“Hehe! I never expected that the infamous Ruby Viper would turn out to be a good guy beneath that cold exterior!” Black Viscount suddenly chuckled as the last soldier from the Imperial Guards disappeared into the distance.
“You flatter me, my lord,” Zhang Wen replied, raising his sword wreathed in surging energy, its tip pointing directly at the Black Viscount nearby. “I simply don’t want to make things too difficult with the Empire, since I’m just staying under someone else’s roof.”
In an instant, a thunderous explosion erupted beneath Zhang Wen’s feet. The neatly arranged stone floor shattered into pieces, and gusts of wind sent debris flying several meters into the air. Fully activating the Spring Water Technique, Zhang Wen’s body was enveloped in brilliant blue energy, resembling a battle god as he shot toward the Black Viscount.
Gritting his teeth, the Black Viscount focused nearly all his strength into his curved short sword the moment he saw Zhang Wen soar into the air.
Just as Zhang Wen was about to reach the Black Viscount, the latter suddenly swung his right arm and hurled the curved short sword straight at him.
Clang! Without hesitation, Zhang Wen sliced the incoming weapon aside. But just as he prepared to charge forward and strike down the Black Viscount, a strange sense of danger suddenly surged within him.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Zhang Wen activated “Ghost Step” again. His advanced battle energy erupted, and with a flash of blue light, he seemingly teleported several meters away in an instant!
Meanwhile, the curved short sword he had just deflected traced a strange arc and returned from behind Zhang Wen, exploding violently beside the afterimage he left behind. At the same time, the Black Viscount casually flipped his right hand, revealing another identical curved short sword in his palm.
“Heh! I didn’t expect that Ruby Viper Andrei would possess the rare Sensory Affinity! No wonder the traps I set in the arena were completely useless against you,” the Black Viscount said coldly, his expression growing even more sinister. “I’ve used Formula Zero, yet you still forced me into this desperate situation. Andrei, you truly live up to being a former Mithril Hunter who even the Chief considers troublesome!”
“Tsk! So it’s actually rebirth-type Nengang, just like Xiaoxi’s,” Zhang Wen slightly frowned at the curved short sword in the Black Viscount’s hand, then smirked. “Looks like we’re even!”
Boom! Zhang Wen used Ghost Step for the second time while in his advanced state. Moving at unimaginable speed, even the Black Viscount could only see a flash before Zhang Wen suddenly appeared right in front of him!
“He’s really troublesome!” the Black Viscount shouted, clenching his teeth as he hurled the short sword again.
The curved blade struck Zhang Wen’s body, then passed through without resistance—the Black Viscount had only hit the afterimage left by Zhang Wen’s high-speed movement.
As the Black Viscount threw the short sword, Zhang Wen’s blade also slashed across his body. Two lightning-fast figures briefly converged then separated. A spray of blood flew from the Black Viscount’s shoulder.
“Ha! What’s wrong, Andrei? Can’t even control your top-tier speed by yourself? Haha!” The Black Viscount clutched his injured right shoulder, turned around, and laughed at Zhang Wen, who had landed back on the ground. Even at this crucial moment, there was no sign of despair in the Black Viscount’s eyes—only a wild gleam that revealed his awareness of the impending doom he was about to face.
“Even if I can’t control my speed, it’s still enough to take your life,” Zhang Wen said coldly, shaking the blood off his sword.
“Hehe! You’re right about that. But even if you kill me, how much better off will you be? Arthur arriving at Fira? That kind of low-grade lie can only fool idiots like Horto.” The Black Viscount straightened up, shaking his head with a smile at Zhang Wen. “We’re fighting here with super-tier power, and Leica won’t be far behind. Although I don’t know exactly what method you used to break through to super-tier, power gained through external means can never compare to genuine super-tier strength. And even among genuine super-tier fighters, Leica is a top-tier powerhouse comparable to a realm ruler.”
“Perhaps you’re right. Unfortunately, I don’t have time to listen to your rambling now,” Zhang Wen said again, raising his sword once more.
“Come then! Having a wise man like you accompany me to hell won’t be boring at all,” the Black Viscount sneered, gripping the third short sword in his right hand.
Boom! Amidst a deafening roar, Zhang Wen’s figure vanished from his position again, instantly reappearing at the Black Viscount’s side.
The Black Viscount grunted, throwing the short sword with all his might. This time, however, he didn’t aim at where Zhang Wen appeared but instead threw it toward Zhang Wen’s habitual attack position on the right.
Unfortunately, the short sword still only sliced through empty air. As Zhang Wen’s sword suddenly appeared like a celestial being before the Black Viscount’s eyes, the latter strongly sensed his impending death.
But just as Zhang Wen’s sword was about to pierce the Black Viscount’s throat, a massive stone suddenly flew in from the side, blocking the path between Zhang Wen’s sword and the Black Viscount’s throat.
Boom! Zhang Wen’s sword struck the giant stone with tremendous force. The explosion of battle energy created a powerful gust of wind, sending the nearby Black Viscount flying backward. The impact also forced Zhang Wen, who had shattered the stone, to stop his advance.
“Hey! Isn’t this the famous Black Viscount? How did you end up in such a mess?” Before the dust stirred by the air currents had settled, a bold female voice filled with laughter rang out between Zhang Wen and the Black Viscount.
“Leica, I’m not a god, so I occasionally make miscalculations,” the Black Viscount stood up, expressionless as he dusted himself off.
“Is that so?” Leica laughed heartily, her gaze quickly shifting to Zhang Wen on the other side. “Then, sir, you must be the Ruby Viper who killed two of my subordinates and tricked Hector and his men, right?”
“Should I feel honored or unfortunate to receive such praise from the terrifying Queen Leica?” Zhang Wen held his sword across his chest, giving a helpless smile.
After breaking through to the super-tier level, Zhang Wen’s six senses were several times more acute than in his normal state. The terrifying pressure emanating from this “Queen” before him, nearly comparable to that of a “King,” made him feel suffocated just standing there.
Fighting Leica, Zhang Wen didn’t even have the slightest confidence in victory. Worse still, beside Leica stood the super-tier expert Black Viscount, who had a deep grudge against him.
Could he really handle the pincer attack from these two super-tier opponents with his hastily boosted super-tier level? Zhang Wen certainly didn’t have the habit of considering himself a superhero who liked to wear red underwear outside his pants.
“Haha! Hahahaha! Interesting, you’re indeed an interesting fellow!” Leica burst into a series of loud laughter.
What should he do? Zhang Wen pondered while responding to Leica.
Take a hostage? With the high speed achieved by combining “Ghost Step” and “Extreme,” it might be possible to grab the Black Viscount before Leica could react. But would this “Terror Queen” care about the Black Viscount’s life? That was a big question! From her nickname “Terror Queen,” it was clear that Leica didn’t seem like the kind of woman who cared about her allies’ lives…
Moreover, while in the super-tier state, merely using Ghost Step was already somewhat beyond his control range. If he added “Extreme” on top of that… what would happen? Zhang Wen had no idea. In the worst-case scenario, his speed might exceed controllable limits, causing his body to lose control. That would be digging his own grave!
Even more tragically, although Zhang Wen was confident that the combination of Ghost Step and Extreme in his super-tier state could definitely allow him to surpass Leica’s speed, he couldn’t use this move to escape… because once he left the military restricted zone, his strength would immediately drop from super-tier back to saint-tier. At that point, what he would face wouldn’t just be tragic—it would be a catastrophe.
“Hey! Young man, you seem somewhat interesting. How about joining me as one of my subordinates?” After laughing heartily for a while, Leica suddenly called out to Zhang Wen.
“Eh?” Zhang Wen showed a strange expression on his face. He hadn’t expected Leica to actually try to recruit him as a subordinate at a time like this.
“Tsk! I knew you wouldn’t agree. You guys who always think you’re smart are all the same. Toward women, you only have two attitudes—either use them or play with them.” As Leica spoke to Zhang Wen, she also shot the Black Viscount a look of contempt.
“Haha! Miss Leica, you’re being unfair to me. I used to work under a female superior for several years. If anyone was being used and played with, it was me, the victim!”
“Oh? You had a female superior? What was her name?” Leica asked with great interest, laughing loudly.
“Her name…” Zhang Wen suddenly paused here, then smiled at Leica. “You don’t need to know. She’s no longer in this world. What’s the point of talking about it?”
“Is that so? Then okay!” Leica snapped her fingers sharply, and suddenly a black whip appeared on her right arm.
“Just for the sake of that unknown female superior, I’ll allow you to die quickly.” Leica gave the whip a hard flick.
In Leica’s hands, the black rope seemed to come alive, hissing as it danced through the air and suddenly diving into the ground.
Immediately afterward, Zhang Wen felt the ground beneath his feet tremble. Less than ten meters in front of him, a rock at least half a floor in size was suddenly flipped up and came crashing toward him like a tidal wave.
Zhang Wen, already prepared, didn’t hesitate and immediately used Ghost Step with full force, his body instantly shifting several meters to the left. Beside Zhang Wen was a structure very similar to a television tower on Earth, but only about twenty meters high. This was a common energy transmission tower found in energy power centers, designed to convert energy into invisible energy waves and transmit them to other parts of the planet.
Zhang Wen moved to the side of the energy transmission tower, ducked his body, and squeezed through the gap between the steel pillars beneath it.
However, the rock Leica hurled at Zhang Wen slammed heavily into the center of the energy transmission tower. Even a tower made of a mixture of steel and sea urchin stone couldn’t withstand a full-power attack from a super-tier expert. The energy tower struck by the rock immediately collapsed with a mournful sound of steel breaking.
Moreover, the collapsing energy tower also snapped many energy conduits located beneath it. A large amount of energy that should have been transmitted to various parts of Fira Planet erupted from the cracks in the energy conduits like fountains, illuminating most of the military restricted area in colorful energy lights.
However, before Zhang Wen, who had just narrowly escaped death, could catch his breath, Leica’s second wave of attack came chasing after him like a shadow. The black whip in Leica’s hands seemed to transform into a bolt of black lightning, instantly breaking through the colorful energy barrier and stabbing straight toward Zhang Wen’s chest!
The speed of Leica’s whip attack was even faster than the speed Zhang Wen could achieve when using Ghost Step at full power. And the colorful energy barrier blocked Zhang Wen’s vision. When he finally noticed the black whip rushing toward him, the whip’s tip was almost touching his body.
With no choice, Zhang Wen had to go all out again, using both Ghost Step and Extreme together. In an instant, a dazzling blue glow erupted from Zhang Wen’s body. The blinding brightness even forced Leica to squint for a moment. Then, Leica found that her whip had missed!
“You’re quite something, young man!” Leica smiled, narrowing her eyes at Zhang Wen, who had suddenly appeared dozens of meters away.
Missing her target wasn’t the first time for Leica. However, she had never encountered a situation where she couldn’t even capture the opponent’s figure after the attack missed!
In that instant, the unimaginable high speed Zhang Wen suddenly displayed forced Leica to recalculate this battle she had originally thought she could easily win. If Zhang Wen really pushed himself to the limit and unleashed the same speed again, Leica couldn’t be sure she could protect her life against his counterattack.
However, Zhang Wen himself was painfully aware of his current situation. Using both “Ghost Step” and “Extreme” simultaneously while in the super-tier state caused side effects far beyond Zhang Wen’s expectations.
In fact, the essence of “Extreme” in the Spring Water Technique was to ignite one’s battle energy within the body to gain speed and strength far beyond the normal state. When at the Saint-tier level, Zhang Wen’s body could still withstand the immense energy pressure generated by “Extreme.” However, at the super-tier level, the battle energy ignited by “Extreme” far exceeded the limits Zhang Wen could endure!
Zhang Wen hadn’t expected that the first time he used “Extreme” at the super-tier level, he had ignited nearly half of his internal battle energy! Half of a super-tier expert’s battle energy—this was a terrifying concept from any perspective.
The side effect of Zhang Wen forcefully using “Extreme” was that, in addition to the excruciating pain throughout his body, he had almost completely lost all sensation. When he landed, Zhang Wen almost collapsed directly onto the ground! He had to summon his entire willpower to barely maintain his standing posture while enduring unimaginable pain.
In fact, Zhang Wen’s skin had completely cracked! He could even clearly feel the blood flowing rapidly from his body beneath the black combat suit.
Now Zhang Wen was certain—he had truly reached a dead end. Neither Black Viscount nor Leica would easily miss this golden opportunity to kill him. The reason they hadn’t launched another attack yet was simply because they were temporarily stunned by the speed Zhang Wen had just displayed.
Unfortunately, prolonging the time was no benefit to Zhang Wen at this moment; it would only make things worse. He was continuously losing blood. Even if Zhang Wen could hold on longer, probably no one across the entire Fira Planet could rescue him from the hands of two super-tier experts.
Is this really how it ends? Such self-inflicted misery! Zhang Wen bitterly smiled in his heart, using his last bit of strength to lift his head and take one last look at Leica in the distance and the even more distant Black Viscount. In the current situation, vision was probably the only one of Zhang Wen’s five senses that hadn’t yet failed. Therefore, when he heard a familiar male voice seemingly coming from midair, he almost suspected he was hallucinating.
“Hey! Teacher Almestes, you sure look pitiful!”
“Agate?” After confirming he wasn’t hallucinating, Zhang Wen barely managed to lift his head with great effort.
At some point, warships bearing the imperial emblem had filled the sky. A dense formation of warships hovered thousands of meters above the ground, their engines emitting bright energy flames.
Below the largest of them, a completely black imperial-class space battleship, a red-haired young man with a giant sword on his back floated in midair. Even the bright flames from the battleship’s engines couldn’t obscure the dazzling red glow surrounding the red-haired youth.
“Number 3 Executor of the Syndicate, Flame Demon Agate!” The Black Viscount looked up, whispering the red-haired youth’s name in a low voice.
The Syndicate and Mithril, two giant underground forces that had been battling for years, of course, the Black Viscount would recognize this famous Number 3 of the Syndicate.
“Hey! Damn Black Viscount, long time no see!” Agate sneered coldly, clenching his teeth as he drew the oversized sword from his back. Unlike most people, Agate rarely transformed his beloved giant sword back into its nian steel form. He always kept it in its normal state, carried on his back. Thus, this oversized sword, taller than a man, had practically become Agate’s living trademark.
“Hehe! Why is the Flame Demon so angry? I remember last time you still owed me a favor, right?” The Black Viscount smiled at Agate.
“Yeah, I owed you a favor last time, so I’m here to repay it.” Agate coldly laughed, swung his giant sword, and immediately a several-meter-long flame spurted from the sword tip.
“Scary.” The Black Viscount’s smile disappeared.
At this moment, the black warship hovering above Agate opened an exit on its side. Another super-tier expert jumped out of the warship, his body glowing with blue light as he hovered not far from Agate.
“Black Viscount, I’ve been waiting for you.” This expert who had jumped out of the warship was none other than the commander of this fleet in the sky—the Imperial Royal Guards Legion Commander Heinrich William.
“General William, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” The Black Viscount recognized the newly appeared enemy at a glance.
“Hehe! My lord Viscount, I’ve spent quite a bit of effort to find you. I believe you won’t make me travel in vain this time, right?” General William laughed heartily, speaking to the Black Viscount as if they were just chatting casually. As for Leica beside the Black Viscount, General William didn’t even spare her a glance.
“Hmph!” Leica was very dissatisfied with William’s neglect. The Terror Queen let out an annoyed snort, flicked her wrist, and the black whip instantly retracted to her side.
“Oh? Miss Leica? I’m not intentionally ignoring such a beautiful lady. It’s just that the Emperor has given orders, so I have to prioritize official business,” General William smiled as he bowed slightly to Leica.
“William, stop showing off your fancy words with me,” Leica immediately frowned and showed a displeased expression upon hearing William’s elaborate phrases. “Anger me, and I’ll burn your damn fleet to ashes.”
“Haha! The Terror Queen’s charm is truly undiminished!” Leica’s coarse language didn’t anger William; instead, it made him burst into laughter.
“Alright then! What do you plan to do? I admit this time that brat over there outsmarted me,” Leica casually put away her whip, lit a cigar, and carelessly continued speaking to William while looking at him. “But with just the trash you brought here, if you want to keep me here, you’d better be ready to sacrifice the entire planet.”
“Hehe! Of course. I know Miss Leica’s strength well. To be honest, I have no intention of opposing Miss Leica at all. You’re free to do as you please. The Emperor only wants to see the person beside you.” William smiled as he pointed at the Black Viscount.
“Tch!” Upon hearing William’s words allowing Leica to leave, Agate couldn’t help but turn his head away, letting out a breath in disdain. This super-tier expert nicknamed Flame Demon was clearly very angry about Leica and William’s disregard. However, Agate eventually held himself back and didn’t erupt on the spot.
On the other side, Leica bit her cigar and exhaled a large puff of smoke.
“Hey, William! Black here might be a bastard, but he’s still my ally. Don’t tell me you want me to abandon my ally and run off?”
“If Miss Leica insists on putting it that way, I have no choice,” William’s smile gradually faded. “The Emperor has given strict orders this time: Black Viscount must be captured alive or his corpse must be presented. Even if it means sacrificing the entire Fira Planet, I cannot disobey the Emperor’s command.”
As William finished speaking, the fleet in the sky immediately began to move. If someone familiar with the Imperial fleet’s tactics was present, they would immediately recognize that the fleet’s movement trajectory was transitioning from a defensive formation to a standard offensive formation for ground attacks.
“Tch!” Leica pursed her lips, spat out the half-smoked cigar, and the black whip reappeared in her hand.
“Hehe!” Agate also smiled happily, placing his giant sword in front of him. Leica’s arrogant attitude had already made Agate extremely annoyed, and he was itching for a fight with her.
“Miss Leica, you should leave now. Don’t worry about me.” However, just as the battle was about to erupt, the Black Viscount suddenly called out to Leica with a smile.
“Huh?” Leica frowned heavily.
“Hehe! Miss Leica, this time I was surrounded because of my mistake. Naturally, I should take responsibility. There’s no need to drag you into this. Besides, there are still many of your companions on Fira Planet. I wouldn’t feel right dragging them all down for just one person like me.”
“Are you saying this sincerely?” Leica stared coldly at the Black Viscount.
“Of course.” The Black Viscount spread his hands, smiling calmly. “Meeting with the Emperor of the Empire is nothing much. I believe we can still find some common ground.”
“Then do as you wish. I’m better off not getting involved. Tch! What a mess! In the end, I’ve become an unnecessary person!” Leica slightly moved her arms, unhappily retracting the black whip.
Then, she strode forward with her long, beautiful legs, calmly walking out of the military restricted area surrounded by hundreds of warships.
“Hey! Kid, this round of our match goes to you. But the account of you bullying Vicky still needs to be settled eventually.” As she walked past Zhang Wen, Leica suddenly stopped, giving him a casual glance.
“Alright, my lord Viscount, please come with us!” After watching Leica’s figure disappear into the distance, General William slowly descended to the ground, smiling as he gestured to the Black Viscount.
“Of course. I’m quite looking forward to meeting the Emperor of the Empire.” The Black Viscount agreed indifferently, flying straight toward the hovering black warship.
Several soldiers who had followed General William immediately came forward, placing a pair of energy-restraining handcuffs on the Black Viscount’s wrists. The Black Viscount didn’t care, smiling as he allowed the soldiers to cuff his hands and lead him into the rear cabin of the black warship. Just before the hatch of the black warship closed, the Black Viscount cast a final glance with an elegant smile toward where Zhang Wen stood.
“Hmph!” As the warship’s hatch closed, Agate glared at the Black Viscount’s retreating back with a furious snort, then retracted his battle energy and landed beside Zhang Wen. “Hey! Beast Teacher, now that those two are gone, why are you still pretending to be dead?” Agate said unhappily, giving Zhang Wen’s back a heavy pat with his hand.
Smack! As Agate’s palm landed, Zhang Wen collapsed.
“Eh?” Agate was shocked, his eyes wide with disbelief. After a long while, he looked at the approaching General William and managed to say, “It’s not my fault!”
“I know.” General William smiled and waved his hand. Several soldiers immediately stepped forward and lifted Zhang Wen up.
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