Wu Feng glanced at Ding Longyun and sneered, "This old man is quite arrogant. Looks like you all think you're something special, bringing your skills here. Brothers, surround them."
At his command, the group accompanying him let out a collective roar. Ding Longyun's attitude had provoked them, and they brandished their weapons. The wooden rafts around them crowded together as people jumped onto other rafts, forming a semicircle to close in.
Ding Longyun chuckled, "It's about time. My staff's been itching for action." As he spoke, he raised the steel rod in his right hand, ready to strike.
Gong Xiao, Gu Mingfeng, Luo Jun, and the others also tightened their grips on their weapons, preparing for battle.
Su Li raised a hand, signaling everyone to stop, and said, "No need for that. I can handle this alone."
As he spoke, he reached his hands toward his chest. The Seven-Star Wristguard on his right wrist materialized, and two sword hilts emerged from his chest. He grasped each hilt and, with two dazzling flashes of light, drew out a pair of swords.
This move stunned the crowd that had been about to attack. Wu Feng froze, a look of terror spreading across his face as he stared at Su Li's left hand.
In Su Li's left hand was the translucent Ice Python Sword—a blade Wu Feng had seen before.
This was Ding Shijie's weapon.
Ding Shijie had become the leader of the Golden Eagle Alliance by force, beating Wu Feng and Gao Shupeng into submission. This Ice Python Sword had even wounded Wu Feng before. How could he not recognize it? But why did Su Li now have an identical sword?
Su Li, wielding both swords, stepped forward. Suddenly, Wu Feng roared, "Stop!"
Su Li halted and looked at him.
"Where did you get that sword in your left hand?" Wu Feng pointed at the Ice Python Sword, visibly agitated, his usual carefree demeanor gone.
The hawk-nosed man and the group from Building B had all seen Ding Shijie's Ice Python Sword before. Seeing Su Li with two swords, one of which resembled it, their shock surpassed Wu Feng's.
A terrifying thought crept into their minds.
"You mean this sword?" Su Li, seeing their reactions, knew they recognized it. "This is Ding Shijie's Ice Python Sword. He lost to me, so it's mine now."
Su Li only said Ding Shijie lost to him, but everyone understood: if the sword was in his hands, Ding Shijie was likely dead by his hand.
This news stunned the Golden Eagle Alliance members, who couldn't help but gasp.
Ding Shijie was universally acknowledged as the strongest in the Golden Eagle Alliance. Now, someone even stronger had appeared, killed Ding Shijie, taken his sword, and come here to take over the alliance.
"No wonder you said you wanted to take over the Golden Eagle Alliance. If you really killed Ding Shijie with your own skill, you have the right to say that."
Wu Feng gave a bitter smile, hesitated briefly, then looked up and said, "This city is flooded. Only a few survivors remain, and every life is precious. I don't want conflict or unnecessary bloodshed. Back when Ding Shijie proposed uniting the three buildings into an alliance with him as the leader, I made the same demand: if he could beat me, I'd submit. Today, I make the same demand of you. If you can beat me, I'll lead the Shimao Center people to join you. As for those from Building A and Building B, they're not under my command, and I can't speak for them."
Among the eleven from Golden Eagle Building B, someone suddenly shouted, "Same here! Whoever wins, we follow."
"That's right, I agree."
"Yeah, whoever wins is our boss."
The eleven chimed in, echoing Wu Feng's sentiment. In truth, when Su Li drew his twin swords, their resolve had crumbled. To them, as long as they had shelter and food to survive, it didn't matter who led the alliance.
In this world, survival came first.
Only the hawk-nosed man's face was pale, his body trembling. The news of Ding Shijie hit him like a thunderbolt, leaving his mind buzzing.
While these people had been under Ding Shijie's leadership, they had no deep bond with him—it was just a leader-follower relationship. But the hawk-nosed man was different. He felt Ding Shijie had recognized his worth, appointing him as the interim leader of Golden Eagle Building A, putting him in charge of dozens of people—the highest position he'd ever held. Deep down, he was grateful to Ding Shijie.
Hearing that Ding Shijie had lost and even his sword had fallen into Su Li's hands, it was like a bolt from the blue, leaving him dazed.
The Golden Eagle Alliance members present all voiced agreement with Wu Feng's stance: whoever won would be their leader. Only the hawk-nosed man clenched his fists, silent.
Hearing their voices, Su Li smiled faintly. This was the outcome he wanted. Unless necessary, he didn't want to resort to mass slaughter. Taking over the Golden Eagle Alliance with minimal cost was the best result.
"Good." Su Li nodded at Wu Feng. He had already used his "Peep Rune" to assess the situation. Among these people, Wu Feng was the only Level 7 Source User and the leader of Shimao Center. Seeing that Su Li wielded two Source Weapons and still dared to fight showed his confidence in his own strength.
The young woman beside Wu Feng looked at him with concern. "Feng Ge, be careful."
Watching Su Li pull out a pair of swords that looked far from ordinary from his chest, and knowing even Ding Shijie had lost to him, she began to worry for Wu Feng.
Wu Feng reached out and gently pinched her cheek, smiling. "Silly girl, what's there to worry about? I'll be careful."
With that, he leaped onto an empty wooden raft nearby, extended a hand, and said, "I don't know what to call you yet."
Su Li, holding both swords, also stepped onto the raft and replied, "Su Li." Seeing Wu Feng empty-handed, he asked, "You don't use a weapon?"
Wu Feng shook his head, hooked a wooden oar on the raft with his foot, and grabbed it with his right hand. Suddenly, the oar emitted a series of crackling sounds, and cracks appeared on its surface. Flames burst from these cracks, engulfing the entire oar except where his hand held it, burning fiercely.
Su Li thought, "This guy's ability is similar to Xu Haishui's—related to fire?"
Wu Feng chuckled. "This is my weapon. Watch out." With his right hand holding the flaming oar, he spread the fingers of his left hand, and the flames began to separate, forming football-sized fireballs that floated before him.
Su Li leaped forward, attacking Wu Feng.
Wu Feng swung his left hand, and one of the floating fireballs shot toward Su Li.
Su Li sidestepped, the fireball grazing past him, flying far off into the water, where it exploded, sending up sparks and splashes.
Though both could produce flames, Wu Feng's ability differed from Xu Haishui's. Xu Haishui could ignite objects or his own body, while Wu Feng controlled fire from a distance, creating explosive fireballs with immense power.
After dodging the first fireball, Su Li quickly closed the distance. Wu Feng chuckled, sending a second and third fireball in rapid succession.
Su Li evaded the second, but the third was unavoidable. He swung his right hand, using the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword to slash at it.
The sword struck the fireball, which exploded like fireworks, scattering sparks. Prepared, Su Li activated "Spider Walk" as he struck, darting sideways to rush at Wu Feng.
Wu Feng retreated, shouting as he did. The oar in his right hand blazed with fiercer flames, from which more fireballs separated, floating around him. In an instant, there were at least seventeen or eighteen massive fireballs.
Seeing Su Li's ghostlike speed closing in, Wu Feng's heart sank. He clenched his left hand and swung it, sending all the floating fireballs hurtling toward Su Li.
In that moment, Su Li was engulfed by the swarm of fireballs.
If all these fireballs exploded at once, the power would be unimaginable. Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, Jiang Shuijue, and the others all paled. None had expected Wu Feng to be this terrifying—this move rivaled the sword techniques of Source Weapons.
Gong Xiao rushed forward, activating "Storm Shield."
As a Level 7 Source User, her "Storm Shield" had evolved to its second form, offering greater defense and attack power. Three shields formed from wind materialized instantly, not only protecting her but also capable of launching attacks with nearly doubled force.
She intended to reach Su Li and shield him from the devastating chain of fireball explosions.
All this happened in a flash. Wu Feng unleashed his full power, controlling seventeen or eighteen massive fireballs and hurling them with all his might.
Su Li stopped abruptly. Fireballs surrounded him from all sides; even "Spider Walk" couldn't escape now. Wu Feng's strength far exceeded his expectations—this move alone put him nearly on par with Ding Shijie.
With a long cry, Su Li activated the sword technique of the Ice Python Sword in his left hand without hesitation.
"Frost Python King's Bite."
The soul of the Frost Python King, dormant within the sword, awakened. Driven by Source energy, the beast's power erupted, and the translucent Ice Python Sword came alive.