Hunted by a King-level Mighty Strength Ape!

Boom!!

The Mighty Demon Ape stood about twenty-five meters tall. At the peak of the high-level Lord rank, its strength nearly rivaled that of an Invincible War God. It kicked the enormous corpse of the Shadow Leopard away from beneath its feet.

"Roar, roar~~"

It pounded its chest with both hands and let out a furious roar. Visible shock waves burst from its gaping maw and swept in every direction, raising a cloud of dust.

Zhou Ze saw this and stopped playing around with the Elementary Lord-level Mighty Demon Ape he'd been chasing.

He controlled ten Blood-red Flying Daggers, sending them slicing toward the Elementary Lord-level Mighty Demon Ape along a variety of trajectories.

"Swish, swish~"

In an instant, the Blood-red Flying Daggers surrounded the Mighty Demon Ape, cutting into it again and again. Finally, two or three daggers pierced straight through its head.

With a thud, the Mighty Demon Ape—still in mid-run—collapsed helplessly, crashing into and shattering a small mound ahead.

"Spiritual Psychics really are efficient. One move, and I killed a monster of the same rank from over a hundred meters away." Zhou Ze smiled.

Damn human!

You dared to kill one of my kin right in front of me!

"Roar!"

The peak Lord-level Mighty Demon Ape flew into a complete rage. Its enormous body moved at a speed that defied all logic. In less than two seconds, it crossed a kilometer and reached Zhou Ze. It clasped its hands together and swung them down at him like a giant iron hammer.

Whoosh!

Zhou Ze dodged the Mighty Demon Ape with a strange twist of his body, then slashed at the back of its neck.

The Mighty Demon Ape had fought humans many times. Humans who dodged its attacks would either go for its eyes or target the back of its neck—or its backside.

It let out a cold laugh inside, then used the force of its turn to whip its left hand behind itself like a lash. The blow cracked through the air.

Clang!

Zhou Ze's alloy blade collided with the back of the Mighty Demon Ape's hand, producing a shrill metallic screech!

Crack!

Feeling the long blade in his hand fracture, Zhou Ze flashed aside and quickly dodged the Mighty Demon Ape's successive attacks. Then he hurled the hilt at its eyes, using Psychic Power to accelerate it along the way.

"Roar~"

The Mighty Demon Ape knocked the alloy hilt away, never slowing as it charged Zhou Ze. Its fists swung rapidly, each punch generating a powerful blast of air.

An ordinary martial artist could have their internal organs shattered by the pressure alone, even without being struck by a fist.

"I'm done playing with you."

After sparring with the Mighty Demon Ape for a bit to warm up, Zhou Ze waited until it closed in again and swung a fist at him. Then deep blue light blossomed from within his body.

Hum!

The Water Domain instantly enveloped the area around them, then rapidly contracted.

What is this?!

The Mighty Demon Ape wanted to roar furiously, but under the domain's absolute suppression, even its thoughts seemed to slow. It had no chance to open its mouth and bellow.

"Goodbye."

Zhou Ze said politely. He extended his right hand in a claw, then quickly clenched it.

Boom!

Terrifying power erupted. The Mighty Demon Ape's roughly twenty-five-meter body was crushed apart by the force of the domain, its flesh and blood spraying in every direction.

As the filthy gore neared Zhou Ze, his Psychic Power blocked it all. Not a single drop of blood touched him.

"The domain really is powerful. No wonder Hong is said to be invincible among those of the same rank!" Zhou Ze exclaimed with a smile.

Just by expanding the domain, he could leave a peak Lord-level Mighty Demon Ape—whose strength rivaled an Invincible War God and was renowned for its power—utterly helpless.

And this was only the force he'd spread over an area. To truly unleash a domain's power, one usually concentrated it into a martial artist's weapon, making it countless times stronger.

"My strength now is fully comparable to—and might even surpass—that of a Planetary-level first-rank martial artist."

Zhou Ze was itching to test himself. He wished a Planetary-level monster would appear right in front of him so he could see what it was like.

As it happened, fate had a way of delivering exactly what he wanted.

"Roar~"

A blurry shape appeared in the distant sky. Even from that far away, Zhou Ze felt an intense pressure and a suppression of his very life force.

Zhou Ze froze for a moment, then immediately called for help.

"Hall Master, save me!"

After sending the distress signal, Zhou Ze planted his feet and launched himself toward the ground. Then his legs spun like wheels as he fled in the opposite direction.

Damn human! You killed my kin!

The Planetary-level Mighty Demon Ape seethed with rage. It wouldn't rest until it had pounded Zhou Ze into a pulp!

"No wonder they call them Mighty Demon Apes. There's even a King-level Mighty Strength Ape in their lair."

Zhou Ze looked like he was in a sorry state, but inside he was completely calm.

If only he had a suitable weapon, he felt he could turn the tables and kill it.

"Your legs can't outrun mine!"

Even while fleeing, Zhou Ze had enough time to look back.

The all-around boost from the domain was simply too incredible. If he weren't playing it safe, he really would have liked to kill a King-level Monster with his bare fists.

A domain was formed by combining physical strength, Genetic Energy, and Psychic Power. Using one consumed stamina, Origin Energy, and psychic power. The stronger those three were, the more powerful the domain became.

Although Zhou Ze's Psychic Power was a major weak point, his domain was still terrifyingly powerful. The speed boost put him far ahead of the King-level Mighty Demon Ape, and he felt he hadn't even reached his limit yet.

"If Hong takes too long to get here, I'll have to burrow underground. Luckily, I have plenty of daggers, enough to make a cone-shaped drill."

As he ran, Zhou Ze considered a second way to stay alive. The domain was powerful, but it also consumed a lot of energy. His weak Psychic Power was an obvious drawback!

His Origin Energy reserves were also far inferior to those of a Planetary-level martial artist, who could open a dantian and store a great deal of Genetic Energy.

At this rate, his psychic power would be gone in ten minutes or so, and his Origin Energy would be completely drained in less than half an hour.

Damn human! He's even harder to catch than a rat in a stinking gutter!

The King-level Mighty Demon Ape was consumed by rage when it realized it couldn't catch Zhou Ze.

After the two had been locked in this chase for about ten minutes, a Blood-red Smart Fighter appeared overhead like a streak of light.

"Hong, you finally made it!"

Zhou Ze let out a long breath of relief.

Hong transformed into a streak of blood-red light and appeared not far above them. The King-level Mighty Demon Ape, which had been charging furiously moments ago, turned tail and ran like a gigantic rat, not even looking back.

"Hall Master, cover me. I want to test the power of my domain!" Zhou Ze chased after the fleeing King-level Mighty Demon Ape, barely able to hold back a laugh.

The tables have turned, buddy!

It's the second round. Now I'm the one playing cop.

"Your domain?"

Hong had taken Zhou Ze very seriously. Before leaving, he'd given Zhou Ze his private contact information.

He hadn't expected to receive Zhou Ze's distress signal just after returning, before he'd even had time to go into seclusion. So he'd had to turn around and rush over again.

He'd seen Zhou Ze being hunted by a King-level Mighty Demon Ape and wondered how Zhou Ze had managed to provoke a King-level Monster—especially the strongest-ranked ape species. He hadn't expected to hear Zhou Ze say that he'd comprehended a domain!