The Comprehensive Evolution of American Comics.

Chapter 1402

Yang Le wasn't stupid. Even if the mantis didn't say it outright, anyone with a normal mind could tell that the latter's increasingly excited state as the fight progressed was abnormal.

Even if a mantis is extremely resilient, it's impossible for it to have no stamina at all; the fact that it gets more energetic the more it's attacked is an abnormal phenomenon.

In other words, Yang Le has now become X-Man, a fusion of the Primal Mighty and X-Man. Although he can't do things based on rules, he still can't escape the keen eye of the flow of energy.

From the start of the battle, he discovered the mantis's ulterior motives; the way the mantis was secretly absorbing his energy did not escape his notice at all.

So why doesn't Yang Le seek change? Instead, he allows his opponent to continuously absorb his energy. The answer is simple: he has his own ideas.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that Yang Le intentionally allowed the mantis to absorb his energy, all in order to achieve final victory.

While they were thinking, their fists collided again in mid-air. Perhaps because they had absorbed too much pure cosmic energy, Mantis was now able to hold his own against X-King.

The two men's fists were locked in a stalemate, but Yang Le eventually unleashed the power hidden in his wrist, and the two were separated in an explosion.

The explosion did not harm either of them, but it did create some distance between the two who were locked in combat. Unlike Yang Le, who remained expressionless, a smug smile once again appeared on Mantis's face.

In his view, Yang Le had already lost the fight. In a brawl that both sides had tacitly agreed to, once someone created distance, no matter what method they used, it meant one thing.

“You chickened out,” the mantis said confidently. “You’re trying to avoid me, aren’t you?”

This is perfectly normal in the eyes of the praying mantis, after all, this is an unfair battle. Facing a car that is constantly leaking oil while it is refueling, it has no chance of winning.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that Yang Le's ability to persist for so long has already exceeded the mantis's expectations.

"I haven't met an opponent like you in a long time. Say your name."

The praying mantis stood up straight, showing the respect due to the strong it admired.

"I will always keep you in a corner of my memory. Your heroic image will always be etched in my mind throughout my long and immeasurable life, until the next person who can replace you appears."

Faced with remarks that were almost like a victor condescending to the loser, Yang Le was surprisingly not angry. He straightened up, as calm as a still lake.

"Yang Le, if you mention this name to those important figures after you die, you might feel a little better."

The mantis was disdainful of Yang Le's sarcasm. In his view, the former was just barking wildly before he died. With his broad-mindedness, he forgave the former's stubborn behavior.

However, this also caused Yang Le's evaluation in his mind to drop a little.

"Never mind, at least you'll be a great trophy."

The mantis assumed a fighting stance and said, "I will take your corpse back, and after Lord Darkseid has played with your value, I will ask Kant to turn you into a perfect trophy and keep you in a corner of my showroom."

This time, Yang Le did not reply to the mantis. He simply raised his right hand slowly, and the galaxy contained within his iron wrist began to flow rapidly, like a vortex.

Yang Le was clearly preparing to do something, and the mantis was also ready to receive the former's dying counterattack. Just as he crouched down to prepare for battle, a sudden change occurred.

The praying mantis suddenly felt a sharp pain throughout its body. This pain didn't originate from any specific part of its body, but rather emanated from every part of it, from its limbs and bones. The pain was unbearable even for the mantis; it felt as if someone were relentlessly drilling into its cells with a red-hot drill. This excruciating pain from within was more unbearable than death itself.

Large beads of sweat slid down the mantis's cheeks. The source of the pain was unknown, but it had indeed stopped him from moving at all; he couldn't even move now.

"What...what's going on..."

The mantis gritted its teeth, trying to suppress the pain with its hard-won will, but it found that it couldn't; its body simply couldn't handle the pain.

"What...did you do to me?"

The mantis quickly realized the crux of the problem: the source of its strange pain was clearly the enemy before it.

"Don't eat things you find outside. Didn't your mother teach you such a simple lesson?"

Yang Le's fist was loosely clenched, and as his fingers slowly closed, the mantis felt the pain more intensely, which confirmed the latter's guess.

"Do you think I didn't notice you absorbing energy? Do you really think that someone as powerful as me can't manage the energy in my body and let it unconsciously dissipate outwards?"

"You overestimate yourself and underestimate me, mantis. The pride you've built up over centuries of victories is the biggest reason for your defeat."

Yang Le's palm was only a tiny gap away from clenching into a fist, and the mantis guessed that it was a sign of his impending death.

“If it weren’t for the time constraint, I might have continued playing with you, but right now I have things I need to do.”

"Goodbye."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Le clenched his fist, and the mantis felt the pain, which had been evenly distributed throughout his limbs, begin to gather in his chest, finally reaching a critical point.

"boom!"

Just like the sound of a steel needle puncturing a balloon, the mantis exploded from the chest up, leaving only its lower body standing in place, becoming an even more miserable existence than 2.5.

After confirming that the mantis showed no signs of life, Yang Le transformed back into Ultimate Puba from X King Kong mode.

It has to be said that the Mantis is indeed a tough opponent, and the strongest opponent he has ever encountered. If he didn't use X-Golden, he really doesn't know how long it would have taken to defeat him.

Moreover, even with X-Golden, Yang Le would still need to use some tricks to win.

Yang Le remembered a setting where it was difficult for the Mantis to absorb Captain Atom's nuclear energy, which is why he chose the Primal Transformer.

However, the Primal Transformer, which is extremely dependent on energy, has a natural disadvantage when facing the Mantis. If its memory is wrong, then becoming a Primal Transformer will lead to certain death.

Therefore, the cautious Yang Le became X King Kong, which can be considered as a double insurance.

Fortunately, his memory was correct. The mantis could not fully absorb cosmic energy mixed with nuclear energy, which gave him a chance to win.

(End of this chapter)