"This egg belongs to me. Anyone who tries to take it will only meet death—" Mo Xingxuan's face twisted with ferocity. The shoulder blades on both his shoulders rose again, glowing like electrified tubes, and suddenly shot out two streams of pale white light, sweeping toward Su Li like laser beams.
At the same moment, his mechanical gauntlets burst with a blinding metallic sheen. The spiritual source energy within them ignited, unleashing his strongest strike, about to land with lethal force.
Mo Xingxuan's killing intent flared. In a single exchange, he unleashed two of his most powerful attacks simultaneously, aiming to kill Su Li in an instant.
Su Li's muscles swelled all over his body. Two demonic faces emerged on his chest and back. Previously, he had only used the first form of "Demon Muscles," whether fighting Mo Ziyuan or Mo Xingxuan, without tapping into his full strength. Now, with both demonic faces appearing on his chest and back, he finally entered the second form of "Demon Muscles," activating his maximum power. His physical energy would be depleted fourfold, but in return, his strength, speed, and defense tripled.
He swung the Ice Serpent Sword with his left hand, unleashing "Ice Serpent King's Bite." A massive phantom of an ice serpent appeared, coiling around his body and spewing icy mist, instantly blocking the two pale white laser beams shooting toward him. With his right hand, the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword erupted with dazzling light as "Dragon Rhinoceros Slash" came crashing down.
Mo Xingxuan's gauntlets exploded with their peak power. All of this happened in the blink of an eye, colliding with Su Li's "Dragon Rhinoceros Slash."
Both sides had unleashed their strongest forces. The spiritual source energy clashed, and Mo Xingxuan roared in fury, suddenly realizing that his combined mechanical gauntlets couldn't withstand the assault. They were torn apart by an indescribably terrifying force.
"How is this possible?" Mo Xingxuan's face contorted. The light from the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword cast a particularly grotesque and fearsome shadow across his features.
The power erupting from his mechanical gauntlets was by no means weaker than the Dragon Rhinoceros Slash. But his own physical strength was far inferior to Su Li's, now in the second form of "Demon Muscles."
With triple strength, eight muscle enhancements, and the added boosts from the Seven-Star Wrist Guard, Death God Gloves, Purple Pattern Belt, and Blood Ring that had surfaced on his body, Su Li's power had reached an almost terrifying level.
The Dragon Rhinoceros Slash was unstoppable. Mo Xingxuan's mechanical gauntlets were blasted apart, and a pale white streak, trailing a spray of vivid blood, shot out from the center of his body.
His body was split in half from the middle.
His eyes rolled slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he couldn't utter a word. His bisected body, caught in the terrifying force, shattered completely, flesh and blood scattering everywhere.
Having slain Mo Xingxuan in one blow, Su Li let out a soft breath. The grotesquely swollen muscles on his body rapidly contracted, returning to their normal state as he exited the second form of "Demon Muscles."
A spiritual source appeared and sank into his forehead.
"Level 8 Spiritual Source User: Spiritual Source 104/130"
Killing Mo Xingxuan earned him six spiritual sources.
Beyond this spiritual source, four energy orbs emerged from Mo Xingxuan's shattered flesh, one after another, and plunged into Su Li's chest, followed by a stream of information.
"Thunderclap Gauntlets, Cyan Rainbow Belt, Thunder War Boots, Soul Severing Blade"
These were the four spiritual source equipment pieces belonging to Mo Xingxuan and Mo Ziyuan. Su Li had destroyed the body they shared, and both Mo Xingxuan and Mo Ziyuan were dead, beyond revival.
Except for the Thunder War Boots, which Su Li fused into his own body, the other three spiritual source equipment pieces, though lodged in his chest, could not be fused.
The "Thunderclap Gauntlets" and "Soul Severing Blade" were both two-handed weapons, and each person could only fuse one. The Dragon Rhinoceros Sword and Ice Serpent Sword were one-handed swords; he had already fused two one-handed swords and couldn't fuse any new weapons.
To fuse the "Thunderclap Gauntlets" or "Soul Severing Blade," he would first have to separate the already fused Dragon Rhinoceros Sword and Ice Serpent Sword. This separation process would take a considerable amount of time, unless he died, in which case they would separate instantly.
"What a shame. If only I could separate them instantly, then after using the sword skills of the Ice Serpent and Dragon Rhinoceros Swords, I could immediately switch to the Soul Severing Blade or Thunderclap Gauntlets and use new weapon skills. But that's just wishful thinking."
Of course, there was another way to instantly switch weapons: devouring. He could fuse a new weapon and have it devour the one he already possessed, allowing an instant swap. But this would mean the original weapon would be reduced to pure spiritual source and consumed, ceasing to exist.
Given how precious spiritual source weapons were, Su Li naturally didn't want to waste them. Besides, he could fuse both the Dragon Rhinoceros Sword and Ice Serpent Sword, whereas the Soul Severing Blade and Thunderclap Gauntlets were both two-handed weapons, and each person could only fuse one.
"Gong Xiao already has a weapon. I'll give this belt to her. As for these two weapons, I'll give them to Ya Tou and Brother Ding."
Since Su Li already had the Purple Pattern Belt, he couldn't fuse the Cyan Rainbow Belt either, as each person could only fuse one spiritual source belt.
The three people closest to him were undoubtedly Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Xu Xuehui. Even Jiang Shuijue and Xu Haishui were a step behind.
Now that he had three pieces of spiritual source equipment he couldn't use, his first thought was naturally of Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Xu Xuehui.
But Xu Xuehui's combat strength was average, so giving her a spiritual source weapon seemed a bit wasteful.
He hesitated, wondering if it would be better to give it to Jiang Shuijue instead.
"No. If Brother Ding and Gong Xiao both get something, and Xuehui doesn't, she'll feel left out. That little girl, though she seems indifferent and rarely speaks, is actually quite sensitive. As for Shuijue, I'll prioritize her next time I get equipment I can't use."
With this decision, Su Li felt at ease and stopped agonizing. He focused instead on the Thunder War Boots he had just fused.
After fusing these boots, Su Li now possessed a total of seven pieces of spiritual source equipment.
He took off his completely soaked socks and shoes. With a thought, the black Thunder War Boots materialized on his feet, wrapping up to his calves, light as air.
This spiritual source equipment was breathable but waterproof. With the boots protecting him, water couldn't seep in, so he no longer had to worry about wet feet.
"So comfortable." Su Li admired the boots with satisfaction. From now on, he wouldn't need to wear those ordinary, water-prone socks and shoes.
The Thunder War Boots fit perfectly around his feet and calves. As he moved and jumped, he felt a steady stream of energy releasing from them. Tiny sparks of lightning flickered on the surface, making his movements even lighter, and a faint warmth radiated, soothing his feet.
"Incredible. This spiritual source equipment can even adjust its temperature based on the season, keeping me warm in winter and cool in summer. If I could have a full set of spiritual source equipment, that would be amazing."
Su Li was overjoyed. These Thunder War Boots finally freed his feet from constantly being soaked. The boots' attributes also delighted him.
They increased his defensive power by five hundred jin and boosted his speed by an extra five percent.
Wearing the Thunder War Boots, he stood on the partially submerged thirtieth floor, looking at the cyan giant egg floating in the water.
Though the boots were submerged, they fit snugly against his skin, so no water could get inside.
Activating "Peeping Rune," Su Li examined the cyan giant egg. A piece of information immediately surfaced in his mind.
"An unknown mysterious egg, seemingly partial to blood containing spiritual source. Perhaps it can be hatched by feeding it blood."
Su Li absorbed this information and understood immediately: to hatch this Water Qilin egg, he would need blood.
"Blood containing spiritual source means it can come from either spiritual source users or spiritual source beasts." Su Li had no intention of bleeding himself daily to hatch it. He decided to take it back and capture spiritual source beasts to drain their blood for the task.
Seeing that the rain had stopped and the previously dark sky was gradually brightening, Su Li picked up the cyan giant egg. He glanced at the Water Qilin's corpse outside. Such a powerful beast, even dead, would be a treasure. But the corpse was no longer visible on the water's surface. The recent explosions had left it shattered, and it had likely sunk to the bottom.
"What a waste." Su Li shook his head and summoned the Crocodile-Toothed Turtle. Fortunately, the clever creature had stayed deep inside the thirtieth floor, avoiding the blast, and only crawled out once it was safe.
Su Li, holding the cyan giant egg, climbed onto the turtle's back and gripped the rope loop on its shell with one hand. "Number One, let's head back while it's still light."
The Crocodile-Toothed Turtle understood him. It raised its head as if in response, then slowly crawled into the water. Once submerged, its speed shot up, leaving the Jinhui Center building behind as it sped off into the distance.
This trip had been fruitful for Su Li. Not only had he obtained several pieces of spiritual source equipment, but he had also killed two leaders of the Eastern Building. Now, only Zhao Haoyang remained among its three leaders.
"The Eastern Building is no longer a threat. I've also figured out the ins and outs of Financial City and Mapleview Center. If I could merge all three forces into the Golden Eagle Alliance, that would be ideal."
Su Li held the giant egg close to his ear, listening. He could faintly sense life stirring within, filling him with joy. If he could hatch a docile Water Qilin cub, it would become a powerful ally once it grew.
"Too bad that Water Qilin was pregnant and about to give birth, which must have severely hampered its combat ability. Otherwise, that Ultimate Master would probably have been no match for it. What a shame."
Su Li regretted the Water Qilin's death.