Under the gloomy grey sky, more than thirty figures hovered high above the ground. Every one of them was among Earth’s strongest experts, beings who had surpassed the Warlord level.
Luo Feng floated several hundred metres in the air alongside Jia Yi and the other four.
“The last time Hong went to kill the Monster Emperor, he failed. Although he managed to injure it, Hong was wounded as well.”
Jia Yi looked towards the distant parking area where the Honghuang class intelligent fighter was stationed.
“Only a few days have passed since your inauguration ceremony, Luo Feng. Now that you’ve arrived, Hong is going after the Monster Emperor again?”
“It is rather strange.”
The other three Councillors were equally puzzled.
People valued their reputations greatly.
When Hong fought the Monster Emperor the first time and failed, everyone understood.
But if he challenged it again without any confidence, people would certainly begin talking behind his back.
“I suppose the Headmaster must be confident.”
Luo Feng frowned.
“Confident of killing the Monster Emperor?”
Jia Yi and the other four Councillors all shook their heads.
“If he truly had that confidence, the other two Monster Emperors in the ocean would have been dealt with long ago.”
While the Councillors hovered in the sky watching the situation unfold,
the many small fighter aircraft around the lakeshore returned to their respective headquarters. Everyone below Councillor level entered the bases. Most of them had witnessed Hong’s previous battle with the Monster Emperor and knew just how terrifying it had been. Anyone caught directly in the aftermath could be killed, even a Councillor if they were careless.
“Look, Hong and the Thunder God.”
“So this time Hong and the Thunder God are joining forces?”
The Councillors’ eyesight was exceptional.
“Move back. Further back. Stay well away from the lake. Luo Feng, don’t remain above the lake itself. That’s where you’re most likely to be caught in the crossfire. Whether it’s your Headmaster or the Monster Emperor, a casual strike from either of them is more than we can withstand. Don’t underestimate them.”
Jia Yi and the others spoke as they all flew further away together.
The area around Mist Island Lake fell into complete silence. Every headquarters closely monitored every movement on the lake.
More than thirty Councillor level experts, almost all dressed in black, floated high in the sky with their attention fixed entirely on Hong and the Thunder God.
…
The black clad Hong and the white robed, bald Thunder God flew side by side towards the centre of the lake.
The Thunder God glanced at Hong and said quietly, “Brother Hong, once the Tentacle Beast enters the lake, it’s completely at home. But we human martial artists lose a significant amount of our strength underwater. You couldn’t succeed last time. Now that you’ve brought the Moyun Vine, are you confident?”
Underwater, every movement a human made was resisted by the surrounding water.
The faster they moved, the greater the resistance.
Hong and the Thunder God were indeed heavily restricted beneath the lake, while the Monster Emperor felt completely at ease.
“With the Moyun Vine, I have a thirty percent chance of killing the Tentacle Beast. Even if I fail, I can retreat safely. Unless it’s been hiding its true strength, I won’t be injured again.”
Hong calmly looked down at the lake.
“Besides, the strongest creature beneath Mist Island is this Monster Emperor. It’s the greatest obstacle preventing us from obtaining the treasure. If we don’t kill it, how can we safely explore underground?”
The Thunder God paused.
That was true.
Without eliminating the Monster Emperor, it would be impossible to investigate the underground safely.
“In that case, you’re also helping the five great powers and the HR Alliance.”
The Thunder God smiled.
“You’re helping me as well.”
“I’ve always said that treasures depend on fate. Take the Soaring Shuttle, for example. Even though it was in my hands, I simply couldn’t use it properly. Yet in Luo Feng’s hands, its power is extraordinary. The Soaring Shuttle was destined for him.”
Hong smiled faintly.
“As for the Moyun Vine, it isn’t even native to Earth. I never left Earth, yet it still ended up in my possession. That means it was destined for me.”
The Thunder God laughed.
“I’m the bald one who looks like a monk. You’re not bald, but you sound even more like a monk than I do.”
“You just stay here, Baldy, and watch how I deal with the Tentacle Beast.”
As soon as Hong finished speaking, he transformed into a streak of black light and plunged directly into the lake.
The surface rippled only slightly before Hong pierced through over 300 metres of water and entered the mud and rock layers beneath the lake.
He continued diving rapidly downward.
The sky gradually grew darker.
Lights illuminated all six headquarters.
More than thirty figures floated in the sky like heavenly gods.
“Look, it’s moving.”
Jia Yi stared at the display on his communicator watch.
The other three Councillors and Luo Feng also fixed their eyes on their displays.
The screen showed the massive outline of the Monster Emperor.
The creature, which had remained completely motionless until now, suddenly moved.
It seemed to have gone berserk.
Three of its tentacles thrashed violently while its entire body surged upward.
“This red dot represents Hong.”
Jia Yi pointed to the tiny dot attached to one of the tentacles.
A human body was less than two metres tall, while each tentacle measured 1,500 metres in length.
The difference in scale was astonishing.
“Hong is moving rapidly, and the Monster Emperor is counterattacking with its tentacles.”
“Look, the wilderness itself is shaking.”
Luo Feng and the others looked down with alarm.
The Tentacle Beast’s violent attacks sent tremors through the underground, causing the wilderness across hundreds of kilometres to quiver.
“One tentacle has been severed.”
All five of them stared at the screen.
Roughly one third of one tentacle had been cut off.
“Hong and the Monster Emperor are incredibly fast.”
“The Monster Emperor has escaped into the lake. The moment it moved from the underground rock layers into the water, its speed increased several fold. Hong entered the lake as well. Although his speed improved after leaving the rock layers, it clearly wasn’t as dramatic as the Monster Emperor’s.”
The Councillors watched nervously while discussing the battle.
“Not good. Retreat.”
Jia Yi shouted.
At that very moment, the image of a tentacle burst through the surface on the display.
Sure enough.
As Luo Feng and the others retreated rapidly, an enormous tentacle nearly twenty metres thick erupted from the distant lake.
Its surface was covered with rough, rock like folds.
Nearly a thousand metres of the tentacle rose above the water, resembling countless railway carriages linked together.
The thousand metre long, twenty metre thick tentacle, covered in stone like ridges, swept through the air like the legendary Monkey King’s Golden Cudgel.
With a single swing, it covered several kilometres.
Boom.
The air exploded.
Towering waves surged across the lake.
Countless aquatic monsters were blasted into the air, some reduced to pulp, others killed instantly, and many crippled.
With a single sweep of one tentacle, the Monster Emperor unleashed destruction that seemed capable of shattering heaven and earth.
“It’s even more terrifying than that giant vine lifeform we encountered before.”
Luo Feng could smell the overwhelming stench carried by the colossal tentacle as it slashed through the air.
It resembled the smell of seafood mixed with the odour of earthworms.
The smell was so foul that it made people want to vomit.
Yet its power was even more frightening.
“Even wearing the Black God Suit, if we’re struck head on by that tentacle, there’s a very high chance we’ll die.”
Jia Yi looked at Luo Feng.
“Luo Feng, I suggest wearing an SS grade combat suit over your Black God Suit.”
“So that’s why you’re all wearing combat suits.”
Luo Feng nodded repeatedly.
Jia Yi and the other four Councillors all wore SS grade combat suits over their Black God Suits.
Two layers of protection.
Not only them, but nearly every Planetary Level expert floating nearby was dressed the same way.
“When facing a Monster Emperor, wearing an SS grade combat suit really does increase your chances of survival.”
Luo Feng nodded.
Although an SS grade combat suit could not completely disperse the impact across the body, it could still reduce a considerable portion of the force.
…
The five of them continued watching the display on their communicator watches.
The Monster Emperor’s enormous body was clearly visible, while Hong appeared only as a tiny red dot.
“Hong has reached the Monster Emperor’s shell.”
“The fighting is incredibly intense.”
Boom.
A figure shot out of the lake.
It was Hong.
Holding a silver spear, his eyes blazed like lightning.
Within a radius of one hundred metres around him, everything was enveloped in darkness.
He looked like the ruler of that domain.
Gripping the spear, Hong plunged straight back beneath the water.
“A second tentacle has been severed.”
Councillor Zhu Xi could not help shouting.
“Hong is attached to the Monster Emperor’s shell.”
“Huh? What’s happening?”
“What’s going on?”
All five were startled.
The red dot representing Hong had disappeared from the display.
They all turned to Jia Yi.
He shook his head in confusion.
“I don’t know. This has never happened before. As long as something is alive, this equipment should detect it.”
“Alive? If it can’t detect Hong, does that mean…”
Councillor Tuoba gasped quietly.
“…that Hong is dead?”
“Look at the lake.”
Luo Feng shouted.
Everyone immediately turned towards the distant lake.
The already turbulent water suddenly exploded.
Seven or eight colossal tentacles burst from the surface, each towering towards the sky.
They writhed wildly without any pattern, moving in pure madness.
Large numbers of aquatic monsters were caught in the chaos.
Blood quickly dyed the lake red.
“Aaaah!”
A shrill, grief filled cry erupted from deep underground, causing the earth itself to tremble.
“What a piercing sound.”
The more than thirty Planetary Level experts hovering in the air instinctively covered their ears, their faces filled with pain.
The tentacles, which had moments earlier contained endless power, gradually slowed.
Then they collapsed weakly back into the lake.
Parts of two tentacles even landed on the nearby wilderness.
Their immense weight smashed deep trenches into the ground, which were soon flooded by water from the lake.
“It’s dead.”
“The Monster Emperor, the Tentacle Beast, is dead.”
“Look, the shadow on the monitoring screen is fading. Its life signs are dropping rapidly. So fast. They’re disappearing. It’s gone.”
Under Luo Feng’s gaze, the enormous shadow of the Monster Emperor vanished completely from the display.
Only one brilliant red dot remained.
That was Hong.
“The surface of the lake is moving again.”
The more than thirty Planetary Level experts floating in the sky all turned towards the vast lake in perfect unison.
The water rippled.
A section of a tentacle covered in rocky folds emerged.
Then came Hong.
Wrapped around his right arm was a vine several dozen metres long, tightly coiled around the tentacle.
He pulled.
The black clad Hong soared into the sky.
The colossal creature, including its tentacles, measured well over 3,000 metres in length.
He dragged the entire body out of the lake, making it resemble a vast dark island suspended in the air above the water.
The more than thirty Planetary Level experts, the command personnel of the world’s five great powers, the HR Alliance, every major base city, along with soldiers and staff, all stared blankly at the unbelievable sight.
At that very moment, the scene was broadcast across the entire Earth to every nation and organisation.
Everyone fell silent.