This Chat Group's Vibe Is a Bit Off Chapter 48

Theresis practically forced those words out through clenched teeth. He could not sense even the faintest trace of living breath from his enemy. That bastard who could manipulate space was downright otherworldly!

He wanted to vent, to destroy everything around him and slaughter his way out, but he could not.

Whenever he unleashed all his strength and prepared to charge out of this forbidden place, he would somehow step on something or overshoot his charge and end up back where he started, as if he had triggered a teleportation trap while exploring ancient ruins.

He was furious, yet had nowhere to vent it. In the end, his anger turned into nameless rage.

Misfortunes never came alone. His stomach started growling in complaint again, the contractions of his stomach resonating with his breathing, every spasm scraping out an echo tinged with rust.

Hungry, so hungry...

Every bone in his body craved food.

Thirsty, so thirsty...

Every scrap of flesh in his body craved water.

His pupils began to melt into two pools of murky amber. The stones reflected on his retinas twisted into fragrant bread and roasted meat. When his fingertips brushed the rough hilt of his sword, he even imagined himself touching the bowl of porridge, its surface congealed with rice oil, that his younger sister had once handed him as a child—thirty-seven hulled oat grains were swelling within his memories.

But he quickly suppressed that swelling sensation, regaining his focus as he concentrated on where his enemy's next attack would come from.

This time! This time, I'll definitely catch the instant you strike, and then... then...

At last, his kneecap let out a crisp crack like a dry branch snapping. He toppled into the gutter like a puppet whose strings had been cut. He had gone a full ten days without food or water, and his enemy's attacks were like the vulture tormenting Prometheus, taking a piece of his flesh every time it appeared.

His eyelids drooped heavily over his pupils, as though he had fallen asleep.

But then, he suddenly opened his eyes. It was like awakening after a full night's sleep, or being reborn after dying once. The world became exceptionally clear in his eyes. Every faint fluctuation, every light wingbeat, appeared as though reflected through endless mirrors. Sound was no different. If an orchestra performed in front of him now, he would even be able to hear that the bassist was not playing bass at all, but secretly ordering takeout.

Everything became so vivid, so real. He raised his head and looked up, his vision expanding. It was as if, one night 5.5 million years ago, an Australopithecus sat in a tree on the East African savanna. It had gone days without finding enough food to fill its belly, starving and unable to sleep, until it looked up and saw the vast sea of stars filling its eyes.

He saw it!

The traces of those subtle spatial fluctuations that he had been unable to see before—the traces of his enemy making a move—he could now catch them!

He just could not be impatient. He needed to wait patiently, because he was already at his limit and had only enough strength for one strike. He had to wait for the right moment, then—slay the enemy in a single blow!

While Big Teacher, cosplaying the Future Guardian Jayce, struggled to survive, Qianyi and the others responsible for his wilderness survival experience were sampling Kazimierz cuisine.

Because it had been a blitz attack, Theresis and his people had set out to kill the upper ranks of the Supervisory Council and the Merchants' Guild in the shortest possible time. Thus, aside from those two places, almost nowhere else had suffered much damage. The Merchants' Guild had no terrifying combat power to speak of, just a group of merchants who would flee overnight at the first sign of trouble, so Theresis and the Blood Demon Great Lord had not paid the place much attention.

As a result, once Qianyi and his vast contingent of Ursus lords had restored order in Kazimierz, those merchants still had the audacity to swagger up and discuss cooperation with Qianyi. Every word implied that they wanted to carve up Kazimierz with Ursus and redistribute it.

The merchants' matter-of-fact attitude and absurd way of thinking nearly left Qianyi speechless. Then he thought about it and added them to the list of casualties from the Sarkaz attack.

"This Fermented Rice Shrimp is really good! Boss, give me another twenty!" Kiana waved a hand and ordered twenty in one breath, extravagance written all over her.

"My apologies, but we're sold out." The girl named Skadi looked utterly numb, wearing the expression of someone who did not want to run a business or go to work.

"Oh, Platinum." Hearing a familiar voice, Qianyi turned his head and found that it really was an acquaintance. He greeted her, "Why are you working here?"

Fuck! He knows my real identity!

Platinum had wanted to run the moment her identity was exposed, but when she considered the combat power of this group of Ursus higher-ups, even the Blacksteel Grand Seat would not be able to escape a single step. She simply gave up. "The Armorless Alliance has disbanded."

"Who did it?" Qianyi asked in surprise.

The Armorless Alliance disbanded? Then who's going to make up for the overtime girl, the crosstalk duo, and the hand sanitizer duo I'm missing?

Platinum was speechless.

Who did it? Don't you have any idea yourself?

At least some people from the Supervisory Council had survived. The representatives of the Merchants' Guild had come to discuss cooperation with you, and the whole lot of them died at the hands of the Sarkaz. Who did it? Anyone with half a brain knew perfectly well.

And the Armorless Alliance had done who knew how much dirty work for the Merchants' Guild. All sorts of shameful secrets had suddenly fallen into your hands. Given the situation, anyone in the Armorless Alliance who could resist running away would have to be God-kin. But the Ursus troops guarded the place too tightly, making it impossible to leave easily. The Armorless Alliance could only disguise themselves as restaurant staff and work here for now, planning to flee once the restrictions loosened.

"You know this little sister too?" Talulah asked Qianyi as she curiously examined Platinum.

"Barely. It's more like I know her, but she doesn't know me," Qianyi explained.

"No, no, actually, I know you too. Nobody on the entire continent doesn't know about the things you've done," Platinum silently complained inwardly.

"A crush?" Hiiragi Tina blurted out something startling. "Qianyi, a secret crush has no future. I met two people who secretly liked each other some time ago. If you really like her, then I suggest you just go in for the grab. She won't be able to take it."

"Tina, I'm considering whether I should forbid you from leaving our sight and also forbid you from coming into contact with anything related to Magical Girls." Qianyi felt that Hiiragi Tina was becoming less and less inclined to hide her true nature, and her ability to make associations was growing stronger and stronger.

Mention knowing a girl, and she thinks of secret crushes. Mention secret crushes, and she thinks of dating. Mention dating, and she thinks of getting closer. Mention getting closer, and she wants to enter the grab space immediately. You're already like this in middle school—I don't even dare imagine what you'll be like in high school or college.

Are you going to take down the whole world by yourself, turn everyone into Magical Girls, and drag them all into the grab space?

As Platinum listened to the group's conversation, her originally numb expression gradually turned horrified, and cold sweat was about to start pouring down her face.

Where's Roy? Where's Roy?! Help, help me!!!

And where's the chef? Why aren't the dishes coming out yet?!

Do you expect me to deal with this many monsters alone?!

Suddenly, a response came through on her ordering device. Just as she thought she could finally use serving food as an excuse to escape these monsters, she saw that it was not a notification telling her the dishes were ready to be served, but a line of text.

Little Platinum, we're making a break for it. Wishing you a bright future//(^v^)--Love, Cyan Gold Grand Seat. Blacksteel Grand Seat sends his regards.

That short line shattered every bit of the adorable pegasus girl's ability to think.

But she quickly came to her senses. She should immediately capture those superiors of hers. She could not be the only one exposed; that was the only way to earn leniency.

Sir, I have a report! This restaurant is actually a temporary hideout for the Armorless Alliance!

Then she realized the message had been sent thirty minutes ago; the other party had set it on a timer. In other words, by the time Qianyi's group came to eat at this restaurant, her superiors had already run away.

Why didn't anyone warn me?!!

Under Qianyi and the others' puzzled gazes, the adorable Pegasus girl suddenly wore a look of despair, then with a thud, crashed heavily to the ground and passed away peacefully.

At the age of...

No! I can't die yet! How can I die?!

The Sarkaz are still waiting for me to restore them!

Theresis, who had waited half the day for the enemy's attack only for it never to come, nearly fainted. Ten days without a drop of water, ten days without a grain of rice, not even time to sleep—he had reached the point where the slightest relaxation would make him pass out.

Had it not been for his formidable physique, and the fact that Kazdel was so poor that he had often gone hungry in the past and had practically developed an immunity to starvation, he would likely have died from lack of food and water long ago.

But this could not continue. His body had already reached the end of its rope. Without supplies, he could hold out for half a day at most, and even the strength for his final sword strike would vanish.

Anything will do! Give me something to eat! If not, even something to drink would do!

Theresis had reached the point where he would eat anything. If Qianyi's group had not taken away the Blood Demon Great Lord's corpse, he would probably have turned into a Ghoul by now and started madly sneaking bites of his teammates' corpses.

Suddenly, on the verge of passing out, he noticed a package beneath the ruins some distance away. It looked like takeout. He was not sure, so he rubbed his eyes and looked closer, then his face filled with delight.

He sprinted over to the package, yanked it out in one motion, and held it up before his eyes.

This, this is... Pin Hao Fan!!!

He checked the date. It was takeout ordered ten days ago, seemingly by a low-ranking employee of the Supervisory Council. But did that matter? It no longer mattered!

To the current Theresis, even Old Eight's little burger would have been something he devoured without hesitation, let alone this expired Pin Hao Fan.

In his eyes, this Pin Hao Fan was more delicious than any food in existence. He did not even need to taste it to feel a resonance on the level of the soul—the cheap boxed meal had somehow reconstructed a triple-layered feast upon the taste buds of his spirit: on the top floated the wok hei that Victoria's royal chefs could only dream of attaining; through the middle flowed the lingering warmth of sweet potatoes he had hidden in stove ash as a child; at the bottom settled the scorched fragrance of the primal flame from the dawn of civilization.

Most wonderfully of all, this Pin Hao Fan even came with a drink of some unknown brand. It was practically the forbidden wine Prometheus, thief of fire, had stolen from the cellars of Olympus—a divine water equal in value to the primal flame, capable of saving humanity from all suffering!

He did not know whether the Supervisory Council employee who had ordered this meal was still alive. If he was, Theresis would definitely take him to Kazdel and give him a Sarkaz beauty whose head split into several parts as a wife.

But then he became vigilant.

This Pin Hao Fan was his last hope. He did not want to suddenly hear "Heavenly Wind Usurper" or "Hand it over," only for the resource he had painstakingly found in the ruins to vanish before his eyes.

His gaze swept across the surroundings, alert to every slight disturbance. The moment even the faintest spatial fluctuation appeared, he would leave behind his final—and most all-out—sword strike, then use that opening to enjoy this Pin Hao Fan and regain his strength.

Yet after remaining on guard for a long time, he discovered that the enemy showed no sign of attacking him.

What was going on?

Would that group really be so kind?

Earlier, whenever he found a little water or food, that group had gone mad—Tens of Thousands of Proverbs, Sword of Promised Victory, all kinds of attacks raining down on him. Or rather, raining down on the Blood Demon Great Lord; he had merely been caught up in it.

No, perhaps after ten straight days, their energy and stamina could no longer hold up either, and they had let their guard down?

Theresis could not help suspecting this, though he also felt it was impossible. But he had truly reached his limit. He had reached the point where he could not hold on without eating this Pin Hao Fan.

Should he eat it?

Now, this very moment, right here!

After .01 seconds of hesitation, the string in his heart finally snapped. Yes, he had decided—he was going to eat this Pin Hao Fan!

As long as I finish it in an instant, even if Qianyi and the others take it away, it'll already be too late!

He lifted the lid of the Pin Hao Fan. The instinctive craving of his body urged him to quickly eat this takeout. His body and mind were wholly drawn to the meal, leaving room for nothing else. And so, he failed to notice a cockroach—or rather, a female Sarkaz—quietly approaching him.

Theresis, you damned Theresis! I finally found you!!

No wonder I couldn't find you anywhere—you were hiding in a place like this. Now that I've found you, your time has come!

For Your Highness Theresia's sake, now, at this very moment, I will make you pay for blood with blood!

"Magnetic Bomb deployed."

W flung out her meticulously crafted Magnetic Bombs, which stuck to Theresis—the elder brother of Theresia, yet also Theresia's murderer.

The instant more than ten Magnetic Bombs latched onto him, W kicked off the ground. Her backward-bending knee joints erupted with extraordinary force. It was said that fleas could jump two hundred times their own height; if humans possessed comparable jumping ability, they could leap roughly four hundred meters high. In her extreme exhilaration, W achieved that hypothetical feat, violently springing backward to escape the impending explosion.

"Boow! Hahahaha—"

In an instant, a terrifying explosion swept through the area. The violent shockwave, like the massive claw of a savage beast, slammed into Theresis, compressing the surrounding air until it seemed solid and whipping up a dreadful storm. The blast's light burned like a blazing sun, tearing through the darkness around it, while flames opened their enormous jaws like a greedy monster and swallowed the entire block.

Even though she had fled at top speed, W still could not avoid being caught in the blast. Yet she was laughing, staring without blinking at the center of the explosion. She longed to see the traitor who had betrayed Your Highness blown to pieces.

But the result stunned her. Once the explosion dissipated, aside from his clothes having been reduced to tatters, Theresis himself seemed completely unaffected!

No! It wasn't that he was unaffected!

Theresis's eyes trembled, and his entire body shook like a sieve. He stared at his empty palms, utterly unable to believe this had happened.

"My, my... my Pin Hao Fan... Wh-why, why, why!!!"

Theresis, overcome with rage and distress, roared. His voice nearly shattered W's eardrums. But suddenly, the roar cut off. Unable to bear such a crushing blow, Theresis collapsed to the ground with a thud, his fate unknown.

W had been on the verge of despair, thinking, Could it be that even bombs made with military explosives collected from Ursus can't kill Theresis? Then Theresis suddenly dropped headfirst to the ground, making her burst into wild laughter.

"Ha... hahahaha! I, I, I... I blew Theresis up?"

"Your Highness Theresia, did you see..."

Before W could finish speaking, the more Theresis thought about it, the angrier he became. He suddenly snapped awake and used the last—and strongest—sword strike he had intended to save for Qianyi and the others on W. He no longer cared about using a cannon to swat a mosquito, nor did he care about the revival of the Sarkaz. At that moment, there was only one thought in his mind.

Give me back my Pin Hao Fan!!!

With a single throw, Theresis's sword streaked across the night sky like a meteor, hurtling toward W with irresistible force.

In that instant, W seemed to see Theresia beckoning to her. Before she could reach that phantom, the force carried by the sword had already violently hurled her backward. Like an abandoned rag doll, she shot away at high speed under the blade's power. The air howled from the violent impact, and objects around her were swept up as she flew past, sending dust and debris swirling everywhere.

She had a feeling that if she hit a wall, her body would definitely be torn to pieces and turned into W-chan.

But the next moment, she felt someone press a hand against her back. A completely opposing force erupted from behind, trying to cancel out Theresis's power.

By all rights, caught at the center of those two clashing forces, she should have immediately been crushed into pulp. Yet she was not. Not only that, but her body was rapidly recovering.

Her mind went blank. She could not imagine who would go to such lengths to save a Sarkaz Mercenary like her. Mercenaries like her were as plentiful across this land as stray dogs; if she died by the roadside one day, no one would care.

Except... except...

She lowered her head and saw flowers. Pure, immaculate blossoms bloomed over her body, swiftly healing her wounds.

"I am the black that comes from the abyss. I am the white that descends from the clouds. Born before creation, existing after annihilation, I shall freely give the water of the spring of life to the thirsty. Void Archive & Herrscher of Reason, Simulated Reproduction: Black Abyss White Flower, Zeroth Rated Output—Holy Spear's Centenary Orchid!"

Realizing there was no time to save her normally, Qianyi decisively unleashed Void Archive. To prevent any mishaps, he had even specifically asked Seele to give him the Herrscher of Reason Core and merged it into Void Archive to increase its power.

"Your Highness!!!"

W wrapped her arms around the figure who had saved her life.

The Strongest "Sun Never Sets" Empire, Combine Here! (6K)

While eating, Qianyi sensed Theresis suddenly suffering an emotional breakdown. Like a little mouse that had activated the Heart of Africa but failed to stuff it into his pants before getting blown away by two Magnetic Bombs, he had gone mad and wanted to take someone down with him.