The God War has actually commenced at this critical juncture...

Lin Luo felt a splitting headache; to claim he wasn't panicking would be a lie, considering their current collective state of extreme weakness. For starters, Lily and Nero, the top powerhouses of their respective teams, could not be summoned. Black Saber had only just been contracted and was also currently unavailable, likely due to insufficient energy. This meant three Spirit Rank Middle-tier individuals were temporarily out of the fight.

Although he could utilize the power of Rules, in his current condition... if the enemy were on the level of Sieg, he absolutely wouldn't stand a chance. And there wasn't just one enemy—there were seven in total. Even if they weren't as strong as Sieg, the sheer number... one against seven? He wasn't a Saint Seiya.

More crucially, Mikoto and Rin were still deep in slumber. Forget self-preservation; they currently lacked any ability to even move... For the God War to begin at a time like this was truly the absolute worst possible turn of events.

"Hey, hey, this can't be a joke, right?" Just then, Lin Luo noticed Shokuhou rubbing her head and sighing deeply.

Lin Luo blinked in surprise and quickly asked, "Could it be... you all received the news too?"

Shokuhou spread her hands, offering a wry smile, clearly confirming his suspicion. And it wasn't just her; Mugino and Leafa were nodding as well.

"Lin Luo, about that God War..." Leafa looked at him, clasping her hands, her face etched with worry.

"Ah, Leafa, I'm sorry. I should have told you about this before." At this, Lin Luo felt a pang of guilt. After all, Leafa had been completely unaware of the God War until now and had zero psychological preparation. To suddenly learn of such a thing would inevitably leave her flustered.

So, Lin Luo repeated everything he knew to the others. Of course, whether he spoke or not made little difference, as the information Leafa and the others had just received was even more extensive than what he knew himself.

This was understandable; the Host of the World Heart and the Walker were different entities. If they knew nothing of the God War, they wouldn't even know how they died when the time came—that would be distinctly unfair.

Once everyone had shared the information they possessed, a silence fell over the group as they slowly processed everything. After a short while, Lin Luo finally spoke, "What must be, will be; what cannot be avoided, must be faced. Since the God War has begun, we must prepare ourselves."

Mugino and Shokuhou nodded. They had known about this for eight months already. Although the start was somewhat sudden, having boarded this ship, retreat was impossible. There was no need for excessive panic now.

Next, Mugino rested her chin on her hand and stated solemnly, "So, this world is the first battlefield of the God War. Even if it's just the first stage, given our current condition, it might be quite dangerous."

Lin Luo nodded. "Exactly. In this world, besides me, there are seven other Walkers. I can unequivocally treat all of them as enemies. Since we can know of their existence, they will certainly know of mine."

"Why? Although we know there are seven other Walkers, we don't know who they are," Shokuhou asked, slightly confused.

Lin Luo said gravely, "This point probably stems from me."

In the previous few worlds, whether it was Liu Ziwen or Sieg, they saw through his identity instantly. While that was because their Heart Canon levels were higher than his, they showed no surprise upon learning about the Book of Contracts. In fact, Liu Ziwen was the one who informed him about the God War. This implied they knew of the Book of Contracts' existence, meaning the other Walkers likely knew too—perhaps they knew even more about the God War than he did.

Listening to Lin Luo’s explanation, Shokuhou seemed to grasp the situation, but she quickly pressed on, "Even so, how can you be certain they know the owner of the Book of Contracts is here? There's no basis for that, is there?"

"I agree with that assessment. The information the God War gave us only mentioned seven other Walkers; it didn't specify their Heart Canons. I think, no matter how unfair it is to us, the God War wouldn't disclose our information to them," Mugino interjected, clearly siding with Shokuhou's viewpoint.

"What you say has merit, but..." Lin Luo looked at the three girls before him, his expression serious. "I cannot be certain, but I cannot deny it either. Similarly, even if they don't know I am here, they absolutely won't immediately dismiss me, considering there are eight World Hearts in this world."

"You mean..." Mugino and Shokuhou's faces changed instantly. Only Leafa remained calm; clearly, she still needed a long time to digest this sudden turn of events known as the God War.

"Well... let me make an assumption." Lin Luo gestured with his hands as he explained, "If they confirm the presence of the Book of Contracts owner in this first battlefield, then in the worst-case scenario... those seven Walkers will unite and prioritize eliminating the owner of the Book of Contracts."

"Will they? After all, understanding the intent of the God War, there can only be one ultimate victor," Shokuhou disagreed. As an esper specializing in psychic manipulation, no one understood the darker side of humanity better than her. She highly doubted that, in a contest where only one victor was allowed, others would ally without any reservations.

Lin Luo nodded. "Most likely. Think about it: if I die, it becomes much easier for them to seize the World Hearts."

"That's right. If they pre-arrange to divide the World Hearts equally, attacking us using Mind Demon Reclamation would be far too simple," Mugino concurred.

"Hearing you say that, it really seems possible..." Shokuhou frowned. "But I doubt anyone would dare use a move like Mind Demon Reclamation, which harms both the user and the target."

Lin Luo nodded again. "Indeed, they probably won't use that method. Once used, they would suffer severe damage themselves. Unless it's someone they trust absolutely, no Walker would expose themselves to a state of complete vulnerability in front of other Walkers."

"I get it now." Shokuhou suddenly snapped her fingers and laughed cryptically, "In other words, there's a high probability those seven Walkers will band together, but that alliance will never be stable, and they might even fall into internal strife over benefits. So, even if they do unite, that alliance is a ticking time bomb for them."

"Precisely. Although we are at a numerical disadvantage, we are far superior in terms of unity," Lin Luo said, smiling and nodding. For now, this was the only comforting aspect.

"Even if the enemy's alliance is unstable, in our current condition, we have absolutely no chance of winning against them," Mugino said worriedly, stroking her chin.

After everything they experienced in the Demon Prison World and the Moon World, her LV5 arrogance had mostly been ground away. She understood the principle that there is always someone better. Thus, when acting now, she was no longer as arrogant and conceited as before; she would at least consider the relative strength of friend and foe beforehand.

Mugino's concern was exactly Lin Luo's concern. He stated grimly, "This is an undeniable fact. In our group right now, only I and Mugino are capable of fighting. Since Shokuhou’s psychic attack was useless against me, it likely won't serve much purpose against the other Walkers either. However, fortunately..."

Here, a smile touched Lin Luo’s lips, and he spoke with a slight air of mystery, "We are not alone in this. In fact, in terms of numbers, we are not inferior to them."

"Huh?" Both girls blinked slightly, but then they quickly understood what Lin Luo meant. "You mean..."

"Didn't you also receive the news just now? There are eight Hosts of the World Heart in this world." Lin Luo raised one hand and began counting on his fingers, "So, who are these eight? Misaka Mikoto, Tohsaka Rin, Mugino Shizuri, Leafa, Shokuhou Misaki... that's only five here."

"There are three unknown Hosts," the two picked up his thread quickly.

"Exactly," Lin Luo snapped his fingers with a smile. "So, our first immediate task is to find the other three Hosts before the other Walkers do."

"We've listened to you talk so much, but we don't know where those three people are!" Just as the three were feeling rather pleased with themselves, a voice suddenly cut in. Leafa, who had been silent until now, finally poured a bucket of cold water on their excitement.

"Uh..." The three were instantly silenced, unable to speak to the slightly airheaded girl.

Indeed, in their current state, where they struggled for self-preservation, searching for three more Hosts was unrealistic, not to mention the looming threat of seven Walkers.

"Well, we'll worry about that problem later. For now, our goal is clear," Lin Luo scratched his head, feeling a bit awkward. Truthfully, tasks requiring deep thought weren't his strong suit. Thinking up all this in a short time was already quite good for him. His true specialty was smashing people with Rules... Ah, no, it should be playing GAL games—he hadn't played one in nearly a year, sigh.

Noticing his thoughts drifting off-topic, Lin Luo quickly shook his head and returned to the main subject. "But speaking of which, the reward for this God War is quite generous; the victor actually gets this world."

"That seems impossible, doesn't it? Even if we win, can we really become the masters of this world?" Even after entering the unbelievable realm of the God War, Mugino felt deeply dismissive. Becoming the master of a world? Hell, she wasn't that powerful yet.

"Mmm, I also think that's just hype," Shokuhou agreed wholeheartedly. "Even if we did gain control of this world, what use would it be? If we fancy a dragon's lair, can we use our status as the world's master to kick the Golden Dragon out?"

Saying this, she spread her hands, her face showing impossibility. "If we actually said that, they'd probably just blast us with a dragon's breath. It's completely unreliable."

"..." Coveting a Golden Dragon's lair? Has Rin possessed you? Lin Luo didn't know where to begin criticizing their remarks, but after that brief digression, the tension seemed to have dissipated considerably.

"Forget it, none of that is very important. Since the immediate goal is set, we'll worry about other things later. The most critical issue right now is..." At this point, Lin Luo turned his gaze toward the two sleeping girls beside him, his brow deeply furrowed. "...what should we do about Mikoto and Rin?"

If there was anything that worried him more than the God War, it was the safety of Mikoto and Rin. The Book of Contracts only stated they were in a state of slumber, but the two most vital pieces of information—the reason for their slumber and when they might wake up—remained completely unknown.

Rin's condition could perhaps be explained as a result of overexerting her powers, a state akin to hibernation, which was somewhat understandable. But Mikoto? In the Moon World, the inexplicable situation caused by the Root of All Evil had occurred. Even if she was saved, there was no guarantee there wouldn't be any after-effects...

"If only we could hide them somewhere safe," Shokuhou said suddenly after looking at the two girls for a while.

"Hide them? Hide them where?" Lin Luo looked at her strangely.

"Well, something like a spatial bag. Look, if we put them inside something like that, wouldn't they be very safe?" Shokuhou gestured mid-air with her hand, looking quite interested.

"Spatial bags are for cargo, right? How could you possibly put people inside?" Lin Luo couldn't help but roll his eyes in exasperation. "Besides, we don't have any such magical items."

"Mmm, that's true..." Shokuhou fell silent, and the others clearly had no better suggestions. The atmosphere immediately grew subdued.

"Oh, right, that jade pendant you had earlier," Shokuhou suddenly looked up after a moment and asked Lin Luo.

"The jade pendant? It's in my hand, why?" Lin Luo was startled and instinctively showed the pendant in his grasp.

Shokuhou pointed at it and said, "Maybe this pendant can serve some purpose."

"Unlikely, we didn't see it do anything earlier, did we?" Lin Luo shook his head, not holding out much hope. Given his current abilities, if an object contained a special power, he should be able to sense it to some degree, but this jade pendant was different; to him, it felt no different from a stone.

But Shokuhou shook a finger in front of him and said with a sense of accomplishment, "You haven't played games, have you? I used to play some RPGs occasionally. Some items only become useful after the protagonist completes a certain plotline. Maybe this jade pendant is like that."

Seriously, I'm a gaming expert! Never mind RPGs, I can sweep through GAL games with ease... Shokuhou's comment deeply wounded Lin Luo. The King of Strategy in the GAL world being called someone who hadn't played games—it was too much to bear.

However, hearing her suggestion did give Lin Luo a genuine spark of realization.

Thinking carefully, given the personality of that woman from Gui Qu Lai Xi (Return Home), she certainly wouldn't do anything trivial. Moreover, transporting Lorelei back from ten years in the future, even with her abilities, couldn't have been easy. Therefore, using such a massive effort just to send him a jade pendant certainly wouldn't be for show.

The first time he met her, he obtained the Book of Contracts. The second time, he learned to traverse worlds. The third time, though he didn't see her, she sent him a jade pendant... Following the escalating 'gifts' from before, this jade pendant was unlikely to be anything ordinary.

After all, even someone incredibly bored wouldn't use time interference—an ability that severely disrupts nature—just to deliver a stone to someone. If such a person existed, Lin Luo would genuinely like to meet them.

Fine, let's assume this jade pendant is some kind of divine artifact, but the problem remains: "How is it supposed to be used?"

Lin Luo turned it over and over, examining it from every angle, completely baffled.

"Could it be blood recognition for ownership?" Shokuhou proactively offered her opinion.

"It can't be that melodramatic, this isn't a Xianxia novel," Lin Luo frowned, but with no better ideas, he decided to try it anyway.

Thus, Lin Luo lightly scratched his fingertip with his nail, drawing a shallow cut, and dripped the blood onto the jade pendant, immediately followed by...

"Mhm, now I can confirm, this isn't a Xianxia novel," Lin Luo stated flatly, his face grim. He wasn't in a good mood. This was natural; anyone who mutilated their own body for no reward would feel the same way.

Over twenty drops of blood soaked the pendant, which instantly turned crimson, then swiftly dripped onto the floor without eliciting any reaction whatsoever.

"Or maybe it works by wearing it around the neck?" Shokuhou suggested again.

"Do I need to find a string to thread it first?" Lin Luo still felt the sting on his hand and glared at her. Such a foolish suggestion—she claimed an IQ of 240, but he suspected it was closer to 250.

"That shouldn't be it; there isn't even a hole on it," Shokuhou examined the pendant thoughtfully and stated very seriously.

"..." Lin Luo was speechless. He had assumed she was joking, but she was genuinely contemplating it. Heavens, an intellect of 240 offering such a tragic suggestion?

"Perhaps it's meant to be eaten like chocolate?" Shokuhou stunned him again.

Lin Luo was too exhausted to argue. He sighed, looking at her calmly. "Are you serious?"

"No, I'm joking."

"Okay, I'll assume you were joking. But I really don't know what to do," Lin Luo looked closely at the jade pendant for a moment, then raised it over his head toward the midday sun, squinting one eye to inspect it carefully.

At that moment, a gust of wind blew, causing Lin Luo's hand to tremble slightly. Suddenly, the jade pendant slipped from his grasp, falling with uncanny accuracy directly into his mouth. Lin Luo didn't even react; just as he took a breath, he swallowed the pendant, and immediately...

"Book of Contracts merging, please remain calm..."

Damn it, you really were supposed to eat it?

Lin Luo was utterly floored. ... Just as Lin Luo was treating the jade pendant like chocolate, on a slope somewhere in the current world, six figures—five men and one woman, all appearing to be young adults in their twenties—were either sitting or standing.

"Has Ling Yi not returned yet? The assembly point shouldn't have been wrong; it's already been over an hour late." The speaker was a man holding a greatsword. He was burly, clad in golden armor, radiating the aura of a God of War, making him difficult to look at directly.

At that moment, his thick eyebrows were slightly furrowed, conveying clear displeasure.

"Hmph, who knows? He said he was going to hunt the first World Heart Host. Maybe he got killed, that useless piece of trash," came a cold voice from beside him. It belonged to a man wielding a long saber, dressed entirely in black, appearing enveloped in shadow. Even in broad daylight, he gave off a chilling atmosphere that made one shudder.

"Liu Qu, we are allies fighting together now. I hope you will be more mindful of your words, or our alliance could easily shatter. I hope you understand that point," the man in golden armor glanced at the shadowy man and said gravely.

"Tch." The man called Liu Qu spat dismissively and turned his head away, falling silent.

The burly warrior sighed faintly. When he retracted his gaze from the other man, he frowned again. "Wait a minute, Zhai Lian, where are you going?"

Just then, a small girl who had been sitting on the ground reading a book suddenly stood up. She was wearing a tight red leather outfit, looking exceptionally sharp and refined, though the expression on her face was frigid.

When she heard the question from behind, she paused, turned back to face the powerfully built warrior, and said, "I've said all I needed to say. There's no need to stay together. I'm going to attend to my own business. Is there a problem?"

"Uh..." The strong man was momentarily stunned. "That's not a problem, but we only just finalized the alliance. There are many follow-up matters that need clarification. It would be better than splitting up..."

"There's no need," before the other man could finish, the girl cut in coldly. "We are only united for the sake of victory. As long as that outcome is guaranteed, nothing else matters. Goodbye."

Saying that, ignoring the reactions of those behind her, the girl walked straight ahead without looking back.

"Hmph, what an arrogant fellow." Watching her retreating figure fade into the distance, one of the men sitting on the ground, his gaze cold and menacing, sneered.

"You better watch what you say, or she might overhear you. That woman is incredibly powerful," said the man in yellow beside him, chewing on a piece of straw, his eyes narrowed as he stared in the direction the girl had gone.

"Oh? You know about her capabilities?"

"No, I don't. Even her name is probably a fabrication. All I know is that she excels in close combat," the man in yellow pulled the straw from his mouth and said gravely, "If I were to engage her hand-to-hand, I'd be dead within thirty seconds, guaranteed."

"Uh..." The first man's expression involuntarily shifted. V