Ye Zhongming didn't respond, nor did he know how to respond.
He suppressed the urge to attack because he sensed that things weren't as simple as they seed.
"You're all so annoying, you know that? Everything was under my control. I could've made sure no passage was completed, forcing these factions to keep grinding each other down. Once they'd weakened enough, I'd clean them up one by one—until only I could ascend to the peak. Only I could claim the Mountain King Wheel!"
The voice emanating from the chanical units was eerily lifelike, its tone shifting from low and asured to frenzied and impassioned.
To Cloud Peak's mbers, it was grating.
"But then you started slaughtering indiscriminately, throwing everything into chaos. Now, four factions have already secured passage rights—and you are responsible for this!"
Ye Zhongming pinpointed the source of the voice—a colossal chanical war god, one hand gripping an enormous greatsword, the other a massive rectangular shield. Its body was rusted, yet it exuded an ancient, predatory aura, like so primordial beast.
The Cloud Peak King couldn't fathom why a lifeless construct would radiate such presence. He was certain this towering machine wasn't of Earth's making—so how could it possess this ti-forged gravitas? Had it erged from a dungeon, like Yangos?
Questions swirled in Ye Zhongming's mind as he scanned the battlefield, noting several other chanical units with similar auras. Aside from the giant, the most prominent were two beast-shaped constructs—one large, one small—and a bizarre, unidentifiable machine of unknown purpose.
"And how, exactly, are we responsible?"
Seeing Ye Zhongming's silence, Xiao Min retorted, her voice dripping with unmistakable sarcasm.
To Cloud Peak, this chanical army was peculiar, unsettling, and formidable—but not enough to inspire fear. Compared to the level-nine entities they'd faced, this force wouldn't even crack their top ten list of toughest opponents.
If not for Ye Zhongming's restraint, they'd have attacked the mont they laid eyes on these machines.
With the Cannibal Chain gone, every remaining faction on the ring-shaped path was an enemy.
"By dying, obviously!"
The response drew a derisive snort from Ye Zhongming himself.
"What makes you so confident we're the ones who'll die?"
The voice showed no trace of tension, replying with gleeful amusent:
"Because you've already fallen into my trap."
That got Cloud Peak's attention.
"Silence ans fear!" The voice cackled, utterly unbothered. "Let
spell it out for you."
"Four factions have already cleared the Death Steps. Only three slots remain."
"Cut the crap."
Ye Zhongming's impatience masked a growing unease.
"I have twelve people here."
The war-god ch tilted slightly, drawing attention to the bound evolvers strapped to various machines.
"Twelve individuals—from two different factions."
For reasons he couldn't articulate, Ye Zhongming's gut twisted. They'd been played.
"And now..." The voice stretched the words, oozing mockery. "I'll place two of them on separate passages. Just five minutes, and—poof—two more factions pass! That makes six. Only one slot left. So tell ..."
The voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper.
"Who gets it? You? Or the house?"
By now, even those slower on the uptake understood. This wasn't just hostility—it was targeted sabotage.
"Again—why are you so sure you can beat us?"
Dai Zhi, normally composed, burned with fury. She itched to drag this coward from his tal shell and crush his skull.
Her anger aside, she'd hit the core issue.
This lunatic planned to artificially create two "passing" factions by stationing hostages on passages, forcing Cloud Peak to fight for the last slot.
But why?
What gave him the certainty that he could defeat Cloud Peak?
Even if he could win, why choose this convoluted thod? Killing the hostages would reduce the faction count below seven, instantly clearing the trial. Why opt for a bloody showdown with Cloud Peak, risking crippling losses that would doom him in the next round?
What was the point?
While his team seethed, Ye Zhongming's unease deepened. A terrible possibility took shape.
"HAHAHAHAHA—"
The chanical voice erupted in maniacal laughter, unrestrained and dripping with contempt.
The ssage was clear: You fools.
"Ohhh, this is priceless. How can you be this stupid?" The voice wheezed between laughs, as if on the verge of suffocating.
Cloud Peak's mbers glowered, eyes flicking to Ye Zhongming, awaiting the order to strike.
"I'm doing this... because I'm ready."
With that, one of the beast-shaped chs bolted toward the passages, a bound evolver in tow.
"First one! Should reach a passage in, oh, ten seconds? Five minutes after that—one less slot!"
"Boss!"
Several mbers urged action, but Ye Zhongming remained still.
"Let him finish."
His tone brooked no argunt.
"Decent composure. Slightly less idiotic than your underlings."
As the voice taunted, a flurry of movent erupted. Nine of the remaining hostages were executed in an instant, leaving only two.
Then, the second beast-ch sprinted away with another captive. Only one hostage remained.
The pieces fell into place for Cloud Peak.
"Care to guess how many kills I've logged after executing nine?"
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