"Sigh... but on the other hand..."
"Even though Master Yunli and Sister Lumina have always encouraged me and affirmed my strength..."
"What if I encounter an exceptionally strong opponent?"
"Like, say, the Galaxy Ranger or the Stellaron Hunters?"
The group toured the Skysplitter for a while as the official start time of the competition drew near. Despite the encouragement from Yunli and Lumina, March 7th remained extremely nervous.
The Luofu's Celestial Wardance Ceremony was broadcast throughout the Cosmos, so the occasional dark horse emerging was perfectly normal.
As a spectator, March 7th would naturally hope for a large number of dark horses to appear. This would make the competition's outcome unpredictable and heighten the thrill.
But this time, she was the Defending Swordsman... So, March 7th desperately hoped no dark horses would emerge.
After all, Master Yunli and Sister Lumina's encouragement and affirmation of her strength were based on the results of previous Wardance Ceremonies...
This Wardance Ceremony had already seen Borisin's invasion, Hoolay's escape, and the presence of three Generals... With so much already happening, wouldn't it be perfectly normal for a few dark horses to emerge?
"Don't worry, March," Lumina reassured her, subtly hinting, "The Galaxy Ranger is elusive and unpredictable, so we can't say for sure. But the Stellaron Hunters definitely won't appear in the Wardance Ceremony arena."
The Galaxy Ranger is elusive and unpredictable, so we can't say for sure.
Surely that hint was obvious enough?
But for March 7th...
"Mhm, Sister Lumina is right," she nodded, her adorable face regaining some confidence. "As long as no 'one-bite-planet-busting' or 'one-bite-surface-shattering' powerhouses show up, we'll be fine."
March 7th declared.
Such powerhouses wouldn't bother with a Wardance Ceremony anyway, so March 7th felt quite at ease.
"Don't worry, March 7th. You don't need to worry about any of that," Lumina reassured her. Then it was Yunli's turn to comfort March 7th.
Yunli planted her hands on her hips, a wide, almost sinister grin spreading across her face.
And as if to confirm this impression, her next words were indeed dripping with malicious intent.
"If you encounter any opponents you can't defeat, just leave them to me. Your master will personally take revenge for you."
"But..." Yunli paused dramatically before continuing, "this would mean all the glory of the Xianzhou Luofu would fall upon the Xianzhou Zhuming!"
"Hahahahaha!"
As she spoke, Yunli erupted into a textbook villain's laugh.
"Ugh..." Yunli's textbook villainous laughter stirred a terrible memory in March 7th...
March 7th remembered that Phantylia had also laughed like that...
"Don't worry, March 7th. Even... even if we encounter Galaxy Rangers or Stellaron Hunters, it won't matter." Seeing March 7th's growing anxiety, Little Swarm stepped forward to offer comfort.
Little Swarm was so deeply influenced by Stelle that her attempt at comfort...
"When the time comes, just give the order, and I'll cripple them before the match," Little Swarm declared. "That way, you can win easily!"
Her words drew all eyes to her.
"Umm..."
Feeling everyone's gaze, Little Swarm suddenly became shy and lowered her head.
"I... I'm serious."
So deeply influenced by Stelle, Little Swarm couldn't grasp why everyone was staring. She assumed they didn't believe her.
So she earnestly explained herself.
"..."
"Ah... Sister Lumina, look at her! What has Stelle taught her?" Shocked by Little Swarm's growing resemblance to Stelle, March 7th completely forgot her own worries and focused entirely on Little Swarm.
Hands on her hips, March 7th complained to Lumina with a mix of exasperation and helplessness.
Neither March 7th nor Dan Heng could control Stelle. Even when Uncle Yang and Himeko tried, they could only keep her slightly more subdued.
Therefore, for the issue of Stelle and Little Swarm, Sister Lumina had to personally intervene.
"Hmm... Little Swarm, you absolutely mustn't casually beat people into serious injuries or disability," Lumina instructed after a moment's thought.
"Mm-hmm, Sister Lumina is right," March 7th chimed in, nodding emphatically, relieved that Lumina was finally disciplining Little Swarm.
"Ugh... I understand. I won't do it again."
Lumina's words carried infinitely more weight in Little Swarm's heart than anyone else's.
"No, that's not what I meant," Lumina shook her head, a cryptic smile playing on her lips. "If you beat someone into serious injuries or cripple them, it's far too easy to get caught, you know."
"So..." Lumina paused, then continued, "we just need to use a little trickery—a slight obstacle to hinder our opponents, make them lose their combat ability, or simply make them miss the competition time."
"Mm-hmm, exactly! Exactly!" March 7th nodded enthusiastically, echoing Lumina's words in agreement.
"Hmm? Wait a minute..."
But March 7th quickly realized something was off.
Sister Lumina's words don't sound right, do they? Isn't this exactly what a cunning villain would do? Why would my own Sister Lumina say such a thing?
"Hiss..."
Suddenly, March 7th seemed to remember something—a detail she had observed long ago.
It seems... Sister Lumina is gradually starting to develop in Stelle's direction on her own!
Aaaaaaaah!
Damn you, Stelle! You deserve a thousand deaths!
In her mind, March 7th gave Stelle a thorough beatdown.