Volume One: The Devil's Nature Never Changes
Arc: The Great Guerrilla War
Liu Zai Hang and Ikalath approached the first spacecraft and entered from the left through an elevated opening that had most likely been created by a projectile.
The two leaped through the opening and found themselves surrounded by pitch-black darkness. Only faint white light entered through the holes scattered across the spacecraft. Its interior was filthy and severely damaged.
Liu looked around as he took out a Radiant Moonstone, which began emitting light like a lamp.
The area brightened, revealing countless shattered skeletons and traces of decomposed bones.
"Oh. It seems many of them were unable to escape or survive the collision and their injuries, so they died here."
Ikalath approached one of the corpses and ran his hand across its bones.
"Their bones still retain their strength, which is to be expected from cultivators of the Second Dimension. Their bones are many times stronger than those of ordinary humans, but…"
He examined them more closely and noticed bite marks across the bones.
Ikalath suddenly raised his hand.
A wolf had been hiding behind Liu and lunged toward him, but black chains erupted from the ground, seized the creature, and tore it into pieces.
Its head was separated from its body, and all four of its limbs were severed, killing it instantly.
"Well, I forgot about that."
Ikalath continued:
"They're Ghostly Shadow Wolves. They possess an extremely powerful concealment ability, which is why neither you nor I sensed them here, Liu Zai Hang. Most likely, this isn't the only wolf aboard."
Liu Zai Hang immediately moved when he sensed something faint.
It was not an aura, but the sensation of soft fur brushing against the right side of his body.
He drew his medium-length sword and stabbed the concealed creature, revealing another wolf.
Ikalath snapped his fingers.
Black chains emerged and wrapped around the two of them, forming a moving cage that followed their every step and blocked anything attempting to approach.
"This will protect us temporarily until we find a better way to detect their locations."
[Meanwhile, Scarlet King and the Beast Were Brutally Striking One Another]
The two had seized each other and were exchanging violent blows.
The beast grabbed Scarlet King's head and pressed its long fingers into his eyes until they pierced through them. Scarlet King retaliated by ripping off the beast's jaw.
He then struck its leg, knocking it down, grabbed its head, tore it from its body, and hurled it aside.
"No more fucking games!"
Scarlet King threw the beast upward with all his strength, drew the pistol, and aimed it at its body.
(There's no other way. I have to erase its entire body so that nothing remains for it to regenerate from.)
Scarlet King immediately activated one of his advanced existential senses.
It allowed him to perceive his surroundings normally—or rather, as though he were wearing night-vision goggles that relied on sound.
He could see the beast's body clearly.
Scarlet King slowly raised his hand due to his exhaustion and gripped the pistol with all the strength he had left.
Aiming was difficult, and the weapon felt unbearably heavy.
These were the physical limitations of Scarlet King's current body.
Even so, he fired.
Although the shot was weak and did not contain the pistol's full power, the recoil was still overwhelmingly powerful.
The ground beneath Scarlet King shattered, and his body was driven into the earth, leaving behind a five-meter-deep crater shaped like his body.
The bullet struck the beast and erased its body within seconds.
Its body vanished from existence, completely wiped away.
However, far in the distance, the severed head Scarlet King had previously thrown aside was slowly regenerating.
As Scarlet King's shattered body lay inside the crater, he thought:
(Every bone in my body is broken right now.)
Scarlet King remained there for nearly an hour before managing to stand and climb out of the crater.
However, he immediately heard a familiar scream.
"Aaaaaah!!"
Scarlet King thought with obvious boredom:
(Damn it… My exhaustion made me focus on the body and forget the head I threw away. Still, it's good that my body recovered slightly during that hour, and I still have some energy left.)
The head had fallen far away and sunk deep into the snow.
Scarlet King's eyes had been destroyed, and his existential perception had been focused entirely on the body suspended before the pistol.
As his consciousness collapsed from exhaustion, he erased the larger target and forgot about the head outside the range of his perception.
All of this was due to the limitations of his weak human body and low cultivation level, both of which prevented him from using the full extent of his true power—whether mental or spiritual.
Scarlet King raised his fist and struck the beast's abdomen with all his remaining strength, sending it flying backward.
He spat out blood due to his severe exhaustion and the internal injuries caused by his battle with the beast.
Scarlet King wiped the blood from his mouth and flew into the sky using his jetpack, distancing himself from the snowy ground.
He took out the Cosmic Poison Pearl.
A warm green aura spread from it and surrounded his body.
This was the pearl's healing ability.
Over the next several minutes, the beast screamed below and repeatedly leaped toward Scarlet King in an attempt to reach him, but Scarlet King continued avoiding it.
His body partially recovered.
He immediately concealed the pearl, flew high into the sky, then descended at full speed and strength like a kamikaze projectile toward the beast.
He raised both fists before his face, preparing to strike it with everything he had.
He collided with the beast, creating a destructive wave of energy that shook the universe.
[While Scarlet King Struggled Against the Beast, Liu Zai Hang and Ikalath Were in a Far Better Situation]
Ikalath removed the cage after they had killed most of the wolves.
He had made the chains as dark as the surrounding area, allowing them to disappear into the darkness.
They possessed no scent, visible form, or aura because they had merged completely with the darkness.
This caused the wolves to believe there was no barrier.
Whenever they attacked, their concealment vanished and their bodies became visible, allowing Liu and Ikalath to kill them with ease.
These beasts were of the eighth rank.
Suddenly, the two felt a powerful tremor strong enough to shake their bodies.
Liu asked:
"What was that?"
Ikalath answered while using the Mental Chaos Scan Technique:
"It's Scarlet King. He's fighting some strange beast… It seems to be the beast Scarlet King mentioned earlier."
"Quickly, let's go help him! We can return for the resources later. They don't have legs, so they won't run away!"
The two immediately exited the spacecraft.
The moment they emerged, they noticed an enormous spiraling blue gateway covering the sky of that universe.
Ikalath froze in shock.
"Damn it, it's them again! The Stone Slaves of Chaos…"
The moment Ikalath said that, the gateway began to open, and dozens of enormous stone men emerged from it.
Each one was nearly half a kilometer tall.
Finally, the Chaos Stone General emerged.
He possessed wings like the general who had appeared in the Sealed World.
Ikalath thought:
(This unit is similar to the one that appeared in the Sealed World. Without Scarlet King, I doubt I'll survive this time. Fortunately, they didn't send a marshal. They only sent several soldiers, commanders, and a single general.)
Ikalath looked toward Liu Zai Hang.
"We're going to suffer this time. You go save Scarlet King while I deal with them."
"Scarlet King is in the southeastern region of the universe. Go to him!"
Liu nodded and turned to rush toward Scarlet King.
However, after he had traveled several kilometers within seconds, one of the stone giants descended in front of him with a smile on its face.
The moment it landed, snow rose several meters into the air. The imprints of its bare feet appeared across the ground, and several trees were crushed beneath it.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Many more descended onto the surface of the universe and surrounded Liu Zai Hang and Ikalath.
The same thought appeared in both their minds.
(Getting out of here is going to be extremely difficult.)