Fierce Battle at Sea

Even artillery shells could not harm him in the slightest, so how could the collapse of a mere high-rise building possibly do anything to him?

"Do you understand now? Before absolute power, this kind of petty tri—"

"Crack!"

The Deep Sea King's words came to an abrupt stop.

At some point, Spider-Man had slipped beneath him. With a violent shove of his palm, he slammed the Deep Sea King's jaws shut.

The Deep Sea King's teeth, capable of biting through titanium alloy, actually bit off his own long eel-like tongue!

"See that, big fish? I crippled that disgusting tongue of yours."

Spider-Man raised his middle finger and taunted him contemptuously.

The Deep Sea King's face instantly twisted. Veins bulged across his forehead, and his eyes reddened with fury. He poured savage force into both fists and smashed them down at Spider-Man like mad!

"Danger! Danger!"

"But—no use!"

"I can still barely handle attacks at this speed."

"Take this—Web Wrap!"

Spider-Man dodged nimbly while continuously firing webs, layer after layer winding around the Deep Sea King's body.

Just ten minutes later, the Deep Sea King's limbs were tightly bound by thousands of layers of webbing. Only his head remained exposed, making him look like a gigantic white cocoon.

At some point, rain began to fall from the sky. The drizzle quickly intensified, turning into a torrential downpour in the blink of an eye.

"Hey, big fish, I captured you alive. Hurry up and tell your shrimp and crab soldiers to surrender!"

"Heh heh... Very good! Human, you have completely enraged me!"

"Hey, hey, have you got the situation backwards? You're my prisoner right now. Did anger scramble your brain?"

Spider-Man looked utterly confused.

He was clearly in complete control. How did this guy still dare to be so arrogant? Could the Deep-Sea Clan's brains be built differently from humans'?

Suddenly, his spider-sense issued a frantic warning, making every hair on his body stand on end!

Although he had no idea where the danger was coming from, his body instinctively retreated at high speed—

"Snap! Snap! Snap!"

The thousands of layers of webbing that had tightly bound the Deep Sea King began snapping apart one after another.

The Deep Sea King's body seemed to have swollen to nearly twice its previous size.

"Good God, this is ridiculous!"

"I was having a hard time adapting after coming ashore. Luckily, this rain restored me to my full condition."

"This is bad..."

Feeling the Deep Sea King's increasingly terrifying aura, Spider-Man's heart pounded. He must not have checked the almanac today to run into such a troublesome monster.

This strength was already close to breaking through Demon-level Disaster and reaching the level of a Quasi-Dragon-Level Disaster.

"Faster... I can barely dodge anymore."

"His size has nearly doubled, and his defense has increased drastically."

"His strength has tripled. That's terrifying."

Keeping up with the fully restored Deep Sea King was a tremendous drain on both mental focus and stamina.

Beneath the Spider-Man suit, Peter Parker breathed rapidly, cold sweat pouring over his body. Against a monster of this level, a single mistake could cost him his life.

Against the previous Deep Sea King, he had still been confident he could subdue him. But the current Deep Sea King... his chances of winning were infinitely close to zero.

"I'm out of here. Better leave this to the League of Heroes' stronger fighters. I'm just an amateur hero."

"Trying to run?"

The Deep Sea King appeared behind Spider-Man like a ghost, his enormous hand suddenly closing.

He tightly clenched the slender Spider-Man in his palm.

"Insignificant human, I will crush you like trash."

"Crack—"

A grip strength of three thousand tons was enough to crush Spider-Man into pulp. Yet when the Deep Sea King opened his hand, all that remained was an empty Spider-Man suit.

Peter Parker had pulled off a cicada's escape, fleeing for his life wearing only his Spider-Man mask and Spider-Man underwear.

"Another one of those petty tricks." The Deep Sea King tossed aside the suit, his crimson eyes locking onto his target. "You won't be so lucky next time."

Peter Parker was panicking badly right now.

As an amateur hero, he had always longed for the true "League of Heroes."

Peter Parker did not want Aunt May's family to know that he had special abilities, so he had always carefully hidden his identity. Normally, he only wore the Spider-Man suit to do small things, such as helping elderly people cross the street or solving minor problems.

He had only come to join in the excitement this time. He never expected the enemy to be far stronger than anticipated, completely beyond his ability to handle.

"Young man, step back. You did well." A deep, powerful voice suddenly rang out.

Accompanied by the scrape of metal armor, a burly warrior in heavy armor strode forward with a greatsword in hand. It was none other than the League of Heroes' B-rank hero—[The Might of Demacia] Garen.

"You have the potential to become a B-rank hero." Garen looked over the disheveled Peter. "But you are not this fellow's opponent yet. Leave it to professional heroes."

"Another one here to die?" The Deep Sea King licked his lips. "But your flesh looks even more delicious."

"Come! This will be the most glorious way for you to die!" Garen raised his greatsword in provocation, successfully drawing the Deep Sea King's attention away.

"Go, Mr. Garen!" Recognizing the hero frequently seen on television, Peter shouted excitedly. As commander of the Demacian Legion, Garen's heroic deeds and steadfast image had earned the admiration of countless people. The young Spider-Man was one of his admirers.

"Charge!" Light flared around Garen, and his speed abruptly increased by 30%. Wielding his greatsword, he charged fearlessly toward the Deep Sea King.

"Watch me smash you into a meat patty!" The Deep Sea King swung a heavy fist to meet him. This blow carried three thousand tons of force, enough to split mountains apart.

"Watch out!" Peter, watching from the side, hurriedly warned him.

"Demacia!" Garen roared as he ignited his fighting spirit, a golden shield appearing over his body. For the next five minutes, he would gain 60% damage reduction. Even so, he still had to endure an impact of twelve hundred tons. But with a powerful physique comparable to a Demon-level Disaster, heavy armor resistant to magic, and an innate ability to recover quickly, Garen fearlessly chose to take the blow head-on!

"Bang—"

Fierce Battle at Sea

"Boom—"

The fist, carrying tremendous force, smashed heavily into Garen's chest. He spat out a mouthful of blood but still gripped his sword hilt tightly. A cold flash passed, and the Deep Sea King's left arm flew away. Dark green blood sprayed from the severed limb.

"Fight to the death!"

"Bastard! You have enraged me!"

The battle between the two hulking beasts contained no technique at all. The dull clashes of fist and sword sounded like war drums. Garen's armor had long since caved in, while the Deep Sea King's body was covered in sword wounds, yet both continued their frenzied assault by trading injury for injury.

He spun and slashed! The broad-bladed greatsword whipped up a hurricane, tearing open gashes across the Deep Sea King's body. The one-armed Deep Sea King roared and swung his fist down, each blow cracking the ground. The stench of blood filled the air as both sides forced their shattered bodies onward through sheer will alone.

Judgment!

Garen wiped away the blood obscuring his vision—blood mixed from both his enemy and himself. He suddenly dropped to one knee and drove his greatsword deep into the ground.

"Demacia shall endure forever!"

Golden light suddenly blazed across the heavens, and a ten-meter sword of light tore through the clouds. The Deep Sea King looked up, but the dazzling radiance had already swallowed his twisted face.

The shockwave overturned trucks three blocks away, and glass across all of New York trembled at once.

—Meanwhile, at a suburban ranch—

The rusted iron fence creaked in the gale, forming a stark contrast to the brutal scene in the city.

"Crack!"

The man in black armor crushed a refined steel gauntlet in his hand. His red cape snapped behind him, and the scar on his face twitched slightly as his lone eye stared at the fading golden light in the distance.

The Hand of Noxus released the iron fragments in his palm and gripped the massive battle axe beside him. The axe blade reflected the sharp gleam in his eyes—the excitement of yearning to fight a powerful opponent.

(He had cleaved through enemy formations with his bloodstained battle axe. Whether they were enemy soldiers or Noxus traitors, none could escape death.

He believed he represented justice. He never hesitated when swinging his axe, nor did he ever show mercy to anyone.

On the battlefield, he was the incarnation of slaughter!

He had fought Demacia's legion commander, Garen, dozens of times, with neither side able to determine victory or defeat.

He had thought that after arriving in this new world, he would never again have a chance to face his old rival.

He never expected the grudge between Demacia and Noxus to continue.

"Did that guy Garen come too?"

"Big brother!"

A burly man strode in from outside the wooden cabin. His features resembled Darius's, but he dressed flamboyantly and carried two axes.

He was Darius's younger brother—[Glorious Executioner] Draven!

"What is it?"

"The commander has issued a muster order. Noxus's campaign to conquer the world is about to begin!"

"War is coming? Good. Garen, I hope you can give me a satisfying fight."

Darius rose and gripped his battle axe, his voice low.

Though Noxus was warlike, it was not reckless. Intelligence was of vital importance.

After arriving, the legion had not immediately launched an attack. Instead, it had first gathered intelligence on this world.

Now, the intelligence was complete, and the conquest plan had officially begun.

"Where is the first target?"

"A place that appears poor, but actually hides profound secrets."

Draven unfolded a map, his finger stopping on eastern Africa—Wakanda!

Inside the League of Heroes headquarters, the chairman's office.

Li Chen was playing chess with Sosuke Aizen.

Although Aizen was a beginner, his intelligence was exceptionally high. He quickly grasped the tricks of the game and fought Li Chen to a standstill.

At this rate, surpassing Li Chen was only a matter of time.

"This power... Garen has defeated the Deep Sea King?"

"The battle is over."

Aizen smiled bitterly. His king had been checkmated by Li Chen's "rook."

"There is no need for high-ranking heroes to act. This time, every hero should have risen to a level matching their strength."

"With the Deep Sea King dealt with, Joan of Arc should be able to clean up the remaining fodder easily."

"Aizen, have you seen where Annie went?"

Li Chen turned his gaze out the window, his tone calm.

Nearly all B-rank through D-rank heroes in the League of Heroes had mobilized. Only [Dark Child] Annie, who possessed B-rank strength, had vanished without a trace and had still not appeared even as the battle neared its end.

"'Dark Child'? She is probably there right now."

"Oh? That place?"

Following the direction Sosuke Aizen pointed, Li Chen narrowed his eyes slightly.

177A Bleecker Street, Manhattan, New York—an ordinary-looking address that concealed hidden mysteries.

The New York Sanctum.

"Supreme Sorcerer The Ancient One... Aizen, I'll leave the rest to you."

"You are going there personally?"

"I'll meet this world's peak fighter and bring back that little one who loves to play while I'm at it."

"Please allow me to accompany you."

"No need. No matter how strong The Ancient One is, she cannot threaten me now." Li Chen's lips curved slightly. "Besides, many post-battle matters will still require your counsel."

"I am honored by your trust."

"..."

Inside the New York Sanctum, space-folding magic obscured the outside world.

The Ancient One set down her teapot, ripples spreading through the air. "We have a visitor."

Before her words faded, a blue curtain of light tore through the barrier. The instant Li Chen stepped out of the spatial rift, his gaze locked onto the figures beside the tea table—

The Supreme Sorcerer The Ancient One sat facing a dreamlike young girl.

In the corner, Annie swung her legs. The teddy bear in her arms and the ancient books around her formed a small mountain. B-rank hero strength was merely her starting point; sparks dancing on her fingertips were lighting up the runes on the pages one by one.

"Magician The Ancient One's insight truly is astonishing."

"You flatter me, chairman of the League of Heroes. The energy within you is what is truly awe-inspiring." The Ancient One smiled faintly.

Both could sense the surging power within the other. As the holder who gathered the abilities of all members and automatically raised them by one level, the energy within Li Chen was practically heaven-defying—

It fused Sosuke Aizen and Ulquiorra's vice-captain-level Reiatsu, Joan of Arc's peak S-rank magical power, Yatogami Tohka's peak S-rank spiritual power, Tatsumaki's vice-captain-level psychic power, and Thor's vice-captain-level divine power.

Five ultimate powers coexisted perfectly within him. Even without combat techniques, this energy alone was enough to crush the vast majority of opponents in the universe.