Wait, why is this blond guy a lolicon?

With no worries about the future, it's time to settle accounts with the culprit.

Looking at Jiang Ling, who was approaching step by step with an expressionless face.

An Qingyu was terrified. Like a stray dog, he crawled backward on all fours, his voice distorted with extreme fear:

"You...you killed me, and all those children will be killed with me!"

But deep down he knew all too well that this guy's abilities were mostly for saving lives.

Otherwise, how did those dying children in Room 2 survive?

Jiang Ling ignored him and threw a straight punch with her right fist—*thud!*

boom!

The fist first smashed the heavy bronze alchemy furnace, and with the remaining force, it pierced through An Qingyu Ming's chest.

"Pfft—I'm going to die! I'm really going to die!"

An Qingyu's mind went blank. The excruciating pain and the chilling feeling of death brought tears streaming down his face. He desperately begged for mercy, "I was wrong! I know I was wrong! Forgive me... please..."

"When you kill someone, you must be prepared to be killed yourself."

【Dula doula doula doula——!】

The dense barrage of punches, like a violent storm, completely engulfed him.

The muffled thuds of bones and flesh shattering echoed throughout, and An Qingyu was instantly reduced to a mangled mess of flesh and blood.

but……

The pool of flesh and blood did not fall; instead, it strangely hovered in mid-air, entangled and fused with the scattered fragments of the bronze furnace...

Ultimately, it solidified into a distorted and grotesque bronze statue of a human face.

An Qingyu was horrified to discover that she was still "alive".

He tried to shout and struggle, but he couldn't make a sound or move an inch.

Only the sea breeze and the cold rain are vividly imprinted on my senses.

This is a form of imprisonment more terrifying than death.

Song Ruyu stared blankly at the scene before her, and suddenly understood what he meant by "killing you is too easy".

"Indeed, killing him is too lenient. Let's sink him to the bottom of the sea so he can never be reincarnated."

Jiang Ling gently placed his hand on the top of her head, ruffled it, and smiled approvingly: "As expected of a Stand user like me, we thought of the same thing."

The warm, large hand seemed to possess some kind of magic, causing a strange, subtle ripple to stir within the little white-haired boy's heart.

My ears felt slightly hot.

She snorted and turned away. "Stop talking nonsense... hurry up and throw this disgusting thing down."

"No...wait...wait!"

The statue's hollow, bell-shaped eyes seemed to emanate a palpable sense of terror.

Possessing senses, yet eternally imprisoned, sinking into that boundless, dark, silent deep sea...

The despair brought on by this thought instantly crushed his last shred of hope.

"Kill me, please... I want to die, I really want to die..."

"Fuck you—!"

Jiang Ling ignored him completely, raised her leg, and kicked the bronze statue hard.

The bronze statue transformed into a distorted afterimage, piercing through the rain curtain, flying over a thousand meters, and finally crashing into the distant sea with a "plop," splashing up waves several meters high.

Then, irreversibly, it sank into the dark abyss.

"Aaaaaahh ...

The desperate cries were completely swallowed up by the surging waves.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the mission and receiving the reward: Pure Love Fragment x1!]

Just as he was about to deactivate his imperial form.

The killing intent perception has been activated!

But what I perceived this time was completely different from any time before.

That wasn't a murderous intent directed at him, driven by greed or hostility, but rather a grander, more indifferent "sense of presence."

It was as if a towering giant was taking strides, completely unconcerned about whether ants were crawling beneath his feet.

Without malice, or even notice, the mere act of "passing by" brought a pressure powerful enough to freeze one's soul.

It's nature!

Jiang Ling suddenly turned his head to look out the porthole, unleashing his full Observation Haki.

Not far away on the sea, giant waves were piled up one after another, as if being pounded and piled up by an invisible giant hammer, and in the blink of an eye, a dark wall of water nearly twenty meters high was built!

With a deafening roar, violent tremors traveled along the hull, and the entire cruise ship groaned under the strain.

Song Ruyu was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she stared blankly as the tsunami wall swept in.

She considered herself to be at the pinnacle of "life," but in the face of this cataclysmic power, even the strongest life is nothing more than a speck of dust in the wind.

Destroying you is none of your business.

[Attention! Transformation time is limited to five seconds. Please deactivate Emperor Form immediately, or side effects will occur...]

Jiang Ling's face was grim, her mind reeling with turmoil. She cursed inwardly, "Why do I always seem to run into all sorts of good things?"

If you can cancel the Emperor form, you can rely on the normal form and time stop.

There is no problem in protecting my own and Song Ruyu's safety.

But what about the others on board? What about those dozens of children who were just pulled back from the brink of hell?

In the face of a tsunami, there is no difference between steel ships and fragile paper boats.

He clenched his fists, and a faint golden light shone again as he struggled to support the violently tilting ship.

[Note: Emperor Form duration remaining: 5 seconds!]

[Attention! Attention! Attention! Host, please deactivate Emperor Form as soon as possible...]

【Four! 】

【three! 】

【two! 】

At this moment, time seemed to stretch out, and mental energy gradually faded.

Jiang Ling remained silent and lowered his head, the golden light on his fist visibly dimming.

The golden spiritual power he can control... is about to run out.

If the transformation is not reversed, it will begin to deplete one's mental energy—

That would be a terrifying astronomical figure.

It was enough to drain his entire consciousness, until he fell into a deep coma, leaving irreversible aftereffects, and even... death!

I am not a saint.

There was no intention to save anyone from the very beginning.

I came to this cruise ship only to complete a task assigned by the system.

What do I care if the people here live or die?

A strong sense of dizziness washed over him, as if hundreds of thorns were piercing his mind, urging him to disengage and run away.

If you are in your Water Spirit form, you still have a chance of winning.

But now, if you try to use the power of the Golden Spirit to resist the tsunami, you will only die a terrible death!

So why are you pretending to be conflicted and hesitant?

This won't make you seem great; it will only make you look hypocritical!

【two! 】

Jiang Ling moved, slamming his fists into the floor. Steel formed a semi-circular shield like flowing liquid, firmly protecting him, Song Ruyu, and the children.

【one! 】

[Emperor Form - Energy Exhausted!]

boom--

The giant hand of the tsunami finally slammed solidly onto the side of the cruise ship.

The tiny boat was lifted high by the violent forces of nature and then tilted violently to one side.

Song Ruyu's face turned ashen, and she closed her eyes: "It's over."

[Please immediately deactivate your Emperor Form...]

however.

After doing all this.

Jiang Ling ultimately did not revert to his Emperor form; instead, he roared in anger:

"Shut up, Golden Spirit Power! Charge—!"

The golden light on the fist, which had been dim, suddenly blazed brightly as if in a final burst of light, and actually managed to hold back the overwhelming force!

[Attention! Mental energy is rapidly depleting... Please act quickly...]

Boom, boom, boom!

A sound like an imperial engine rang in my ears, distant and long, as if it came from the depths of my blood.

Song Ruyu turned her head in astonishment, her pupils contracted sharply, and she subconsciously took a half step back.

"What... what's wrong with you?"

At this moment, Jiang Ling's eyes had rolled back, and her consciousness was clearly blurred.

His muscles spasmed unnaturally, wisps of white smoke rising from them, like a machine overloaded to its limit.

Horrifying bloodstains slowly seeped from the seven orifices, and the capillaries under the skin burst one after another, blooming into fine blood spots.

But he remained standing, without taking a single step back. The bright red cloak he wore became even more dazzling and tragic.

Song Ruyu stared blankly at him, then looked out the porthole at the massive, destructive waves.

This is a tsunami... Can you really... defeat it?

A sweet, metallic taste rose in my throat, and my eardrums buzzed under the immense pressure.

Jiang Ling recalled the words she said to Mei Yu before leaving—"I am strong, stronger than anyone else."

Looking back now, I wish I hadn't made that kind of promise.

Time passed second by second, and something was being slowly ripped from his mind.

[Life force is fading...body is collapsing...please...cancel immediately...]

In the instant before his last shred of consciousness was swallowed by darkness, a phantom seemed to appear in Jiang Ling's blurred vision.

It was a figure seated on a golden throne, silently watching him with eyes that held both compassion and ruthlessness.

There was no emotion in his eyes, neither joy nor sorrow, but simply being "seen" brought an indescribable, reassuring calm that dispelled some of the fear of impending death.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for gaining the approval of the "Emperor Form" Forger—the Cardboard Knight Headgear has been automatically upgraded!]

Duration: 30s → 300s

Cooldown time: 24 hours → 6 hours

[Side effect: When you protect vulnerable humans, your mental strength will increase tenfold.]

Jiang Ling could no longer hear the system notification sounds.

He could no longer even feel pain.

Even after losing consciousness, the knight in the crimson cloak remained standing still.

Amidst the raging winds and towering waves, the massive cruise ship rocked and groaned violently.

Miraculously, supported by this crimson figure, it withstood the relentless crashing of the giant waves time and time again.

P.S.: You cannot switch to another form while using a different form.