Chapter 1024: Vermilion Bird and White Tiger

Jingwei didn't understand where Zhang Yi's confidence came from.

Ever since he landed on the island, he hadn't participated in any search for the Divine Source.

Yet his attitude remained so calm and composed that it was puzzling.

But Jingwei didn't ask. She understood clearly that Zhang Yi didn't trust her.

She had no doubt that if she hadn't intervened to help Zhang Yi deal with the three from Amaterasu's group, and if she hadn't obediently taken the truth serum afterward, she would already be a corpse by now.

The only reason he kept her alive was because Zhang Yi disliked taking things to the absolute extreme.

"If he killed me, it would mean complete rupture with the Jiangnan Region. I'm afraid Commander Zhu would also..."

Jingwei murmured to herself, not daring to imagine that outcome.

Because her close surveillance of Zhang Yi over the past days made her clearly realize how terrifying his strength was—far beyond the Jiangnan Region's expectations.

A comprehensive superhuman ability index of 9800 points, only good at defense but not offense?

What a joke.

In Jingwei's eyes now, he was probably just one step away from reaching the true Epsilon level.

Outside the cafe, a transparent barrier enveloped the area.

That was Zhang Yi's barrier. With its presence, they were protected from wind and rain, and it could block any reconnaissance methods.

Outside the barrier, thick toxic miasma churned and rolled, and the snowflakes drifting down from the sky had turned dark green.

Zhang Yi gazed out the window into the distance.

This place was far from Mist Valley.

But distance had never meant much to Zhang Yi.

"The toxic zone should be closing in now. The weaker superhumans have either been eliminated or withdrawn from the battlefield."

"And those remaining are mostly gathered around Mist Valley. The real show is about to begin!"

Zhang Yi said this because the Mist Valley area contained the Divine Source.

That was the origin of the toxic miasma. According to Li Zongyu's information, the Divine Source was buried deep underground within Mist Valley.

Because of its presence, the entire magnetic field in Mist Valley was chaotic.

Entering it meant complete loss of contact with the outside world.

So whatever happened to people who entered remained unknown to both the joint forces and the command centers of Huaxu Kingdom's two major regions.

The more such an environment existed, the more dangerous it became.

"We can't always let others pick the fruits."

Zhang Yi rested his chin on the back of his right hand, saying with a smile.

He looked as relaxed as if he were here on vacation.

However, not everyone could be as carefree as him.

On Star Island at this moment, almost all remaining personnel had gathered in the Mist Valley area.

After multiple rounds of elimination, the surviving superhumans were either incredibly lucky with tremendous fortune, or top-tier experts with peak-level strength!

And this group was destined to engage in extremely fierce battles within Mist Valley's limited few hundred li range, all competing for the Divine Source!

After multiple rounds of elimination, the surviving superhumans were either incredibly lucky with tremendous fortune, or top-tier experts with peak strength!

In the allied forces of Huaxu Kingdom's two major regions, according to the original plan, the East Sea Region should have borne the main responsibility for confronting the joint forces.

However, due to the East Sea Region's selfish motives from the very beginning, they adopted different strategies.

Li Tianyang's thinking was simple.

Let Zhang Yi and the other superhuman forces from Jiangnan Region serve as the vanguard—or more bluntly, as cannon fodder—to create trouble for the joint forces' superhumans.

This way, the East Sea Region's superhumans could seize the initiative and reach Mist Valley ahead of time.

It must be said that although developments had been somewhat unexpected, Zhang Yi's sudden emergence had indeed brought tremendous pressure on the entire joint forces.

This also resulted in Qinglong, Baihu, and Zhuque—three of the Four Spirits—being the first to reach the Mist Valley area.

Apart from Qinglong eliminating one captain-level superhuman, Zhuque and Baihu hadn't encountered much significant resistance along their way.

This was partly due to Zhang Yi, and partly due to their own tactical arrangements.

Many people on the island had gradually forgotten their original purpose after landing.

Zhang Yi went off to continuously hunt superhumans.

Other superhumans, believing they had no chance with the Divine Source, turned to capturing companion source sprites instead.

Only the Four Spirits steadfastly executed their mission—searching for the Divine Source.

Therefore, throughout their journey, they avoided conflicts as much as possible.

However, although they seized the initiative and reached Mist Valley first, this didn't give them much advantage.

Mist Valley was enormous.

This was a massive valley that had once been famous throughout Star Island as an adventure area.

Peak connected to peak, with the deepest valleys reaching four to five hundred meters.

The entire terrain was complex and intricate.

And Li Zongyu's original intelligence only provided the approximate location where the Divine Source was discovered.

But now, this area was completely covered by the densest toxic miasma, making electronic devices unusable and even cutting off communication with command centers.

Therefore, after Qinglong and the others entered the depths of Mist Valley, they could only proceed with cautious exploration.

The most effective radar turned out to be their superhuman instinctive sensing of the Divine Source.

This was, admittedly, quite a frustrating situation.

In a mountain stream.

A man and woman approached slowly from the distance.

The man wore white combat suits. He had a tall build, standing about two meters tall, majestic and upright like a giant mountain.

The woman beside him wasn't particularly delicate either, though she appeared somewhat smaller compared to the burly man beside her.

However, anyone seeing this pair wouldn't think the woman was dependent on the man.

Instead, the man always walked half a step behind the woman.

This pair was none other than Zhuque and Baihu from the East Sea Region's Four Spirits.

Unlike other superhumans, the two operated as a team on Star Island.

This was quite rare.

Originally, because of the Divine Source's existence, top-level superhumans found it difficult to trust and cooperate with each other.

But these two had been operating together since they landed on the island.

Baihu's sharp eyes scanned the surroundings. In the thick toxic miasma, several areas showed strange mist churning, like sinister monstrous eyes.

Zhuque's combat suit was dark red.

In the nearly gray-green toxic miasma, it wasn't particularly eye-catching, but still made her identity easily distinguishable.

She advanced with graceful steps, and after half a day of travel, she slightly frowned.

"We've been here for three days already, but we haven't found any clues about the Divine Source."

"Mist Valley is so vast. Without modern equipment, who knows how long it will take us to find it."

"Doesn't that mean all the advantages we gained earlier were wasted?"

Hearing Zhuque's complaint, Baihu showed a simple, honest smile.

"During that operation in Shengjing Region, they reportedly mobilized half the region's forces and still took three full months to obtain the complete Divine Source."

"Zhuque, don't be too impatient. What's meant to be yours will eventually be yours!"

Author's Note