Sister Bo, who had been clashing head-on with the Lightning Sand Demon, suddenly convulsed violently before being sent flying backward.
The Twin Demons and the Saint Green Serpent hastily retreatedâthe latter even abandoning the Undead Sand Moon Blade.
No one understood better than them just how absurd Sister Boâs defenses were at this moment.
Her job was called "Oputantan Transformation"âa strange name that sounded more like a bloodline. Yet it was an incredibly rare and precious job that granted entirely passive abilities while massively boosting all physical attributes.
Strength. Defense. Regeneration. And more.
For someone like Sister Bo, who had climbed to such heights, did it matter that her job lacked active attack skills?
Not at all!
She could compensate with other skill scrolls. Oputantan Transformation was a universal jobâany offensive ability that leveraged physical prowess could synergize with it.
Coupled with Sister Boâs innate superhuman strength and her evolution path focusing purely on power, she was essentially a humanoid monster.
Sister Bo had been indispensable during the previous hunt for a nine-star lifeform. She alone had withstood the nine-star creatureâs frontal assault for a full ten seconds, laying the groundwork for its eventual kill.
Ten seconds!
Against a nine-star lifeform! Even if it wasnât a top-tier entity like the Nine-Winged Crow or Armor King, it was still among the most powerful beings in existence. Not even Ye Zhongming could confidently claim to endure such an onslaught.
But Sister Bo had done it.
Yet now, this same womanâa tank capable of facing nine-star creatures head-onâhad been sent flying by a single shot, her fate unknown. What kind of attack was this?!
The Twin Demons and Saint Green Serpentâs fear was a natural reaction for any evolved.
Why had Ye Zhongming fired so stealthily? To deny his enemies any warning. And why had they instantly created distance? To buy themselves reaction time.
Sister Bo crashed heavily to the ground. Ye Zhongming didnât spare her a glanceâhe trusted his firearmâs lethality. The moment the shot was fired, he had already lunged for the Undead Sand Moonblade, reclaiming it swiftly while crushing a Healing Crystal and downing a high-grade recovery potion.
The latter wasnât cheap. Even Ye Zhongming had limited reserves.
His injuries improved significantly.
But before he could act further, his expression suddenly changed. Whirling around, he saw the impossibleâSister Bo, whom he had believed dead, was standing.
Not only thatâshe had hurled her warhammer, reducing the Lightning Sand Demon to half its original mass.
Summoned creatures like the Sand Demon couldnât die, but each destruction drained their energy. Too many defeats would permanently weaken them, requiring lengthy re-cultivation.
Sister Bo⊠was still alive?
Ye Zhongmingâs gaze locked onto the womanâs left sideâand understanding dawned.
Because he had absolute confidence in his purple-grade firearm, he had prioritized concealment and surprise over precision when firing.
The "Burst" skill was inherently an area-of-effect attackâeven a near-miss would obliterate most targets through sheer destructive force.
The Harvester Mimicry Shooter was the most lethal among his recently forged purple-grade equipment.
Its past performances had been flawless, which was why Ye Zhongming had assumed Sister Boâs death was guaranteed.
And under normal circumstances, she should have died. Any evolvedâno matter how toughâwould perish after losing half their abdominal organs.
Yet Sister Bo lived. And was still combat-ready!
Her entire body was now covered in longer white fur, while her left abdomen was gone entirely from the navel down. Ye Zhongming could even see her exposed ribs.
But!
Along the woundâs edges, red tendrils of flesh were visibly regenerating, rapidly repairing the damage.
This level of regeneration?!
Ye Zhongmingâs eyes narrowed.
Even in all of Cloud Peak, perhaps no oneânot even himselfâpossessed such healing capabilities.
Surprise, however, didnât equate to fear. Ye Zhongmingâs philosophy was simple: If one strike doesnât kill, deliver more.
With an explosive push-off from the ground, he shot toward Sister Bo like a cannonball, ignoring her grievous yet seemingly inconsequential injuries.
The Twin Demons raced to intercept, desperate to reach her before Ye Zhongmingâs attack landed.
They knewâwithout Soul Merchantâs powerhouse to pin Ye Zhongming down, their fate was sealed.
The priority now was protecting Sister Bo long enough for her to recover.
Meanwhile, Saint Green Serpent and his serpent readied another assault.
But thenâ
The world darkened around them.
Above, a sky full of stars materialized.
Ye Zhongmingâs "Stellar Gaze" activated!
Next, shimmering particles of light-sand engulfed the battlefield.
Sister Bo, the Twin Demons, and Saint Green Serpent all felt their bodies grow heavierâand mortal danger loomed.
Trapped in darkness with no immediate escape, their only option was to defend.
Ye Zhongming, now fighting at full strength, had no intention of letting them off. As the Star Spiritâs ability took effect, the Earth Spiritâhaving exhausted nearly all energy from repeatedly casting Black Soil Armorâslammed Sister Bo and the Twin Demons with a Gravity Field.
Enhanced by his Amplification Field, Ye Zhongming moved like lightning. The Undead Sand Moon Blade arced toward the nearest targetâSister Bo.
Soul Merchantâs Vice-Leader could only raise her warhammer in a frantic block.
CLANG!
The weapons collided. Sister Boâs hammer was knocked aside, and her body staggered back.
Under Stellar Gaze, Ye Zhongmingâs bloodline and other abilities were boosted by 20%. Combined with Sister Boâs injuries, the woman who had once matched him blow-for-blow was now outclassed.
The Twin Demons intercepted, parrying Ye Zhongmingâs next slash.
But his resolve was firm. Dual-wielding again, he leveraged his speed and strength to unleash a relentless barrage against the Twin Demons.
In weapon grade alone, the Twin Demons were outmatched. Their earlier success had relied on job synergy, teamwork, and Sister Boâs pressure. Now, with Ye Zhongmingâs sudden power surge and Sister Bo neutralized, their disadvantage became glaring.
Ye Zhongmingâs blades struck dozens of times like a precision machine in mere seconds.
Finallyâan opening.
One of the Twin Demons, his weapon cracked from the onslaught, misjudged a block by a fraction. His left chest was exposed.
Wind and Thunder struck like a viper.
Blood sprayed.
Ye Zhongming would have driven the blade deeper in the next instantâending one of Wen Yanâs elites.
But thenâ
A sudden disturbance erupted behind him!