Zhou Chen felt the blood being rapidly drained from his body. A wave of Weakness washed over him, followed by the classic symptoms of massive blood loss: pale lips, a cold sweat breaking out all over, weak limbs, and short, gasping breaths...
Then, a wave of vertigo hit him. His brain wasn't getting enough blood; his vision blurred, and his head swam.
In the span of a single breath, an unknown amount of blood had been devoured from him.
Even an Ascender's constitution couldn't handle this.
'Shit... I have to make it stop, or I'll be sucked dry!'
Zhou Chen's vision started to go dark. He tried to let go, only to discover with horror that the chainsaw's handle was stuck to his hand as if glued there. He couldn't shake it off.
He tried to use his Extraordinary Abilities. A pale white flame ignited in his palm, and to his surprise, the effect was excellent and immediate. The chainsaw instantly stopped its greedy sucking.
But he had a feeling that as soon as he withdrew the flame, the chainsaw would resume devouring his blood.
Zhou Chen quickly took out a Blood Bottle, bit open the stopper, and downed it in one go. He felt the Alchemy Potion take effect inside him, bringing with it an endless stream of vitality. A bit of color finally returned to his pale face.
At the same time, he made a wish in his heart: "I wish to contain this Forbidden Object!"
Any item that possessed an Extraordinary Ability could be called a Forbidden Object. Some of these Forbidden Objects were so peculiar that one had to meet certain containment conditions to use them. Some conditions were relatively normal, but others were difficult, and some were incredibly evil. Of course, the most common ones were just plain bizarre.
Zhou Chen guessed the chainsaw's containment condition was likely blood-sucking. As for how much blood it needed, he had no idea. And until it had absorbed enough, it would remain stuck to his hand.
Inside the Wish Bottle, the last two motes of Star Dust burst into light and flew out.
In his perception, the two motes of Star Dust flowed down his arm and merged into the chainsaw, then went still.
'Did it work? Or did it fail?'
Zhou Chen was incredibly anxious, not knowing if two motes of Star Dust were enough to fulfill his wish.
He didn't dare withdraw the flame now. If the chainsaw started sucking his blood again, he wouldn't even need the enemy to make a move; he'd be totally screwed from blood loss. He would absolutely become a running joke for countless employees at the Star Association to laugh about over dinner.
"Oh? You actually want to contain that Forbidden Object?" Shen Xi laughed mockingly. "Do you think Xi Feng would just carelessly toss a Forbidden Object into a warehouse? It's because it's too dangerous! It's sucked dozens of people dry, even a couple of Ascenders. It's incredibly difficult to contain."
"Your Extraordinary Abilities are certainly interesting, temporarily suppressing the chainsaw, but... how long can you keep that up?"
"How about this: let's make a deal. You become my dog, and I'll be merciful and save your life. How about it?"
Shen Xi strolled leisurely toward Zhou Chen as if he were out shopping. "Look at you. So young, still a virgin... what a waste it would be for you to die just like that. Follow me, and I will give you Power, give you fame, give you wealth and beautiful women. More importantly, you will have the chance to have an audience with my lord and master—the King of Chaos!"
"So, what are your salary and benefits like?" Zhou Chen suddenly asked.
"Do you offer a full benefits package? Weekends off? Paid holidays? Annual leave? A year-end bonus? Any other employee perks? What's the team dynamic like? What are the company's prospects? What's the strategic plan for the future? Is the boss approachable? Are there any female employees? Can you set me up with a girlfriend?"
Shen Xi's face darkened. "I'm offering you a toast. I'd hate for you to drink the forfeit instead."
"Come on, you're supposed to post the compensation package *before* you start recruiting. If the pay is bad, who the hell would sign up? Judging by your expression, the benefits at your company must be terrible, right?"
He sighed and retracted the pale flame burning in his palm.
'Caught between a rock and a hard place. It's death either way. I might as well trust in the Wish Bottle's Ability.'
In that instant, the piercing, sucking sensation returned to his palm. Zhou Chen's heart sank, filled with helplessness. 'Was the Wish Value not enough...?'
But then, something pleasantly surprising happened. The chainsaw only took a few more gulps before stopping. In its place, a wondrous Soul Link was established. It was as if the chainsaw in his hand was no longer a chainsaw, but a part of his own body, an extension of his will.
'It worked?!'
Zhou Chen was both thrilled and stunned. He hadn't expected two motes of Star Dust to be able to pull this off. Containing a Forbidden Object was no simple wish, after all.
A flash of insight struck him, and he deduced a possible explanation.
If the chainsaw needed to devour enough blood to be contained, then the blood it had drawn from him at the beginning must have fulfilled seventy or eighty percent of the requirement. The Wish Value then helped satisfy the remaining need, which was why the chainsaw only took a couple of symbolic sips in the end.
Because at that point, he had essentially met the chainsaw's containment conditions.
'The Wish Bottle really is miraculous!'
Now that he had contained the chainsaw, Zhou Chen naturally understood how to use this violent Weapon.
Driven by his Soul, his Essence began to burn fiercely, pouring into the dormant chainsaw.
As if it hadn't been active in a very, very long time, the chainsaw sent back an excited response.
In that moment, the savage roar of an engine erupted!
It was like a howl of unbearable hunger and thirst!
"Take this!"
Zhou Chen launched a surprise attack, bringing the high-speed rotating chainsaw down toward Shen Xi's face. The latter's face was a mask of horror; he'd never imagined Zhou Chen would actually contain the dangerous Forbidden Object right in front of him. He could only hastily conjure a Long Saber of black flame to defend himself.
With a flash of cold light, the Black Flame Long Saber shattered instantly. Black blood splattered as the chainsaw bit deep into Shen Xi's shoulder.
It began to cut at high speed!
Like a scene from an R-rated horror film, flesh and blood flew everywhere. The cold blade sawed through muscle and bone alike, creating a grating sound of grinding bone that set one's teeth on edge.
The chainsaw whirred, as if cheering in delight.
CUTTING! CUTTING!! CUTTING!!!
Amidst the roar of the chainsaw, Shen Xi's body was sliced diagonally in two. A torrent of black blood gushed out, along with all sorts of indescribable, pitch-black innards that spilled across the floor.
Zhou Chen felt no disgust or Fear. Under the chainsaw's influence, he even felt a certain thrill.
"You... you..." Shen Xi endured the excruciating pain, black flames erupting from his body in an attempt to fight back. The next second, the chainsaw split his head in half, then into quarters, then eighths...
But he still wasn't dead. His Life Force was shockingly tenacious. It wasn't until Zhou Chen had literally dismembered him that he found a core like a Black Crystal.
"No... don't..." Shen Xi pleaded weakly.
Zhou Chen stepped on his corpse, bending down to saw at the Crystal Core as he spoke. "You know, villains usually die because they talk too much. I know you were desperate to show off after getting some Power, but that's not how you do it..."
"As for how to do it right, you can go ask the King of Chaos in the Abyss."
CRACK! The Crystal Core shattered. Shen Xi's curses and screams vanished into thin air, and his corpse dissolved into a puddle of black, viscous goo.
Zhou Chen straightened up and looked into the distance, where Yang was still locked in combat with the Double-bladed Turkey.
The chainsaw roared.