Chapter 1106
Chapter 1106 - 1992: Really Not Human
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9 min read
"Is this a Fighting Festival?"
"Since they’re fighting with their bodies, it must be, I suppose."
The "monster duel" before their eyes had probably surpassed most of the audience’s expectations, and even more so the martial limits of numerous past festivals.
The flaming Tree-man continued to expand, his massive body not just causing earthquakes anymore; his movements, attacks, and collisions were like that of a living volcano.
And his opponent, the seemingly cheerful young lady, had transformed into a vast legion that multiplied like the infinite ocean.
Countless crystal warriors, crystal birds, and War Beasts lunged at the giant Tree-man, only to be shattered to pieces.
And this had been going on for nearly ten minutes... Lu Ping’an hadn’t managed to execute a quick kill as planned; Eve’s eerie Undying-nature was too preposterous, able to disintegrate into "cells," she probably lacked the concept of Death normal lives possessed.
Against such an entity, in the world of professionals, one would resort to "Instant Death" abilities, and though Lu Ping’an’s "Beheading" was one of them, its effectiveness was somewhat delicate.
At this moment, the gap between Rule-Level items and true Rule-level power became apparent... Lu Ping’an could only use the crudest method, wearing down his opponent.
Another eruption like that of a raging volcano, the frenzied Tree-man, like a crazed and startled herd of elephants, ravaged the area and the land itself.
Whether actively or passively, both sides had entered the most common "war of attrition" mode of the Life system.
And this, actually, was within Lu Ping’an’s expectations—not the best development, but not the worst either...
"Energy may not be conserved..."
At this moment, he too experienced the sweetness of the non-human.
Under normal circumstances, how could he possibly outlast Eve, who had a vast stockpile of Biomatter as her strategic reserves?
But now, when he could convert the high heat burst from the "Sacred Fire Plant" into Extraordinary kinetic energy, and then continuously replenish his internal consumption with those precious crystal leaves... Once such a cycle was established, before all the crystal leaves were exhausted, Lu Ping’an, despite the massive consumption of his huge body, became a veritable internal Perpetual Motion Machine.
He toppled the legion before him once more, and fiercely slapped the ground, causing both Sacred Fire and seismic waves to inflict devastating damage.
Life was incredibly fragile in the face of such a monster, and even the heroes and Soldiers with powerful individual strength were merely slightly tougher insects.
"...How many more?"
This was the helpless reality one must face; killing had become meaningless, only attrition would result in victory.
Both sides had entered a mode of attrition, Lu Ping’an consuming his own abilities, Energy, and physical reserves, while Eve was depleting her accumulated "Biomatter," but in essence, both were still consuming "Energy."
At this point, the contest was not about temporary victory or loss, nor about who held the high ground or advantage, but about the "rate of consumption."
And Lu Ping’an’s rampage, this powerful yet clearly unsustainable combat mode, had successfully tilted the balance of combat losses entirely in his favor... Even so, he was beginning to feel the strain.
"It’s almost over, actually she’s long since surpassed the limits in my Memory..." But clearly, if he really followed Big Cat’s data for battle prediction, Lu Ping’an was already done for.
"Useless cat." It seemed that in the face of Eve, even Big Cat’s rationality was mostly obliterated, and his brain had turned to iron.
Lu Ping’an sighed and continued to produce seismic waves.
This was the simplest yet most effective method of Massacre; at Lu Ping’an’s level of "Giant Beast", still capable of moving at high speed when massive, the mere shockwaves caused by his movement were enough to shatter the majority of Life forms.
Meanwhile, in this process, his "Small Knife" in the right hand was also growing... From the initial "Dagger Small Knife" to the recent "Cleaver," and now, it had become a Single Knife he could wield with one hand.
The trait of the Abyss Lord’s sword to grow with the user’s Gigantification had been inherited by the Demon Sword before him, and its very existence meant Eve’s theoretical consumption was several times higher than his.
Fighting, Devouring, Evolving, Pressuring... When both sides were nearly Undead monsters, their mutual consumption became a battle of biting and Devouring one another.
Eve tried to transform Lu Ping’an’s Body, to crystalize and Devour him, but in front of this burning bark, Erosion became somewhat unrealistic.
And Lu Ping’an’s Demon Sword was happily feeding him more Blood and Power, allowing him to hold out longer and massacre more.
Targeted setups and long-reserved strategic Resources had allowed Lu Ping’an to gradually take the Upper Side in this "encounter battle."
He could replenish his supplies in battle, while Eve could only rely on herself...
"I...I won’t lose..."
The girl, floating in mid-air, her hair already crystalline golden, her body fully crystallized, had pushed her abilities to the limit.
Simple recombination and shaping, and the slightly more complex fabrication and assembling, as well as the crucial driving and controlling... She alone was a cycle of Life, repeatedly re-enacting this procedure.
Her focus, never seen before, quickened her movements, and even if the reserves of Biomatter had dwindled, she remained unwavering.
She wouldn’t lose, how could she lose, she....
"I won’t lose, I am the one who’s right, how can those who are right lose....."
"Little girl," with tears streaming down her face, struck harder and more viciously.
Having nearly been pierced through by super cannons twice and almost having those "ants" burrow into her body, Lu Ping’an could only cautiously fend them off while delivering heavy blows...
"On what basis are you right? I might have killed that Big Cat, but I have never felt I did wrong."
Lu Ping’an’s calm words announced the reality of "blood kin death" and once again enraged his opponent.
But at this moment, the girl’s rage and "raindrop assaults" somehow seemed like an impotent fury, somewhat hollow...
"Stop messing around. She was about to completely destroy my hometown, my city. Had she succeeded, not only would I have been doomed, but the million inhabitants of the entire city would have been gone as well. As a ’Warrior’, do you think her actions were right?"
Lu Ping’an’s words made Eve falter, then, gritting her teeth, launched another silent assault.
How could she say "right"? If she had thought her "mother" was right back then, she wouldn’t have raised the flag of rebellion so early.
She had had many grievances with her "mother," but the fundamental conflict wasn’t originally there... except for that damned "I shall fuse with all life and stand alone atop the nine heavens"!
Sacrificing a city for a ritual, other Evil Gods were not that insane... uh, at least Blood Feast and Blood-crow wouldn’t dare before the New Era, and they only wrecked a medium-small city later on, nowhere near Chris’s scale of less than one eleventh.
The girl understood the reasons, and she wasn’t deranged enough to think a city was worth a Blood Sacrifice, but...
The girl’s tears kept falling. She knew her person was a bastard, but, but...
"...she is my family...."
Upon speaking those words, golden silk thread began to spread out from her as the core, extending to the entire world.
"Family Hero" might sound cliché, but some people really only care about their own family...
In this moment, Eve was ready to abandon, to abandon her own self, in order to carry out her revenge.
She diluted herself into that boundless golden ocean and, under the strange empowerment of a strong Martial Destiny, she faintly saw something more.
It seemed a door was slowly opening, it seemed that true Creation or even the resurgence of rules were right before her eyes...
"Eve, you are not to enter the seventh-tier within a year."
"Ah, okay."
At this moment, following the eerie dialogue, something even stranger happened.
Lu Ping’an suddenly threw out two "Gold Coins," and Eve, catching them, subconsciously responded, after which her aura greatly diminished.
The "opportunity" that was about to break through had vanished, and when she "herself" decided not to advance, all the extra consumption and fatigue returned, and the pain of failing the onslaught hit her once again....
"Collapse!"
The backlash of the failed advancement hit, and all the Crystal life forms began to shatter, leaving behind only.....
The filthy man, with his dirty hands, grasped the girl. This time, as the hand holding the Demon Sword came down, she was filled with terror.
She couldn’t understand what had happened to her, but she knew, as that hand came down, that she was likely to die...
Is there really a world for the deceased?
Would she see that mother she was reluctant to acknowledge again.....
And when the hand finally came down, it was not a thunderous slap or a soul draining, but a touch somewhat familiar, somewhat strange, somewhat nostalgic....
She looked up sharply, and saw the old Phantom, along with the only time she had laughed.
That one time, she got full marks on her homework for the first time (copied), and she happily took her to the amusement park....
The Big Tree had reverted back to human form, the eerie figure had once again taken on the familiar voice of a youth, and in this moment the tearful girl, head bowed, could not bring herself to look up for a long while.
"...Come with me, I’ll give you a family."
— End of Chapter 1106 —