Z looked the same as before. After all, it had only been a few months ago when they last met.
Although Z had promised Hu San, the mysterious guardian, to relocate his organization away from the North Sea, the former had no obligation or whatsoever to abide by it.
Would a powerful S-tier elect really restrain himself or herself from visiting a place just because of some empty promise?
That was practically impossible. Z made a promise not because he was willing to compromise. Simply speaking, he cared little about it since nobody could really stop him from doing as he pleased.
At the same time, Qin Feng thought of something.
‘Perhaps, the mysterious man who was here in my last life was also Z?’
At that time, a mysterious elect had occurred out of nowhere and disappeared quickly after taking down the Cinder Pine.
Z seemed to be the most probable candidate now.
Qin Feng furrowed his eyebrows after thinking it through. ‘Doesn’t it mean I owe Z a favor now?’
The North Sea was currently under Qin Feng’s watch. Getting help from an outsider somehow tinged Qin Feng’s nerve.
Z’s sight had now turned onto the Cinder Pine. His eyes were full of intrigue and curiousness as he watched the burning tree.
That gave Qin Feng the chills. It was the same expression when Z was looking at Qin Feng—The sight of a mad scientist on an interesting study subject.
Z said enthusiastically, “This is such an extraordinary organism. I have never thought that a beast could strengthen itself simply by eating things. This is a rare experimental material that could probably help propel my research into the next stage!”
Qin Feng’s face changed after hearing what Z had said.
Humans, theoretically, could also strengthen themselves by consuming items like herbs and beast meat. But not many could actually swallow raw materials from nature or even other humans to boost up.
Speaking of which, the Cinder Pine shared some similarities with Qin Feng and his Absorption Ability.
Z continued. “Fascinating, truly fascinating. My research is still far from complete. If I can decode and acquire this ability, then in the future humans could probably kill the beasts and directly devour them to become stronger. In that case, a human could grow without any limit. That could ultimately devoid the need for mutation. There’s enormous risk in tinkering with human genes, after all!”
Qin Feng’s heart sank as Z talked to himself. What Z said was exactly his ability.
Z tilted his head and looked at Qin Feng. He then offered half-jokingly, “Qin Feng, why don’t you join me and help me with the research? I know there are a lot of mutants currently under you who are unable to break through!”
Qin Feng furrowed his brows and answered back coldly, “No thanks.”
He did have underlings like that. The ones closest to him were Lin Wuyi and Han Nuan. At the moment, Han Nuan was doing okay but Lin Wuyi’s development had been in jeopardy. The latter could only evolve through experimental means, which came with tremendous risks.
No matter what, Qin Feng would not work with Z. This man was not just a mad scientist, but also an elect with great power.
Collaboration with another user must be built on one foundation, which was that the two collaborators must be at least equal in strength.
There might come a time when Qin Feng would have no choice but to collaborate with him. That would only happen after Qin Feng had reached the S-tier.
Z was not surprised that Qin Feng rejected him so quickly. He knew how cautious Qin Feng was toward him.
He was just testing Qin Feng and suggested it randomly. The Cinder Pine was what really occupied his mind now.
“Hehe! Forget it then. But I am taking that tree over there,” Z left behind those words and turned his back on Qin Feng.
His aura changed rapidly and in the next instance, a giant black wyvern appeared in the sky.
It was Z’s Spirit.
The Cinder Pine was very powerful. It could move the land and shroud the skies.
But Z’s Spirit was not at all inferior to the Cinder Pine.
“Roar!”
The wyvern spirit growled and dived at the pine.
Sharp claws of the wyvern hinged on the tree and began to crush its branches. Sounds of branches breaking were heard consistently.
The branches looked small from a distance but they exploded into a loud bang when they hit the ground. Each “small” branch measured at least twenty-meter long and one meter wide. It was almost the size of a common trunk.
Such a battle was horrific to the eyes.
Qin Feng was astounded watching from afar.
Z hid inside his spirit, which now seemed larger than the Cinder Pine. Each time it landed its claws, more parts from the pine were pried off.
No one could or would intervene in the battle between two mammoths.
‘Is this the disparity in terms of power, or more to size??’ A question came into Qin Feng’s mind.
He felt that his level was probably similar to that of the pine. But their size made all the difference.
Qin Feng could destroy a mountain easily with his power but against the Cinder Pine, he could only approach from the perimeter and slowly remove the tree’s wildly dancing branches and leaves.
However, Z’s Spirit ignored all that and struck straight to the Cinder Pine’s core.
Undeniably, Z was an S-tier as compared to Qin Feng’s C-tier. But his size advantage was still enormous.
In the future, Qin Feng would probably be even more powerless against a larger beast like how it was today.
However, Qin Feng quickly diminished the thought.
‘Z must be showing this on purpose. He wants me to think this way. I have not seen him being this dramatic when battling with Hu San. Dream on if you think this can persuade me to become your experimental subject!’
‘So what if the Spirit is indeed more powerful? Who can guarantee that I wouldn’t become a horrible monster in the future if I accept his offer? All the things that I have built up so far would be worth nothing if that’s the case.’
Moreover, Qin Feng still had memories of all the major events taking place in the next 8 years. This advantage alone would make Qin Feng the pinnacle of the human race!
He refused to believe that his achievements would stop there. A stern and determined expression appeared on Qin Feng’s face.
This was when another behemoth appeared on the horizon.
It was the Floating City.
“Let’s go!”
Qin Feng pinched Bai Li’s waist. The white fox immediately used spatial runes to teleport both of them above the city.
They swiftly entered the control room of the flying castle. The others had become used to Qin Feng’s sudden appearance and were not surprised by his abrupt entrance. They were all observing the battle outside solemnly.
Curiosity filled their eyes but none of them was talking.
Those maneuvering the Floating City were the Fengli Organization’s best gunners.
Their allegiance to Qin Feng was absolute and they underwent the toughest training directly under Qin Feng. Unlike ancient warriors and ability users, they believed only Qin Feng could lead them into a bright future. That was why they were the most loyal group to Qin Feng inside the corporation.
“Lock on to the tree and the man over there. Prepare to launch an attack anytime!” Qin Feng ordered instantly.
If the opportunity were to present itself, Qin Feng did not mind taking Z down together with the Cinder Pine.
But Z did not give Qin Feng any chance. He was simply too powerful. Though the Cinder Pine was pretty strong, it had lost any ability to fight back.
The giant black wyvern spiraled down and clamped on the Cinder Pine’s trunk. It then ruthlessly tightened its grip.
The roots of the Cinder Pine swung madly and lashed on the wyvern’s body. But it had failed to leave any wound on it.
Instead, its trunk shrunk greatly under the wyvern’s crushing grip.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
It sounded like its life was being sapped away gradually.
Snap!
On the surveillance monitor inside the control room, the trunk of the mighty Cinder Pine was seen broken in half.