Chapter 82: Hidden Power

Ryan was wreathed in eerie black smoke, a sinister grin spreading across his face as he lightly leaped into the air.

Then, he brought his elbow crashing downward toward Owen’s head with terrifying force.

’Ninefold World Devouring Power, stacked with a Superior-grade Origin Realm combat skill, Exploding Heavy Elbow!’

The elbow descended like thunder.

A sharp, deafening sonic boom erupted from the violent friction between his arm and the air.

Thick, viscous yellow Origin Energy spewed from Ryan’s entire right arm, while wisps of eerie black smoke coiled around it. A terrifyingly violent force surged through his muscles, concentrating entirely at his elbow.

The surrounding air currents frenziedly converged toward the point of impact.

In an instant, the compressed airflow transformed into the phantom of a colossal ten-thousand-foot mountain, crashing down with overwhelming might.

Wherever the force passed, the surrounding light seemed to dim, as though even the air itself were being twisted beneath its terrifying pressure.

"What?!"

Owen was completely stunned.

He had never expected Ryan, who had been riddled with Mystic Yin Lightning Energy just moments ago, to suddenly recover his mobility.

But there was no time to think.

Such a terrifying close-range attack had already arrived directly before him, leaving him no opportunity to evade.

Owen hurriedly raised a protective shield of Mystic Yin Lightning, his face turning deathly pale with terror.

In his panic, a foul-smelling liquid even seeped down from his crotch.

However, in the next instant, the Mystic Yin Lightning protective shield was torn apart like paper.

BOOM!

Ryan’s terrifying elbow smashed directly into the crown of Owen’s head.

More than fourteen times Ryan’s physical strength erupted completely at the point of impact!

Owen’s head couldn’t withstand the force in the slightest.

It exploded like a watermelon struck by a massive hammer.

Red and white matter splattered in every direction, while the violent shockwave sent debris and blood spraying far into the surrounding forest.

The stench of blood instantly filled the air.

A gentle breeze passed through the battlefield.

Owen’s headless corpse twitched for a moment before collapsing limply into the pool of blood beneath him.

Even until his final moment, Owen couldn’t understand.

His resentment remained frozen in his mind.

’Damn it!’

’What in the world was that strange black smoke?!’

’Why could Ryan suddenly unleash such terrifying power?!’

This power had already far surpassed the Spirit Rank Low Grade category.

It was no exaggeration to say that it was infinitely close to Spirit Rank Middle Grade!

’Why?! Why?! Why?!’

’How could a mere pauper who survived by scavenging through garbage possess such a terrifying secret art?!’

"Squeak, squeak~~!"

Nearby, the Azure Green Mantis shrieked in panic.

With its master dead, the soul imprint binding it instantly disappeared, leaving it completely unrestrained.

WHOOSH!

It violently flapped its wings, creating a powerful gust of wind as its body transformed into a green streak of light and shot deeper into the Ashfall Forest.

Seeing the rapidly fleeing Azure Green Mantis, Ryan felt a deep sense of regret.

He was genuinely envious of such a high-speed, high-attack exotic insect that could naturally fly.

He really wanted to chase it down, subdue it, and place it inside his beast pouch to raise.

Unfortunately, even with his current strength, he was still far from being capable of flying.

As long as the Azure Green Mantis continued fleeing through the sky, its speed was so fast that even with Spider Silk Swing assisting him, he would have an extremely difficult time catching it.

And more importantly, Gareth, who was still ahead of him, certainly wouldn’t allow Ryan to pursue the insect unhindered.

Therefore, although Ryan felt extremely reluctant to let such a valuable exotic insect escape, he could only suppress the thought.

"No! How dare you!

"Ryan, you, are, dead!!!"

At this moment, Gareth witnessed Owen’s death.

His expression instantly transformed from shock into uncontrollable rage.

His face twisted hideously as towering fury erupted from his entire body.

He immediately tightened his grip around the Titan Giant Shield and stomped his right foot violently against the ground.

BOOM!

The earth trembled as Gareth transformed into a crimson figure enveloped in blazing flames.

His first move was an Ultimate-grade Origin Realm killing technique.

’Fire Shield Meteor!’

He charged toward Ryan without the slightest hesitation, completely disregarding everything else.

The Origin Energy within his body erupted without restraint, causing the temperature surrounding him to soar rapidly.

His figure resembled a flaming meteor descending from the heavens, dragging a long crimson tail of fire behind him.

Wherever he passed, fallen leaves and sand were instantly reduced to dust.

The momentum was terrifying.

Gareth had originally believed that victory was already within his grasp.

But who could have imagined that the situation would be reversed in an instant?

Just moments ago, he had still been stunned by the strange black smoke surrounding Ryan, trying to figure out what it was.

Before he could even react, his only remaining adopted son had been killed by a single elbow strike.

Owen’s head had exploded right before his eyes.

Gareth’s eyes instantly turned bloodshot with rage.

At this moment, everything else had been thrown to the back of his mind.

He had only one thought. Ryan had to die. Not merely physically.

He wanted Ryan’s soul and spirit completely annihilated, with no possibility of reincarnation!

Seeing Gareth charge forward, the two remaining black-clad henchmen were initially stunned.

Then, their expressions became ferocious as they simultaneously charged toward Ryan.

"Ryan..." Jake’s face instantly paled. His stomach churned as he stared at Owen’s headless corpse.

He had never expected Ryan to actually kill another member of the Sterling Clan.

The grudge between Ryan and the Sterling Clan had now become even deeper.

"No time left." Ryan’s expression sank.

Black smoke surged violently around his body as he coldly stared at the rapidly approaching Gareth.

"I can only make one more move!"

He could clearly feel the Origin Energy within his body rapidly depleting.

The burst of the Devouring World Art couldn’t be maintained for much longer.

Ryan gritted his teeth. He flipped his wrist and quickly stored Owen’s corpse inside his spatial ring.

At the same time, he took out a small green porcelain bottle and firmly held it in his left hand.

Then, he gathered every ounce of strength remaining within his body.

All of his power surged violently toward his right arm.

His legs bent before exploding with force.

WHOOSH!

Ryan didn’t dodge.

He didn’t retreat.

Instead, he shot forward like an armor-piercing cannonball, charging directly toward the raging Gareth.

’Ninefold World Devouring Power!’

’Superior-grade Origin Realm combat skill.’

’Iron Thread Armor Crushing Fist!’

BOOM!

Ryan’s right fist shot forward.

The terrifying punch tore through the air like a taut arrow wreathed in black smoke, creating a sharp, straight beam of light as it violently smashed toward Gareth.

The moment Iron Thread Armor Crushing Fist was unleashed, its power became frighteningly concentrated at a single point.

It was precisely because of this extreme concentration that the technique carried the name, Armor Crushing.

Ryan understood his situation very clearly.

Without the burst of the Devouring World Art, his current strength was simply insufficient to contend directly with Gareth, an Origin Spirit Realm Peak expert.

Although Ryan possessed a Bloodline that was one grade higher, Gareth completely overwhelmed him in every other aspect of comprehensive strength.

Even Owen, who had only been at the Origin Spirit Realm Initial Stage, would have been extremely difficult for Ryan to kill if not for the sudden burst of the Devouring World Art catching him completely off guard.

After all, the Mystic Yin Lightning Bloodline naturally countered his Overlord Body Bloodline.

Combined with the Azure Green Mantis, a high-speed, high-attack exotic insect, Owen’s overall combat strength had been exceptionally difficult to overcome through realm suppression alone.

Originally, Ryan had wanted to conserve some of his Origin Energy.

But these members of the major families were simply too troublesome.

Without going all out, there was no chance of victory.

Fortunately, from beginning to end, Ryan’s objective had never been to fight them.

He only wanted to save the people trapped here.

As long as he succeeded, everything else was secondary.

So now, the outcome would depend on this final burst of strength.

At present.

[Ryan, Origin Sea Convergence Realm Seventh Stage, C-Rank Top-Tier Bloodline, 9x World Devouring Power Amplification, Superior-grade Origin Realm Combat Skill, Iron Thread Armor Crushing Fist!]

Facing him was.

[Gareth, Origin Spirit Realm Peak, C-Grade Top-Tier Bloodline, Spirit Rank Low-Grade Titan Giant Shield, Ultimate-grade Origin Realm Combat Skill, Fire Shield Meteor!]

The two figures rapidly closed the distance.

Neither retreated.

Neither slowed down.

One was surrounded by eerie black smoke.

The other was engulfed in crimson flames.

In the next instant, Ryan’s terrifying fist violently smashed into the flaming surface of Gareth’s Titan Giant Shield!

BOOM!!!