Morgana examined him and said, "Alright. If you can defeat me, or prove your strength, I'll agree to your deal. But if you die in the fight..."
"Don't worry, if I die, I die. I won't bother you."
"Good."
Led by Morgana, the two arrived at the plaza outside the castle. A crowd of demons was already gathered, cheering for two of their comrades who were fighting in the center of the square.
Upon seeing Morgana, the demons immediately fell silent, saluting her in unison. It was clear that Morgana held a high position among them.
When they heard that their queen was about to spar with the guy beside her, the demons erupted in thunderous cheers. The two fighters on stage wisely retreated, clearing the area.
Just then, a demon stepped out from the crowd, holding a strangely shaped sword. Seeing him, the other demons stepped back, making way.
"Queen Morgana is the leader of the demons, how can you challenge her so easily?"
The speaker was none other than Atto. The weapon in his hand was the Sword of Command, a weapon Morgana had personally bestowed upon him. His towering physique made him stand out among the demons.
However, like the other demons, Atto had only recently been revived. Though he was tall and imposing, he was still far from his peak condition.
"Atto, are you trying to fight on behalf of the queen?"
Seeing Atto step forward, Morgana did not seem angry. Instead, the corners of her mouth curved upwards.
"Your Majesty is a noble figure, not to be challenged by mere mortals. As the queen's sword, I shall step forward to fight for her."
"Well said!"
"Well said, Atto!"
"How dare this pretty boy challenge the queen? He should look in the mirror."
"Indeed, who is the queen? He'll be slapped to death before he knows it."
Atto's words instantly resonated with all the demons present. Some praised Atto, some praised the queen, and many belittled Bai Qi for his overconfidence.
Morgana looked at Bai Qi beside her and said, "See? If you want to challenge me, you'll have to get past Atto first."
Bai Qi was not offended. He said calmly, "In that case, I won't bully the younger one. You go ahead."
With that, Bai Qi stamped his feet lightly. The shadow behind him writhed violently. The next moment, black energy surged from the shadow beneath Bai Qi's feet, forming a massive dark cloud above him.
"You shall fight for me."
As Bai Qi finished speaking, a chilling cackle echoed from the dark cloud. It then descended rapidly, taking on a humanoid form. Its appearance, and even the weapon in its hand, were identical to Atto's. The difference was that this Atto, along with his weapon, was composed of black energy, his face obscured.
Seeing the imposter Atto before him, the real Atto let out a disdainful snort. "Hmph, a mere counterfeit."
With that, he drew his sword and stepped onto the plaza. The shadow Atto wasted no time, quickly moving to face Atto.
With the word "begin," both swung their swords at each other.
Clang!
The moment their swords collided, both exerted force with their legs and retreated simultaneously.
Atto, having fought alongside Morgana in countless battles, sensed something amiss from their first exchange. The opponent not only looked identical to him but also mimicked his every move, even the subtle nuances of his technique and strength.
Atto then cautiously engaged in several more exchanges. The more he fought, the more alarmed he became. This battle felt like fighting his own shadow.
Meanwhile, Bai Qi and Morgana sat side-by-side on a high platform, overlooking the two fighters below. A table beside them was laden with snacks like sunflower seeds and fruits.
Bai Qi casually picked up an apple, took a bite, and said, "Watching this is rather dull. Queen Morgana, dare to place a wager with me?"
"Why wouldn't I dare?" Morgana's interest was piqued. She asked, "What shall we wager on?"
"I bet your subordinate Atto will be defeated by my subordinate."
"Then I bet Atto will win."
"If I win, I hope Queen Morgana will give me the gene sequence of the demon warriors. Of course, I only need the second-generation demon warriors'."
Morgana was silent for a few seconds before nodding. "Agreed. But what if you lose?"
"If I lose? What do you wish for, Your Majesty?"
Morgana waved her hand. "This queen doesn't covet what little you have. How about this: if you lose, you'll sit here and sing 'Conquer' for me."
This time, Bai Qi was speechless.
What? Sing 'Conquer'? In front of everyone? Morgana truly had a peculiar sense of humor. But then again...
Bai Qi nodded and said, "I can agree to that, but I have one more condition. I do have some pride, and singing 'Conquer' in front of everyone makes our wager unequal."
"Agreed. Speak, what else do you want?"
Morgana's willingness to agree stemmed from her belief that what Bai Qi wanted would not cause her significant loss. Second-generation demon warriors were merely low-tier. Even giving them away would be a small loss for her.
Among the many gods in the Super Gene world, Morgana's scientific achievements ranked in the top five.
Through her research, Morgana had already upgraded the gene sequences of her current demon warriors to the fourth generation. The second-generation gene sequences were long obsolete. If Bai Qi sang well, Morgana might even gift them to him out of sheer pleasure, regardless of whether he won.
"I want your energy barrier technology."
Upon hearing Bai Qi's request, Morgana couldn't help but exclaim, "You truly dare to ask."
Bai Qi's side certainly had energy barrier technology. However, in comparison, both its performance and conversion efficiency were far inferior to that of the demon civilization. More importantly, Morgana's energy barrier technology possessed a crucial characteristic: it could convert received energy attacks into its own energy, not only powering the shield but also the warships it protected.
Unless a celestial computer was used at close range to crack the shield, or an extremely powerful attack was concentrated on a single point, it would be difficult to breach it.
However, both of these scenarios were highly unlikely in ordinary battles, and even among advanced civilizations, those capable of achieving them were rare.
"Of course," Bai Qi said, as if certain of victory, deliberately raising his voice. "Or is it that Queen Morgana doesn't believe her brave warriors can win?"
Bai Qi's words were not only for Morgana but also for the demon warriors below.