Praying for monthly votes, praying for recommendation tickets! …… Hearing the Minotaur’s words, Ye Chen nodded slightly. The Minotaur glanced at him with awe, yet his heart held a sliver of doubt. "If he wants to protect humanity, why didn't he kill me? Wouldn't that have been better? Oh, right, he must disdain killing me, or perhaps, he knows the monster army is too vast, and without my command, these beasts, driven by instinct alone, would still charge at the humans."

Muttering a few thoughts to himself, he dared not linger for a moment. He quickly turned and bolted, his figure vanishing in a flash from Ye Chen's sight, darting into a stretch of black mist in the distance. This mist was a piece of technological weaponry capable of warping space, creating visual illusions that obscured vision. It was a very common wilderness deployment tool developed by the Dark Creatures, akin to a modern tent.

On the towering Dark Throne, the handsome man watched the charging Minotaur, raising an eyebrow. "Deal with it?"

The Minotaur gave a wry smile. "Reporting to Your Highness, there is inexplicably a 'Demigod'-level expert here."

Silence.

Within the black mist, a sudden, profound quiet fell.

The handsome youth's expression froze for a long moment before he snapped back to awareness, his eyes locking onto the Minotaur. "Are you absolutely certain?"

The Minotaur hesitated for a beat, then nodded. "Yes, his speed was terrifying. Even with my eyesight, I could not track his combat power, which was definitely over five million."

The seductive woman and the winged man beside him gasped, then looked towards the handsome youth, awaiting his command.

"A Demigod expert?" The handsome youth frowned. He pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Why didn't he kill you? With the physique of a Demigod, their body is intimately connected with their surroundings; they can sense your combat power and status without any instruments. He absolutely should have slain you."

Cold sweat beaded on the Minotaur’s forehead. "He said he did not wish for slaughter and told me to lead the monster army away. Your subordinate surmises that perhaps he couldn't handle so many monsters by himself, which is why he did so."

The handsome youth was momentarily stunned, then burst into booming laughter. After a moment, his expression turned cold. "Are you joking? Elder Soulslayer is a Demigod expert. You were present in the War Realm last time when he slaughtered the Ninth-Tier Ghosts and Gods of the Pursult Civilization. Don't you recall that level of might? Never mind a mere few million monsters; even if there were twice that many, as long as the opponent was willing to burn their divine soul, they could be instantly annihilated."

The Minotaur monster blinked, then hesitated. "You mean...?"

"Hmph," the handsome youth declared with arrogance. "I don't know what method he used to blind you, but this person has absolutely not reached the Demigod level, or perhaps, he is merely a wounded Demigod, which is why he is reluctant to burn his divine soul to enhance his combat power."

The Minotaur collected his thoughts. His eyes suddenly brightened. "Your Highness truly has a grand and broad view, seeing farther than your subordinate. This person is definitely not as powerful as I witnessed; he must be using some secret technique. All civilizations possess combat secrets that can drastically boost fighting power. This must be one of them, and it surely has a time limit or severe after-effects."

"Indeed," the handsome youth nodded as he saw the Minotaur comprehend. He instructed, "Go observe. Dispatch Rock Golems for a probe."

The Minotaur’s mouth twitched. He bowed slightly and murmured, "Your Highness, that... the Rock Golems, the Ice Crystal Monsters, and the Black Demon Battalion have all been slaughtered."

"What?" The handsome youth raised an eyebrow and glared at the Minotaur. "My personal guards are all dead?"

"...Yes," the Minotaur’s body trembled slightly.

"Scram!" The handsome man raised his hand, and a black palm floated out, hitting the Minotaur’s eight-foot-tall body and sending him staggering.

Simultaneously, outside.

Ye Chen’s Superman Mode ended. He swiftly moved, darting towards the entrance of the ruins. There were about a dozen monsters between levels four and five thousand in this ocean of monsters. If more than two attacked him simultaneously, even his physique couldn't endure it.

Swish.

Ye Chen summoned his hand, and the Nine Palaces Flame Hall collapsed and dissipated. His expression was slightly pale; maintaining the Nine Palaces consumed a great deal of energy. He moved rapidly towards the location of Bai Long and the others, slowly descending.

"Injured?" Ye Zhu was the first to fly over, his face full of concern.

Ye Chen shook his head, then looked towards Murong Xue not far away. With a movement, he flew over and looked at the white-clothed woman. His eyes rippled briefly before he asked quickly, "How prepared are the nuclear weapons?"

Murong Xue watched Ye Chen approach. Seeing his tall figure standing before her, she recalled his slaughtering posture on the battlefield and lowered her head slightly. "It will be ready soon. The nuclear weapons are jointly guarded by Elvie and high-ranking military officials, so retrieving them is a bit slow."

Ye Chen nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over Bing Yun beside her. He paused briefly on her fiery figure before turning to look at the dark, looming monster army behind him, his brow deeply furrowed.

Swish.

In the distance, many powerful monsters charged over, some spitting ice swords or lava streams that fell into the crowd, causing immense casualties.

Suddenly, Ye Chen watched Bai Long charge towards a pair of mother and child, intending to block the ice spikes for them. His heart clenched. He hadn't time to shout a warning before Bai Long rushed forward. The moment his palm contacted the ice spike, his entire body stiffened, and he was rapidly frozen into an ice sculpture.

Shatter on impact.

Mo Feng, who was standing nearby, quickly rushed over. He moved his hand, his entire body emitting a verdant green glow—the Wood-elemental Entanglement talent activated. Vine-like tendrils shot out from beneath Bai Long’s feet, wrapping around him tightly to prevent further harm.

At this moment, Ye Chen also rushed over. He flicked his palm, and the remaining energy in his body transformed into burning breath, enveloping Bai Long. Soon, the ice on his body rapidly melted away.

"Damn!" Bai Long broke free, shuddering. "What in the world was that? How could the temperature be so low? With my physique, I can resist absolute zero at negative 273.15 degrees Celsius, so how could I be frozen?"

Ye Chen offered no explanation. He would slowly learn these things later; explaining now was pointless. Seeing that Bai Long hadn't suffered major harm, he left a warning and flew away: "Don't casually touch the ice. There won't always be someone to save you next time."

Mo Feng stared at the ice spike, frowning. At such a critical moment, instead of hunting monsters, he propped his chin in his hand and began to ponder.

"Strange," Mo Feng murmured to himself. "The lowest temperature detected on Earth is 273.15 degrees Celsius, known as absolute zero, capable of freezing atoms and molecules. Logically, it shouldn't be able to freeze a being whose physique reaches Level 1000. Although Bai Long hasn't reached that level, the energy within him is extremely powerful; circulating it slightly should shatter the ice block."

After deep thought, his eyes lit up. "I see! Freezing everything must have frozen his thoughts too, which is why this idiot forgot to circulate his energy." With that realization, he moved, joining Bai Long in the fray.

At the ruin entrance, Murong Xue’s communicator received a message: "Nuclear warheads ready. Please instruct the launch time."

Murong Xue’s eyes brightened when she saw the text. She quickly shouted towards Ye Chen, who was fighting at the edge of the monster army. Ye Chen paused slightly, then moved like lightning, arriving instantly.

"Ready?" Ye Chen guessed why Murong Xue had called him.

Murong Xue nodded quickly. "When should we launch?"

Ye Chen turned to look at the monster army and the crowds near the ruin entrance. He pondered briefly, then said, "In five minutes, then."

"Okay," Murong Xue nodded, preparing to send the message.

Just then—

Boom!

A resounding crash echoed in the distance. A path cleared in the monstrous tide, and a robust, majestic figure walked out like a tyrant—it was the Minotaur.

The moment he saw the Minotaur, Ye Chen's expression shifted slightly. "They discovered the loophole this quickly?" Based on his understanding of human nature, he could almost guess the various thought processes his opponents would have when faced with such a situation. Clearly, they had noticed the flaw... If Ye Chen's true power was as immense as his Lightning Superman Mode suggested, he would certainly have been capable of slaughtering every monster present.

Moreover, Ye Chen knew that the power he displayed after his Superman Mode was comparable to a "Demigod." In this apocalyptic era, possessing such strength meant he could slaughter them all. Why then would he let them lead the army away? When he went to show his power, Ye Chen had sensed this approach was precarious, but he had no other option, hoping only that they wouldn't realize this angle. Now, however, the plan had failed.

"Notify them. Launch nuclear missiles in one minute. Everyone, take your high-ranking personnel and prepare to enter the ruins," Ye Chen commanded hastily.

Murong Xue paused, then glanced thoughtfully at the approaching Minotaur, frowning slightly. She quickly sent the message.

"Go!" Ye Chen moved, soaring towards the entrance of the Fire Civilization ruins. He hovered above the entrance, gazing out at the dark mass in the distance. Below him were countless people—some holding infants not yet a year old, others clutching sons aged seven or eight, all desperately crowding forward—this was the yearning for life.

In that instant, Ye Chen’s heart seemed to tremble. Under the immense will to survive, he felt like an ant, humble and insignificant.

Even at that moment, the thought of releasing the nuclear weapons wavered within him.

He fell silent for a moment, then his gaze became resolute. With the experience of ten years in his previous life, he never judged his actions as "right" or "wrong." As long as he held true to himself and followed his inner heart, everything else would follow naturally.

Ye Chen suddenly grasped a truth: in the apocalypse, life was too fragile, yet this was the apocalypse. Only through continuous effort and transcendence could one grow from a humble blade of grass into a towering tree.

At this moment, Ye Chen's spirit seemed tempered, becoming calmer, bright and reflective like a mirror. He advanced from the first stage of the Sage Realm to the second, gaining the ability to influence ordinary people, making them comply with his commands. If he could obtain the supreme manuals of the Beast Taming Civilization, his Sage Second-Tier mental fortitude would allow him to utilize them to their fullest potential.