Xiao Hei struggled in the grip of the man in black, but his main body’s mere Level 150 Constitution meant that with a slight squeeze from his captor, he was held fast as if bound by steel hoops, making movement impossible. He was boiling with rage internally, cursing the man in black as a complete blockhead. As Ye Chen’s little tail following him since the early days, Xiao Hei knew Ye Chen’s temperament inside and out; hoping to threaten this fiend was like inviting death upon oneself!
"What an utter fool, using me to threaten this cold-blooded devil! Damn it, what kind of IQ does he have? He won't release you for my sake, not in a million years. Forget me, even if you captured every person in the world, you couldn't change his decision. Oh, wait, there's that little girl... if you can catch her, then I’ll admit you’re capable..."
Xiao Hei cursed inwardly, grinding its teeth in fury, but outwardly it put on a show of weeping bitterly to Ye Chen, begging, "Boss, it's all Xiao Hei’s fault. I’ve discovered this idiot is a combination of add-brain, zero-brain, moron, and lunatic..."
It spewed every derogatory term it could find at the man in black, venting all the anger in its heart. After a torrent of abuse, it returned to the main topic, tears streaming down its face: "I saw him summoning monsters and knew there was a wicked plot brewing. This despicable, cunning scoundrel, just as I suspected, he planned to use dirty tricks against you! So I hid, intending to eavesdrop on his plan. Unfortunately, this son of a gun has super-sensitive ears and found my hiding spot! Damn it, after destroying the monster corpse I was inhabiting, he—damn his ancestors—sensed something was wrong and captured me hiding inside. Boss, I’m innocent, I swear..."
The man in black, hearing Xiao Hei’s barrage of foul language, looked ashen-faced. If he hadn't been worried about Ye Chen on the opposite side and needing the creature as a hostage, he would have crushed this thing with a single slap long ago.
"I’ll give you three minutes to consider. Pull your forces back! I promise to return this little thing completely unharmed!" the man in black gritted out, his patience worn thin by Xiao Hei.
Ye Chen’s expression was ice-cold. He stared at the man for a moment, the killing intent in his eyes receding slightly. He spoke with detached indifference, "It’s just a little bug. I have plenty more; feel free to kill it." He gestured toward the Black Stink Worm Legion marching up behind him to build up the spectacle. "All these monsters are controlled by a little bug. Do you really think I care about that one?"
The man in black turned his head and saw a massive host of high-level monsters flying swiftly toward them. They lined up respectfully behind Ye Chen, including seven or eight Flood Dragons, as well as Gold-Maned Lions, Blood-Eyed Apes, and other thousand-level monsters—all former leaders from the early continent.
He recognized instantly that these monsters showed no signs of ascension, just like the ones Xiao Hei controlled, and a chill crept into his heart.
Not only did he feel a chill, but even Xiao Hei, clutched in his hand, froze. An indescribable sensation clogged its heart, and it stood stunned, unable to utter a single word. Although it had anticipated this situation, for some reason, its core felt hollowed out, its body icy cold, and its heart sank to the bottom...
Just as the man in black was lost in thought—
Suddenly, a hurricane erupted!
Swish!
A magnificent wave of killing intent permeated the air. By the time the man in black heard the wind and snapped back to reality, Ye Chen’s face was right in front of him, their noses nearly touching...
The man in black’s heart seemed to stop beating; he felt suffocated. In that instantaneous fraction of 0.001 seconds, a sudden coldness swept over his hand. Immediately after, he saw Ye Chen rapidly retreating ten zhang, holding a severed arm in his hand. Clutched tightly on that arm was Xiao Hei, covered in tentacles.
It all happened in a flash of lightning and flint. By the time everyone reacted, Ye Chen had effortlessly pried open the grip, extracted Xiao Hei, and tossed it casually toward Xu Tianguo nearby.
Xiao Hei felt weightless, as if trapped in a dream, looking at everything unfolding with disbelief. A feeling never before experienced flooded its core. The icy depths of its heart the moment before were suddenly ignited by blazing fire. Its eyes grew misty, and it choked out, "Boss, you..."
Ye Chen waved his hand. "You haven't finished the mission I assigned you. You aren't allowed to die yet." With that, he looked up at the man in black, intense killing intent blazing in his eyes, and darted forward, Divine Sword in hand!
Swish!
Like a gust of wind, he swept past, creating a wave of air. With the force of thunder, he struck toward the man in black. Under the Lightning Superman Mode, his speed was terrifyingly extreme; in less than a blink, he was close to the man in black. Before the latter’s retina could even register the movement, Ye Chen had already unleashed tens of millions of sword strikes, hacking the man into pieces, reducing him to fine pinkish flesh.
Two seconds later.
"Aaaah—" The man in black’s miserable shriek echoed, laced with extreme terror. He stammered, "P-please, spare me! I’ll be your slave, I’ll submit to your demolition, please, please..."
Ye Chen’s expression remained cold; he showed no hesitation, sweeping his sword to annihilate him. It wasn't that he was cruel, nor that he hadn't been moved; it was simply that he lacked the confidence to subdue a Ghost God Realm expert. After all, if such a being were normally by his side, they might launch a surprise attack while he was in his main body state, putting his life in peril!
Moreover...
Having suffered the assault of the Divine Sword and been reduced to powder, even if he could reassemble, the Ghost Qi would be largely depleted, leaving him severely damaged and of little use.
Suddenly—
Boom!
Spatial ripples distorted violently. Behind the man in black, a black hole, about a zhang wide, materialized out of thin air. A long, slender, fair hand stretched out from within. The fingernails were crystal clear as jade, emitting faint luster, exquisitely beautiful. It seized the flesh and blood of the man in black in one grasp, crushing it into an object the size of a small stone, and began to pull it back toward the hole.
"Trying to escape?" Ye Chen was momentarily stunned by the sudden appearance of the black hole, but he quickly reacted. Most likely, the man in black had shattered a token to summon aid. This ready-made delicacy—how could he let it go?
Whoosh!
Ye Chen took a step, swinging his Divine Sword straight down toward the wrist. He activated the Meteor Mystery Art, boosting his speed exponentially and doubling his arm strength!
He brought the sword down heavily!
This strike seemed to condense the momentum of heaven and earth; the descent appeared surprisingly slow, as if the entire surrounding space had instantly entered slow motion.
Thwack!
The Divine Sword struck the fair wrist. Ye Chen suddenly felt a tremor and dull pain vibrate through the tiger's mouth of his gripping arm, surprising him. A glint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes, and he activated Ant Superman Mode!
Power surged madly!
Under the dual Superman Modes, Ye Chen’s aura resembled a primordial beast. The magnetic field within his body agitated the sky, instantly covering it with dark clouds. A fierce wind swept through the area, plunging it into darkness, as if the end of the world had arrived.
Under the dual Superman Modes, the Divine Sword did not immediately sever the fair wrist. Instead, it suddenly snapped with a crack!
The expressions of everyone present froze stiff. Even Ye Chen’s face changed, tinged with bewilderment.
"Bastard!!!"
A roar filled with fury and shock erupted from the black hole. The fair hand fiercely crushed the flesh of the man in black it held, turning it into a mist of blood that transformed into streaks of bloody dragons spiraling into the hand.
Ye Chen recognized that voice—it was the Black-Winged Man from a year ago!
"Die!" The fingers of the fair hand curled slightly, and then it flicked sharply. There were no energy fluctuations, yet a piercing kinetic force traveled across the distance, hitting Ye Chen’s chest at extreme speed!
Bang!
Ye Chen shook violently. Even under the dual Superman Modes, his bones felt as if they were scattering. He was jolted backward for a thousand zhang, crashing through three large buildings before finally slowing down. The protective heart mirror of his Sacred Flame Armor on his chest now bore a shattered hole!
A top-tier Ghost Artifact had been broken!
One had to remember that the heart mirror was the sturdiest piece of the Sacred Flame Set. If even the heart mirror fractured, the vambraces, gauntlets, and other parts surely couldn't withstand the impact.
Ye Chen reached up to clutch his chest, his face flushed crimson, spitting out a mouthful of blood. His brows were tightly furrowed, and the corner of his mouth twitched, betraying the intense pain coursing through his body, so severe it affected his facial muscles.
The sharp pain in his heart stoked his killing intent. He gritted his teeth and looked up, only to see the fair hand retracting toward the black hole. The entire vortex was rapidly shrinking. Just as it was about to collapse into a tiny black dot, a voice brimming with violent, raging fire echoed from within, resonating across the entire world: "When I emerge, I will drench the entire Origin God Star in blood!!!"
Boom!
A colossal thunderclap exploded in the sky, and a torrential downpour began, soaking everyone present, as if drenching their very souls. An unprecedented chill enveloped everyone.
After a long silence, Ye Zhu was the first to react. She rushed toward Ye Chen, arriving by his side. She looked at the man whose black hair was plastered to his face by the rain, blood staining the corner of his mouth, his handsome face set with grim determination.
Ye Zhu suddenly felt a pang in her heart, as if pierced by something sharp. Her eyes filled with overwhelming tenderness. She pulled out a handkerchief and gently wiped the blood from Ye Chen’s mouth and the rain from his face, her gaze full of pity. "Are you alright?"
Ye Chen shook his head slightly. Just as he was about to speak, his internal injuries flared up, sending a searing pain through him, causing his mouth to twitch involuntarily. After a moment, as the pain subsided slightly, he spoke slowly, maintaining his usual composed calm: "I'm fine. Go check on Island Master Ziyun and the others. The man in black is gone; tell Xiao Hei to subdue that monster army. Anyone who disobeys will be killed!"
Ye Zhu wanted to speak, but Ye Chen’s unmistakable gaze stopped her. She hesitated, wanting to say more, but finally let out a sigh deep in her heart, which blossomed into bitterness as she slowly spread. She nodded slightly, then turned and left.
After watching Ye Zhu depart, Ye Chen suddenly coughed up another mouthful of blood. His chest felt like it was being burned by raging fire, the pain almost unbearable. A chill ran through him. That Black-Winged Man was horrifyingly powerful; he had inflicted such grievous injuries on Ye Chen while he was in dual Superman Mode with just the strength of one finger. If not for the Sacred Flame Armor absorbing the impact, his own skin and flesh would likely have cost him his life!
He wiped the blood from his mouth and slowly straightened his back, deactivating the Superman Modes. Since they had deactivated mid-battle, the energy drain wasn't severe, so the fatigue wasn't intense; otherwise, with his heavily injured body, he would have collapsed instantly.
He floated nonchalantly before Xu Tianguo and the others. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened. He saw a drop of crimson blood suspended in the air where the black hole had vanished!