Chapter 413: Captured (Two-in-One)

"How did you do that?"

The Magician looked at Yan Jing and asked.

"Do what?"

Yan Jing smiled. "Yawn?"

"Come, the Fourth Master will teach you. Open your mouth, breathe in, and then find that feeling of throwing up—"

The Magician's gaze darkened.

He felt that this stupid cat hadn't seen through his tier at all, otherwise he wouldn't dare act so cocky in front of him.

"The stock of Space-Type Potions within Heavenly Kingdom numbers fewer than two hundred, and of those, only ten percent possess spatial traversal capabilities. But as far as I know, no spatial potion can cross more than ten meters. Not to mention you are only at the fourth tier."

He looked at Yan Jing and spoke softly. "I figured it out."

"You stole unmarketed pharmaceutical items from the Four Major Conglomerates."

"That adds another charge to your crimes."

Yan Jing scratched his head.

He hadn't quite adapted to this American style of law enforcement.

However, one detail piqued his interest.

"Did you say the stock of Space-Type Potions numbers fewer than two hundred?"

The Magician ignored the question.

He was losing his patience.

This was just an incidental mission. As a seventh-tier, he was very busy and had no time for Yan Jing's banter.

As for what he needed to know, he could just capture the cat and interrogate him.

With a flick of his cane, playing cards snapped into a sequential orbit in front of him, forming a circle.

In the next instant, the cards multiplied—one becoming ten, ten becoming a hundred. Thousands of circular card formations materialized in every direction, locking onto Yan Jing.

"Snap." He snapped his fingers, and streaks of iridescent light blasted from the rings of cards.

A terrifying chain of explosions ripped through the air.

Half a second later, the iridescent light dissipated. The Magician walked through the billowing smoke toward where Yan Jing had stood.

He had held back, deliberately avoiding Yan Jing's vital spots to guarantee a live capture.

But in the next instant, he stiffened.

Long thorns gleaming with dark light pierced through the smoke. There were tens of thousands of them, aiming right at him just as his card formations had aimed at the cat.

Pitch-black light flared at the tips of the long spikes. They filled the space from the ground all the way up hundreds of meters into the sky. Densely packed and overwhelmingly vast, they formed a heavenly prison.

A bead of sweat broke out on the Magician's forehead.

"I'll ask one more time. You just said there are fewer than two hundred Space-Type Potions, right?"

Yan Jing smiled.

[Peerless: Fear Thorn]

This was the effect of Peerless. As the reward for the most perilous battle Yan Jing had experienced so far, the sixth rite had elevated his strength once more.

The Magician did not hesitate. Worn magician's hats instantly materialized around him, their circular bottoms facing outward, completely surrounding him.

A split second later, the Fear Thorns rained down like a torrential storm. Weird energy swept through the clearing like a hurricane.

Standing on the periphery, the Ancient Cultivator's eyes flashed with shock.

The scene before him—how could a fourth-tier possibly unleash this?

The storm of sharp blades lasted for several seconds. The Ancient Cultivator took a deep breath, an indescribable aura rising around him. He tried to step into the storm, but the resistance far exceeded his imagination; his forward progress was agonizingly slow.

Finally, as a burst of flames erupted in the center of the Fear Thorns, thousands of spikes were reduced to ashes.

The Magician stood amidst the flames, his black tuxedo scorched to the color of charcoal.

The areas shielded by the hats seemed fine, but the gaps between them were now riddled with sharp thorns.

Blood trickled down his body.

His eyes were squeezed shut, his face contorted in pain. Bloody tears rolled down his cheeks, clinging to his mustache.

"I want you dead!!!"

He opened his eyes and roared at Yan Jing.

In an instant, two thorn-covered, half-human iron shells materialized around Yan Jing and forcefully clamped shut.

They snapped on empty air.

Yan Jing used Blink, appearing ten meters away.

Then the half-human cage appeared once more.

Yan Jing Blinked again.

"Boom! Boom!" Explosions echoed continuously through the air. The Magician was going mad with rage. Yan Jing was like a slippery loach; despite all his strength, he just couldn't catch him.

"Help me!"

He no longer cared about losing face and directly asked the Ancient Cultivator for help.

The Ancient Cultivator grinned. He had always found the Magician a bit pretentious, so seeing him suffer a rare setback made the usually unsmiling man chuckle.

But soon, he couldn't laugh at all.

Because Yan Jing's Blink distance suddenly surged again, extending from over ten meters to nearly fifty. What was more, he could Blink twice in a row.

Under these circumstances, the blasts of qi the cultivator fired all hit empty air.

[Peerless: Blink]

Yan Jing was using the two seventh-tier experts to test his newly acquired abilities. It was a golden opportunity; he couldn't normally find sparring partners of this caliber.

Moreover, he retracted his previous opinion on Cat Four's ability. Blinking a single meter might have offered limited help in a fight, but with increased distance, the utility of this ability grew exponentially.

Finally, tens of seconds later, having had enough fun, Yan Jing took a deep breath and pulled out an apple.

Under the enhancement of Peerless, the Fear Fruit looked different. Countless worms with hideous mouthparts burrowed out from the fruit's surface, each sporting a sharp thorn inside its mouth.

Yan Jing took a bite.

The tart, refreshing flesh burst inside his mouth.

Weird energy vast as an ocean surged from his body. The mutations across his form far exceeded anything before. With just a single mouthful of fruit, countless ferocious fleshy spikes erupted along his limbs. His hands transformed into massive, sharp claws, and his terrifying aura spiked.

[Peerless: Fear Fruit]

The scene stunned the two men on the ground. If they were merely suspicious a moment ago, they were absolutely certain now: this Yan Jing was definitely not at the fourth tier. He was at least at the seventh tier!

Their chests tightened. If Cat Four was at the seventh tier, then Luo Sheng—

They exchanged a subconscious glance, both seeing the urge to retreat in the other's eyes.

As their tiers had gradually climbed over the years, they had naturally grown increasingly protective of their own lives.

Their current strength and status had been bought with countless hardships and untold grievances. Neither was willing to throw his life away for nothing.

If Luo Sheng was truly at the eighth tier, then a seventh-tier was simply no match for him.

The gap between the seventh and eighth tiers was far larger than the gap between the fourth and fifth, or the second and third!

It was a true, uncrossable chasm.

But a second later, something even more terrifying occurred.

The aura surrounding Yan Jing suddenly skyrocketed.

Streams of weird energy shot into the sky. In the eyes of the two men, Yan Jing's tier began to surge: seventh tier—nearing the eighth tier—eighth tier—nearing the ninth tier!!!

They had no idea if that was actually the aura of a ninth-tier, simply because they had never seen one; they couldn't even imagine it.

The Magician's mustache trembled, the hand gripping his cane shaking madly. The Ancient Cultivator's swarthy face drained of color, his lean muscles aching in terror.

Run! Run!

They looked at each other and turned to flee.

Yan Jing's eyes were calm. Naturally, he had no intention of letting them go.

He had utilized the Stone Immortal state just to enhance the effectiveness of his control.

[Peerless: Freeze Moment]

Yan Jing was just about to blink when he suddenly sensed a familiar power rapidly approaching from a distance.

His expression shifted as he recognized what it was. Then, he Blinked dozens of times in succession, instantly appearing right beside the sprinting Magician and Ancient Cultivator.

The two were already scared out of their wits. Seeing Yan Jing manifest directly beside them nearly frightened the souls out of their bodies.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The Magician immediately hurled the hat off his head. Countless headless doves flew out, flapping their wings as they lunged at Yan Jing.

The wings of every bird were like the sharpest iron, slashing straight for Yan Jing's head.

But Yan Jing instantly activated Freeze Moment.

Whether doves or men, everything froze solid. Maintaining their final actions, they crashed to the ground.

When the two finally broke free from the fear and opened their eyes again, they realized Yan Jing had disappeared.

"Where did he go?"

The Magician was still rattled. Suddenly, he noticed he was holding a furry lump. Upon closer inspection, he nearly hurled the thing miles away.

Yan Jing was quietly letting himself be "grabbed" by the scruff of the neck, his claws hooked onto the Magician's arm.

What kind of evil sorcery was this?!

He grabbed his arm and shook it wildly, but the next second, Yan Jing's drake-like voice rang out. "Move again, and the Fourth Master will kill you."

The Magician didn't dare move.

He hadn't figured out the situation, but he was truly terrified of Yan Jing's god-like aura, so he could only choose to cooperate.

There was no helping it; that aura was just too terrifying. It was as if an ordinary person had walked out the door only to crash head-on into a giant whose legs stretched higher than the sky. Then, the giant leaned down, looked at the man who was no different from an ant, and smiled cruelly.

The Ancient Cultivator was also stunned. He looked at the Magician, then at Cat Four in the Magician's arms, and without hesitation, turned to flee.

But the next instant, the scent of death approached. His heart clenched fiercely. Sweat poured down his spine, completely soaking his back.

He stopped in his tracks.

He had a strong premonition that moving any farther forward meant certain death.

"Very good."

Yan Jing's mouth curled open, revealing a smile that sent shivers down their spines.

"Now, whoever moves out of turn, dies first."

Left with no choice, and not knowing what Yan Jing was up to, the two could only stand there in extreme frustration.

"I'm telling you, Big Rat, you need to calm down."

Through the earpiece, Crocodile's voice crackled. "You really need to calm down."

"I am very calm right now."

Big Rat's voice was heavy. "Calm. I'm so fucking calm I could explode."

But anyone could hear that Big Rat's current state had absolutely nothing to do with calm.

"Don't be rash. I'm telling you, they won't touch the kid. That kid is clever."

Crocodile wiped the sweat off his forehead. "As long as he doesn't give up Mr. Luo's location, they won't kill him straight away."

"I know."

"And this might be a trap, you know that right? Quan Dazhong might just be luring you out."

"I know."

"Also, you absolutely must not kill them. They're from the Security Department. If you kill them, it's over. They will genuinely end you."

"I know, I know, I fucking know it all!!"

Papa Rat roared. "But Crocodile, I'm telling you, if my Bacon dies—if Bacon dies, I'm going to rip them all to shreds!"

"This dogshit world, this dogshit country—I don't want to spend another fucking second saving it! They all deserve to die! Those pig-stupid anthill people who won't fight back deserve to die, those brain-dead morons up top deserve to die, and Quan Dazhong—they all deserve to die!"

Crocodile went silent.

He let out a deep sigh.

He knew there was no use saying anything now. Since Big Rat had said those words, he would truly do it.

"But you still have two other sons—"

Left with no choice, he resorted to a rare tactic.

As soon as the words left his mouth, the sprinting Boss Rat paused for a fraction of a second before abruptly hanging up the comms.

This was how he and Crocodile interacted.

He was ruthless and underhanded with everyone, Crocodile included.

And Crocodile wasn't underhanded with anyone—except for him.

Looking at the disconnected call, Crocodile sighed deeply again.

What else could he do? Right now, he could do nothing but pray.

Big Rat had long since caught Cat Four's scent. Vaulting over a towering abandoned building, he plunged through the air and spotted his kid.

Cat Four was hanging weakly onto his last breath, gripped in the hands of a man dressed like a magician. Beside the Magician stood a lean, muscular old man.

Looking at the blood covering Yan Jing's body and his fur matted with scabs, Big Rat felt hot blood rush straight to his head. Forcing down his rage, he landed with a "boom" in front of the two men and smiled. "Sirs, the one you've caught is my child. I don't know if there's been some misunderstanding, but my child has always been obedient."

"..."

The Magician didn't know what to say. Damn it, the scene before him was just too unfamiliar; he had never experienced anything like it. It wasn't until Yan Jing elbowed him that his expression twisted in pain. Throwing caution to the wind, he gave a ferocious grin. "Your child? Then come take a trip with us!"

"He is implicated in an extremely serious criminal case! He needs to return with us for investigation!"

"And what criminal case would that be?"

Boss Rat desperately suppressed the urge to attack.

"What right do you have to know?"

Feeling the sharp pain in his chest, the Magician forced a laugh. "Do I have to explain anything to scum like you? If you know what's good for you, come with us!"

"Pops, you should go—"

Yan Jing finally spoke. His breath was weak as a thread as he struggled to open his eyes, which were crusted with bloody scabs.

Sliding his claws weakly, truly looking like an exhausted cat, he murmured, "They... they are both seventh-tier... Pops, don't risk your life..."

"I'll be fine."

"Don't... don't ruin your plans... Pops."

"Didn't you say it yourself? For a gentleman's revenge, ten years is not too late..."

Yan Jing wanted Papa Rat to leave, intending to handle what came next on his own.

According to his plan, Papa Rat should have left after hearing those words.

The man before him held things in his heart far larger than family—matters far greater than familial love. Otherwise, Cat Four wouldn't have died in that abandoned building back then at the hands of a fifth-tier.

Just go...

His lowered gaze was as calm as a still lake. Just like always, he foresaw the ending.

"You brat, you only ever listen to half of what I say."

Papa Rat loosened the tie at his collar, his eyes bearing a viciousness completely different from his usual gentle calm. "When did your Pops ever say he was a gentleman?"