Chapter 7: Return (8)
==============================
Accompanied by the bald man’s heart-wrenching laughter, a flash of lightning suddenly cut through the sky.
Thanks to that fleeting, blinding light, Strong Brother finally saw the giant’s skin, which, in its idle state, was endlessly releasing fluffy, mist-like spores like a bunch of flower buds.
Everyone had been so focused on the fight in the dark that they hadn’t even noticed!
d*mn it!
“Quick, cover your mouth and nose!” Strong Brother yelled.
Li Xiaocong was about to respond when, out of nowhere, the world went black for him, as if he’d suddenly passed out from too much to drink, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
“b*stard! What did you do to them?!”
Strong Brother was furious.
For him, d*ath was not the worst part; it was the terrifying unknown and despair that gnawed at him.
The bald man chuckled, “I’m in a great mood today. I was thinking of swallowing you whole, but keeping you around as a spectator seems like a great choice now. At least I’ll have someone to chat with, maybe you’ll say something interesting.”
Strong Brother’s fists clenched tightly, wishing he could smash that bald head to bits to alleviate his fury.
“Look! This is the most beautiful sight in the whole Asking Dao Continent!”
The bald man seemed to have lost sight of why he started attacking the Extermination of Immortals Guild in the first place. With arms wide open and palms up, he gazed lazily at the snow-covered ground.
The crowd lay splayed out like frozen corpses in the snow.
But they didn’t keep Strong Brother and the bald man waiting for long.
Before long, the first few who had fallen began to twitch on the ground. Within just a few minutes, their skin burst open, spilling out copious amounts of bl**d as their bodies ballooned like they’d just taken a hit of steroids.
Their thick winter coats ripped apart, leaving only tatters around their legs and joints, remnants of their former normal selves.
Li Xiaocong had transformed into a giant, too. While he was shorter than the bald man’s giant, he still towered at three or four meters tall, with bl**d spraying out from his rapidly expanding body.
“Li Xiaocong? Li Xiaocong!”
The giant showed no response, his eyes a bloody red, as if only the primal thirst for slaughter remained in him.
Strong Brother was losing his mind. Watching a normal person transform into this horrifying creature, he was nearly speechless with shock and agony.
“Why not me? Why?!”
If it were possible, he’d rather take Li Xiaocong’s place as the giant, but why was nothing happening to him?
“Not everyone can successfully accept the spores. You could say your friend is one lucky b*stard,” the bald man explained.
“Lucky my foot!”
Strong Brother couldn’t take it anymore. He’d rather d*e than witness this heart-wrenching scene.
“d*mn it! I’ll k*ll you right now!”
He’d just been punched by a giant, his invincibility card evaporated. Though he’d survived, most of his bones felt like they’d shattered; even the slightest movement sent waves of pain coursing through him.
But in that moment, he had no thoughts for that.
Despair gripped him completely—he wanted nothing more than to end it all in this heart-wrenching world.
Besides, he didn’t even have a sliver of a chance to escape. It would be better to at least hurt that bald guy before he died, so maybe someone later could take him down for good.
The bald man seemed to have predicted Strong Brother’s move. He shook his head and said, “Alright then, just eat him. It’s annoying having him fussing around in front of me.”
With a pinch, the giant squeezed the struggling Dog Head Strong Brother into his palm.
“Ahhh…”
Strong Brother suddenly discovered what it felt like to be crushed from all sides. Even if he tried to stifle his screams, the physiological pain made his brain lose control, and his shrieks sounded like the most beautiful music in the world, further fueling the bald man’s grin.
“Still not getting it? If players want to survive in this hellhole, they need to find new ways and methods.
Using old training techniques? Even if you grind for a hundred years, you won’t beat the locals, got it? We don’t have a game system to rely on anymore—no one’s handing out skill points, no one’s teaching you how to cast spells automatically. Everything’s up to you.
Fortunately, I’ve finally realized the truth.
To hell with cultivation! To hell with ascending to immortality! I just want to live longer!
Someone like you, who’s been favored by the system and set up as a top-tier streamer to be promoted across the net, was living in luxury, but now you’re crashing just as hard!
What’s wrong with being a washed-up internet celebrity? What’s wrong with being a member of the Extermination of Immortals?
Can it save your life?
Little Strong, in light of your still somewhat influential status, join me, swear loyalty to me, and perhaps I might consider leaving you a chance to live.”
Strong Brother stopped struggling, staring right at the bald man’s expectant gaze.
“Get lost with your nonsense! Surrender? Not a chance! I’d rather d*e!”
“Fine! The new generation will always push the old out. Stubborn fools like you deserve to vanish from this world.”
The bald man gave up trying to persuade him.
As Li Xiaocong transformed into a giant, around 300 other players also finished their transitions from ordinary folks to giants.
They varied in size, some tall, some short.
Despite their different appearances, they all shared one common trait: a thirst for slaughter and overwhelming excitement.
The bald man bellowed, “Scatter! Go expand your ranks quickly!”
The giants immediately dispersed.
At that moment, the long-silent Sky Void City exploded with activity as if cool oil had suddenly hit a hot pan, cracking loudly.
What shocked Strong Brother was that the Sky Void Sword Sect’s base remained eerily quiet, as if everyone had vanished.
“Boom… Boom…”
Before long, the city fell into total chaos, filled with desperate cries, low growls, and agonizing screams, the sounds merging into what felt like the apocalypse.
The bald man laughed heartily, “Just wait a moment, and I will have an absolutely unstoppable army. Who in this whole continent could be my opponent then?”
With red eyes, Strong Brother looked towards the fire in the distance, witnessing the terrifying scene of giants rampaging through the city, constantly consuming the living to create Muscle Men.
Luring close to a hundred million players into this hellhole had already been ruthless enough. Yet, the players arrived in this damned place and found no benefits, only facing wave after wave of disaster.
By next spring, how many would still be alive?
Strong Brother had completely lost hope for life, watching as the giant lifted him high above its head and opened its gaping maw, releasing the grip on his clothing.
Goodbye, Little Rain.
I… tried my best.
Master Little Musashi, I couldn’t protect the Extermination of Immortals Guild’s reputation. I’m sorry.
And Princess Witch, I thought I would see you again, but it seems that possibility is gone forever.
If there’s an afterlife, I just hope to live a peaceful life.
Goodbye.
Strong Brother plummeted into the giant’s mouth.
