Hearing the voice from behind, every member of the World-Ending Society felt a jolt of terror. They stiffly turned their heads, their movements slow and mechanical.
Seeing Shinji standing leisurely not far behind them, the black-robed leader's face was filled with disbelief. "This... how is this possible!?"
The traps they had set were calculated with the aid of a supercomputer. Once a target triggered them, the survival rate was a mere 0.001%.
And that was just survival. Even if the target managed to live, they should have been critically injured or incapacitated!
Yet Shinji looked completely fine. Not only was he unhurt, but there wasn't even a trace of combat on his robes.
"Hmph!"
Shinji scoffed.
These people who called themselves "World-Enders" were nothing but a bunch of cowardly bandits. In terms of courage and character, they couldn't even compare to Ryuuhei Ubuyashiki, whom Shinji had encountered before.
On second thought, what kind of courage could a group of dogs begging for scraps from a Hegemon possibly possess? Losing all interest in conversation, Shinji flickered directly in front of one of them. Just as he had done with Battle-Axe, he reached toward the man's waist, grabbed the Lamp, and squeezed hard.
Crack.
A crisp shattering sound rang out instantly!
"No—"
Seeing his Lamp crushed, the Society member roared in terror. But his roar was cut short as countless black receivers nailed him firmly to the ground, rendering him immobile.
The black-robed leader was filled with shock and fear. Retreating rapidly, he shouted a warning to his accomplices: "Everyone, protect your Lamps!"
Without a Lamp to open a spatial rift, they wouldn't even be able to leave this world.
Hearing the leader's warning, the remaining three members hurriedly concealed the Lamps hanging at their waists as they retreated.
A Lantern Bearer's Lamp isn't always in a physical state. As long as the bearer wishes, it can be hidden at any time—just as Shinji never kept his Lamp on his waist, only taking it out when needed.
The reason these Society members kept their Lamps exposed wasn't carelessness; it was simply because they needed to open spatial rifts at a moment's notice. Furthermore, in their eyes, the Lamp was incredibly sturdy and difficult to destroy, so they felt safe displaying them.
Now, seeing Shinji's brutality, they frantically hid their Lamps after hearing the leader's warning.
Shinji, having dealt with one, didn't stop. He immediately lunged at another member.
Seeing Shinji coming for him, the Society member was both frightened and enraged. Just as he was about to counterattack, his gaze met Shinji's eyes, and his expression instantly went blank.
Undoubtedly, he was caught in Shinji's genjutsu.
Flash.
At that moment, a golden light erupted from the member's body, forcibly rousing him from the genjutsu.
Before the confusion could fade from the awakened member's face, he heard the sound of shattering glass by his ear.
As a fellow Lantern Bearer, Shinji knew exactly what capabilities a Lamp possessed. He had used the genjutsu to trick the Lamp into automatically protecting its master, and the moment it materialized, he crushed it.
Hearing the shattering sound, the confusion on the member's face turned to terror. Before the fear could fully spread, he fell back into a dazed stupor, losing all reaction to the outside world.
With a wave of his hand, Shinji collected the drifting Embers into his own Lamp.
Having absorbed the Embers from three Lamps in succession, Shinji noticed a subtle change in the Lamp at his waist. Not only had the vessel grown slightly larger, but its glow seemed significantly more brilliant than before.
Glancing at his waist, the corner of Shinji's mouth quirked up. This sudden change was unexpected—a pleasant surprise.
Next, Shinji turned his gaze to the three remaining Society members, his smile widening.
The black-robed leader roared, "Who... who exactly are you!?"
The two members beside him had lost their nerve. They exchanged glances, seemingly debating whether to flee. In their eyes, the person before them was too ferocious—so ferocious that they even had the illusion they were facing a Hegemon directly.
One had to understand that the three members Shinji had instantly eliminated were somewhat famous in the circles; their names alone could strike fear into others. Yet against Shinji, they couldn't even resist, let alone fight back. They were like wooden training dummies!
Shinji didn't waste words. He walked slowly toward the remaining three.
Seeing this, the black-robed leader shouted, "If... if you back down now, we can write this off. But if you insist on fighting, we're going to get serious!"
Hearing their leader say this, the two members abandoned any hope of luck. They hurriedly summoned their Lamps, preparing to open spatial rifts and flee.
However, just as the dim yellow light pierced the spatial barrier and was about to open a rift, a hand reached out from behind each of them and crushed their Lamps in one go!
"!?"
The two froze in place. Spinning around, they found a Shinji standing behind each of them, having ambushed them at some unknown point.
They blinked, then turned back to look at the Shinji walking toward them from the front, murmuring, "Clones!?"
Before their voices faded, they were each pinned to the ground by black receivers, unable to move.
The black-robed leader turned pale with shock, retreating again. He looked back and forth between Shinji's main body and the two shadow clones.
Clone techniques were not uncommon in the universe. Illusion clones, cell clones, energy clones, magic clones, cybernetic clones—most Lantern Bearers were knowledgeable and wouldn't be shocked by a mere clone.
What truly terrified the leader was that Shinji's clones possessed the ability to crush a Lamp with bare hands. That was horrifying.
Shinji casually dispelled the two shadow clones, then collected the Embers from the two members' Lamps. Finally, he locked his gaze onto the black-robed leader of the World-Ending Society.
Feeling Shinji's gaze, the leader broke out in goosebumps all over his body—an instinctive shudder, as if being stared at by a natural predator.
Under immense pressure, the leader's expression gradually turned savage. "Since you won't let me live, then we'll die together!"