Chapter 419 - 416: Slaughter

Chapter 419: Chapter 416: Slaughter

Wrapped in the dust and smoke, Mo Ling heard a roar like a raging tempest.

It was the voice of another of his kind, a sponge creature.

"God!"

The voice was calling out to Mo Ling, declaring its wish to him.

But unlike the petrified rock from before, this voice held no respect whatsoever.

"God! I want a truly exhilarating battle! I want an enemy stronger than me!"

The voice cried out with abandon, its deafening roar wrapped in boundless hostility that surged toward Mo Ling like a tidal wave.

’So this is where all that hostility was coming from.’

The hostility that had torn Mo Ling’s body apart originated from this very creature of his kind.

Moreover, this hostility also contained the "wish" it sought to make.

As Mo Ling slowly processed it all, he finally understood.

...

「In the distant past.」

In a volcanic plain, a sponge creature of extraordinary talent was born.

Like Mo Ling, it was embroiled in conflict from the moment of its birth.

It killed any creature that showed it hostility and absorbed their bodies.

With its ever-strengthening body, it became unstoppable on the volcanic plain, killing every target that was hostile to it.

Combat was its sole purpose.

The same was true when it met its own kind—it would grant them a glorious death.

Through constant battle, it developed its sponge body to an ever-deeper extent.

At first, it could only regenerate its body. Later, it could freely combine the bodies of different creatures and even separate itself completely to form a powerful army.

But it remained unsatisfied, always wanting to become stronger.

’Battle is for becoming strong, and becoming strong is for battle.’

’Only by constantly growing stronger can I grant all of creation a glorious death!’

Its goal was crystal clear.

It fought its way from the foot of the mountain to the summit, growing stronger all the while. Finally, it entered the tallest volcano to battle the strongest of its kind within the crater.

Naturally, it was victorious.

It had developed its body to a terrifying degree. Its opponent didn’t even have time to resist before being smashed to smithereens and granted a glorious death.

’So weak...’

It was disappointed. It had expected the creature in the crater to give it a battle for the ages, one that would shake the very heavens. But it never imagined the so-called "strongest of its kind" couldn’t even withstand a single one of its punches.

Having no other choice, it occupied the crater and waited for others of its kind to challenge it.

Many came to challenge it, and at first, it eagerly anticipated that they would bring it a truly satisfying fight.

Unfortunately, they were all surprisingly weak, and it gradually lost its joy for combat.

However, through these constant battles, it still learned a few new things from its weaker brethren, continuing to develop its body.

Eventually, these low-quality battles became a source of great torment.

’They’re all just too weak.’

None of them could withstand a single one of its moves. They were often instantly killed the moment they entered the crater.

Its sponge body could already expand, contract, and change shape at will.

It scattered fragments of itself throughout the crater. The moment it sensed anything approach, it would attack and annihilate the target.

Amid these uninteresting battles, its power stalled. It had no choice but to start thinking of a way to break through its limits.

Finally, it thought of a solution:

To fight the world itself.

’If all things can generate hostility, that must mean they want to fight too.’

’Fighting my own kind isn’t enough! I will fight the earth! I will fight the sky! I will fight the mountains! I will fight the sea! I will fight the stars!’

As it happened, something was already generating hostility toward it: the Volcano.

’The Volcano is about to erupt.’

Without hesitation, it soared into the air and positioned itself directly over the crater.

"Volcano! Let’s have a fight!" it roared directly at the Volcano.

As if in response, the Volcano let out a great RUMBLE. Magma churned within, and thick smoke began to billow out.

’Bring it on!’

Its sponge body instantly unfurled into a giant net, swooping down to cover the smoke.

As the giant net contracted, it created a powerful gust of wind. The billowing smoke was instantly reversed, swept back down into the crater.

It had effortlessly neutralized the Volcano’s smoke attack.

But it knew this was just an appetizer. A far more terrifying power was brewing in the Volcano’s geothermal veins.

Before long, with another roar from the Volcano, magma erupted.

’This is the main course!’

Its body instantly swelled, blocking the center of the crater.

Watching the approaching magma, it turned and gathered its strength before unleashing a heavy punch, slamming it viciously into the flow of lava.

Instantly, fiery sparks flew. The terrifying energy within the lava was ignited by the force of the punch, erupting in a blaze of red light.

The entire lava flow was brought to a near standstill by the force of the blow. Shockwaves traveled down the lava and throughout the geothermal veins, destabilizing their tremors.

But that wasn’t all. That was only the first punch.

Its sponge body granted it incredible flexibility.

White steam shot from its pores as it unleashed a barrage of countless more heavy punches down upon the lava flow.

The viscous flow of lava was instantly battered, its surface rippling and trembling as light radiated from it.

The hurricane of heavy blows ignited all the energy within the lava, its heat turning to white smoke that rose to the heavens.

The pores of its sponge body inhaled the white smoke—the wailing screams of the lava—which only fanned the flames of its battle lust, making its punches even fiercer.

Finally, under this terrifying assault, the lava flow could take no more.

After a final flash of light, the lava’s contained energy was completely spent.

However, that energy was finite. After such a violent release, it was completely depleted.

The once-surging flow of lava began to dim and darken, cooling into hard volcanic rock.

’How dull! No resistance at all!’

It slammed a fist down onto the now completely cooled volcanic rock. The immense force traveled through the hardened rock and into the geothermal veins, forcibly grinding them to a halt.

The volcanic eruption had actually been stopped!

It had started to retreat halfway through its eruption.

The battle wasn’t even over, yet one side had chosen to retreat. The sponge creature felt utterly bored; it hadn’t had its fill of battle at all.

’Is even a Volcano this weak?’

The sponge creature suddenly realized that even this natural hostility could be so easily resolved through combat.

’In that case, I will fight the entire world!’

And so, it left the volcanic plain and began a journey of battle throughout the abyss.

Because it started fights wherever it went, it slowly became well-known to the creatures of the abyss.

And because of its sponge body that sometimes scattered and sometimes coalesced, other creatures mistook it for an entire species.

But in reality, there was only one.

It was quite satisfied with the name those creatures gave it—Slaughter.

After Slaughter learned of the Sea of Creation’s existence, it came here.

Its purpose was clear:

An exhilarating battle, and an enemy stronger than itself.

...

"God! Hurry and satisfy me!"

"Or you can come fight me yourself! I’ve never killed a god before! I will grant you a glorious death!"

Slaughter unleashed its hostility without restraint, its thread-like presence blanketing the entire world like a dark cloud.

Just as it was clamoring, a thin strand of sponge reached out and instantly flicked aside the terrifying thread of hostility.

The balloon floated lightly in the air:

"I’ll... fight you."