Chapter 1184: The Last Match
The white crystals shot through the air like spears. This time, however, they didn't pierce through Faceless' abdomen.
Faceless flapped its wings and avoided the attack. Time flowed backwards—no, time had reversed.
Faceless, shockingly, had the power to travel through time.
"Once, twice, thrice—even if we were to repeat this scenario a hundred, a thousand times, nothing would change!"
"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Fade]!" A crystal wall appeared behind Zhang Lie, reflecting light in five colors, so dazzling it dazed any who looked at it, so beautiful it sparked their desire.
As Zhang Lie manipulated the high-dimensional space, that crystalline genetic energy shot out of the wall behind him in the form of sharp daggers, able to penetrate anything thanks to Zhang Lie's mastery of space.
The daggers tore through space in a storm of silver.
Faceless, overwhelmed by the barrage, was struck clean through—before the hoop of light on his back began to rotate counter-clockwise, as though time were turning back.
The daggers shot backwards from where they had been embedded in the wall, transforming back into genetic energy and spatial force.
The daggers tore through space in a storm of silver.
Faceless' wings caused him to revolve in mid-air, knocking the daggers aside and covering him in a burst of yellow sand.
"[Fists of the Silent Sea: Hundred Dragons Soaring]!"
As Zhang Lie cocked his fist, dozens of crystalline dragons formed behind his back, roaring in unison and causing the hall to tremble. The next moment, they shot out through his fists. Hundreds of crystalline dragons interwove through the hall in a stunning, dazzling display.
The crystalline dragons were inordinately strong and beautiful. They tore apart the barrier of yellow sand and attacked Faceless behind, shredding him within moments. Time turned back again, and the crystalline dragons again interwove through the hall.
Faceless' claws smashed apart crystal dragon after crystal dragon.
Those dragons that had been shattered burst open into a rain of crystalline flecks, each as sharp as a blade. They perforated Faceless as the hoop of light to its back flowed counterclockwise, and the crystalline dragons again interwove through the hall.
Faceless dodged the crystalline dragons in the air, but there were simply too many of them. The beautiful dragons swooped through the air and bit at Faceless as it reversed time once more. The hundreds of dragons returned where they had manifested, and Faceless seized the opportunity to attack Zhang Lie head-on.
Zhang Lie morphed into a beam of bloody light and appeared before Faceless, smashing a leg into its face and sending it flying. The crystalline dragons to his back took the opportunity to pounce on Faceless as time reversed once more. The king of chaos shouted, "That's enough!"
The crystalline dragons hovered in the air, not swooping down on Faceless, while Faceless also remained motionless as it waited for the king of chaos' command.
The king of chaos grumbled impatiently, "If the match were to continue, we'd end up in a loop. It's not an interesting fight at all—let's call it a victory for you, Zhang Lie."
Zhang Lie grumbled, "What do you mean, call it a victory for me? I would have won if we were to keep fighting!"
The king of chaos asked, "You mean to say that Faceless wouldn't be able to take you down no matter what?"
Zhang Lie nodded. "The fact that this clone boasts power over time is interesting. I was initially quite scared when I saw its time reversal, but its own strength is too limited."
The king of chaos agreed. "After all, it was originally the death spirit king's subordinate, and it makes sense that it's not too strong. However, time reversal is a very rare ability, and it's well worth collecting."
"It's not that I'm weak, but rather that you're strong," Faceless corrected. "I did my fair share of research before fighting you based on the information I obtained from Nightdemon, and I was familiar with your techniques—only for you to change things up at the last second." Despite being faceless, Faceless was somehow still able to speak.
Zhang Lie rolled his eyes. "While fighting the Black Pharaoh, I surmised that Nightdemon had to have informed the king of chaos about the techniques I used in the past. As fellow clones of the king of chaos, all of you became aware of my techniques and their counters—but thinking that those are all the techniques I know is far too naive."
The king of chaos opined, "That's not so certain. In truth, the ultimate victor would be difficult to predict. Although the cost of time reversal is as exorbitant as expected, considering that ordinary superior kings would hardly be able to grasp such temporal manipulation in full, you must be aware that I'm connected to my clones, and they can draw power and energy from me as necessary."
Faceless concluded, "You might very well run out of energy first."
Zhang Lie grumbled, "Isn't that cheating?"
The king of chaos replied, "They're all my clones; from a qualitative perspective, we're all a single entity. Whence the cheating?"
Zhang Lie snorted. "Regardless, I was the winner."
"Don't be so happy just yet," the king of chaos warned. "You might have won two matches, but there's a third one left."
Zhang Lie appeared unbothered. "If they're all so weak, I'd be able to face twenty more such opponents."
"Indeed? You'd best be prepared, then."
The king of chaos' remark left Zhang Lie with an uneasy premonition.
Somehow, on the king of chaos' unspoken order, a layer of high-dimensional space peeled away from before Zhang Lie like an onion. This was a very familiar scene.
After six layers of space were peeled away, a giant black bat was revealed, with a brilliant white smile the shape of a crescent moon, as though he were mocking the entire world. A fiery-red eye widened, then split into three. Everyone nearby felt a deathly sense of fear.
"You really are a slave driver, aren't you? First dispatching us to collect all these map fragments, then back here to participate in a match. Don't we clones have human rights?"
Of course, this black bat was none other than Nightdemon.
The king of chaos was unruffled. "Am I not you?" You insulting me is equivalent to insulting yourself.
Zhang Lie asked, "Is Nightdemon my next opponent, then?"
Nightdemon sighed. "Don't do this—Zhang Lie and I are comrades in arms!"
The king of chaos asked, "Don't you want Zhang Lie to join the halls of chaos?"
Nightdemon pursed his lips. "Of course I do, but Zhang Lie's unwilling to do so. It's never a good idea to force someone against their will."
The king of chaos continued, "If you win, I'll give you a vacation."
Nightdemon flapped his wings in excitement, the Shining Trapezohedron hanging off his feet. "Come, Zhang Lie, let's have an exciting fight to the death!"
Zhang Lie: ...
Nightdemon roared, "You fellow, I've been wanting to punch you for quite some time now. Aren't you going to fight me?"
Indeed, compared to the Black Pharaoh from before, or even Faceless, Nightdemon behaved not like a clone but rather like a living alien in his own right, with his own mentality and thoughts.
Nightdemon radiated an invisible light as its three red eyes stared at Zhang Lie, magnifying his aura of fear.
Even so, Zhang Lie's willpower was extremely strong, and he brushed off much of the mental effects.
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