Zhao Yingkong had already forced open her Second Stage Genetic Lock, struggling desperately as she was surrounded by the Snow Wolf Druid, Eric, and Allen.
Her body was covered in wounds. Blood soaked through her clothes. Although her eyes still burned with determination, her rapidly draining stamina made her movements grow visibly sluggish.
Every dodge and every counterattack became painfully difficult.
Even the members of the North Polar Team had to admit they admired this tiny girl for fighting three opponents at once.
Among the entire Central Continent team—aside from Yujin—Zhao Yingkong was unquestionably their fiercest close‑combat fighter.
The Central Continent team's combatants were severely injured, and their non‑combatants fared no better.
Zhan Lan and Yehui had already been frozen solid. Their bodies stood stiff and unmoving like ice sculptures, their eyes filled with terror and helplessness.
The biting cold around them continued to gnaw at their lives, pushing them steadily toward the brink of death.
Even Chu Xuan—normally calm, meticulous, and endlessly calculating—had lost an arm.
Blood sprayed from the severed limb.
But this man felt no pain. Even with one arm gone, he carried himself as if nothing had happened, firing his gun one‑handed with chilling calm.
Across from him, Mavis—wielding her green crossbow—kept dodging frantically. Compared to a lunatic like Chu Xuan, she would rather not suffer even a scratch.
The entire Central Continent team had been driven into a hopeless situation.
"Chu Xuan!"
Zheng Zha's furious roar echoed throughout the factory building.
With a surge of strength, he shattered the layers of ice covering him and shouted, "This was your plan!? Is this what you wanted!? Answer me!!!"
Gonniel stared at the raging man with confusion. In his view, the entire Central Continent team had suddenly become idiots—charging in without strategy, as if they had shown up simply to be beaten and slaughtered.
"Heh… Whatever your reasons don't matter." Gonniel's expression turned frigid as ice crystals gathered in his palm, forming a gleaming ice blade.
He looked at Zheng Zha and pronounced, "You're nothing but reward points. Die."
"Ah!"
Just as Gonniel was about to strike, a piercing scream tore through the air, drawing everyone's attention.
"C‑Captain… save… save me!"
"You bastard!"
Gonniel exploded in anger when he saw the source of the scream—a man spreading his wings standing inside the rookie team's formation.
It was outrageous. Absolutely shameless.
The strongest fighter of the Central Continent team hadn't joined the main battle at all. Instead, he slipped past the entire North Polar Team and ran straight into their rookie squad?
That was… beastly.
Seeing almost everyone glaring at him—except for Chu Xuan, who remained expressionless—Yujin flushed with embarrassment.
"S‑Sorry… If I didn't show up now, my teammates would've died.
So… can we stop fighting for a moment?"
"Don't even think about it!"
Gonniel swung an ice blade at Zheng Zha's shoulder right in front of Yujin.
Seeing this, Yujin moved in an instant.
Shua! Shua! Shua!
Shurikens flew from his hands, cutting down seven newcomers from the North Polar Team in an instant.
"Damn it!"
Gonniel had thought that acting first would intimidate Yujin, but he didn't expect him to strike so decisively.
Suddenly, Gonniel remembered.
The Central Continent team had a habit of breeding their members!
The team leader clearly didn't care whether his members lived or died.
Thinking of this, Gonniel shouted in pain, "Retreat! Retreat now!"
Retreat?
There was no door!
A veteran with an activated gene lock had a kill reward of 7,000 points and a B-rank side quest. Such a generous reward? Yujin would never let it go.
He flapped his wings, and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Gonniel.
Seeing Yujin approaching instantly, Gonniel's eyes revealed a mix of determination and madness.
He pinched a bead, then suddenly raised both hands to the sky, roaring, "Ice Age!"
In an instant, an extreme cold spread from him outward.
The moisture in the air froze immediately, forming countless tiny ice crystals that filled the factory.
Nova, already covered in wounds, curled up in a corner.
Now, surrounded by this icy aura, her injuries were instantly encased in ice, her blood frozen in an instant.
It was as if she had been sealed in a transparent ice coffin.
Only her eyes, filled with unwillingness and anger, remained visible, staring fiercely forward, unable to move even an inch.
The other Central Continent members couldn't escape the same frozen fate.
The effect was most obvious on Yujin, who was frozen in midair.
Gonniel looked at the frozen Central Continent members, secretly relieved that his ultimate move had temporarily controlled the situation.
He raised his ice blade, ready to strike Yujin again.
Just then, the psychic controller, Bev Field, turned pale.
Her voice sharp with fear, she shouted, "Run! The Central Continent captain is about to unfreeze them!"
Gonniel's heart jolted.
"What! How is this possible! I've frozen even Third-Level Gene Lock awakeners to death!"
"Captain! Go! Now!"
Gonniel knew he couldn't hesitate.
Reluctantly, he turned and ran outside.
But he wasn't sparing the other Central Continent members.
Those frozen members would die soon enough.
The North Polar Team members who had escaped the factory quickly took out their Goblin Gliders.
They became streaks of light, disappearing outside the factory, leaving behind the frozen Central Continent members.
"Crack!"
As they flew away, the ice freezing Yujin shattered into pieces.
Yujin's body was enveloped in a dark blue-black aura of Armament Haki.
The Ice Age unleashed by Gonniel's consumption of a Ice Energy Orb only managed to scratch him.
This was the misfortune of receiving a low-tier version of a Logia-type Devil Fruit ability in the Lord God Space.
Yujin, who had "roamed" the world of pirates, had survived even the attacks of Magellan.
So using a downgraded version of Aokiji's power against him was barely a threat.
Even Gonniel couldn't have anticipated that someone in the Lord God Space would possess Armament Haki.
Yujin glanced at the frozen members behind him.
He quickly formed hand seals, and the Earth Grudge shoulder mask spirit followed suit, drawing in a deep breath.
"Composite Ninjutsu: Flame Wind Rampage!"
"Whoosh~"
Flames surged forward, roasting everyone in their path.
Within moments, all the frozen members were freed from their icy prisons.
Even Zheng Zha, who had been closest to Yujin, suffered severe burns.
Zhang Jie coughed violently as the ice melted, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
He struggled to pick up the dual guns lying on the ground, checking their condition before leaning against the wall.
He panted heavily, eyes scanning the surroundings, sweat dripping from his forehead.
****
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