“Luca’s in trouble. Notify everyone to go and help him,” Kanade said, her expression serious as she spoke into the phone with Coarmy.
Only someone like Luca could cause such a disturbance in Celephais. Everyone knew his strength, so who could possibly be strong enough to challenge him?
“I’m on it,” Coarmy said, suddenly wide awake. He quickly dialed Donlow and the others. But, to be honest, he didn’t even need to. Players’ Perception was far sharper than regular people’s, and such a disturbance couldn’t possibly go unnoticed.
Including Yelling, the rest of the teams who were staying in the same hotel were all up and moving, receiving orders and quickly preparing. However, there was one exception.
“Can’t wake up Fuzzsir?” Coarmy nearly lost his temper when he heard Donlow’s voice over the phone. With all this noise going on, how could he still be asleep?
“That’s right.” Donlow looked at the closed hotel room door, feeling a mix of confusion and frustration. They had been calling for ages, but the guy inside was still sleeping soundly. Even Yelling was envious of his sleep quality.
Quagmire rubbed his forehead and said, “Forget about him. Time’s running short. Let’s go.”
…
Meanwhile, the battle in the villa district raged on.
Two figures, enveloped in flames, collided violently in the middle of the road. The intense force exploded outward, and the surging flames ignited the trees, plants, and greenbelt along the roadside, turning the area into two distinct seas of fire.
Fortunately, this wasn’t a residential area, so there were no casualties. But if it had been near a busy downtown, it would have likely been flattened.
“Is this all you’ve got?” Zadownlow swung his staff, and black flames spread across the road, condensing into a massive sword that crashed down toward Luca.
Luca didn’t bother responding. His feet shimmered with silver light as he dodged the attack and closed the distance. Once near, he swung his Starseeker in a streak of silver light, aiming for Zadownlow’s neck, but his blade struck nothing but air.
“Too slow.” A burst of black flames ignited a hundred meters away, and Zadownlow appeared out of nowhere, surrounded by swirling black fire. A look of disdain crossed his face, though inwardly, he was quite surprised.
After all, his flames came from a King-level Abyssal Demon, and yet he hadn’t gained an advantage in this fight. The golden flame in Luca’s hands was unusual—it seemed to suppress his own King-level demon flames, giving him a distinct disadvantage.
Luca didn’t speak. With a wave of his hand, blue Rune crafting flashed in the sky, and a sudden chill filled the air. Zadownlow immediately felt his body stiffen, as though the very air around him had turned to ice.
Before he could even marvel at Luca’s mastery of ice magic, several monstrous ice lances shot toward him. Zadownlow quickly raised his fiery shield to block the attack. Just as he was about to retaliate, his expression changed, and he roared, “You dare?!”
At that moment, however, Luca paid him no mind. He dashed toward the already unconscious Zahilter.
Zahilter had just begun to stir from the earlier shock. His body was sore all over, and before he could catch his breath, he saw Luca appear before him, holding his blade.
“?” Zahilter was completely stunned.
“Damn!” Zadownlow’s face twisted in fury. He gritted his teeth, never expecting this man to be so ruthless, going straight for Zahilter without any hesitation.
Luca wasn’t interested in killing him or fighting for no reason. What he wanted was information about Zenith Technology Company. He had no intention of wasting time with this man. Reaching the car, he grabbed Zahilter and yanked him out.
“Old man, you’ll tell me everything I ask. Otherwise, I’ll chop you up. Got it?” Luca sneered as he looked down at the elderly man.
The situation was overwhelming, and Zahilter, realizing there was no escape, almost nodded in surrender. However, Luca suddenly smirked and said, “Well, well, well. So you’re really the former head of the Willow Family. You people from these big families sure have tough bones. Since you’re so willing to sacrifice yourself, let me help you with that!”
As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of silver light appeared.
Blood splattered instantly!
Two bloodied fingers fell with a sickening thud.
Zahilter’s eyes went wide in shock.
“Ah!!” A shriek pierced the night sky. The intense pain in his fingers, which were now severed, made Zahilter’s face twist in agony. His eyes reddened as he stared at Luca and screamed, “You bastard… you bastard, ask me now!”
Luca let out a cold snort. “I just asked you if you heard me. Didn’t you hear me?”
Zahilter, enraged to the point of nearly losing consciousness, could hardly believe the situation. Was this even a real question?
“I… I heard you!” He gritted his teeth, his fury and pain overwhelming him. Having learned the hard way, this time Zahilter wasn’t going to make the same mistake. His response actually surprised Luca, who muttered, “You people from these big families really are smarter than the average person.”
“Luca!!” Seeing his elder being toyed with in front of him, Zadownlow’s face turned crimson with fury.
However, Luca couldn’t care less. He coldly asked, “Tell me, why are you and your people looking for trouble with me?”
Zahilter fell silent. After all, it was Zenith Technology Company that had sent them here. If he spoke up, even if Luca were to let him go, would the people from Zenith Technology Company spare him?
Certainly not. And if he spoke, it might mean that the entire Willow Family would be dragged into the mess. Zahilter had lived a long life, and he’d been through all kinds of hardships. Now, in his old age, he knew that even if he lived a little longer, it wouldn’t be for much. Rather than speak, he thought it would be better to say nothing at all.
“I don’t know. Just kill me.” Zahilter’s face was pale from blood loss. After saying this, he turned his head to look at Zadownlow. In his dimmed eyes, there was a fleeting moment of clarity. He laughed bitterly and said, “Don’t bother avenging me. Don’t worry, this kid won’t live much longer.”
Zadownlow’s fists clenched, but he said nothing. His gaze was cold, fixed firmly on Luca.
“Still unwilling to speak?” Luca’s gaze flickered, a smirk curling at the corner of his lips. “You really have some backbone, don’t you? You’d rather die than give up the information. I admire people like you.”
Luca’s voice grew even colder. “But what I admire more is Zenith Technology Company. To think they can make a top-tier global family like the Willow Family bow down to them. Those guys must be terrifying.”
When Luca mentioned Zenith Technology Company, he noticed that Zahilter’s body froze for a brief moment. Though it quickly returned to normal, Zahilter didn’t show any signs of surprise or attempt to refute it.
On the other hand, Zadownlow was much less composed. His aura clearly fluctuated, a sign of his unease.
Luca chuckled softly, then casually tossed Zahilter to the ground, his blade resting at the old man’s neck.
Zahilter still hadn’t realized that Luca had already gotten the information he wanted. He closed his eyes, unwilling to speak a word further.
Looking down at this elderly man, who still tried to maintain his composure, Luca smiled and said, “I don’t need you to speak anymore. I’ve already found what I wanted. Zenith Technology Company’s headquarters… sooner or later, I’ll pay them a visit myself.”
The moment his words finished, Luca swiftly turned his blade. The flash of silver was followed by a spray of blood. Under Zahilter’s anguished and defiant gaze, his head was sent flying. His eyes still held that foolish stubbornness.
He died without realizing that, for someone like Luca, a professional, ordinary people couldn’t possibly lie. While words and micro-expressions could be controlled, the heartbeat and mental fluctuations were impossible to hide. More often than not, the body was more honest than words.
“Luca! I’ll kill you!” A furious roar echoed, like the cry of a wild beast. A massive wave of black fire swept out, engulfing everything within a hundred meters. A black fire dragon, dozens of meters long, surged toward Luca with an overwhelming force.
In the face of this terrifying attack, Luca’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. He slowly extended his hand, a playful smile tugging at his lips. “You don’t really think you’re worthy to be my opponent, do you?”
As his words fell, silver-white runes swiftly spread across his body, and the surrounding temperature dropped rapidly!
At the same time, the aura around him was growing at an astonishing rate.
In the blink of an eye, his power surpassed the rampaging Zadownlow, reaching the Diamond realm!
Ice Pattern Awakening!
…
Not far from the two, on a nearby road, a car sped toward them. Donald and Darabont sat in the car, already spotting Luca’s figure from a distance.
Seeing him about to be consumed by the black sea of flames, both of them felt a tightness in their chests. But before they could accelerate, a silver-white pillar of light suddenly shot up from the firestorm!
The black flames that had been raging abruptly extinguished, and the surrounding scorching heat suddenly dissipated. Snowflakes, silver and white, began falling from the sky, followed by a sudden gust of wind. A terrifying cold front surged in all directions.
The road, visibly covered in a silver layer, quickly froze over, and frost rapidly formed on the windshield. The car, which had been driving, shuddered twice inexplicably, then suddenly stalled and came to a stop. Enjoy more content from empire
“Is that Luca?” The two of them looked up at the silver figure suspended in the blizzard, their eyes filled with disbelief. Since when had this kid become so powerful?
Meanwhile, on the other side, Quagmire and the others also noticed the sudden change. They were all dumbfounded. Although they knew Luca’s strength was on a completely different level than theirs, this disparity was almost too much to comprehend.
“Do we still need to go over there?” Yelling weakly asked. He couldn’t shake the feeling that they had been worrying for nothing. If the other side couldn’t handle it with that kind of power, them showing up would probably just be a waste.
Coarmy hesitated for a moment and said, “Let’s go over and check, just in case something unexpected happens.”
Since they couldn’t drive anymore, they had no choice but to walk. As they got closer, the cold grew more intense. Coarmy, who had been dressed lightly, was shivering uncontrollably.
By the time they approached the core area, ice had formed beneath Yelling’s nose, and the others in the team, except for Quagmire and a few of the stronger ones, had silver frost on their hair.
“Why are you guys here?” A somewhat surprised voice suddenly rang in their ears.
Quagmire and the others turned to look, and there stood Luca with his long blade in hand, standing in the middle of the road, gazing at them in surprise.
Next to him, in the snow, lay a bloody severed arm, and in his other hand, he was holding a black skull-shaped staff…