Zhao Qingcang scrutinized the young girl in front of him carefully.

There was not much surprise in his heart.

In fact, even earlier, Hou Changfeng, the Governor of Dongning Province, had already secretly reported this girl's situation.

It was said she could create Avatars to form a band to boost damage, defense, healing, mana regeneration, and even inspire morale.

As long as they were on the battlefield, any allies who could hear her music would receive stat buffs.

Back when Zhao Qingcang saw this report, he too had felt quite shocked.

Such a terrifying support Professional was extremely rare.

Then, another question could not help but arise in his mind.

What on earth was the principle behind Gandalf's Avatars?

Not only did they look completely different from one another, but they even had both male and female genders.

It was truly miraculous.

Such a figure—no matter what, a way must be found to keep him alive.

"Marshal, I leave Sona to you. I have other matters to attend to, so I shall take my leave first," Zhou Huai spoke while controlling Gandalf.

Zhao Qingcang nodded, then solemnly offered a military salute to Gandalf.

"Take care!"

Controlling Gandalf, Zhou Huai returned the military salute just as earnestly.

Then he said in a half-joking tone:

"Marshal, you too! Don't die."

"I'm waiting for you to confer the Level of Major General upon me."

Hearing this, a hearty smile finally broke across Zhao Qingcang's perpetually tense face.

"If you can snatch back the Pendulum of Life..."

"...forget Major General, I'll directly confer the Level of General upon you."

Zhou Huai smiled as well.

"Then it's a deal."

"It's a deal."

As they spoke, the heavy, oppressive atmosphere in the room lightened a bit.

In truth, both of them knew very well how perilous this battle would be.

And even more clearly, they understood that this might be the last time they would ever see each other.

Saying no more, Zhou Huai controlled Gandalf to turn around and leave the office.

Zhao Qingcang didn't linger either, hurriedly leading his men to the front lines.

After leaving Zhao Qingcang's office...

...Zhou Huai shifted his consciousness back to his original body.

...

Half an hour later.

Evernight Guild Base.

On the guild square, a dense crowd of people stood packed together.

Evernight Guild had over 1,200 official members.

And over 2,300 unofficial reserve personnel.

In total, over 3,500 people stood neatly outside the guild, lined up in neat formation, completely silent.

Ever since receiving the news that Great Xia Nation was going to war against Sakura Country on all fronts, the guild Classer across major cities had also begun full mobilization.

They enthusiastically signed up to join the reserves of various war zones under the military.

Although the overall strength of these guild Classer was inferior to the regular soldiers trained by the military, they were still a formidable force that could not be understated.

Donghai City was no exception.

Having been tempered by the beast tide and survived the mountain of corpses and sea of blood, the guild Classer had even more bloodlust and fearlessness in their bones.

Facing a national war, they registered with exceptional enthusiasm.

Only Evernight Guild, currently the undisputed number one guild in Donghai City, had made no move for a long time.

Although the guild members felt somewhat restless, they patiently restrained themselves.

They were waiting.

Waiting for that mysterious and powerful Lord to give the final order.

Finally, the guild gates slowly opened.

Under everyone's gaze, Uncle Fu slowly pushed out a wheelchair from inside the doors.

Sitting on the wheelchair was a delicate-featured, seemingly weak young man.

Except for the small portion of core Evernight Guild members who had participated in the beast tide...

...most people were seeing Zhou Huai's appearance for the first time.

Many had imagined the Lord's appearance countless times.

Perhaps a Demon Lord as noble and evil-charm as Lord Moria.

Perhaps a swordsman as domineering and fierce as Lord Yasuo.

Or perhaps a god of war as mighty as a mountain like Lord Xiang Yu.

But they could never have guessed...

...that the legendary existence who created Eternal Night single-handedly, with clouds of experts under his command, and worshiped like a deity by everyone...

...would turn out to be such a young man who looked... physically helpless.

Even worse, a cripple.

Yet no one present would look down on this cripple.

In fact, their eyes were filled with reverence.

Standing at the very front of the line, Jasmine couldn't help but sigh emotionally in her heart.

Every time the Lord personally appeared, it meant that earth-shattering events were about to occur.

Last time, it was the beast tide besieging the city, putting Donghai City in imminent peril.

This time, it was an all-out national war with Sakura Country.

As Zhou Huai's gaze calmly swept across the square...

...sweeping across those excited, curious, or fanatical faces...

...not a single person dared to meet his eyes.

Wherever his gaze passed, everyone subconsciously lowered their heads, reining in all their emotions.

The next second.

*Thud!*

Unsure who took the lead first...

...immediately after, like falling dominoes...

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

The dull thuds of knees striking the ground echoed together in unison.

On the square, over 3,500 members of Evernight Guild dropped to one knee in unison.

They straightened their backs, clenched their right fists, and struck them heavily against the left side of their chests.

That was the position of the heart.

Representing their ultimate loyalty.

Immediately after, a roar embodying the willpower of 3,500 people erupted like thunder from dry land, soaring into the sky and shaking the surroundings!

"Greetings, Lord!"

Zhou Huai's calm gaze swept across the dense crowd before him.

Three thousand five hundred people knelt neatly on one knee on the square, completely silent.

A chilling aura of slaughter soared straight into the sky.

How much time had passed since the end of the beast tide?

Unknowingly, Evernight Guild had already grown to such a scale.

Although the headcount wasn't huge, and those who signed the 【Demon Lord Contract】 with him were only the 1,200 core members standing at the very front...

...this still didn't prevent them from becoming the sharpest and most resolute force in Zhou Huai's hands.

Looking across the entirety of Great Xia, today's Evernight Guild was definitely a force that could not be overlooked.

Among all the members' Levels, those above Level 40 made up the vast majority.

Especially after Moria's Level broke through Level 50.

All the core members who signed the contract saw their stats rise accordingly.

Their actual combat capability was not at all inferior to ordinary Classer above Level 50.

This was a truly elite army.

Zhou Huai raised his hand and gestured gently upward.

A simple gesture, yet it seemed to carry a miraculous magic.

"All of you, rise."

"Yes, Lord!"

Three thousand five hundred people answered in unison and stood up in uniform motion, like a steel forest stirred by the wind.

Zhou Huai looked at them, his voice calm.

"How much time has passed from the founding of Evernight Guild until now?"

"Unknowingly, our Eternal Night has grown from an obscure small guild in Donghai City to its scale today."

His gaze swept across the young, fanatical faces.

"Back then, we defeated Heaven's Decree Guild, and later held off the beast tide to defend the entire Donghai City."

"We created one miracle after another that others deemed impossible."

He paused, his tone abruptly turning sharp and fierce.

"And now, the nation needs us."

"In the face of national crisis, our Evernight Guild will never hide like cowardly turtles!"