199 Su Yan

The lightning dragon followed Heero and charged towards the horde.

However, unlike the phoenix which had instantly swept away the specters with an explosion, the lightning dragon

entered the earth. Butcher Wang witnessed the dragon's head vanish as soon as it touched the ground.

There was no explosion, similar to the phoenix. Butcher Wang furrowed his brows, puzzled by what had happened to the lightning. Nothing occurred until the tail entered the earth.

However, soon after, the ground began to shake, and he almost fell as a result. He then observed that the ground where Heero had landed was cracked, and beyond the crack, Butcher Wang saw bright yellow lightning, raging.

The crack spread across the ground, and then yellow lightning burst out, engulfing the remaining horde. The land became a sea of flames and lightning.

The horde was gone, as if there had never been any attempt at an attack on the city.

Butcher Wang swallowed hard and remembered Heero's earlier words.

 What if he were to join the battle? He would be at risk of being struck by lightning or burned by the flames?

These thoughts caused Butcher Wang's legs to give way, and he collapsed onto the ground. The excitement of observing the battle had reached its climax, and simply watching from a distance had exhausted him. 

His heart was beating rapidly, but he managed to steady his breath. Heero's actions were truly eye-opening. It had never occurred to him that a man could possess such power.

Recalling what he had witnessed earlier, Butcher Wang blurted out subconsciously, 'Can I do that too?'

"You can, if you train hard like Sun Zhou Yi and Hirata! If you're just lazing around like you have been, you won't succeed." Heero didn't finish his sentence and instead looked at Butcher Wang, shaking his head.

Butcher Wang differed from Sun Zhou Yi and Musashi Hirata. He was content with what he had and reduced his training after becoming the champion of

the Free Fighter in the Fighter Anteriority. He believed he was on par with the Gold Class Hero and felt satisfied with his current level.

Butcher Wang looked up at his Master's young and handsome face, but his gaze was as if he was looking at a monster.

Heero asked with a big grin, 'Are you looking for a sparring partner?'

Butcher Wang shook his head furiously. He could not even win against Sun Zhou Yi and Musashi Hirata, let alone Heero. All he could do was bully Kang Dong-Woo and Xu Lingxun.

Butcher Wang shook his head helplessly. Then, he remembered the determined and excited look on Sun Zhou Yi and Musashi Hirata's faces. They had a great ambition: 'to beat their Master.'

Kang Dong-Woo and Xu Lingxun also promised to join them in taking down Heero later.

Wang believed that with the growth he had seen in Sun Zhou Yi and Musashi Hirata, it was possible to defeat Heero with just the five of them.

 However, after witnessing how Heero slaughtered the horde, Butcher Wang was no longer optimistic and felt it was impossible to defeat this god-like man. He wondered if Sun Zhou Yi and Musashi Hirata would give up if they witnessed what just happened.

Plak!

Heero hit Butcher Wang's head and said, as if he could read his mind, "No, they won't give up on beating me! Instead, they'll be driven to train harder! If I can do it, it means they can do it too!"

"You stupid old man, I showed you that to motivate you to put more effort into your training. Why are you feeling discouraged?"

"You should put more effort into your training to catch up." Heero noticed the discouraged look on Butcher Wang's face and said, 'I am doing this for you! We can't rely on the heroes. There are many creatures stronger than those specters. To protect your family, you must rely on yourself."

"Hey, where's your manner? How can you slap an elder's head!" Butcher Wang complained as he rubbed his head,

 but he still took Heero's words seriously and thought deeply about them.

He also recalled what happened in Hero Dome. The situation in the arena would have been even more chaotic without both of them.

Even after they assisted with the lower-tier and middle-tier seats, the guards and heroes were still overwhelmed by the specters in the top-tier seats.

He witnessed how helpless the heroes were against the specters. They had no way to defeat them. It was understandable that the heroes could not defeat the specters, but they were even beaten back by them.

Now he has heard that there is something even stronger than those specters."Firstly, I am older than you. I am 41 years old this year. Secondly, those specters are not weak in their rank, but there is a stronger specter behind them. its just that the leader behind those specters is not with them." Heero looked to the northwest.

*** ***

"You are still alive, Su Yan!" exclaimed Bai Xian Ming in surprise. However, soon his face was filled with a complex expression.

Happiness and excitement could be seen in his eyes, but guilt and sorrow also mixed in.

Bai Xian Ming was happy to see his old friend return, but his excitement was dampened by the sight of his friend's severely burned face.

Despite the disfigurement, Bai Xian Ming was able to recognize his friend by the scar on his other cheek.

Bai Xian Ming felt guilty, knowing that he was responsible for his friend's injuries.

Su Yan noticed the guilt in his friend's gaze and sighed, "You don't need to feel guilty. I chose to follow you back then, and I also decided to stay back."

This happened a decade ago when Bai Xian Ming was still an Emperor Class Hero - Rank 1. At that time, he and his fellow Emperor Class Heroes decided to assassinate the Zombie King in the north.

The Zombie King was a highly intelligent zombie, even more cunning than a human. 

He commanded a large force in the north, prompting the Emperor Class Heroes ranked 1-10 to take action and assassinate him before retiring. Their goal was to eliminate this threat from the Earth for future generations.

Bai Xian Ming proposed the assassination and the other heroes agreed.Su Yan was one of the heroes, an Emperor Class Hero - Rank 4 at the time.They infiltrated the enemy's core region and located the dwelling of the Zombie King.

They believed that a team of ten would be sufficient to assassinate the Zombie King, but they had overestimated their abilities.

The Zombie King proved to be much stronger than anticipated, and the assassination attempt failed. As a result, they were forced to confront the Zombie King directly. The group was dismayed to discover that there were three Zombie Kings in total.

The ten Emperor Class Heroes acknowledged that they could not defeat all three Zombie Kings.

Su Yan and Shi Zhongxian, who were Emperor Class Heroes ranked 4 and 9 respectively, volunteered to stay behind and buy time for the other heroes to escape.

Bai Xian Ming believed that Su Yan and Shi Zhongxian had perished, but he has now been reunited with his old friend. He was happy but also felt guilty.

 "But why did you get the Shadow Fang to attack us?"Bai Xian Ming thought it was related to the operation ten years ago.

"I told you, you don't need to feel guilty for the past! Moreover, you helped take care of my family. I am grateful for all you did for them!"

Su Yan surveyed his surroundings, observing the ongoing battle between the heroes and the specters. As the battle raged on, many heroes fell, but Su Yan remained expressionless.

"My actions have nothing to do with the past! I am leading these monsters because this is a war between races - between humans and specters!"

After speaking, Su Yan's appearance changed. Four horns appeared on his forehead, and two pairs of wings grew on his back. His eyes turned red, and his skin darkened.

"I am no longer human, but a specter! Let's fight for the last time, old friend!"