Chapter 448 – Nine Heads, Archenemy

Lu Yuan was momentarily stunned by Lu Feng’s response.

“I didn’t expect you to have attended university.”

Lu Feng looked at him expressionlessly, “Doesn’t it seem like it?”

“Hehe…”

With a face that screamed “What do you think?” Lu Yuan turned to look at the old man across the stall who wore a bitter expression.

“Similar bismuth iron ore, pack a few more for me. And in addition to that fossil, this one, this one, and this one…”

Lu Yuan pointed to a few more items on the stall, signaling the old man.

“Pack them all together.”

The old man was slightly taken aback, then quickly overjoyed.

“Alright.”

He initially thought that the deal would be ruined by the annoying bodyguard accompanying Lu Yuan. But to his surprise, this peculiar young master, knowing full well that he was buying worthless “waste ore,” still wanted to make the purchase.

Though delighted, it seemed inappropriate to overcharge with an expert present.

In the end, the transaction was completed at a relatively “fair” price, much to Lu Feng’s perplexed gaze.

“Take care, customers, and come again.”

With a smile as bright as a chrysanthemum, the old man waved goodbye to Lu Yuan and Lu Feng.

Nearby stall owners watched with envy.

Having been neighbors at the Market for years, they knew each other well.

Everyone was aware that every item on Chiqino Old Man’s stall was salvaged from the junkyard at no cost, so every sale was pure profit.

The fact that bismuth iron waste ore, something deemed non-recyclable trash, could actually be sold was astonishing!

That elegantly dressed, refined heir was truly a rare fool-such good fortune doesn’t come around often.

Every vendor near the old man’s stall gazed hopefully at Lu Yuan, wishing they could be the next lucky one.

But it seemed Lu Yuan lost interest in browsing further after completing his purchase at Chiqino Boutique Grocery. He signaled to Lu Feng, and the two headed straight for the nearest Market exit.

On the hover car, Lu Yuan fiddled with the strange assortment of oddities he had just picked up from the Market stalls.

What he genuinely wanted to purchase was the bismuth iron waste ore; the other items were merely a distraction.

Of course, they weren’t entirely worthless.

These assorted trinkets could be used as “sacrificial offerings.” He planned to toss them all into the vortex summoned by [Extraordinary Contact], hopefully gaining him some experience points.

As Lu Yuan slowly examined his purchases in the car, Lu Feng in the driver’s seat seemed to be watching him quietly.

When Lu Yuan picked up the pieces of bismuth iron waste ore he had bought, Lu Feng, who had been silent the whole way, couldn’t help but speak up.

“This type of waste ore is formed when the body fat of Source Worms dissolves after death and erodes the material. It contains a large amount of toxins and frequent contact could potentially harm the body. So it doesn’t hold any collectible value…”

Lu Yuan looked up, amused, while handling the bismuth iron waste ore in his hand, “Do you think I bought this for a collection?”

“What else?”

Lu Feng responded calmly, “I can’t think of another reason for you to purchase this.

Even throwing this waste ore away as garbage would require a series of special treatments…

That old man putting such things up for sale on his stall definitely didn’t consider the buyers’ well-being.”

After hearing Lu Feng’s words, Lu Yuan thought for a moment, then spoke seriously, “Actually, I plan to take it home and study it thoroughly. What if I find a low-cost method to perfectly refine the bismuth metal within?

If I succeed, you do understand how profitable that could be, right?

Bismuth metal is currently one of the most widely used materials in Mecha manufacturing.”

Lu Feng fell silent.

He then quietly activated the separation energy shield between the front and rear compartments of the hover car.

Lu Yuan watched as Lu Feng’s figure gradually disappeared behind the rising energy light screen.

He looked down and clenched a piece of bismuth iron waste ore in his hand.

Thick, black liquid began to seep from his palm, gradually enveloping the entire piece of waste ore.

A faint, unusual energy fluctuation emanated from Lu Yuan’s palm, and then a faint white light seemed to seep from within him.

A few seconds later, everything returned to normal.

Lu Yuan opened his palm, the viscous black liquid that had once pooled there was now gone, leaving a small black cube, a few centimeters on each side, lying silently in his palm. It glimmered with a subtle metallic sheen under the light streaming through the window.

Gazing at the small metal cube in his hand, Lu Yuan’s face lit up with an inexplicable glow.

He murmured to himself.

“See? Told you I could do it.

Wasn’t that so easy?”

…

“Boom!”

With a muffled sound, a figure was sent hurtling backward like a cannonball, crashing heavily against the narrow room’s wall.

The terrible impact left no mark on the wall. As the figure hit it, an unseen mystical force arrested his momentum, creating ripples of semi-transparent energy.

“Without the Protectives of a Mecha, you can’t even withstand a single consciousness attack from me…”

The blond man casually flicked his hand and strode toward the burly man he had sent flying with a single hit.

The man, curled up like a shrimp, raised his head with difficulty, his once resolute face now twisted with pain, blood trickling from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

“White Demon Palace scum!”

He growled, suddenly leaping up from the ground and charging at the blond man.

A mocking smirk played at the corner of the blond man’s lips. With a claw-like motion, he extended his right hand, and his fingers cutting through the air, creating visible transparent ripples.

Just as his hand was about to grasp the man, the latter’s body flickered and disappeared.

When he reappeared, he was behind the blond man, racing toward the door.

“Idiot.”

The blond man said coldly.

The next second.

“Boom!”

The man’s form was rebounded back.

The air near the doorway shimmered, as if an invisible wall stood there, blocking his escape.

“If you just cooperated and handed over the item…”

The blond man leaned down, his pale, slender fingers gently clasping the burly man’s neck.

He didn’t appear to apply much force, yet the man’s face rapidly turned red, visible veins bulged on his forehead, and he wore an expression of suffocating pain.

“I could make your death a little less unpleasant,” the blond man said, observing the man in his grasp with a calm demeanor, as if awaiting his decision.

The man’s face shifted from white to red, and then from red to purple.

Just as the purple threatened to turn black, the man’s gaping mouth moved slightly.

The blond man blinked and loosened his grip just a fraction.

The man, who was being choked, gulped the air greedily through the slight gap, and after regaining a little composure, a fierce glint shot from his eyes. His tongue curled, and something black seemed to flash in his mouth before he bit down hard.

“Damn!”

“Boom!”

In the instant the man bit down, an indescribable, terrifying pressure erupted from him.

“Roar!”

In the depths of consciousness, an ancient, evil, violent, and awe-inspiring will descended abruptly, accompanied by an overwhelming aura of destruction.

It was as if a world-ending storm was forced into the confines of the small room, no more than a few dozen cubic meters in size.

The mental power enveloping the entire room shattered like thin paper.

The blond man, still holding the other’s neck, was flung away without uttering a sound.

His slender figure smashed through the wall of the room, then seemed to dissolve, cracking from head to toe into dust finer than particles, vanishing in an instant.

The sudden evil will that had descended also vanished.

As if it had existed only for a fleeting moment.

Perhaps less than even a moment.

Noonday sunlight streamed through the human-shaped hole in the room’s wall, with dust swirling in the golden beam, illuminating the wreckage-ridden room like a ruin.

“Ha-ha-“

The man, after his outburst, lay flat on the floor in the center of the room, his chest heaving up and down, emitting sounds reminiscent of a broken bellows rapidly working.

His entire back was now drenched in liquid, and his once-burly body appeared to be melting like water.

In the areas that hadn’t yet melted, black, snake-like scales began to grow, lending him an incredibly bizarre appearance.

The man’s remaining left eye widened, his gaze fixed intently on a specific spot in the room.

His mouth, already melted to reveal scarlet gums, opened and closed subtly, as if he were speaking.

Finally, there was movement in the direction his gaze pointed.

A pale-faced, naked young man slowly rose from the ruins and walked step by step to his side.

Unbothered by the grotesque and terrifying appearance of the man, the young man leaned down and pressed his ear to the man’s mouth, listening intently.

Finally.

He understood the syllables coming from the man’s lips.

“Help…me…”

“Okay.”

The young man straightened up and nodded.

Then he quickly picked up a piece of broken brick from the ground and aimed it at the man’s head, now resembling a rotten apple…

“Bang!”

Once!

“Bang!”

Twice!

Three times…

He smashed down with all his might, his knuckles turning white from the exertion.

He struck the man’s head repeatedly, sending foul, viscous liquid splattering everywhere.

Yet the young man was unfazed, his once delicate face now a mask of ferocity.

Only when the man on the ground was completely reduced to a “puddle” did the young man slowly stop.

The ferocity on his blood-smeared face gradually softened.

As the euphoria of revenge ebbed away like a tide, it left behind an even deeper sense of pain and emptiness.

Expressionless, the young man sat numbly on the floor.

He turned his head.

The bodies of his parents and elder sister lay still in the living room.

It’s uncertain how much time passed.

Suddenly, a grim smile appeared on his face. Then, filled with despair, he grabbed a fingernail-sized piece, like a black chunk of flesh, from the melted remains of the man in front of him and thrust it into his mouth.

He chewed vigorously.

“Boom!”

In a daze, the young man seemed to see an indescribably massive figure with nine heads quietly appearing before him.

The ancient, vast, and supremely imposing evil will descended once more.

His self-consciousness was as insignificant as dust under this will, swallowed up in an instant.

“Finally… it’s over.”

The young man fell backward, his eyes, which gradually took on an eerie Purple hue, reflecting the shape of the room’s ceiling.

A hint of relief appeared on his face.

Yet, at that very moment, his heart beat heavily.

Within his chest, a golden Magic Cube began to spin, emitting a mysterious, dark golden light…

As the golden Magic Cube began to rotate and activate, two figures entered the room, one after the other.

…

“Swish!”

In the cultivation room of the Lu family.

Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes, a flicker of uncertainty and suspicion in his gaze.

“What was that sound?!”

He quickly stood up, walked to the window, and drew back the curtains to reveal the bright sky and flickering neon lights in the distance.

Everything seemed calm.

However, just moments ago, Lu Yuan’s core self had emitted two vibrations deep in his bloodline and soul, as if some creature were growling in a low tone.

The sensation of this tremor felt as if he had sensed…

“Archenemy.”

Lu Yuan whispered the words softly.

He closed his eyes, searching through his past memories bit by bit.

Only legendary or mythical creatures would trigger such an innate bloodline warning of an archenemy.

And there were many aspects of Lu Yuan that were connected with mythical creatures.

Phoenix, Hundred-eyed Nether Crow, moon-eating demon whale… and even the Spirit Devourer Clan.

There were too many potential sources; it was difficult to narrow down.

Lu Yuan still remembered that he had once obtained memories related to the archenemy of the Hundred-eyed Nether Crow from the first legendary level material he acquired-the Hundred-eyed Nether Crow Feather.

Back then, he had whimsically considered incorporating these powerful archenemy creatures into his own martial arts, but naturally, nothing came of it later.

“The existence that could be an Archenemy to the mythical creatures within me must also be at the mythical level.”

“…On Planet Dadu, for a mythic life like this to appear…”

Lu Yuan furrowed his brows.

“Could it be a mythic life like the cuckoo bird, fallen on hard times, deliberately concealing its presence, and occasionally slipping, so only I, as its Archenemy, could sense it?”

Thinking of the cuckoo bird, Lu Yuan’s thoughts drifted, and a wave of helplessness rose in his heart.

After their aircraft was destroyed during their descent, that pesky bird just flew away in the face of disaster, leaving him behind and vanishing who knows where.

It certainly couldn’t have died.

Lu Yuan was absolutely sure that even if he croaked ten times, that pesky bird would still be alive and well.

When it comes to survival, this creature is a true expert among experts.

“It was in that direction; I’ll have to investigate later…”

Lu Yuan tracked the direction indicated by the tremor in his bloodline and pinpointed a location.

But he quickly dismissed that idea from a moment ago.

“What’s there to investigate… in my current state, staying as far away as possible is the smartest move.”

Going up to it willingly would be a death wish.

“I need to find a way to quickly regain my strength…”

A strong sense of urgency surged in Lu Yuan’s heart once again.

He turned around, his gaze naturally falling on the various-sized black metal blocks quietly placed on the floor ahead.