For just as there were gods, there were also demons, and when the God Reincarnation Squad encountered the Demon Reincarnation Squad, the first meeting saw two members of the God Squad already possessing the third stage of the Gene Lock activated; their team strength was immense, and one of those at the third stage had even exchanged for S-grade attributes. In that battle, the Demon Reincarnation Squad was chased across heaven and earth by the God Squad and barely managed to escape, which led the God Squad to underestimate the Demon Squad for a time.

An unknown number of horror movie reincarnations passed until a handsome, blond youth joined the God Squad, at which point the situation finally began to change.

This handsome, blond youth was named Adam. Upon his arrival, he showed no remarkable airs, sporting an utterly blank expression. It was only after one or two horror movie reincarnations that the others realized he seemed to be able to foresee many things. Since every member of the team had once been a captain of a reincarnation squad, they were aware that some people in the real world possessed special abilities. Thus, they initially assumed this blond youth had the rare gift of precognition, so they frequently questioned him. The blond youth was never hesitant, answering almost every inquiry, and each time, he brought the team immense profit within the horror movie worlds. Particularly the only Chinese member, who returned to Shu Shan and apprenticed himself to the cultivators there, causing the God Squad’s strength to increase dramatically.

Following this, the God Reincarnation Squad once again encountered the Demon Reincarnation Squad. This time, however, a continuous exchange of fighting and fleeing, of seizing and breaking momentum, resulted in a massive bloodbath. First, the captain of the Demon Reincarnation Squad—a Chinese man with a pair of demonic wings sprouting from his back—single-handedly held off seven members of the God Squad, destroying the physical body of Luo Yinglong, the second strongest cultivator among them.

He then inflicted mortal grievous injuries upon the strongest, Song Tian, and subsequently killed two more members of the God Squad. If not for Adam’s prior calculations, the God Squad would have been utterly destroyed at the hands of this one man.

In that engagement, the Demon Reincarnation Squad lost only two members of low strength; the rest survived without a single casualty. It wasn't just the God Squad that had Adam calculating against the opposition; the Demon Squad also had another person calculating back. However, Adam hid in the shadows and operated with forethought against the unprepared, giving him a slight edge, allowing him to shepherd the God Squad back to the "Main God" Space.

From that point on, the remaining six members of the God Squad finally learned to tread lightly and truly understood the saying that there is always someone better, and higher heavens beyond the known. Moreover, these members finally realized that Adam’s capabilities did not rest on some illusory foresight, but on solid strategic planning. Although the God Squad lacked a guide or formal captain, Adam gradually assumed the leadership role.

The greatest desire of every member of the God Squad was nothing less than the annihilation of the Demon Reincarnation Squad. Having already activated the second or third stage of the Gene Lock, and with Adam's subsequent analysis, they understood that in the future, only one team could possibly return to the real world. If the Demon Squad continued to grow in power, their own hope of returning would vanish. Beyond this primary goal, the secondary objective was to crush the core of the demons while they were still in the cradle, ensuring they could not become another demonic entity.

"In fact, it should have been obvious from the start: since they are all located within China, they all entered the Central Continent Team; that was hardly difficult to guess. And for these two individuals to be on the same team—it was worth all the arrangements I made, spanning several reincarnation instances, finally culminating in the advantage gained during this Fifth Team Battle. Let Chu Xuan be as astute as he is, after being schemed against by me in the shadows for so long, he should be dead, but..." Adam murmured to himself as he gazed at the two figures before him.

These two were a man and a woman. The woman was the beautiful blonde, the one who had been stamping her feet in the sand when the God Squad first entered the Lord of the Rings world—her name was Lina Ya. The man was the mixed-race individual with Han Chinese ancestry, named Song Tian. These two were the ones Adam had specifically designated to remain with him. The other three members of the God Squad were scattered throughout this Lord of the Rings world, left to find side quests on their own; in this world, few creatures or people could harm them.

Song Tian appeared to be the type of man with a steady temperament. Sitting opposite Adam, he inquired, "But what? Did Chu Xuan die too abruptly?" Adam nodded. "Precisely. Chu Xuan's death was indeed too sudden. Although his demise is clearly visible through Luo Yinglong's mobile phone, such a way to die is somewhat farcical. If he intended to fake his death this way, then he absolutely isn't Chu Xuan. That man would never devise such a low-level strategy. Therefore, I believe he faked his death, but the reply from Feiku Novels deducted one point, which suggests he truly died. Thinking it over and over, I arrive at two possibilities.

"One: Chu Xuan is truly dead, and he chose to die there; this is also explainable. Based on the intelligence I've gathered, the likelihood of him acting this way is extremely high, as he shares similarities with me. Two: Chu Xuan is not dead. He exchanged for some techniques from the 'Main God,' or found a way to exist via pure essence, similar to Luo Yinglong, allowing him to return to the 'Main God' Space and resurrect. However, even if he dies, that one point deduction during the team battle will still apply."

"Both interpretations fit the facts. Right now, we know the locations of the two Central Continent Teams: one is heading toward Mordor, and the other is heading toward Gondor. The Gondor contingent is the main force; the one going to Mordor consists mostly of high-tech weaponry and poses little real threat. Although there is one person there using a Gauss sniper rifle who poses a threat, our protective artifacts can easily block one or two shots from a Gauss sniper rifle. Once he fires one shot, he will be instantly killed, so there is no need to worry. The most critical factor now is the main force heading to Gondor, and the Chu Xuan who may or may not be dead." Adam glanced indifferently at the other two, continuing his monologue. "This is a conspiracy. He has executed it. Whether he is truly dead or faking it, it obstructs my next move. I originally planned for us to divide into two nations: one part, where you, Song Tian, and Luo Yinglong would ambush and kill that demon—even the demon, at only the preliminary fourth stage, strong though he is, cannot control his power, so you two should manage it. But with Chu Xuan’s death, you cannot join the assault on the demon. After all, while you are stronger than Luo Yinglong, you lack his divine abilities; without the immortal essence, he can revive. If Chu Xuan is indeed faking his death, the battle in Gondor will be fraught with peril; you cannot go. I will assign two others to assist Luo Yinglong in killing the demon. The Gondor battle is extremely important; killing the demon can only be done at that time."

Song Tian was silent for a long moment before replying, "Only during the Gondor battle? That can't be right. What about the situation afterward? They certainly have to come to Mordor, otherwise how can they return to the 'Main God' Space? Can't we just kill them all when they arrive in Mordor?"

Adam shook his head. "This is where Chu Xuan's timing in this conspiracy is perfect. This is not the original movie plot. Since they arrived so much earlier than us and have already seized the 'momentum' of the Human Alliance, after the Gondor battle, they will naturally use that 'momentum' to its fullest. I don't need to analyze these details; just think carefully about the potential powerful forces in The Lord of the Rings: the Riders of Rohan, the infantry of Gondor, the Elves, the Ents, even the Undead. If Chu Xuan is not dead, and they win the Gondor battle, that momentum will charge directly into Mordor. Do you truly believe the Orcs here can resist it? At most, with the Nazgûl and pacification efforts, wouldn't it be infinitely harder to kill the demon then than it was in Gondor?"

"What a brilliant conspiracy. It forces us to refrain from using our full strength in Gondor. If we were to use our full strength, we would have to prepare for total annihilation, because the unknown is always the most terrifying. Whether he is truly dead or just feigning it, I have lost the strategic advantage by half a step regarding the Gondor battle calculation."

The blonde woman, Lina Ya, suddenly interjected, "It shouldn't be that severe. Isn't your plan still advantageous? The other Central Continent Team has certainly fallen into your trap; those four people are equivalent to dead weight. And then what? Even if Chu Xuan is alive, what can he accomplish during the Gondor battle? Don't you always say it—when power reaches a certain magnitude, strategy is just a joke? Isn't our current strength vastly superior to the Central Continent Team's? I believe Luo Yinglong alone is enough to kill them. You are being overly cautious."

Adam's gaze fell coolly upon Lina Ya, staring until her face flushed. Only then did the woman stammer, "I'm not speaking up for that fool Luo Yinglong, even if he is my boyfriend. I'm just stating the facts, whether he's strong or weak!"

"I know."

Adam closed his eyes and murmured, "I keep feeling like I've missed something. What could it be? Even if Chu Xuan knows that Hao Tian entered the reincarnation world using information I sent back to reality, even if he knows Hao Tian’s entry into the Central Continent Team was abrupt, and even if he assumes that being exposed makes him vulnerable to opposing forces both seen and unseen, prompting him to fake his death—by what means can he turn the tables? By what means can he confront us, the God Squad?"

"What is Chu Xuan hiding? Or, within the Central Continent Team, which individual poses a threat to us?"

"What exactly is it?"