Alice didn't explain the dangers involved in what she was doing.
In fact, in the instant she sprang into action, her tone of voice, her expression, and her entire demeanor gave the impression that this wasn't a matter of charging forward into a life-or-death gamble.
Of course, the danger was easy enough to imagine, especially when the glance Alice cast backward in this moment carried the faint trace of a final farewell.
She looked only at Young Master Shiheng.
Usually, the fewer people one had left to care about in this world, the deeper that care ran.
"Alice, don't..." Liu Shiheng struggled to his feet, reaching forward as if trying to hold her back, just like a scene straight out of a movie or television drama.
Yet in the end, after that single word "don't," he stopped, swallowing back the rest of his pleas and protests.
Because from everything Young Master Shiheng had learned of Alice over the past two-plus years, beneath her aloof exterior she had always loved life and yearned to live it. She possessed all the innocence and playfulness of any young woman; she simply rarely showed it.
So Alice would never willingly seek death.
Unless she already knew in her heart that her life had no better choice left.
*Yes, a life without hope, parasitized and controlled by others day after day like a puppet—that must truly be a fate worse than death, wouldn't it?*
Gazing at Alice's back—the back of his woman—the playboy's chest surged with an instant sour pang, burning with searing pain.
...
For Alice herself, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She had finally waited out a chance where she could make her own choice and take this gamble between life and death.
If she won the bet, she would be rid of Ne and Nikola, beginning a brand-new life from then on. Even if she lost, it would likely be a form of release.
And so she didn't hesitate, opening her consciousness completely and delivering it right to the devourer's mouth.
He Tangtang naturally hesitated even less.
Tangtang's level of scientific and cultural education meant it was virtually impossible for him to realize in such a short window that devouring consciousness like this could inflict damage on Alice that was practically devastating.
In fact, even if he had known, He Tangtang likely would have done it anyway. Because Stream Blades' battlefield style had always been as brutally straightforward as Major The Qing, brooking no sentimentality whatsoever.
Besides, there was another point far more important to Tangtang...
*That's two fucking Yanxiu! Two super Yanxiu whose strength levels are in all probability no lower than a Daie's, and by some stroke of luck they happen to be in a weakened state of consciousness... Rich in nutrients, served right to my door, ripe for the taking!*
Earlier, after devouring the last Daie from the Great Spike vanguard legion, He Tangtang had briefly assumed that from then on, across the surface of this human planet, the top-tier ingredients worth getting excited about were reduced to a mere handful: Chen Buer, Han Qingyu, Bochen, and Pink Hair...
Who would have thought that in just this short while, fresh dishes would be served again—and two served up all at once!
Following the already proven formula of "eating one Daie, breaking past top-tier, and shooting straight to the peak of super combat power," He Tangtang did a quick calculation in his head.
The conclusion presented itself in no time: *A brand new! Invincible beneath the heavens, era bearing the name He Tangtang! Is practically upon us!*
"Tangtang, Lord He, when will you become the strongest human?"
"Today! This very day!"
"First I'll thrash Han Qingyu, then I'll pummel Chen Buer..."
"Then the remaining small fry like Xu'er, Rusty Sister, and Pink Hair—forget it, you guys might as well come at me all at once!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Prepare to welcome your new king, humanity!"
"Jie... *Boom!*"
Amidst wild delusions and demonic, bizarre cackles, the ravenous roar of an ancient primeval beast sounded as his Devour characteristic erupted at full force.
He Tangtang's right hand swiped out like a claw. In the swirling wind and light, it was like the bloody maw of a demonic beast, biting down toward the wound on Alice's shoulder...
"Take pride in becoming my food... Die!"
Rolling sound waves billowed out from high above, washing over the entire Pole battlefield.
...
The bestial roar morphed from a savage snarl into a low whimper.
The sound waves gradually died down.
From high in the air down across the Pole battlefield, dead silence reigned.
"Tangtang, Lord He, when will you become the strongest human?"
"No rush... another day!"
On the ground battlefield, Azure soldiers still stood scattered about. Everyone, including Marshal Hua and the others, looked upward without exception, their expressions shifting by degrees from shock, anticipation, and daze into sheer bewilderment and confusion.
The sheer momentum of the scene just now had been immense, carrying the faint air of a changing of dynasties—a grand coronation for a new king.
Yet now, high in the air on the protruding platform of the Snow Lotus battleship, the woman named Alice still stood completely unharmed.
Standing right in front of a certain new king of humanity, less than a meter away.
Of course, He Tangtang's hand had already lowered. After all, no matter how one looked at it, that still had to count as his sister-in-law's shoulder.
"Well? After such a tremendous display, isn't it inevitable to feel a bit awkward?" Alice spoke, but the moment the voice sounded, it clearly wasn't her. The expression and look in her eyes weren't hers either...
She seemed to have completely vanished for the time being.
The tone speaking now held an innate condescension mixed with gentle amusement, yet it wasn't grating. It sounded like an elegant middle-aged professor smilingly teasing his ignorant students in class.
It was Ne.
At the final second, he had forcefully seized dominance over Alice's body, relying on his formidable strength to withstand He Tangtang's Devour attack and keep the characteristic from breaching his domain of consciousness.
Normally, this situation should never have occurred.
Over the past years, Ne's consciousness had only ever appeared when Alice and Nikola manifested at the same time. He had never appeared of his own accord, much less forcibly taken control of this body, leading Alice to believe all along that he couldn't.
"Heh." Facing Ne's mockery, He Tangtang merely sneered faintly. As the corners of his mouth twitched, he glanced at him, then immediately looked away.
With that glance, the eyes of the greatest kidney-striker in human history brimmed with contempt.
This contempt was genuine, clearly neither forced bravado nor an act.
There were probably many people in this world who, spurred by justice, courage, and resolve, dared to stand before Ne, face death, and resolutely fight him. But people in this world who could genuinely, truly hold Ne in contempt were exceedingly few—perhaps none at all.
Perhaps not even Chen Buer could do it; as an opponent, Old Man Chen had at least some degree of respect for Ne born of understanding... Yet He Tangtang did it.
Ne's eyes showed a hint of confusion. Changing his tone, he said earnestly, "Your characteristic is bizarre and powerful. The thing inside your body—I believe I've seen it before. However, it seems to have undergone some changes now. Yes, very substantial changes, which piques my interest..."
He Tangtang heard him and glanced at him again, this time with a cold, emotionless gaze.
"What, aren't you curious?" Ne asked, intrigued.
He Tangtang still didn't say a word, continuing to narrow his eyes and appraise him.
Now Ne was genuinely a bit baffled. Pausing, he asked earnestly, "Why are you looking at me like that without saying anything? Why do I get the impression you can't even be bothered to talk to me?"
"Have you ever seen anyone talk to a dish of food while eating?" He Tangtang finally opened his mouth, asking back coldly.
Ne froze, and half a second later he understood: he, Ne, was nothing more than food to him.
Just as a smile began to form on the corner of his lips—
He Tangtang abruptly lunged without a sound, pouncing once more...
The next scene of combat was rather unsightly.
With his arms spread wide, attacking both of Alice's shoulders simultaneously, He Tangtang looked like a savage thug trying to bear-hug a beautiful woman against her will.
Fortunately, the beauty had fast reflexes and formidable strength, swiftly catching both of his hands midair.
He Tangtang didn't give up. Struggling, he craned his neck, trying to bite the wound on her shoulder with his mouth... again and again and again.
*The highest level of human combat! That's what this was supposed to be!*
*Yeah!*
"He Tangtang, what the fuck are you doing?!" Seeing this unending spectacle, a voice rang out indignantly from the corner. Liu Shiheng roared in outrage, "Even if she isn't your sister-in-law right now, you doing this... I can't fucking watch this anymore!"
As Liu Shiheng's words fell, the atmosphere seemed to ease up considerably in an instant.
Even Ne chuckled right then, speaking with a touch of helplessness to He Tangtang: "Give up. I'm in fine condition, and it's quite common for a predator to be unable to best its prey."
"Ahem... Could one of you help restrain him?" Seeing his own persuasion fail, Ne turned to Han Qingyu and the others, adding an explanation: "As an isolated individual, I bear no malice toward you for the time being."
The group looked at one another on the spot, exchanging glances.
From the looks of things, continuing to fool around like this wouldn't yield any results. In fact, dragging things out might allow that thing from earlier to pop back out and take control of Alice's body at any moment... With that thought, Wen Jifei called out:
"Tangtang."
He Tangtang heard him, but still struggled a few more times. Seeing it was truly futile, he finally relaxed his force, dropping his shoulders and hunching over as if stopping.
Ne let out a breath in turn, feeling relieved, and prepared to lower his hands.
*Whoosh!* A faint sound of breaking wind—one that would be nearly imperceptible and impossible to react to unless an expert were on high source energy alert.
He Tangtang crouched low and sprang up, his hands striking once more toward the wounds on both of Ne's shoulders.
Ne raised his hands, catching both wrists. He looked at him for two seconds and sighed softly. "Alas."
He Tangtang relaxed his grip.
Ne let go.
At that exact instant, another *whoosh*. He Tangtang's body moved again, hands curving into claws on both sides...
Ne flinched violently, both hands likewise hooking into claws, poised upward in defense.
He Tangtang froze. Perhaps because his sneak attack had been seen through again, and knowing he truly couldn't overpower him, he didn't actually pounce this time.
And so Ne stood frozen as well, hands raised.
"...Are you quite done?"
This time, Ne spoke in Huaxia.
This leader of Snow Lotus, the foremost traitor of mankind in human history, one of only two transcendent experts human civilization had seen in the past thirty years, and one of the greatest source energy scientists, finally couldn't take it anymore. Filled with deep exhaustion, he slowly asked the question in his halting Huaxia.
He Tangtang still didn't address the question. Dropping his stance and standing firm, he straightened his clothes, looked at Ne, and said calmly, "Then give me the other one to eat."
Ne: "Hm?"
"The one that just fell asleep, the howling, super-irascible one. We in Huaxia have a wise saying: *Better a fellow Daoist perish than this poor priest.* You get what I mean, right?"
He Tangtang offered his food a rather warm and gentle look, advising him earnestly.
Chapter 857