Chapter 27 – Messing with You

Volume 3

Wen Yu studied Wan Ping warily.

That bizarre body meant unknown powers.

Thanks to the existence of the Class system, abilities came in all shapes and forms, but most of them still followed some kind of logic.

But two faces growing out of his chest, faces that could fire energy waves? That left Wen Yu in a very awkward position.

More importantly, Wan Ping showed no fear whatsoever toward Wen Yu's Throb or Wild Song.

That meant Wen Yu's strongest and most effective means of attack had been rendered mostly useless.

Wan Ping looked at Wen Yu, who was still firing his Gun, and felt his stamina draining away. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and charged straight at Wen Yu.

He wanted close combat.

And after seeing that Throb and Wild Song's attacks were ineffective, the Greed's Touch in Wen Yu's hand had already begun to slowly lengthen.

Close combat was exactly what Wen Yu wanted too!

…

At that moment, One-Eye and Simba had been dragging each other farther and farther away in their tangled fight, gradually leaving the battlefield where Wen Yu and Wan Ping were clashing.

Once they were far enough away, One-Eye finally gave up the close-quarters struggle with Simba and slowly backed off a few steps.

Simba merely stood where he was, panting heavily, his enormous eyes fixed warily on One-Eye in front of him.

In terms of pure combat strength, Simba was no match for One-Eye. Simba knew it, and One-Eye knew it too.

So after slightly adjusting his condition, One-Eye lunged straight at Simba.

In the previous fight, One-Eye had been badly injured by Simba and Fake One-Eye. The right side of his torso had been torn open by the final Ferocious Strike he had taken head-on. However, under the effects of Flesh Tome, that injury only counted as superficial.

On top of that, with the enhancement from the Life-And-Death Combat Ability, One-Eye's current Physical Attribute had already surpassed Simba's by more than 50 Point.

With both beasts starting from a base Physical Attribute of 200 Point, an increase of 50 Point was more than enough to ensure One-Eye held an absolute advantage.

With One-Eye's furious roar, the two massive beasts slammed savagely into each other.

His superior Physical Attribute let One-Eye completely dominate the close-range brawl.

Black flames roared from his mouth as sharp teeth and claws tore madly at Simba.

Although Simba was at a disadvantage, his violent wild instincts and the glory of being a King made him fight One-Eye without retreating even half a step.

The raging Flame Flow scorched the air, rapidly consuming the oxygen across the battlefield.

The Black-Robed Man, who had already moved nearby, saw the state of the battle and no longer watched from the sidelines as he had before. Instead, he entered the battlefield directly.

Choosing to support Simba's side of the battlefield was a decision the Black-Robed Man had made after careful consideration.

He had a rough understanding of One-Eye's combat strength from earlier. If One-Eye was left unchecked, Simba would very likely be torn to pieces within five minutes.

And once Simba could no longer hold One-Eye back, it would trigger a chain collapse across the entire battlefield.

The Black-Robed Man slowly raised his right hand. The sand and soil on the ground rapidly condensed, transforming in an extremely short time into two spears over three meters long.

Sand Control (A-Rank, Active Ability): Allows the user to exercise Manipulation over sand and soil within ten meters of their body, producing all sorts of effects.

Strictly speaking, this ability did not belong to the elemental category, but the power of the Skill was by no means weak, and its combat effects could be described as strange and unpredictable.

The sand-and-stone shield that had blocked Wen Yu's attack earlier had also been condensed through this ability.

The Black-Robed Man swung both hands with force, and the environment of the entire battlefield abruptly changed.

At that moment, One-Eye was pouncing on Simba, both front claws swinging with full force as one Ferocious Strike after another slammed into Simba's body. His jaws were clamped around Simba's neck, and Black Light flashed repeatedly in his mouth.

Under attacks of such frequency and force, Simba was already on the verge of losing any chance to fight back.

But then One-Eye abruptly felt empty space beneath his feet.

A huge sand pit had appeared directly under the spot where One-Eye's two hind legs were standing.

Though One-Eye's hind legs were thick and powerful, even they could not keep him steady where there was nothing to brace against.

One-Eye immediately staggered. At the same time, his forelimbs and teeth, which had been attacking Simba, loosened as he tried to prop himself against the ground to maintain his balance.

Unfortunately, how could the Black-Robed Man possibly let a victory already in hand vanish into smoke?

The sand on the ground abruptly began flowing faster, becoming softer and softer at the same time.

And that was not all. One-Eye's two hind legs, sunk deep in the sand pit, suddenly felt as if they were being stabbed by needles, sending waves of pain through him.

This, too, was an effect of Sand Control.

Inside the sand pit, a portion of the sand had condensed into long, thin spikes. They barely managed to cut through One-Eye's outer hide, inflicting some damage that could not really be considered serious.

When Simba saw One-Eye's condition, he did not waste the opportunity the Black-Robed Man had created. He followed up with another Heavy Strike against One-Eye's body just as it was about to lose its balance!

Heavy Strike (E-rank, Active Ability): Charge briefly, then unleash a blow more powerful than a normal attack!

This Skill was the ability Simba had obtained after advancing to Level 3. It was weak, but strictly speaking, abilities were not truly divided into strong and weak. More often, it came down to the user!

And Simba's strength naturally needed no further explanation!

The Heavy Strike landed on One-Eye's head, tearing up a patch of grayish-white flesh and blood.

Against One-Eye's increasingly powerful Physical Attribute, this could barely even be considered a wound that had just broken the skin.

But while One-Eye was about to lose its balance, this Heavy Strike became the final straw that broke the camel's back!

One-Eye's massive body immediately toppled to the ground. Then, the Black-Robed Man pushed his Sand Control to its limit!

The earth beneath One-Eye softened rapidly, and at the same time, ropes formed from condensed sand and soil quickly wound around One-Eye's hind legs.

"Roar!"

One-Eye let out a furious roar. Its body surged with strength as it tried to snap those annoying sandy ropes wrapped around it.

But this battle was now one versus two!

Simba had no intention of letting such a good opportunity slip by. The moment he saw One-Eye fall to the ground, he had already lunged forward, slamming Heavy Strike after Heavy Strike onto One-Eye's head. At the same time, Flame Flow surged in his mouth, and a pillar of fire madly seared One-Eye's body!

Seeing that One-Eye had already been suppressed by Simba, the two Sand Spear constructs that had just condensed in front of the Black-Robed Man shot straight toward One-Eye on the ground!

Their sharp tips drilled into One-Eye's body, then burst apart!

Of course, the power of the explosion was not strong. Strictly speaking, it could not even be considered an explosion. It was merely the Black-Robed Man controlling the Sand Spear constructs to scatter in every direction.

His goal was to let part of the sand enter One-Eye's body!

The sand inside One-Eye's body began to move slowly.

Judging from the streaks of blood-red veins rising in the Black-Robed Man's exposed eyes, controlling the sand inside One-Eye's body placed enormous pressure on him!

…

The foreign objects inside its body made One-Eye somewhat irritable.

Fortunately, the power of the Flesh Tome had greatly reduced One-Eye's sense of pain.

If this had been a normal body of flesh and blood, having some sand enter the body would have been enough to kill the target creature. Unfortunately, the power of the Flesh Tome had pushed One-Eye's body beyond the limits of ordinary flesh and blood!

And the Black-Robed Man knew nothing of this!

"Faster. Faster!"

The sense of urgency in the Black-Robed Man's heart grew stronger and stronger, because in the distance, on the battlefield where Star and Fake One-Eye were fighting, the energy fluctuations were becoming more and more intense. By now, they were so powerful that the Black-Robed Man felt his heart tremble with fear!

Amid the Black-Robed Man's desperate prayers, a portion of the sand successfully entered One-Eye's head!

"Die!!!"

Sensing that his objective had been achieved, the Black-Robed Man could not help shouting at the top of his lungs.

Then, expending a great amount of stamina, the Black-Robed Man directly controlled the sand inside One-Eye's brain and made it change shape!

Cone, sphere, triangle…

In a short span of time, the sand inside One-Eye's brain transformed into dozens of shapes of varying sizes.

Those changes were more than enough to churn One-Eye's brain matter into mush!

"Hah."

The Black-Robed Man let out a long breath of foul air.

"It's over!"

Looking at One-Eye lying motionless on the ground before him, then at Simba still recklessly venting his fury on One-Eye's body, the Black-Robed Man said,

"It's dead. Come back."

When Simba heard the Black-Robed Man, he added one more Heavy Strike to One-Eye's head before finally turning and walking toward the Black-Robed Man.

Seeing the wounds of varying depths across Simba's body, the corner of the Black-Robed Man's eye twitched beneath his hood.

This dog's strength was honestly a little terrifying.

The Black-Robed Man stood where he was and spoke to Simba as he drew closer.

"Now the two of us need to go to the Sacred Beast's side… Watch out!!!"

Before the Black-Robed Man could finish speaking, One-Eye, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly sprang back up!

The injuries from just now had been severe.

But under the power of the Flesh Tome, faced with wounds of that level, One-Eye treated them as nothing serious.

In fact, the Black-Robed Man had done it a huge favor!

The injuries inside its brain had indeed completely destroyed One-Eye's brain matter. Unfortunately, One-Eye was an unparalleled ferocious dog that could keep fighting even without its head!

The wounds inside its skull made One-Eye's Physical Attribute rise again and again, all the way to a Physical Attribute of around 400 Point.

And just now, after sensing what the Black-Robed Man was thinking, an idea had suddenly occurred to One-Eye.

According to One-Eye's calculations, if he wanted to seize back the initiative under the combined suppression of the Black-Robed Man and Simba, he would have to endure their attacks for a long time before his strength grew enough to break out of the sand pit.

So why not just play dead instead? It was much easier!

Thus, One-Eye semi-deliberately relinquished control over his body, allowing the sand to flow smoothly into his brain.

Then he slowed his heartbeat…

For One-Eye, who possessed the Flesh Tome, that was simple.

And so, the Black-Robed Man, who knew nothing about One-Eye's abilities, fell for it!

The price he paid was unbearably heavy!!!

One-Eye crouched slightly on all four limbs. At the same time, the berserk power within his body erupted without restraint.

Beneath One-Eye's feet, it was as if four hand grenades had gone off at once, kicking up a great cloud of dust. Driven by that force, One-Eye's body had already shot high into the air!

Thirty meters high!

That height even surpassed most of the towering trees in the Mountain Forest that had been catalyzed by Demon Qi!

The Survivors far away within the bounds of Mudanjiang City had long since noticed that a great battle was taking place in the distant Mountain Forest.

Unfortunately, with the strength of these Class Holders, they were utterly unqualified to take part in a battle of this level. Even the aftershocks of the fight were not something they could easily withstand!

The Class Holders watching from within the city could only take out binoculars and get a rough look at the state of the battle, then try to guess the outcome.

So when One-Eye leaped high into the sky, a whole crowd of Class Holders naturally witnessed that spectacular sight!

One Class Holder slowly lowered the binoculars in his hands, swallowed, and said to the teammate beside him,

"Did I just see a dog… flying?"

"I… think so…"

The Class Holder beside him stared blankly toward the distant East Mountain and answered uncertainly.

Then, as if by prior agreement, the two raised their binoculars again and continued watching a battle that was utterly beyond their imagination!

…

When One-Eye sprang into the air, he did indeed feel a trace of exhilaration!

Flight was something humans dreamed of. Likewise, it was something all these earthbound creatures dreamed of as well!

Although, compared to One-Eye's own height, a thirty-meter leap was not all that high, it still let One-Eye experience a little of the thrill of free fall!

And then came an even greater thrill!

It was called…

Re! Venge! Ful! Pay! Back!

By the time the Black-Robed Man let out his shocked warning, One-Eye was already about to land!

And the place where he would land was precisely where Simba stood!

Hearing the Black-Robed Man's warning, Simba barely managed to turn his head. Then he saw a dark cloud in the sky drawing closer and closer!

The next instant, a massive force knocked Simba straight to the ground. His completely unprotected neck was immediately exposed to One-Eye's bloody maw!

One claw of Ferocious Strike, then another, ripped into Simba's vulnerable belly. The power of Steel Armor seemed so fragile before Physical Attribute that had surpassed his by more than double!

Crimson blood sprayed in every direction, mixed with yellow-brown skin, torn intestines, and organs. In just a few short moments, One-Eye had turned this battlefield into a bloody, mangled hell of flesh and gore!

Smelling the scent of blood, One-Eye's eyes slowly turned red!

This was battle! This was the sheer satisfaction of revenge!

What could be more exhilarating than hearing an enemy wail beneath your paws?

His upper and lower jaws clamped down with force. Listening to Simba's screams beneath him, One-Eye could not help but recall the moment when Simba had shattered every ounce of his pride.

Right now, you must be regretting it, aren't you?

Then One-Eye's sharp teeth closed completely…

…

The Black-Robed Man stared in disbelief at the abrupt reversal before him!

In just a few short moments, the victory he had thought was already in his grasp had been completely overturned!

A chunk of flesh landed directly on the Black-Robed Man's hood.

The Black-Robed Man shakily removed the foreign object from his head, then forced himself to look at it.

It was… Simba's liver…

And the monster before him, the one that had "come back from the dead," had slowly raised its head. Its scarlet tongue swept across its blood-smeared face, and a pair of crimson eyes stared straight at him.

Those eyes were filled with mockery, undoubtedly telling the Black-Robed Man one fact.

"Just now, I was only playing with you!"