Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

This is what a clash of ideologies looks like, a debate about fundamental principles. Disagreements at this level cannot be resolved through negotiation or exchange like ordinary financial disputes or conflicts of interest. In this endless world, the only thing capable of handling conflicts at this level has always been swords and blood.

Blade and blood...

A slight thought flashed through his mind, and a breath of high-energy blood exhaled from his throat swiftly and quietly coiled around the Destruction Blade in his hand during the battle. With his next strike, the blade suddenly became far sharper than before, easily severing the black giant scythe, which, supported by the Styx River, could collide head-on with the Destruction Blade without shattering, and then slashed straight down, its target Alice's chest!

Blood and qi are yang in nature, while the netherworld is an abyss of darkness. Just as light and darkness have always been in a state of mutual restraint. A localized surge of light can completely overwhelm a generally dominant darkness, and his calculations even included foreshadowing Alice's frail figure being struck!

He knew it couldn't succeed... and it certainly couldn't. Because this was only the first step. Alice easily dodged the heavy slash with a small, deft movement, without sustaining even the slightest injury, but the initiative in the battle had shifted slightly.

This was an opportunity, and opportunities shouldn't be wasted—Zheng Zha swiftly followed up, unleashing hundreds, even thousands, of continuous slashes amidst a series of roars. Each slash was delivered without gap, the hundreds and thousands of strikes flowing together like a scorching river, completely engulfing the now-defunct Alice!

"Is this the result of your research? Introducing variations of Yang attribute into the slash, thus giving it a certain degree of attribute variation... Ah, I must admit that your approach of containing thousands of different forces and thousands of different frequencies of Yang energy jets in this one strike is indeed quite creative. But..."

Alice's voice came from within the River of Blades, and Zheng Zha immediately sensed something was wrong. He instinctively gathered energy and raised his blade to defend, but the next moment, two black scythes that slashed simultaneously from his chest and back materialized, carrying a massive amount of cursed magical energy that he hadn't possessed in the previous battle—he blocked the frontal attack, but the slash from behind easily sliced ​​through the five elements energy changes on his body and the Yinglong Armor, successfully drawing a small drop of blood from his body!

A tiny drop of blood, a tiny drop of blood that heals the wound in an instant.

This was just a minor injury, the kind that wouldn't require extra computational effort to treat even in battle. Logically and emotionally, Zheng Zha should have been concerned about this level of injury. However, he clearly extracted the underlying meaning behind this injury.

Alice is about to decipher the power transformation between the five elements. And the initiative in the battle has returned to her hands.

He finally realized that his companions' fists were also very hard, perhaps even harder than his own. The witches in his group had completely discerned the vast majority of his strength and skills, while he knew very little about Margot Lloyd herself. Ah… yes, brute force can indeed overcome skill, but this is based on the premise that one's own skill is 'one level' while the enemy with 'ten levels' only possesses '0.3,' '0.2,' or even '0.1' of strength. But once this enemy with 'ten levels' possesses more than '0.5' of strength, the outcome can be reversed in an instant.

The witch likely possesses more than 0.5 of strength, and her skills probably exceed 10.

Justice only has value when it is built upon a powerful force capable of supporting it. The justice of the weak is never true justice. Because the strong can easily suppress or even eliminate the justice of the weak. In such a conflict, defeat means certain death, and the chance of a counterattack is virtually zero.

Zheng Zha didn't want to lose, and he knew Margot Lloyd wouldn't give up. Both of them had foreseen the current situation, knowing that their ideological clashes would eventually settle things. The only difference was that Zheng Zha only vaguely anticipated it, while Alice had been preparing for this battle for a long time. This was why the situation had changed so rapidly, leading to the current predicament where Alice hadn't used her full strength, but Zheng Zha, despite going all out, still hadn't gained the upper hand.

"...Don't you think this is a bit too childish?" The girl spun her slender foot and kicked Zheng Zha hard in the stomach. He was immediately sent flying far away like a particle beam caught in an accelerator. The already ruined Antarctic was once again subjected to new devastation, and when he felt himself fall into the obstruction of solidity, the unstable mass reaction suddenly exploded at his landing point.

'Boom—! ! !' The wings of the Yinglong spread out, blocking the devastating impact. However, the witch's follow-up attack was delayed, and only Zheng Zha remained in a defensive stance, burning in the intense heat.

I lost again.

Is it because Margot Lloyd was prepared, and this battle had already begun some time ago? Ah, I couldn't have imagined it before, nor noticed it, which is why I was so easily defeated... No, even now, it's the same. And I don't have another chance to be willful.

This is my last chance. I must defeat...no, crush her before Margot Royde fully comprehends the five elements within me. Only then can I prove myself!

He didn't mind Alice using the information at hand to make targeted arrangements, because he knew very well that if Alice were truly only after victory, she could have used a curse to defeat him before he even used half his strength, when he was careless in his earlier moves. And when his physical body was destroyed, with only the simulated Mind Light from the Ring regenerating, she, as a spellcaster, had plenty of ways to detach the Ring from his finger bones—she had actually released an amount of water equivalent to the size of Qingdao Lake during the battle, and if he were to nitpick after knowing all this, his reputation would probably drop another level.

I must convince Margot Royd; I must prove that I have the power to carry out my justice.

But what should be done?

He felt like a butterfly caught in a spider's web... or a beetle, a longhorn beetle, or something like that. Despite struggling and using all his strength, the web that bound him remained a web.

What should I do?

A surge of emotion welled up within him, a restless, tangled longing that seemed to race through a maze like an ant on a thin thread. He felt as if he were about to grasp something, but this supposed "awareness" was veiled by a thin layer of paper—just one step away from reaching a conclusion. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to take that step.

However, Alice was no longer willing to wait for him.

The atmosphere on the battlefield shifted completely in an instant. A true killing intent swept over Zheng Zha, washing over his mind and body.

"...declare".

..............................

It's been revised several times... let's just call it a two-in-one... there won't be a next section today.

Section Thirty-Eight: Long Jiu Wasted

Alice reached out, touching the curses and hatred visible only to her in the world. The world hated her, hated that she had brought calamity upon it. If she were merely an ordinary mortal or a common fourth-tier cultivator who didn't practice information magic, these curses would have been enough to subject her to a range of misfortunes, from a violent death to a series of calamities. But now, these curses could only quietly remain beside her, becoming resources for her to strengthen herself.

She saw Zheng Zha, hundreds of kilometers away, who had been blasted into the earth's veins by her attack, swaying and struggling as he flew up. The power of the Five Elements Transformation once again swirled around him, operating in a more orderly and efficient cycle than before. Undoubtedly, this guy, now in his Yinglong Transformation state, could unleash the combat power of a normal fourth-tier being. Not to mention dealing with a freak like the full-powered Ex, he at least had a chance of defeating the unweakened Celestial Valar.

But that's not enough, not nearly enough. The cycle of reincarnation is accelerating, and a clash with the Demon Team isn't far off. Given the current strength of the Central Continent Team, the Supreme God will likely, as predicted, arrange a special mental demon challenge for his team of early-stage reincarnation squads in the worlds leading up to the final battle. That should be the Central Continent Team's last chance to secure victory.

Therefore, I must tap into the potential of every member of the team as much as possible before that inner demon world unfolds. I must ensure they experience sufficient growth during that crucial opportunity. However, right now, everyone in the team has not grown enough. Far from it.

Even you, even I, are still far from perfect... So!

She stirred up those malices and curses, mingling them with the River Styx, and releasing the concepts extracted from the bubble world as the energy tides surged. Light and darkness were further opposed—leaving aside the light aspect, the concept of darkness became increasingly clear and distinct within her.

She exhaled softly, and the void in the sky above, where the Styx River poured forth, closed. A black sea of ​​matter surrounded her, embracing her and constructing layers of barriers around her. Within these barriers, nine distinct tributaries branched out—mere tributaries, devoid of mimicry, form, or dragon heads. Simply the Styx River water, bearing the world's hatred.

"I am hatred, I am curse, I am the mortal enemy of the world."

The sky darkened. Despite it being the season of polar day, the darkness stretched visibly from the far horizon towards Antarctica. Alice's murderous intent and the dissipating hatred of the world clashed invisibly beneath the sky, the clanging of metal echoing from the ends of the earth to the very edge of the heavens.

The tsunami triggered by the destruction of Antarctica abruptly reversed before it even reached South America or South Africa, as if the Earth's magnetic poles had shifted accordingly. Outside the battle zone between Alice and Zheng Zha, the creatures that had survived the disaster and barely managed to escape suddenly surged back like madmen. Birds flapped their wings, beasts reared up, and fish flapped their fins, all rushing desperately towards Antarctica.

"I am pain, I am torment, I am the hell of this world."

From among countless people, countless beasts, and countless intelligent flowers, birds, insects, and fish in the Southern Hemisphere, a vague yet resolute voice resounded from the depths of their hearts.

Stop her! We can't let her continue!

Eliminate her! We can't let her finish!

The same voice resonated within Zheng Zha's heart, echoing with the resonance of destiny. He frowned, banishing all these extraneous thoughts, and as he took flight with his transformed dragon wings, he found his movements surprisingly effortless. It was as if the wind was adapting to his limbs, allowing him to move more easily. It was as if the light was adapting to his vision, allowing him to perceive more clearly. He could observe the subtle changes deep within the River Styx from hundreds of kilometers away without using any enhancement methods. And when he unleashed his aura, wielding the Greatsword of Destruction and speeding towards Alice's location, the speed he achieved astonished even himself.

The wind adapted to him, the light adapted to him, the temperature adapted to him, the magnetic field adapted to him. He could even vaguely sense the shifting ley lines deep within the blasted-out underground, as if he could utilize them like his own limbs with just a flick of his finger—he knew this wasn't an illusion, because his mind seemed exceptionally clear at this moment. His thoughts raced at an extraordinary speed, and many combat techniques he hadn't understood before suddenly became clear to him.

With a slight tremor of the blade, the technique of imbuing the weapon with elemental attributes, which he had only just conceived, was employed in a way ten times more refined than before. Before being kicked away by Alice, he could only imbue the Destruction Greatsword in its 'Primordial Creation' state with positive attributes without causing a collapse in his attack balance. However, this time, the power of the five elements transformation was attached to it without missing a beat, and even formed a stable cycle.

—The outermost Styx River arrived in an instant. With a slash of his blade, the black waters of the Styx burst open. The power of the Five Elements Transformation eroded the Styx; some of the water shimmered with uncontrolled lightning, some sprouted verdant shoots, some settled into rocks, and some directly decomposed and vaporized. The last remaining portion, however, transformed into tangible water, and followed Zheng Zha as he surged deeper into the Styx!

The first layer of the Styx was thus destroyed, and then the 'Primordial Creation' embodied in the Greatsword of Destruction erupted, shattering the second and third layers of the Styx with the power of shock and annihilation—the one wielding the longsword gazed at Alice, who was chanting deep within the Styx, while she remained oblivious to his presence.

She whispered, and the remaining six Styx Rivers rushed towards Zheng Zha.

"Come, you beast born of hatred!"

She closed her eyes, and Zheng Zha severed one of the six rivers of the Styx.

"Come, you vengeful spirit born of the curse."

The remaining five Styx Rivers then converged, retaliating against Zheng Zha with absolute mass and energy density. They vaguely coalesced into the shape of an armored behemoth, shaking its head and whipping its tail; its massive shell withstood Zheng Zha's overhead slash. From its mouth-like structure, a torrent of high-energy matter and energy erupted, triggering a nuclear explosion before even touching Zheng Zha, converging into a beam of destructive light!

Zheng Zha finally understood what the so-called 'atomic breath' truly meant. The convergence and release of nuclear energy created a blazing beam of light that was almost equivalent to a solar flare. He wanted to raise his sword to resist, but the five elements of energy surrounding him seemed to possess a will of their own, combining under some invisible force. As the beam struck, the five-colored elemental magic energy once again formed a thick shield around his dragon scales.

"Charge forward, you can hold them off."—A vague voice seemed to echo in his heart, like his own voice, yet also like the whisper of someone he didn't know. It was as if it weren't just one person's voice, but a mixture of thousands. Without much thought, he instinctively believed the voice. He let the intense atomic breath wash over his protective shield!

It sounded as if thousands of people were groaning, as if thousands of people were encouraging and supporting each other. The Five Elements Shield, which even Zheng Zha himself didn't understand how he had conjured, broke through the barrier of the heavy atomic breath amidst this chaotic sound. And with a flash of light in Zheng Zha's hand, he severed the giant beast's neck!

The ninefold River of the Underworld collapsed completely, even though they regenerated in an instant. But at least for now, only a few kilometers of space separates Zheng Zha and Alice!

"Margot-Lloyd!"—A crimson blade slashed out, a single, devastating strike combining the five elements of positive and negative energy aimed at Alice's neck!

then!

Everything suddenly came to a standstill!

Alice opened her eyes, staring at the blade that was about to sever her neck. The Styx River, which had been shattered by Zheng Zha, was restored, and her eyes emitted two pure, clear lights!

The Light of Mimicry!

Everything stopped functioning under her gaze.

The final chant was then completed.

"In the name, power, and strength of primal evil, I command you to reveal your true form!"

"The Compilation of Revelation: Apostolic Texts: Lament for the River Styx!"

Section 39: Seven or Eight Antennas!

"The sixth abyss takes the form of a beast, and its function is heresy—all those who do not follow our path are heretics, and those who transcend common sense will find their power stagnant here."

A flash of light and shadow appeared before Zheng Zha's eyes, and the things he saw transformed into something he couldn't comprehend. Alice, who had been standing still in the void, suddenly converging one of the streams of the River Styx she controlled into a colossal dragon-like beast, tens of kilometers tall, with numerous large horns, crackling with lightning and fire. His full-force slash had been completely obliterated by this dark, fiery energy. Then, the beast opened its massive maw, unleashing a solar breath ten times more intense than that of the previously unformed creature!

—Central axis, degrees Celsius, 120 million.

A torrent of pure destruction carved a straight trench a thousand kilometers long beyond the vast crater left by the previous battle between the two—a trench, not a rift. The earth, cleaved by the breath, was so smooth it was like a mirror, reflecting the landscape directly. At the end of the trench, Zheng Zha, having lost sixty-five percent of his mass, his arms, legs, and lower body completely gone, lay blankly atop a rocky mountain that had been scorched away. His body instinctively began to repair itself, but all he could see was a torn sky.

The atmosphere was torn in two. The ripped clouds extended outward from the point of impact, splitting into a 'V' shape to both sides thousands of kilometers away. The distance between the two halves of the cloud was already tens of millions of kilometers, and it was still expanding outward at a visible speed.

"The Seventh Abyss, its form is leadership, its function is tyranny—those who resist with violence will surely receive violence a hundredfold in return. Those who do not know how to cherish themselves will certainly not be loved."

Alice's voice rang out, and he was startled. Having recovered most of his strength, he gripped his crimson longsword and leaped into the air. The ominous warning from the ends of the earth foretold him, and as he left the ground, the scorched stone mountain where he had been standing was completely crushed by a Styx River that emerged from the earth.

A scream seemed to echo from the void.

From the manifested River Styx emerged a demon in armor, its head adorned with two horns, its face, with its eyes tightly closed, faintly bearing the outline of Alice. The next moment, the demon's greatsword slashed fiercely towards Zheng Zha's neck—Zheng Zha raised his hand to block, but the immense power unleashed by the demon overwhelmed even Zheng Zha, who was in his 'primordial' state! Zheng Zha, who had just been launched from the ground, was slammed back down, and subsequent attacks followed in quick succession.

Sword slashes, sword cuts, sword sweeps, sword thrusts—the commander's martial arts and power far exceeded Zheng Zha's expectations. Every attack was easily dodged, yet each time his body was wounded. In just a few seconds, he had been solidly slashed thousands of times. Even though each blow healed after the blade left his body, the pain of being cut was etched into his very being!

"Primordial Era - Creation!" A devastating, immense power erupted, but the Commander retreated before being struck. The giant sword in its hand transformed into a deflected shield as the aftershocks struck, and just as the enraged Zheng Zha cleaved the shield and the ground behind it in two, the Commander, who had dodged the blow with the shield, reappeared like a shadow behind Zheng Zha and began to pummel him with a flurry of punches.

This can't go on... Damn it, what kind of apocalypse is this?!

Zheng Zha was anxious, but his movements remained composed. In their brief exchange, he clearly realized that he had no chance of defeating this humanoid monster born from the River Styx in martial arts. If he chose to engage in a prolonged fight, he would likely be unable to dodge the stellar breath spewed by the dragon-like beast within seconds!

If you can't win, you can only run!

The fact that Margot Lloyd didn't appear here directly means that she is very likely unable to get away right now!

His entire body's energy exploded, his wings flapping, forcibly forcing the commander away before he flew swiftly along the tangent of the ditch towards Alice's location. Hundreds of kilometers passed in an instant, and before he could even catch his breath, he heard the sound of wingspan behind him!

【Dry--!】

He cursed inwardly, but a sharp pain shot through his back. The winged leader held aloft his fully restored, jet-black greatsword, which was now wreathed in the Five Elements Transformation power that Zheng Zha recognized all too well. A sword aura, mingled with five-colored light, struck his back at a speed faster than he could fly, leaving a terrible tear that was accompanied by various elemental distortions.

It has learned my combat techniques!?

Zheng Zha was greatly alarmed, but this only strengthened his resolve—he couldn't beat this guy. He lacked strength, speed, and skill; any attempt to stall for time would result in a crushing defeat. Given all these factors, the only reason Margot Lloyd hadn't personally come to deliver him to his doom was that she couldn't!

She couldn't do it, she couldn't catch up, so this was his only chance of victory after the Apocalypse was activated—the connection to the ley lines suddenly became exceptionally clear after he made up his mind. He then unleashed a large burst of chaotic energy to protect his body, and then connected with the raging fire beneath the earth through his will!

The earth trembled. From beneath the flattened and crushed crust, subterranean fire erupted violently! The commander, who had previously almost completely suppressed Zheng Zha, was blown away by the endless subterranean fire. But after it quickly adapted to the impact of the fire and abruptly returned, a blade strike that came straight at it suppressed it with ten times the force of the previous attack!

Amidst the subterranean flames, Zheng Zha, his body enveloped in 'earth vein essence,' or rather, the immense heat stored at the bottom of the earth's crust, stood proudly, sword raised. His body, his body, and the vast space surrounding him were all accumulating unimaginably vast energy. This enormous energy, which should have instantly overwhelmed him, was instead unified around him by some invisible and complex will, causing him absolutely no harm.

“Margot Royd is right. As long as there is enough energy, any skill, strategy, or layout can be ignored. Just like how a brick can be sent flying with enough thrust, I only need to use brute force.” He flew out as he spoke, using his enormous and unreasonable energy to blast the commander, whose attributes far surpassed his own, to pieces.

Then, he looked in Alice's direction. He mobilized an energy whose total amount he himself could not measure. Slowly, he raised his crimson greatsword.

"Although I'm not entirely sure what you're planning, but... Margot Lloyd, I'll just blow you and the entire Antarctica away. Whatever your plans are, they're bound to fail."

The next moment, he swung his broadsword down!

He couldn't swing it.