Chapter 334: The Gap Between an Emperor and An Ace Rank
"Strange... how is this an Origin Network rule? It’s just a barrier."
He had originally thought it was merely a powerful skill.
It wasn’t.
This was something far more fundamental, a law imposed upon reality itself.
But with his Ender Passive Powers, he could ignore rules.
A slow grin spread across his face.
He casually walked over toward the Taoist members who had tried attacking him.
One of them noticed his approach and sneered.
"What are you going to do? The barrier prevents us from fighting each o-"
CRACK!
Caelus punched him directly in the face.
The man’s head snapped backward, blood spraying from his broken nose as he crashed to the ground.
"MY NOSE!"
Everyone froze in absolute shock.
Caelus wasn’t done though.
He spotted another Taoist member who had been particularly annoying earlier.
WHAM!
His foot connected directly between the man’s legs with devastating accuracy.
The sound that came out of the man’s mouth wasn’t human.
"EEEEEEEEEE..."
He collapsed in slow motion, clutching his destroyed manhood.
Caelus spotted a third one trying to run away.
SLAP!
The back of his hand connected with the man’s cheek, sending him spinning through the air.
The guy did three full rotations before crashing into a snowbank.
Everyone stared at Caelus with their mouths hanging open.
"..."
"..."
"..."
The silence stretched for what felt like an eternity.
Elder Sterling slowly walked over, his face carrying utter confusion.
"How... did you beat them up?"
"With the power of friendship," Caelus replied with a serious nod. "Anything is possible with the power of friendship."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Sylvia covered her mouth to hide her laughter, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
Seraphin Lin just shook her head with a helpless smile.
"Some things never change."
No matter what world. The guy she knew as Caelus Kross was strong no matter what world it was.
"He’s also very handsome." Seraphin Lin covered her face with a soft chuckle.
"Okay," Elder Sterling finally said, deciding not to question it further.
"We need to continue reaching Level 50."
Everyone resumed clearing the Corruption Zones with renewed vigor.
Zone after zone fell before their combined efforts.
[Combat Score: 140.42 → 143.67]
[Level: 35 → 36]
[Combat Score: 153.17 → 156.42]
[Level: 44 → 45]
Soon enough...
They all reached Level 50.
[Level: 50]
[Combat Score: 169.42]
Then the entire world abruptly stirred with violent energy.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The two experts in the sky had finally begun their true assault.
The Hollow Beast slowly emerged from the massive crack in reality, its form defying comprehension.
It was an absolutely grotesque creature, a nightmare given flesh and form.
Countless eyes covered its body, each one burning with malevolent intelligence.
Tentacles of pure corruption writhed around it, and its mouth opened to reveal rows upon rows of teeth.
Its overwhelming presence instantly covered the entire area like a suffocating blanket.
Marcus clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white.
"I... I can’t even breathe..."
Even the Taoist and Shinto members looked absolutely terrified, their earlier confidence completely shattered.
Caelus narrowed his eyes as he studied the creature.
"So this is Emperor-Rank?"
It was unbelievably powerful, its mere presence warping reality around it.
The next moment, the two aliens attacked.
Only then did Caelus truly understand what real experts looked like.
They casually suppressed the Hollow Beast like it was nothing more than an annoying insect.
CRACK!
The entire ocean surrounding Antarctica split apart, water rising in massive walls that touched the clouds.
RUMBLE!
The sky trembled and cracked, reality itself struggling to contain the battle.
The earth beneath them fractured into countless pieces, ice shelves the size of cities crumbling into dust.
WHOOSH! BOOM! CRACK!
Everything shook under the overwhelming force of their clash, the world itself groaning in protest.
"Are they really Emperor-Rank?" Caelus gulped audibly. "Just why is Emperor-Rank so much stronger than Ace-Rank? They have to be above Emperor-Rank, right?"
He glanced toward Sterling with concern.
The man couldn’t even stand properly under the pressure, his legs trembling violently.
Sylvia held onto Caelus for support, she was awed by the battle she was witnessing right now.
"This is incredible."
"I know," Caelus agreed. "I want to be that strong."
Once the battle ended, the two experts descended gracefully from the sky.
The Hollow Beast was nowhere to be seen, presumably sealed or destroyed entirely.
"We are done," the human said calmly. "We will be leaving."
Before they could vanish, Caelus quickly raised his hand.
"Wait! How do I reach Emperor-Rank like you two?"
The two experts glanced at each other with unreadable expressions.
The human turned back to answer.
"Reaching Emperor-Rank in a Tier 1 World is as difficult as climbing the tallest mountain. First, your world must evolve into a Tier 2 World."
"Emperor-Rank is the first stage of evolution."
"Not even 9,999 Combat Score at Ace-Rank equals 1 Combat Score at Emperor-Rank."
"That is why it is a qualitative leap."
Hearing this, everyone was completely stunned into silence.
"What? That’s impossible! How can there be such a gap between Ace-Rank and Emperor-Rank?" someone from the Shinto faction asked with horror in his voice.
Everyone else was tongue-tied as well, unable to process the information.
The Ice Elf remained silent for a long moment.
She simply looked down at everyone with ancient eyes.
"You people know nothing of the immensity of Heaven and Earth."
"You haven’t even reached the Space League of Tier 1 Worlds."
"Grow stronger."
"The strongest among your world is barely equivalent to ants in a Tier 2 World."
At the same time, the Ice Elf’s gaze slowly shifted toward the Taoist and Shinto faction members.
"It seems the Taoist and Shinto factions are up to no good."
"I can sense your malicious intentions."
She casually raised a single finger, frost gathering at its tip.
The next moment...
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Most of the Taoist and Shinto members exploded into ice, their bodies shattering into frozen fragments.
Zhang Wei and Ayame trembled in absolute horror, their faces drained of all color.
Then, the Ice Elf slowly turned her gaze toward Ayame with widened eyes.