One day later, the Monsters that had been striking hard across the globe began to mass toward Liyang Country.
A mobilization on this scale was spotted at once by the Federation that had been watching them all along.
Nanwu Country, inside Town City's imperial palace.
Every Awakened One at Level Five or above had once again gathered here because of the Monster Association's move.
Around the huge round table, every Level Five was on edge; during this period their home bases had been overrun by the Monster Association one after another.
All eyes were fixed on Wu Yuan, who sat at the head.
An old man looked at Wu Yuan and spoke: "Director Wu, the Monster Association is about to move against us—are we going to sit here waiting to die?"
"That's right, if it really comes to a fight we might not lose, and every nuke in Nanwu Country is already aimed at Liyang Country. We should hit them when they least expect it!" A middle-aged man stood up, a cold smile on his face.
Nanwu Country still had more than ten thousand nuclear warheads; if all of them were hurled at neighboring Liyang Country, they refused to believe any Monster could endure it.
The power of these nukes would not only erase Liyang Country from the map but also affect the neighboring Lingzhou Prefecture.
Yet they could no longer afford to care; as long as they themselves survived, a few sacrifices were acceptable.
Wu Yuan said nothing, only sank into thought.
His attitude made Zhang Zheng, seated beside him, show displeasure: "Wu Yuan, you waffler, what are you dithering for? Fire the nukes already; afterward we'll go finish them off!"
Hearing that voice, Wu Yuan felt a surge of anger inside.
Ever since the Monster Association had overrun most countries abroad, this old man kept coming to him, saying they should take advantage while the Association's forces were scattered across the continent and launch a surprise assault on its headquarters.
Each time Wu Yuan had suppressed the idea; he still didn't want to throw lives away.
"Director Wu, it's time to act; waiting any longer will make us miss our chance—after all, the Monster Association won't wait for us." Li Hongping, seated nearby, also spoke up.
After spending time with him, Li Hongping could sense Wu Yuan was indecisive, always wanting to wait until they were stronger, but time was no longer on their side.
Pressed by the two Level Six experts beside him, Wu Yuan kept a calm face, looked up at all the Level Fives, and declared: "Launch every nuke—wipe Liyang Country off the map!"
The instant Wu Yuan announced the decision, a figure appeared above Town City.
Its body stood quietly at an altitude of fifty thousand meters, a face woven of energy gazing down at the city below.
Buzz! The black-and-white energy around Yue began to ripple, and in an instant the ripple covered a radius of five hundred kilometers.
"Gravity set to two hundredfold."
Within five hundred kilometers the laws of physics were rewritten in a single thought.
Boom! Town City below became the first victim as the rules changed—air twisted, every building collapsed in an instant.
Hundreds-of-meters-tall towers were crushed into rubble only a few dozen meters high; people were pulped before they could react.
There was no spectacular energy display; a simple shift in gravity flattened every structure in that five-hundred-kilometer radius into neat piles of debris. Even dust couldn't rise, and the ground itself sank several meters in a tidy layer.
Every being below Level Five died outright.
At the palace, the Level Fives stood amid the ruins, staring around in horror.
Piles of rubble surrounded them; the skyscrapers had vanished, and only splatters of blood remained on the ground nearby.
"Gravity—how can gravity be this terrifying!" All the Level Fives felt the crushing force; the Zhenyuan Alliance middle-aged man shrieked in shock.
Wu Yuan's eyes bulged as he surveyed the scene, yet the gravity seemed to have no effect on him.
A moment ago they had resolved to strike the Monster Association; the next instant they themselves were hit.
Zhang Zheng, face flushed with anger, glared at Wu Yuan: "See? All your dithering—now the enemy's hitting us first!"
Buzz! The encompassing gravity vanished moments later; every Level Five felt the pressure lift, yet their expressions only grew grimmer.
Ignoring Zhang Zheng's barking, Wu Yuan glanced around, turned left, and shouted: "Everyone—prepare for battle!"
Li Hongping wore his usual tank top, black shorts, and flip-flops, looking toward the ruined city in the distance: "They're here? Hope this Monster gives me a decent warm-up."
Beside him, Zhang Zheng's aged face showed a cold smile: "Haven't fought in ages. No idea where these Monsters sprang from to beat the youngsters so badly, but I, Zhang Zheng, won't be crushed as easily as those weaklings!"
A dozen kilometers away, several Monster silhouettes appeared.
Boqi's body swelled to five meters, rampaging through the rubble.
Behind it, Golden Mask stood with pride etched on its face.
A few hundred meters away, the big eyeball Gus also appeared, drifting quietly toward the Awakened Ones.
The Monster Association had gathered so many Monsters precisely to draw the opposition together and wipe them out in one sweep.
Only Yue and these three Monsters had been deployed this time—more than enough to handle the Federation.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Boqi smashed through every pile of ruins, clouds of dust and shards flying.
Its mouth opened, white energy gathering; the next second the energy inside burst out, blasting toward the group a dozen kilometers away.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The laser cannon pierced through heaps of rubble, heading straight for a Level Five woman at the front.
Boom! The laser was too fast; the woman had no time to react. In a blink, a beam larger than her body closed within ten meters.
Whoosh! Li Hongping's figure suddenly appeared in front of her, his face calm and steeped in the bearing of a master: "Stand back—let me handle this."
Li Hongping stretched out his left hand, white qi swirling over it. He was not only a physical Awakened but also a martial artist; with the two combined, even in old age his strength had diminished by only about ten percent.
Boom! Yet the instant his left hand met the laser, his calm expression twisted; he hastily poured qi from both hands, muscles ballooning wildly.
"Aaaaargh!" Li Hongping's frame swelled to two meters, veins bulging as he roared, white qi pushing against the laser.
Bang! The next second the laser cannon lifted Li Hongping and sent him streaking backward.
Rumble! The onlookers saw the white energy carry Li Hongping over a kilometer before it exploded, a sphere of light hundreds of meters high rising from the ground in the distance.