Chapter 44: The Wrath of the Demon Devourer

"By the way, you're one of the Five Tigers of the China Alliance, just like Wang Feng and Ling Fengyan, right? Your strength is so incredible!" On the way, Ye Yang couldn't help asking. Along the journey, he had realized that Yao Jun was truly powerful, far surpassing Ling Fengyan. Moreover, hearing him say he was about to reach LV5, he probably wasn't much weaker than Wang Feng.

"Heh, my current demonic power value is probably a little over 1900. As for that useless hack Ling Fengyan... around 1600. So, what do you think? Am I one of the Five Tigers?" Yao Jun smiled gently.

"Yes! Absolutely!" Ye Yang nodded firmly, a flash of envy in his eyes. A demonic power value of 1900, how magnificent! He only had a little over 500...

"No need to envy me. If you really win your gamble, your demonic power value will definitely surpass mine. Even if you lose, it will still surpass mine, but... hehe, the 'you' at that time won't be you anymore." Yao Jun let out a strange chuckle.

Ye Yang also gave a dry laugh. He wanted to ask more about the so-called Five Tigers of China, but Yao Jun refused to elaborate, only smiling bitterly: "There's nothing good about that title. The so-called Five Tigers scattered long ago. Now, there are only Ling Fengyan and that idiot left."

Ye Yang nodded. Although he still had questions, he dropped the matter since Yao Jun wouldn't say more. Seeing Chen Yun following closely behind him with a fearful expression, he smiled and went over to comfort her with a few words.

"He... eats monsters," Chen Yun said, pouting her lips, seemingly feeling that Ye Yang shouldn't get so close to such a person, let alone chat and laugh with him so casually.

Looking at those bright red lips and those flushed, puffing cheeks, Ye Yang felt an itch in his heart so intense he almost wanted to lean in and bite her. He really liked this girl.

However, this desire was forcefully suppressed deep down. Although the survival probability for his little Ya was truly slim, and Lin Tian had already mentioned it several times, Ye Yang didn't want to transfer his affections—at least... not right now. He missed her deeply.

Along the way, with Yao Jun protecting Ye Yang and Chen Yun, they didn't encounter any more danger. That fiend seemed to have been heavily injured by Wang Feng and no longer came out to meddle. Still, they had witnessed plenty of disgusting sights; Yao Jun had practically spent the entire journey killing monsters and eating them.

When they finally reached the wanderer camp, Ye Yang had vomited until his gallbladder felt empty, and Chen Yun's legs were so weak she had to cling to his back. Meanwhile, Yao Jun laughed heartily, looking immensely proud. Ever since eating his first monster, this guy had completely discarded any shred of dignity.

"Alright, I'm not going in, lest I have to look at that idiot. Call me if you need anything." Waving his hand, Yao Jun turned and walked away. Ye Yang looked at his retreating figure with a mix of emotions; aside from being utterly repulsive, this guy was actually a pretty decent person.

At least... he was much more entertaining than that jerk Wang Feng. Throughout the entire journey, Ye Yang had accompanied Yao Jun in endlessly cursing Wang Feng, which perhaps served as their unique way of deepening their friendship.

The camp arranged with Wang Feng was Qi Fang's place. As soon as they stepped into the bar, someone immediately recognized Ye Yang, and Uncle Zheng walked over with a beaming smile.

"Ha, the kid has become a hunter now? Tsk tsk, I knew right from the start that you weren't an ordinary kid!" Uncle Zheng smiled warmly, but upon seeing Chen Yun, he suddenly froze, his expression turning disapproving. "Damn, transferring your affections so quickly? What about our little Fang?"

"No way, come on, what do you mean by transferring affections?" Ye Yang stammered, sweating profusely. "I'm out on a mission this time, and since Xiao Fang isn't a hunter, she naturally couldn't come."

Uncle Zheng was merely joking. He then asked about Qi Fang's recent situation, and Ye Yang practically ground his teeth as he poured out his grievances, recounting every single eccentric and bizarre thing she had done, sending the entire bar into roaring laughter.

"Right, who is this young lady..." Uncle Zheng squinted, eyeing Chen Yun up and down. He had to admit, Chen Yun was truly gorgeous, and her figure was incomparably stunning. The moment she entered the bar, several patrons wanted to hit on her, only to be promptly kicked flying by Uncle Zheng.

"A companion, a companion. A hunter's companion," Ye Yang laughed dryly, unable to bear Uncle Zheng's ambiguous gaze any longer.

"Pfft, cut the crap. The way you look at her is completely different from how you look at Xiao Fang. Don't think your Uncle Zheng is so easily fooled." With a scoff of disdain, Uncle Zheng laughed heartily and walked away, leaving Ye Yang blushing furiously. Fortunately, Chen Yun was standing far enough away and hadn't heard.

"You're looking for those two hunters who arrived yesterday, right? They've already left. Word is they went to wipe out the nearest zombie nest. Goodness, they mobilized quite a few people—there were over ten helicopters alone, and apparently several teams of hunters!" Uncle Zheng said.

"Ah? They left?" Ye Yang felt a wave of frustration. It didn't matter if Wang Feng wasn't around, but wiping out a zombie nest? How could he have missed out on something so thrilling? Chen Yun was equally disappointed, but neither of them dared to suggest chasing after them. Yao Jun had already departed, and given their current strength and injured state, exposing themselves in broad daylight would be far too dangerous.

"Open two rooms for the night," Ye Yang walked straight up to the bar.

"Just one," the receptionist said, rolling his eyes.

"..." Ye Yang felt awkward. He glanced sideways at Chen Yun. Truth be told, he desperately wanted to share a room with the girl; he wouldn't even mind sharing a bed, but... wouldn't that make him look utterly shameless?

Wang Feng and Sang Shi had rented rooms as well. Ye Yang originally planned to just use their rooms, but the receptionist flatly refused, saying Ye Yang had no proof.

"We really are companions," Ye Yang said with a pathetic expression. Proof? Should he pluck a hair from his head as evidence? What kind of proof could he possibly have?!

"Companions aren't allowed. Theirs is theirs. If you want a room, rent a new one!" The receptionist turned away without another word, completely impervious to any further explanation from Ye Yang.

"How about... we share a room?" Chen Yun said, her face flushing crimson.

"If you don't mind, then I don't mind either..." Ye Yang laughed dryly. In truth, he didn't mind at all.

As it turned out, Ye Yang was dead wrong. Completely wrong. Sharing a room with a young woman meant taking advantage of her? NO, NO, NO! If the girl was willing to let you take advantage, that would be one thing, but if she wasn't, it became the most agonizing and torturous ordeal in history.

Lying on the carpet, Ye Yang stared with bloodshot eyes, breathing in the gentle fragrance drifting from the bed. He remained fully aroused for the entire night!

"I'm going to the bathroom first!" The moment dawn broke, Ye Yang bolted into the bathroom with a speed that left Chen Yun completely dumbfounded. Ye Yang, however, wanted to cry without tears; he certainly couldn't let the girl see him standing at attention like a flagpole—it was far too humiliating!

The autocannons on the helicopters fired furiously, blasting countless zombies and mutated beings into fragments. Although predators weren't particularly afraid of bullets, such concentrated firepower was more than enough to tear through their skin and flesh, leaving them howling in agony.

Uncle Zheng hadn't actually seen the full scale of the human forces. At this moment, over forty helicopters were roaring through the sky above the peak. On the ground, countless human soldiers wielded submachine guns to clear the battlefield, while more than twenty human hunters were engaged in a ferocious, bloody battle against the monster predators.

This so-called battle had a predetermined outcome. While ordinary humans struggled against powerful monsters, the unstoppable might of the twenty-plus hunters tipped the scales entirely. The battle was completely one-sided, and within moments, the tide of zombies had been nearly wiped out.

At the summit, another fierce battle was also drawing to a close, though victory did not belong to humanity.

Ling Fengyan roared continuously. The skin over his entire body had turned into a brilliant, golden metal, and his greatsword spun like a wheel. Both his physical strength and demonic power had been pushed to their absolute limits. Opposite him stood a fiend that had already fully transformed—a creature resembling a giant ape, bearing a bloody tattoo on its chest and the number 91, marking its identity.

The giant ape possessed terrifying strength, forcing Ling Fengyan back a step with nearly every blow. Both were LV4, but the strength of an LV4 fiend slightly exceeded that of a hunter, not to mention this was a super fiend ranked number 91.

Sang Shi had already collapsed, his previous injuries still unhealed, while Gao Ting stood beside him holding dual swords, desperately shielding him. The girl was also covered in blood and clearly severely injured. The fact that the three of them combined still couldn't secure victory spoke volumes about the giant ape's immense power.

With a deafening crash, another head-on collision shook the ground beneath Ling Fengyan's feet, forcing him into a half-kneeling position and nearly knocking the greatsword from his grasp. His demonic power was almost completely exhausted, yet his enemy remained overwhelmingly, peerlessly strong.

Defeat? It was practically a foreordained conclusion. If not for the protective barrier of his metallic skin, Ling Fengyan would likely be dead already, and even his mercury armor had been shredded to pieces.

A fiend's demonic power naturally exceeded a hunter's, and Ling Fengyan's power value was only 1600, whereas his opponent was ranked 91, more than twice as strong as him. Even with an innate ability, it was extremely difficult to fight back.

With another thunderous crash, a brilliant blue bolt of lightning slammed fiercely into the ground, halting the fiend's onslaught and saving Ling Fengyan's life just in the nick of time.

"Fiend Eater No. 91, is it? It seems you've forgotten the pain once your wounds healed." A chilling voice rang out from behind. Fiend Eater instantly shuddered; without even turning around, he knew who had arrived.

With a strange shriek, Fiend Eater leaped up like lightning, spreading a pair of fleshy wings from his back and shooting away at top speed. At that exact instant, a bolt of lightning crashed viciously into the spot where he had just been standing, warping the ground beneath it.

"Hmph, you got away fast!" Wang Feng said coldly. He desperately wanted to pursue, but he knew that flying fiends were extremely difficult to catch. Although he could float using lightning, his speed was quite slow, and helicopters were far too easily destroyed by fiends of this caliber.

Ling Fengyan wiped the sweat from his forehead and smiled bitterly. The three of them combined had suffered such a miserable defeat, yet the moment Wang Feng arrived, the fiend had bolted in sheer panic. The gap in strength was truly astronomical.

"Alright, everyone is exhausted. Those who are injured, treat your wounds quickly and prepare to head back immediately," Wang Feng said coldly. "That kid should have arrived by now."

On a distant peak, Fiend Eater roared in fury. He was burning with rage, yet he knew full well he was no match for the Thunder Emperor Wang Feng—one of the world's few elite LV5 hunters. Forget being ranked 91; even if he were 81 or 71, victory would be nearly impossible.

"Just you wait! I will definitely repay this debt!" Fiend Eater snarled, a chilling glint suddenly flashing in his eyes. "Don't worry, that day won't be far off. We'll cross paths again soon."

"That Thunder Emperor, that metal-shifting bastard, and those little brats—I'm going to slaughter every single one of them!"

Fiend Eater roared madly, but his tone suddenly shifted. "And that weird kid... tsk tsk, he actually bears a fiend tattoo. I must report this to the master. That tattoo was extremely bizarre. If my eyes didn't deceive me, it might be..."