Challenge: The Fool with the Surname Okayamine

Chapter 44 The Silent Chapter: "Villains Face Off Against Villains"

The memory ended, and Ming looked at the once again silent corridor and the unconscious Fildo in front of him, without saying a word.

'It seems there's no danger to his life, so…' Ming thought to himself.

He then stood up, turned around, and decided to first check the nearest room with the light on. After all, failing to protect the children was his dereliction of duty, and it would be difficult for Ming to simply leave with the unconscious Fildo.

However, at that moment, Ming, who was about to step into the room to investigate, seemed to become alert and subconsciously turned his head to look at Salestos, who had been pierced by his black flame spear.

"Forehead..."

"..." Even he, whose perception was superior to that of ordinary people, did not notice any movement behind him.

Just as Ming was feeling confused, a huge blackish-purple energy beam hurtled towards him from the laboratory entrance. Ming quickly turned his head to look, his expression under his mask changed slightly, but he did not dodge. He simply raised his hand slightly as if sensing something, and then his upper body was engulfed by the purple energy beam.

As the energy beam dissipated, only Ming's lower body, which had not been hit by the beam, remained standing in place.

Immediately afterwards, a second Salesto, wearing a display device, walked out of the room with a mocking expression.

"Hahahaha! You never expected this, did you? You died such a ridiculous death! Hahahaha!" Salestio mocked, covering half of his face.

At this moment, he was surrounded by dark purple mist, wearing a knight's armor-type manifestation device with extremely high coverage, and holding a dark purple greatsword that looked like a dragon's tooth, just like Woodman's [Odin].

Behind it were fully deployed mechanical wings, and above them were two magic compression cannons.

"Heh! I suppose you, this heretic, do have some skill. You managed to get me to provide a second body and even unleash the power of the unfinished ultimate manifestation device, [King of Dragons - Evil Dragon Fafnir]. Fine, I'm going to hang that girl you just saved up high and make her the final piece of this ultimate manifestation device. Hahahaha!"

Just as Salestio was laughing triumphantly, something unexpected happened! Suddenly, Ming's remaining half-body erupted in raging black flames. These eerie and powerful flames seemed to possess magical power, rapidly spreading throughout Ming's entire body.

In the blink of an eye, the previously mangled and horribly damaged lower body began to heal and regenerate at a visible speed. Broken bones reconnected, shattered muscle tissue gradually returned to its original state, and even damaged internal organs were repaired under the burning of this mysterious black flame.

As time passed, Ming's body completely recovered, as if the severe injuries he had suffered had never happened. He slowly stood up, emanating a chilling aura, his mask still wreathed in lingering black flames.

“How is this possible…” Salesto stared wide-eyed at the 'person' in front of him in disbelief.

Ming's upper body gradually remodeled, and Tuo stared wide-eyed at this utterly unscientific scene in disbelief.

"Oh, looks like he didn't die." Ming, having just completed his regeneration, remarked calmly. He then looked up and met the still-surprised Salestio's gaze, coldly stating, as expected:

"So it was true? You were indeed dead just now... but now you're alive again... if my guess is correct..." Ming said, ignoring Salestio's expression, silently turning his head to look at his body, which he had pierced, and speculating:

"If that's the case, then you're not immortal, but rather your consciousness was placed into a new container after death. Is it the killer clone I saw back then? It's possible, after all, it's not difficult to change your appearance using a manifestation device."

Ming's eyes sharpened as he approached Salestio step by step. Salestio's expression faltered slightly upon seeing this, but he quickly recovered and also gradually approached Ming.

"Who are you? And why are you stopping me? Judging from what you just did, you can recover even after your upper body disappeared. You're definitely not a normal human being! If that's the case, why are you stopping me? People like you are allowed to exist in my magician's fantasy!" Salesto shouted as he approached.

Upon hearing the question, Ming didn't hesitate and coldly replied, "Because of you..." But before he could finish, Salesto immediately interrupted him.

"Oh? Is that so? I see! Now I understand completely. You so-called gentlemen and moral guardians always like to wear that hypocritical and seemingly righteous cloak of justice, then stand on your moral high ground to criticize and condemn me. But have you ever truly understood my inner world? To someone like me who is not understood by you, you only see me as a madman, thinking that everything I do is unorthodox and absurd. But in reality, only I know that everything I do is for the good of more fellow magicians!"

Salestio's expression gradually turned manic. "Why should we protect those lowly trash who don't even have magic? Why can't we rule the world and become kings ourselves? It's all because of you hypocrites! You clearly crave power, so why don't you help me! Taiwan's hypocrisy, so incredibly hypocritical! You only need a few hundred children to let more magicians rule the world! Why can't you understand me!"

Ming stopped, his gaze becoming complicated. He looked at Salestos quietly and said, "You seem to have some misunderstanding about me? 1. I don't care about the safety of the world. I'm just here to save people. 2. What you do with the children is none of my business. I just don't like you, so what? I just want to judge you, so what? Because I'm not a villain either."

"And... don't make me say all this. I'm too lazy to explain to you, you don't deserve to listen!"

Ming said no more, and immediately the Demon King [Black Flame Demon - Law] appeared in his left hand. Then, his cane burned with scorching black flames, and he slashed at Salestos, who was also about to swing his sword.

The two weapons clashed simultaneously, but Ming, who was known for his strength, felt powerless. He felt as if he was surrounded by a dark purple mist that made him feel nauseous.

Ming realized that his opponent's strength was unfathomable, so he decided to change his strategy. He first bit off his own tongue, then chewed it up and swallowed it, using the characteristic of the Flame of Regeneration that the greater the negative emotions, the stronger it became to enhance his spiritual power. He then used his spiritual power to empower his cane, greatly increasing its power.

The black flames grew more intense with each swing of the cane, forming a sea of ​​fire. However, Salestio easily wielded his longsword, deflecting the flames.

Upon seeing this, Ming's heart sank. He knew he couldn't delay any longer and had to find a way to break through the enemy's defenses.

Suddenly, he noticed that the ground beneath Salesto's feet was starting to loosen. A plan formed in his mind. He used all his strength to plunge his cane into the ground, and instantly the alloy floor beneath his feet vaporized at high speed.

A section of the ground disappeared, causing Salest to lose his balance. Ming seized the opportunity to launch an attack, kicking Salest in the chest. However, as if guided by something, Salest jumped back as if he had anticipated this.

The two stormed into the room, simultaneously slashing at Ming with their swords. Ming dodged to the side, then swung his cane sharply, sending a black flame hurtling towards Salestio. Salestio used a highly difficult miniature hand-compressed random field to block the flame, but was still thrown back several steps by the impact.

Taking advantage of the situation, Ming rushed forward and launched a series of attacks, giving Salestio no chance to catch his breath.

Salestio parried left and right, about to strike heavily with his flame-covered staff, when his scimitar seemed to have some learning ability, returning faster and faster each time, actually piercing through Salestio, who had many combat experiences.

Ming's controlled body paused for a moment, then quickly recovered, and immediately slashed at Salestos's left side with his cane.

But Salestio, without any warning, created a small, free-roaming area in that location beforehand, blocking the attack without taking any damage, only being knocked away to the second room on the side of the room.

Note: The room itself was actually quite empty, containing only the cultured specimens on the table, the seemingly dead Saych inside, and the 12 cryogenic chambers attached to the wall at the back.

Ming stared at the enemy he had just knocked away, a wave of disappointment washing over him. He had expected his attack to inflict significant damage, but the reality was quite different.

As his gaze slowly swept across the surroundings, it suddenly stopped in a corner. Locked up there was Saiqi, who had previously chosen to stay at the orphanage because he felt it was none of his business.

However, at this moment, the Saiqi presented to Ming was no longer the living person, but a dried-up corpse as withered as a dead tree!

Ming's body trembled slightly, and the expression hidden beneath the mask became extremely complex. His eyes revealed disbelief, along with some self-blame and anger.

Then I looked up and saw the other side of the wall with 12 freezer compartments that had just been attached to the wall, one of which showed signs of having been opened.

Ming gritted his teeth and turned to walk towards Sayiqi's corpse. He gently stroked Sayiqi's withered skin, his right hand lightly touching it. In the blink of an eye, the boy's body returned to normal, but he did not open his eyes.

After Ming finished, he looked at the cryogenic chambers again, his face darkened, and he thought to himself, "These should be the cryogenic chambers for storing clones. Although she seems to have feelings, if I don't deal with her, she will definitely become a major problem in the future."

As he pondered this, he slowly raised his palm, and a strange, profound black flame suddenly shone from his center. Then, as if emerging from a cocoon, this light transformed into eleven graceful yet terrifying black flame butterflies. These butterflies fluttered their wings and soared into the air, sweeping towards the eleven cryogenic chambers like a black whirlwind.

In an instant, a deafening "BOOM!" resounded, and the entire space seemed to tremble. The powerful shockwave from the explosion spread outwards with overwhelming force, turning everything in its path to ashes. Even the once incredibly sturdy cryogenic chambers vanished from their original locations.

Then, Ming prepared to follow and pursue Salestio. Although Ming considered himself a villain, he still had a bottom line. Since this man had gone this far for power, Ming felt that he could not be left alive.

After finishing his thought, Ming's gaze was fixed on that direction, his eyes revealing determination and resolve. Just as he was about to leap into the air to give chase, suddenly, several dark purple energy beams shot towards him like lightning! These energy beams were incredibly fast, as if they were tearing through the air.

However, facing such a swift attack, Ming showed no intention of dodging. He stood there quietly, as steady as a mountain. The dark purple energy beams struck him mercilessly, instantly piercing half of his face and his left chest! In an instant, blood splattered everywhere, the scene extremely gruesome.

But then, something astonishing happened. In just a second, a blazing flame—the Flame of Regeneration—rose from the wound that had pierced Ming's body, and in the next instant, all his injuries were completely healed.

Then, Ming used the hole he had punched to rush into the second room. Taking advantage of the moment when Ming was not paying attention while being attacked, Salesto used the flight ability of the display device to hide on the ceiling.

After Ming rushed in, he didn't hesitate to point his scimitar downwards, and the mechanical wings on his back quickly slammed down.

“Get out of here, you nuisance!” Salesto shouted.

Ming, unable to dodge in time, could only raise his arms to protect his head and convert some of his spiritual power into magic, activating his Freedom Domain to defend himself. Salestio's greatsword slammed heavily into Ming's fully activated Freedom Domain, producing a dull thud.

Ming was knocked back a few steps, secretly surprised that his opponent's strength was so great despite the short time that had passed.

"Strange, why does this guy's strength increase every time we compete?" Ming muttered to himself after being knocked back.

"See that!" Seeing Ming, who had initially disagreed with him, suffer a loss, Salesto said smugly, "This is the power of my [Fafner]! No matter how hard you try, you can't defeat it! It was created using the brain calculations and life energy of more than 100 children, through reverse magic technology, and it gets stronger by absorbing data every moment."

"What!" Ming was shocked upon hearing this. But Salestio merely stepped aside slightly, and behind him lay hundreds of withered corpses among the astonishing number of experimental subjects.

Ming's gaze grew increasingly cold as he stared intently at Salestio.

"You actually used such cruel methods to gain power..." Ming said through gritted teeth. For Ming himself, innocent sacrifices were acceptable, but if someone was sacrificed because of his negligence in protecting them, he would feel immense guilt.

Salesto, however, was unfazed. He laughed, "Haha, power is everything! What's wrong with using any means to achieve one's goals? Besides, this is still incomplete. Once we absorb another person with extremely high magical talent, the Fafnir Church can recreate highly difficult spells in this age without mysticism! And you are the enemy who will prevent this miracle from being born!"

After saying that, Salestio advanced forward again, his heavy sword striking fiercely as if it had a soul, its agile attacks surrounded by a huge purple mist, forcing Ling Ming to barely dodge once more.

“You have to understand, sacrifice is necessary, and when Gensokyo is completed, more people will realize that what I did was right! It’s the law of the jungle, survival of the fittest, what do you say?” Salesto continued, seeing that Ming was getting more and more serious.

Hearing this familiar law of the jungle, Ming felt a pang of nostalgia. He then straightened up, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said:

"Ah... the law of the jungle? What a nostalgic phrase. If it were me back then, perhaps I would have felt the same way, but..."

Ming gradually recalled the smiling face of that girl in the sunlight. Compared to other girls, she was not outstanding, but she seemed to have a magical power that attracted him.

"Ha! Stop talking nonsense. You bastard, it's true that you seem immortal, which is troublesome, but as long as I destroy you an endless number of times, it'll be fine once you can't regenerate anymore." Salestio said, puzzled by Ming's mutterings, and was about to strike.

Ming seemed to have made up his mind. He sighed, gently placed his hand on the coat behind his [Divine Might Spirit Armor - Fifth Rank - Reversal], and gently pulled it open as it fluttered in the air.

He muttered to himself, "Although I don't want to use the optimal solution that old woman came up with for me, I don't have a better way right now..." As he spoke, Ming gathered heat energy in his cane and slammed it heavily into the inside of his chest.

"Ah!" Ming exclaimed.

"Hey! You know you're going to die, so you choose to commit suicide? It'll save you from polluting my [Dragon's Fang]." He said disdainfully as he saw Ming plunge his cane into his chest and kneel down.

But at that very moment, Ming spoke, word by word: "Then... let the second round... begin!"