"Kuramochi! Using that technique will kill you!" the young man named Mitarai immediately shouted to stop him.

Miyata Kuramochi violently shook him off. "Even if it means death... even if it means death, I won't abandon my comrades! As for those who betrayed me, forget them. Only her... only her I can never abandon! Get out of my way!" With that, he slashed his own wrist, letting his blood flow, his complexion rapidly paling.

Mitarai, having been thrown off, didn't retreat. He rushed forward and embraced Miyata Kuramochi's waist once more. "Kuramochi! The captain of the Zhongzhou team is a monster! How could I possibly defeat him? When he fought us before, he clearly wasn't even using half his strength. We simply can't stand against such a monster! Don't go! If you go to your death, won't that betray the very meaning of Aoi Sora's sacrifice? Don't!"

"Let go... For so long, because of the responsibility of a captain, because of the expectations of every team member, I suppressed my feelings for her, thinking this life would continue until we returned to the real world. But I was wrong... Deep down, I never gave up on her. Today, I cast aside my duty as captain, I cast aside the hope of survival. I only wish to fulfill the one promise I ever made to her: if I must die... I want to die holding her hand!"

Mitarai was about to say more, but he saw the old man named Jingu sigh deeply. Without a word, he walked to the container and also slit his wrist, joining the line of bloodletters. This act instantly stunned Mitarai.

He stood frozen for a long moment, then without hesitation, he stood up, cut his own wrist, and began to bleed as well. The container finally began to fill...

"Use the Onikenshi's secret technique, Great Darkness Day, Sora. I will fulfill my promise. Even if it means death, I will die holding your hand!"

At that moment, aboard the destroyer occupied by the Zhongzhou team, Zheng Zha was carefully instructing Aoi Sora: "It’s those two. I need you to use your spiritual power to delve into their consciousness and carve a path for them to return to the real world. This action will be extremely dangerous, which is why I've selected the room for you in the lowest-level storage area; it’s already been tidied up. Use it as best you can, but whatever you do, do not panic... The reason I sealed your spiritual power is precisely to prevent you from being disturbed by the outside world. These two will guard you here."

With that, he gestured toward Wang Xia and Zero Point, who had accompanied her.

"Guard?" Aoi Sora gave a cold laugh. "Isn't it surveillance?"

"It's surveillance, too, I suppose. Don't you think it’s necessary?" Zheng Zha replied frankly. "To be honest, I don't harbor any ill will toward the four of you remaining. I only wish to awaken my comrades. As soon as you wake them up, I swear I will keep my word and let you go."

Aoi Sora let out a few more cold laughs, then suddenly lowered her head and sighed slightly. "But what is the point? We only have three points-deduction-free stones. Among the four of us, one still has to die. Given Kuramochi-kun's personality, he will certainly give his stone to me... What sense is there in me living alone?"

"...Very well. Our Zhongzhou team also has deduction-free stones. We'll give you one. In exchange, you must wake them up, otherwise all four of you will die." Zheng Zha stated calmly. After speaking, he walked out of the room, leaving Wang Xia and Zero Point to guard the doorway.

Zheng Zha walked from the lowest deck to the central meeting room where the rest of the Zhongzhou team had gathered, including the now-awakened Zhao Yingkong. Zheng Zha looked at the group and said, "We'll soon reach the vicinity of Diaoyu Islands. Everyone prepare. I expect the captain of the Donghai team will attack us again, and we must also guard against any dirty tricks from the Americans. Chu Xuan, what's the status of the other nations' navies?"

Chu Xuan nodded. "The Japanese Self-Defense Forces have returned. The Americans have issued statements to them, as have the South Korean Navy. Only the Chinese Navy is advancing toward Diaoyu Islands. The Americans are in urgent diplomatic negotiation with the Chinese, apparently planning to concede economically—like low-interest loans—in exchange for a certain period of docking rights at Diaoyu Islands... The American military shows no other abnormalities, though they have specially dispatched another fleet towards Diaoyu Islands..."

"Ah, it doesn't matter now. We have the advantage in terms of time. As long as we can stall until she wakes up our members... Now, for another issue: Is it really impossible to inject the source fluid of the TB virus?" Zheng Zha pondered.

"Yes. The T-virus source fluid requires time to take effect, and then even more time to stabilize the virus within their bodies to achieve the gene-unlocking effect. But time-wise, we will reach the edge of Diaoyu Islands within twelve hours, and we can wake them up within twenty-four hours. The arrival time for the US Navy is estimated to be between twenty and twenty-four hours. In other words, we only need one day and one night to return to the real world. If we choose to remain in this world longer, the risks we face are too great. Based on our full combat strength for the final battle, my recommendation is to kill them outright, and then return to the 'Main God' space immediately after waking up the team members."

"Why?" Zheng Zha frowned, asking in confusion. "Why the fear? Is it because of America? Or because the Chinese fleet is approaching? If we use delaying tactics, shouldn't we be able to stall past that time?"

"What about the 'Main God's' threat?" Chu Xuan pushed up his glasses. "This horror movie, strictly speaking, has a loophole. As long as we don't enter Diaoyu Islands, we can survive in this world for ten, twenty, or even a hundred years. If we quietly train for a long time until our strength is immense, what would the outcome of the final battle be if we returned to the 'Main God' space then?" Chu Xuan continued, "The 'Main God' will not allow such a thing to happen. Remember you all experienced a similar situation in a previous horror movie? Resident Evil 2 was the same—reaching a certain location was required. What if you don't reach it? Even without the Devil Squad chasing you, you would face a nuclear strike, or perhaps the bio-virus would evolve to a higher level. In short, you can exploit such loopholes, but you must be mentally prepared and possess extremely great power. The 'Main God' will continuously increase the difficulty... Previously, when I scouted the deep-sea submarine, I saw a giant octopus lingering beneath the sea. If I'm not mistaken, once we pass a certain time threshold, that octopus will be the first obstacle we must face."

Zheng Zha sighed. "What a pity. Otherwise, after unlocking our genes, we would gain more than double the benefit... Never mind. In any case, this time will result in a huge harvest for the team, allowing us to bridge the gap in strength between us and the Demons and Gods before the final battle. Very well, everyone go out on patrol now. We must ensure the safety below for the remaining day and night. If anyone from the Donghai team sneaks in, don't say anything—just knock them out. If you can't knock them out... then kill them."

With everything arranged, Zheng Zha was the first to ascend to the very top deck. He sat there, fully focused on his surroundings. The Donghai team excelled at sneak attacks and stealth, so he had no intention of resting. From this moment on, they would maintain vigilance. The most important thing now was to guarantee safety and quiet below. Anyone who dared to disturb them... would be killed without exception!

The entire Zhongzhou team and the destroyer spent over a dozen hours under such intense vigilance. Although they had reached the periphery of Diaoyu Islands, everyone looked utterly exhausted. However, this was the final battle before returning to the 'Main God' space, and no one dared to be careless. Imhotep, in this sandless environment, exerted great power to summon dozens of mummy guards, nearly occupying all the essential passages on the ship, making it impossible for anyone to easily reach the bottom of the ship unless they possessed invisibility.

——————At this moment, the US Seventh Fleet in the Pacific followed closely behind and finally reached the vicinity of Diaoyu Islands. Although the high command in the US had called for a ceasefire, having witnessed the strength of the Zhongzhou team, they only dared to maintain a distant alert. They then dispatched a small warship to approach the Zhongzhou team's destroyer, seemingly intending to engage in face-to-face conversation.

"They've come..." Zheng Zha watched the approaching small warship. Even without a psychic controller, he could easily sense a terrifying battle intent emanating from that vessel, directed squarely at him. It was obvious: the captain of the Donghai team intended to fight to the death.

"Stop! Enemy warships are not allowed to approach! Otherwise, we will open fire!" Zheng Zha roared when the enemy ship was still some distance away. His voice was louder than any megaphone, but controlled by the subtle realm of his power, the sound was faint up close, only spreading out once it neared the warship. Soon enough, the warship indeed stopped at a considerable distance outside the destroyer.

Zheng Zha flew up from the deck, hovering a hundred meters above the warship. Below him, only the captain of the Donghai team stood alone; his two companions were nowhere in sight. This man, gripping a Japanese sword, was covered in visibly distinct black runes, and he wore a cloth wrapped around his eyes, giving him a distinctly strange battle appearance.

"Zhongzhou team, release my comrades!" Miyata Kuramochi said coldly, gripping his katana tightly.

"I apologize. I still need her for a while longer... Give me twelve more hours, and I will certainly return her to you unharmed." Zheng Zha replied indifferently.

"...Damn it! Despicable! There's no need to say anything more!" Miyata Kuramochi’s face turned ashen. He seemed to have figured something out, and immediately roared, "Fight! Even if it means death, I will die together with her!" He leaped forward...