Bamboo Creek Plain Battle (Seven)

The Nether Abyss Insects flew in from all directions.

On the battlefield in the Withered Bamboo Hamlet Fon Residence, and on the Nether Abyss Insects lurking throughout the Bamboo Creek Plain —countless dark red insects, like a swarm of bees returning to their nest, surged into the body of the Hongming.

Hongming spread his arms wide and roared to the sky.

His body began to swell.

As it grew larger, its body began a complete reconstruction. Bones twisted, muscles tore and healed, and armor pierced through its body. The originally hunched humanoid torso suddenly grew taller, its back arched like a mountain ridge, its limbs crawled to the ground, and its fingertips transformed into jet-black claws that pierced deep into the ground.

A pair of enormous bony wings unfolded from its back, the wing membranes covered with countless holes.

His head hung low, and his four jaws split open like a man-eating flower, revealing layers upon layers of fangs.

Reiatsu erupts.

Boom--!

The Reiatsu, like a tangible wave, swept across the entire courtyard. The ground cracked, the walls collapsed, and the surrounding air trembled. It was more than ten times stronger than before.

The Vasto Lorde- level Reiatsu assaulted the entire battlefield, and some of the Attendant hidden inside the Fon Residence were almost suffocating from the pressure.

The enormous creature, lying prone on the ground, scanned Amber and Fon Shaoling with its compound eye-like organs, emitting a piercing hiss.

There was no trace of humanity left in that wailing.

Fon Shaoling gritted her teeth, staring intently at the monster before her.

Her mind was racing.

As their size increased, the swarm could no longer completely cover their bodies—meaning that Suzumebachi had a chance to sting them.

But the problem is...

The enormous body flapped its bone wings and vanished from the spot in an instant.

The next second, it appeared at the other end of the courtyard.

This is Sonído!

Despite its enormous size, it can still use the Sonído.

Even more terrifying were the Nether Abyss Insects that metamorphosed along with them.

Each insect became its eyes. The moment Fon Shaoling attempted to approach, the monster sensed it and instantly created distance. Meanwhile, the insects continued to gather—

Dozens of insects gathered together, flying in a circle, while their abdomens simultaneously glowed red with energy gathering at the center.

The monster raised its sharp claws, and the instant they touched the center of the circle...

Boom!

A thick, Cero shot out from within, directly blasting towards Fon Shaoling.

There were almost no signs of energy accumulation, or rather, the accumulation was entirely handled by the insects; the monster's role was simply to determine the direction of the energy. And Fon Shaoling had already noticed dozens of these circular energy arrays formed by the insects...

Fon Shaoling dodged with Shunpo, and Cero exploded behind her, creating a deep crater.

"Damn it..."

Now there's another way. Fon Shaoling came up with a plan:

That move.

She developed this technique with Tessai, Cilian, Sakiro, but it still doesn't have an official name.

In that state, her speed would be enough to deliver the fatal blow before the monster could even notice.

But it will take time.

At least three minutes.

She looked at Hu.

Hu stood beside her, holding Jiku'a and Phantom Blade, his face still bearing the awkward expression from their earlier argument.

But now is not the time to continue throwing a tantrum.

"Amber."

Hu turned his head.

Fon Shaoling looked at him with an unprecedentedly serious expression.

"I have a plan that can break the current deadlock. But it takes time to prepare."

"How long?"

Three minutes.

Hu looked at the enormous creature lying prostrate on the ground, at the countless Nether Abyss Insects flying around, and at the overwhelming Reiatsu.

Three minutes?

Facing a monster equivalent to Vasto Lorde alone for three minutes.

He adjusted his breathing, and a blue light from Reishi began to flicker in his silver eyes. Amber began to channel his Reiatsu to forcibly maintain his Concentration state; he was preparing to fight with all his might.

"Good."

Fon Shaoling noticed the change in Huling 'Reiatsu, and a complex emotion flashed in her eyes: This person has only been in this world for a month, yet he has done too many things that he shouldn't have done.

"You..."

"Enough with the nonsense." Amber gripped her twin blades tightly. "Get ready." She then charged towards the monster to draw its attention.

As Fon Shaoling watched his retreating figure rushing towards the monster, she was somewhat moved. In order not to let his efforts be in vain, she took advantage of the fierce battle between Hu and the monster and landed behind a boulder in the corner of the courtyard.

Reiatsu began to surge.

Seeing that Fon Shaoling had already hidden herself, Hu gave a strained smile as she faced the monster.

"Bring it on."

Then the enormous creature moved.

Its speed was astonishing—with the aid of the Sonído, it appeared in front of Amber in an instant. Its sharp claws fell with a whistling sound.

Amber immediately sidestepped, and then Jiku'a slashed horizontally.

The knife clashed with the claws, sparks flying.

Amber was thrown back, but the monster's attacks did not stop.

Another claw swept in from the side. Hu dodged with Shunpo, and at the same time, he slashed out with his Phantom Blade —the blue sword light grazed the armor, but only left a shallow mark.

The monster let out an angry roar.

Its tail swept across.

Amber leaped to dodge, but was blown away by the gust of wind whipped up by his tail. He adjusted his posture in mid-air and Judgment Cut.

Three purple cracks opened on the monster's back, and invisible blades slashed into its armor.

The monster, in pain, suddenly turned around.

It raised its front paws, and a dozen or so Nether Abyss Insects gathered into two clusters, landing on the tips of its two paws respectively.

Two Cero were fired simultaneously.

Amber's pupils contracted, and he used Shunpo to dodge repeatedly. The first bullet grazed his side, leaving a scorch mark; the second bullet came head-on, and he could only raise his sword to block. Insufficient Reiatsu prevented Jiku'a from completely cleaving the Cero.

Boom--!

He was blasted away, slammed against the wall, and then fell to the ground.

"Cough..."

Hu leaned on the knife to stand up, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

This is only the first minute.

He swallowed the blood in his throat and focused all his energy on Concentration work.

Everything around them became clearer—the flight paths of the insects, the rhythm of the monster's breathing, the flow of Reiatsu in the air.

The monster pounced again.

Instead of retreating, Hu advanced.

His left hand wielded Phantom Blade imbued with Byakurai, Jiku'a his right hand Space Slash with Time Raven. Both blades struck simultaneously—

The Byakurai exploded within the swarm of insects, clearing a space; the Space Slash struck the monster's forearm, leaving a deep gash.

The monster recoiled in pain and withdrew its claw, but its other claw was already descending.

Amber Shunpo moved to the side, Beowulf's light condensed at his fist, and he punched it in the ribs.

Bang!

A dull thud, and the massive body tilted slightly.

But its tail had already swept over.

Amber was hit and sent flying backward again.

Second minute.

The monster spread its bone wings, and countless Nether Abyss Insects poured out from the wing membranes, gathering in the air.

Not just one or two regiments, but more than a dozen.

Each cluster was imbued with Cero light.

Amber looked at the swarms of insects, stood up to hide, but sensed the gradually increasing Reiatsu behind her—

Behind him was the direction of Fon Shaoling!

Amber had no choice but to abandon her idea of dodging and pour almost all of her Reiatsu into Jiku'a.

Jiku'a -- Maximum Output.

He charged towards the Cero.

The sword light clashed with the Cero.

Boom--Boom--Boom--

Explosions continued.

Amber's figure weaved through the explosions, Jiku'a relentlessly sliced through wave after wave of Cero.

The collision between Cero and Jiku'a almost ignited the surrounding air, and Amber felt as if she were in purgatory.

Entering the third minute.

The monster stopped attacking and looked at the blood-covered figure standing before it, facing it head-on.

It opened its four lower jaws and let out a low growl.

All the remaining Nether Abyss Insects surged toward it, coalescing into a giant sphere of light in front of it.

That was its strongest Cero.

It contains the combined power of all the remaining insects, enough to destroy everything.

The direction the sphere of light was pointing was not at amber.

It was actually Fon Shaoling behind the boulder.

Hu's pupils contracted sharply.

"Shaoling!"

Perhaps it was the growing Reiatsu emanating from Fon Shaoling that made the monster sense a threat...

At this crucial moment, Fon Shaoling was gathering her energy; stopping and leaving now would mean all her efforts would be in vain!

And at this final moment

Jiku'a sheathed his sword and gripped it tightly.

The Phantom Blade had long since dissipated; he no longer had the Reiatsu to construct it.

Almost all of his Reiatsu had been exhausted in the previous confrontation.

Amber is practically burning her life force right now!

Hu closed his eyes, squeezing out the last bit of Reiatsu he could find within his body.

Then he opened his eyes.

"Ultimate Technique! Judgment Cut-- "

His voice was hoarse, yet incredibly firm.

"--Absolutely amazing!"

Jiku'a was slain.

In that instant, space shattered.

Countless Dimensional Rifts opened between Hu and the Cero, densely packed and layered, like a wall woven from the void.

This was the final, all-out, life-burning strike.

The beam of light crashed into the crack.

The light was split.

The energy was torn apart.

The Cero, powerful enough to destroy everything, was torn into countless fragments within the Dimensional Rift and annihilated into the void.

The monster was startled by the attack.

For the first time, that enormous creature took a step back.

Amber knelt on one knee, using Jiku'a's Claw as a support, right in front of Fon Shaoling. The boulder in front of Fon Shaoling- Judgment Cut Aya, affected by the Dimensional Cero. Fon Shaoling maintained her Shunkō pose, watching this man with his back to her, leaning on his sword in a fighting stance...

Hu succeeded.

He blocked the attack at the last moment.

Jiku'a was pinned to the ground by his weight.

Amber swayed, trying to stand up again, but he was eventually exhausted. His Concentration dissipated, his Reiatsu dropped to almost its lowest point, and his vision began to blur as he collapsed.

"Amber--!"

Fon Shaoling's voice came from behind.

She saw it.

She saw it all.

With all her might, Hu used her last move to block the attack that was meant to land on her.

Reiatsu surged within him.

The Shunkō is finally complete.

The Fon Shaoling burst forth.

She was surrounded by surging air currents, her hair moved without wind, and her eyes burned with an unprecedented fighting spirit. Her speed was unbelievable—faster than the monster, faster than the Sonído.

She landed beside Hu and gently helped him lie down.

His chest was still heaving.

He is still alive.

After confirming that Amber was safe, Fon Shaoling felt a moment of relief, which was then followed by a surge of overwhelming anger!

She stood up and turned to the monster that Hongming Nether had become.

Facing that behemoth.

"Isn't the man I, Soi Fon, chosen incredibly strong? Tsuchimikado Kōmei!"

Her voice was calm.

It was eerily calm.

I saw you backing away just now!

The monster opened its four lower jaws and hissed.

"What am I doing? Showing off to a monster that's lost its mind, when I'm clearly not going to get any feedback at all..."

Fon Shaoling chuckled lightly, mocking herself.

She disappeared from the spot.

The next second, they appeared in front of the monster.

The Suzumebachi.

First strike, mark.

A butterfly pattern appeared on its enormous body.

The monster roared and swiftly swung its claws in retaliation—but the Fon Shaoling was faster.

She dodged the claws and reappeared on the other side.

The Suzumebachi stings again.

Another marker.

One after another.

Butterfly patterns densely appeared on the monster's shell.

The monster swung its claws wildly, Sonído and Cero, but it couldn't even touch the hem of Fon Shaoling's clothes.

In this state, her Shunpo is so fast it's like teleportation; her speed alone is almost indistinguishable from that of the former Flash Goddess Yoruichi!

It was as fast as a ghost.

Finally, she landed in front of the monster and raised her hand.

The Suzumebachi was aiming at the largest of the butterfly patterns.

"Farewell, scum!"

The second strike is fatal.

The Suzumebachi stung the same spot.

The monster froze.

The entire body seemed to have been frozen in time, and then the massive body began to collapse.

The outer shell shattered, the bone wings broke, and the Reiatsu vanished.

Boom--!

It fell to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

The Fon Shaoling fell back to the ground, and the Shunkō gust of air was slowly weakening.

She turned and walked towards Hu.

However, a cracking sound of a shell shattering behind her stopped her.

Fon Shaoling suddenly turned around.

The enormous corpse was still writhing slightly, and a crack spread outwards from its chest.

A hand emerged from the crack.

Then the other hand.

A figure slowly crawled out from the wreckage.

He was covered in jet-black armor, the patterns on which resembled solidified magma, with dark red light flowing through the cracks. In the very center of his chest was a huge void— Hollow Hole.

His head was completely covered by a helmet, obscuring his face; only a dark red glow emanated from the transparent keratin in the center of the helmet.

The Nether Abyss Insects... just moments ago they were flying everywhere, but almost simultaneously they all lost their lives.

Those insects that once covered the sky are now falling slowly from the air like red flower petals!

Their owners no longer need them.

The figure stood atop the wreckage, looking down at his hands.

He clenched his fist, released it, and then clenched it again.

Then he looked up.

The helmet's red glow faced the Fon Shaoling.

His voice came from under his helmet, low and calm, with an eerie echo.

"I see..."

He stepped down from the wreckage.

With each step, a charred claw mark was left on the ground.

"This is true power."

His tone was devoid of any emotion.

He raised his hand, and a dark red light condensed in his palm.

There was no chaotic aura like Cero within that light.

It was as if it were just a pure ball of light.

But that Reiatsu was even stronger than the oppressive feeling brought by the previous Cero of the enormous creature.

"Now--"

His voice remained calm.

"Let's begin Third Round."

Fon Shaoling's pupils contracted.

She glanced at Hu, who was lying on the ground.

He is still unconscious.

She assumed a fighting stance again.

The Shunkō currents surged again.