You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

"I never knew you were such an innocent...hot-blooded person."

Although she was very puzzled, in order to seize the opportunity, Nadezhda agreed to Iori's request and joined the hunt with [Night Raid].

In her opinion, although Iori is very powerful, he is definitely no match for Esdeath. Once he realizes the difference in strength, he will naturally give up his warrior's dignity and choose "righteous beating" instead!

Iori's side has three imperial weapon users plus all members of the Night Raid, and there are also the elite soldiers sent by the Far East Samurai and the Revolutionary Army. With such a powerful force, the chances of winning against Esdeath who is alone or with only a few subordinates are not small.

At present, all these people have been transferred to the North by Iori using Shangri-La. Everyone is dressed warmly and set up camp on the road that Esdeath must pass, waiting for the arrival of the Ice Queen.

During the days of waiting, Natacha tried to persuade Iori to change his mind.

"The Hundred-Armed Giant (Sailiu's dog) and Brad will lead the attack, Leone will fill in the gap, Maine and Borus will provide long-range fire support, Lan will conduct scouting in the sky, the others will assist in containment, and you and Akame will be responsible for delivering the fatal blow at the critical moment!"

Nadezhda is indeed a veteran in the military. It only took her a short time to figure out the abilities of Borus and the others, and she made tactical arrangements based on them.

I have to admit that if she uses this strategy, the chances of winning are really great. I'm afraid no one in the entire "Aka" world can fight against such a powerful and targeted lineup.

"With your strange body movements and the red-eyed Murasame, you definitely have a good chance!"

"Indeed," Iori nodded, "but I have a plan that has a better chance of success."

“You’re still unwilling to give up.”

Nadezhda expressed her incomprehension: "You set up an ambush specifically for her to leave the army, so you can surround her, right? If you want to fight her one-on-one, why don't you just challenge her right away? She will definitely not refuse!"

"How can we let her lose in front of her own army?" Iori said seriously, "In the eyes of the soldiers, she is a god of war who will never bleed. If this prestige is destroyed, it will be a huge blow to the morale of the army and may even shake the situation in the North."

"...I haven't thought about this." Nadezhda suddenly realized.

Now, the foreign tribes in the north may launch a large-scale attack on the empire at any time. It can be said that it is all relying on Esdeath and her elite troops to intimidate the enemy's hundreds of thousands of troops. If something goes wrong, it will indeed cause unimaginable consequences.

"You have thought deeply about this..." The short-haired female general couldn't help feeling ashamed.

Iori seemed indifferent:

He is neither a citizen of the empire nor a foreigner. As an outsider, he maintains a neutral attitude towards the struggle between the two nations. However, considering that his "base" in the future will mainly be the people of the empire, he naturally has to guard against foreigners.

Iori would not project his feelings for his former homeland onto the empire just because it had a "great emperor of unification", nor would he regard the surrounding ethnic minorities as his eternal enemies like the Huns.

He just made the most advantageous choice from a personal perspective.

"I always choose to stand with the people, because in this chaotic world, the strong are unscrupulous and the weak have no one to rely on."

When facing Nadezhda, Iori changed his words: "Although I am not an omnipotent god, as a mortal, I am willing to do my best to help those weak people who see no hope.

Every tragedy prevented makes the world a better place, isn't it, Nadezhda? "

"...Yes." The short-haired female general said absentmindedly, "It seems that I still don't know you well enough..."

Not far away, Lubbock, the Imperial Artifact User of Night Raid, looked over here with a jealous expression, and kept making the sound of grinding his teeth: "What? That man and Miss Nadezhda seemed to be getting along well... Damn it!"

Labock, who had been in love with Nadezhda for a long time, felt very jealous, but he could also see that the two of them were just discussing some things that they had in common and there was no other special feeling.

But when he calmed down, he suddenly felt a chill and turned his head subconsciously, only to see his companion Akagi maintaining her sword that could kill with one blow.

"Killing, murderous intent?" Lubbock blinked.

Why is there such a strong murderous aura? The enemy hasn't arrived yet, and the direction that Akame is looking at is...

"Akagi seems to be watching you all the time, Iori."

"I already knew it."

Iori and Nadezhda, who were talking, naturally noticed the obvious murderous intent, but they remained calm.

The short-haired female general frowned slightly: "I have never seen Chi Tong care so much about a member of the opposite sex, it shows that you have a special place in her heart... Don't you need to pay attention to the distance between us?"

"No, this is just fine."

Iori showed a rather playful smile under the mask: "If not, how can I make this slow-witted guy realize that he cares about me?"

"..."

This man is amazing in every way!

Nadezhda suddenly began to worry about her best friend and subordinate. An emotional little white rabbit like Akame met such a big bad wolf...hiss!

"I hope you won't make Chi Tong sad in the future."

"After all, she has a knife in her hand." Iori said casually, "I will be careful to avoid it."

It's already assumed that she will be killed - Nadezhda didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"But even so, I still think it's too reckless to face Esdeath alone."

Back to business, Nadezhda said seriously, "Even with your strength, it's too much of a stretch to challenge Esdeath."

"With my strength? A challenge?"

Iori chewed on these words in his mouth, and gradually, a feeling of madness arose in his heart.

Nadezhda continued, "Besides, she should be riding a tamed flying dangerous creature passing by here. If we want to accurately stop her, we have to send a large number of people to investigate and deploy defenses. You need our assistance in the first place."

"It doesn't matter!"

Iori stood up and walked out of the tent where he was hiding: "Just let her come to me on her own initiative!"

"Don't act on impulse!" Nadezhda chased after him.

"Ha! You sound like you know me very well."

"I--"

hum!

The sweeping sense of gravity left Nadezhda speechless. An invisible aura instantly enveloped the entire camp. From the imperial weapon users to the ordinary soldiers, the stronger people were, the more clearly they could feel the strange oppression that came from the sky.

Even masters like Brad and Chi Tong had extremely serious expressions on their faces. Even though this was their first time encountering this inexplicable pressure, it did not prevent them from realizing the power of its source. They all looked as if they were facing a formidable enemy!

Iori glanced at Nadezhda, whose face turned pale, and said, "Have you seen my true strength?"

"Roar--!"

A faint but clear roar was heard from the far distance in the sky. As the sun moved westward, a three-headed dangerous sub-dragon species flew from the dusk clouds. As it gradually approached, a tall woman with long ice-blue hair on its back also appeared in the field of vision!

-

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PS: This is today's update~

Originally, there was an event going on, and the chef wanted to offer a bounty, but then he thought about the fact that the book had just been put on the shelves, and it was said that too many updates would affect the average subscription, and if the results were not good, it would affect the subsequent recommendations of this book.

The chef had originally promised to update the article for everyone, and if he offered a reward again, he was afraid that the data would not look good, which made the chef very conflicted.

But then I thought, I'm not some great writer, I don't need to think so much, just write, after all, so many readers are supporting me and waiting to read my book~

I won't offer a reward anymore, but I'll still update it. Just think of it as a way for me to repay the readers who have supported me for so many years. During the Spring Festival, I'll try to write as much as possible for you to have some entertainment in your spare time~

Say Happy New Year in advance ~ Good luck in the Year of the Dragon!

Volume 63: White Moonlight of the All-Seireitei: Chapter : When I saw you, I was disappointed

What Iori saw was a female general wearing a white military uniform and with long ice-blue hair that reached her ankles, a woman that was hard to look away from.

Unlike Nadezhda, who has a decent appearance and a calm temperament, Esdeath has an extremely aggressive and beautiful face and eyes as wild as a wolf. Her tall and beautiful figure looks even more proud against the backdrop of long military boots, and her condescending eyes are full of dominance.

She makes no secret of anything about herself, and that is the calmness that only comes from someone who has reached a certain level of self-confidence.

This often leads to people only focusing on her identity as the "strongest imperial weapon user", ignoring the fact that she is only twenty years old this year and is still a young girl.

Iori exchanged glances with her from a distance. At this distance, she could hardly see the other person's face, but the female hunter still smiled happily.

She clearly noticed that there was a camp here, and it was obvious that there was something else going on, but she still controlled the dangerous creature to fly over, and didn't seem to be worried about an ambush.

"Even though she's the 'Ice Queen', she looks aggressive as hell."

Iori sighed, and as the other person got closer and closer, his figure gradually became clearer, and his eyes immediately fell on her chest.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I suddenly became lustful, but I was attracted by the dark mark on the fair skin, which is the sign of the elemental manipulation imperial weapon [Demon God Appearance].

It is said that it is made from the blood of a super dangerous species living in the Far North. Anyone who drinks it will be driven crazy by the murderous desire hidden in it, without exception.

But only Esdeath went against common sense and drank up the entire amount of blood, which she only needed to sip in a small sip. Then, she suppressed the remaining spirit of the super-dangerous species with her strong will... Or, it could be said that Esdeath's bloodlust was even greater than that of the beast, and she forcibly tamed it!

Before that, Esdeath was already a rising star in the empire. After completely mastering the [Demon Appearance], she could freely control the power of ice and snow, from single-target attack and defense to controlling celestial phenomena. It can be said that she has completely sublimated to another realm.

In the world view of "Aka Kill", it is estimated that only the first emperor a thousand years ago might be stronger, and there is probably no one in modern times who can compare with him. In the original work, he was besieged in a continuous battle after consuming a lot of physical strength, and finally he was defeated by the explosion of Akagi. It feels like a plot kill.

Iori was quite looking forward to the battle with such an opponent.

Yes, anticipation, which was completely different from Nadezhda's inner uneasiness.

In fact, Esdeath did not come alone. There were three other men in black military uniforms on the broad back of the dangerous beast. They were the "Three Beast Warriors" under Esdeath. Like the "Night Raid", they were a combat team composed of pure imperial weapon users.

Oh, by the way, Iori's [two large axes] were originally assigned to a certain imperial officer, who did not live to see the light of day and was recruited by Esdeath, and was killed when Iori was a bounty hunter. It seems that the "Three Beast Warriors" in this world line have changed their members.

But these are all minor problems, and they have no place in Iori's eyes at the moment.

Later, let the old man among the three beast soldiers go and reminisce and have some gay sex with Brad, and let the others deal with the remaining two soldiers.

"Roar!"

The dangerous sub-dragon species has already flown over the camp, making demonstrative roars that make people's eardrums tighten.

Feeling a little annoyed by the noise, Iori drew out the long sword hidden in the sheath with his right hand. The sword body, as beautiful as autumn water and jasper, made a faint and clear sound of breaking wind in the cold wind, like the roar of a dragon.

Under the roar of the sub-dragon species, the magic sword seemed dissatisfied. A faint white light lit up in the gem, and a stream slowly swirled around the blade, as elegant and majestic as a swimming dragon.

"Roar--"

The young man held the sword in his hand and glanced at the dangerous creature indifferently. The roar stopped abruptly, and the deformed monster flapped its wings nervously. The three heads suddenly struggled and made noises, as if they had different opinions, causing their bodies to sway, which surprised Esdeath who was standing on it.

Snapped!

She tightened the iron chain around the dangerous creature's neck and whipped it mercilessly. The soft whip made of special material had a powerful force, and the pain penetrated through the thick skin and went straight into the inside, making the ferocious and dangerous creature cry for mercy.

But even so, it still hesitated and refused to land. Esdeath hit it three times in a row, and the dragon became more and more anxious.

Stab it!

A flash of cold light flashed, and then hot blood spilled into the sky like red drizzle, and then a black shadow fell from the sky.

Bang!

First came the huge body, then three huge heads, which smashed to the ground, stirring up dust mixed with blood. The scene was quite bizarre.

A white streak continued to extend in the sky, which turned out to be a thin bridge of ice. In the evening light, it seemed like a procession to welcome the gods. The queen slid down the ice, her long hair fluttering in the cold wind, and her three subordinates followed closely behind her. She was so high-spirited!

Nadezhda clenched her fists subconsciously: "It's finally about to begin!"

Iori looked up at the scene and said calmly, "How domineering."

But I won’t allow such awesome people to exist!

"Fall down!"

Tian Congyun's sword was swung lightly, and the gem at the end of the hilt flashed with light. Under the flow of aura, a pure white arc of light flew out, roaring in the air and turning into the shape of a blue dragon, crashing head-on into the ice bridge, cutting it into pieces with a sound of shattering, and it was unstoppable!

"Humph!"

Esdeath drew out her double-edged saber, and wherever the tip of the sword passed, the cold air froze the air, turning it into a solid wall of ice to block the sword. Then she swung out a whip with her left hand, rolled up her three subordinates, and flipped over to fall from the broken bridge.

call--

About ten meters above the ground, the cold wind was surging, and the four people's falling momentum suddenly slowed down. Their bodies finally landed steadily on the ground, without any injury at all.

Esdeath's move showed her extremely high control ability, which was no longer limited to controlling ice and snow, but she had developed various derivative abilities like the three states of water.

Although she was not injured, Esdeath thought that she had been intimidated by her appearance, and was very unhappy. She threw the three beast warriors aside with a whip and said lightly: "Take care of yourself."

"Yes, Master Esdeath."

The three beast warriors acted as if they were used to it, and the leading imperial weapon user, Vali, saluted elegantly like an old butler.

"It is our duty as the three beast warriors to protect Lady Esdeath and ensure that you are not disturbed while enjoying the battle. Please rest assured."

Esdeath did not respond, but stared at Iori with her ice-blue eyes. After examining him carefully for a moment, she looked at Nadezhda beside her, as well as Brad, Akame, Leone and others who appeared around one after another.

In addition, her keen intuition told her that there must be more imperial weapon users hiding in the dark. She didn't expect to encounter so many masters in such a desolate place. This was really -

So exciting!

Even though she was in the predicament of being besieged, Esdeath was not worried. After all, she was the one who took the initiative to enter the trap.

The Ice Queen has absolute confidence in herself. Even if she is trapped in a repetitive battle and is exhausted, no one can stop her if she wants to leave.