My avatar is becoming the final boss

Chapter 387 The Gu Family's Surprise Attack, The Eleven Members of the White Raven Brigade (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

Late at night on August 23, a corner of the harbor in Haifan City.

The black-haired youth, dressed in a black swallowtail trench coat, stood quietly atop the fence, his left hand in his pocket and his right hand holding a Bible, like an upright crow.

Qi Liyuan lowered his head, quietly turning the pages of the book, while the reflection of a full moon was mirrored on the sea.

Before him, dozens of eerie figures with different auras were scattered around the harbor, their shadows elongated by the moonlight as the sea breeze blew across them.

For some reason, the air was filled with the smell of blood.

Following the stench of blood, one could see corpses bound by crimson threads hanging suspended in mid-air above the streetlights of the harbor. Their eyes rolled upwards, foam came out of their mouths, and their shoulders and arms dangled.

These people were exorcist spies planted by the Lake Hunters at the port. They didn't even get a clear look at the group before they were hoisted up by blood-made threads by the Bloodline. They struggled in the sea breeze for a short while before suffocating to death.

The night was dark and windy, and the clear light of the full moon shone on the harbor, illuminating the fishing boats moored there.

Leaving aside Bai Tanlang, who was still on the side of the Nian Beast Lord, the leader of the White Crow Brigade and the other ten members had already gathered here.

According to Bai Tanlang's intelligence, the Nian Beast King will lead the Zodiac Team to launch a fierce attack on Lake Hunting tonight.

The members of the White Raven Brigade only needed to wait for the right opportunity within Sea Sail City. No signal was needed; given the demons' modus operandi, once a fight broke out, it would be known throughout the city, making it difficult to remain silent.

They will then take advantage of the situation and try to capture the four hunters from the lake.

Although each member of the Lake Hunters possesses individual combat capabilities far exceeding those of Rainbow Wings, even approaching the ceiling of the Cataclysmic level, they have no chance of escaping unscathed amidst the combined might of the Year Beast Lord and the White Raven Brigade, which comprise dozens of Cataclysmic level fighters.

At this moment, Xia Pingzhou and Ayase Origami were sitting quietly on a public wooden bench next to a street lamp.

They specifically found a street lamp without any corpses hanging from it, otherwise they would have had to watch the corpses of those exorcists swaying back and forth.

At this moment, the orange-yellow light shone through the lampshade, illuminating two expressionless faces. One of them was playing Minesweeper on his phone, while the other was practicing typing on his phone.

Origami Ayase usually uses her and Xia Pingzhou's Line chat interface as a typing practice tool, so whenever Xia Pingzhou picks up his phone, he can see some inexplicable and intermittent chat messages.

At this moment, he was looking down at his phone, and he could still see the information about the girl in the kimono.

Line's notification boxes pop up from the top of the screen from time to time.

【KamiNeko: You idiot.】

【KamiNeko: Marshmallow.】

[KamiNeko: Dolphin. 】

[KamiNeko: Kitten, turn your head.]

Xia Pingzhou saw the latest message, raised an eyebrow, and then turned his head to meet the dark eyes of the girl in the kimono, who was staring at him without moving.

"what happened?"

Xia Pingzhou asked curiously. She remained silent.

"Takikage, what did you say back then?" Ayase Origami thought for a moment and then suddenly asked.

"'At that time' refers to?" Xia Pingzhou asked, puzzled.

"auctions."

"Oh, what happened after you were about to attack Zhou Jiuya and I knocked you unconscious?" Xia Pingzhou lowered his head and thought for a moment, then looked up and asked her, "Are you sure you want to hear it?"

In his memory, Ayase Origami had never asked this question in the past month or so. And since he thought that bringing up Oda Takikage might upset her, he didn't bring it up again.

Xia Pingzhou was surprised to find that so much time had passed and he had completely forgotten about the matter when Ayase Origami suddenly brought it up again.

The girl in the kimono looked at him and nodded silently.

“He said at the time… that I should take good care of you, and also said, ‘Mr. Xia Pingzhou, I’m entrusting Miss to you.’”

"Xia Pingzhou said softly. He still remembered the scene at the auction vividly, a memory that was deeply etched in his mind when he was still weak. In his eyes, "Oda Takikage," who was considered a strongman, was instantly smashed into bloody foam by a bronze pillar that fell from the sky.

That was such a cruel and abrupt scene, shattering Xia Pingzhou's calm mindset, which he usually maintained while playing games.

It wasn't until that moment that he realized there was an insurmountable chasm between Dragon-level and Cataclysmic-level ability users.

Zhou Jiuya's idea at the time was to make an example of someone and get rid of them as soon as possible. Therefore, he did not target the near-disaster level members, but instead specifically chose two easily dealt with dragon-level members to strike, in order to quickly intimidate everyone.

If it weren't for good luck, it might have been Xia Pingzhou who died instead of Lan Duoduo and Oda Takikage.

But now, the White Raven Brigade is no longer what it used to be. Having been tempered by the Battle of the Royal Court, they have the confidence to contend with the strongest in this world, and are no longer simply at the mercy of others.

"And that was it. The situation was urgent, and that was all that Uncle Takikage had to tell me."

After speaking, Xia Pingzhou remained silent for a long while. He kept his head down, not looking at Ayase Origami's expression.

"Takikage... why did you say that back then?" Ayase Origami asked softly, her eyes lowered.

“I don’t understand. I was so weak back then, the weakest in the entire Phantom Troupe. Entrusting you to me was a strange choice.” Xia Pingzhou paused, then turned to look at her. “Maybe it’s because he knew you liked to cling to me?”

Origami Ayase remained silent for a moment, then shook her head.

"It's clearly the kitten that's clinging to me," she whispered.

"How could that be? You were the one who was all over the place back then, weren't you?" Xia Pingzhou said calmly.

The girl in the kimono thought about it seriously for a moment, then asked, "What does 'naturally familiar' mean?"

"Lan Duoduo is the kind of person who's naturally outgoing."

"Oh, I'm only naturally friendly with you."

"Really? How did you and Jack become acquainted?"

"She's very outgoing."

"Is she naturally outgoing? Don't just use a word you've learned." Xia Pingzhou thought for a moment, "But in some ways, she is indeed naturally outgoing—just one glance from someone and they become bosom friends. How can that not be considered naturally outgoing?"

At this moment, the schoolgirl, clutching her scabbard, leaned against a nearby streetlamp, resting with her eyes closed. Hearing their conversation, she spoke coldly without turning her head:
"Want to die?"

"Is there anything wrong with what I said?" Xia Pingzhou said sarcastically, expressionless. "The rumors say that you would go up and kill anyone you liked without saying a word, and then hang their intestines on the rooftop."

He paused for a moment: "Why haven't I seen you do that since I joined the troupe?"

“Because I’m no longer interested.” Enma Rin said expressionlessly. “Secondly, at that time, my Sky Drive could no longer become stronger by killing ordinary people; only those with abilities and demons could satisfy it. But if you also want to experience the feeling of being disemboweled… I don’t mind.”

After saying that, she opened her eyes, glanced at Xia Pingzhou, and drew a dark red demon sword from its sheath. The blade gleamed eerily in the moonlight.

Xia Pingzhou was silent for a while, "Among the families of those victims, didn't any of them seek revenge against you?"

“I usually eliminate problems completely.” Enma Rin took a rag out of her pocket and bent down to sharpen her knife.

"Haven't there been any unexpected situations all these years?"

Xia Pingzhou looked at her.

“It seems so.” Enma Rin thought for a moment. “Six months ago, I casually killed a few people. At the time, I saw a photo on the wall, and it seemed like there was another man in their house.”

As Xia Pingzhou listened, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his forehead.
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and recalled a scene from six months ago.

That evening, when he returned home after exercising, he saw his loved one's dismembered body hanging on the balcony. The distant city lights shone brightly, bathing him in a warm glow, and the evening breeze blowing from the dim sky carried the stench of blood to his nose.

He stared blankly at his family's corpses for a long time, then backed away until his back hit the wall and he had nowhere to go. He then slowly slid to the ground and roared silently.

After a moment of silence, Xia Pingzhou opened his eyes.

"Didn't you go to see him?" he then asked.

“The photo that was pasted on the wall at the time was stained with blood, and the face was not visible,” Enma Rin said. “Moreover, the operation was about to begin, and the other members had already assembled. I was the last one to arrive, so I didn’t go to find him.”

“That person is quite lucky…” Xia Pingzhou said softly, his eyes lowered.

"Your Silver-Eating is just as lucky," Enma Rin sneered. "If you didn't like him so much, I would have killed him long ago."

Xia Pingzhou stopped chatting with her and had no interest in playing on his phone. He simply closed his eyes and pondered quietly, avoiding the emotional impact of the memories from his body.

A moment later, he suddenly heard someone softly calling his name beside him, like a thin snowflake blowing past his ear, cool and refreshing:

"Xia Ping Zhou."

Xia Pingzhou was stunned for a moment, then opened his eyes and looked into the eyes of the kimono-clad girl beside him.

"Xia Pingzhou, don't die." Ayase Origami's lips moved slightly as she whispered.

Xia Pingzhou stared blankly into her eyes when a biting sea breeze blew across his forehead, obscuring his vision.

He lowered his head, thinking that if he died too, the girl in the kimono would have nothing left. Was he going to let her watch the two most important people in her life die at the hands of the same person? That would be too cruel.

After a long silence, he spoke, "You too... You're not allowed to die, otherwise no one will accompany me on my world tour."

“World travel…” Ayase Origami murmured.

"Yes, so we have to survive, and then we'll leave after we avenge Uncle Takikage."

"Ah."

Origami Ayase tugged at his sleeve and nodded silently.

"Can you two stop being so clingy?" Enma Rin said expressionlessly, while sharpening her knife. "We're about to start the operation, if you keep being so disgusting, I'll chop you up."

"The operation hasn't even started yet, has it?" Xia Pingzhou raised his eyes and said calmly, "I don't think you need to rush to reincarnate. Don't wait until you get smashed into Yan Duoduo by Zhou Jiuya before you start regretting not enjoying your leisure time."

In an instant, Enma Rin raised the tip of her blade and placed it against Xia Pingzhou's neck;

Meanwhile, behind the public wooden bench, Andrew, who was leaning against the wall resting with his eyes down, suddenly raised his head, raised his all-black sniper rifle, and pressed it against the back of Xia Pingzhou's head.

At this moment, Andrew was holding four bullets on the five fingers of his right hand. These four bullets were: two "Ember Guns" made from the blood of the Cataclysmic Level ability user "Ember", and two "Dragon Embers" made from "Royal Court Dragon Blood".

The bullet of the "Ember Gun" gleamed with a luxurious dark gold color;

The "Dragon Ashes" is an inch longer, with red and black dragon patterns engraved on its surface. The pupils of the dragon patterns flow with a golden color, shining brightly under the moonlight, as if a wild beast is about to leap out.

These two bullets are one of a kind, custom-made for Andrew's Skydrive.

And looking at the whole world, probably only Andrew's Skydrive "sniper rifle" can withstand such enormous power and successfully fire these two bullets from the barrel.

After all, this is a Sky Drive, not technology. No man-made gun could contain such devastating power, and the gunman would only end up self-destructing.

"Try saying something bad about our Duoduo-chan again?" Andrew's lips twitched, and he smiled gloomily. "I'm already itching to pull the trigger on Zhou Jiuya's head, so warming up with yours first isn't a bad idea... right, newbie?"

"Can you guys not be in such a hurry?" Xia Pingzhou said expressionlessly. "Internal strife before the war even starts is not a good corporate culture."

After saying that, he lowered his head as if nothing had happened, quietly playing Minesweeper on his phone, completely ignoring the demon knife at his neck and the gun barrel behind his head.

"Well... could you guys please not be so impatient? The big battle is imminent, can you at least show some team spirit? Don't always try to unite when you're only bullying me and the newbies." Anlens smiled slightly, put his hands in his suit pockets and leaned closer.

He put his arm around Xia Pingzhou's shoulder. "Newbie, after this battle, come with me to the casino for a bit?"

Xia Pingzhou looked up from his phone and glanced at him.

Anlens was wearing a pair of dark purple gloves with a die and a pair of scythes patterned on the surface—the blades of the scythes were joined together, surrounding the mysterious die at the top.

If he wasn't mistaken, then this was the "gambler's glove" that Anrons had obtained from the whale's miniature garden.

With this glove, Anrons can manipulate his own destiny and thus determine the "outcome" of any gambling game. In other words, his superpower "Death Slot Machine" has evolved into a stable ability.

And the upper limit of this ability is already far beyond that of other ability users of the same level. After acquiring the "Gambler's Gloves", Anlens' current strength is naturally approaching that of a Calamity-level ability user.

Xia Pingzhou thought that Anlens might be more worthy of vigilance than the Ripper and the Bloodline. Of course, not to mention the Brigade's leader, Sky Drive, who had already advanced to the third tier, and White Greed Wolf, who possessed the royal treasure "Demon Crown" on Mount Haifan. "Okay. If I have time then, I'll go to the casino with you."

Xia Pingzhou said meaningfully. He wasn't sure when he would take action against the Ripper; either in this battle, or after hunting down one of the Lake Hunters and completing the main quest, he would find a suitable opportunity to strike.

“Take me with you. If the casino security tries to kick you out, I’ll open a door for you in advance,” Robert said hoarsely, scratching his mechanical box-like head.

Anlens shrugged. "It's fine. I'll just use a slot machine to send them on their way, saving them the trouble of running away."

"Could you please not be so ruthless, lest your wanted level goes up another notch?" Robert said.

"Please... we're already top-tier wanted criminals, there's no room for us to get any higher, understand?"

"Anlens said with a smile. He tugged at his dark purple gloves and looked at Xia Pingzhou, "Speaking of which, you haven't seen what the bottom of the radish-head box looks like yet, have you?"

When this topic came up, Ayase Origami and Xia Pingzhou both looked up at him at the same time.

Then, the two of them shook their heads like robots.

In fact, Xia Pingzhou had seen Robert's face under the mask during that auction house incident.

He was sitting in the audience in the form of the black cocoon's restraints, watching a man with thick eyebrows and big eyes, who looked like a blond man, put on the mechanical box and announced to the audience that he was Robert of the Phantom Troupe.

"Then I'll show you then," Anlens laughed.

"Spare me..." Robert sighed.

Not far away, the Bloodline took a deep breath of the damp coastal air and stretched.

She said casually, "I feel like I've seen this scene before. Last time in Bergen, we also gathered at the port."

The centenarian vampire girl stood with one hand on her hip and her head slightly tilted back. Her expression was unusually indifferent, and her pale golden hair and red skirt fluttered in the sea breeze, as dazzling as the sky and clouds at dusk.

“I was still in prison at the time and hadn’t come back.” Rukawa Chiba lowered his head and adjusted his glasses. He was wearing a white trench coat and white gloves that day. “But I heard you guys had a lot of fun in the Whale Garden. The news has already reached the prison.”

"Didn't we come to rescue you the moment we finished building up our forces?" the hacker asked while playing on his phone. At that moment, Tong Zizhu was leaning against him, flipping through a manga, "The Pet Girl of Sakurasou," and the hacker dared not complain.

"I am very grateful," said Rukawa Chiba with a slight smile.

The hacker sighed, turned to face the group, coughed twice, and said:

"Finally, let me state that our primary objective is to eliminate Zhou Jiuya. This is partly to avenge Lan Duoduo and Uncle Longying, and partly to seize the antiques stored in Zhou Jiuya's Sky Chariot. Is everything settled?"

"How do we take it?" the Bloodline asked.

The hacker replied, "After his death, all the antiques in the Tonggu Compass will be released. Those things will probably be priceless, no less valuable than the treasure vaults of the Hikari Garden."

"I see. As expected of the leader, he never does anything that doesn't make a profit." Bloodline smiled slightly.

At this moment, the crows from Qiyuan have dispersed to all parts of the harbor. They can be seen on the rooftops of wooden houses, fishing boats, telephone poles, and the tops of streetlights.

The fjord city nestled behind the port was brightly lit at this moment, and many of Qiyuan's "spies" were also lurking in the city, with crows almost blending into the shadows of the city.

The principle of paint is silent.

He tilted his head, his deep eyes silently gazing at the sky covered by crows.

At that moment, the raven on the back of his hand suddenly cawed hoarsely, breaking the silence of the harbor.

"coming."

Qi Yuanli said calmly. At that very moment, a sudden burst of firelight appeared on a corner of Haifan Mountain in the distance, illuminating the empty and desolate mountain wilderness. Then, one after another, beams of dazzling light, like torches, shot out from a dark mountaintop.

They cleaved through the night, and after reaching their highest point, plummeted straight down towards Sea Sail City.

Almost immediately, the Nine-Dragon Cauldron that the group had seen at the auction house rose from the ground. Like a dark city wall, the cauldron blocked the border of Sea Sail City, engulfing all the flames from the explosion.

The deafening roar ripped apart the tranquility of the city, and flames streaked across the night sky like fireworks, almost turning the entire world into a brief daylight.

Qi Yuanli silently watched this scene, his deep pupils illuminated by the firelight, his long black hair and the hem of his trench coat fluttering in the night wind.

On the harbor, the eleven members of the White Raven Brigade simultaneously raised their heads, their figures illuminated by the sudden light. Their faces showed excitement, ferocity, or calm as they gazed at the strange event in the distance.

When the flames died down, four imposing figures were already standing atop the Nine Dragons Cauldron.

They stood in the night wind, the moonlight shining down on them and illuminating their shadows.

What came into view was a young man with black hair and red braids wearing a white shirt, a man with a slicked-back hairstyle wearing a Zhongshan suit, a figure wearing a Nuo mask and a black overcoat, and a handsome young man with long black hair wearing a long gown.

Qi Liyuan quickly identified them and focused his gaze on the man in the Zhongshan suit. The figure that came into view was clearly their target:

—Zhou Jiuya.

Meanwhile, atop the cliffs of distant Haifan Mountain, a colossal, purplish-red lion, over fifty meters tall, appeared. A powerful flame burned atop its head, and its eyes shone like torches.

Behind it were giant beasts of various shapes, and in the very center of this group of demons, the White Greedy Wolf had transformed into a giant wolf whose body length was comparable to that of the Great Lord.

The Wolf of Daylight panted heavily, a dark crown atop its head, its pupils gleaming with a light like the midnight sun, and its sharp fangs bared.

Suddenly, a pair of jet-black bone wings on the giant wolf’s back burst open from its skin with a “click-clack” sound, spreading outwards layer by layer, and then opening up under the night sky, flowing with mercury-like moonlight.

"How magnificent! Is this the White Greedy Wolf wearing the Demon Crown? It feels like its aura is already comparable to that of a Great Lord." Xia Pingzhou stared at the giant wolf on the distant cliff and thought to himself.

"Bravo—!"

With one hand in his pocket, Anron waved to the White Wolf, who was wearing the Demon Crown, and whistled.

"Lake Hunting and the Zodiac Team have made contact... Let's go, the operation officially begins." Qi Yuanli gave the order expressionlessly.

As soon as he finished speaking, a huge wind pressure suddenly rose in the air of the port. Qi Yuanli seemed to suddenly realize that something was wrong, and a chill quickly rose up from his back.

"This is……"

He raised an eyebrow slightly, then abruptly turned his head. At that moment, a corner of space seemed to shatter, followed by the deafening roar of a train engine that echoed throughout the entire port, "Boom, boom—!"

In that fleeting second, Qi Yuanli's face remained expressionless as he silently watched the train demon's engine burst forth from the spatial rift.

At the same time, he raised his eyes and looked at the three figures standing on the vehicle, taking in their features.

One of them wore a brown trench coat and a one-way mirror, another wore a black trench coat and carried a dark red ribbed umbrella, and the third wore a red cape, a magician's hat, and gloves with shimmering magic patterns.

These three people naturally knew Qi Yuanli, after all, they had met the troupe once at the auction house, not to mention that he had personally invited Ke Qirui to join the troupe a few years ago.

In that instant, Xia Pingzhou stared at the three figures on top of the train demon, his gaze quickly settling on the figure wearing a magic cloak. Without a doubt, it was Su Zimai.

He felt a slight jolt. "Little sister? Why is she here?"

Xia Pingzhou abruptly turned his head, his expression cold as he met Ke Qirui's eyes, thinking to himself, "Has Ke Qirui gone mad? How could she bring the diaper devil to a place like this..."

Ke Qirui, with a pipe dangling from his lips and a blank expression on his face, silently exchanged a glance with Xia Pingzhou.

"Hmph... These small fry actually dare to provoke us. Do they think we still have the strength we had at the auction?" Bloodline licked his lips, recognizing Ke Qirui's face.

Origami Ayase's expression also darkened slightly.

Enma Rin drew her sword.

"The Ghost Train Gang..." Qi Yuan thought to himself, his gaze not lingering on them, because he knew that with Ke Qirui's personality, if it were only these three members of the Ghost Train Gang, they would never have rushed up so rashly.

Half a second later, he suddenly raised his head and looked up at the night sky above the sea.

At this moment, a huge teaching ruler was hanging under the lonely moon, and two figures stood on the ruler, their figures appearing and disappearing among the fish-scale clouds.

One of them had his arms crossed, wore a tattered cloak and silver and black armor, while the other figure had his hands behind his back and wore a pair of reflective frameless glasses.

At this moment, the two figures on the ruler looked down at the twelve figures of the White Raven Brigade with indifference.

"Ghost Bell, and... the president of the Exorcist Association?" Qi Yuanli's gaze swept over the two, and he recognized their identities in an instant, but his face remained calm.

"Is Dad here too...? Then my brother must be here too. Wherever my brother is, he's the person I need to be most wary of..."

The moment Xia Pingzhou saw the ruler, his thoughts raced.

He unleashed his Sky Chaser, and streams of black and white light emanated from his body, forming a Möbius strip-shaped chessboard. At that moment, a God's-eye view appeared in his mind, as if the chess player were looking down at the chessboard.

After advancing to the third tier, the chessboard's field of vision expanded significantly, now reaching a radius of 300 meters, almost covering the entire port, allowing him to see the surrounding scenery.

Xia Pingzhou scanned the harbor quickly with his peripheral vision while searching for Gu Qiye's figure using the perspective in his mind:
—It was precisely because he understood Gu Qiye the most that he knew that among the people in the Gu family, the one who needed to be most wary was that lightning bolt that was so fast that it was impossible to react!

"Oh dear, this is troublesome..." The hacker put away his phone, frowned slightly, looked up at the ruler, and thought, "These people really came prepared. Sigh, I should have guessed they might make a move when I was monitoring the Third Prince."

“That is…” Tong Zizhu looked up, then suddenly froze. Through the fox mask, she stared intently at the young man with glasses on the ruler, and murmured:

"grandfather?"

Indeed, the Su Wei who appeared before her eyes at this moment was exactly the same person that Tong Zizhu had seen more than ten years ago. For a moment, she even doubted whether she was seeing things. Wouldn't this guy get old?
When Su Ying first brought her to Su Wei, she looked up and saw a young man wearing frameless glasses. The young man had his hands behind his back, his face solemn, and his demeanor aloof.

But this strange change didn't seem to be over yet; Qi Yuanli sensed something was wrong. His intuition told him that something undeniably dangerous was approaching from afar!
In that instant, his gaze left the train demon and the pointer.

Finally, Qi Yuan turned his head to the side and glanced at the coastal highway out of the corner of his eye.

In that instant, a bolt of lightning, as black as ink, shot down from the top of the coastal highway, hurtling straight down like a raging beast, rapidly approaching the harbor and whipping up a fierce gust of wind!
"boom--!"

Even the air seemed to freeze for a moment before the tearing roar finally broke through a second later.

"Brother's here..."

At that moment, Xia Pingzhou was slightly taken aback, and then he and the kimono-clad girl beside him turned their heads almost simultaneously.

The two could tell that the bolt of black lightning was heading straight for them! Their expressionless faces darkened slightly.

Ayase Origami unfolded the endless manuscript hidden in her sleeve, and in an instant, the pink, cherry-blossom-like pages fluttered up, forming a gradually rising curtain that blocked the direction from which the black lightning struck.

Immediately afterwards, a black and white halo burst forth from Xia Pingzhou's body. He abruptly turned his head, and the unstoppable black lightning bolt was reflected in his cold pupils.

"It's too late... At such close range, the young lady's paper couldn't possibly stop my brother. With his speed and ability, he could kill both of us in an instant." Xia Pingzhou's thoughts raced, and his expression darkened slightly.

At that moment, a jet of inky lightning tore through the air, piercing through the makeshift paper curtain formed by Ayase Origami like a spear, almost roaring and howling as it hurtled towards them.

The deafening roar was deafening, yet the world remained silent! Xia Pingzhou's pupils contracted and narrowed as a sharp, howling bolt of lightning was already upon him.

He understood that in that instant, no one in the Phantom Troupe could help him and Origami Ayase, because among Calamity-level espers, there was probably not a single one who could match Gu Qiye's speed. Unless time was stopped, no one else could possibly come to their aid in time.

There was only one way then, and he made up his mind in a fraction of a second.

"Black King's Domain".

Xia Pingzhou faced the oncoming lightning head-on, his eyes as cold as a deep ravine, as if giving an order in his heart.

"Black King's Domain" is the Skydrive function unlocked by the second unit after it advances to the third tier. The purpose of this function is:
— Unfold a chessboard space and pull your enemies into it. No object can leave the "chessboard" at will unless it has your permission or kills you.

In an instant, a black and white ring expanded outwards from Xia Pingzhou's body as the center.

It swept out like a giant ring, enveloping Ayase Origami's body and then drawing in the incoming bolt of dark lightning.

There was no time to involve more people. Xia Pingzhou had to shut down the chessboard before Gu Qiye could resist. In an instant, the ring swallowed the three figures, then quickly shrank into a black and white dot of light, sometimes expanding and sometimes contracting, before disappearing.

Before everyone's eyes, Xia Pingzhou, Ayase Origami, and Gu Qiye disappeared from their original positions at the same time, entering the chessboard domain dominated by the chess players.

Almost immediately, if it had been just a fraction of a second later, Ayase Origami's body would have been torn apart by lightning, and Xia Pingzhou would have been killed before he could release the king. But he did it.

At the same time, the train demon roared and overturned the bricks and tiles on the port ground, and came flying through the air like a bulldozer;

The enormous ruler plummeted straight down from the sky, as powerful as the Sword of Dacamus in mythology.

The two forces sandwiched each other, crashing unstoppably into the White Raven Brigade!
(End of this chapter)