I have added this story to my Patreon. You can support me and read the 40 latest and advanced chapters there. It also fed and motivate me to write more chapters!
Link: Patreon.com/Heroicverse
—------------------—
"Buddy, that's not how you play with new toys... Also,"
"What kind of bizarre aesthetic does your boss have? How could he design such ugly work uniforms?"
Hearing the relaxed and lazy complaint from in front of him, the stevedore who had been waiting for death cautiously opened his eyes.
The moment he saw the person in front of him, he felt as if he had experienced a roller coaster ride from hell to heaven.
"The... The Arbiter! Thank God, you've finally come to save me."
Peter signaled for the lucky man to hide somewhere safe.
Then he turned back, applying a bit of force with his hand, causing Kuurth to stagger back two steps.
"Who are you?" Kuurth's mask covered his entire head like a pot lid, leaving only a large mouth visible and three small holes for his eyes, making him look exceptionally ridiculous.
"A superhero for fun? A passing kamen rider? Eh, something like that anyway..."
"Interesting." Kuurth grinned, revealing a mouthful of forest-white teeth. "But do you think you can stop me?"
"I am Kuurth the Breaker of Stone! I am... unstoppable!"
As he spoke, large patches of heavy rock eerily emerged from the ground. These rocks covered Kuurth's body, arming him into a super-sized version of The Thing.
On the other hand, they spread toward Peter, petrifying his feet in the blink of an eye.
Screech screech screech!
Like a bull seeing a red cloth, Kuurth rubbed his right foot against the ground repeatedly.
With every scrape, the momentum within him surged.
Clearly, he intended to crush Peter to death in one go!
Facing Kuurth's charged-up charge, Peter showed no sign of nervousness.
"This way of fighting is really..."
Peter looked at the dusty-looking Kuurth with obvious disdain in his voice.
"So inelegant!"
As he spoke, a flash of light appeared in his hand, and a snow-white katana appeared out of thin air.
Under the afternoon sun at the port, the blade reflected a cold light.
"Scatter, Senbonzakura."
Peter's voice was soft and devoid of emotion, yet it sounded like a whisper from the depths of the soul, clearly reaching everyone's ears.
In the next moment, under the incredibly shocked gazes of the dockworkers, the blade in Peter's hand... vanished!
As a sea breeze blew past, the blade in Peter's hand disintegrated and dispersed into fragments.
In its place, cherry blossom petals swirled around Peter.
The gorgeous wave of cherry blossoms surrounded Peter; while its beauty was intoxicating, it also exuded an eerie danger.
"The... the blade is gone?"
"What is that? Such beautiful flowers!"
The workers, who were just immersed in the fear of death, were now staring in a daze.
They had never seen such a fantastical and beautiful sight, and for a moment, they even forgot where they were and that Peter was still facing that terrifying monster.
"Playing tricks!"
Kuurth, having finished charging, let out a deafening roar. He discovered that the "food" he intended to sacrifice to Lord Cul had been snatched away!
Unforgivable!
With that thought, he stomped hard, creating a deep pit in the ground. He lunged forward like a cannonball toward Peter, raising the Breaker of Stone warhammer high, creating a whistling sound as it tore through the air!
Facing this menacing charge, Peter didn't even bother to lift an eyelid, simply waving his hand casually.
As if shooing away an annoying fly.
The next second, the tens of thousands of cherry blossom petals, like a swarm of bees receiving a command, instantly condensed into a pink torrent and swept toward Kuurth.
Initially, Kuurth didn't take these seemingly fragile petals seriously; to him, they were nothing more than flashy tricks.
He didn't even bother to parry, intending to use his indestructible rock body to crush these "tricks" along with that eyesore of a man!
However, the moment the pink torrent made contact with his body—
Chii! Chii! Chii! Chii!
A dense, tooth-gritting cutting sound suddenly rang out!
Only at this moment did Kuurth discover to his horror that the edges of every seemingly soft cherry blossom petal glinted with a light sharper than a scalpel!
Those petals easily tore through his rock armor—condensed from divine power and strong enough to withstand cannon fire—making a piercing grinding sound and sending sparks flying.
More petals, like living venomous snakes, crawled through the gaps in his khaki-colored armor, frantically burrowing into his body!
"Aaaaaah!"
Intense pain struck, and Kuurth let out a roar of agony.
Blood and cherry blossoms intertwined and scattered in the air.
The scene was like a painting from hell, with the dancing cherry blossoms as the background and hot blood as the ink—beautiful yet cruel, so eerie it made the soul tremble.
Kuurth still wanted to fight back desperately, mobilizing all the power in his body to try and force out the "insects" that had crawled inside him.
But at that moment, a playful voice sounded behind him without warning.
"If you think this is the extent of my abilities, you are dead wrong!"
The moment the words fell, the color of the pink cherry blossoms in the air suddenly changed!
A layer of deep, ink-like black quickly covered the surface of every petal, making them look as if they were carved from obsidian, exuding an indestructible texture.
Armament Hardening!
With the enhancement of Armament Haki, Senbonzakura's destructive power increased exponentially!
If the Senbonzakura from before were sharp scalpels, then the Senbonzakura after the change were like ten thousand impact drills!
The swirling petals delved deep into the gaps of the armor, weakening the seemingly indestructible suit from the inside out.
Under the impact of the black petals, Kuurth's khaki-colored armor let out an overloaded groan like fragile porcelain and then shattered!
"No!"
Kuurth let out a desperate roar; the intense pain made it impossible for him to grip his weapon any longer.
Clang!
The ancient-looking Breaker of Stone warhammer flew out of his hand and slammed heavily onto the ground.
At that very moment, Peter's pupils constricted slightly.
He saw it... deep within Bill Foster's body, a struggling, twisted shadow filled with a will of tyranny and fear was becoming illusory as the warhammer left his hand, seemingly trying to flee into the distance.
This was... the remnant soul of a god!
Judging by the strength it displayed, this fellow at his peak was at least as strong as Heimdall!
"Good stuff!"
Peter's eyes lit up instantly, and he immediately activated his storage ring.
The next second, a pitch-black banner engraved with profound runes and exuding a thick, sinister aura appeared in Peter's hand.
It was exactly the magical treasure he had just redeemed from the System Mall—the Ten Thousand Soul Banner!