Five minutes later, well-trained doctors arrived on the scene to treat Shadow Two.
“It’s not serious, just some superficial wounds. She’ll be fine in half an hour.”
Lying on the stretcher, Bad Woman’s eyes were vacant, her expression numb, and she said nothing.
Three days, three consecutive days!
How had she survived these three days?
Getting beaten up by Calderon every single day!
It was simply unbearable!
Bad Man’s voice echoed in her ear,
“I have good news and bad news.”
“I don’t want to hear it. I want to die.”
Bad Man continued, “I can confirm 100% that Mike is Thor. Otherwise, Calderon wouldn’t have been defeated by him.”
Bad Woman rolled her eyes, “Do I need you to tell me whether Mike is Thor?”
“The bad news is, Shadow Nine is here…”
Bad Man’s voice grew somber, and Bad Woman’s expression turned tense.
In an instant, they were pulled into a space created by the black mist, and the signature laughter echoed around them.
“Heh heh heh-”
Shadow Nine coldly said, “You might as well do it yourselves. You’ve done it enough times over the years; at least this way, you can maintain some dignity.”
Bad Man nodded, “Indeed, we’ve been sealed 183 times.”
Bad Woman was shocked, “Wasn’t it 66 times? Where did the extra 117 come from?”
While they spoke, Shadow Nine glanced at his communication crystal, which clearly recorded: Shadow Two, Memory Seal 579 times.
After the process was completed, Bad Woman and Bad Man looked at Shadow Nine again.
Although they didn’t know what had happened, it was clear their memories had been sealed by themselves.
Next, they awaited Shadow Nine’s instructions.
Shadow Nine coldly said, “You two, go to the First Abyss and wait for my orders. Shadow Three will meet you there, and Shadow One is already there. Archdemon, the Second, and Fifth Demon Gods are all in the First Abyss, so be careful.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Shadow Nine added, “The opportunity you’ve been waiting for might be coming.”
Bad Woman and Bad Man fell silent, but the joy from their souls was undeniable.
They had always longed for one thing: to break through level 990 and become true Ultimate Lords.
What stood in their way wasn’t the level cap or demon creatures.
It was… Shadow Nine.
As long as Shadow Nine didn’t agree, Shadow One, Shadow Two, and Shadow Three wouldn’t dare become Ultimate Lords.
In a sense, the top three of Guardian Shadow were in the same predicament.
However, Shadow One cared the least about power, and Shadow Three hid the deepest.
Only Shadow Two constantly clamored to become an Ultimate Lord.
Now, Shadow Nine was bluntly telling them that the opportunity had arrived.
As Bad Woman was about to leave, Bad Man suddenly asked, “Shadow Nine, are you planning to risk everything?”
Shadow Nine remained silent.
They stood there, frozen.
Shadow Two refused to leave, and Shadow Nine said nothing.
After a long pause, Shadow Nine shouted, “None of your business, now fuck off.”
“Fine, I’m leaving. No need to shout!”
The Bad Woman complied, as she always listened to Shadow Nine.
Meanwhile, the legend of the potential Supreme Being Thor once again became the talk of the
town.
Soon, the entire summer camp was buzzing about Thor.
“Did you hear? Thor got beaten up by Thor!”
“Wait, what does that mean? Thor has split personalities and fights himself?”
“Stop talking nonsense. Thor’s real name is Ace, and he’s dressed in black, with incredible close combat skills!”
“Yeah, right. I also heard that demon gods love ambushing Thor in the restroom, trying to steal his poop!”
“I’ve got a little insider info. I heard Thor is the grandson of some Ultimate Lord!”
“…”
Listening to these rumors, Mike shook his head.
None of them were reliable.
During his lunch break, he reviewed the details of his duel with Calderon. But he felt
something was missing, some details he didn’t quite understand.
“Alright, let me give you a brief review of this morning’s fight.”
The moment Shadow Nine spoke, Mike listened intently.
“Your planning from start to finish was excellent, and you even held the initiative and advantage at times…”
“But!”
Mike perked up, knowing the important part was coming.
Generally speaking, everything before the “but” was useless.
Shadow Nine snorted, “With your fighting style against Calderon, no matter how many lives
you have, it won’t be enough!”
Mike raised an eyebrow, clearly not understanding what Shadow Nine meant.
“You were facing only Calderon’s false body, or rather, a residual will.”
Shadow Nine explained, “Calderon wants to fight a potential Supreme Being and win once. Even if I kill this false body more than once, as long as his residual will remains unfulfilled,
the false body will keep reviving.”
Mike nodded slowly, indicating he understood.
If Shadow Nine could handle Calderon’s false body himself, he wouldn’t have asked Mike to
step in.
This made sense now.
“Since it’s a false body, a residual will, Calderon can’t use the Sea of Truth, and even his talent
is extremely limited.”
Shadow Nine continued,
“In a real life-and-death battle, remember, a fully healthy Calderon isn’t scary; a near-death Calderon is the most terrifying!
After his second awakening, his SS-grade talent Near-Death Power Up ensures that as long as
his residual will remains unfulfilled, he won’t die.”
Mike was astonished. “That’s too overpowered!”
“Heh, do you think it feels good?”
Shadow Nine was in a good mood today, speaking more than usual.
“Every time he’s near death, all of Calderon’s regrets, unwillingness, and remorse flood his mind. To put it simply, every time Near-Death Power Up is triggered, Calderon relives all the
pain of his life.”
Listening to Shadow Nine’s explanation, Mike fell silent.
If Calderon had lived a smooth life like Mike, without many setbacks, it wouldn’t have been so
bad.
But Calderon was one of the earliest human powerhouses, a group that made their name in the Blood War, always at the forefront for humanity.
The life-and-death experiences, regrets, and pain he had endured, even a fraction of it would
drive an ordinary person mad!
Only someone with Calderon’s extraordinary willpower mentality could endure until level 995
before going mad.
Mike didn’t know what Calderon had gone through in the past three hundred years.
Looking at the casualty rate of Morpheus’s generation, and the half-dead state of Shadow
Nine, the unknown fate of Maxen’s father…
Even the top human powerhouses were in such dire straits.
How could the surviving Calderon be any better?
Mike took a deep breath, regaining his composure.
“So, in a real fight with Calderon, my approach was wrong from the start. All the planning, scheming, and counterattacks are useless. The only way to deal with Calderon is a one-hit
kill?”
“Yes.”
With that, Shadow Nine fell silent.
Mike began to ponder how he could defeat Calderon.
He had three fights with Calderon.
He won the first one.
The second one, though not yet fought, Mike assumed he would lose.
As for the third and most crucial fight, Mike had to find a way to one-hit kill Calderon to win!
A one-hit kill, easier said than done?
This problem required careful thought.
As Mike pondered, he felt a disturbance in his private space, and his Sea of Truth seemed to
undergo a subtle change!
The Lightning and nature element materials have been fully absorbed!
Mike informed Shadow Nine, left a Decoy on the toilet, and entered his private space.
Above Thor’s Sea, thunder rumbled continuously.
The giant stone that had flown out of the Mysterious Mine was now coated with a light green
hue, with plants taking root and growing.
Thor’s Sea now combined water, lightning, shadow, and wood (nature) elements, its scale
more than doubled.
When Mike appeared, Master Fool was already waiting.
“We can begin.”
As agreed, she would help reforge the Force of Nature.
If successful, the Force of Nature had a chance to become SSS-grade equipment!
With so many resources and efforts invested, only the final step remained!
[Reforge success rate: 100%]
[Chance of becoming SSS-grade equipment: 56%]
“Only a 56% chance?”
Mike felt like he had already failed before starting.
He had a premonition that after dealing with Calderon’s false body, the true body hidden
away would do something earth-shattering!
Before that, Mike had to strengthen himself as much as possible.
An SSS-grade Force of Nature was a crucial part of the plan. Without hesitation, Mike handed the Force of Nature to Master Fool and said firmly,
“Let’s begin!”