448: Chapter 448 Encirclement from All Sides

A flash of realization crossed Chen Yi's eyes.

He held the still-sobbing Black Rose in his arms and looked at Hua Liuli; the two exchanged a glance.

What they needed to do next was to increase their side's strength as much as possible before ZERO could react!

After a few breaths, Black Rose slowly loosened her embrace, but her hands remained resting lightly on Chen Yi's shoulders.

She raised her head, the tears in her eyes still undried, yet a gentle smile was already blooming.

The look she gave Chen Yi was filled with tender affection.

She scrutinized Chen Yi's face, the image of the green youth from her past life gradually overlapping with the mature face before her.

It could only be said that it was fortunate her past life had protected Chen Yi—

Or rather, that meeting in her past life, that brief interaction, had planted a seed in Chen Yi's heart!

Although Chen Yi might have long forgotten the girl named Mo Linger, that special feeling might have subconsciously influenced his later choices!

Otherwise, when they reunited in the Demon Abyss Cult.

Chen Yi, having long since realized her true identity, would never have invested so much time and energy into her.

And there would not have been the subsequent contract—

Now, there might be one less girl by Chen Yi's side willing to give her everything for him—

No wonder her parents in her past life had said that good and evil would eventually be rewarded, and fate would ultimately complete its Reincarnation.

Was this not an extremely obvious example?

A single act of kindness five years ago had earned her a devoted lover five years later—

Even novels wouldn't dare to write it like this, right?

Black Rose bit her lower lip, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke softly: "Chen Yi—can you stay with me tonight? I want to talk to you alone, about the past—I want you to know the entirety of me!"

Her voice was very soft, carrying a hint of imperceptible anticipation.

Although she had already recovered the memories of her past life and was certain that Chen Yi was the person destined for her, she still wanted to tell him everything herself.

Not through Hua Liuli's retelling, not through memory sharing, and with no other sisters present.

Just the two of them alone, reminiscing about that brief time they spent together—

Chen Yi smiled and nodded: "No problem! Tonight, I will only be with you!"

—

The next morning, Chen Yi rose gently.

Beside him, Black Rose was still fast asleep, a peaceful smile on her face.

One hand was unconsciously clutching Chen Yi's arm, as if afraid he would leave again.

Chen Yi did not disturb her; he gently pushed her hand away, quietly got out of bed, put on his clothes, and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the Luo family ancestral grounds had already restored order.

The defensive array was still maintained, but the atmosphere was much more relaxed than yesterday.

The disciples were doing morning exercises with their Contracted Spirit Beasts, smoke from cooking fires was rising from the kitchens, and everything appeared calm.

But Chen Yi knew this was just the calm before the storm.

He opened his tablet to check the latest global situation.

Unexpectedly, ZERO still hadn't made any moves.

The anticipated full-scale attack had not arrived.

Apart from occasional small-scale harassment, the main forces had not been mobilized at all.

The forces under its command seemed afraid to act rashly because of Chen Yi's personal existence.

There were more and more analysis posts on the forums.

[Why isn't ZERO attacking? Didn't it say it would make the Dragon nation pay a bloody price?]

[Scared, right? The strength Chen Yi displayed before was too terrifying!]

[I don't think it's fear; it's brewing an even bigger conspiracy!]

[Could it be waiting for some opportunity?]

[—]

Just kidding, Miyamoto Tenzo led a Demonic Beast army to besiege the Luo family, and even included a Clone of ZERO, all of which were wiped out.

The video of this battle had been analyzed repeatedly.

The footage of Chen Yi killing the Demonic Emperor in seconds with a single palm and kick was slowed down, frozen, and observed from multiple angles, and there was only one conclusion.

This was simply not something a human could do!

At least not an ordinary human!

There was such a terrifying power gap even before Emilia had made a move.

If she did make a move, what would happen then?

As one of the actual controllers of the Demon Abyss Cult, an eight-thousand-year-old Fourteenth Tier, Tenth Stage powerhouse, her strength had always been a mystery.

Although she did not participate in the battle yesterday, the mere title of Tier 14 was enough to deter countless people!

However, the attacks on other countries had not lagged at all.

While things were deadlocked here in the Dragon nation, ZERO's forces launched fierce offensives in other parts of the world.

Three days later, the African continent fell.

Most countries refused, and then—they were trampled flat!

A week later, all European countries surrendered.

Under the threat and temptation of absolute force, the European countries surrendered one after another!

Half a month later, the Dragon nation was the only one left in the whole world that had not yielded to ZERO.

From the Arctic ice sheets to the Antarctic continent, from the Pacific Ocean island nations to the African deserts, ZERO's flag had been planted almost everywhere across the globe!

It had almost formed a ten-sided encirclement!

All the neighboring countries around the Dragon nation, whether voluntarily or forced, had become ZERO's forward positions.

Demonic Beast armies gathered outside the border, and their numbers were so great that they even changed the climate in local areas.

The dark, dense swarms of Demonic Beasts were like moving storm clouds; wherever they passed, vegetation withered and animals vanished.

Just at this moment, ZERO also halted its pace of attack.

Instead, it started to slack off.

Basically, it only had the Beast Tamers of various countries under its command launch some harmless attacks.

Testing the waters on the northeastern border today, harassing the southwestern mountains tomorrow, and conducting an exercise in the East Sea the day after—but a real full-scale attack was never launched.

Whether it was wary of Chen Yi and Emilia's strength, or if it wanted to exhaust the spirit of the Dragon nation's people in this way and make them trigger internal conflicts themselves, was unknown.

On the internet, public opinion within the Dragon nation began to diverge.

[Why aren't they attacking yet? This stalemate is even more uncomfortable!]

[Yeah, if they're going to fight, just do it quickly; living in fear every day is exhausting.]

[Is ZERO waiting for us to have internal strife?]

[It's possible; it's waiting for us to collapse on our own.]

[Then we won't let it succeed!]

[Easy for you to say, do you know how many resources it takes to maintain the national defensive array every day? I heard the national treasury is almost empty!]

[I don't know if Chen Yi and the Demon Abyss Cult can fight their way out—]

[To the person above, didn't you just trash Chen Yi and the Demon Abyss Cult for being intolerable to heaven and earth? Now you're starting to say good things?]

[—]

Feelings of anxiety, fatigue, and unease were spreading among the populace.

Although most people still supported the resistance.

The long-term state of war readiness was indeed consuming the spirit and energy of the nation.

Seeing this, Chen Yi gave a crooked smile.

Although he didn't know what ZERO was actually trying to do.

But he had to admit, this move by ZERO had bought him a great deal of time.

If ZERO had really launched a full-scale attack, Chen Yi would have had to meet it immediately, with no time to make other preparations!

But now that ZERO had chosen to drag things out, choosing a war of attrition.

It had instead given Chen Yi a precious opportunity!