Under the moon, within the Silent Mountain Range, a brilliance akin to Venus pierced the darkness of the forests. The intense waves of Spiritual Energy caused all nearby birds and beasts to collapse in incontinence, paralyzed and weakened. It was a majestic aura, resembling a prison of gods!

Legendary Hero·Sword Emperor Form!

Bright's injuries had completely healed. His weathered and nearly dislocated tailbone was realigned, and the bruising on his face and his broken nose bone also returned to normal. Only the teeth knocked out of his mouth could not be recovered, possibly causing a slight whistle when he spoke. However, this could be addressed with modern medicine and was not important.

Having reassumed the elegant demeanor of a knight, Bright took a deep breath, raised his head high, and declared to the despicable couple before him, "I hope I can prepare for you a perfect and grand funeral."

Bright admitted he had miscalculated—he didn't expect his normal combat power to be outmatched by the joint attack of this despicable couple. Ren Suo's close-range destructive might was enough to smash through his defenses, and Qiao Muyi's powerful Spells were also a considerable threat to him.

Had that been all, it wouldn't have mattered. As a C-level Transcendent, Bright's Attack Power, defensive power, and speed were all far superior to the two. Every time Ren Suo managed to breach his armor, if Bright could land just one hit on Ren Suo, it would tear Ren Suo's smelly mouth and even his toenails to shreds.

To him, Qiao Muyi was no different from a Paper Person. He and Qiao Muyi were natural enemies; whoever was slightly stronger would completely dominate the other!

Yet, he could not land a single blow!

Ren Suo's speed wasn't as fast as his, but each time Ren Suo would perfectly Dodge his blade's edge or back away with an Ice Explosion, evading with agility like a Russian teasing a Black Bear. Whenever Bright tried to go after Qiao Muyi, before he could even charge over, Ren Suo would immediately engage, targeting his face, knees, and tailbone with a fury of assaults!

It was like a living, mocking minion that had to be prioritized for attack!

When he turned to target Ren Suo, Qiao Muyi would cast long-range Spells to manipulate the terrain against him—when Bright stepped into the Scorching Heat mud, Ren Suo could actually glide across it like ice!

The coordination of these two shattered all of Bright's underestimation. Ren Suo's Armor Break close combat and Qiao Muyi's potent Spells, when combined, indeed possessed the power to challenge those beyond their level.

Since he couldn't completely overpower them with sheer strength, then... he must become even stronger! Crush their teamwork with greater might, shatter their foolish illusions!

This was the mightiest form he intended to reveal when he challenged Angel Zack under the eyes of the world. Now that he had to unveil it prematurely, not only did he lose the element of surprise, but he also didn't have much time left—soon, other Transcendents would be hurrying over from afar.

Bright held out his Cross Lightsaber. His gaze trailed over the blade's edge as he looked directly forward. With a voice full of commanding confidence, he declared, "When I don this Armor of Justice, your attacks, Ren Suo, will pose no danger to me."

"Give up. Do not attempt to challenge my spare effort with your full might! Ren Suo, can't you see the gap between you and me?"

"Is love truly everything in your life? Is it worth betting your life for?!"

The last sentence was almost a roar from Bright. His voice echoed through the mountains, like the overwhelming pressure of a mountain range, compelling anyone who saw it to inwardly sigh, Indeed, a champion of justice.

With a sweep of his Light Saber, Bright unleashed a heaven-splitting ray of sword light, carving through the earth for over fifty meters, turning soil, gravel, and trees all into dust!

"You could do so much more if you were to continue living." Bright shook his head slightly. "Your family wouldn't want to see you like this."

Bright didn't say anything to Qiao Muyi; she already knew they were natural enemies, and anything Bright said would be pointless.

But Ren Suo was different. Bright could see that Ren Suo was Qiao Muyi's pillar of emotional support. Should Ren Suo choose to give up, not only would Qiao Muyi surrender, but she might even transform into the appearance he was hoping for!

Therefore, Bright kept verbally attacking Ren Suo, trying to shake his resolve through powerful charisma and rhetoric, using threats and emotional appeals.

However, no matter what Bright said, Ren Suo's face always remained calm, like a wooden figure, with a strangely inexplicable smile.

"Your righteous demeanor is truly shameful."

He replied, "You don't need to worry about my family's affairs. My parents are waiting for me to bring her home."

Bright narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the fearlessly brave Ren Suo and Qiao Muyi behind him, a hint of envy... and jealousy sprouting within his heart.

He cleared his mind of all thoughts and said, "Your stubbornness is really exasperating... However, your coordination is truly astonishing, and in terms of combat skills, you've completely defeated me... But my justice will tear you both to shreds!"

"I'm sorry."

With a sonic boom from his position, Bright, transformed into Holy Light, charged toward Qiao Muyi!

Logically, Bright should have harbored far more resentment towards Ren Suo than towards Qiao Muyi. Perhaps killing Ren Suo might even provoke some pleasant changes in Qiao Muyi... Yet, Bright suddenly felt that killing Ren Suo was uninteresting.

It seemed more fun to kill Qiao Muyi first, liven up the atmosphere, and see if Ren Suo would just drop dead right there.

However, though Bright was fast, there was someone faster than him!

At the very moment Bright was speeding ahead, Ren Suo suddenly appeared above him, his Fiery Flame fist striking down like a Pile Driver toward the back of Bright's neck!

The Armor of Justice almost seemed to leak under the intense blow. Struck hard, Bright thought resentfully, "What does it matter if you hit me? You cannot breach my armor..."

The Spiritual Energy structure of the Radiant Armor was not something that could be broken by the Mysterious Country's ordinary Finger Lock Spell!

"The moonlight is beautiful."

Accompanying Ren Suo's whisper, the Flame Moonlight exploded from his fist, brutally piercing through the Armor of Justice!

How did he know the armor at the back of the neck was the weakest!?

Although a vital area was heavily struck, Bright's Armor of Justice recovered extremely fast. He didn't even fall; instead, he twisted his ankle and turned around, his Light Saber transforming into three streaks of light and shadow slashing towards Ren Suo!

Three Dragon Fang Slash!

The earth tore open terrifying fissures from the three Dragon Fangs, the night sky cleared, and the ground thundered in response!

Ren Suo vanished into thin air again. The Dragon Fangs snapped at nothing. Then Bright felt something extra beneath him, followed by a familiar sensation on his neck—

Flame Spiral Pile Driver + Flame Blast Moonlight Blade!

UWAH!

Bright was sent flying into the air, filled with immense shock—

Teleport! Ren Suo could actually Teleport! And it was successive short-range Teleports! An endless array of Spells, close-combat skills comparable to those of a Transcendent, Unparalleled coordination, coupled with the miracle of Teleportation Spells...

"So what?"

Bright shouted, his swordplay blossoming like flowers as he unleashed thirty-six sword beams in a 360-degree arc!

Ghost Dragon Dance!

The night sky turned completely white, while the ground was hollowed into a massive crater. Qiao Muyi retreated quickly to avoid the earth-shattering sword beams, anxiously watching the center of the Radiance.

For some reason, seeing Ren Suo's movements, Qiao Muyi naturally unleashed Spells that complemented Ren Suo's attacks. Several times when Ren Suo faced danger, Qiao Muyi retained her composure, using her Spells at just the right moments to combine with Ren Suo's strikes, pummeling Bright mercilessly.

This time, although she watched as Ren Suo fell into Bright's deadly sword dance, Qiao Muyi wasn't worried at all.

Because she saw Ren Suo's calm smile, she knew he had the situation well in hand!

Sure enough, the frenzied sword dance suddenly broke off. Bright roared angrily and was sent flying into the air!

He tried to cover his neck, and at that moment Qiao Muyi opportunely cast the combined Spell Flame Dance + Formless Sword, shooting out five Blazing Flying Swords!

Bright ignored the Blazing Flying Swords and used his own sword to tightly protect his neck, but Ren Suo Teleported right behind him—

AHHHHHH—

Though the Armor of Justice was strong and could recover automatically, if it suffered successive blast attacks before it could fully heal, its defensive power would significantly diminish.

Facing Ren Suo's ruthless and ubiquitous attacks, Bright frantically employed wide-ranging Sword Techniques in an attempt to harm Ren Suo—believing that even a slight graze would peel skin and flesh from Ren Suo!

But he just couldn't hit him!

Ren Suo seemed to anticipate all his attacks' weak spots. While Qiao Muyi's powerful Spells couldn't penetrate his armor, their force kept him airborne. Bright was like a doll in a storm, tossed about in disarray by this despicable wind and rain pair.

After a few seconds, Bright was hammered down by Ren Suo, deeply embedded into the ground!

Bright immediately rolled over to resume his fighting stance, instinctively tensing his neck muscles and contracting his sphincter. He noticed that Ren Suo didn't rush over again but instead stood at a distance, healing his fists.

During the Flame Moonlight explosion, not only was Bright damaged, but Ren Suo's fists were equally injured.

With a moment's thought, Bright figured out what had happened—Ren Suo couldn't Teleport anymore.

Such consecutive Teleports would surely be hugely draining for a Transcendent. Ren Suo's strength wasn't very formidable. Even though the reason behind his mastery of the miraculous Teleportation Spell was a mystery, nearly ten seconds of continuous Teleportation must have been his limit!

Or perhaps, he was using some kind of prop for Teleport, with a limit to the number of short-duration Teleports!

Looking at Ren Suo's calmly smiling face, Bright's eyes flashed fiercely. He slightly curbed his smile as murderous intent surged within him.

The next turn is mine!

He slashed a massive sword beam towards Qiao Muyi from afar and charged towards her with explosive speed!

"Eh...?"

Ren Suo matched his speed, again aiming for his tailbone. Naturally, Bright wouldn't just allow that and counter-slashed towards Ren Suo—

He hit nothing!

Ren Suo barely dodged the edge of the sword, and the Flame Spiral Pile Driver struck up from below, hitting Bright Leoport squarely on the chin!

Struck hard, Bright had only one thought—why has my speed slowed down? How could he pierce through my armor?

Ren Suo pounded away with both fists in a frenzied piling attack, sending Bright flying. But Qiao Muyi's Fiery Flame Earth Spike was also ready, greeting Bright with a scorching-hot spike as he flew towards it!

After being battered back and forth like this for nearly a minute, Bright found an opportunity to activate the Ghost Dragon Dance and exited the battlefield to examine his condition.

The light of his sword had dimmed.

The Radiance of his armor... had thinned!

The essence of Legendary Hero·Sword Emperor Form bolstered him by burning his Microcosm to equip a set of perfect armor that enhanced his overall strength. But this form was naturally not without cost, as it too required consumption of Spiritual Energy.

In the 10 seconds Ren Suo kept Teleporting, Bright's Armor of Justice was repeatedly hit. In his efforts to free himself, he kept using wide-range Sword Techniques with immense power. Consequently, his Spiritual Energy had been drained too much!

To maintain the Sword Emperor form, Bright's Microcosm automatically reduced the Spiritual Energy output, hence the significant drop in enhancements.

I, Bright, a C-level Transcendent, the End Sword User, the Federation's Second Watcher, the future strongest of Earth... Was actually left disarmed and fleeing by two D-level Transcendents!?

Watching as Ren Suo and Qiao Muyi came at him again, Bright bit through his lip, drawing blood, as his will to fight blazed like a volcanic eruption.

Ren Suo could no longer Teleport, but I still maintained the Sword Emperor form. My strength far surpassed both of them! Even if I die here, beaten to death, I must not flee and tarnish my reputation!

「Thirteen minutes later.」

BOOM!

When Bright's Armor of Justice completely shattered, he didn't hesitate or even utter a harsh word; he turned and fled into the woodland!

Ren Suo didn't hesitate to give chase, with Qiao Muyi following behind, her eyes filled with disbelief.

That Fourth Stage Expert, who could well be considered her natural enemy, had been defeated by their collaboration and was now making a desperate escape!

There was no question about Bright's strength—one look at the terrain, which resembled a field ravaged by hundreds of excavators, made it clear it was almost entirely carved by Bright's own hand and sword. Qiao Muyi couldn't even block a single strike. However, Ren Suo brazenly tangled Bright in close-quarters combat, preventing him from attacking Qiao Muyi, while also flawlessly executing Preemptive Strikes, dodges, and attacks!

Bright might not have noticed, but from a distance, Qiao Muyi felt that they seemed as if they had practiced hundreds or thousands of times. Each move fit together seamlessly, as though Bright were serving his tailbone and neck up on a platter to Ren Suo's fists.

We can win! If we kill Bright and take his Ability, then everything will come to a perfect end!

The problem was whether Bright could escape.

However, when Qiao Muyi saw Ren Suo charging forward, his face maintaining the same calm smile as ever, she doubted no longer.

Ren Suo's strong confidence and power were the best assurances of peace of mind.

When Ren Suo could no longer Teleport, Bright's fearsome combat power had almost killed them both. But time after time, Ren Suo had saved the day, spending more than ten minutes gradually wearing away Bright's will to fight and his armor!

Her and Ren Suo's perfect cooperation would definitely not let that dog Bright escape!

Indeed, this was the case. Although Bright was fast, Ren Suo clung to him using ice gliding and Ghostly Rapid Step, allowing Qiao Muyi to catch up and cast Spells to continue the hindrance.

Sometimes Bright purposefully showed flaws, trying to exchange a wound for a kill, but in the end, it was he who got wounded while Ren Suo remained unscathed.

After a few more minutes of this mixed-gender beatdown, a battered, bruised, and possibly broken-nosed Bright roared, "I curse you, this damned couple—you'll go to Hell with me!"

"You will go to Hell, while we will live a heavenly life in the Human World," Ren Suo replied with a calm smile, as a Flame Spiral Piling hit Bright in the kidney.

Watching Bright struggle like a wild dog about to be neutered, Qiao Muyi suddenly felt a sense of unreality. Was this the Federation's Second Watcher, who wielded power that was difficult to resist? Was this the powerful End Sword User? Was this the mastermind behind everything?

However, upon reflection, Qiao Muyi realized her journey had been filled with one miracle after another. If not for the people of the Fairy Palace World Tree helping to fend off disasters, if she had not persisted in investigating and escaping, if she had not successfully evaded the encirclement of Transcendents, she would never have had the chance to take on Bright alone. She might have been corrupted by Resentment into a Demon King, or captured and executed by Transcendents, or might even have committed suicide due to depression.

And all the credit for this went to the man up ahead, who was relentlessly beating Bright.

Qiao Muyi suddenly sighed to herself, thinking that when she got back, she would have to keep Ren Suo on a tight leash, even if it meant falling out with Dong Chengling and the others.

Otherwise, if Ren Suo fell in love with someone else, she would be very, very hurt, but she would never leave him.

To prevent that from happening, the best way was, of course, to find all sorts of ways to make Ren Suo utterly devoted to her...

At that moment, Bright, who was covered in blood from the beating, suddenly burst out laughing. "I've always thought that it was the ugly ones who made beauties stand out. I've always thought it was the commoners who highlighted the Sages. I've always thought it was the cowards who set off the heroes. I've always thought it was mortal beings who manifested the Buddha. I've always thought it was the Demon King who created the Brave."

"You... damn it." Ren Suo's voice remained calm, but for some reason, his words were broken into two parts.

"I haven't lost to you; I've simply lost to *you two*—everyone is an isolated island in the sea, so why can your two islands join together and resist the tsunamis I've stirred up?" Bright laughed desolately.

He had originally come with a scythe to harvest wheat, but now the wheat was going to harvest him instead.

He had not underestimated the enemy; he had taken them very seriously—that's why Bright had come in person.

But how could he have anticipated the multitude of hidden cards and the perfect coordination of these two? When an ordinary person goes to harvest wheat, do they worry about the wheat suddenly becoming a wheat monster? When an ordinary person steps on an ant, do they worry that ant might actually be Ant-Man?

If they had had fewer hidden cards, if their coordination wasn't so perfect, or if Bright had managed to land even one blow, they would have been torn to pieces!

Bright still couldn't believe his own failure. He thought he would become the Earth Federation's first president with a perfect posture, become the first human Long-living Being on Earth, and touch the mysterious and vast world through the Fairy Palace, World Tree, or Three Gods.

And these two people? One was a Healing Cultivator from Heavenly Lotus Academy, barely scraping by, and the other was a mere squadron leader from the Tactical Bureau. Your ambition does not match your Abilities.

So, I, Bright Leoport, really am... very jealous of you both.

I knew my father's dozens of mistresses, one of whom was even my high school classmate. I've seen those married couples who vowed their eternal love, only to end up hiring lawyers to divide their property. I've seen lonely humans whom my Spells easily charmed and swayed.

Money, violence, supernatural power—these three are the necessary conditions to establish a relationship of Trust.

But you two? Why would anyone help a Demon King hunted by the whole world? Why would a Demon King, viewed as an enemy by the whole world, trust someone else? I don't understand. I just don't get it.

So, I didn't lose to the Demon King; I just lost to a pair... a rare kind of despicable couple.

Bright blocked Ren Suo's Flame Moonlight Blade, ignoring the charred cuts on his hand. He looked towards Qiao Muyi in the distance, a sense of finality settling over him. "It doesn't matter anymore," he said. "You are the Demon King, and I am the Brave. Neither of us needs to exist in this world... Without me, this world stage naturally doesn't need you either."

"I need."

"So what?" Bright exclaimed, his eyes showing a cruel satisfaction. "Let's go together!"

He knew what using this move would do to himself, but he knew even better its power—a pure weapon against the Demon King, unstoppable, undodgeable. Even if Ren Suo wanted to block it, it was already too late.

In an instant, the light in Bright's eyes vanished. The Microcosm within him completely extinguished. His soul, will, Telekinesis, Spell Meridians—all these chaotic elements transformed into a brilliant arrow of radiance.

When the light in Bright's eyes disappeared, Ren Suo had already vanished from the spot.

When the tip of the arrow of radiance touched Qiao Muyi, Ren Suo was already holding her.

A flood of Knowledge, hot enough to boil brain matter, suddenly streamed into Qiao Muyi's mind. While withstanding the tearing pain in her head, her eyes widened as she looked at Ren Suo.

Ren Suo still maintained that calm smile, his eyes devoid of any emotional fluctuations, as if nothing had happened.

He gently closed his eyes. His body, his clothes, his hair—all dissolved into Radiance and vanished.

Qiao Muyi instinctively extended her hand to catch him, but only a white feather landed in her palm.

"Xiao Suo...?"

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