Using the Endless Blue Lotus Flame's protection to burn all the radiation that came near them, Bai Zemin stretched his hand towards the sky, and Annihilation of the Falling Sky that had turned into a giant arc under his wish returned to his body.
Kang Lan looked at the surroundings and couldn't help but sigh.
There was almost nothing there except for a few mountains, and as far as the eye could see all one could spot was a large crater of scorched earth next to shattered or partially melted stones. To say that dust predominated in an area several kilometers around was not an exaggeration at all.
"Although this level of radiation is far from enough to kill us even if we spend a long time in here it will certainly weaken us." Nangong Lingxin grimaced as she realized an important fact: "It seems that even we are not safe from record degradation when it comes to molecular decay."
"At the end of the day, we are still mortal." Feng Tian Wu remarked calmly.
Bai Shilin surveyed the surroundings with curiosity and confusion, "Such a large lizard..."
"That's not a lizard, it's a dragon." Shangguan Bing Xue did not forget to teach her daughter even on the battlefield.
As for Bai Zemin, he gently patted Little Snow's head and in response, the big white dog immediately went to the area where humans and dragons clashed.
After leaving the radiation-affected area, Bai Zemin looked down and said in a calm voice, "Bing Xue, you are in command. Take Shilin and the others to hunt dragons."
"Leave it to me." Shangguan Bing Xue nodded and without another word jumped off Little Snow's back.
Like an immortal fairy out of a fantasy book, countless spears of ice began to form around her as she continued her free fall. The golden rays of the sun could barely pierce through the blanket of smoke that covered the area but they were still enough to make her entire existence glow as if the world depended on her.
"Die."
With a wave of her hand, thousands upon thousands of light blue ice spears rained down from the sky.
The human troops were frightened thinking that they would be trapped under a large number of magic spears, but to the surprise and admiration of each of them, all the ice spears struck the bodies of different dragons with pressure.
Bang! Bang!
[Critical Hit!]
Bang! Bang!
...
A single attack was not enough to kill a peak Second Order dragon, but the other Second Order dragons barely lasted 5 seconds before succumbing under Shangguan Bing Xue's attack.
"You damned human! You will pay for your arrogance!"
A Third Order level 128 golden-scale dragon swooped towards Shangguan Bing Xue with its jaws wide open.
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ, for the best no_vel_read_ing experienceShangguan Bing Xue indifferently looked at the whirlwind of red flames flying in her direction but soon her attention turned to the wounded dragons and began to slaughter them as if the attack about to hit her was nothing to her.
At that precise moment, a thick multicolored barrier appeared 20 meters far away from Shangguan Bing Xue blocking the path of the dragon breath.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
Hot flames flew everywhere and the earth split apart. Regardless of any surrounding consequences, the rainbow-colored barrier only shuddered but did not even crack forget about being destroyed.
A few meters above and also falling from the sky, Nangong Lingxin pointed at the level 128 dragon and said with a cheeky smile, "I'll give it to you big guy... Reflect!"
The giant beast's eyes flashed with surprise as it saw its scattered dragon breath suddenly gather again right at the spot it hit the barrier earlier, but its surprise turned to shock as it saw the great torrent of fire shoot back towards it with a speed twice as fast.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
The Third Order dragon roared in pain after being hit directly in the chest. Dozens of its thick scales broke off exposing the now semi-burnt flesh, and as the blood flowed like an unstoppable torrent its body flew backwards before hitting a mountain it shattered.
"Bastard!!!"
With an explosion that sent the large rocks covering its body flying, the Third Order dragon slowly struggled to its feet. However, just then the wind over its head howled and a moment later the enraged creature's mind went blank.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
The scales on the dragon's head broke into countless pieces and its skull sank approximately 5 centimeters inward. Its body sank into a crater over 40 meters deep and over 400 meters in diameter at the same time as Bai Shilin pulled back her fist covered by a silver light before punching again.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
One, two, three, four, five... In just a few seconds, Bai Shilin had rained over 500 punches on the Third Order dragon's skull.
With a final roar of pain and anger born of humiliation, the dragon's large head fell helplessly to the trembling ground.
"Hahaha! Mommy, Shilin killed the dragon!"
Looking at the snow-white dress, silver-haired girl dancing gleefully on top of the collapsed body of the terrifying Third Order dragon, one of the beasts that had killed the most humans in this war between two races, the soldiers of the United States of America nearly choked to death after forgetting to breathe.
"This..." Robinson looked at Bai Shilin with wide eyes as he muttered in shock, "Who.... Who the hell is that little silver-haired girl?"
"... That's the daughter of the Chinese Faction Leader, did you forget?" Andrea sighed. Her eyes rested on Shangguan Bing Xue and Nangong Lingxin for a moment before she said with complicated emotions, "Those two may not be as fierce as the little girl but they both have so much Magic and Mana that it practically overflows from their bodies."
Jack's eyes shone with a strange light as he stared at Shangguan Bing Xue's figure moving gracefully. Her every movement was filled with ferocity but at the same time nobility; from the way she slashed with her deep blue sword to how she controlled the hundreds of ice spears surrounding her.
Chen He also looked at Shangguan Bing Xue, and noticed that while he could still feel his heart beating for her it was no longer as intense as before. When he noticed the eyes with which Jack was looking at the one he now knew was an impossible love, Chen He couldn't help but advise in a gentle voice, "Forget it. She's not for you."
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ for a better_user experienceJack blinked, snapping out of his daze. He looked at Chen He for a moment before turning his eyes back to the ice fairy as he slowly said, "I know she's the second-in-command of your faction, and naturally I won't do anything stupid against someone who is not only powerful but also has a backing that I can't provoke. But... I think I have enough confidence to woo her."
Jack was the second in command of the American faction so in terms of status he was not below Shangguan Bing Xue. His appearance was good-looking and his strength unquestionable; being a level 156 soul evolver, few could challenge him in this world.
If he didn't have the qualifications to woo a female then who? Besides, this was the first time in over 10 years that Jack was interested in a woman. It was impossible for him to step back just because Chen He said so.
"... If you think you can surpass Bai Zemin then go ahead." Chen He smiled with hidden bitterness as he muttered something to himself.
Surpass Bai Zemin? Jack blinked in stupefaction and his eyes unconsciously moved towards the man who was approaching with confident steps.
Some dragons tried to devour Bai Zemin, others directly shot fire breaths or lightning bolts upon his existence. The whole area around him was a living hell and yet his indifferent expression did not change just as the slight sneer at the corner of his lips did not disappear.
As the magical attacks approached, the blood that followed him silently as his faithful follower turned into hundreds of chains. The chains swung like living snakes, and to the disbelief of the intelligent dragons they completely shattered every magical skill directed at him.
As for the dragons that attacked him physically...
Only Jack could faintly see Bai Zemin's hand movements as he was the only fully Agility-based soul evolver among those present.
"Surpass... that?" Jack muttered as he saw Bai Zemin's blurry hands moving at almost incomprehensible speeds.
At the same time, the bodies of the dragons that lunged towards him with the intention of devouring him or dismembering him into thousands of pieces exploded as if something incredibly hard had hit them out of nowhere.
"Maybe that's the only way you can get some of her attention." Chen He scratched his head and said with a smile this time much more unattached, " That is the first man who managed to attract Bing Xue's eyes from the moment she was born until now. To say that for her Bai Zemin is invincible and unbeatable is not an exaggeration, so unless you can surpass him you can forget about receiving even a glance from Bing Xue. She is very proud after all."
A beautiful and capable woman rarely set her eyes on a mediocre man. As for Shangguan Bing Xue; she was so beautiful that her beauty was beyond reason and capable enough to fight Third Order dragons despite being stuck at level 100 for so long... Someone like her certainly wouldn't settle for a partner unless he was the best.
As if sensing the depression that accompanied Jack's sigh, Angelo gently patted his shoulder without saying anything.
Soon, Bai Zemin arrived in front of the group and his eyes focused on Chen He.
The two men looked at each other for a couple of seconds before Bai Zemin smiled in relief, "I'm glad to see you're doing well. You seem to have grown, and not just in terms of strength."
"One does what one can." Chen He smiled with his eyes closed before opening them and saying sincerely, "I'm also glad to see you're doing well. It looks like you finally managed to break your ties towards the Second Order."
"Don't mention it man." Bai Zemin chuckled. After a short pause, he looked at Angelo and said in a serious voice, "Angelo, this help won't come for free."
His words were like a bucket of ice water that broke the warm atmosphere that oddly enough had formed in the surroundings.
With the dragons being literally overwhelmed and slaughtered by the group of newcomers, the elite of humanity could finally take a breath and relax if only for a moment.
Angelo sighed and nodded silently. After a few seconds, he spoke, "I'm aware of that, don't worry. I'm willing to cooperate with you on anything as long as it's not exposing state secrets of my faction or something that threatens the safety of my people."
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ, for the best no_vel_read_ing experienceBai Zemin had saved the American faction and Angelo knew it so he was so grateful that he was willing to do practically anything. However, he naturally would not do things that would endanger his faction; it made no sense for Bai Zemin to help if he would then cause the destruction of Angelo and his people after all.
Bai Zemin was naturally aware of this fact, and as a Leader, he knew that he could not be unreasonable. However, this time he could not concede.
"Angelo, I want to borrow the core of that AI you told me about before. Just for 4 months... 4 months in exchange for saving your faction from total annihilation."
"What?!" Andrea looked at Bai Zemin as if she was looking at a lunatic: "You want the core of Abyss?! You're out of your mind! Abyss is our faction's biggest secret!"
Besides, what did he mean by "total annihilation"? The dragons were practically wiped out now so even without Bai Zemin's help they would be fine!
Everyone said something to express their disbelief at Bai Zemin's request, and even Chen He was stunned for a moment before walking away from the American team and standing behind him without saying anything but expressing his position with actions.
"Your choice." Bai Zemin looked at Angelo coldly and waited silently.
"... Alright." Angelo sighed.
Andrea, Robinson, Anderson, Anderson, Jack, and all the elites of the United States of America core team looked at their Leader in total shock.
Jack stared at his best friend's profile as he said in a choked voice, "A-ngelo.... You... Have you gone mad...?"
Angelo, however, ignored everyone. His eyes were blind but still seemed to be able to see Bai Zemin, and as he stared at him he asked with slightly slumped shoulders, "It's not over yet, is it?"
Bai Zemin was very pleased with the speed at which Angelo's brain was processing information and analyzing the situation. He admitted in his heart that the Leader of the United States was undoubtedly the most capable and outstanding man he had ever met in his entire life in terms of leadership and probably on the same level as the Demon Lord in terms of talent.
He did not respond immediately but turned to look off into the distance.
There, more than 110 kilometers away but still surprisingly visible, nine large mountains over 1000 meters high stood silently amidst the radiation.
It was only then that the others realized that those nine mountains had remained erect even after the nuclear missile detonation.
"Forget about finished... Angelo, this hasn't even begun." Bai Zemin extended his hand and Annihilation of the Falling Sky in the form of a golden spear appeared in his grip.
Bai Zemin knew that in the United States, there was an 80% chance of running into one of his hunting targets.
'First hunting target needed to evolve to the Third Order: 9-headed Immortal Dragon.' Bai Zemin could sense mortal danger even though his enemy had not moved. 'This is the first time since I evolved to the Second Order that I feel such overwhelming pressure.'
This would undoubtedly be one of the toughest battles for Bai Zemin if not the toughest to date.
Many things would change from the moment the victor rises above the loser; changes that would completely shake the destiny of all species on Earth and the world itself.
The final outcome of this battle would be the beginning of the great change that the universe had been waiting for so long. Rather, the final outcome of this battle would mark the moment in which slowly but surely the secrets surrounding the universe would gradually begin to unravel.
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Using the Endless Blue Lotus Flame's protection to burn all the radiation that came near them, Bai Zemin stretched his hand towards the sky, and Annihilation of the Falling Sky that had turned into a giant arc under his wish returned to his body.
Kang Lan looked at the surroundings and couldn't help but sigh.
There was almost nothing there except for a few mountains, and as far as the eye could see all one could spot was a large crater of scorched earth next to shattered or partially melted stones. To say that dust predominated in an area several kilometers around was not an exaggeration at all.
"Although this level of radiation is far from enough to kill us even if we spend a long time in here it will certainly weaken us." Nangong Lingxin grimaced as she realized an important fact: "It seems that even we are not safe from record degradation when it comes to molecular decay."
"At the end of the day, we are still mortal." Feng Tian Wu remarked calmly.
Bai Shilin surveyed the surroundings with curiosity and confusion, "Such a large lizard..."
"That's not a lizard, it's a dragon." Shangguan Bing Xue did not forget to teach her daughter even on the battlefield.
As for Bai Zemin, he gently patted Little Snow's head and in response, the big white dog immediately went to the area where humans and dragons clashed.
After leaving the radiation-affected area, Bai Zemin looked down and said in a calm voice, "Bing Xue, you are in command. Take Shilin and the others to hunt dragons."
"Leave it to me." Shangguan Bing Xue nodded and without another word jumped off Little Snow's back.
Like an immortal fairy out of a fantasy book, countless spears of ice began to form around her as she continued her free fall. The golden rays of the sun could barely pierce through the blanket of smoke that covered the area but they were still enough to make her entire existence glow as if the world depended on her.
"Die."
With a wave of her hand, thousands upon thousands of light blue ice spears rained down from the sky.
The human troops were frightened thinking that they would be trapped under a large number of magic spears, but to the surprise and admiration of each of them, all the ice spears struck the bodies of different dragons with pressure.
Bang! Bang!
[Critical Hit!]
Bang! Bang!
...
A single attack was not enough to kill a peak Second Order dragon, but the other Second Order dragons barely lasted 5 seconds before succumbing under Shangguan Bing Xue's attack.
"You damned human! You will pay for your arrogance!"
A Third Order level 128 golden-scale dragon swooped towards Shangguan Bing Xue with its jaws wide open.
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ, for the best no_vel_read_ing experienceShangguan Bing Xue indifferently looked at the whirlwind of red flames flying in her direction but soon her attention turned to the wounded dragons and began to slaughter them as if the attack about to hit her was nothing to her.
At that precise moment, a thick multicolored barrier appeared 20 meters far away from Shangguan Bing Xue blocking the path of the dragon breath.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
Hot flames flew everywhere and the earth split apart. Regardless of any surrounding consequences, the rainbow-colored barrier only shuddered but did not even crack forget about being destroyed.
A few meters above and also falling from the sky, Nangong Lingxin pointed at the level 128 dragon and said with a cheeky smile, "I'll give it to you big guy... Reflect!"
The giant beast's eyes flashed with surprise as it saw its scattered dragon breath suddenly gather again right at the spot it hit the barrier earlier, but its surprise turned to shock as it saw the great torrent of fire shoot back towards it with a speed twice as fast.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
The Third Order dragon roared in pain after being hit directly in the chest. Dozens of its thick scales broke off exposing the now semi-burnt flesh, and as the blood flowed like an unstoppable torrent its body flew backwards before hitting a mountain it shattered.
"Bastard!!!"
With an explosion that sent the large rocks covering its body flying, the Third Order dragon slowly struggled to its feet. However, just then the wind over its head howled and a moment later the enraged creature's mind went blank.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
The scales on the dragon's head broke into countless pieces and its skull sank approximately 5 centimeters inward. Its body sank into a crater over 40 meters deep and over 400 meters in diameter at the same time as Bai Shilin pulled back her fist covered by a silver light before punching again.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
One, two, three, four, five... In just a few seconds, Bai Shilin had rained over 500 punches on the Third Order dragon's skull.
With a final roar of pain and anger born of humiliation, the dragon's large head fell helplessly to the trembling ground.
"Hahaha! Mommy, Shilin killed the dragon!"
Looking at the snow-white dress, silver-haired girl dancing gleefully on top of the collapsed body of the terrifying Third Order dragon, one of the beasts that had killed the most humans in this war between two races, the soldiers of the United States of America nearly choked to death after forgetting to breathe.
"This..." Robinson looked at Bai Shilin with wide eyes as he muttered in shock, "Who.... Who the hell is that little silver-haired girl?"
"... That's the daughter of the Chinese Faction Leader, did you forget?" Andrea sighed. Her eyes rested on Shangguan Bing Xue and Nangong Lingxin for a moment before she said with complicated emotions, "Those two may not be as fierce as the little girl but they both have so much Magic and Mana that it practically overflows from their bodies."
Jack's eyes shone with a strange light as he stared at Shangguan Bing Xue's figure moving gracefully. Her every movement was filled with ferocity but at the same time nobility; from the way she slashed with her deep blue sword to how she controlled the hundreds of ice spears surrounding her.
Chen He also looked at Shangguan Bing Xue, and noticed that while he could still feel his heart beating for her it was no longer as intense as before. When he noticed the eyes with which Jack was looking at the one he now knew was an impossible love, Chen He couldn't help but advise in a gentle voice, "Forget it. She's not for you."
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ for a better_user experienceJack blinked, snapping out of his daze. He looked at Chen He for a moment before turning his eyes back to the ice fairy as he slowly said, "I know she's the second-in-command of your faction, and naturally I won't do anything stupid against someone who is not only powerful but also has a backing that I can't provoke. But... I think I have enough confidence to woo her."
Jack was the second in command of the American faction so in terms of status he was not below Shangguan Bing Xue. His appearance was good-looking and his strength unquestionable; being a level 156 soul evolver, few could challenge him in this world.
If he didn't have the qualifications to woo a female then who? Besides, this was the first time in over 10 years that Jack was interested in a woman. It was impossible for him to step back just because Chen He said so.
"... If you think you can surpass Bai Zemin then go ahead." Chen He smiled with hidden bitterness as he muttered something to himself.
Surpass Bai Zemin? Jack blinked in stupefaction and his eyes unconsciously moved towards the man who was approaching with confident steps.
Some dragons tried to devour Bai Zemin, others directly shot fire breaths or lightning bolts upon his existence. The whole area around him was a living hell and yet his indifferent expression did not change just as the slight sneer at the corner of his lips did not disappear.
As the magical attacks approached, the blood that followed him silently as his faithful follower turned into hundreds of chains. The chains swung like living snakes, and to the disbelief of the intelligent dragons they completely shattered every magical skill directed at him.
As for the dragons that attacked him physically...
Only Jack could faintly see Bai Zemin's hand movements as he was the only fully Agility-based soul evolver among those present.
"Surpass... that?" Jack muttered as he saw Bai Zemin's blurry hands moving at almost incomprehensible speeds.
At the same time, the bodies of the dragons that lunged towards him with the intention of devouring him or dismembering him into thousands of pieces exploded as if something incredibly hard had hit them out of nowhere.
"Maybe that's the only way you can get some of her attention." Chen He scratched his head and said with a smile this time much more unattached, " That is the first man who managed to attract Bing Xue's eyes from the moment she was born until now. To say that for her Bai Zemin is invincible and unbeatable is not an exaggeration, so unless you can surpass him you can forget about receiving even a glance from Bing Xue. She is very proud after all."
A beautiful and capable woman rarely set her eyes on a mediocre man. As for Shangguan Bing Xue; she was so beautiful that her beauty was beyond reason and capable enough to fight Third Order dragons despite being stuck at level 100 for so long... Someone like her certainly wouldn't settle for a partner unless he was the best.
As if sensing the depression that accompanied Jack's sigh, Angelo gently patted his shoulder without saying anything.
Soon, Bai Zemin arrived in front of the group and his eyes focused on Chen He.
The two men looked at each other for a couple of seconds before Bai Zemin smiled in relief, "I'm glad to see you're doing well. You seem to have grown, and not just in terms of strength."
"One does what one can." Chen He smiled with his eyes closed before opening them and saying sincerely, "I'm also glad to see you're doing well. It looks like you finally managed to break your ties towards the Second Order."
"Don't mention it man." Bai Zemin chuckled. After a short pause, he looked at Angelo and said in a serious voice, "Angelo, this help won't come for free."
His words were like a bucket of ice water that broke the warm atmosphere that oddly enough had formed in the surroundings.
With the dragons being literally overwhelmed and slaughtered by the group of newcomers, the elite of humanity could finally take a breath and relax if only for a moment.
Angelo sighed and nodded silently. After a few seconds, he spoke, "I'm aware of that, don't worry. I'm willing to cooperate with you on anything as long as it's not exposing state secrets of my faction or something that threatens the safety of my people."
Visit ʟɪɢʜᴛɴᴏᴠᴇʟᴡᴏʀʟᴅ.ᴄᴏᴍ, for the best no_vel_read_ing experienceBai Zemin had saved the American faction and Angelo knew it so he was so grateful that he was willing to do practically anything. However, he naturally would not do things that would endanger his faction; it made no sense for Bai Zemin to help if he would then cause the destruction of Angelo and his people after all.
Bai Zemin was naturally aware of this fact, and as a Leader, he knew that he could not be unreasonable. However, this time he could not concede.
"Angelo, I want to borrow the core of that AI you told me about before. Just for 4 months... 4 months in exchange for saving your faction from total annihilation."
"What?!" Andrea looked at Bai Zemin as if she was looking at a lunatic: "You want the core of Abyss?! You're out of your mind! Abyss is our faction's biggest secret!"
Besides, what did he mean by "total annihilation"? The dragons were practically wiped out now so even without Bai Zemin's help they would be fine!
Everyone said something to express their disbelief at Bai Zemin's request, and even Chen He was stunned for a moment before walking away from the American team and standing behind him without saying anything but expressing his position with actions.
"Your choice." Bai Zemin looked at Angelo coldly and waited silently.
"... Alright." Angelo sighed.
Andrea, Robinson, Anderson, Anderson, Jack, and all the elites of the United States of America core team looked at their Leader in total shock.
Jack stared at his best friend's profile as he said in a choked voice, "A-ngelo.... You... Have you gone mad...?"
Angelo, however, ignored everyone. His eyes were blind but still seemed to be able to see Bai Zemin, and as he stared at him he asked with slightly slumped shoulders, "It's not over yet, is it?"
Bai Zemin was very pleased with the speed at which Angelo's brain was processing information and analyzing the situation. He admitted in his heart that the Leader of the United States was undoubtedly the most capable and outstanding man he had ever met in his entire life in terms of leadership and probably on the same level as the Demon Lord in terms of talent.
He did not respond immediately but turned to look off into the distance.
There, more than 110 kilometers away but still surprisingly visible, nine large mountains over 1000 meters high stood silently amidst the radiation.
It was only then that the others realized that those nine mountains had remained erect even after the nuclear missile detonation.
"Forget about finished... Angelo, this hasn't even begun." Bai Zemin extended his hand and Annihilation of the Falling Sky in the form of a golden spear appeared in his grip.
Bai Zemin knew that in the United States, there was an 80% chance of running into one of his hunting targets.
'First hunting target needed to evolve to the Third Order: 9-headed Immortal Dragon.' Bai Zemin could sense mortal danger even though his enemy had not moved. 'This is the first time since I evolved to the Second Order that I feel such overwhelming pressure.'
This would undoubtedly be one of the toughest battles for Bai Zemin if not the toughest to date.
Many things would change from the moment the victor rises above the loser; changes that would completely shake the destiny of all species on Earth and the world itself.
The final outcome of this battle would be the beginning of the great change that the universe had been waiting for so long. Rather, the final outcome of this battle would mark the moment in which slowly but surely the secrets surrounding the universe would gradually begin to unravel.
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