Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 509 - 479 The Great Battle of the Five Impermanence 2

Chapter 509: 479 The Great Battle of the Five Impermanence 2

I am not a match for the Taoyuan Village Master, but in the current situation, it’s best if I take the lead in resisting the Taoyuan Village Master’s onslaught.

Based on my assessment, Huang Quan, this Doomsday Great Impermanence, is on the same power level as Ming Zhuo. In other words, he should be comparable to me, who wields the Furnace Slag Straight Sword.

As for the Taoyuan Village Master and Liu Shuying, they are likely on a similar level. Although before the operation, Liu Shuying mentioned that he would need a secret weapon to contend with the Taoyuan Village Master, looking at things now, it might have just been a casual remark. According to the intelligence, he hasn’t been in the field for too many years as a Great Impermanence, but he might already have the substantial power to rival the Taoyuan Village Master and Xuanming.

Or is it that he has already used the secret weapon, but I simply haven’t seen it yet? Considering that the form of his mana resembles the grey fog, it’s possible that, like Ying Lingyun and Dr. Silver Mask, he has hidden the Divine Seal Fragment within his body, and he is now wielding the Power of Divine Seal Fragments.

No matter the source of the power, power is power—it is undeniable. So the correct approach should be to have someone relatively "durable" like me to occupy the Taoyuan Village Master, allowing Liu Shuying to quickly deal with Huang Quan. Then we can join forces against the Taoyuan Village Master.

Unfortunately, it isn’t just Liu Shuying and me analyzing the situation; the Taoyuan Village Master and Huang Quan are no pushovers either.

As if they came to the same conclusions I did in the first instance and deliberately exerted force in the opposite direction, the Taoyuan Village Master transformed into a cyan-green thunderbolt and launched a rapid assault toward this side. His target wasn’t me but Liu Shuying.

How fast is lightning, exactly? Some might answer "the speed of light," but that describes the speed of the light emitted by the lightning. The lightning itself is extremely fast but still far slower than light. The speed of electrical signal transmission in the human nervous system is also much slower than many might assume. On this dimension we occupy, even the speed of an electrical shock cannot outpace our consciousness and reaction.

Yet, the speed the Taoyuan Village Master exhibited was not the physical speed of lightning; it was as though he embodied the abstract concept of "Godspeed of Lightning." By the time we realized what was happening, the cyan-green lightning he became had already struck Liu Shuying, driving him all the way to the horizon.

The Taoyuan Village Master’s Godspeed dismantled the optimal strategy we had for the current situation, rendering the battle plan invalid from the very outset.

What followed immediately was Huang Quan’s attack. His yellow-black mana transformed into a massive maw capable of swallowing entire skyscrapers, lunging at me once again. I had no choice but to confront Huang Quan, releasing a torrent of flames from the Furnace Slag Straight Sword to clash with him with all my might.

How ironic. One of the objectives of this operation was to observe the true identity of the Taoyuan Village Master and uncover Liu Shuying’s secrets. Now, those two have shifted the battlefield elsewhere, leaving me with Huang Quan instead.

From another angle, perhaps this might be an unexpected boon. Huang Quan, as this Doomsday Great Impermanence, carries numerous secrets I wish to uncover. However, he might not necessarily divulge the information I seek.

The intensity of our battle was immense. Even though we were beyond the national borders, it should logically attract the attention of the distant Luoshan Headquarters. However, since both Huang Quan and the Taoyuan Village Master responded to our ambush as if they had foreseen it, they likely prepared accordingly, such as employing methods to ensure this commotion wouldn’t immediately alert the Luoshan Headquarters. It’s best not to expect any support from other Luoshan Great Impermanence operatives to reinforce us here.

Combining this with the intelligence about the Great Success Rank Impermanence, the fact that the Taoyuan Village Master could operate in this area confirms that this place is indeed a critical network node for "Paradise." The damage we’re causing here may likely have a significant negative impact on "Paradise’s" progress. Perhaps the Taoyuan Village Master’s counterattack came at the cost of accepting this consequence.

At some point, the seed of the heart I captured earlier had disappeared, most likely retrieved by the Taoyuan Village Master while I wasn’t paying attention. Given how close I was to the Taoyuan Village Master, I never expected to keep control of it for long anyway.

What concerns me more is how the Taoyuan Village Master and Huang Quan were able to anticipate the ambush planned by Liu Shuying and me.

"After that individual who claimed to be the ’Third Apostle of the Void Realm’ attacked the Luoshan Branch Base, you two appeared at the Taoyuan Village Headquarters so quickly... Is that Void Envoy your ally?"

Even in the midst of high-speed combat, Huang Quan’s eyes gleamed with intense calculation. "To avoid the Taoyuan Village Master predicting your assault here, did you collaborate with someone outside the Luoshan Great Impermanences, tasking them to attack and interrogate that second-rate Great Success at the Luoshan Branch Base?

"But why didn’t that Void Envoy come with you to assault this place? Was it because he only agreed to assist in attacking the branch base? ...No, if there were three Great Impermanences targeting the Taoyuan Village Master, he would have intuitively sensed this in advance...

"Could it be that the Void Envoy is one of you two, capable of perfectly masking mana fluctuations? Considering that both he and you possess powers tied to ’high temperature,’ could it be that you are the Third Apostle of the Void Realm?"

"—That’s right."

At this point, there was no need to maintain the disguise anymore, and I could no longer uphold it even if I wanted to. So I straightforwardly admitted it and added, "It seems you didn’t detect the position of this location by the incident at the branch base being destroyed... So, what intelligence led you to prepare against this ambush?"

"Intelligence? We had no need for such a thing."

Huang Quan answered bluntly, "I knew you would find this location soon and launch an assault, so I conveyed this to the Taoyuan Village Master in advance.

"Convincing him wasn’t easy. Fortunately, though he is deeply distrustful, he is also shrewd and discerning. He understood I wouldn’t gamble my reputation on such a joke, and so he truly set aside time to cooperate with me.

"I imagine he also prepared for the possibility of me backstabbing him or avenging myself after the fact. If you hadn’t come, it would’ve been me facing his wrath instead."

Despite the words, he seemed to care little for the Taoyuan Village Master, his tone laced with playful self-mockery.

I hadn’t expected such an answer. "...No basis at all, and you made such a prediction out of thin air?"

Astonishingly, I could sense he wasn’t lying. Vaguely, a possible truth began emerging in my mind.

"Saying there was no basis might be a bit of an overstatement. Strictly speaking, there is one basis," Huang Quan said. "Because Mazao is by your side, that’s all."

It all dawned on me. All the efforts Liu Shuying and I made to conceal ourselves were utterly futile.

Yes, as long as Mazao is with me, I would inevitably be able to track down the Taoyuan Village Master. My prior ability to hack into "Paradise" effortlessly via the "Preacher," the sudden discovery of the Taoyuan Village Headquarters’ location after attacking the Luoshan Branch Base, the seamlessness of obtaining aides and clues along the way—it all stemmed from Mazao’s "Unfortunate People" power quietly at play.

All of this ensured that I would inevitably be drawn into the heart of danger.

For this reason, I never doubted that I would lose my sense of direction moving forward.

And since Huang Quan is familiar with Mazao, this harbinger of doom, he naturally knew this fact as well.

Reversing the roles: If I were Huang Quan, an associate of the Taoyuan Village Master active on the shadowy stage, and encountered "Zhuang Cheng, who has Mazao by his side," then upon hearing that the other party recently infiltrated "Paradise"... How would I predict their next move?

Undoubtedly, I would expect the other party to miraculously zero in on the Taoyuan Village Master’s location through an incomprehensible series of lucky coincidences. No matter how skilled the Taoyuan Village Master might be at hiding, it would prove futile. This isn’t a matter of logic or reasoning, but a preordained outcome.

All this time, I rode the winds and waves of my journey, relying on Mazao’s "Unfortunate People" power. Perhaps I grew overly dependent, unconsciously treating it as my "Golden Finger," a tool to achieve my dreams. Yet, I forgot that this power was a double-edged sword.

Mazao is indeed my closest companion, but that power belongs to no one—not even me.

I never imagined one day this very trait would be turned against me by an enemy.

The situation worsened as something even more alarming occurred.

A familiar mana fluctuation rapidly approached the battlefield where Huang Quan and I were engaged. Its source was neither Liu Shuying nor the Taoyuan Village Master but rather a hulking, black power armor.

Xu Gou, wrapped in an overwhelming Power of Cutting, entered the fray—

Earlier, Liu Shuying claimed to have trapped Xu Gou elsewhere using the power of Fatian Xiangdi. While it’s unclear how extraordinary that specific Fatian Xiangdi technique was to even imprison a Great Impermanence, all such phenomena are invariably centered around their wielder. Since Liu Shuying’s body was already attacking the Taoyuan Village Master, the power restraining Xu Gou must have dissipated.

I don’t know if Xu Gou sensed the commotion of this battle from afar, came here to report the destruction of the branch base, or if this was yet another of Huang Quan’s predictions, planned in advance to counter Liu Shuying and me... The truth before me is undeniable.

From this moment forward, I must face two Great Impermanences simultaneously.