Qi Xu leaned against a rock, pressing hard on his chest, biting his lip so tightly it went white, his whole body trembling...
Though there were no visible wounds on him, it was obvious at a glance that his mental energy had been completely drained.
Ingrid was also badly injured, but seeing the Unbeatable Black Cyclone in such agony made her feel like her own wounds were nothing in comparison.
"You should drink some water..." she said.
All items, or anything with healing effects, were forbidden to be used, so Ingrid had no idea what she could do for him.
She had always been the one endlessly healing her teammates, saving others, getting screwed over repeatedly, held back by dead weight—so even though she knew this game required teamwork, she never dared to put any hope in her teammates.
But now, being saved by an opponent who wasn't even a teammate? That felt pretty surreal.
"It's fine. Four times... cooperation. You have to fully commit to working with me."
Qi Xu was so weak his speech came out in fragments, and he even slumped directly onto the rock, leaving all his vital points completely exposed to Ingrid.
It wasn't an act—Qi Xu was entirely relaxed, both his mental power and muscles loose and unguarded, clearly visible.
But that was exactly what made Ingrid feel incredulous. Why does she trust me this much?
Qi Xu really wanted to crack a grin. Already moved by this? In this treasure map secret realm, Ingrid couldn't attack any member of the Chinese team—that agreement had been signed long ago.
A bad hand could still score three points if you played it smart; when you had the upper hand, you didn't give your opponent any opening.
So he might as well play the generous card. He didn't expect to fully win Ingrid over, but at least he could leave a deeper impression and lay a solid foundation for future cooperation.
Allies mattered at any moment—especially since he had taken nearly every global leaderboard top spot. If a free-for-all or a public-nationality zone came up, he could easily end up ganged up on by every other country.
He had pulled too much aggro in the past, and Home Ball loved to talk smack... so he had to prepare in advance.
Qi Xu "struggled" to his feet. "You're rested, right? Be careful. I... I need to go find my teammates."
"Your mental energy is this drained—can you even use your skills?" Ingrid was already starting to think from Qi Xu's perspective.
"Even if I can't, I have to go back. They're still waiting for me."
With that, regardless of how Ingrid responded, he pressed a hand to his wound and staggered back the way he came.
Ingrid didn't stop him, but she didn't leave either. She quietly followed behind, and several times when Qi Xu nearly stumbled and fell, she almost couldn't hold back from rushing forward to help him up.
Qi Xu was brainwashing himself: initiative creates opportunities. This newly formed partner was strong, a bit cold, but she had principles and bottom lines. She seemed solid so far.
Endless Longevity spotted the Unbeatable Black Cyclone with Ingrid trailing behind him and nudged Wang Buyu in surprise.
Wang Buyu listened to the whole story, cracked a grin, and said nothing.
Endless Longevity understood immediately. "Boss! How'd you end up so badly hurt!"
"Boss, sit down quick!"
Shadowkill grabbed a rock and placed it next to Qi Xu. Though he didn't fully grasp what was happening, since Endless Longevity was sucking up, he had to outdo her and put her in her place.
Qi Xu felt a little emotional. Shadowkill had finally grown up and was now on the same wavelength as everyone else. Not easy.
"It's fine, I'm alright. The important thing is that you all made it. Everyone adjusted? Those two monsters might be coming back."
Qi Xu didn't blush at all, but Wang Buyu did—the kid was afraid of blowing the act and kept his head down without daring to lift it.
Threeking glanced at Ingrid and said with some difficulty, "Boss, if we all stick together, that stronger Frost Giant Python might get drawn over too. We had enough trouble with just the Cat-Snake Monster; adding a Frost Giant Python on top... it doesn't look good."
"I'll leave now." Ingrid was brief, not trying to freeload off them—she just worried that the Unbeatable Black Cyclone was too injured to make it back to her own teammates.
"Wait. I have an idea."
Qi Xu spoke, and Ingrid paused mid-step, turning around.
"We've got 24 hours left. If we keep going like this, all of us might die. We have to unite and find a way out together. It might get harder in the short term, but I believe this is the true way to clear the secret realm."
"Boss, we'll follow your lead."
"Yeah, you've got the experience, just tell us."
Everyone nodded in agreement, and Ingrid felt something was off, but she nodded along too.
Inside, though, she wasn't convinced. Strength ruled all; against absolute hard power, every scheme and trick was nothing but paper tigers. Whether it was planning or cutting corners, it probably wouldn't work.
Still, she stayed, out of patience.
"From what I can see, the Frost Giant Python is stronger than the Cat-Snake Monster. But the Cat-Snake Monster goes berserk every two hours, for about ten minutes, with its defense and attack doubling. However, after the berserk ends, it enters a two-hour calm period.
Here's my plan... Shadowkill, you try to divert the Frost Giant Python. The rest of us will time it for right after the Cat-Snake Monster's berserk ends, surround it, and kill it.
Wang Buyu calls out positions in advance, predicting as much as possible. Old Three uses his clone to distract, me and Endless Longevity lead the attack, and Ingrid, you protect us—set up obstacles whenever the Cat-Snake Monster comes at us.
Plus I've got one trump card skill. It's not hopeless if we give it a shot."
"Find Broken, You're Trash" couldn't be used directly—Qi Xu had already tried that before. But if they could work together to slash the Cat-Snake Monster down to near death and push its HP as low as possible, then use that skill as a sneak attack, it might just succeed.
After hearing Qi Xu's plan, the most confused person was Shadowkill.
Me? Alone? Frost Giant Python? Try to distract it?
He almost thought something had gotten into his ears—maybe some glass shard from the earlier blast had messed with his hearing...
He was just about to raise a question and argue back when a single look from the Unbeatable Black Cyclone shut him down instantly, and he clamped his mouth shut. Thankfully, the good kid Wang Buyu explained things to Shadowkill, which finally let him let out a massive sigh of relief.
He even put on an act, playing the part of a reclusive master, casually tossing both hands into his pockets and taking a half-step forward, copying Little Xie's signature move—flipping his bangs with a flourish.
"Interesting. Frost Giant Python, huh? No worries, you all go ahead. Leave it to me."
..........
