Vermin

In truth, on Yu Xian's side alone, there were as many as six non-standard, rule-breaking powerhouses. First was Yu Xian himself. As long as he was willing to use his items or the Zhen Realm, the vast majority of Mighty Ones could only flee; trying to force a fight against him was nothing short of suicidal. Next came Zhang Buyao. She didn't even need to cultivate—relying purely on her inherited abilities, she could trounce many Mighty Ones, and with her gear added to the mix, she could instantly slaughter them. What was more, she now possessed the strength of a Mighty One herself. It was fair to say that within the tier of Mighty Ones, Zhang Buyao was already extraordinarily close to invincible. The only reason it was "extraordinarily close" was that Yu Xian wasn't sure what realm her older brother, Zhang Yao, had reached. If Zhang Yao were also a Mighty One, she would most likely lose to him. Then came Niman. Niman likewise possessed a vast collection of miraculous items and soul treasures. After becoming a Mighty One, she could coordinate with those items. If before she could only manage self-preservation, now she could effortlessly leap across ranks to slay enemies, or even manipulate them like toys in the palm of her hand from the very start. Then there was Little Nora. Little Nora's abilities were downright absurd. Its other abilities were fine, but once it truly grew angry and assumed its Source Form, its danger level would skyrocket instantly, leaving enemies dead without even knowing how they perished. Therefore, its combat prowess was also far beyond normal limits—downright cheating, in fact. Then there was Nora. Her ability to exhibit non-standard combat power stemmed mainly from her formidable marksmanship alongside her vast array of top-tier weapons and miraculous items. After ascending to become a Mighty One, her proficiency with weapons had grown even sharper. If an enemy overlooked her, they were overwhelmingly likely to be dispatched in the next second. Finally, there was Little Huangquan. Though Little Huangquan usually stayed quietly with the group, often even hiding away in the galley with an appallingly low presence, her combat prowess was another rule-breaking anomaly. Once she equipped her Useful Mask, even Yu Xian had admitted to being frightened of her current Mighty One-tier might. One could easily imagine how terrifying she truly was. Out of the eight people aboard the Aska, six were rule-breaking Mighty Ones. The moment the Emerald Dragon and the ratman decided to pursue them, their fates were effectively sealed. At this moment, the Emerald Dragon and the ratman blocked the Aska's necessary path, one in front and one behind. "We've changed our minds." "Hand over all the divine artifacts and riches on your persons." The ratman Adulam glared at everyone aboard the vessel, issuing his order with dripping murderous intent. His confidence stemmed from his supreme personal might, as well as his appraisal of Yu Xian's group. Just as Yu Xian could easily assess the relative strengths of Adulam and the Emerald Dragon, Adulam was likewise capable of reading Yu Xian and his companions. Right now, Adulam felt somewhat like a sixth-grader walking into a first-grade classroom, demanding the little kids hand over their snacks. Even though sixth-graders and first-graders were both elementary students, their physical builds differed drastically. Adulam didn't take Yu Xian or the others seriously in the least; he was confident he could sweep through all of them entirely by himself. "What a coincidence. We've changed our minds too." "Zhang Shou, this rat is yours. Gong Qian, you and Nora take the dragon behind us. Sound good?" Yu Xian chuckled and spoke to Adulam before promptly divvying up the opponents. Hearing this, Zhang Shou and the others immediately levitated off the Aska. No spoken reply was needed; clearly, everyone had chosen to go straight into battle. "Muse, we need spectator seating," Yu Xian called out. In the next instant, the Aska's deck began to reshape itself, forming a circular spectator stand in a flash. Yu Xian took his seat with satisfaction, finding that it gave him an unobstructed view of both battlefields. Although the Aska appeared to be made of ordinary timber—even creating the illusion that a single punch could smash it to pieces—it was in fact a miraculous item. Its defensive capability was absurdly high; even Mighty Ones would struggle to inflict any damage upon it. Frankly speaking, if Yu Xian and the others didn't want to fight, they could simply stay aboard the Aska, and neither Adulam nor the Emerald Dragon could do a thing to them. It was only because Gong Qian and the others wanted some fun that this battle was taking place at all. By now, Zhang Shou had flown right before Adulam. The expressions on their faces were quite amusing: Adulam looked contemptuous, while Zhang Shou was itching for a fight. Come to think of it, this was only the second time Zhang Shou had faced an unfamiliar Mighty One. In fact, the previous encounter hadn't even counted as a real fight—at most, they had merely come close to trading blows. Strictly speaking, this was his very first time clashing against a stranger who was a Mighty One. "Being a Mighty One is merely an admission ticket to roam the myriad heavens." "Brat, you only just became a Mighty One, didn't you? You still reek of wet nursing." "Are you... prepared to die? Recklessly crossing swords with another Mighty One can get you killed!" Adulam glared at Zhang Shou as a surge of crimson energy began welling from his body, his slow, deliberate words meant to apply psychological pressure. "Are you ready?" "Here I come!" Zhang Shou didn't give a damn about the nonsense spilling from Adulam's mouth. He had little confidence in his own strength, but he had all the confidence in the world in Yu Xian's. Even if he truly couldn't beat the guy, there was no shame in it; at worst, couldn't he just yell, "Salty Fish, save me"? That was why he wasn't nervous in the slightest—only eager to test himself. Adulam hadn't expected his trash talk to fall on completely deaf ears. Just as he opened his mouth to utter a few more threats, a flash of blade light bloomed before him. Lately, Zhang Shou had been pondering founding his own sect, which had led him to tinker with quite a few saber techniques. Right now was the perfect opportunity to test them out. Saber One. Because there were so many techniques and Zhang Shou was utterly hopeless at naming things, he had simply designated them one, two, three, four, five, and six before deciding which ones to formally incorporate into the sect. Of course, once he made up his mind, he would definitely give them domineering, cool-sounding names. Something like Holy Saber, Judgment, and the like. Confronted by the first saber strike, Adulam felt as if his body were about to split in two before the blade ray even reached him. Sneering, he barked, "Solar Rule Chain!" In a flash, countless worlds behind him shattered. Under his manipulation, densely packed stars aligned into a fiery chain. His attack was remarkably swift—so swift that before Zhang Shou's blade could even land on him, countless suns surged forward first, their surfaces webbed with dense lines of universal rules, their temperatures elevated to an unimaginable degree. To these stars, Adulam himself, the Aska, and everything in their surroundings were minuscule. Crashing down couldn't even truly be described as a strike; they were simply descending. Yet at that moment, Zhang Shou was enraged. Those shattered worlds had their stars wrenched away in an instant, their space pulverized, scattering countless planets in all directions. Those planets brimming with life, those countless living beings, were about to be plunged into a chasm of despair simply because of a single battle between him and Adulam.