The sudden rescue gave the knights a moment to catch their breath. Without giving it much thought, upon seeing the students bearing the mark of the Ethereal Emblem, they decisively began to counterattack.

Soon, the besieging Skeleton Tyrants found themselves in a predicament and were swiftly eliminated after being divided and conquered.

If someone were to observe closely, they would notice that the students attacking from the two associations were mainly freshmen, along with a few sophomores.

As for the juniors and seniors, from start to finish, they were only providing cover.

Even so, these three days of coordination allowed them to unleash formidable combat strength.

Chloe, standing to the side, clucked her tongue in amazement and said:

"Even excluding them (referring to Rephya and the others), the other freshmen seem to have quite the form."

Lilith rolled her eyes and said, "With the Fantasy Power and Extraordinary Template given, they're not completely green. You were even protecting them in speed runs a few days ago; they've accumulated some experience."

Surviving an intense battle is enough to deem oneself a seasoned warrior.

During these three days of forced marches, can you guess how many students faced lethal danger?

Frankly, each on average has brushed against death twice.

It's just that Ke was such an effective healer, pulling them back from the brink.

On the first day, many students were injured and near death.

On the second day, even the most severely wounded students only suffered serious injuries.

By the third day, though the maze monsters grew stronger and more numerous, they only sustained minor injuries.

Pain is the best teacher.

The fear of death becomes the demon drill instructor driving their rapid transformation.

Don't be fooled by how lively this group looked when they came to help; as they cleared the maze monsters, their vigilant eyes were evaluating the knights of the Locke Empire.

Their naivety slipping away, tiger cubs begin to show their fangs.

Fortunately, the thing they feared most, being double-crossed by the people of Locke, did not happen.

After the battle, those knights came forward.

The leading knight removed his helmet, revealing golden hair, and bowed to everyone in a knight's salute.

"Thank you all for your assistance."

"Don't mention it. We're allies of the four human nations." Chloe smiled and said, "Since you're safe now, we'll continue deeper."

"Hold on."

At the knight's words, the students bearing the Ethereal Emblem drew their weapons.

He hurriedly shook his head and said:

"Don't be hasty; we have no sinister intentions, merely seeking to ask you a question."

Lilith frowned and said, "Go ahead, we'll answer depending on the prudence."

The knight nodded, though inwardly he thought:

"No doubt, it's what the War Academy breeds: natural-born killers"

The War Academy is how the Locke Empire refers to the Ethereal Emblem.

Students from this school are exceptionally skilled in combat.

In fact, across the continent, schools as extreme as Ethereal Emblem in its teaching philosophy are relatively rare.

New students are thrown into an artificial maze to fight right at enrollment, their survival not guaranteed.

——Of course, because there's Great Magic in the artificial maze, even if newcomers die, they can be revived.

Even so, these operations, reminiscent of the Era of Turmoil, are considered rather outrageous by civilized nations today.

Students coming out of the Ethereal Emblem are battle-ready and battle-hardened.

So much so that at some point, more and more people started calling them the War Academy instead of Ethereal Emblem University.

Of course.

This knight actually knows there's no issue in calling the Ethereal Emblem a War Academy.

Because... the Ethereal Emblem's predecessor was a legion, and even now, its method of training students retains much of the military style.

It's just that this current batch seems a bit exaggerated.

During the fight earlier, he didn't have the leisure to examine closely, only realizing afterward that the students fighting alongside them were clearly still new enrollees.

Yet their combat techniques were so impressive that he forgot they were a group of kids.

However, scarier than these youngsters were the [seniors] standing behind them who barely lifted a finger.

He cast a brief glance and saw several who were at least Sequence Seven.

There were even a few whose Extraordinary Level he couldn't even grasp.

Especially that extraordinarily good-looking boy, whose eyes were so pure it made him question reality.

The most terrifying ones aren't those exuding killing intent.

It's those who, though you're aware of their immense strength, appear no different from ordinary people.

This doesn't mean they're friendly.

It only means they've concealed their danger all too well.

He took a deep breath.

This team before him cannot be regarded with the usual perspective.

This is a team capable of burying their entire squad here.

So he gathered his spirit and said:

"We are members of the Viper Knight Order from Locke Empire. We halted you just to ask if you saw the Skeleton March on your way here?"

"Skeleton March?" Chloe raised an eyebrow and said, "Isn't that something only a Sequence Six Necromancer could produce?"

"Yes, we're... in urgent need to track the Skeleton March's whereabouts."

Beside Chloe, Abigail suddenly furrowed her brow, then tugged at Chloe's sleeve.

Years of being together allowed Chloe to instantly grasp the girl's intention.

"This issue involving these knights is very important to you."

Chloe pondered thoughtfully.

Actually, upon seeing these knights, he had already sensed the problem.

With his level of prowess, his Sixth Sense would guide him to make more accurate choices.

Abigail possesses the ability to communicate with plants.

Thus, as long as there is a coverage of algae, her perception would be considerably amplified.

Even to the extent that she could gather intelligence across floors.

She asked Chloe to assist her, which must mean she sensed something unusual.

However, seeing these knights with unspeakable expressions, they might not be willing to reveal the truth.

So he said, "We have means for wide-area reconnaissance; if you're looking for someone, we can lend a hand if it's convenient."

The knight's troubled expression turned somewhat hesitant.

Rephya snorted and said:

"Believe it or not, we realized you were under siege from the 16th floor, so we hurried over."

The knight glanced at everyone, noting the young ones were still sweating, evidently rushing over as they said.

After a moment, he sighed and said.

"A few days ago, Princess Swordswoman discovered a new technology called Simulated Earth Divine Rune, coinciding with training at the Imperial Academy, so she entered the Abyss of Woe with her classmates.

Unexpectedly, on the main expansion route of the Locke Empire, necromancers from the Void Erosion Sect were ambushed.

The academy suffered heavy losses, with students dying on the spot, and Princess Swordswoman went missing."

Chloe's expression paused.

Upon seeing the Headless Knights of the Locke Empire earlier, he immediately thought of Princess Swordswoman.

Yet he didn't anticipate that she went missing in the Maze.

"Princess Swordswoman? You mean Princess Swordswoman, don't you?"

"Wait, isn't this matter going to escalate?"

"Isn't the Locke Empire somewhat… too lax on vigilance?"

The students were quite shocked as well.

If Princess Swordswoman isn't clearly indicated, in this continent it generally refers to one person.

The daughter of the current honorary emperor of the Locke Empire, Princess Swordswoman Tiffany.

The main body of the Locke Empire is made up of the Thirteen Clans.

Each clan corresponds to a bloodline power of a demigod demon.

Members of the thirteen clans cover ninety percent of the empire's primary members.

In other words, these thirteen clans should be called the Thirteen Nations.

The patriarchs of the thirteen factions are all qualified to vie for the honorary emperor.

This generation's honorary emperor bore a daughter late in life, cherished greatly since young.

Tiffany was indeed promising, rapidly showcasing visible talent, thus became a focal person for nurturing.

Chloe, who played games, understood well that Tiffany was not some secondary antagonist in a female-targeted novel, appearing favored but secretly suffering abuse.

This is genuinely a flower of worldly wealth, it'd be impossible to have an inadequate defense.

"That necromancer isn't just Sequence Six, is he?"

Chloe curiously asked.

The knight nodded and said, "Among those he killed, two were Sequence Five teachers."

Everyone raised their eyebrows.

Sequence Five perished?

Originally being inconspicuous, Professor Lan clapped his hands and said:

"Stop, children, don't think about involving yourselves in this matter."

Seeing the professor speak, the students were quite troubled.

Sequence Five perished; this kind of battle was already beyond their understanding.

Indeed, it's best not to get involved.

The knight sighed and said, "Actually, you don't need to get involved; if you detect traces of the Skeletal March, look for an opportunity to relay a message to our people."

Chloe pondered momentarily and said:

"We happen to be active on several nearby floors, so if we spot the Skeletal March, we'll seek an opportunity to inform you."

He glanced at the Skeleton Tyrant and asked:

"You should have other support, right?"

"Yes, but that necromancer is more troublesome than we envisioned."

"Okay, that should suffice."

The group parted ways.

Professor Lan stepped forward and said, "You shouldn't involve yourself in this matter; Sequence Five, perhaps even Sequence Four, is beyond what you can handle."

Chloe smiled and said, "It's okay; I'm just forming good relations."

But in his heart, curiosity began to stir.

Judging by time, Princess Swordswoman should be preparing for the Martial God Festival, not appearing in the Maze.

Yet, she inadvertently risked herself in the Maze for testing her new technology.

Of course.

He initially didn't care about this matter.

But if it involved the Void Erosion Sect, that's a different story.

He's almost certain that, due to his prior actions, certain world groups have started to heighten alertness, sending the Evil God's Followers to monitor The Stars' elite talents closely.

Just in time, among this generation of young people, Princess Swordswoman's strength is the most outstanding.

——In other words, she bore the disaster for him.

"How scared you are of my return, indeed."

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