The vast ocean surged in endless waves of deep blue. Not a single ship or island was in sight, save for the occasional flock of birds skimming the water to snatch small fish before soaring back into the sky.
Fu Qingxuan rode atop a streak of sword light, streaking through the sky at speeds imperceptible to the naked eye, glancing left and right with palpable anxiety.
After flying for a while, she pressed a hand to her earpiece and frowned. "Are we there yet?"
A resigned voice came through the satellite phone connected to her headset: "Grand Marshal, you asked two minutes ago. Keep flying southeast. You'll arrive in five minutes."
Fu Qingxuan asked coldly, "Which way is southeast?"
Her anxiety stemmed from having completely lost her sense of direction. Abroad, and especially over the open sea, navigation systems were useless. As someone with an abysmal sense of direction, she felt an utter lack of security.
"Don't worry, we have your coordinates on our end. If you veer off course, we'll notify you immed—you've veered off course. Please adjust slightly to the left. Too far left, adjust slightly to the right..."
Fu Qingxuan's destination was an island whose coordinates had been provided by the President of the Merchant Guild. That island served as the lair of the Biological Alchemy Society's leader. Vast numbers of aberrant monsters were bred both on the island and in the surrounding waters.
The isolated island was sealed off by an array, shielding it from satellite imagery and keeping it hidden from passing ships. On rare occasions, unfortunate souls would stumble onto the island by mistake. Terrified by the monstrous beasts running rampant across the land, they would believe they had discovered prehistoric giants.
Most of these unfortunates died on the island, though a lucky few managed to survive and return to the mainland, turning their experiences into movies.
Rumor had it that the island rested upon the back of a colossal sea monster that slept most of the time. It awakened once a month to carry the island across the waters, swimming until it grew exhausted, then drifting back to sleep wherever it ended up.
For this reason, even though the orthodox faction's higher-ups knew of the island harboring countless aberrant creatures, they were powerless to act, unable to find it at all.
Yet for a Void practitioner endowed with Treasure Seeking and specialized in teleportation, tracking it down required merely a modest effort.
After correcting her flight path again and again, Fu Qingxuan heard the voice of her Scholar subordinate through the headset: "Target is three nautical miles directly ahead of you."
Fu Qingxuan looked down. The ocean curved along the horizon, water swelling endlessly; aside from deep blue sea, there was nothing.
A piercing white light flared in her pupils, turning them like twin white pearls. Upon the churning green waves, an island thick with wild forests, mountains, rivers, and ravines came into view.
Fu Qingxuan let out a sigh of relief. A feeling of liberation washed over her now that she had found her coordinates and was no longer lost. She immediately dove toward the valley, brought her fingers together like a sword, raised them high toward the sky, and slashed down.
A laser-like streak of sword energy swept across the expanse between sky and sea. The barrier cloaking the island shattered instantly, and a straight sword mark tore through the entire island from east to west, cutting it cleanly like a knife through a cake.
Roars and screeches erupted across the mountain forests and river valleys as the giant beasts on the island were stirred into a frenzy.
At that moment, the island's flora seemed to come alive, exuding layers of deep-purple toxic fumes that billowed and collided, shrouding the entire landmass.
Fu Qingxuan opened her inventory, retrieved a vial of gleaming golden life fluid alongside a vial of emerald-green sap, threw her head back to gulp them down, and plunged headlong into the poisonous fog on her sword light.
***
Polopol Winery.
After a brief pause, the crack-ridden, warped world resumed its normal operation. Two worlds—one upright, one inverted—turned like interlocking gears, slowly merging into one.
The Distorted Realm was a rule-based item. Once the two worlds became one, the domain would become a thoroughly distorted, chaotic realm where all living things would perish. Even a demigod's primordial spirit would be annihilated and their physical form ground to dust.
The Myriad Treasure Tree wedged itself between the two worlds, bearing tremendous pressure. From low grade to high, the items hanging from its branches exploded one after another.
"Nothing but flashy trash!"
An aged voice came faintly from the winery building. "If not for the Grand Marshal of the White Tiger Troops last time, you would already be dead. Orthodox classes are inherently weaker than freedom classes, and my tier is higher than yours. Actively provoking me—how is that any different from seeking death?"
Although evil classes lacked a demigod stage, the number of powerhouses possessing demigod-level combat strength was no fewer than in the orthodox faction. Moreover, the three leaders of the Dionysus Club, the Biological Alchemy Society, and the Eternal Night Church each possessed strength exceeding ordinary demigods.
The demigod stage had tiers as well. Most orthodox demigods of the current era were in the early stage, whereas the three leaders of the First District were in the mid stage. Asura stood alone as the strongest, having reached the late stage.
"Do I look like someone seeking death to you?" Standing beneath the Myriad Treasure Tree, the President pulled another goblet from the void. Draining the red wine in one gulp, he declared, "Come forth, my summoned beast—Succubus!"
Halos of holy radiance rippled outwards not far from him. At the core of the radiance, a figure slowly took shape.
It was a woman whose facial features were indistinct, her face veiled in holy light. Her platinum-blonde hair was as smooth as silk, every single strand bathed in divine radiance.
She wore a magnificent black gown with a train trailing across the ground, her figure the most breathtaking sight in the world.
She could not be described by mere words like "beautiful," "alluring," or "enchanting." She was the very embodiment of desire. The moment your eyes fell upon her, nothing else in the world could capture your attention.
Wealth, fame, leveling up, power, items... all of it faded into insignificance. Every desire you harbored could find feedback and fulfillment through her.
The President drew in a sharp breath. Leaning against the trunk of the Myriad Treasure Tree, he pressed a hand to his temple.
He felt an onslaught of desires surging inside him—not just physical lust, but mental desires, greed for money, ambition for power, bloodlust for battle, cravings for prestige, and so much more.
The Distorted Realm's motion seized up once again. The President gave a low chuckle.
"Evil classes may indeed be stronger than orthodox classes, but indulging desire is your greatest weakness. I can still hold on. How about you?"
Silence fell over the winery. The proprietor could no longer make a sound.
With great effort, the President raised his hand and snapped his fingers. On a middle branch of the Myriad Treasure Tree, a bronze bell tolled with a deep chime. A tangible shockwave descended, shredding the winery's main building into pieces.
Amidst the ruins, a tall, white-haired old man sat drenched in blood on a high-backed chair. Not daring to look at the Association of God of Beauty's Goddess of Desire, his pale-green eyes turned toward the President.
"The good show in New York County has only just begun. It's nowhere near the point of demigods fighting to the death. Let me guess why you came here to seek death today..."
He suddenly smiled. "I'm guessing your true objective is Spirit Realm No. 068! You wanted to pin me down."
The President's body froze.
The woman enveloped in holy light let out a soft exclamation of surprise.
***
Spirit Realm No. 068, Ancient Colosseum.
A commotion rippled through the Saints in the spectator stands. Driven by survival instinct, they leaped up and scrambled to abandon their seats, rushing up the steps with the intention of leaping out of the colosseum from the highest ledge to flee the premises.
Dominators from the orthodox faction had fought their way into the Spirit Realm! Regardless of who emerged victorious, Saints like them were bound to perish.
No matter how sturdy their defenses or how tenacious their vitality, they could not withstand even a stray breeze from a clash between Dominators.
*Calm down, calm down. We have eleven Dominators... There are too many Dominators. If a fight breaks out, I might not survive... But Jumang has to die too. No, wait, he has Dominator-grade items...* Cocktail's heart pounded wildly, his face pale, adrenaline surging as he fell into immense panic and vigilance. Jumang had left a deep psychological shadow on him.
In contrast to the panic of the Saints, the eleven Dominators seated up high remained exceptionally calm. They rose slowly, staring down with cold gazes at the eight individuals in the arena below.
After Zhang Yuanqing landed, he instinctively glanced around, his heart sinking immediately.
The eleven figures looming high in the stands reined in their auras, radiating an intensely dangerous presence.
While it wasn't a 1-versus-10,086, weren't there far too many evil faction Dominators? The gathering had only just begun. He had asked Catherine before; normally, no more than five Dominators attended, and even during major events, the number never exceeded ten.
Yet there were eleven here right now—nearly double the number of orthodox Dominators! Although his teammates each had formidable skills, anyone who could become a Dominator was a genius with their own deadly tricks.
Even a single extra Dominator could turn the tide of battle.
As his thoughts spun, he heard Ruth inside the small fishbowl suddenly let out a screech, thoroughly startled.
Winnie and Kris gazed toward the northeast, their expressions turning gravely serious—no, utterly grim.
*What's going on?* Zhang Yuanqing felt a chill run through him. Then came Edison's heavy voice:
"Cowboy Locke!"
*Cowboy Locke?!* Zhang Yuanqing's heart jolted violently. He followed the gaze toward the high tier in the northeast, where a burly, aged figure stood—one of the few without a mask.
He possessed rugged features, deep-set eyes, and silver stubble framing his mouth. An imprinted bandana was tied around his neck, and a wide-brimmed, high-crowned felt hat sat on his head, its indented crown revealing traces of silver hair at the edges.
Wearing denim trousers, he had a holster strapped to his thigh, housing an oversized silver revolver.
A peak Dominator was present at the gathering!
The first time Zhang Yuanqing had heard of this Dominator was when the proprietor of the Dionysus Club crossed the ocean to thrash the President. Back then, the gap between them had been far too great; Fu Qingyang had mentioned it in passing, and he had only listened casually.
The details concerning this peak Dominator had been filled in from Heaven's Punishment's database after arriving in New York County.
Cowboy Locke was one of the Dionysus Club's three peak Dominators, his natal item a silver revolver. It was said that anyone he set his sights on would die by his gun.
His bullets never missed, taking a life with every shot; even Dominators of the same level found it nearly impossible to evade an attack from that silver revolver.
Just then, the other ten Dominators perched atop the spectator stands removed their masks one after another.
Winnie Berrent fixed her gaze toward the east and whispered under her breath, "The Enlightened!"
*The Enlightened? The Biological Alchemy Society's peak Dominator?* Zhang Yuanqing looked in that direction as well. Once he saw the man's face, words burst from his mouth before he could stop himself: "Stephen Simpson?!"
The man had gray eyes and black hair, his facial contours stark and rugged. He was none other than Lieutenant Stephen Simpson, who had been tainted by the demon seed in the Horror Cruise dungeon!
Compared to the lieutenant of back then, Simpson's features had subtly shifted, and his demeanor was worlds apart—cold-eyed and aloof, like an exalted deity.
Yet as the one who had played Stephen Simpson, Zhang Yuanqing could not possibly mistake him.
"Stephen Simpson..." Winnie said in disbelief. "The President of the Hunter Guild?"
That was indeed the public name used by the President of the Hunter Guild.
Neither official organizations nor the evil faction had paid much attention to the name. Spirit Realm walkers went primarily by their IDs rather than their real names. Fabricating aliases on a whim was routine; who didn't possess several alter egos?
Only Zhang Yuanqing knew that Stephen Simpson was his real name.
"So The Enlightened is the President of the Hunter Guild," Winnie murmured in realization.
Hearing his name spoken aloud, Lieutenant Simpson looked down coldly at Zhang Yuanqing, then shifted his gaze, focusing his attention on Winnie and the others.
"Apophis, Flame of Vengeance, Seraph, Fatal Rose, Hell Fiend Dragon, Burger Fried Chicken, Federal Detective..." Winnie recited their names one by one, her expression solemn.
Apophis was completely shrouded in darkness, revealing only a vague humanoid silhouette. The thick gloom around him was nearly tangible, devouring all nearby light.
He was an archbishop of the Eternal Night Church, a Level 8 Dominator.
Flame of Vengeance burned with blazing hellfire, radiating a pungent stench of sulfur. Though humanoid, his face resembled that of a mythical demon, complete with amber vertical pupils and a flattened nose.
Among the IDs Winnie recited, there were Dominators from the evil faction as well as the orthodox faction. Federal Detective had even been on decent terms with her, having worked together at headquarters.
"We're done for, we're done for, we're done for..." Ruth swam frantically in circles along the wall of the bowl, screeching, "Two peak Dominators, nine Level 8 Dominators! Run, run away!!"
Winnie, Kris, the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter, and the others exchanged glances, seeing a sense of powerlessness in each other's eyes.
They had come to eliminate the evil faction's Dominators, only to hit a steel wall and serve themselves up on a silver platter. Fortunately, to prepare for such an eventuality, the President had arranged for Panxi Edison's presence.
With this peak Dominator of the Void class, they could come and go anywhere as they pleased.
Fu Qingyang suddenly spoke:
"We can't leave. We've walked into an ambush!"
The orthodox Dominators were jolted. Kris spoke up for the first time: "What did you say?"
Her voice was cold, yet melodious.
Fu Qingyang swept his gaze across the higher tiers of the colosseum. Though separated by over a hundred meters, every single expression was clearly reflected in his vision.
"Their expressions tell me that we've been ambushed," Fu Qingyang repeated.
At that moment, The Enlightened, Stephen Simpson, said faintly:
"Catherine, well done!"
Zhang Yuanqing turned his head stiffly toward his side.
Donna, dressed in her bohemian gown, suddenly clutched her head and shrieked shrilly, "Don't come out! Get back in there, get back in...!"
Her face twisted in agony, as if locked in an intense struggle against something.
Her long hair rapidly shortened, shifting in color from brownish-yellow to ash-gray. Her height dropped by several centimeters, and her physique underwent a distinct transformation.
After a dozen seconds, the anguish on Donna's face vanished, her features undergoing a complete metamorphosis.
She... had turned into Catherine.
Chapter 759