“Aww!”

A beast king pounced. Lu Chi swung his blade, severing one of its front claws, but the beast king's massive body sent him flying. He crashed into the ruins like a cannonball, rolling for dozens of meters before slamming into a broken wall.

But there was no time for Lu Chi to assess his injuries. Several more beast kings swarmed him. The ground trembled as terrifying claws descended. Lu Chi rose and stabbed his blade into the head of the leading beast king, hacking downwards. Its skull split open!

Buzz!

A mental shockwave crashed over Lu Chi. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, his mind reeling. He faltered for a moment, and a beast king's thick tail slammed into him. Cracks appeared on his battle suit, and bones snapped within him.

Bang!

Lu Chi flew backwards, using the force to land on another beast king's neck. He gripped its fins with all five fingers to steady himself before plunging his blade down.

His fighting style was savagely brutal, trading injury for injury, life for life!

…

Swing the blade!

Swing the blade!

Still swing the blade!

Lu Chi lost count of how many times he’d swung his blade, but twelve beast kings lay dead at his feet, and he was covered in wounds.

His battle suit was torn. Three bloody holes, each about three centimeters in diameter, marred his chest above his right lung. A beast king had ambushed him. As Lu Chi stabbed into its brain, its fangs pierced his tattered suit and his flesh.

His right hand was a bloody mess. The steel wires were embedded in his flesh, fused to the bones of his palm. Pink flesh turned outwards, and each swing of the blade sprayed blood from the wound.

“Hah… hah…” Lu Chi gasped for breath, feeling like he wasn’t getting enough oxygen. He knew something was wrong with his lungs. As he lost more blood, his vision blurred, and a ringing in his ears intensified.

Berserk God Descent minimized pain and other negative effects, but it did so by essentially severing pain nerves. Pain and dizziness were the body’s defense mechanisms, indicating the extent of injuries and prompting one to stop fighting and retreat.

Lu Chi couldn't feel the pain, but he also couldn’t gauge the severity of his injuries. His blade strikes remained powerful, and his movements were swift, but he could collapse at any moment.

In “Berserk” mode, one became a fighting machine, oblivious to pain and limits, potentially fighting to the death.

The violent, injury-trading fighting style had advantages, but its flaws were obvious. In a one-on-one fight, few creatures could defeat Lu Chi, but he was facing nineteen.

How could one life be exchanged for nineteen?

None of the beast kings attacking Lu Chi were ancestral; except for the Overlord Serpent, they were all God-Descended monsters, the core and strongest beings in the tide of beasts!

Statistically, none were weaker than Lu Chi, yet they were ambushing him. Still, Lu Chi had managed to kill twelve of them, a feat that would shock anyone.

The beast kings were panting heavily. The Overlord Serpent watched Lu Chi warily. After dozens of mental shockwaves, Lu Chi could still kill twelve God-Descended beast kings. Even among beast kings, that level of combat prowess qualified as an Overlord.

But… this was the end.

Lu Chi and the beast kings could see that he was near his limit. He had lost at least forty-five percent of his blood. Without the vitality of an Evolver, Lu Chi would have died a hundred times over. Even with the Ancient-Grade Fruit, he couldn’t last much longer.

Killing those twelve beast kings had come at a terrible price.

“You are strong. I’ve changed my mind. Flesh and blood of your caliber would be wasted on feeding lesser beasts… I’ve decided to swallow you myself,” the giant serpent said in an eerie tone. Despite Lu Chi’s near-exhausted state, the serpent kept several hundred meters away. Lu Chi’s earlier frenzy still made it wary of approaching.

Buzz!

A fresh wave of mental shockwaves struck, accompanied by a beast king's tail!

Lu Chi raised his blade, blocking the tail!

Boom!

Lu Chi’s vision went black, and he flew back into the ruins. It took three seconds for his vision to clear. He shifted slightly, feeling not pain but numbness!

A tingling sensation ran through his chest and legs. He knew his ribs and legs were broken.

Clang!

He plunged his blade into the nearby wall, using it to stand. He took a step forward.

“Fight already, quit yapping…” Lu Chi wiped the blood from his eyes, his face impassive, and walked towards the remaining beast kings.

The beast kings attacked. Lu Chi swung his blade.

Another beast king fell.

The serpent watched Lu Chi, a flicker of fear in its eyes.

Humans…

These insignificant creatures…

“Aww!”

A beast king attacked again. Lu Chi swung his blade, but it didn’t pierce its flesh. Instead, he was swatted away, crashing into the ruins.

Under the beast king's “Defense Enhancement” God Descent, Lu Chi, nearing his limit, missed for the first time.

Among the rubble, Lu Chi leaned back, his body convulsing.

More than forty bones were broken. He could no longer fight.

The remaining beast kings slowly gathered, wounded but alive.

They stared at the human, awed by his strength and resilience.

In the face of overwhelming odds, he had single-handedly held back the strongest beast kings in the beast nest, allowing his army to escape encirclement. He had killed twelve powerful beast kings despite being at a disadvantage, and those that remained were severely injured.

Even the “Overlord” was afraid to approach.

What kind of human was this…

Did he feel no fear?

The serpent slowly slithered closer, surrounded by mutated beasts. It stared at Lu Chi, its yellow eyes narrowing. Once it was certain Lu Chi couldn’t lift his blade, it finally revealed a gruesome, human-like smile.

“Human, can you still fight?” The serpent asked grimly, this time in Yan Huang language.

“Yes,” Lu Chi replied for the first time.

“But I don’t think you can.” It slowly opened its jaws, extending a long, forked tongue towards Lu Chi in the rubble.

Just then, Lu Chi’s left hand moved. He fired his unused new-energy pistol. A finger-sized energy bullet struck the serpent’s mouth, instantly erupting into a sea of flames!

“Aww!” The serpent was engulfed in flames, wailing in agony as it frantically charged towards the ocean, plowing a path through the mutated beasts.

“…” Lu Chi’s raised left arm fell limply. A mocking smile appeared on his face. “I said I could still fight. Why didn’t you believe me?”

“Aww!”

The beast kings and mutated beasts roared, swarming to tear Lu Chi apart!

Lu Chi couldn’t move a finger. He had exhausted his strength. His fighting style was too direct and violent. He killed the enemy as quickly as possible, but it took a heavy toll on his body.

His stamina and vitality were at rock bottom. He couldn’t lift his blade or stand.

Faced with the surging tide of beasts, all he could do was look at the sky and await his end.

“Damn it, I’m starting to regret this. Guess not everyone can become a legend.” Lu Chi began to ramble, staring blankly at the sky. “The Pioneer Legion’s first expedition, and the commander dies. If word gets out, I’ll be nailed to the pillar of shame as a joke…”

“But I’m dead anyway. Why should I care about being mocked?”

“I wonder if the Boss will give me a grand funeral. That might be difficult… since there probably won’t be anything left of me…”

Lu Chi slowly closed his eyes, as if seeing a long-dead loved one. He murmured, “Sis, come and get me…”

Darkness descended.

Lu Chi waited for the agonizing tearing sensation.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds…

Had time stopped?

What were these monsters waiting for?

None of the monsters attacked. Lu Chi opened his eyes again, his pupils constricting.

He saw a sight he would never forget.

Countless mutated beasts and beast kings were prostrate on the ground, trembling, struggling to rise but failing repeatedly, crashing down!

A figure descended from the sky, landing like a feather in front of Lu Chi!

Li Tianran!

He snapped his fingers. Light flashed. A silver mechanical army appeared around them, forming an impenetrable defense with guns and blades!

“Ran into a little trouble on the way, so I’m a bit late! I heard you saying your last words… something about a funeral.” Li Tianran turned to Lu Chi, a slight smile on his face. “If… and I mean if… you really died here, would you prefer a flip-top or a slider coffin?”

Lu Chi was stunned.

“Just kidding.” Li Tianran suddenly smiled, then knelt down to examine Lu Chi’s gruesome wounds, his brow furrowing. The crisscrossing injuries made Lu Chi look like a corpse that had been subjected to inhuman torture. Li Tianran lifted Lu Chi onto his back, and said softly but earnestly, “Damn it, these bastards hurt you this badly! Don’t worry, you’re going to watch as I kill them all!”