Bighorn Bull is in charge of leading, and I, Beria, am in charge of raising it.

However, for Beria, who had been sparring with this incredibly strong calf for ten thousand years, the impact was negligible.

Even when surrounded by so many monsters, it's like being tickled; the health bar doesn't even drop.

Even the wounds on his body were the result of Belial deliberately relaxing his body, giving the monsters a chance to break through his defenses.

Not to mention, Belial, being a top student, had long since keenly sensed that every move these monsters made was controlled by the scepter in the king's hand.

Therefore, he only needs to activate another divine skill common to the Ultra race but often overlooked—Ultra Telekinesis—to cut off the signal from the scepter used by the king to issue commands. This forces these monsters, which have been completely modified and only obey orders, into a standby, idle state.

Even if Belial disregarded the consequences and chose to attack with all his might, having already broken free of the restrictions of his training armor, he could easily have shone through hordes of monsters like Zero when he first debuted in 09, putting on a spectacular show of unstoppable slaughter!

In other words, if Belial had wanted to, he could have extinguished the king's illusions the moment the battle began.

However, Beria still had one last question that remained unanswered...

The question is whether the ordinary inhabitants of this planet are aware of the king's actions and whether they deserve to be saved.

And now, they have received a definite answer from the king, who has transformed into a "god who answers every question".

Therefore, Belial, who was already seething with anger, naturally saw no need to continue playing along with the king.

Of course, Belial, who was well aware of the law that "villains die from talking too much," had no intention of explaining anything to the king in front of him and continued to walk forward unhurriedly.

Each step he took landed precisely on the beat of the king's heart. For a fleeting moment, the king had the illusion that if Belial stopped, his heart would halt!

No, that's not right, this isn't an illusion!

Without the monsters to intercept and protect them, the king was truly powerless to resist the enormous creature before him!

Am I going to die?

How could I, the ruler of a nation, die in my own castle?

No, no, absolutely not!

He was just one step away from shedding this frail body and ascending to godhood! He would be the most revered being in the entire universe!

How dare this guy lay a hand on me! Just for those few damned commoners!

"You...you stay away! I'm warning you! I am the king of this planet! Your Land of Light has a rule that you are not allowed to interfere in the development of other planets' civilizations! Do you hear me? I command you! Stop right now...Waaah—!"

But before he could finish speaking, the king's lips seemed to be sewn shut by invisible needles and threads, closing tightly. No matter how hard the king struggled, he couldn't open them even an inch. Only a few muffled sobs could be squeezed out from deep in his throat.

This caused the king's pupils to contract violently as he struggled violently, his fear intensifying. He stared intently at the figure approaching him, as if he had seen some terrifying demon.

However, what the king didn't know was...

If he were to be trampled to death by Belial, it would actually be a relief for him.

And then, with the final step, after giving the king enough fear and oppression to face death, Belial's body shrank in the blink of an eye, and light particles overflowed from his body and recombine, finally settling at a height level with the king, shrinking back to his life-size.

Then, meeting the king's gaze—a mixture of relief and bewilderment, as if he had just escaped death—he raised his right hand. With the mobilization of his internal energy, a serrated blade of light rapidly materialized in his palm, spinning at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. It rubbed against the air at high speed, emitting a faint, sharp buzzing sound.

At the same time, Belial met the king's gaze, which was now filled with fear as he vaguely realized something, and let out an extremely "kind" and cheerful laugh, like a villain who had succeeded in his conspiracy.

"Hehehe! Speaking of which, I really have to thank you. If it weren't for your device that weakened the power of my beam technique, I would be worried that if I accidentally went too far and killed you too quickly, it would be too easy for you... But now, I don't have that worry anymore."

"What you are about to experience is a unique form of punishment in the history of my hometown, called Lingchi (death by a thousand cuts). To put it simply, it means that your flesh will be sliced ​​off piece by piece. It is the perfect punishment for scum like you who enjoys torturing other living beings. Don't you think so?"

Beria tilted his head, his tone as relaxed as if he were explaining a basic operating procedure to a newcomer in the laboratory.

The eight-pointed light wheel on his right palm adjusted its rotation speed as he spoke, deliberately slowing down from a high speed to a chillingly low one. The jagged outline was clearly visible at this low speed, and the edges of each light blade were reflected in the king's dilated pupils, further amplifying his inner fear.

"Waaah!"

A short whimper escaped the king's throat, and his body instinctively tried to shrink back.

But after leaning back a few inches, his back pressed against the cold stone throne, leaving him with nowhere to retreat.

The throne that once symbolized power and status has now become an excellent execution platform!

His legs kicked the ground frantically, his boot heels scraping against the stone slabs with a harsh screech, and his fingernails scratched at the wall, leaving shallow white marks.

In the end, no matter how desperately he struggled, he could only watch helplessly as the eight-part halo in Belial's hand slowly approached him. His eyeballs almost popped out of their sockets, and his body began to tremble violently uncontrollably. A warm, foul-smelling liquid, mixed with some yellowish-brown, stinking debris, trickled down his trouser leg, leaving a dark stain on the ground.

"It's said that the historical record is 3,600 cuts before death. But don't worry, as an Ultra Warrior, I can continuously supply you with energy while cutting you, maintaining your vital signs and ensuring you can fully experience the process. Who knows, I might even break that record? After all, I'm quite confident in my swordsmanship... In a sense, this is one of your favorite scientific experiments?"

Even though the king was terrified, he still couldn't see the slightest pity in Belial's eyes.

He spoke slowly and deliberately, and the eight-point light wheel in his palm fell down, easily slicing off a piece of flesh as thin as a cicada's wing, accompanied by the cutting sound of a sharp blade entering flesh.

"Waaaaah! Waaaah!! Waaaah... Waaah—!!!"

The excruciating pain made the king shake his head frantically, trying to scream out in agony. But his mouth was sealed shut by telekinesis, and he could only let out muffled screams.

His pupils shrank to pinpoints, the whites of his eyes rolled back, and his whole body convulsed so violently he almost bounced off the ground. His fingers dug into the ground so hard that his nails broke off at the base, and blood gushed from his fingertips.

But the king couldn't care less about that at that moment.

Just by imagining it in his mind according to Belial's description, a fear countless times more terrifying than pure death took over every nerve ending.

Furthermore, he could clearly feel that while Belial was cutting through his flesh, he was also constantly injecting energy into his body to maintain the king's vital signs and ensure that the king's mental state remained clear at all times so that he could fully experience the entire process of being slowly sliced ​​to death!

This situation, worse than death, finally made him lower his noble head, sobbing incessantly, as if apologizing to Beria and begging him for a quick death.

"Oh? It seems our esteemed King is already impatient..."

But Beria seemed to have suddenly gone blind, ignoring the king's pleas for mercy.

He looked down at the figure before him, utterly humiliated and pitiful, filled with extreme fear. He felt no pity, only a burning desire to punish the wicked with violence!

He then raised the eight-part light wheel in his hand again, its serrated blades drawing shifting streaks of light between the two. Accompanied by the king's intermittent groans and sobs, he continued in an innocent and pure tone.

"Alright, let's begin the experiment!"

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Beria's Diary

Sigh, I couldn't help but kill someone as soon as I left the Land of Light.

Someone like me is definitely not cut out to be an upright and honorable hero.

But it's fine, since I'm destined to be the villain, let that idiot Ken be the hero, he's more suitable than me.

As for me...

Since I'm already the main villain...

So, it's perfectly reasonable for someone to occasionally take the blame and engage in a double-cross, isn't it?

Hey, but I have to say, it feels pretty good to use the Eight-Point Light Wheel to cut through flesh, no wonder Ace loved dismembering people so much!

...Huh? Wait a minute, according to the timeline, I should be Ace's senior...?

hiss……

This unlucky kid has a penchant for dismembering people, a crueler side than anyone else's. Could it be that he was influenced by me?!

Chapter 17 Man proposes, God disposes

The hum of the eight-part light wheel gradually dissipated in the underground space.

After completing its final rotation, the serrated light blade transformed into tiny light particles, silently dissipating from Belial's fingertips and merging into the lingering stench of blood in the air.

Then, Belial simply flicked the remaining traces of blood—not his own—from his fingers, casually firing a light blast that reduced the remaining humanoid skeleton to ashes. He turned and began to scan the underground space, which the king used as his trump card.

In Belial's view, the device the King mentioned before his death—the force field generator that could suppress the energy flow of the Warriors of Light—could not be hidden too far away. It was most likely buried in a hidden location in this hall, and not too far from the area where the King usually spent his time.

After all, a villain who enjoys sitting on his throne and watching his prey struggle for its life, but panics and makes a fool of himself when he discovers that the roles of hunter and prey have been reversed, would never entrust the control of such a vital life-saving device to someone else, much less keep it out of his sight.

Thinking this, Belial slowly paced around, searching his surroundings.

A moment later, a gaze with X-ray vision fixed on the overly smooth stone wall behind the throne. Five fingers dug into the cracks in the stone wall, and with a forceful pull, the sound of shattering stone echoed for a moment in the empty hall, revealing a small hidden compartment behind it.

In the very center of the hidden compartment, a fist-sized, dark red core floated in mid-air, slowly rotating.

Each rotation releases a barely perceptible energy fluctuation.

But Beria could sense that this seemingly insignificant core was actually the most technologically advanced product in the entire underground space, and it was of great research value!

only……

Just thinking about this thing, the legacy of that scumbag, who killed countless lives during its creation.

Moreover, given the pure self-centered egoism displayed by that little man, Beria couldn't help but worry that this seemingly insignificant little device might contain the key to bringing the king back to life.

For example, like the common trope in cultivation novels from the past, a wisp of soul was stored inside beforehand, so that the soul could be directly possessed and resurrected the moment an outsider came into contact with it.

Therefore, Belial did not hesitate at all, immediately assumed a posture, accumulated energy, and released the Desium Ray.

In an instant, the core, covered in dazzling light, emitted a short, sharp shriek before shattering into countless tiny points of light, which were quickly annihilated by Belial's signature beam attack.

The peculiar force field that enveloped the entire underground space also quickly disappeared. This allowed Belial to condense his energy into a special waveband before the agreed-upon investigation time ended, penetrating layers of rock walls and the castle's outer walls, transforming it into an Ultra Sign, and shooting it towards the big oaf waiting in space.

The message was short, but it basically said: I've taken care of things here, come down and help with the cleanup.

Afterwards, Belial took out the training armor from the four-dimensional storage device, put it back on, and covered the wounds left from the battle. Instead of waiting idly, he began to scan the rest of the underground space.

According to the king, the pale golden liquid used to transform the monsters was actually the blood of the Warrior of Light.

Therefore, in order to facilitate the experiment and to prevent this secret from being discovered, the Warriors of Light captured by the King must also be imprisoned in this underground area.

This prompted Beria to take a few steps forward and confirm that although the modified little girl looked pitiful, her vital signs were relatively stable.

Relieved, Belial shared some of his energy with the little girl to alleviate her pain.

He then stood up and reactivated his X-ray vision. Following the dense network of pipes and layout within the isolation chamber, he traced the source of the pale golden blood.

Before long, Beria discovered that behind these isolation chamber arrays, there was an area separated by a heavy metal door.

Although a password was required to open the entrance, Belial, having already dealt with the king and no longer caring about revealing his whereabouts, simply raised his hand, made a claw shape with his five fingers, and casually swiped a few times at the metal door. It was as easy as tearing open a piece of paper, effortlessly obtaining "entry permission" for this area.

Inside this area are rows of fully enclosed metal isolation chambers.

Each isolation chamber's interface is connected to a thick energy conduit, the end of which converges into a massive central energy storage device. This device then serves as a transfer station, continuously supplying streams of pale golden photon blood outwards.

Without a doubt, those imprisoned and confined in this almost self-deceiving manner are the warriors of light who have been out of contact with the Land of Light for thousands of years and have long been registered on the list of sacrifices.

Beria pressed his palm against the bulkhead, amplifying his senses.

After a brief silence, Belial raised an eyebrow, revealing a hint of surprise.

Perhaps because there were no new test subjects to fill the gap, the king, although he said that he had drained the blood from these Warriors of Light, was ultimately unwilling to kill them.

Now, their life force is extremely weak, like a candle flickering in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment. Their energy reserves are almost zero, causing their consciousness to fall into a deep coma as a self-preservation mechanism kicks in.

But they are all still alive!

As a member of the Ultra race, a pure giant of light...

As long as they have enough energy, they can be fully revived, if not completely, but enough to awaken their long-dormant consciousness in a short period of time!

Coincidentally, Beria had nothing else...

But with a full 80,000 portable mini plasma sparks in his pocket, Belial, who can be described as a humanoid self-propelled plasma spark tower, has no shortage of energy!

However, just as Belial subconsciously took out several portable mini plasma sparks, intending to directly energize them, his movements suddenly stopped.

After a moment's thought, Belial put away most of them, leaving only a portable mini plasma spark, and distributed the energy evenly among the warriors of light.

The quantity was just right—enough to completely save their lives while slightly delaying their awakening.

After fiddling around for a while and figuring out the functions of the various buttons on the control panel, Beria opened the hatch of the metal isolation chamber. He wanted to ensure that anyone entering the room could immediately see their compatriots trapped inside.

Even more fearing that the guy might not have noticed such an obvious place, before leaving the room, he made sure to collect all the metal door fragments that had been scattered on the ground after being dismantled into the four-dimensional storage device.

After doing all this, Belial nodded in satisfaction, just as he heard the approaching crashing sound from above.

After silently calculating in his mind, Belial took a small step to the side.

"Pfft! Ugh, ugh, ugh... I'm here! Belial! Are you alright?! Did you run into anything evil?!"

The next second, with a deafening roar and a deluge of falling debris and dust...

Upon receiving the message, Ken, eager to reunite with Belial, relied on his overwhelming physical strength to forcefully carve a straight path downwards from the top of the castle!

Upon landing, disregarding his disheveled appearance, he followed the familiar energy fluctuations and tightly embraced Belial. He anxiously inquired while repeatedly checking his buddy for any changes.

"Tch, do I look like I'm in trouble? This piece of trash doesn't even dare to hurt me... Or are you, Ken, hoping something bad will happen to me so you can curse me like this?"

Seeing Jian's nervous appearance, Belial couldn't help but smile, but he pretended to be disgusted and replied.

Sensing the energy fluctuations coming from not far behind him, and realizing that the giants of light were about to awaken, he didn't give the aggrieved Ken a chance to explain himself. He pushed Ken's shoulder and drove him towards the dark room.