William continued pouring Mana into Gu Dianlong's Enslavement Array, but it was too strong and even a few years' worth of Time Loops weren't enough to remove it.
He noticed some strain forming on Gu Dianlong's face by the 1100th loop as he was repeatedly stabbed through the chest by William's sword, then filled with violent waves of Mana that tore him apart.
To be honest, William was mostly surprised at Gu Dianlong's tenacity. The Sect Master didn't have a System like he did, nor did he have the Mind Talent or any form of pain resistance. It was a wonder that he was still conscious after taking such a beating, which further stressed Gu Dianlong's desperation to escape.
He must have been through a lot... William kinda felt bad about Gu Dianlong, but he didn't lower his guard. The man clearly had been ordered to kill William but had found some sort of loophole in the Array. He could still attack William at any moment.
Gu Dianlong ended the Time Loop Spell not long after, eventually giving out to the pain. The Soul Formation Cultivator that had been chasing after William rushed forward with his sword, only for William to dodge without even looking.
The man slashed a few more times, even adding Water Magic to the mix, but William dodged everything without so much as turning his head.
It was as if William had predicted everything before the Cultivator could even move.
"Then try this!" the man yelled as he coated his blade with water and threw it at William, who promptly dodged to the side. The man slightly smirked as the blade turned around and started chasing William from behind, but the expected result of piercing through William's back didn't happen.
Instead, William opened a portal with Space Magic and sent the Cultivator's sword and water flying back towards him, the Water Mana causing no harm, but the sword piercing directly through his heart.
Since it was the man's own weapon, the protective Artifacts he was wearing didn't trigger at all and his body turned limp, dropping from the sky while blood pooled on the ground. He hadn't been careful enough, thinking that his treasures could protect him in a risky situation.
"H-How did you know..." the man cried out weakly before taking his last breath.
-Killed a Human: +5 PP
"Heh, as if I'd tell you." William said. Gu Dianlong's loops didn't always end just after William's first clash with the Soul Formation Cultivator. Sometimes, Sect Master Gu would extend the time for longer to save Mana, once William got used to the man's tactics.
If the Pillars of Justice had sent a force like this to take on the Elemental Beast Tide, they would have wiped it out in a matter of minutes, even without William. So why was it that they didn't bother to do so?
They obviously weren't busy, because they had plenty of time to come in waves and bully a Core Formation kid that was a fraction of their ages. It was almost as if the World was ignoring the Beast Tides, letting each individual group deal with their problems themselves.
It almost made William want to side with Retribution, just like how Jenny and Briar had done not long ago. That Master Black had a very convincing speech, which was clear by how many had joined his cause.
-That's right. There are currently four major powers on this Continent alone that either want to kill you or use you. You've become a chess piece that all the players want to use.
"Are you fucking kidding me?!?" William cursed out loud as another portal opened, revealing a bald Cultivator in the third level of the Tribulation Transcendence Realm.
That Rodger said that Tribulation Transcendence Cultivators never go out. Then what's this?! First it was Sect Master Gu, now it's whoever the fuck this baldie is.
Swear to God if he gives me some lame ass introduction like "You've done quite a bit of damage, but your reign of terror ends here" or some shit I'm going to throw Rodger out a window the next time I see him.
"William, I assume?" the bald Cultivator looked at him with an amicable smile. "You've caused a lot of pain today, why don't we end it here?
You come with me quietly and we will give you a fair sentence. I'll even do what I can to guarantee your life is spared, if only you help me out with something." Baldie's smile widened as he mistook William's twitching eye as a sign of approval.
Close enough! William had had the last straw. All he did was upgrade his Magic Affinities to S-Rank, and he was met with a wave of problem after problem.
First it was his own Elements rebelling against him at the whim of the Chaos Element, then it was the Heavenly Tribulation that he was forced to undergo to save his life. After that it was Supreme Left, then the Beast Tide, Perion, Gu Dianlong, and now this!
He was tired of it, to say the least.
System, upgrade my Acrobatics to SSR-Rank and my Strength to X-Rank. I'm going to give these idiots a piece of my mind.