The Demon Empress’ eyes were ablaze as she looked at Tang Wulin. Then, she looked toward the rest of the federal military’s warriors and said with a cold voice, “Given the situation we have arrived at, the rest of these skirmishes are no longer of any importance to our battle today. For all of you, slaying me would be a victory. In our case, if we can kill your leaders, can you threaten us merely by relying on those aircraft? If that’s how it is, let’s not waste time anymore. We shall determine the victor with three rounds of battles. I believe mankind loves competitions and matches? We can determine the final winner and loser through three rounds of seven-on-seven matches. Anyone who lost that particular round shall all die. With three rounds of matches, there’s no fear for any of us to scheme nor go back on our words. The losing side won’t have many powerhouses left after three rounds. Do you have the courage to form your lineup for the matches? If you win, at least there will be far fewer casualties. The common soldiers won’t be regarded as the cannon fodder anymore. If we win, it will save us some trouble too.”The Demon Empress was right about the lineup! If victory and defeat were really determined through three rounds of matches, the losing side would lose seven powerhouses every round. Therefore, the lineup for the matches was extremely important.

It was a truly massive gamble. It put the lives of both sides’ veterans on the line. If the lineup was appropriate, it would ensure that the team could achieve the final victory with the least losses and defeat the other team completely.

Placing such a wager with the Holy Spirit Cult could possibly end up with the cult going back on its word. In any case, everyone from the losing team would need to die at the end of each round. If their greatest warriors could be placed in the first team, the possibility of the Holy Spirit Cult betraying them would be reduced immensely.

On the other hand, the stakes were much higher for the human side. After all, if they were killed, the abyssal creatures could be resurrected by the abyss, but the same could not be said for the human beings!

If the tumultuous fighting continued, the human forces would sacrifice countless lives to defeat their opponents. If they could achieve victory by winning the match, mankind would not have to pay such a high price and more people would be able to live.

That being said, the Demon Empress would certainly have her own intentions for proposing a bet like this. Where did her confidence come from? Also, it appeared to be more beneficial for the Federation on the surface, so what was in it for her?

All of this put pressure on the Federation’s numerous powerhouses that were present. Should they agree or not?

Several tens of thousands of soldiers awaited their decision attentively. The Demon Empress’ final sentence was particularly ruthless. If they chose not to agree to the wager, it would show a disregard for the lives of these soldiers and would substantially affect their morale. Yet if they chose to gamble, it would undoubtedly mean that they were stepping into the Demon Empress’ trap.

Tang Wulin hesitated, as did Gu Yuena. All the powerhouses from the Federation were unsure.

“It seems like you humans are not so simple-minded. I shall give you some time to discuss this. We shall remain where we stand for an hour, and we won’t spearhead an offensive.” The Demon Empress looked toward Tang Wulin and gave him a scornful smile. With a wave of her hand, she conjured a burst of purple-gold light. It instantly covered all the powerhouses from her side and also the abyssal passage.

The numerous powerhouses on the human side were in a different situation. Some were even awkwardly exchanging glances. Tang Wulin was the first person to calm his mental state. With a deep voice, he said, “Please follow me, everyone.” With those words, he led the way as they flew toward the mountain where the Life Subtree had been planted.

The rest of the humans followed closely behind him. The federal military needed a figurehead at this point.

The powerhouses from the Tang Sect, Shrek Academy, the War God Hall, the Spirit Pagoda, the army, and also some reclusive clans followed Tang Wulin as they all soared to the mountain. On the other hand, the federal military’s soldiers stayed behind for the moment. Both parties were standing facing each other in their respective positions. They waited quietly for the human leaders to come to their decision.

When they landed on the mountain slope, the powerhouses from Shrek and the Tang Sect were already used to the thick life source brought by the Life Subtree. However, it was the first time for the vast majority of those from the Spirit Pagoda, the War God Hall, the army, and the clans.

They felt rejuvenated almost immediately upon coming into contact with the rich life source. Their spiritual exhaustion and physical fatigue from their earlier battle were rapidly fading.

Even Gu Yuena could not help expressing her astonishment upon sensing the Life Subtree’s aura.

Was this the hidden resource of Shrek Academy?

The father and son duo, Qiangu Dieting and Qiangu Dongfeng, were with the powerhouses from the Spirit Pagoda. They could not keep the greed from their face when they saw the Life Subtree. Qiangu Dongfeng even suspected that he might be able to restore his crippled arm if he could acquire additional life source from the ancient tree. After all, he was a Limit Douluo-ranked powerhouse. The rich life source was enough to cure his injuries earlier.

Shrek truly lived up to its reputation!

Naturally, Tang Wulin could sense the emotional changes of the people under the influence of the Life Subtree. His eyes moved to the federal military’s supreme commander, the Divine Brush Douluo Yu Guanzhi.

“What do you think, Supreme Commander?” After all, Yu Guanzhi was still the supreme commander, at least in name, for mankind’s war against the abyssal creatures and Holy Spirit Cult.

Yu Guanzhi replied with a bitter smile, “This is an important matter. With the Federation taken into account, this matter should be reported back to them. I can almost guarantee that the parliament will certainly request for us to continue a full-scale assault and reduce the chances of anything untoward happening to a minimum.”

Based on his understanding of the federal parliament and also the administration as a whole, the Federation would be willing to sacrifice tens of thousands of lives to defeat these opponents. The failure to achieve that would result in the downfall of the entire Douluo Continent. It was a result that no one could afford to see.

Tang Wulin nodded gently. Of course, he had thought about this as well.

Yu Guanzhi spoke in a deep voice, “The Demon Empress made sure her voice could be heard by all so she could ensure that our own people would pressure us into making a decision. After all, the option of determining the victor and loser through a small number of fighters instead of continuing the full-scale war would result in a tremendous difference in the number of fatalities for us. If we refuse to partake in this enormous bet with them, our side’s morale will be greatly affected as well.”

After pondering for a while, they could tell that even the time given by the Demon Empress was planned meticulously. An hour was not considered too long or too short. There was certainly still time for them to seek permission from the Federation, but the federal parliament’s rushed decision would only be exactly what Yu Guanzhi described. To ensure victory in this war, the parliament would prefer stability rather than paying a huge cost.

However, an hour’s time was definitely not enough for them to enhance troop morale enough to get the three army corps to risk their lives again. Without question, they would be at a loss.

Given all that, should they agree to the bet?

Yu Guanzhi took a deep breath, and a look of determination flashed past his eyes. He shifted his gaze to look toward the army’s numerous powerhouses including those from the War God Hall. He spoke grimly, “On this occasion, I’m not only representing the Federation, but I also speak for the army. Every soldier that followed me into battle is like my own blood brother. Had I not had to take the Federation into consideration, if I were only considering on behalf of my men, I’d be willing to partake in the bet. This is because I have countless brothers that can survive the war if we can win. On the other hand, this is very important to me. Thus, Tang Sect Master and Spirit Pagoda Master, I would like both of you to make this clear. Are you confident that you can defeat the Demon Empress?”

There was no doubt that the God-ranked Demon Empress played a pivotal role in this war. Whether they chose to continue fighting or take the risk with this enormous gamble, they would need to cross her first. It was only by doing that, they would be able to achieve the final victory. Otherwise, everything else was meaningless.