"You dare roar at me?" The King of the Deep Sea looked intrigued; a mere ant had actually bellowed at him.
Bang!
"I—" The middle-aged man had barely opened his mouth when a phantom shadow slammed into him; his body exploded into a red mist that splattered across the distant ground.
Casually swatting an ant to death, the King of the Deep Sea paid it no mind.
Perched on a rooftop, it opened its jaws and roared, "All Flesh-and-Blood Beings, listen well—let the slaughter begin!"
The roar twisted the very air before it and cracked the ground beneath.
From on high the sound rolled across the city; every powerful being snapped their gaze toward the center.
The instant the cry rang out, chaos erupted on a street in East District.
Countless insects surged skyward like a black cloud, streaking toward the King of the Deep Sea at the city's heart.
"Ahhh!"
"So many bugs!"
"Run!"
Panic swept the street as people fled in every direction.
Fortunately the swarm's target wasn't them; otherwise none would have escaped.
Amid the insects, Motley's consciousness pulsed: 'So many Awakened Ones here—even Level Fives. Damn Monster Association, using us as cannon fodder.'
All he wanted was to devour the faint life-response at the center, grow stronger, and survive.
Below the street, several Awakened Ones were devoured in seconds, not even their clothes remaining.
Whoosh! A sudden gale howled overhead, rapidly intensifying.
The wind engulfed the swarm, reducing their break-neck flight to a crawl.
Jiang Ao hovered a hundred meters up, his gaze icy. "Acting so brazenly—do you think you're still overseas?"
Buzzzz!
Some insects merged into Motley's likeness. He sneered at Jiang Ao, "Captain Jiang Ao of Xuanjian Division's Second Section, eh? They say you're top-tier among Level Fives. Wonder if eating you will boost—"
Swish! A white light slashed through the swarm mid-sentence.
Motley's world went black; a young man in black-and-white suspenders appeared.
Deng Mengcheng mocked him, "Acting like a big shot? You're just Monster Association cannon fodder."
Behind him manifested a three-meter white spear.
"You plan to stop me with that toy?" Motley knew Deng Mengcheng's ability.
After becoming insects, even his mind had mutated.
Buzzzz! In the mental plane his psyche became a swarm rushing at Deng Mengcheng.
Deng Mengcheng stared as if looking at an idiot.
In the real world, above the swarm, countless wind-blades scythed the immobilized insects.
Shnk! Shnk! Shnk!
Insects split in half; at first contact more than half the swarm vanished.
The remainder coalesced into a humanoid shape and crashed to the ground.
Motley gaped in horror; he had believed himself a strong Level Five, yet one exchange had left him crippled.
'Flee!' His body burst apart, countless insects scattering in every direction—if even one survived, he could return.
"Running?" A soft laugh sounded; a heavily made-up, rail-thin man sashayed into view.
"Running?" A soft laugh sounded; a heavily made-up, rail-thin man sashayed into view.
This was Li Junya, newly appointed Captain of Tenth Section, a Level Five on Jiang Ao's turf and a close friend.
Ssszzz!
Green vapor gushed from him; the ground hissed wherever it touched.
The gale swept the mist after the insects. As for bystanders—Jiang Ao would compensate their families later.
Anyone caught in the green fog melted into puddles that the mist absorbed, growing stronger.
Ssszzz!
Insects dropped one by one; the entire street was shrouded in corrosive green, buildings etching away, life dissolving.
"Aaaargh!" In a distant alley Motley's true form was forced out as the mist devoured him.
The green fog gnawed at his flesh.
Agony overwhelmed him; he could only scream.
Jiang Ao stepped in expressionlessly and planted a foot on his head. "Kid, don't think Xuanjian's incompetent—every wannabe tries to test us!"