She stepped forward slowly, standing shoulder to shoulder with Bluebird.

“But you think this is our only trump card?”

The Man in Black wiped the dark-purple blood from the corner of his mouth, eyes blazing. “So what if you've added another Stage Two King-level? I can still—”

“We're not done.” Bai Cheng cut him off, raised her right hand, and snapped her fingers crisply.

BOOM—!!!

Blazing fire erupted behind Bai Cheng, turning half the arena into a furnace.

With every step Scarlet Flame took, the metal floor beneath him melted into scarlet droplets.

White-hot flames roared around him—not mere heat, but fire threaded with ancient runes that radiated pure ruin.

Another King-level!

“Three King-levels...” The Man in Black's voice cracked, pupils shaking. “With your strength... how?!”

The tide of battle flipped in an instant.

Purple Iris, Bluebird, and Scarlet Flame stood in a triangle; their King-level auras erupted like three volcanoes, utterly overwhelming the Man in Black and his two King-level Employees.

Even Ye Liangchen's eyes showed surprise; he silently stepped back to watch.

He knew the coming fight was already in the bag with Bai Cheng's three Employees—no need for him to meddle.

Still, Ye Liangchen couldn't help wryly shaking his head.

“Thought I'd grown fast, but you're still a monster...”

The energy barrier groaned under the pressure, on the verge of shattering.

Bai Cheng stood at the center, her robes billowing in the storm of power.

Inside the arena, the temperature soared to a boil under the full release of three King-levels.

She stared at the Man in Black, gaze cold as a blade: “Still think team battle is your chance?”

Scarlet Flame lifted his arm; flames condensed into a blazing spear aimed at the Man in Black's brow.

Purple Iris stood with her blade; countless sword-storms whirled, shredding everything nearby.

Bluebird's lightning raged even wilder, filling the cramped space with nowhere to hide.

The Man in Black staggered back; his two Employees flanked him protectively.

Yet even cornered, he refused to accept defeat.

His eyes flicked behind him—

If he could kill Ye Liangchen in an instant and then surrender, second place would still be his. Far from perfect, but the best he could manage... The thought had barely formed when Scarlet Flame's spear became a streak of fire, piercing the left King-level Employee's chest.

White flames burst from the wound, ancient runes glowing; the Employee hadn't time to scream before the inferno reduced him to ash.

At the same instant, Bluebird's lightning shrank to a hair-thin bolt of blue, slashing across the other King-level Employee's neck.

Space warped; the protective barrier parted like paper, the head rolling free, eyes frozen in shock.

Purple Iris never moved, yet the metal tempest behind her swept in, grinding the remnants ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) of both fallen King-levels to dust, erasing any hope of revival or reprisal.

All this happened in the half-step the Man in Black had taken; his two arms were severed before his charge began.

“You—!” His pupils shrank to slits as a triple cage of flame, lightning, and blades slammed down.

Scarlet Flame's spear hovered at his brow; Bluebird's lightning chains bound his limbs; Purple Iris's sword-intent sealed every meridian.

Space itself solidified; not even a fingertip could twitch.

Nearby, Ye Liangchen's eyes tightened. “This strength... not something a forced King-level like me can match.”

Perhaps this was the potential of an Immortal-grade Employee.

Molten droplets from the floor trickled, white steam hissing upward.

Bai Cheng stepped through the lingering turbulence, robes fluttering.

She stopped before the kneeling, pinned Man in Black, looking down at him with cold fire and lightning reflected in her eyes. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“How did you slip in?” Her voice, though soft, cut through the aftershock like a polar wind.

“Your goal isn't just the ranking, is it? Or... is someone backing you?”

The Man in Black clenched his teeth; dark-purple blood seeped again, terror and ferocity flashing in his vertical pupils.

Scarlet Flame's spear inched closer; the stench of scorched skin rose from his brow.

Flesh sizzled under the white-hot tip, the acrid smell mixing with blood.

He tried to swallow the iron tang in his throat, but even that simple motion felt impossible under triple suppression.

“You... want to know?” he rasped, eyes locked on Bai Cheng, a strange dark glint flickering. “Come closer, I'll tell you...”

Before the words finished, an unnatural swell of power erupted inside him.

Not resistance—self-annihilation!

“He's detonating himself!” Bluebird shouted, lightning chains tightening to choke the rampaging energy.

Scarlet Flame reacted faster; the white flames on his spear turned deep blue, ancient runes streaming out as countless threads that bored into the Man in Black's body.

Purple Iris said nothing, yet the sword-storm behind her closed into a seamless shell of metal shards, sealing the Man in Black and the surrounding space, preventing any leakage.

Still, the Man in Black kept swelling, shadows writhing beneath his skin, dark-purple veins crawling up his neck to his cheeks.

“Not an ordinary self-destruct...” Bai Cheng's gaze sharpened; she pressed her palm to his brow. “He's erasing his own soul.”

At once, Scarlet Flame's sealing fire, Bluebird's lightning chains, and Purple Iris's blade-barrier contracted together.

The three distinct powers instantly crushed the detonation.

Psssh—