"Duan Chen, you don't think accepting his authority will allow you to fight me, do you?" Gu Sang shook his head, his voice very light, as if mocking Duan Chen's naivety.
"Whether I can or not, we'll know after a fight."
"Then why waste words? Come on. It's been a while since I last fought, my bones are getting rusty..."
"Bang!"
An unexpected blow stunned everyone.
Gu Sang was hit on the chin, his head thrown back, his bronze mask nearly flying off.
His eyes revealed profound astonishment.
Duan Chen flicked his hand, a look of disdain on his face, "If you're going to fight, fight. Don't talk so much nonsense!"
"Well done! Damn it, that's our guy!"
Tu Feiyuan, always eager to stir up trouble, laughed heartily.
"Attack!"
Du Qingyi shouted coldly.
Locusts were insects; she couldn't read their memories. But Gu Sang was different. Although he was already an Apostle, he was still a being with self-awareness. As long as she willed it, she could read Gu Sang's mind and memories, predicting his next move.
"He's going to use a gun! That gun can shatter souls! Be careful!"
It was the Soul Shattering Gun!
As expected, Gu Sang clenched his hand, and a gun entirely black appeared in his palm. He snorted, "Troublesome girl, I'll deal with you first!"
"Dream on!"
Duan Chen didn't hesitate, directly using You Jiawei's ability.
"Slap!"
A slap to Gu Sang's wrist sent the Soul Shattering Gun flying out of his hand!
"That gun cannot be countered. Remember, don't let him fire it!"
"Yes!"
"Attack!"
"Airwave!"
Ling Yong was the first to launch an attack, the overwhelming aura forming waves of energy that surged towards Gu Sang.
"A bunch of insects!"
Gu Sang roared, raising his hand and shattering the airwaves with a single blow.
"So strong!"
Jun Ci said solemnly. Although he had never seen Gu Sang before, he could sense that Gu Sang was more powerful than any enemy he had faced before!
"Nightfall!"
It was that move again!
A thick, sinister aura swept forward. The once bright sky instantly turned as black as ink. A space, like an ethereal domain, spread out, turning the surroundings into a world of darkness.
Around Gu Sang, sea monsters began to spawn.
If it were Duan Chen before, he would have had no choice but to flee from this move. But after accepting Wu Suowei's authority, he was confident he could break it.
Even if it consumed a colossal amount of spiritual energy, he wouldn't hesitate!
"Duan Chen!"
Du Qingyi's expression changed.
From Duan Chen's side, a pure white and clean aura erupted, clashing starkly with the dense blackness and the evil energy.
"The Fool!"
Zhao Lang suddenly appeared, placing his hand on Duan Chen's shoulder. A steady stream of spiritual energy flowed in.
"This is my ability. Let me lend you a hand!"
"Thank you!"
Duan Chen laughed heartily.
"Sequence 012: [Pseudo-·Railgun!]"
This time, the energy condensed behind Duan Chen was not golden, but a dazzling blue electrical light. Crackling and sparking, its momentum was no less than that of the old woman before, even faintly surpassing it.
"That's..."
Sun Xiaoxiao and the others were no strangers to this power. Brother Ao had died under this very move, leaving no trace behind!
"Go!"
"Boom—!"
A flash of blue light erupted, and everyone instinctively closed their eyes.
"Bang!"
With a deafening roar, the surrounding darkness shattered like glass, piece by piece, before collapsing entirely!
Dust billowed.
Ling Yong casually waved an airwave, and the dust instantly dispersed.
The scene before them made everyone hold their breath.
Gu Sang looked slightly dishevelled, his body covered in dark yellow dust. He raised his cloak to shield Xiao Fang, his face grim.
"You've truly surprised me..."
"The surprises are yet to come."
Duan Chen smiled gratefully at Zhao Lang. Without him, even with the King's Chess support, his spiritual energy would have been depleted by at least a fifth. But now, he had barely used any.
Zhao Lang's ability was similar to Yuan Qingqing's, both being support-oriented. However, it was clearly more convenient than Yuan Qingqing's, being able to directly inject his own spiritual energy into others.
"Phew... Fool, that move really drains energy."
Zhao Lang gave a wry smile, his face pale.
"There's no time for you to chat. He's angry." Du Qingyi's voice was heavy.
"Yuan Yuan!"
Jun Ci realized they couldn't rely solely on Duan Chen.
"Weak Point Targeting!"
Yuan Yuan raised his pistol and fired without hesitation. Jun Ci followed closely, creating a diversion.
"Hey! Let's not just stand around!"
Ding Ding swung his fish scales, reminding them.
"Water!"
Tian Qi unleashed a water projectile the size of a soccer ball.
Bullets, fish scales, and water projectiles intertwined. Gu Sang's expression remained unchanged. Black mist emanated from his hand, forming a dense fog shield that blocked all attacks.
"No good, he's going to pick up that gun!"
"Tutu!" Xi Er frowned.
"Meow meow!"
"Roar—!"
The roar of a tiger!
Gu Sang's movements faltered. Blood flowed from both his ears. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stoop and retrieve the Soul Shattering Gun.
"Bang!"
A swift shot!
Not good!
His target was Du Qingyi!
Duan Chen didn't hesitate, throwing himself forward to embrace the small figure behind him.
"Duan Chen, let go!" Du Qingyi was moved but also felt despair.
From the information she had read from Gu Sang, the bullet from that gun was absolutely unstoppable. To block it would mean sacrificing one's life!
"Alas, the young..."
"Don't forget, this old bone of mine is still here."
Was it Zhao Yuan?
He had appeared before Duan Chen at some point. He raised his aged, withered right hand and simply held it out.
"You?"
Gu Sang sneered, as if he already saw Zhao Yuan's tragic demise.
"Oh, young man, don't underestimate people. After all, I'm the village chief of Moon Ridge Village."
The bullet was mere inches away!
"Buzz!"
In an instant, everything around them seemed to freeze, including the bullet!
The bullet stopped a few millimeters from Zhao Yuan's palm, unable to advance any further!
"I am the village chief of Moon Ridge Village, and at the same time, I am the master of that door behind you. Even if your master came today, you won't steal that door from me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a spiritual energy storm erupted around him. Zhao Yuan stood at the center of the storm, his robes fluttering wildly!
A tempest raged!
Duan Chen suddenly thought of something. He released Du Qingyi and turned around mechanically, his expression still somewhat dazed.
He looked at the slender figure in front of him, small and aged, yet like an eternal, unmoving boulder, forever guarding the gateway.
Undying, unyielding!
Duan Chen felt a solemnity in his heart.
At the same time, he saw the white chess piece radiating a vibrant, pure aura within Zhao Yuan's body. He was all too familiar with the aura from that chess piece!
Zhao Yuan was Wu Suowei's white chess piece!