Lei Xiangchen's lips curled. "Not a Monster, but something that'll let you catch up to the Bright King."
"Catch up to Big Brother?" Motley narrowed his eyes.
He knew these people seemed to be after him, but their real target was his brother.
If the Bureau of Gods' top powerhouse's own little brother defected to the Monster Association, it would be a huge humiliation for the Bright King.
Motley's face twisted in struggle; he feared death, but feared dragging his brother down even more. He looked at Lei Xiangchen and refused. "I—"
Before he could finish, Wei Gaocheng—standing beside him—moved like lightning, pulled out a squirming lump of flesh, and shoved it into Motley's open mouth.
"Mmmph!" The flesh was rammed in brutally; Motley let out muffled cries.
Wei Gaocheng didn't care how it felt; he pushed it straight down the throat and ground it to pieces with his fingers.
Lei Xiangchen, watching such savagery, showed a trace of helplessness; his style was completely different from Wei Gaocheng's.
With that thought, he grabbed a bottle of liquor from the table and, just as roughly, forced it into Motley's mouth to wash the flesh down.
"Cough, cough, cough!" Only after the flesh was flushed down did the two stop; the alcohol made Motley cough violently.
As the misery peaked, a strange power surfaced inside him and the coughing ceased.
"What is this?" He stared, stunned, at his left hand—it was splitting open, turning into countless black creatures.
Bzzzzzz!
The creatures bore sharp black pincers, their bodies shimmering with a faint metallic sheen, wings droning loudly.
Behind them, Han Qi held up a phone and recorded everything.
Lei Xiangchen watched Motley's arm split into hundreds of insects, surprised. "Even among Monsters I've never seen a power like this."
Wei Gaocheng folded his arms, smiling. "Kid, don't those people on the floor smell delicious? Go ahead—no need to be polite. The cameras are cut. Eat them and your strength will rise without limit, and we won't force you to join the Monster Association."
"Let's go—next target." Lei Xiangchen glanced at the still-stunned Motley; the job was done.
He turned and led the two out. Just past the doorway they found Li Yong and several of his men already waiting.
Li Yong looked surprised. "Done so fast?"
He knew Lei Xiangchen liked to talk people round; he'd figured seven or eight minutes at least, yet they'd emerged after barely one or two.
Lei Xiangchen glanced at Wei Gaocheng. "Gaocheng made the move—too rough."
Wei Gaocheng slung an arm around Lei Xiangchen's shoulder, laughing. "Old Lei, you're too refined. Me? Beat 'em first, shove it down, then leave."
Lei Xiangchen shook his head helplessly, too lazy to argue with the brute.
To him, these people were pieces to disturb the world; proper persuasion would make recruiting them to the Monster Association easier later.
With that in mind, he dropped the idea of handing the remaining flesh to the others to handle separately.
'Looks like I'll have to contact Old Chen and Miss Chen instead.'
Lei Xiangchen led the group away; eight lumps of flesh still remained usable.
Bzzzzzz! Inside the bar.
Motley's left hand had completely turned into black insects; his vision turned bizarre.
At this moment thousands of viewpoints filled his mind, all from the bugs in front of him.
A surge of power inside him made him look intoxicated. "So this is what possessing extraordinary power feels like—utterly captivating."
His overall strength had at least doubled; the rapid empowerment reshaped his entire worldview.
Gurgle!
His stomach rumbled, a fierce hunger rising.
"So fragrant—what's that smell?" As hunger struck, a special aroma drifted to his nose.
Following the strongest scent, he looked down—Dodd's corpse lay at his feet.
At the sight of the body his throat twitched involuntarily.
The black insects around him crept toward the corpse.
Recalling what one of the men had said as they left, his eyes flickered.
'Dodd, don't blame me—you're already dead. I'll take care of your family. Let's see if you can boost my strength.'
The moment the thought formed, the starving insects charged at Dodd.
A chorus of tiny sounds echoed through the bar; the insects' black pincers tore off chunks of flesh with ease.
Within minutes Dodd—clothes and bones—was devoured, leaving only a puddle of blood.
"Ah!" As the insects fed, Motley groaned in pleasure, feeling his internal strength soar as something writhed beneath the skin of his right arm.
His right arm scattered into insects as well; he looked at the people lying all around.
After the first taste he could no longer hold back; swarms from both arms began devouring every scrap of flesh in sight.
Half an hour later, outside the bar.
Motley stood in his original form. After consuming everyone in the bar plus one Level Three Awakened, his entire body could now turn into an insect swarm.
'With strength like this I can probably match a Level Three.' He mused, took out his phone, and called the Bright King.
Beep, beep, beep! After a few rings the call connected.
"Hey, what's up, Motley?" The Bright King's voice came from the other end.
Motley's eyes flashed as he spoke quickly. "Bro, I was attacked by Monsters from the Monster Association. Everyone present was eaten—except me."
The Bright King paused, then asked, "Are you safe now? Are those Monsters still there? Send me your location."
"They've already left. They said this strike was a warning—if you keep opposing the Monster Association, next time won't be so simple." Motley shoved all blame onto the Association.
Those Monsters had vanished anyway, and since they were using him, using them back was only fair.
On the other end, the Bright King exhaled in relief upon hearing his brother was safe. "Send the location. I'll arrange for someone to bring you to Bureau of Gods HQ; stay there for a while."
"No need to trouble you. I'll stay here…"
After a few more words Motley hung up.
He lifted his gaze to the sky, ambition gleaming on his face. "Since I can grow stronger this fast, whatever you're scheming, I'll fight back to the end."
He would never reveal what had happened to him; if the higher-ups learned of his transformation, even the Bright King as his brother couldn't stop those with ulterior motives.