Just as City Lord Punk was feeling both pained and pleased by the surging troop numbers and the paralyzed enemy forces, Lin Qingyue's squad had just concluded their "legal education" session at a Minotaur village in the heart of the "Purification Storm" near Winred City.
Watching the Minotaurs, with their massive muscles, cry and wail about going to Blackrock Stronghold to "enlist and defend their rights," Lin Qingyue clapped her hands in satisfaction.
"Alright, today's KPI is more than fulfilled. Next..."
Before she could finish, a dark figure flickered like a phantom on the distant ridge.
It was Xia Lian.
Her expression was graver than ever before. Her voice, no longer its usual whisper, was a sharp chill compressed to its absolute limit.
"Everyone, take cover immediately! Highest alert!"
Lin Xiyue and Su Wan's expressions instantly turned grim.
Without a moment's hesitation, the three instinctively dove into a nearby hollow filled with jagged rocks. Their movements were so clean and efficient that not a single motion was wasted.
Almost the instant they concealed themselves, the sky was torn open by a roar of steel.
BOOM—!!!
That was no thunder.
It was a composite noise, a mixture of grinding metal, roaring steam, and the frantic churning of countless gears, like ten thousand steel mountains collapsing at once. The torrent of sound brutally pierced their eardrums, surging straight into their brains.
Peeking through the cracks in the rocks, the four of them saw a sight that made their breath catch.
Hundreds of massive metal constructs, trailing thick black smoke, rose from the direction of Winred, City of Corruption, brutally blotting out the sky.
It was a moving cloud of steel and flesh.
A bizarre, flesh-punk style.
Cold steel skeletons were entwined with dark red blood vessels and nerve bundles that still twitched faintly.
Beneath the dim sky, crimson mono-eyes glowed with an emotionless, bloodthirsty light, existing purely to seek and destroy.
"Steam Magitech Mecha... The legion Lilina mentioned!"
Su Wan's jaw clenched slightly, her voice laced with uncontrollable shock.
This was the Mother of Rebirth's trump card!
An Alchemical Intelligence legion, completely devoid of emotion and fear, born solely for slaughter!
After ascending, the hundreds of mecha immediately split into dozens of squads, scattering rapidly in all directions to form a vast and ruthless search net.
Their operational logic was clear and efficient, filled with mechanical precision, like a swarm of pre-programmed killer hornets.
"This is trouble." Lin Xiyue held her massive tower shield in front of her, her expression grave.
"I doubt there's even a brain in those cockpits that can understand human speech. We can't format them."
"It's more than just trouble." Lin Qingyue narrowed her eyes as a squad of mecha roared past overhead.
The fierce winds kicked up by their heavy frames sent gravel flying like bullets.
"These things are here for us. Our 'weeding' was too efficient, and it forced that Evil God to flip the table."
The Mother of Rebirth was finally done playing "pyramid scheme games" with them.
He would rather deploy His core legion, using an anti-aircraft cannon to swat a mosquito, just to crush these few annoying "flies."
"We need to move, now," Xia Lian whispered, her words rapid.
"Their search pattern is methodical, but the coverage area is too vast. We'll be discovered eventually. Head west to the Broken Dragon Mountains. The terrain there is complex; we can lose them."
"Agreed," Lin Qingyue nodded.
Confronting this Iron Legion head-on would be suicide. A strategic retreat was the only option.
However, just as they were preparing to retreat stealthily, Xia Lian's movements suddenly froze.
Her ears twitched almost imperceptibly, and every muscle in her body tensed instantly—the instinctive reaction of a top predator sensing one of its own.
A moment later, she made an extremely complex tactical hand signal to the others.
"Five hundred meters ahead, down in the ravine. Unidentified squad, non-native lifeforms, likely peers. Extremely dangerous!"
Lin Xiyue and Su Wan's hearts sank.
Peers?
In this perilous Dungeon, that word was often more terrifying than "enemy."
Lin Qingyue cautiously peeked out in the direction Xia Lian had indicated.
Down in the ravine, a four-person squad was striding brazenly across the wasteland.
They were clad in the distinctively styled gear of Earth's Professionals.
Leading them was a burly man in heavy rune-etched plate armor, wielding a giant axe, like a mobile iron tower.
Beside him walked a Mage in ornate robes, a Paladin with a massive shield, and an Assassin with dual swords at her waist. Each radiated the powerful aura unique to elites.
They all carried an iron-blooded ferocity that seemed utterly out of place in this world.
Most importantly, they made no attempt to hide from the Iron Legion in the sky, simply continuing on their way.
A steam mecha even landed slowly nearby, its crimson mono-eye flickering as if engaged in silent communication with them.
"Their destination... seems to be the Broken Dragon Mountains as well," Su Wan analyzed in a low voice.
Xia Lian's expression grew even stranger. She pointed to her lips, then mimed the action of speaking.
"They're communicating. The language... I don't understand it, but I can recognize it. It's Earth's 'Russian'!"
Earth!
Russian!
The words shot through the three women's minds like an electric current.
They were Descenders, just like them!
A Purifier Squad from another country!
Lin Xiyue's heart sank completely. She spotted a fatal detail: "Look at their chests!"
Following her gaze, they saw that each of the five wore a crimson poppy insignia on their chest—the mark of a Core Follower of the Mother of Rebirth
"They're... followers of an Evil God?! And Descenders from Earth? How is that possible!" Xia Lian whispered in shock.
By all rights, Descenders from Earth should be natural enemies of Evil Gods like this.
Lin Qingyue watched the Russian Squad coordinate with the Mecha Legion to begin a grid search, her eyes flickering with uncertainty.
Under the rules of [Truth] and [Echo of the Heart's Abyss], this Dungeon was riddled with traps.
Intelligence was always the top priority.
Confrontations between Purifiers were often a hundred times more dangerous than fighting monsters.
And now, they were facing "colleagues" who had willingly sided with an Evil God.
"Well, well, things are getting interesting."
Lin Qingyue suddenly smiled, her voice devoid of tension and instead filled with the excitement of stirring up trouble.
A hunter's glint danced in her pink eyes.
"So we've gone from a PvE monster grind to a PvP session? Excellent. I was starting to find our 'anti-scam' operation a bit dull."
A kind smile spread across her face, a stark contrast to the light in her eyes.
"The Evil God flipped the table and even called in outside help. It looks like they're really treating us like the final BOSS and trying to surround and destroy us."
Xia Lian instantly understood her meaning, a top-tier Ranger's excitement flashing in her eyes.
"We can set up a 'surprise' for them on the path they must take to the Broken Dragon Mountains."
"Excellent." Lin Qingyue withdrew her gaze and smiled at her sister and Su Wan.
Framed by her pink hair, the smile looked exceptionally sweet and harmless.
"Time to get to work, partners."
"Let's go 'greet' these 'colleagues' and teach them a thing or two about 'hospitality'."