Chapter 26: The Last Echo (Patreon)

[March 7th: Oh my god!! The sky is falling!! What is that thing?!

[Kiana Kaslana: Tushan isn't about to be wiped out, is it?!

[Silver Wolf: So he really is unrivaled under heaven — and now he's facing an enemy from beyond the heavens.

Gusttave immediately pulled Wise and Belle behind him, golden light exploding around his body to envelop the whole of Tushan.

Then he flew out beyond Tushan, alone, to block that beam of annihilation.

The beam was devastatingly powerful, strong enough to erase all of Tushan — and the entire Ring along with it.

But Gusttave's own strength was nothing to scoff at. Boosted by his Trait, his power was multiplying by the moment.

The Trait, Strictest Father of an Alien Race, could amplify his strength up to a hundredfold at its peak — but until now, Gusttave had never been able to push it to its true limit.

Now, the attack from beyond the heavens had finally forced that Trait to reveal its maximum power for the first time.

Power poured into him like an inverted sea of stars, every inch of flesh and blood roaring in response — Gusttave's strength was climbing at an incredible, almost unbelievable speed.

In the distance, the Third Young Master of Aolai watched, his pupils contracting sharply — this pressure was more terrifying than even his own peak had ever been!

[March 7th: A hundredfold power!! Is this the ultimate form of the cheat king?!

[Kiana Kaslana: So freaking cool! Come on, Brother Wang, smash that damn beam to pieces!

The beam slammed into the golden barrier Gusttave had thrown up, the impact roaring deafeningly!

Space shattered layer upon layer, the shockwave sweeping across the entire planet. Every living being within the Circle cowered flat on the ground in terror — even Huandu Qingtian, a Yao Sovereign in his own right, went pale and slumped onto his throne in the Nanguo palace.

Gusttave spread both arms wide, his robes whipping wildly, and forced back that world-ending blow through sheer will. The clouds beneath his feet evaporated entirely, and the strike even punched a pitch-black hole through the sky itself.

The image on the light screen cut back to the interior of Tushan.

Feixiao stood beneath the Bitter Love Tree, cold air rolling off her in waves, her deep blue fox eyes fixed unblinking on that blazing white figure in the sky.

All nine of her tails had emerged, fanning out behind her like a peacock's tail, each tip crackling with condensed ice-blue yao energy.

A fox spirit's power springs from the depth of true feeling — and seeing Gusttave caught in mortal danger, the fear surging through Feixiao pushed her strength straight past the barrier of a Greater Yao King. In that instant, she became a true Yao Sovereign.

But even a Yao Sovereign, faced with a blow like that, was no more than a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

"That idiot..." Feixiao ground the words out between clenched teeth. "Every single time. Every time he charges in alone, every time he shoulders it all by himself! Does he think he's made of iron?!"

Tingyun stood behind her, her folding fan already closed. For the first time, her peach-blossom eyes held none of their usual easy smile — only a thin veil of gravity.

With one hand she formed a seal, and Tushan's Mountain-Guarding Array slowly unfurled beneath her feet, pale-blue formation lines spreading like flowing water, marking every yao and mortal within Tushan's borders, ready to evacuate them at a moment's notice.

Huohuo, meanwhile, tilted her head back to watch that blazing white figure in the sky, her fox-fur cloak snapping in the shockwave's gale, her dark green hair whipping wildly in the wind.

Her lips pressed into a thin line. The hands at her sides clenched and unclenched, again and again, until her nails had carved bloody crescents into her palms.

A hundred years.

A hundred years ago, it had been this same man, standing in front of her the same way, shouldering everything alone the same way.

Back then, she'd been able to do nothing at all — only watch, helpless, as her own claws pierced through his chest, watch as his eyes closed in her arms.

A hundred years later, she was now Tushan's Grand Matriarch, with strength at the Yao Sovereign level — and still all she could do was stand on the ground, tilting her head back to watch him hold the front line alone.

Out in space, Gusttave — his strength surging — blocked the attack aimed at Aolai as well.

Then, bearing the weight of two beams each capable of effortlessly erasing an entire continent, even the whole surface of the world, he kept climbing higher into the sky.

At last, he arrived before the space passage from which that force had come.

By his strength alone, he pushed the attack from beyond the heavens back.

But the attack didn't weaken in the slightest — it kept unleashing that same overwhelming force.

Combined, that force was already enough to punch straight through the planet.

Gusttave's mana was draining away at a tremendous rate — if he hadn't been an Ultimate Life Form with extraordinary regenerative power, he would have collapsed long ago.

Just as Gusttave struggled to hold on, the alien race beyond the heavens hurled a treasure at him, intending to kill him outright.

After Gusttave revealed the full extent of his power, the alien race abandoned their plan to merely contain his strength.

Compared to restraining him, killing him was the far safer option.

That was why they kept sustaining such a powerful attack.

They were well aware that launching an attack like this across worlds would cost them dearly.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have settled for merely restraining the Third Young Master of Aolai's strength instead of simply killing him outright, back then.

Sustaining that level of power while also launching an attack strong enough to utterly annihilate Gusttave would cost them enough to gravely wound their own foundations.

A bizarre treasure wreathed in Chaos Black Flame tore through the barrier of space and shot straight for the point between Gusttave's brows, carrying a killing intent meant to end him for good!

That treasure could kill not only Gusttave's body but obliterate his very soul as well.

"Watch out!!"

Far off at the edge of the sky, the Third Young Master of Aolai roared out a warning. The phantom image of the Five-Finger Mountain above his head flickered as he desperately gathered his power to rush to the rescue — only to be held fast by his own restraints, leaving him nothing to do but bellow in furious frustration!

The Six-Eared Macaque and Fourth Monkey both burst into full speed, tearing toward Tushan — but the distance was too great; there was no way they'd make it in time!

The treasure moved at unimaginable speed, crossing ten thousand miles in an instant, streaking straight for the point between Gusttave's brows!

At that moment he was pouring everything into holding back the world-ending beam — he had no way to dodge, let alone spare any attention to defend himself!

[March 7th: Noooo—!!

[Kiana Kaslana: Dodge! Dodge, hurry!!

Without any surprise, the treasure pierced straight through Gusttave's skull, and his soul took a devastating blow as well, beginning to unravel and fade away.

But even at the very end, Gusttave refused to give up the fight. With the last of his strength, he sealed the space passage from beyond the heavens — even if only temporarily.

Having done all that, his body began to fall, breaking apart into motes of light that scattered and dissolved into the air.

Seeing this, Huohuo, Feixiao, Tingyun, Wise, and Belle all shot toward Gusttave at breakneck speed.

After catching hold of him, they tried everything they could think of, but nothing could stop him from dissolving — all they could do was watch, helpless, as he kept turning into motes of light and fading from the world.

"Gusttave—!!"

Feixiao's scream tore through the whole of Tushan, her ice-blue yao energy erupting out of control, freezing everything within ten miles into instant frost.

She had never been this afraid in her life. Was he really about to disappear — the man who always ruffled her hair, teased her until her fur stood on end, and walked beside her across the whole mortal world?

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