The first crack finally appeared on Zhou Xiuyun's tranquil, flawless face.
It was like a dam that had sealed billions of tons of floodwater. In cracking noises, the first shocking gap appeared on the dam.
"This — this is hilarious."
With a rigid face, she said, "I did not expect that Li Yao, the Black Wind King, who suppressed the entire Empyreal Terminus Sector on his own and shouldered half of the Imperium of True Human Beings right now, would be so eloquent!"
"You know very well whether or not you are eloquent."
Li Yao said calmly, "I know that many people will try to rationalize or even sanctify the pain when they are faced with unavoidable pain, turning it into part of their life if not their everything. Only by deceiving themselves can the pain that is worse than death be slightly alleviated.
"It's like how many people surrender before they really explore the boundless universe, admitting their insignificance and humbleness in order to avoid the ultimate fear of the vastness and eternity.
"But pain is pain after all, and fear is fear after all. It will not be reduced at all because of your self-deception. The more you escape and deceive yourself, the more it will continue on your bloodline like a curse, and you will never be able to escape it."
"Shut up. I already understand the meaning of life. I have received eternal peace in the arms of the gods. What pain? That's hilarious!"
Zhou Xiuyun's eyelids were twitching, and her face was twisted. She gnashed her teeth and said, "You guys who are haunted by extraterrestrial devils and can't free yourselves from the swamp of feelings are the real pain. We are saving. We are saving all mankind and the universe!"
"It's useless. Stop lying to yourself. I can see through your brain clearly."
Li Yao sighed and said, "I sensed the black area hidden in the deepest part of your brain and the waves of excruciating pain and desperation that were released from there. What are they? Are they the remnants of the real Zhou Xiuyun? Are they the indelible marks of human nature that human beings are born with? Although your brain has been castrated, and the black area is heavily sealed, I can still sense their existence and the deepest pain that you are bearing all the time.
"I can even hear a feeble voice, as if someone is extending their arms from the depths of the swamp and shouting, 'Save me. Kill me!'. Is it the voice of the real Zhou Xiuyun?
"In any case, everything should be over now.
"You can finally break free from 'their' control and have a good night's sleep. Your daughter will live in a new world that is completely different from this one. She will live a happier and freer life, and so will her offspring. Your genes will blossom like flowers in all shapes and sizes. I guarantee it.
"Rest in peace, Zhou Xiuyun."
Li Yao extended his finger and tapped Zhou Xiuyun's forehead.
Zhou Xiuyun seemed to be attracted by an inexplicable force. Her eyes gradually became confused and empty, and every muscle and nerve on her face relaxed.
A moment later, something seemed to have surfaced from the deepest part of her brain, and she regained control of the body for the first time in decades. Vivid and real feelings appeared on her face.
Her facial organs were all crumpled into a ball, and tears were flooding out of her eyes. She screamed in desperation, as if the pain that she had suppressed for almost a hundred years was spurting out at this moment.
With Li Yao's fingertip as the center, pure flames spread out and enshrouded Zhou Xiuyun's entire body.
She danced like a burning butterfly. As the flames burned brighter and brighter, the pain was gradually alleviated. Having lost the shackles of her body, her remaining soul was finally freed. Wrapped in a cluster of pure white ashes, she tried her best to fly into the sky, spreading into circles of ripples and dispersing into nothingness.
In the end, all that was left was a faint sigh of relief, telling of her relief and the joy of being free.
Li Yao watched Zhou Xiuyun disappear in a daze. A hint of pity flashed on his face, but the fury that was like a volcano eruption in his eyes was not reduced at all.
Zhou Xiuyun was right about one thing.
She, Xia Yuren, and Qiu Yuanjia were just insignificant nobodies and cells of the 'gods'.
Before he went deep into the Holy League, Li Yao had thought that the 'gods' that the Holy League talked about were the Pangu that had been sleeping for hundreds of thousands of years and needed to be woken up.
But right now, he vaguely had a feeling that the so-called 'gods' were not as simple as the sleeping Pangu but something else that was more specific. They were the culprits that had shaped the Holy League into what it was today!
For the 'cells' such as Zhou Xiuyun, Xia Yuren, and Qiu Yuanjia, it was useless no matter how many of them were destroyed. The so-called 'gods' could easily reproduce or create more 'cells'.
Li Yao secretly swore to himself that he would definitely find the "gods" that were hiding behind the scenes and stuff its head into its ass!
"This … Master?"
The 'children of heresy' looked at Li Yao in fear.
After Li Yao killed Qiu Yuanjia, Xia Yuren, and Zhou Xiuyun in a row, he had been upgraded from a 'master' to a 'master' in the eyes of the young men and women!
"Are — Are you alright?"
Chu Zhiyun looked at him worriedly. There was no telling whether she was worried about Li Yao's soul or Thangka's body. Observing his face for a long time, she asked carefully, "You annihilated so many purgers and slashed apart dozens of cabin walls and decks. Even Director Xia, the commander of the purge troop, and the manager of the Devil Child Project were killed by you. Are — are you sure that you can still hold on?"
"Yes …"
Li Yao nodded. "Good question. I can't hold on any longer. Ouch!"
He made up his mind and collapsed to the ground. His hands and feet were unfolded, and he was cramping softly. White foam was popping out of his mouth, and there was not the slightest trace of blood on his body.
"What — What are you doing?"
Chu Zhiyun was dumbfounded. She did not expect Li Yao to lie down so easily. "What's wrong with you?"
"I'm exhausted."
Li Yao lay on the ground, unable to even move his fingers. But he said casually, "Did you not hear what Zhou Xiuyun said just now? Projecting my soul over such a long distance consumes a lot of my soul and spiritual energy. Even if I hibernate inside Thangka's body dutifully, it is still risky, not to mention that I controlled her body to fight such a high-intensity battle. How can my soul and spiritual energy not run out?
"So, I'm exhausted. Ouch. I'm so tired. I can't even blink. I'm so tired."
"How — How did this happen?"
Chu Zhiyun and the other 'children of heresy' found it hard to believe. "You were still showing off three seconds ago. How did you end up like this all of a sudden? You seem to have collapsed!"
"This is the unique superpower of an extraordinary, dominating, and invincible expert such as myself."
Li Yao continued casually, "If it were other so-called 'experts', they would've been affected by their wounds and fatigue, and they would've shown signs of weakness during the battle, which would've affected their skills and tactics.
"As for me, a super expert who stands at the peak of human evolution and can slay gods and devils without any trouble, I can suppress all my wounds and fatigue with my amazing body control and my iron-like willpower. I will not reveal any of it during the battle, which will make my enemy feel desperate that I will never be wounded or tired. Only after I completely defeat my enemy will the wounds, fatigue, and exhaustion that I have been suppressing erupt like a torrent and completely collapse me.
"Perhaps you cannot understand the formidability of such a superpower yet, but it doesn't matter. Not everybody can understand it easily anyway. Ouch. I feel so uncomfortable. I'm almost suffocating. I'm so tired and uncomfortable!"
"You're already so weak. Please don't 'speak lightly' when you speak, okay?"
Chu Zhiyun was almost crying in anxiety. "What do we do now? We have only cleared the control center. A lot of Purgers are cruising outside. Also, there are camps of the purge troops outside of the floating fortress. There must be other legions and fleets further away! "
"It doesn't matter. I'm only temporarily exhausted. After twenty minutes of rest, my soul will be condensed, and my spiritual energy will be refilled. Of course, it will be even better if you can help me find some strengthening drugs and high-energy nutrition drugs. I believe that there must be such 'energy refill boxes' in a corner of the control center."
Li Yao said, "As for the soldiers outside and the legions further away, you don't need to worry about them at all. When I fought Zhou Xiuyun just now, one of my clones hacked the control system of the floating fortress, cracked the defense barrier in the mainframe crystal processor, and tampered with the highest permissions. In other words, from this moment on, the floating fortress belongs to us!
"I can observe the movements of all the soldiers in the floating fortress at will and close the few main channels and cabin doors, locking them inside. They are all 'soldier bees' and 'worker bees' who lack the basic logical thinking abilities. Now that their leader is dead, it is impossible for them to attack the control center automatically without a clear order.
"However … However … this is also my limit. It is impossible for me to protect you all the way to a safe shelter. You will have to walk on your own for the rest of the journey.
"Chu Zhiyun, from this moment on, you are the new leader of the 'children of heresy'.
"Do you see the door that is painted green over there? If my senses are correct, Tiantian should be behind it. Let's get her out first.
"Then, I will summon the permissions and open the doors of all the cells of the 'Devil Children'. I will also guide you to them. You can save as many people as you can!
"According to my scan, there is a rather large warehouse inside the floating fortress that accommodates a lot of armed shuttles, crystal tanks, and light carriers. You must've learned the basic driving skills. By then, find a few vehicles that are simple in structure and relatively reliable.
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