Chapter 348 - 290: The Final Curtain: The Death of ’Chu Bamboo’ and Fifth

Inside the nuclear facility.

Eleven, who was directing numerous souls to set up an array diagram, suddenly froze, his expression turning grim.

"What happened?" Fifth frowned, looking at Eleven.

"My moles planted in the union and the major factories have been rooted out!" Eleven’s voice turned icy. He paused for a moment, then, as if realizing something, slowly turned his head. His eyes narrowed as he scrutinized Fifth.

"You suspect me?" Fifth pointed at himself, astonished.

"But besides you, no one else knew the entire plan." Eleven’s voice was completely flat.

’It couldn’t be him who betrayed us, could it?’

"Hmph! You’re nuts." Fifth rolled his eyes and then strode toward the exit. "Let’s go outside and see. See if there’s any chance to salvage this..."

Eleven stared coldly at Fifth’s back. After thinking it over, he ignored the Two-headed Scale People’s provocations—"He’s a traitor, kill him!" "Fight, fight!"—and followed behind Fifth. He wanted to see just what the hell Fifth was planning!

’Even though he was still convinced Fifth was behind this... Eleven also believed that all of the All-Powerful’s Apostles were united in their goal of resurrecting the Master of All-Powerful and Omniscience... So even if Fifth really did do this, there had to be some deeper meaning, right?’

’Of course, if Fifth really was just that crazy... then there was nothing more to say! Eleven was confident that even if he couldn’t beat Fifth, he would have to report to the All-Powerful and kill this damn traitor, no matter the cost...’

Arriving at the main door, Fifth paused. He eyed the doorway with suspicion and uncertainty, a strange, subtle feeling washing over him.

"...What’s wrong with you?" Eleven was a little confused. ’And why are you backing away now... Huh? Why are you twenty meters away from me now?!’

"The key’s in your hand! You open the door..." Fifth said succinctly. Although it seemed rather impulsive, he had always trusted his impulses! They had helped him escape countless life-threatening crises...

"?" After a brief silence, Eleven cursed him for being nuts, took the key from a soul, opened the door, and calmly walked out.

Everything was fine.

"Hmm?" Fifth waited quietly for several breaths. Only after Eleven grew impatient and cursed a couple of times from outside did he slowly step out.

’Was it just his imagination?’

Thoughts churned in his mind as Fifth stepped into the air. The moment he landed, however, he sensed something. He glanced at the drone hundreds of meters up in the sky, narrowed his eyes, and focused his senses for a moment. A strange light flashed in his pupils, and the corner of his mouth curled into an odd smile. "Could the reason I felt something was off be... Interesting!"

"In any case... I’ve got you!"

...

Chu Bamboo lay prone in the grass, staring solemnly into the distance. Huo Qiming was beside him. He opened his mouth to speak several times, glancing cautiously at Huo Qiming, but after receiving a glare, he immediately shrank back, unable to say a word.

Suddenly.

An icy hand gripped Chu Bamboo’s neck. "Mr. Zhu, what are you... waiting for?"

Chu Bamboo’s pupils contracted. A look of astonishment appeared in his eyes, but after a brief silence, all the emotion in them transformed into admiration.

For a split second, Huo Qiming’s expression became incredibly complex, and then he retreated explosively without the slightest hesitation.

"Hmph!" Fifth raised an eyebrow, a look of surprise on his face. He watched Huo Qiming’s figure retreat without a backward glance, somewhat baffled. After a short pause, he used his hand to turn Chu Bamboo’s head to face him, their eyes meeting. His tone was slightly flippant. "I thought Commander Huo valued you so much... but now it seems..."

Fifth suddenly stopped talking. He felt that something was not quite right. ’Could it be... Destiny is warning me?’

He grabbed Chu Bamboo and retreated explosively, his face cold. But no matter how he retreated, the sense of crisis followed him like a shadow. "...What’s happening? Could it be... an Artifact has locked onto me? Impossible. Why can’t I escape... Dammit!"

And then...

In the next instant, a black light suddenly spread out.

"Wha—" Fifth only had time to utter a single syllable.

Everything was being annihilated!

"...What?!" Far away, floating in the void and watching Chu Bamboo with a pained expression, Eleven’s face changed drastically. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind. "It’s an ambush!!"

Without any hesitation, Eleven shot off into the distance.

"...Think you can escape?!" A somewhat cold voice suddenly rang out. It was Huo Qiming.

He had appeared, at some unknown point, directly in Eleven’s path of escape. He raised his hand and unleashed the "Give Me Back My Beauty Fist," countless overlapping fist shadows thundering toward him.

Translucent wings, seemingly constructed from souls, suddenly extended from Eleven’s back. Viscous and bizarre, they flapped forward, shielding his front.

The countless fists seemed to crash into the sea. Although they stirred up monstrous waves, they never truly harmed Eleven. Instead, Eleven used the force to launch himself even faster into the distance!

The two chased each other, and after several breaths, their figures vanished completely...

Soon.

The black light dissipated.

A ten-meter-radius cavity was left in the earth.

The drone flying above the nuclear facility quietly moved to the perimeter, filming silently.

Time ticked by.

A full half-hour later, the drone finally flew away slowly.

...

「Several kilometers away.」

Chu Bamboo sat cross-legged on the ground, staring at the drone footage on his phone. "The Big Orange Cat really didn’t show up?"

After a short pause, Chu Bamboo cautiously scanned his surroundings and found that the damn cat still hadn’t jumped out to startle him.

He scratched his head and nodded in understanding. He watched his phone for a moment, then instantly looked up again, scanning his surroundings. After looking around for a good while, he lowered his head once more...

After testing this five or six times, Chu Bamboo finally, in a daze, confirmed that there really was no problem. He rubbed his face and gave a wry smile. "I can’t believe... I’d have such a stress reaction to this!"

Closing his eyes to calm himself, Chu Bamboo began to ponder a very serious question. "Since the Big Orange Cat really didn’t come, does that mean she doesn’t care about Fifth at all... or that she simply couldn’t come?"

’Couldn’t come... that sounds incredible, doesn’t it?’

’After all, based on the Big Orange Cat’s previous behavior, it seemed like she could teleport anywhere on the map without restriction...’

But, if he were to set aside the terrifying sense of pressure the Big Orange Cat instilled in him and seriously analyze the true nature of her abilities...