Given Zhuihun's temper, being spanked by a junior was an utter disgrace. Even if he didn't kill the person who made him lose face, he would never work for that person again, no matter how much money they offered.
The problem is that Zhou Ziwei hired him not with money, but with a life... It was his daughter Emily's life that was used to pay the deposit for three years of being a henchman, and he could never return that deposit. And Zhuihun happens to be a very trustworthy king of assassins.
Since he couldn't return the payment to his employer, he had no choice but to swallow his pride and bear it even if his buttocks were crippled. Of course, if any conflict occurred between them again, Zhuihun would definitely not hold back at all. In short, he wouldn't care as long as he didn't kill his employer.
Since that incident, Zhuihun has never let Baibian leave his body for even a moment. Even when taking a bath, he has to bring Baibian to the bathroom and place him next to the bathtub, within easy reach, before he feels at ease.
As for sleeping, he simply wears the multi-functional costume and sleeps on the floor...
"Hmph..." Hearing Zhou Ziwei's question, Zhuihun snorted disdainfully, then curled his lip and said, "What's there to be afraid of... They're just a bunch of soldiers. Besides relying on the power of guns and cannons, what else can they do? Hmph... These useless trash are not even as good as the warriors of those primitive tribes in ancient times. What's there to be afraid of? If they let you release the people you need peacefully, then this matter will be over. Otherwise... Hmph... They can only become sacrifices for my Hundred Transformations."
Zhou Ziwei was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then shook his head helplessly. He knew that talking to this old man was practically like casting pearls before swine. He'd rather spend the time listening to his nonsense and think things through himself...
"Hey bro, is a fight about to break out?"
Seeing Zhou Ziwei frowning and silent while looking at the electronic map, Emily's eyes immediately lit up. She leaned closer, bent down, grabbed Zhou Ziwei's arm, and shook it vigorously, saying, "This time, big brother, can you take me with you?"
It has to be said that when Zhou Ziwei reshaped Emily, he specially added something to her large breasts. So Emily's snow-white peaks were not only perfectly shaped, but also incredibly high. Especially when Emily bent over like this, her soft, snowy breasts looked like a pair of hanging bells, immediately drooping straight down to Zhou Ziwei's head. As Emily's body swayed, they swept across Zhou Ziwei's face, making him breathe rapidly and his blood boil.
"Cough..." Seeing Emily's actions and Zhou Ziwei's lecherous reaction, Zhuihun was furious. However, he knew that even if he scolded his daughter, she wouldn't take it seriously. In Emily's eyes, Zhou Ziwei was like family, even closer than her father. So... Emily would never listen to her father. Helpless, he could only glare at Zhou Ziwei and say with a snort, "This is a man's business. You women shouldn't interfere, okay?"
"What... Dad, how can you be sexist?" Emily immediately objected to Zhuihun's words, pinching her slender waist with both hands and saying emphatically, "I've learned a lot of skills from my little brother, even the Wind Cone Technique he used to poke Dad's butt the other day. Now I can help him fight his way through the battlefield and demonstrate the power of these skills. Why can't I participate? Humph... Dad looks down on me, I'm ignoring you."
Emily stomped her foot and turned her face away angrily, clearly ignoring Zhuihun.
When Zhuihun heard Emily mention again the incident a couple of days ago when Zhou Ziwei stabbed her buttocks with a wind awl, he was so angry that his face turned ashen. He was about to lash out when he saw that this young lady had already started to get angry before him. He was at a loss for what to do and could only turn to Zhou Ziwei for help, hoping that Zhou Ziwei could persuade Emily. It seemed that his daughter always listened to Zhou Ziwei's words without question, and Zhou Ziwei's words were much more effective than his own as her father.
Zhou Ziwei originally wanted to ignore Zhuihun, but then he realized that the enemy had clearly laid a trap and was waiting for him to take it. If he took Emily with him, Chu Qiutang would definitely have to go too. If these two women were to cause trouble, he and Zhuihun would probably be implicated as well.
He had another plan that required manpower to complete, and he had originally planned to make the trip himself when he had some free time, but now…
Thinking of this, Zhou Ziwei could only pat Emily's little hand helplessly and said affectionately, "Alright, alright... I know Emily's skills are quite impressive now, but... this time you have a more important mission to do, so you can't come in with us to rescue people."
"Ah... what mission? Tell me, tell me quickly!" When Emily heard that Zhou Ziwei had actually assigned her a mission, her face turned red with excitement. She waved her little fists as if she was about to become a great general commanding thousands of troops into battle.
Zhou Ziwei narrowed his eyes slightly, thought for a moment, and then opened them, smiling as he said, "I want to give the President a big gift, but... the President is certainly heavily guarded, and ordinary people probably can't get close to him no matter what. So... this difficult task can only be completed by you, and only you can do it. So, are you willing to help your little brother with this?"
"Yes, of course I'm willing." When Emily heard that her mission was so important—that she was to infiltrate the President's side—how could she not be excited? She immediately nodded vigorously, regardless of Zhou Ziwei's reasons or what he wanted her to do, she would take on the task first.
Seeing this, Zhou Ziwei immediately nodded in satisfaction. Just as he was about to say something, Zhuihun, who was standing to the side, objected. He rushed forward, grabbed Zhou Ziwei by the collar, and roared, "Hey... what are you up to? You better remember this... I'm the one who signed a three-year contract to be your henchman for three years. It has absolutely nothing to do with my daughter. You... you're not satisfied with just using me, you actually want to drag my precious daughter into this too? You really have some nerve, trying to get my precious daughter to fight your way to the president's side? Why don't you just die... there are plenty of experts around the president, aren't you trying to kill my daughter?"
Zhou Ziwei was furious at Zhuihun's ruthless actions and coldly snorted, saying, "Let go..."
"I won't let go," Zhuihun said resolutely.
"Let go of me right now." Zhou Ziwei's voice was full of warning.
"I'm not letting go, what can you do about it... Ah... Damn it, damn it..."
Just as Zhuihun was still stubbornly clinging to Zhou Ziwei's collar, he suddenly felt as if Zhou Ziwei's collar had completely melted away. Then, like two clumps of water, it enveloped his arm and then shot upwards along his arm, instantly covering the armor he was wearing, which was made of the Hundred Transformations.
Upon seeing that terrifying bright silver color once again clinging to him like a leech, Zhuihun was immediately terrified. He hurriedly released his grip on Zhou Ziwei's clothes and leaped backward like lightning. At the same time, all the spiritual power in his body surged out with a "boom" and poured directly into the Hundred Transformations on his body, causing the Hundred Transformations to expand rapidly in an instant and completely change its shape. Only then were the bright silver metallic substances that had been stuck to it broken off.
In just that short time, Zhuihun discovered that his Hundred Transformations had lost nearly one percent of its volume.
What a terrifying artifact... It eats way too fast! If this guy were allowed to eat as much as he wanted, even my hundreds-of-kilograms-weight Transformation Armor wouldn't be enough for him to eat more than a few bites...
Zhou Ziwei had been deliberately controlling his alloy armor to prevent it from devouring Zhuihun's spiritual artifact. Otherwise, since the two of them were together every day, there would inevitably be opportunities for physical contact. If the alloy armor had to pounce on Zhuihun's spiritual artifact and take a few bites every time, it would be considered good if Zhuihun's precious spiritual artifact still had half its original size.
However, Zhou Ziwei was somewhat annoyed by the Soul Chaser this time, so he immediately lifted the ban on the Alloy Armor from devouring the Hundred Transformations. As a result, the Alloy Armor pounced on him like a starving ghost that hadn't eaten for eight lifetimes.
This alloy suit isn't exactly unintelligent; it understands that Zhou Ziwei might stop its predatory behavior again at any time. So, taking advantage of this rare opportunity, it naturally eats as much as it can—first come, first served, no room for hesitation. At this moment, there's no room for any restraint...
The silver metal scattered on the ground by the chasing spirit slowly gathered together like little insects with legs, then turned into metal spheres that rolled to Zhou Ziwei's feet, merged with his shoes, and burrowed into his alloy suit.
Zhou Ziwei immediately sensed the joy emanating from the alloy garment through his soul perception. It was telling Zhou Ziwei that through this period of fusion and absorption, the quality of the alloy garment seemed to have just undergone a qualitative leap. As a result, the overall metal quality of the alloy garment was almost the same as that of an ordinary spiritual weapon. Zhou Ziwei could even use a part of the alloy garment as a spiritual weapon.
It's okay if it leaves the main body of the alloy suit and flies away for a while.
Zhou Ziwei was overjoyed. He had been troubled by not having a suitable magical weapon. He used to think he was pretty great because he had three butterfly darts, but after seeing the burlap freak's black iron branch and the Soul Chaser's Hundred Transformations, Zhou Ziwei realized that compared to their real magical weapons, his three butterfly darts were nothing.
However, the alloy armor has now been upgraded to the quality of a spiritual weapon, and a portion of it can be separated from the main body at will and used as an ordinary spiritual weapon. This is much more convenient for Zhou Ziwei.
I didn't expect the Alloy Armor to upgrade so quickly. It only devoured a few bites of the Soul Chaser's Hundred Transformations and it has already successfully advanced. If the Alloy Armor had the chance to eat the entire Soul Chaser's Hundred Transformations, then... I wonder how powerful the Alloy Armor would become? It would definitely be much stronger than the complete Hundred Transformations.
Zhou Ziwei was overjoyed and couldn't help but want to demonstrate it on the spot, to test just how powerful the alloy armor's ability to separate magical artifacts really was.
I wonder how many small magical artifacts can be separated out, and what the total size of the magical artifact will be? You know, Zhou Ziwei's alloy armor looks like only a thin layer, and it seems like it weighs less than half a pound when put together.
However, it should be noted that this seemingly unremarkable thing was formed by absorbing tens of thousands of kilograms of metal. Therefore, even Zhou Ziwei himself had no idea how big or how much it actually weighed.
Volume 3, King of the City, Chapter 634: A Mountain of Knives and a Sea of Swords
Just as Zhou Ziwei was eager to try, Zhuihun was also enraged by the serious loss of his precious spiritual weapon. He roared and, with red eyes, slapped his precious spiritual weapon. Suddenly, thirty-six small spiritual weapons separated from the Hundred Transformations and attacked Zhou Ziwei. In an instant, he unleashed all his abilities, as if he really wanted to fight Zhou Ziwei to the death.
"Well done." Zhou Ziwei's eyes lit up at the sight. With a thought, the alloy armor on his body rippled like mercury. Each ripple instantly formed a delicate silver knife that separated from the alloy armor and flew into the air, flashing a dazzling cold light, to fiercely meet the incoming magical weapons.
In the blink of an eye, Zhou Ziwei had also separated out thirty-six small spiritual artifacts.
He charged forward one-on-one to meet the Soul Chaser's deadly attack.
"Ah...you've finally decided to use your treasure?" Upon seeing this, Zhuihun's spirits lifted. This was the first time he had ever seen Zhou Ziwei use his divine artifact in this way. What surprised him the most was that Zhou Ziwei could actually control thirty-six small magical artifacts at once.
You have to understand... it took him decades of arduous training to barely be able to control thirty-six minor magical artifacts to attack simultaneously. Moreover, once he controls thirty-six minor magical artifacts at the same time, his entire being is essentially operating at full capacity, with all his mind focused on those thirty-six minor magical artifacts. At this moment, he probably wouldn't even feel it if someone took a knife and cut a piece of flesh off his body.
Therefore, operating at full capacity like this is an extremely dangerous thing for Zhuihun. In normal battles, no matter how tough the enemy is, Zhuihun would never risk his life like this. Releasing thirty-two small spiritual weapons at once is basically his limit. He always leaves some consciousness to protect himself.
However, here, surrounded by his own people, Zhuihun naturally didn't need to worry so much. Even Zhou Ziwei, who was currently fighting him, he believed that the other party had no ill intentions whatsoever. Otherwise, the other party wouldn't have only used divine artifacts instead of natural energy... Speaking of which... the highly condensed wind cone that Zhou Ziwei created last time was quite powerful. Even now, thinking about it still makes Zhuihun feel lingering fear.
"Clang clang clang..." The crisp sound of metal colliding rang out in mid-air as the thirty-six black gold swords and the thirty-six bright silver alloy knives collided accurately in the air. As a result, Zhou Ziwei's alloy knives seemed to be inferior to the Hundred Transformations in terms of pure metal hardness. After this collision, the black gold swords did not change at all, but all thirty-six alloy knives had a clear nick on them.
Although the gap looks somewhat alarming, it only extends less than one-fifth of the way in, so it won't have a significant impact on the use of the alloy knife for the time being.
Think back to the last time Zhou Ziwei clashed his alloy sword with the black gold greatsword that had transformed into the Hundred Transformations Formation. It was cut off by three-quarters of its length, but this time it only had a wound of less than one-fifth. This shows just how much qualitative change the alloy armor has undergone after absorbing so much of the Hundred Transformations Formation's essence during this period of time...
Of course, although it was Zhou Ziwei's alloy sword that was injured after the swords clashed, the terrifying fusion ability of the alloy sword meant that it wouldn't matter even if it was cut into seventeen or eighteen pieces. Moreover, once the swords clashed, as long as Zhou Ziwei used his underhanded methods, he could directly turn those alloy swords into clumps of silver molten iron that stuck to the opponent's black gold swords, unleashing a terrifying devouring technique. This would surely scare Bai Bian away as far as possible, never daring to provoke Zhou Ziwei again.
However… Zhuihun was, after all, a friend, not an enemy, to Zhou Ziwei. It was fine for them to spar a little; he couldn’t very well devour the spiritual weapon that the other man valued as his life, leaving it in pieces! Besides… Zhuihun had practically come to regard Chu Qiutang as his successor, and had even made a subtle promise that once Chu Qiutang had cultivated to the level of a Spirit Martial Master and possessed the initial strength to control the Hundred Transformations, he would formally pass on the Hundred Transformations to Chu Qiutang.
Therefore, this precious magical artifact can now be considered half of their own. Zhou Ziwei couldn't afford to damage it too much, lest when Chu Qiutang takes it over, all that's left is a pathetic piece of junk. Then... wouldn't Chu Qiutang fight him to the death?
Therefore, although Zhou Ziwei had the opportunity to let the alloy armor absorb a few more mouthfuls of the ever-changing black gold essence during the battle, he did not actually do so. However, if he were to rely solely on the strength of the Hundred Spiritual Weapons to fight head-on, Zhou Ziwei's alloy blade would be no match for the other party's alloy sword.
If the alloy knife and the black gold sword were to take a few more blows in mid-air like this, the alloy knife would inevitably break completely.
Although the alloy armor can be reassembled after it breaks, this reassembly takes time and requires Zhou Ziwei to expend a great deal of his soul power.
So... Zhou Ziwei simply decided to release another thirty-six alloy knives of the same specifications and size.
If we can't beat you one-on-one, then two against one. If that still doesn't work, then three against one, four against one, what's the big deal? Anyway, the alloy armor seems to be able to split into quite a few small magical artifacts, and Zhou Ziwei's soul power is incredibly strong. Conservatively speaking, at least being able to distract himself and control hundreds of alloy blades to attack at the same time shouldn't put too much strain on him.
As for where Zhou Ziwei's limits are... Zhou Ziwei hasn't actually tested that yet...
Seeing that Zhou Ziwei's alloy blades were immediately damaged after a fierce clash, Zhuihun's spirits lifted. Just as he was about to press his advantage, he suddenly remembered that Zhou Ziwei's alloy blades seemed capable of transforming into a rogue metal at any moment, relentlessly clinging to him and gradually devouring the black gold essence contained in his small spiritual weapons. Suddenly, he felt a chill run down his spine.
However, seeing that the alloy knives were dodging in the air and didn't seem to be rushing up to cause trouble, he breathed a slight sigh of relief. Just as he was about to launch another attack, he saw a burst of silver light on the other side. Thirty-six damaged alloy knives dodged to the side, followed by thirty-six intact alloy knives that came straight at him. The thirty-six damaged knives, however, went around to the side to provide auxiliary attacks.
Zhuihun was quite surprised. He never expected that Zhou Ziwei was even more powerful than him, easily controlling seventy-two small magical weapons to attack. Moreover, judging from the seventy-two alloy blades maintaining their own flight trajectories in the air, it was clear that Zhou Ziwei was truly multitasking, controlling each alloy blade to perform the most perfect movements. And because they were controlled by the same mind, they could also perfectly execute a combined attack formation... In this way, the power that these seventy-two alloy blades could unleash was extraordinary.
"Clang clang clang clang clang..." Another rapid clanging of metal rang out. Zhuihun, not to be outdone, manipulated his thirty-six black gold swords to fight against the opponent's seventy-two alloy knives. He still did not fall behind. On the contrary, Zhou Ziwei's seventy-two alloy knives suffered more new wounds in this round of competition.
Although Zhou Ziwei could control seventy-two alloy knives at once, he had not systematically learned the technique of combining and attacking flying knives and swords in the air. So, although he could dazzle the audience with seventy-two alloy knives in the air, he might not actually be able to exert much of an advantage in terms of quantity.
However, Zhuihun had put in a lot of effort in this area, and the combined attack formation of thirty-six black gold swords was his specialty. When he unleashed it now, he actually managed to suppress Zhou Ziwei's seventy-two alloy swords, making it impossible for Zhou Ziwei to turn the tide.
Holy crap, I refuse to believe this nonsense.
Zhou Ziwei's eyes widened, and silver waves rippled around his body. In an instant, thirty-six bright silver lights detached from his alloy armor and flew into the air, joining the chaotic battle. Less than half a minute later, Zhou Ziwei patted his clothes, and another thirty-six silver lights flew out... It wasn't until Zhou Ziwei released a full two hundred and sixteen alloy swords in one go, creating a situation where six alloy swords were besieging a black gold sword, that Zhuihun, who had been struggling in the battle, finally completely collapsed. He hurriedly shouted, "Stop, stop, stop... I'm not fighting anymore... I'm not fighting anymore... If this continues, I'll be overwhelmed by your sea of swords."
Indeed... this is not a very spacious room. Zhou Ziwei alone released more than two hundred alloy swords that flew back and forth in the air. Not to mention the Soul Chaser who had been suppressed, even Emily and Chu Qiutang who were watching from the side were almost completely overwhelmed by these alloy swords.
Fortunately, Zhou Ziwei possessed powerful soul energy, allowing him to control each alloy knife with exquisite precision, thus preventing the randomly flying alloy knives from accidentally injuring them.
However, the room was too small. If Zhou Ziwei were to add another one or two hundred alloy knives, even if he was careful, he might still accidentally injure the two beauties.
Hearing that Zhuihun had actually called a halt, although he was still stubborn and hadn't said anything to admit defeat, his meaning was quite clear. Zhou Ziwei didn't press him any further. In a flash, the silver light that was flying all over the sky suddenly seemed like a meteor shower streaking across the night sky, shooting back and hitting Zhou Ziwei's body in succession...
Indeed, to outsiders, it looked as if the two hundred-plus alloy knives had simultaneously pierced Zhou Ziwei's body. The scene was incredibly shocking, so much so that Chu Qiutang and Emily couldn't help but let out a scream.
They all thought Zhou Ziwei hadn't controlled the small magical artifacts properly, and that the alloy blades had actually injured him... Good heavens... that's like being pierced by a thousand blades... Could he have been torn to pieces by his own magical artifacts?!
Of all these people, only Zhuihun saw it clearly. He knew that the alloy knives immediately began to decompose and melt when they touched Zhou Ziwei's clothes. In the blink of an eye, they were completely transformed into the same texture and color as the clothes, becoming one with them and indistinguishable from each other.
What exquisite techniques for controlling magical artifacts...
Seeing this, Zhuihun was even more amazed. However... although this was very strange, it seemed less unacceptable compared to Zhou Ziwei's ability to control more than two hundred small spiritual artifacts at once.
Those are over two hundred small magical artifacts... not twenty or so, and certainly not just two or three.
To control over two hundred minor magical artifacts at once, one must possess incredibly powerful and terrifying spiritual energy... Even as the world's number one assassin and a martial artist who has been stuck at the peak of the Spiritual Martial Master realm for decades, Zhui Hun can only control a maximum of thirty-six minor magical artifacts simultaneously, and even that is extremely difficult.
But look at him... He released over two hundred small magical weapons at once and still seemed to have it all under control. It was as if even if he released another one or two hundred more small magical weapons, they wouldn't be able to stump him... The difference in their abilities is just too great!
What shocked Zhuihun even more was Zhou Ziwei's "divine artifact" that could continuously create countless alloy blades. While it was certainly amazing that a spiritual warrior could control more than two hundred small spiritual artifacts at the same time, a divine artifact that could create more than two hundred small spiritual artifacts at once was also both astonishing and enviable... Zhuihun's precious magical artifact, the Hundred Transformations, was already considered the most top-tier magical artifact known to date, but it could only split into a maximum of one hundred small spiritual artifacts at a time, which was already the limit of the Hundred Transformations.
However, Zhou Ziwei's artifact, after releasing more than two hundred alloy blades, still maintained its original shape without any signs of depletion. This made Zhuihun suspect that even if that thing released a mountain of blades and a sea of swords, it probably wouldn't have any problems.
This artifact... it truly is extraordinary... its terrifying power is unmatched even by ten of the Hundred Transformations combined...
Although Zhuihun was extremely envious and drooling with envy, he also knew that the artifact might not necessarily be more useful to him than the Hundred Transformations.
After all, even if that divine artifact could split into ten thousand smaller spiritual artifacts at once, it would only be useful if he could control them! In fact, even with just his one hundred smaller spiritual artifacts at the highest limit of the Hundred Transformations, he might not have the chance to control them all at the same time to fight an enemy in this lifetime.
If he remains stuck at the current level of Spirit Martial Master, it goes without saying that even if he were to have a stroke of luck one day and suddenly break through to the level of Spirit God Master... he might not be able to raise his strength to the point where he can simultaneously control a hundred small spiritual artifacts.
So... no matter how good Zhou Ziwei's artifact is... Zhuihun can only be envious for a moment and that's it. Anyway, even if he were given it, he wouldn't be able to use it. After staring greedily at Zhou Ziwei's seemingly ordinary clothes for a few moments, he stopped lingering on it.
"You brat... you win this time, but what about someday... hmph..."
Zhuihun has been at the pinnacle of martial prowess for who knows how long, and has long been accustomed to the lonely feeling of being unparalleled in the world and having no rivals under heaven.
This time, he inexplicably suffered such a great loss at the hands of someone who looked like a child. Of course, he was still a little unwilling. However... he wanted to say a few polite words, but he quickly withdrew his words after only saying half of them.
He had originally intended to say, "Let's find a spacious place sometime and have a proper contest." However, he then thought that Zhou Ziwei had unleashed over two hundred small magical weapons to attack him in this cramped room today. So... if they were in a more spacious environment, what if this little monster unleashed five or six hundred small magical weapons at once? That would be quite a spectacle.
Even without five or six hundred small magical artifacts, and even if he still retained the same level of attack methods as today, his Soul Chaser would still be in a losing situation.
You have to understand that the two of them have some kind of familial bond. Although they were arguing quite a bit just now, out of respect for Emily, neither of them would actually hurt the other.
Otherwise, if they had been fighting for their lives just now... why would Zhou Ziwei have needed to use six alloy swords to besiege Zhuihun's single black gold sword? Even if the alloy swords were slightly less hard and couldn't defeat him one-on-one, four or five of them together would have easily suppressed him. If Zhou Ziwei had just freed up one set... a total of thirty-six alloy swords, and used them to attack Zhuihun's main body, Zhuihun, whose mind was already extremely tense from controlling the thirty-six black gold swords, would have had absolutely no chance to fight back. The only consequence awaiting him would have been death.
So... although the two of them didn't have any life-or-death struggle this time, and didn't really fight to a draw, Zhuihun knew very well in his heart that he had already lost, and lost completely. Even if he were given another chance, he would have no chance of turning the tables.
Since that's the case... what's the point of saying those empty platitudes? What if this brat takes it seriously again... and insists on setting another time to spar with him somewhere secluded... oh dear... wouldn't he be deliberately asking for trouble?