The Last Sentinel

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear!

As soon as Hua Xiaobai finished speaking, a loud "bang" of a heavy object falling to the ground came from behind him.

Immediately afterward, a weak, almost ethereal voice, tinged with exasperation, pierced the oppressive air of the command center: "Hua Xiaobai! You son of a bitch! That woman almost killed me!"

Everyone turned around at once, and there they saw Zhuge Mengde stumbling towards them, looking so disheveled that it was unbearable to look at him.

His face was ashen, his pupils unfocused and dazed, and his bloodshot eyes held lingering fear. His once-proud, well-defined muscles now slumped limply over his body, like a deflated balloon, devoid of any spirit. Even his gait was awkward, with bowed legs and his body swaying from side to side, as if he were about to collapse to the ground at any moment.

Upon seeing this, the two valiant warriors, Dian Wei and Xu Chu, their eyes filled with tears, cried out in unison, their voices choked with sobs, "President! You've suffered so much!"

The two men quickly stepped forward and steadily supported the unsteady Zhuge Mengde on either side, their broad hands tightly holding his arms, their eyes full of heartache.

King Liu of Hanzhong had sharp, eagle-like eyes. His gaze swept over Zhuge Mengde and landed on his bulging chest. His tone was scrutinizing: "Aman, what are you hiding in your arms? You look like a woman eight months pregnant."

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to Lao Liu's words, and they all looked at Zhuge Mengde's chest. Sure enough, they saw that it was bulging and swollen, which was out of place with his current weak appearance.

Zhuge Mengde, however, ignored Lao Liu and pushed aside their support. His gaze fell on the magnificent bronze cauldron cast in the center of the command cabin. He slowly paced around the cauldron, clicking his tongue in admiration, his tone full of emotion: "This is the legendary Xuzhou Cauldron left behind by Yu the Great when he controlled the floods? It is indeed imposing, living up to its reputation! Although it's just a replica, I can still clearly feel the immense pressure emanating from the cauldron. It's the heavy weight of longing and concern in the hearts of us old Xuzhou people!"

"Come on, stop with your self-pity!" Hua Xiaobai hurriedly interrupted him, her tone both angry and helpless. "What do you mean by 'old Xuzhou native's longing'? When are you going to get rid of this old habit of always trying to pocket anything good you see? I've followed you since the first season of SLG: Rise of Kingdoms, until the disbandment of [Restoring the Han Dynasty], and you've never stopped having this habit!"

Zhuge Mengde, his sore spot touched, scratched his head awkwardly, chuckled dryly, and then slowly pulled out a neatly folded women's silk nightgown from his pocket and handed it to Hua Xiaobai: "Stop talking nonsense, I brought you what you wanted."

Hua Xiaobai stared at the exquisitely embroidered undergarment before him, and froze instantly. His lips twitched as he stammered, "Brother, you're stealing while you're at it?!"

"Bullshit!" Zhuge Mengde instantly exploded, retorting with a string of curses, "Who took anything? If I hadn't done that, would I have been able to bring out the map?"

Zhuge Mengde took a breath, calming his rapid breathing, and said in a low voice, "You have no idea how much effort I put into dealing with that widow An Qing! I forced her to drink a super-concentrated animal drug called 'Nightly Delight,' and while she was unconscious, I opened her storage cube and hid this 'Dragon Ascension Diagram' inside her silk pajamas. It was a close call that I managed to escape!"

Dian Wei scratched his head and asked in a silly tone, "President, what is 'Nightly Beauty'? It sounds like a really nice name."

Ayu coughed lightly, a hint of amusement in his eyes, and slowly explained, "To put it bluntly, it's an aphrodisiac, a super-enhanced version of Indian God Oil. This stuff was developed by those guys from the High Martial Arts Academy's Primordial Beast Taming Academy. It was originally intended to promote the reproduction of giant beast pets, but they were so bold as to use it directly on humans."

Ah Fei couldn't help but tease, "It's only because he's so tough. If it were an ordinary person, they would probably have been tortured to the point of being half-dead and turned into a mummy by now." Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but laugh, and the tense atmosphere eased a bit.

Hua Xiaobai didn't waste any more words. She hurriedly took the silk robe and carefully unfolded it. A tightly rolled ancient painting, about nine inches wide, appeared before everyone's eyes. The scroll was simple and heavy, exuding an aura of age.

"This is the 'Ascending Dragon Map'?" Hua Xiaobai asked, holding the scroll in her hand, her tone filled with anticipation mixed with a hint of doubt. "Didn't you have a chance to check if it's real or fake?"

Zhuge Mengde rolled his eyes and said irritably, "What the hell are you looking at! If I stay another second, that woman will wake up, and then I won't be able to escape even if I have wings. How will I have time to check if it's true or false!"

Hua Xiaobai nodded, asking no further questions. He gripped the scroll tightly with his left hand and exerted force with his right, trying to unroll it by pushing against the side. To everyone's astonishment, the seemingly thin scroll remained completely still, as if welded together.

Undeterred, Hua Xiaobai tried several more times, her face turning red and beads of sweat appearing on her forehead, but the scroll still showed no sign of loosening.

"Strategist, step aside! I'll do this kind of heavy work!" Dian Wei stepped forward confidently. He took the scroll from Hua Xiaobai, found the right point of leverage, and pulled with all his might, but the scroll remained as steady as a mountain, without moving an inch.

"I refuse to believe it!" Dian Wei's competitive spirit was ignited, and he roared. His muscles suddenly bulged, the veins on his arms stood out as if they were about to burst through his skin, his face flushed red, his eyes widened, and he exuded a powerful aura. Keep in mind, Dian Wei was a 2.0 satellite-level cosmic warrior; with such immense strength, even a small spaceship could be easily torn to shreds by him.

But this seemingly ordinary painting withstood his full-force attack without budging. "There's something wrong with this thing!" Old Liu frowned, his tone grave. "There must be some special mechanism hidden inside this painting; it will most likely require a password or key to open."

Zhuge Mengde scratched his head, looking resistant, and said, "What do you mean? Are you suggesting I go back to that woman for the key? Wouldn't that be like a lamb entering a tiger's den, walking into a trap? No way, absolutely not!"

"The one who tied the knot must untie it; that's the only way," Old Liu said in a deep voice. "Untie my ass!" Zhuge Mengde instantly cursed, "What the hell are you up to? Do you think I don't know? If I go back and die, you can take the opportunity to marry my sister? Don't even think about it, Liu the Straw Sandal!"

"It's okay to insult someone, but don't expose their weaknesses!" Old Liu from Hanzhong was hit where it hurt, and his face turned red. The two of them started arguing back and forth, and it looked like they were about to start fighting on the spot.

Just then, Xu Chu spoke up in a low voice, "Awei, I'll lend you a hand!"

Xu Chu stepped forward silently, his thick, rough hand gripping one side of the scroll, forming a combined force with Dian Wei, who was holding the scroll.

Both were 2.0 satellite-level cosmic warriors. They simultaneously lowered their waists to gather their strength, and a pale golden power shockwave instantly erupted. Energy ripples spread like a tide, and the air was compressed and hissed.

The next second, their 2.5-meter-tall figures suddenly grew to 10 meters, standing like two iron towers inside the cabin, exuding an overwhelming sense of oppression.

His muscles bulged and burst like a dragon, the lines on his back were as bright as if they were alive, and the veins on his temples bulged and moved around.

The extreme exertion caused his joints to shatter, and blood gushed from the cracks, dripping onto the [Dragon Ascension Diagram] where it was immediately absorbed by the patterns. Dian Wei roared, shaking the lights, while Xu Chu's bestial roar echoed throughout the cabin.

The combined power of the two instantly exceeded the limits of the spaceship's command center.

Spiderweb-like cracks spread rapidly across the alloy bulkhead, emitting a faint "crackling" sound. The instrument panel display was covered with hairline cracks, and the warning lights flashed a glaring red light.

Seeing the chaotic and dangerous scene before him, Hua Xiaobai's face turned pale instantly, and his heart pounded with anxiety. A Yu was calm and knew how to hold back his strength when he made a move, but these two brutes only knew how to use brute force. If this continued, the command cabin and the [Dragon Ascension Map] would probably be destroyed by them.

Just as Hua Xiaobai was about to step forward to stop it, she saw a dark red halo appear on the scroll, like viscous water droplets, winding along the edge of the scroll and seeping into the bottom of the cabin.

"There's movement!" Xu Chu released his grip and laughed. "I told you brute force would produce a miracle, strategist!"

"It's not power, it's bloodline!" Hua Xiaobai quickly shook his head, his tone resolute. "It was your blood that seeped into the painting and awakened it! Everyone, don't just stand there, cut your fingers and let your blood drip!" Brother Eighty frowned and stepped forward, muttering, "It's the interstellar age, still using this blood-binding ritual? Isn't that too outdated?" Hua Xiaobai didn't have time to argue with him, and said urgently, "Stop talking nonsense, just do it! No one can afford to delay things!"

"You're stupid!" Old Liu kicked Eighty Brother's leg upon hearing this, his tone full of disappointment. "During the Qin Dynasty, spiritual energy was abundant, and there were cultivators and alchemists everywhere. It's perfectly normal to activate such an ancient artifact by dripping blood!" Eighty Brother rubbed his leg, still unconvinced, but he deftly pulled out a short blade and cut his fingertip. Ah Fei, even more impatient, clenched his fist and slammed it against the edge of the cabin wall, his knuckles instantly shattering and blood flowing freely.

The three 2.0 satellite-level and four 1.0 peak-enhanced warriors present possessed health and vitality far exceeding that of ordinary people.

The blood of the seven men fell, transforming into seven crimson dragons on the scroll. They emitted a faint hum before being completely swallowed. The dark red aura grew increasingly dazzling, quickly enveloping the entire command center in a mysterious red light.