Chapter 174 : Ran's Power!

Has this elder marquis, whose age rivals mine, spent his entire life merely for appearances?

On the peak of Mount Lu, Luo Hao treaded upon the emptiness, her countenance illuminated.

The so-called Wolf King, in the presence of the great experts of China, is nothing more than a mere jester.

"But who is this enigmatic Chinese powerhouse?"

"I didn't anticipate Voban mastering the authorities of Heretic Gods, yet even so, he couldn't break free from control."

"And this control, does it command the body alone, or does it extend to the soul as well?"

"Voban acted so shamelessly that he was powerless to resist."

"With such strength, could it surpass mine?"

A sense of dignity flickered in Luo Hao's captivating eyes.

She exudes confidence bordering on narcissism, yet she isn't so arrogant as to overlook power.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have permitted Sun Wukong to be nurtured by the Japanese for a century, awaiting the moment of reckoning.

She acknowledges that she may be stronger than all the Campione, but she is not invincible. She harbors doubts about her ability to defeat the Wolf King decisively, let alone kill him.

Uchiha Ran didn't employ any serious tactics and compelled Voban to take his own life with just a glance.

The disparity is staggering!

"Perhaps he excels in control, whereas Voban is lacking in this aspect and is thus inhibited?"

Luo Hao pondered a possibility.

This notion also crossed Voban's mind, prompting him to brazenly propose another duel.

"Hey, this Seventh Campione seems rather formidable," remarked Voban, his eyes alight with fervor as he readied himself.

He has already regarded Ran as a newly emerged Campione, interpreting the phenomenon in the sky as Ran's display of power, and attributing Voban's failure to being constrained.

Driven by astonishment, he eagerly anticipated the ensuing battle.

The scene depicted in the sky image is evidently a separate world, devoid of humans, structures, or even life forms.

Isn't this the ideal arena for confronting heretic gods?

Here, one can unleash their full might without fear of collateral damage.

"Now that's absolute power!"

Just as there are misconceptions like Voban's, there are individuals like Anne and Gascoigne who perceive the truth.

They believe that Ran isn't wielding borrowed power, but rather his own inherent strength.

In other words, a non-Campione dispatched the oldest Campione in mere moments.

What if this individual were to become a Campione?

The thought is unfathomable.

And even these Campione had the mentality of fear, while members of the magic society like Erica and Liliana were even more frightened in their hearts.

They were like ants in front of Voban.

In the presence of a powerhouse who could kill Voban in seconds, what could they do?

"As you wish!"

Ran smiled lightly, dismissing Voban's words.

With his current strength in the level of medium level world powerhouses, dealing with Voban's from a low level world was a piece of cake.

"Then I'm welcomed!"

Voban's eyes turned cold as he unleashed his power, the "Legion of Hungry Wolves."

Boom!

Under the watchful eyes of all, Voban's body was enveloped in black mist, swelling rapidly, spreading for miles in the blink of an eye.

Within the dark fog, accompanied by a pair of lantern-like dark green eyes, Voban transformed into a demon wolf, over 50 meters in length, resembling a colossal monster from the Ultraman universe.

The ferocious aura shook the audience and sent shivers down countless spines across the image.

"Blessing of Light!"

A ray of light shimmered on the giant wolf's body. This was a potent self-defense mechanism, highly resistant to solar attributes.

And Voban himself wielded the power of "wind, rain and thunder."

Though lacking in incantations, it was a skill bridging powerful weather phenoenon, boasting immense might.

A thunderous pillar, several meters thick, arced from the giant wolf's maw, roaring and crackling.

Stab~

The lightning beam sliced through the air, even distorting space, and in the blink of an eye, it was upon them.

This struck fear into countless ninjas of the ninja world.

Compared to the tailed beast bomb utilized by the tailed beast, Voban's random attack was no less potent.

And observing the dark clouds thickening in space, one could envision an entire country being shrouded.

The lightning beam epitomized gathered power.

In less than a second, it reached Uchiha Ran.

But in that crucial moment,

"Meow~"

Ran extended a hand and snapped his fingers.

It seemed as though the world had hit the slow-motion button.

The massive lightning beam froze when just ten feet away from Ran, then sluggishly advanced at ghostly speed.

Voban's verdant wolfish eyes narrowed, resolve coursing through him as he sought to amplify his strength, only to realize he was powerless.

"Meow~"

Ran snapped his fingers once more.

In the next instant, his form vanished before everyone's eyes, reappearing atop the colossal wolf that embodied Voban.

Spatial travel? 

No, it's temporal acceleration!

In a world imperceptible to ordinary eyes, Ran leisurely approached Voban's side, although the time it took for all this to occur was condensed myriad-fold.

"Farewell, then!"

Under Voban's terror-stricken and incredulous gaze, Ran extended his right hand, forming it into the semblance of a pistol and aiming it at the center of Voban's forehead.

"Boom!"

The gunshot resounded through the heavens and earth, reverberating across the surrounding area.

There was no cataclysmic event.

Yet, observers witnessed the colossal thunderous pillar gradually dissipating, while the form of Voban's giant wolf and the encircling ebony mist vanished in the blink of an eye.

No, it's the opposite!

Voban reverted to his original form, his countenance unchanged.

Subsequently, he began regressing in age.

Emerald eyes, an astute visage, the primal aura still lingering—Voban's appearance reverted to that of a youthful 25-year-old, his silver locks cropped short.

All pupils dilated in astonishment.

Could this be... rejuvenation?

"Is there any benefit to being beaten down?" Voban, as the central figure in the affair, wasn't pleased in the slightest.

He sensed the strength ebbing from his body, each ounce of power slipping away like grains of sand through his fingers, until he felt himself regress from being Campione to a state before his slaying of Heretic Gods.

"What?!"

The onlookers were equally alarmed as Voban's transformation unfolded. He regressed from youth to adolescence, from adolescence to childhood, and then further, until he was but a babe in arms.

And there, the transformation ceased.

"Old Marquis, you were quite the adorable child," Ran teased.

He was employing the power of time manipulation.

Ordinarily, as time was devoured, individuals would age and wither, eventually succumbing to the passage of time until they turned to dust and scattered.

However, the Campione were an assembly of immortal beings, theoretically endowed with countless lifetimes. Thus, as the devouring of time reached its culmination, they adopted a reverse trajectory, regressing to the beginning once more.

Voban:

His form shrank, yet his consciousness remained intact.

Adorable?

Now, his social demise was complete.

"Snap!"

Ran snapped his fingers once more.

In an instant, everything was restored.

"...?"

Sensing the resurgence of power after its temporary absence, Voban clenched his fists, a newfound reverence for Ran settling within him.

At this moment, he was "certain" that Ran could end him.

The disparity between them was vast, beyond measure.

Even the fabled King of the End, who in legend sought to vanquish Campione, may find himself unequal to the task.

The power to manipulate time.

This is the king of kings!

"The power of time!"

"Slowing, accelerating, devouring?"

"So formidable."

As Uchiha Ran toyed with the fabric of time between his palms, Luo Hao's eyes shimmered with a brilliance that others had never witnessed before.

Though she was typically narcissistic, she couldn't deny the chasm separating her from Ran at this moment.

He wasn't just a man worthy of her; he was a man who could make her worthy of herself.

"A man stronger than me.

"A man stronger than me…"

A flush of intoxication spread across Luo Hao's face, her delicate frame trembling involuntarily.

It was an unprecedented sensation, causing every cell in her body to quiver with excitement.

"I truly wish to encounter him."

"If it were him, he could effortlessly handle Sun Wukong."

Luo Hao longed to meet Ran with every fiber of her being.

Sun Wukong was her foremost fixation at present.

Here was a figure revered as a national hero, yet she willingly submitted to the whims of the Japanese, playing into their hands.

In Luo Hao's eyes, this was an unpardonable sin.

To know of such a character and allow him to roam unchecked would tarnish the reputation of the martial arts alliance's leader. 

She had awaited judgment for a long time, encountering him over a hundred years ago as he attempted to breach the seal of Ridao's hidden sanctum. 

He had wreaked havoc upon the ancestral temple and the surrounding shrines, yet ultimately, due to certain constraints, he refrained from plunging into the Netherworld Corridor, his mission a failure.

Could he easily wipe out the island from the face of the earth if he so desired?

"Are you still coming?"

Ran inquired of Voban.

"Come on, damn it."

Voban replied, asserting he was hardly cut out to be merely beaten.

However, dealing death by Ran required formidable means, not merely physical prowess.

Voban believed that if it came to a straightforward confrontation, he could hold his own.

But his soul's techniques remained concealed.

"It seems you're displeased."

Ran relished probing Wo's thoughts, his eyes narrowing.

"Susanoo!"

Boom!

A towering golden figure ascended from the earth, swiftly transforming into a colossal entity that seemed to graze the sky.

Zhang couldn't help but murmur, his voice tinged with awe. "At least give Zhang some face."

Voban stood transfixed, his gaze locked on the unfolding spectacle.

"Is that Luo Hao's Hercules Power?" he wondered aloud.

"No," came the reply, tinged with uncertainty, "it's something far more formidable."

Meanwhile, atop Mount Lu, Luo Hao's eyes widened in disbelief. "Could this be... the manifestation of the Cosmic Body of Sun Wukong?"

"Has he truly defeated Sun Wukong?" she pondered, incredulous.