. I know those Japanese people too well; their pathological militaristic ideology is exactly like that!"

"...I feel like I've overlooked some detail, something quite important," Adam kept smiling bitterly. He stood up and looked toward the sky. After a long moment, he spoke to Song Tian, "You Chinese people have a saying, don't you?"

"Since Yu was born, why was Liang also born..." jumped in.