Chapter 136: Your Turn Next

Chapter 136: Your Turn Next

"The Deathbell Striker can't be relied on."

Ugo glanced at the Deathbell Striker, who had already taken down a High Stone Golem and an Elite Dual-Blade Spider. However, the Striker was also heavily injured and wouldn't be able to assist him anytime soon.

"I have to rely on myself!"

The swarm of insects reformed into Ugo's shape, but his face was grim. If possible, he didn't want to use his final trump card, as it would significantly shorten his lifespan. However, the current situation left no room for hesitation. If he didn't eliminate Su Nan, he would die.

With a sound like tearing fabric, Ugo's skin suddenly split open, and countless grayish-white flesh masses burst out, rapidly swelling and forming into a monstrous giant insect. The insect vaguely resembled a Deathbell Beetle but was much larger and more grotesque.

Su Nan couldn't help but grimace. He didn't mind fusing with bloodlines, but he found the idea of transforming into this half-human, half-monster form repulsive. Ugo's human form was already hideous, and this new form was even more nauseating.

"Mental energy is about half left."

Su Nan's eyes flickered, and he recalled the Magic Core. Seeing the metal spikes suddenly disappear, Ugo was initially stunned, then overjoyed. Indeed, such a powerful ability must consume a lot of mental energy! Su Nan's action clearly indicated that he had exhausted his mental energy and could no longer use the Metal Storm.

"Ha ha ha, now it's my turn!"

The giant insect let out a sharp, ear-piercing laugh and flapped its wings, hurtling toward Su Nan like a missile.

Su Nan sneered. He had only reserved some mental energy as a precaution. After all, from the current situation, it seemed unlikely that Ugo had split his forces to attack Mato and Osen. Considering the strange behavior of the Red Widow and the Black Duke recently, they might have privately reached an agreement to target Ghost Lake City. However, neither of them had appeared, and who knew what they were planning. To be safe, Su Nan decided to keep some reserve strength.

Not to mention, he had other means to deal with Ugo.

With a thought, countless wisps of gray mist materialized from the void, quickly forming into massive gray claws. They tore through the air with a piercing whistle and descended fiercely upon Ugo.

Ugo darted to avoid them, but the gray claws clung to him like a persistent parasite, striking him one after another.

Sizzle!

Four gray claws pierced through Ugo's body, producing a sound like acid splashing on flesh, making Ugo let out a shrill scream.

Dawn-grade magical items!

Ugo stared in horror at Su Nan's left hand. In that instant, he had clearly seen four rings on Su Nan's hand flash with magical light—magical items.

In other words, those four gray claws were the effects of the four magical rings!

Su Nan actually possessed four identical Dawn-grade offensive magical items!

And how many Dawn-grade defensive items did he have?

Had he plundered the legacy of a formal wizard?

But that didn't make sense. Formal wizards hadn't appeared for many years, and even if there was a legacy, it would be from over a thousand years ago. Dawn-grade magical items couldn't have remained intact for so long!

Ugo's mind was a chaotic mess, but the worst was yet to come.

Su Nan reached out and the four rings on his left hand vanished, only to be replaced by four identical rings, which then glowed with magical light.

Whoosh!

Four more gray claws appeared out of nowhere.

Seeing this, Ugo felt a chill run through his body, as if he had fallen into an ice cave. The previous attack had already left him severely injured, and another one would surely leave him critically wounded or even dead.

The critical issue was that he had no idea if Su Nan had more Dawn-grade magical items.

If another attack came, he would certainly die!

"Run!"

The intense pain from the gray claws piercing his body made Ugo scream in agony, and the thought of escape filled his mind. He didn't even spare a thought for the Deathbell Striker, which he usually cherished, and immediately fled in the distance.

Su Nan's terrifying reserves had completely shattered his will to fight.

"Want to run?"

Su Nan sneered, and a High-grade Rune Gem in his palm emitted a brilliant light, enveloping his body in a whirlwind. He transformed into a green streak of light, moving at least ten times faster than Ugo.

Hearing a powerful gust of wind behind him, Ugo turned around and was instantly terrified.

He immediately released a sound wave to try to stop Su Nan, but the latter didn't even glance back, charging through the sound wave and throwing a High-grade Rune Gem.

"What is this thing?"

Ugo had already been psychologically scarred by Su Nan's endless array of powerful techniques, fearing that this was yet another devastating tool.

And his fears were soon confirmed.

In mid-air, the gem transformed into a bolt of lightning as thick as a barrel, striking Ugo and sending him crashing to the ground.

Su Nan didn't stop there, throwing three more High-grade Rune Gems, each turning into a bolt of lightning that struck Ugo.

The deafening thunder echoed through the cave, and the area where Ugo had been was enveloped in thick smoke.

Su Nan approached the smoke, waving his hand to summon a strong wind to disperse it, revealing a large, scorched crater.

The crater was pitch black, the sand and soil having been scorched into quartz-like crystals, emitting a faint white smoke.

Ugo lay at the center of the crater, having reverted to his human form, but his body was charred black, with almost no intact skin left.

Su Nan slowly landed on the ground, looking at Ugo's pitiful state and shrugging his shoulders.

"Considering you were a Deathbell Striker, I was planning to give you a full body. But since you tried to run, I can't help it if you end up like this."

Ugo stared at Su Nan with wide eyes, his gaze filled with unwillingness, fear, and despair. He made strange, guttural sounds, as if trying to say something.

He couldn't accept it.

He wanted to live longer, to eventually become a formal wizard.

If he had known about Su Nan's vast reserves, he would have stayed as far away as possible and never thought about the Divine Skeleton!

But it was too late for regrets now.

Su Nan shook his head, not saying anything more. He flicked his finger, and a bolt of lightning shot through Ugo's forehead, ending his life.

Confirming that Ugo was dead, Su Nan picked up the four drained Catastrophe Rings and replaced them with new ones.

Back in the underground world, he had manufactured a large number of Catastrophe Rings and Extreme Protection Rings, totaling more than forty, to ensure he had enough equipment to overwhelm his opponents in battle.

And this strategy proved very effective.

Ugo's final trump card was no match for the sheer number of Catastrophe Rings.

More importantly, the Catastrophe Rings could be reused, unlike the one-time use High-grade Rune Gems.

Using more Catastrophe Rings in battle allowed him to conserve a significant number of High-grade Rune Gems.

Although Su Nan had a rich vein of minerals providing him with substantial profits, he still preferred to save where he could, as there would be many more expenses to come.

Regaining his focus, Su Nan approached Ugo, taking the spatial ring from his hand and a few Alchemical-grade magical items, then returned to the original battlefield.

With Ugo's death, the insect swarm fell into chaos. The numerous bugs, no longer fixated on attacking Ghost Lake City, scattered and fled.

The Deathbell Striker seemed to have regained its autonomy and attempted to break out and escape.

Having found a rare ancient-blooded beast, Su Nan was not about to let the Deathbell Striker get away. Without a word, he joined the pursuit.

With Su Nan's intervention, the Deathbell Striker quickly found itself at a disadvantage.

This ancient-blooded insect was as intelligent as a human. Seeing that it was no match, it immediately lay on the ground in a submissive posture.

"Quite perceptive."

A few weakening rays from Su Nan, and the Deathbell Striker soon became listless, escorted back to Ghost Lake City by two Elite Stone Golems.

Su Nan then returned to the other side of the lake.

The bugs on the island had mostly fled, and the golem army was clearing out the remaining ones.

On the city walls, Carolina watched anxiously. Seeing Su Nan return, she let out a sigh of relief.

Although she couldn't see the situation on the other side of the lake, the sounds of battle clearly indicated that her master had faced a formidable enemy.

Despite her confidence in her master's abilities, she couldn't help but feel worried.

After all, the safety of Ghost Lake City now depended entirely on Su Nan.

If he fell, the city would be doomed. With fewer than a hundred Sphinx Warriors and a group of expendable slaves, they couldn't survive in the perilous underground world.

Not to mention, Mato and Osen wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of the city's vulnerability.

"Master!"

Carolina opened the city gates and rushed forward, but stopped in her tracks when she saw the Deathbell Striker, her expression one of shock.

"What is this? A Deathbell Beetle?"

But it's way too big!

"Master, what is this?"

Carolina couldn't help but ask curiously.

"A powerful ancient-blooded insect."

Su Nan casually recounted what had happened with Ugo.

When she learned that the mastermind behind Kasham was a wizard, Carolina was utterly shocked.

She had never imagined that the insect plague that had plagued and terrified the three city-states of Ghost Lake, Mato, and Osen for years was orchestrated by a wizard.

Looking at her master, Carolina couldn't help but marvel inwardly.

Wizards were indeed terrifying beings!

Just one or two could cause such a massive upheaval.

"But Master, what was the wizard's purpose in controlling the insect plague?" Carolina frowned in confusion.

From today's events, it was clear that Kasham had the strength to defeat the three city-states one by one and gain complete control over the region. So why hadn't he done so all these years? Why had he only sent insect swarms to attack the city-states at regular intervals?

"Who knows." Su Nan shook his head.

However, he had his suspicions.

Ugo likely had some specific goal in mind, perhaps collecting souls or flesh. The three city-states served as a renewable resource, and he would harvest them periodically.

As for his exact purpose, they would have to wait until they took over Kasham to find out.

Su Nan had already checked Ugo's ring. Apart from some gold coins and gems, it contained only a few items of little value.

He suspected that Ugo had stored the truly valuable items in Kasham, where he might have had a laboratory.

"Send someone to keep an eye on Mato and Osen. Report any unusual activity to me immediately."

Seeing that the insects on the battlefield had been mostly cleared, Su Nan dismissed the golems and set off for Kasham.

Time was of the essence. He needed to take over Kasham as soon as possible to secure Ugo's legacy.

Once that was done, he could focus on dealing with Mato and Osen.

"Yes, Master."

Carolina bowed slightly, watching as Su Nan's figure disappeared into the distant darkness. She then slowly straightened up, narrowing her eyes as she surveyed the surroundings.

Initially, she hadn't considered Mato and Osen in this context.

But now that she knew there was a mastermind behind Kasham, and reflecting on today's events, she realized that Mato and Osen had likely already struck a deal with Kasham.

Based on her understanding of the Red Widow and the Black Duke, they were probably hiding in the shadows, observing the battle.

Once Ghost Lake City and Kasham were both weakened, or if one side emerged victorious but at a great cost, these two cunning and despicable individuals would surely pounce to reap the benefits.

Unfortunately, they had underestimated Master's strength.

Kasham's attack hadn't even scratched Master, and the wizard behind it had been killed instead.

With the insect threat now completely resolved, Kasham would soon fall into the hands of Ghost Lake City.

Once Master was free to focus, he wouldn't allow Mato and Osen to continue growing stronger.

"Next, it's your turn."

Carolina glanced in the direction of Mato and Osen, her eyes flashing with a cold light.

The Red Widow and the Black Duke shared similar thoughts.

Seeing Ugo killed and the insect swarm scattered, their hearts sank to the bottom of their stomachs.

"Worthless! Absolutely worthless!"

"He boasted that he could definitely defeat Su Nan, and he was taken down so easily!"

The Black Duke gnashed his teeth in fury.

He hadn't expected Ugo to be defeated by Su Nan, but he hadn't anticipated such a swift and decisive victory, one that left Ghost Lake City almost unscathed.

It was clear to anyone that with most of its strength intact, Ghost Lake City's next target would be Mato and Osen.

The Red Widow's expression was equally grim, devoid of her usual frivolity and licentiousness.

The power displayed by Ghost Lake City, or rather, by Su Nan, far exceeded their expectations.

Kasham and Ugo's defeat was well-deserved.

However, this didn't stop her from feeling disdain and anger toward Ugo.

If he had put up a better fight and inflicted more damage on Ghost Lake City before dying, she would have had more room to maneuver.

But now, she had no confidence at all in holding off Ghost Lake City.

Once Su Nan was free to act, it would be the end for Mato and Osen.

What could they do?

The Red Widow glanced at the Black Duke, who was still ranting and raving, a glint of something different in her crimson eyes.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end