The room quieted down, leaving only the sound of the news broadcasting from the television.
"Insect Master is a term used by those ignorant fools. The correct title for our kindred on the path of evolution should be Life Force. The all-knowing and omnipotent Life Force with supreme authority."
After saying so, the man raised his hand to his temple — the stone had shattered his temple, and what oozed from the huge wound wasn't blood, but a light-colored viscous fluid.
Kindred on the path of evolution? Could that mean the Master of Insects' infected?
So many of these people that they could form a secret society, partaking in religious fanaticism?
Li Cheng's mind raced, and he spoke in a deep voice, "Life Force? It's already the 21st century, how can there still be such feudal, such 'daddy-esque' titles? It makes me so angry that my whole body trembles, I break into a cold sweat in the heat, my hands and feet go cold, and tears involuntarily stream down my face. Oppression of the infected is rampant in society. When will the infected truly be able to stand up?"
???
The sudden inexplicable statement from the man in black made the atmosphere in the living room tense.
"You have yet to liberate your mind, unable to hear the call within your bloodline."
The man slowly stood up, causing the chair to move backward, its legs scraping against the floor with a squeaky noise, "No matter, you just need a little help..."
The moment the word "help" was uttered, the man's mouth gaped open, and he lunged forward while suddenly extending his left arm, sweeping it like a whip.
Li Cheng did not dodge or flinch. He stomped his left foot on the ground to lunge forward, his right fist swung out like a cannonball, striking the man's chest.
Crack crack—
The sound of ribs breaking was as dense as popping beans. Li Cheng turned his fist into a palm, pushing upward at an angle, grabbing the man's neck with his palm, his thumb pressing against his jaw, controlling the man's head and smashing it against the edge of the wooden dining table.
Bang!
The man's jawbone shattered, teeth flying out, the connecting masseter muscle instantly tore apart, causing the entire lower jaw to dislocate and hang loosely downwards.
Not only that, Li Cheng's left arm suddenly sprouted the Mantis Arm Bone Blade, slicing upward from beneath in an arc towards the woman with the long, snake-like neck.
The Bone Knife was exceptionally sharp; even though the woman tried to dodge, it still left a slender gash on her neck, from which a large amount of fluid sprayed out.
The tightly twisted neck loosened, and the siblings who had been choking and nearly unable to breathe were finally freed from suffocation, gasping for air.
Li Cheng acted quickly, grabbing the necks of the two children, yanking them free and tossing them toward their parents' bedroom, then commanded in a low voice, "Lock the door."
The command echoed in Xiao An's mind like thunder; he ignored the pain from his fall, scrambled up from the ground, stumbled to close the door, locked it, and then pulled his sister to hide under the bed.
Seeing the "hostages" escape, the woman let out a scream, stretched her neck, and threw her head at Li Cheng.
Twang!
Li Cheng caught her hair with his hand, wrapped it around his hand, and yanked hard, smashing her head back onto the table.
The battered wooden dining table finally couldn't take it anymore and two table legs broke on the spot.
As the tabletop tilted, all the porcelain plates and bowls fell to the ground, crashing and shattering.
Whoosh—
The man's right arm, which had fallen to the ground, suddenly sprung to life, striking at Li Cheng.
Both Insect Masters had tenacious Life Forces, and even with a shattered lower jaw, it had no immediate effect on their combat strength.
Li Cheng quickly released his right hand and took a half step back to dodge.
The man, now free, immediately regained his footing and extended his left leg in a similar fashion, hooking it around Li Cheng's right ankle and yanking him towards the right side of the living room wall.
Li Cheng's back slammed against the wall. The intense pain shot straight into his brain, causing adrenaline to automatically secrete, making his breathing quicken, and his heart rate and blood flow accelerate while his pupils dilated involuntarily.
Just like the night when his throat was slashed, the experience teetering on the edge of life and death did not send Li Cheng into a panic, rather it was as if a switch had been flipped.
He gathered information, assessed the situation, planned his approach, and calculated feasibility with absolute calm and indifference.
A revelation dawned on him.
People had their strengths; some were naturally good at swimming or football, others at reading expressions or composing melodies.
Li Cheng's talent was maintaining clarity and calm in such situations.
His body leaned forward, his thighs bent, tendons compressed - the Mantis Arm Bone Blade ready to unleash.
Li Cheng kicked off the wall, descending like a tiger onto the man's neck.
The man tried to tilt his head back and raise his arms to block, but the combined force of weight and velocity made the Mantis Arm Bone Blade cut through effortlessly, slicing off his entire left arm, including the shoulder blade.
At the brink of death, the man exploded with all his Strength, extending his left leg like a python to throw Li Cheng towards the balcony.
As the sensation of weightlessness hit again, Li Cheng switched tactics, stabbing his right Bone Blade into the sofa to slice through the sponge and slightly slow his speed.
At the same time, he slapped the ground with his left hand, using the reactionary force to flip back into a standing position. Then he used his right Bone Blade to slash away the restraints on his leg.
With nothing in his way, Li Cheng dashed forward with Acceleration, smashing his knee into the man's chest, causing him to crash heavily into the wall, dislodging the landscape painting hanging on it.
The man's jaw completely detached, his eyes wide open to the limit. He clung with his remaining right arm to Li Cheng's neck and right hand, tightening fiercely.
Li Cheng's eyes bloodshot unconsciously. He steadied himself, expressionless as he retracted his left fist, and then, he launched it.
The explosive strength gifted by the ant genes was fully unleashed, his fist crushed the man's nasal bridge and penetrated the skull, the enormous impact making both eyeballs burst out.
The choking arm around his neck suddenly lost strength.
Li Cheng silently retracted his fist, and through his blood-filled vision, he saw three Blood Ambers fall out of the man's split open skull.
"Ah—"
A piercing scream came from the woman behind him, who stretched her neck and swung her head down like a Meteor Hammer.
Li Cheng barely managed to turn his body to the side, lifting his arm to brace for the impact.
Thud!
He was smashed hard into the wall, the wallpaper ripping to reveal the white paint beneath.
The scream persisted, the woman furiously launched her head again, but Li Cheng had already recovered.
Raising both arms, the twin Bone Blades sliced diagonally down, stabbing fiercely into either side of the woman's neck as her head came smashing in. With a forceful yank, he decapitated her.
Her ferocious head rolled on the ground, gathering dust and stained with the soup of braised pork ribs. Three Blood Ambers also fell from the severed end.