"Who?!"
Hearing an unfamiliar voice, Liver, who was beside Esdeath, immediately assumed a combat stance, looking at the suddenly appearing Lin Que not far away.
"You're not from the Imperial Army!"
Liver had memorized everyone with some strength or reputation in the army.
But he had no impression of Lin Que's face whatsoever.
"Could it be... from the Northern Barbarians?"
"Heheheh~ That's right, that's right, I'm an assassin sent by the Northern Barbarians."
Lin Que raised his index finger and beckoned at Esdeath, making a provocative gesture.
"If you don't want to die, give it your all."
"Hmph! Arrogant!"
Liver snorted coldly, raising his right hand towards Lin Que: "Lady Esdeath, you don't need to make a move, I'll take care of this guy..."
Bang~!
Before he could finish his sentence, Liver's body had already flown into the air.
Terrifying power pierced through his body, and an unprecedented sharp pain instantly spread throughout him.
Without even landing, Liver lost consciousness and fell into a coma in mid-air.
[Group member 'Sea King' has defeated the Three Beasts' 'Liver', world reputation increased by 20 points, rewarded 6000 group points.]
"Is this your subordinate?"
Without even glancing at Liver, Lin Que, who had been staring at Esdeath the entire time, raised an eyebrow, a playful look on his face.
"My evaluation is, average."
"Interesting."
An excited expression appeared on Esdeath's face.
She didn't believe Lin Que's nonsense like Liver did.
After all, the first sentence he uttered upon his arrival had already revealed his identity.
"No wonder among those cowards, only you dared to respond to me; you are indeed not simple."
With Liver's instant defeat, Esdeath's fighting spirit soared instead.
Drawing the rapier from her waist, she pointed it at Lin Que: "Come on!"
"No, no, it's better if you make the first move."
Lin Que gestured towards Liver not far away: "After all, I came at your invitation; it wouldn't be good to knock you out right away."
Whoosh—!
Facing Lin Que's provocation, Esdeath didn't hesitate.
In the blink of an eye, she appeared before Lin Que, the tip of her sword aimed at his right eye.
"Too slow, and too little force."
Holding up a single finger to block the sudden attack, Lin Que's finger bent slightly downwards.
Crack~!
The tough sword blade, forged through countless trials, snapped instantly.
"Did you not eat?"
"That was just an appetizer!"
Esdeath stomped on the ground, her body retreating backward.
Cold air rapidly converged, and several massive ice pillars formed right in front of Lin Que, smashing towards him.
Boom—! Boom—! Boom—!
"Did it succeed?"
"Of course not."
Boom—!
The ice pillars instantly shattered, and a surging airflow blasted towards Esdeath.
"So fast!"
Her pupils sharply contracted, and Esdeath hastily summoned over a dozen ice walls in front of her.
But they had no effect against the surging airflow.
One by one, the sturdy ice walls shattered, and the invisible airwave reached Esdeath in a blink of an eye, sending her flying.
"Can you do it, Esdeath?"
Lin Que leisurely walked towards her: "You were so lively in the group chat; don't tell me you only have this much strength."
Ben Zi Na: "As expected, Lin Que is stronger."
Hanma: "Actually, the new person is also very strong; he can launch attacks like that with a wave of his hand, like a monster."
Flower Pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps: "Indeed, also someone who uses ice, the Upper Rank Two I encountered last time was like a child in front of her."
Furniture City Expert: "I was a bit worried about Lin Que (Administrator) when I saw the new person so confident, thankfully he didn't mess up."
Ben Zi Na: "Uncle Long, it seems you still know too little about Lin Que."
Ais: "The new person is not Lin Que's opponent."
Esdeath's strength was indeed formidable; Ais could feel a terrifying pressure from her even through the screen.
But if that was all she had, it would be impossible to defeat Lin Que.
Flower Pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps: "Everyone, guess how many more moves the new person can last against Lin Que?"
Nami: "It depends on whether Lin Que wants to play or not."
Hair Gel Hand: "Normally, it would take one move."
Ice Queen: "One move? Then just watch."
Noticing the message in the chat group by chance, Esdeath, who had been sent flying again, stood up.
Looking at Lin Que, who stood before her and didn't continue his attack, she spoke loudly.
"I have to admit, your strength is indeed very formidable!"
"But I still have one last move I haven't used. If you can withstand this move, I will admit your victory."
"Still so stubborn."
Lin Que scoffed, twirling the military cap he had taken from Esdeath's head with his finger.
"Setting aside whether your so-called last move is useful, in a real battle, are you sure you'd even have a chance to use it?"
"It's just that I didn't want to use it."
Esdeath insisted on her own opinion: "It doesn't require any preparation time; as long as I have the thought, I can release it instantly!"
"Alright, alright, then come on."
Lin Que casually put the military cap back on Esdeath's head: "I love bullying the weak. Hurry up and use your so-called last move to make me eat my words."
"As you wish."
After being sent flying repeatedly, Esdeath's tone was no longer as arrogant as it had been before the battle began.
"Watch closely, this is my ultimate technique, capable of freezing time and space together..."
Esdeath's body suddenly erupted with an unprecedented chill: "Makahapadma!"
Crack~! Crack~! Crack~!
A crisp freezing sound rang out, and the entire world instantly turned ice-blue.
The howling of the cold wind disappeared, and the falling snowflakes stopped in mid-air like an oil painting.
"It worked."
Esdeath took a deep breath, a look of exhaustion on her face.
In fact, she had indeed been stubborn earlier.
Normally, releasing this ultimate technique required about 1 second of preparation time.
But for the sake of her own pride, Esdeath forcefully claimed it could be released instantly.
Fortunately, enveloped by this intense sense of crisis, her potential seemed to have been stimulated, shortening the charging time to 0.1 seconds.
In her opinion, this was no different from an instant release.
Gazing at Lin Que, who stood motionless in front of her, the corners of her mouth curved slightly upward, and a smile appeared on her face.
"It seems I've won this battle."
Although the victor had been decided, after the recent battle, Esdeath still acknowledged the existence of the chat group.
In her view, only the explanation of an expert from another world could account for someone like Lin Que, who completely overwhelmed her in every aspect.
For sustainable development and continuous battles with strong opponents, Esdeath uncharacteristically did not deliver a killing blow or follow up.
Quietly adjusting the crooked military cap on her head, Esdeath walked behind Lin Que, preparing to retort with some trash talk once the time stop ended and the opponent was shocked.
However...
Just as Esdeath had taken a few steps, preparing to pass Lin Que.
A hand suddenly pressed on her shoulder, stopping her.
"Are you trying to escape mid-fight?"
....