“If you have time for this,” he grinned, revealing blood-stained teeth, “you should go check on your subordinates.”
With that, his body suddenly began to melt.
The red light pillars, having lost their target, shattered with a crash and dissipated into specks of light.
The Captain’s expression changed.
“Oh no!”
He reacted instantly, turning to fly back toward their previous position.
But it was already too late.
When he returned to the street, he saw a sight that made his pupils shrink.
The remaining four Rank 9 powerhouses were all collapsed on the ground.
Their bodies were rapidly evaporating, their flesh and blood turning into a blood-red mist.
The mist did not disperse; instead, it was drawn by an invisible force toward the center of the street.
Standing there was a man.
He looked identical to the man in black robes from before, but he wore a white robe and a gentle smile on his face.
He spread his arms as if embracing something. Four streams of blood mist poured into his body like rivers. With every stream he absorbed, the aura radiating from him grew stronger.
When the last of the blood mist was absorbed, his aura surged to a terrifying level.
“I suppose I was a step too late.” The man in white robes withdrew his hands and licked the corner of his mouth, as if tasting something delicious.
He turned his head to look at the Captain in the air, his lips curling into a smile.
“What a pity. I only absorbed four. If I added you, I should have been able to return to my peak.”
The Captain slowly landed at the other end of the street.
He looked at the gentle-faced man before him, then at the four pools of rapidly drying blood on the ground.
His subordinates, the most elite investigation team of the Royal Capital, five Rank 9 powerhouses...
All dead.
They had died so easily, so miserably.
“Heh...” The Captain suddenly laughed, a cold, sharp sound. “Fine. Very well. Let’s see if you actually have the ability.”
He raised his right hand, palm upward.
Golden light gathered in his palm, condensing into a golden spear.
The shaft was covered in complex runes, and the tip glinted with a piercing, cold light.
“Regardless of who you are,” the Captain gripped the spear, pointing it at the man in white robes.
“Now, in the name of the Captain of the Royal Capital investigation team—”
“I shall execute you!”
He hurled the spear into the sky.
The spear transformed into a streak of golden light, soaring upward and vanishing into the clouds.
The Captain let out a roar and charged toward the man in white robes, throwing a heavy punch.
The man in white robes took the punch head-on. Flesh flew from his face as he was sent flying, but in an instant, the wound on his face healed completely.
The man in white robes slowly stood up, the smile finally vanishing from his face.
In its place was a hint of solemnity.
“Decent strength,” he said softly.
Then, he raised his right hand toward the sky.
“But it’s not enough.”
In the next moment, the ground throughout the entire town exploded.
Countless dark red tentacles erupted from beneath the earth, lashing out at the Captain.
The Captain’s face changed drastically. After severing several tentacles, he realized something was terribly wrong.
“What?!” the Captain’s expression shifted.
These tentacles... the strength of every single one was comparable to the full-power defense of a Rank 9 powerhouse!
And their numbers were endless!
“I’m not done yet,” the man in white robes laughed.
He raised his left hand and gave a light tap toward the Captain.
“Psh.”
A blossom of blood suddenly erupted from the Captain’s chest.
He looked down to see a red thread as thin as a hair. At some point, it had already pierced through his protective golden light and stabbed into his heart.
“When did...” The Captain coughed up a mouthful of blood.
“From the very beginning,” the man in white robes smiled. “From the moment you stepped into this town, my blood threads have filled every inch of the air. Every breath you take is under my control.”
He gave his finger a light tug.
“Psh! Psh! Psh!”
Blood erupted from the Captain’s limbs simultaneously.
He collapsed to the ground, still struggling.
The man in white robes walked over with a smile, looking down at him. “What a pity. You’re going to die with your little team! Hahahaha!”
Just then, the massive spear in the sky slowly descended. The man in white robes’ expression shifted as he tried to turn and dodge, but the Captain reached out and gripped him tightly, preventing him from moving.
As the spear fell, the battlefield was leveled to the ground.
“It’s over.”
The man in white robes crawled out from the ruins. Half of his body had disappeared, but it was still healing rapidly. His expression was twisted with rage, clearly furious at the attack he had just endured. “Though it was a bit more trouble than expected, the result is still good.”
He reached out and pressed his hand against the Captain’s chest.
“Your power... I’ll be taking it.”
Dark red light surged from his palm, flowing through the threads into the Captain’s body.
The Captain could feel his life force, his mana, and his everything being frantically drained away.
His consciousness began to blur.
His vision began to darken.
“Am I going to die...?”
Just as the darkness was about to consume him completely, a figure appeared atop the distant clock tower.
Lilith, dressed in black robes, was quietly watching everything. In her hand, she held a person—it was the bewildered Leonard.
“Oh?” The man in white robes also noticed the figure and raised an eyebrow. “It seems we have a guest.”
He let go, and the Captain’s body fell to the ground, gasping for breath. “It looks like you get to live a little longer.”
The man in white robes turned toward the clock tower, the smile returning to his face.
“Welcome to my domain.”
His expression was twisted and manic. “So, are you ready to die?”
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