The one who had just emerged from the restroom was precisely Liu Hui. During the long wait, he had finally felt the urgent need to relieve himself and had stepped inside for that purpose. He walked out feeling thoroughly refreshed, yet it was this moment of relaxation that inadvertently exposed his true power, which was immediately detected by the formidable expert, Zhui Hun.
“Halt! Don't move,” Zhui Hun commanded, swiftly closing the distance toward Liu Hui. The light near the restroom entrance was dim, further obstructed by some objects, preventing him from clearly identifying the person.
Liu Hui feigned confusion, preparing to speak, when Zhui Hun's large hand shot out, aiming for his neck. It was clear Zhui Hun was no ordinary man; anyone suspicious was to be subdued immediately before interrogation.
Liu Hui sighed inwardly. His perfect plan had encountered an unforeseen hitch because of Zhui Hun’s presence. Naturally, Liu Hui had no intention of submitting his neck to Zhui Hun’s grasp. Instead, he let out a sudden, fierce roar and launched a punch toward Zhui Hun.
Zhui Hun was startled, sensing a surge of potent battle intent erupting from the American soldier before him, as the punch hurtled toward his face. His hand instantly morphed into a fist, chopping downward, intercepting Liu Hui’s incoming strike perfectly.
Their fists collided violently. This sudden exchange caught both combatants off guard, resulting in both being violently thrown back, spinning away from each other over a significant distance.
The instant Liu Hui landed, he shifted his appearance to resemble Zhou Tengyun. Taking advantage of the favorable moment while Zhui Hun was airborne, he sprinted toward a passageway on the opposite side.
Zhui Hun stabilized himself, clearly rattled by Liu Hui. He hadn't expected his opponent to truly be a God-level master. Unfortunately, he had been so focused on the martial prowess that he failed to note the man's appearance, unsure if this was someone he recognized.
Seeing Liu Hui rapidly retreating, Zhui Hun quickly gave chase. As Liu Hui sprinted away, he simultaneously pulled numerous remote-controlled bombs from his storage space, tossing them onto the corridor he had just traversed.
Zhui Hun pursued Liu Hui at full speed. Although he noticed Liu Hui tossing objects, he didn't give it serious thought. After all, in Zhui Hun’s mind, no one would plant bombs inside the very aircraft they were riding.
Liu Hui’s initial acceleration was slightly faster than Zhui Hun’s. While throwing bombs, he continued his rapid flight, maintaining a pace Zhui Hun couldn't immediately match. In the short time he was running, Liu Hui managed to litter the entire cabin with remote bombs.
Zhui Hun finally caught up to Liu Hui near the tail section of the aircraft because Liu Hui had nowhere else to flee. At this proximity, Zhui Hun finally saw his face clearly.
A strange smile played on Liu Hui’s lips as he pressed a remote control held in his hand. Zhui Hun instinctively felt a wave of impending doom.
As Liu Hui depressed the button on the remote, the bombs strewn throughout the cabin ignited in violent explosions. The potency of these devices was immense. Though the C-17 Globemaster III transport plane was massive and heavily reinforced, the resulting detonations blew the entire rear fuselage into fragmented debris.
As the thunder of the explosions sounded, Liu Hui watched Zhui Hun with a triumphant smile, then leaped onto a piece of shrapnel blasted free from the plane, beginning to glide through the sky at an altitude of ten thousand meters.
Above Liu Hui, the colossal transport plane continued to erupt in a chain reaction of explosions, flames licking out from every section. Just as Liu Hui was basking in his success, he saw Zhui Hun leap clear of an explosion with nothing beneath him—he wasn't gliding on debris. Falling at an alarming rate, Zhui Hun instantly wrapped his arms around the gliding Liu Hui.
Caught completely off guard, Liu Hui found himself tightly embraced by Zhui Hun. Thus began a brutal, life-or-death struggle between the two in the vast expanse of the upper atmosphere.
At ten thousand meters high, all conventional fighting techniques were rendered useless. They exchanged blows, every strike landing with raw, flesh-on-flesh impact.
Zhui Hun powerfully pinned Liu Hui underneath him and drove a full-force punch into Liu Hui’s face. However, the Hongguang Armor on Liu Hui’s body suddenly activated, emitting a crimson glow that momentarily blocked Zhui Hun’s heavy blow. But after absorbing the impact, the red light immediately dissipated; Zhui Hun’s single punch had managed to drain the armor’s spiritual energy.
Simultaneously with Zhui Hun’s heavy strike, Liu Hui’s own powerful punch landed squarely on Zhui Hun’s chest. A series of sickening cracks echoed, and several of Zhui Hun’s ribs snapped. Zhui Hun spat out a mouthful of blood, which struck Liu Hui squarely in the face, causing immediate searing pain and blinding him momentarily.
Zhui Hun instantly suppressed the pain in his chest and unleashed several rapid strikes to Liu Hui’s back, inflicting damage there as well. Liu Hui responded with brute force, wrestling Zhui Hun in the sky, eventually forcing his opponent beneath him. He then drove a heavy kick into Zhui Hun’s abdomen, sending him flying a considerable distance away.
Zhui Hun swiftly threw a rope that snagged onto Liu Hui’s clothing. With a sharp tug, he reeled himself back in, locking onto Liu Hui once more. Gritting his teeth against the pain in his abdomen, Zhui Hun hammered a punch into Liu Hui’s arm, instantly breaking it and rendering it useless.
Liu Hui roared in fury and retaliated with a wild barrage of blows against Zhui Hun. Zhui Hun met the assault unflinchingly, fighting back with all his might. Blood mist sprayed across the air—the result of injuries sustained during their fierce grappling.
Liu Hui had initially used the Hongguang Armor to absorb Zhui Hun’s blow. Although this temporarily disabled the armor, it allowed him to seize the initiative, breaking several of Zhui Hun’s ribs. Despite Zhui Hun’s ferocity in the subsequent fight, his overall injuries were significantly more severe than Liu Hui’s.
Even so, Liu Hui’s body was gravely wounded: one arm was immobilized, several ribs were broken, his toes were completely numb, and his entire body was covered in gashes. Zhui Hun was in an even worse state: multiple fractured ribs, one hand and one foot paralyzed, and his face swollen to the point of looking like a pig’s head—a truly wretched sight. His damage was undeniably heavier than Liu Hui’s. Yet, Zhui Hun’s tenacity was remarkable; despite grave injuries, he clung to Liu Hui, continuing the brutal exchange.
As they tumbled and fought, they plummeted rapidly from ten thousand meters, nearing the earth below. Liu Hui glanced down in alarm, seeing only an endless expanse of ocean rapidly approaching. Zhui Hun, meanwhile, had descended into a state of maddening frenzy, completely oblivious to the imminent impact, continuing his relentless attacks on Liu Hui.
Liu Hui exploded with rage. Accepting a blow to his abdomen, he delivered a savage punch to Zhui Hun’s waist—a strike calculated in advance. The blow sent Zhui Hun flying far away, finally breaking the fatal embrace between them.
Liu Hui immediately searched his storage space and found the specialized cloak he frequently wore. He quickly donned the cloak and manipulated it to glide through the air against the wind. Heavily injured from their desperate aerial battle, he could no longer rely on his own strength to glide to a safe landing; the cloak was essential for his descent.
While gliding, Liu Hui retrieved a bottle of insect-race manufactured Human Potential Excitation Fluid from his storage space. He injected the fluid into his body and continued his northward glide.
The surrounding area was nothing but boundless ocean, with no islands or passing ships in sight. Out of options, Liu Hui had no choice but to attempt an emergency landing on the water. He crashed onto the sea surface precisely as the potential excitation fluid began to take effect. The immense impact nearly rendered him unconscious, but the fluid immediately kicked in, restoring his awareness. He surfaced, gulping great breaths of fresh air.
Although the descent from ten thousand meters had been perilous, Liu Hui had thankfully avoided any fatal wounds, which brought him a measure of relief.
Floating on his back on the vast ocean, Liu Hui calmed himself. He then took out two high-grade spirit stones from his storage, embedding them into the two focal points of the Hongguang Armor. As the spiritual energy from the stones flowed through the armor, the protection that had been shattered by Zhui Hun’s powerful punch was instantly restored.
Finally relaxed, Liu Hui surveyed his surroundings, regretting his total ignorance of his location. He spotted no trace of Zhui Hun and wondered if his opponent, who was clearly more heavily wounded, had survived.
After floating for a time, Liu Hui began to dive. He activated the Hongguang Armor’s protective field, which successfully counteracted the immense water pressure, allowing him to descend two hundred meters below the surface.
Searching the seabed, Liu Hui discovered a massive boulder with a wide crevice beneath it. He swam over, driving away a nest of small fish hiding within the gap.
From his storage, Liu Hui retrieved the Biological Healing Tank and placed it inside the fissure beneath the boulder. He then extended the protective field of his Hongguang Armor to encompass the tank, effectively creating a pocket devoid of seawater around the device.
Liu Hui immediately activated the Biological Healing Tank, then jumped inside, donned his respirator, and sealed the glass lid above him. As the lid clicked shut, the Hongguang Armor’s defense field vanished entirely, and seawater rushed back in. Liu Hui promptly lost consciousness inside the tank.
In an instant, the seabed returned to its former tranquility. The small fish Liu Hui had disturbed swam back, circling the rectangular tank with curiosity, wondering what this strange cabinet was.
**************************************************************************************** My sincere gratitude to book friend: Dashi, for their tremendous support, casting a hundred praise votes at once, boosting this book's rating from 8.1 to 9.5. Also, thank you for the 588 coin reward and 3 votes for 6000-word updates! Thank you for becoming this book's first Guardian! Thank you for the support from book friend: Pig Head Xiao Daidai! RO