Roy's growth speed was too rapid, changing almost daily. At first, Number One could still hide behind the scenes and observe him, but later, he truly had no way to remain concealed anymore.
He absolutely had to resolve this issue before Roy grew even stronger—either by dealing with Roy or by reaching an agreement with Roy to stop him from randomly clearing out Zombies.
Otherwise, the balance between Zombies and humanity would inevitably be broken again soon.
Clearly, he had overestimated his own abilities and underestimated Roy's power. It wasn't until the moment of the actual engagement that Number One understood: Roy was outrageously strong.
If this continued, he was certainly going to die!
In the nick of time, just as Roy pulled Number One toward him and his powerful telekinesis was about to shatter Number One's shield, a blue light burst forth from Number One's eyes.
Boom!
Number One's strength suddenly soared. For a moment, he seemed to be barely able to hold his own against Roy, rigidly countering Roy's telekinesis.
"Hmm?"
Roy noticed that as Number One's strength surged, the surrounding vegetation withered over a large area, as if its life force had been instantly drained.
Number One no longer maintained his gentle demeanor, his expression filled with rare fury. After breaking free from Roy's telekinetic control, he now controlled his own surging telekinesis to press down on Roy.
"It's useless! I am the choice of the Gaia Consciousness! This planet is consuming its own life force to boost my power! You cannot fight against the power of an entire planet!"
"You talk too much."
Even with Number One's strength forcibly boosted by the planet's consumption of its own life force, he was merely able to contend with Roy.
The Gaia Consciousness, to put it plainly, was the law of nature. It had no human emotions or feelings. It wasn't even a life form; it had no consciousness of its own, much less wisdom. It was merely a natural operating system that maintained balance. Wherever the balance was broken, it would slightly adjust the situation there.
Roy was too strong, so it consumed the planet's life force to make Number One strong enough to rival Roy, thereby maintaining this so-called balance. That was all.
However, if Number One thought that merely matching Roy's telekinetic intensity was enough to fight him, he was still too naive. Roy's telekinesis wasn't just astonishingly strong.
Control.
Development level.
Not long after the engagement began, Roy understood, he excelled Number One in both these aspects. This guy was like a kid holding a gun, he fundamentally did not know how to apply this power.
Boom!
Roy's telekinesis twisted into a spiral drill shape, instantly piercing through the tide of Number One's telekinesis. It was unstoppable. Number One's pupils involuntarily contracted, extremely shocked.
"What?!"
In his panic, he hurriedly mobilized his telekinesis to reinforce the thickness of his surrounding barrier, just like tank armor—the thicker the armor, the higher the defense.
It was as if the sharpest spear in the world clashed with the most solid shield. The moment the meteor struck the Earth, an extremely violent shockwave erupted, blasting a huge crater in the surrounding land.
The solid telekinetic barrier was broken through layer by layer by the telekinetic drill. Number One was horrified, but he eventually managed to block Roy's attack. However, his entire body was sent flying high into the sky, reversing direction at supersonic speeds towards the horizon. Roy looked up, then leaped to follow.
If he continued to fight, he really could break Number One's telekinetic barrier; it would just take some effort. However, Roy had no intention of wasting time.
Number One could grow stronger by borrowing the planet's life force, but Roy could also grow stronger by upgrading his own telekinesis. It was a race to see whether the Gaia Consciousness could react fast enough.
Boom!
Boom!
Two figures trailing sonic booms swept across the sky. Number One was constantly encased in thick telekinetic barriers, stuck in a passive, defensive position, afraid that drawing out any more telekinesis would weaken the defense of his protective screen. He fought extremely restrictively.
Before long, the two figures streaked across the sky above an abandoned city. In just a moment, the over 300,000 Zombies in the city exploded into a mist of blood. Not just this city, but any abandoned city within a two-hundred-kilometer radius that entered Roy's sensory range was witnessing the same spectacle.
Simultaneously, Roy's Zombie Kill Count was updating frantically.
[ Zombie Kill Count: 6.27 million ]
[ Zombie Kill Count: 7.84 million ]
[ Zombie Kill Count: 8.44 million ]
...
[ Zombie Kill Count: 10.05 million ]
By the time Number One realized something was wrong, it was too late. Yet, even if he had realized it sooner, he couldn't have changed anything; he simply couldn't stop Roy.
The instant the Zombie Kill Count broke the ten-million threshold, Upgrade Mission 7 was completed!
[ Upgrade Mission 7 · Complete ]
[ Telekinesis Option · Upgraded! ]
[ Telekinesis · LV8! ]
At this moment, Roy's telekinesis surged rapidly. His sensory range expanded to 2,000 kilometers. The powerful telekinesis shot into the sky, and the light distortion phenomenon even reached into space.
Boom!
The edge of the continent raised colossal, towering waves. The sky and the earth truly and violently shook, an apocalyptic scene of utter destruction.
Wielding this power, Roy was confident he could sink the entire continent with a single strike. Destroying the civilization on the surface of the planet could be said to be effortless.
Oong—
The extremely powerful telekinesis enveloped the area. Number One was forcibly halted in mid-air, completely unable to move, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Just what the hell is happening?!"
He knew Roy would grow stronger by killing Zombies, but he couldn't comprehend why Roy could become this powerful. His power came from the Gaia Consciousness, from the planet's life force. Where did Roy's strength come from?
Number One could not understand.
There was no more need for excessive chatter.
Roy thought for a moment, and his surging telekinesis directly crushed Number One's head, giving the Gaia Consciousness no chance to react and decisively ending the battle.
Clearly unlike ordinary Zombies, Number One, as the individual carrying the Gaia Consciousness, was essentially the final boss and immediately dropped extremely high-level loot.
Being a transcendent existence, and one that carried a concept as high-level as the Gaia Consciousness, Number One's drops were undoubtedly high-level items and equipment.
Several streaks of light flew to Roy's front, revealing the appearance of the items and equipment.
[ Equipment Obtained: Sky Splitter Blade ]
[ Sky Splitter Blade: The telekinesis instilled by the Gaia Consciousness was materialized, compressed to the limit, and forged into the shape of a long blade. Even an ordinary person wielding it can cleave the earth and tear the sky. ]
—
[ Equipment Obtained: Bulwark Coat ]
[ Bulwark Coat: The coat itself possesses no defensive strength, but it can store your telekinesis for emergencies. When ambushed, it can automatically release a telekinetic barrier to block attacks. When fully charged, it can sustain your full-power battle for 10 minutes. ]
—
[ Item Obtained: Gaia Medallion ]
[ Gaia Medallion: Correct. The Gaia Consciousness is an abstract concept; it does not possess a physical form or intellect. However, by using this medallion, you will confront this concept. Do you wish to conduct a transaction with it? ]
—
[ Ability Obtained: Voice of All Things ]
[ Voice of All Things: Transcending the barriers of language, species, and even life itself, listen to the voices of all living and non-living things. ]