The toad was stunned and murmured, "This is... a scent from the culinary world?"
The old man with a goatee looked furious, roaring at the toad, "What kind of trash are you, daring to defy the decree and trespass into the forbidden zone of the human realm, disrupting the normal order of affairs!"
Human realm guardian?
The term instantly surfaced in Ollipexil's mind.
This was not part of the plan!
He hadn't even used the toad to eliminate his enemies... why did this guardian appear?
Then what about him...
Then what about this excrement...
Ugh~~
Ollipexil immediately spat it out.
Following that, Ollipexil thought of a possibility and asked the goatee old man with horror, "You mean, you've been around here all along?"
The human realm, as the birthplace of the powerful human race, had countless strong individuals secretly guarding it.
Most of them were improving their strength in the culinary world, while a small portion were scattered throughout the human realm to prevent creatures from the culinary world from causing devastating disasters.
Including toads like this.
But the human realm was vast, and relatively speaking, the guardians were extremely scarce. An extremely wide continent might not even have one.
When a problem arose in a region, the human realm guardians usually took a long time to receive the news, not to mention the travel time...
Yet this person dared to appear immediately!
Ollipexil felt like spitting blood; all his plans were ruined by this person!
Why didn't he play by the rules!
Now, the only hope was that this human realm guardian was a weakling, not a match for the gluttonous toad...
The toad moved!
Ollipexil was almost weeping with joy!
The toad bared its large mouth and yelled, "I was wrong! I was wrong, it was this person who forcibly summoned me, it has nothing to do with me, nothing at all!"
Ollipexil: ...
Heaven!
What sin have I committed!
The goatee old man snorted, "Originally, you hadn't caused any serious consequences, so I could have spared your life, but you absolutely should not have interfered with me writing this 'Heroes of the Northern Lands'! My two years of hard work have been destroyed by you!"
As he spoke, he pulled out a brush with his left hand and drew a big black cross in the air!
The ink mark floated towards the toad, which screamed, "Spare me, spare me, I didn't do it voluntarily, I was deceived, deceived!!!!"
"Ahhhh!!!!"
The ink mark fell!
The toad's screams echoed through the heavens!
Under the erosion of the ink mark, the toad's flesh withered, decomposed, and tore apart, turning into dust that filled the air!
At this moment, a ferocious look flashed in the toad's eyes!
Its lips and teeth moved, and a tongue covered in warts shot out!
This strike was filled with the toad's fury, and its target was Zhang Wei and the others!
"Croak~ You want to protect them, I won't let you!"
The goatee old man lightly snorted, and before Zhang Wei could react, the dozens of meters long tongue froze in place.
Unable to move an inch!
"A petty trick, and you dare to show off."
"Strip it away!"
The goatee old man exerted more force, and this time, without further surprise, the toad rapidly turned into ashes, leaving no trace...
Ollipexil stared blankly.
This creature, capable of fighting evenly with Zhang Wei and the other six, had died so silently, unable to even struggle much. Just how strong was this scruffy old man!
After killing the old toad, the goatee old man turned his gaze to Zhang Wei and the others.
Zhang Wei didn't hesitate, stood up directly, and met his gaze.
The old man chuckled sinisterly, "Weren't you planning to escape into the clouds? Why aren't you acting? You know I'm much stronger than that toad. Can you be sure I won't harm you?"
Zhang Wei sneered, "Since you even discovered the plan to drill into the clouds, is there any possibility of success?"
"Insightful."
"Acceptable."
The goatee old man said, "As expected of one of the protagonists I've taken a liking to, you truly have courage!"
Zhang Wei looked at the scroll in the old man's hand and, after thinking for a moment, said, "This war, you instigated it, didn't you? Detached and aloof? Playing games in the mortal world? Watching the struggles and joys among the common people?"
Given this old man's strength, he was like a true god in the human realm.
Zhang Wei's mind recalled Di Shitian from "The Wind and Cloud," whose extraordinary power had led to a twisted psychology and emotional detachment, only seeking amusement from the suffering of the masses.
The goatee old man shook his head, "It seems you haven't grasped the essence of war, the essence of conflict."
"Where there are people, resources, and interests, endless conflicts will arise, triggering war? You think too highly of me. It is human nature that triggers war."
"I am powerless to stop it, nor can I change it. If there were no conflicts of interest, I wouldn't be able to instigate a war."
Zhang Wei was speechless.
What this old man said was true.
It left one unable to refute or question.
But that strange book...
This old man was definitely here for them!
"That book..."
As soon as the book was mentioned, the old man immediately lost his imposing aura.
A vulgar aura wafted towards them.
The old man flipped through the scroll in front of everyone, saying, "How is it, how is it, how do you like what I've written, and these drawings!"
On the left side of the scroll were the words, and on the right were the illustrations.
Unlike the scruffy old man, the calligraphy was neat yet lively and elegant, with strong and vigorous strokes, something only a master calligrapher could achieve!
The illustrations were in simple ink wash and minimal pigment.
But the details were so precise, like a camera, making one doubt the size of the brush. Moreover, the paintings combined the realism of modern art with the artistic conception of ink wash painting, and even the character designs were enhanced with subjective beautification...
Each one was a masterpiece!
Who would have thought that this scruffy old man possessed such high artistic attainments!
As the pictures and text flashed by, countless familiar figures appeared on the paper.
Bloodhound, Blott Handel
Flying General, Makka Pakka
Silverback Gorilla, Beast
Ten Elites of the North, Angler
Ten Elites of the North, Wolf Butcher
Heavenly Sin... Mr. Luo...
Even Mo Du and Chu Xiang appeared multiple times.
But the one who appeared the most was Zhang Wei himself!
The paintings depicted every memorable grand scene, from the attack on Mo City to the six of them breaking into Cloud City.
"You have been observing this war... Even if you didn't instigate it, you have another purpose!"
"Don't tell me you simply enjoy recording history! This war is no different from the squabbles of two ant colonies to you!"
History... Da Feng Novel Network
Was this war even considered history to him?
The old man stroked his beard and grinned, "Of course, it's different from ants. No matter how ants fight, in the end, two colonies become one, and the victorious ants are still ants, with no chance to grow into a life form on par with myself..."
"But you are different. You are full of potential. Although the chances are slim, there is still hope..."