Reborn with Steve Stand

"I've got you."

As Fang Mo tightened his grip around Hilder's neck, time resumed its flow.

"…Gah!?"

On the other side, Hilder suddenly felt her vision blur, and in the next instant, it was as if an iron vice had clamped around her neck, squeezing so hard that even breathing became a struggle.

"This… can't… be…"

Hilder's face was filled with disbelief.

Her hands desperately clawed at Fang Mo's wrist, trying to free herself.

Honestly, she couldn't comprehend why she was suddenly here. Hadn't she already returned to the Demon World? And how had he managed to grab her while she was in the interdimensional rift? Hilder was not a combat specialist; her expertise lay in scientific research on Terra. She was best at scheming from behind the scenes. Now, caught off guard by Fang Mo, her mind was racing with a chaotic mix of confused thoughts, forgetting to even fight back.

But what she was thinking didn't matter.

What mattered was that Fang Mo had already begun raising his fist.

"This punch is for Lotus."

With a thought, Fang Mo's Arcane Ring lit up, and his fist began to glow with an intense, sun-like heat. He then drove it directly into Hilder.

"!!!"

As death loomed, Hilder finally snapped back to her senses, hastily channeling her magic to defend herself.

As the so-called Goddess of Magic, Hilder was indeed a master of magic. A flash of white light, and a complex magic circle appeared instantly in front of her.

But just as the magic circle materialized, Fang Mo's fist collided with it.

With a resounding crack, the magic circle shattered under Fang Mo's punch, and the force continued toward Hilder, slamming into her stomach.

The impact nearly tore Hilder in half. Her body caved in at the point of contact, bending like a cooked shrimp. Simultaneously, the overwhelming wave of heat engulfed her, burning her black feathered cloak to ashes.

As for Hilder herself, she was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through countless trees before embedding deeply into the ground.

"Cough… ugh…"

Hilder clutched her stomach as she struggled to stand, coughing up blood.

Her eyes were filled with shock. The sheer strength of her opponent was beyond comprehension. Despite her magical defenses, she felt as if her internal organs had been shattered, and her entire body was wracked with the searing pain of burns.

"How does it feel?" Fang Mo smiled as he looked at Hilder. "This is what Lotus felt like on the Beast of the Sky."

"Are you fighting for the other Apostles?" Hilder wiped the blood from her mouth. "How laughable… Do you really think you're serving justice?"

"What's laughable is you, isn't it?" Fang Mo raised his arm, tearing apart the dimensional rift as easily as ripping a flyer off a telephone pole. "You're discussing justice with the Fourth Disaster? They might help you out of pity, but if they find you annoying, they'll wipe you out without a second thought."

"What?"

Hilder was taken aback.

"Exactly."

The little demon next to Fang Mo chimed in, "Even if you were invincible, it wouldn't matter… We could exploit mechanics, change code, use the console, or even write a mod to kill you if we wanted."

"That's right."

Fang Mo glanced at his partner with a smile, then turned back to Hilder. "We only care about those who entertain us. Whether they have a charming personality or a cute design, as long as we like them, we'll go to great lengths for those characters—reload saves, give it our all, and seriously act as good teachers, doctors, or captains…"

"Of course, we will also do whatever it takes to kill characters we find disgusting."

"The Fourth Disaster never concerns itself with justice; we simply follow our hearts. But if you must measure us by that ridiculous notion of 'justice,' then all I can say is…"

Fang Mo spread his arms wide. "My heart and my actions are as clear as a mirror; everything I do is justice!"

"You…"

Hilder was left speechless by Fang Mo's words.

"Sorry, but we players can do whatever we want." Fang Mo suddenly lunged at her, his fist tightening into a black hole as he charged at lightning speed. "Justice is whatever I say it is!!!"

"!?"

Hilder's pupils shrank as she hurriedly raised her hand, casting a spell.

Behind her, several magic circles lit up—fire, ice, light, and darkness—all attacking simultaneously as she desperately tried to retreat.

"Amateur!"

Fang Mo didn't even try to dodge. Instead, he accelerated, launching a straight punch.

The immense gravitational field obliterated her four-layered magic, sending out a shockwave that left massive craters in the surrounding area. The entire Grand Forest trembled violently, but Fang Mo continued his charge, landing a punch on Hilder's right chest.

The power of that punch was terrifying.

Gravity, one of the four fundamental forces, is considered the bedrock of the universe itself, capable of even tearing apart space-time.

Hilder was struck squarely by Fang Mo's punch, and the gravitational field erupted, nearly crushing her body to dust. In the instant of contact, Hilder's entire body spewed blood, turning her into a bloodied mess, but she was thrown backward by the force.

As she flew through the air, Hilder focused her gaze, gritting her teeth.

A massive interdimensional rift suddenly opened behind her.

But before she could do anything else, a flash of black light, and Fang Mo appeared before her again, grabbing her by the hair and throwing her back.

"Trying to escape?"

After hurling Hilder, Fang Mo waved his hand, tearing the dimensional rift apart once more.

"Damn…"

Seeing Fang Mo tear open the rift with his bare hands, Hilder's expression changed. But before she could react, Fang Mo was in front of her again.

"How does it feel to have your cells crushed?"

Fang Mo smiled as he raised his right hand, his fingers forming a blade. "That last punch was for Delezie, and now… it's Anton's turn!"

With that, he aimed a lightning-fast strike at Hilder's stomach, intending to impale her.

But this time, Hilder's body suddenly glowed with golden light, and a slender hand suddenly caught Fang Mo's wrist with a 'snap.'

"Hmm?"

Fang Mo raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Hilder had undergone a dramatic transformation. Though her appearance remained similar, her body was now shrouded in golden-white light, and her aura had changed, like a Super Saiyan transformation. A powerful energy radiated from her.

"A state similar to Beiana's, huh?"

Fang Mo quickly understood what had happened.

As the ancestor of magic, it was clear that Hilder had mastered all the Mage skills, including those of Battle Mages. After all, the Battle Mage's awakening, Beiana, was based on Terra's artificial god technology.

Hilder was an expert in that field.

Moreover, Terra's artificial gods were created by infusing Carloso's dark energy into a body, which was closely connected to the Apostles.

"An artificial god?"

Fang Mo laughed as he figured it out. "How amusing… But how can humans hope to match a god?"

"Die!"

With a sudden roar, Fang Mo exerted force, pushing through Hilder's resistance and plunging his hand into her stomach. His hand emerged from her lower back.

"Ugh!!!"

Hilder coughed up blood, grievously wounded.

"You look so pathetic when you struggle." Fang Mo chuckled, then tossed her aside like trash.

Hilder was now gravely injured, nearly incapacitated. She rolled across the ground like a ragdoll, struggling to stand but failing multiple times. Eventually, she coughed up more blood, her once-mighty aura fading.

As Fang Mo watched Hilder lying on the ground like a dying dog, he raised his hand.

From the weapons floating behind him, the whip belonging to Lotus flew into his grasp.

"Now it's…"

Fang Mo casually swung the whip, creating a sharp crack in the air. "Punishment time."

"You…"

Hilder gritted her teeth, trying to say something, but Fang Mo didn't give her the chance. He swung the whip, and Lotus's tentacle struck her back with a brutal force. ƒreewebɳovel.com

This wasn't some playful game.

Under Fang Mo's fierce strike, a tremendous force erupted from the whip.

The whip's power was so immense that it created a vacuum in the atmosphere, sending a pale white shockwave outward. Hilder's body was hammered into the ground as if struck by a battering ram, creating a large crater, with debris and dust flying everywhere.

"Damn, this whip has some kick…"

After delivering the blow, Fang Mo raised an eyebrow in delight. "I love it! This is like the perfect weapon for a farmer!"

"She's not a cow," the little demon couldn't help but retort.

"No worries." Fang Mo casually flicked the whip, causing it to crack again in the air. "She can be whatever I want…"

"As long as you're happy."

The little demon floated backward, not wanting to get splattered with blood. "But let me remind you, don't forget about Carloso."

"Don't worry, I'll just play for a bit."

Fang Mo smiled, then swung the whip again.

With another loud crack, the ground shook, and Hilder flew out of the crater like a ragdoll, crashing into a nearby boulder.

"Ugh… cough…"

One had to admit, Hilder's vitality was indeed remarkable. Perhaps it was due to that so-called Water of Life, but even after being beaten to this state, she still hadn't died. Instead, she struggled to lift her head, glaring at Fang Mo with a vicious, snarling expression.

"So, you're finally dropping the act?"

Seeing Hilder looking so broken, Fang Mo smirked. "I thought you could keep up the tough facade. Turns out, the mighty Second Apostle isn't much different from a common thug—you're already breaking down after just two strikes…"

"I only wanted to save Terra! What did I do wrong!?"

Hilder couldn't hold back any longer and shouted at Fang Mo.

"Mhm, well said." Fang Mo gently stroked the whip in his hand and gestured for her to continue. "Go on."

"The death of the Apostles is inevitable—it's part of the prophecy!"

Hilder, no longer composed and calm like before, had completely lost her cool after being inexplicably dragged back here and beaten half to death. Her hair was disheveled as she screamed, "As Apostles, they enjoyed the adoration of the people of the Demon World but did nothing to help build it. Instead, they brought endless disasters and suffering… Don't they deserve to die!?"

"Well said!" Fang Mo suddenly began clapping.

"…?"

Hilder seemed a bit confused by his reaction, but soon her face twisted in terror as she saw Fang Mo raising the whip again.

"But what's the use of saying it well?"

Fang Mo grinned wickedly, giving the whip a flick. With a loud shout, he sent a shiver down Hilder's spine: "Even if your words were flowers, you still can't stop me from swinging this copper-headed belt… and spinning you like a top!!!"

With that, Fang Mo clenched his fist. "Get up!"

The Void Ring glowed faintly, and Hilder's body was forcibly yanked up from the ground, only to be met with the fierce crack of the orange whip.

"Snap!!!"

The brutal strike sent an irresistible force through Hilder's body. In an instant, she lost all sense of direction, spinning wildly on the ground like a top, blood spraying everywhere in a scene too gruesome to watch.

But Fang Mo showed no mercy.

With a cold expression, he lifted his arm and delivered two more vicious lashes.

Hilder spun even faster now, emitting a whistling sound as she turned, with the air around her forming a vortex-like structure. The nearby trees were all severed by the force of the whip.

"Wow."

The little demon floating nearby saw this and drifted further away. "So much for Hilder being some big deal…"

"The lashes you took…" Fang Mo said calmly as he watched, speaking as if to himself, yet seemingly explaining to Hilder at the same time.

"…were on behalf of Luke and Beckey."