Chapter 2409: The Path of Silent Extinction

Feeling the tenderness in her eyes, Zu An's internal alarm bells went off.

"Hey, what's gotten into you all of a sudden?"

"I didn't say anything, did I?"

"Don't come any closer!"

Ever since he learned the mermaid tribe's secrets, he dared not have too much contact with this woman. Otherwise, if he caused the Shang Liuyu sisters from later generations to disappear, he'd regret it bitterly.

Seeing the two of them exchanging glances, Mogad was completely dumbfounded, as if he shouldn't be there.

He cleared his throat, reminding them to at least show some respect for his question.

Only then did Zu An come back to his senses: "I can tell you, but you need to answer a question of mine first."

"What question?" Mogad frowned subtly, but if he could ascertain the other party's identity, answering a few less sensitive questions seemed acceptable.

"Where did you take Princess Peacock?" Zu An had a very good relationship with the Peacock Clan in later generations, especially since Kong Nanwu was also his good friend. He couldn't just stand by and let anything happen to her ancestor.

Princess Peacock's situation was different from the Mermaid Queen's. Since there was no record of the Gong surname in later generations, he worried that his excessive involvement with the Mermaid Queen might affect the timeline.

However, there was a clear Peacock Clan in later generations, so he worried that if he didn't intervene, something might go wrong for Kong Nanwu.

"Oh, this is really difficult for me."

Hearing Zu An's question, the Mermaid Queen's heart warmed. She knew he had taken such a great risk earlier to save Princess Peacock, and even now, he hadn't forgotten to help her.

"He's truly good, really."

Feeling a somewhat fervent gaze from beside him, Zu An resisted the urge to look back. He grew even more puzzled, wondering what was going on with this Mermaid Queen.

"Don't worry, she's not dead. She has already pledged allegiance to us and will work for our master from now on." Mogad breathed a sigh of relief. This question wasn't sensitive, so there was no harm in telling them.

"Nonsense! How could she possibly pledge allegiance to you? What exactly did you do to her?" The Mermaid Queen was both surprised and angry. She was well acquainted with Princess Peacock, and they had gotten along quite well just recently. She knew Princess Peacock deeply detested demons, so how could she possibly join them?

"Her pledging allegiance to us is a fact. This king treats his subordinates quite well, so there's no need for Your Majesty to worry." Mogad smiled faintly, then looked at Zu An, his meaning clear: "I've answered your question, now it's your turn."

Only then did Zu An reply: "I come from an unspeakable place. If I were to reveal its name, it would lead to many deaths, and perhaps even the destruction of the world."

The Mermaid Queen felt even more relieved. So he truly had a reason, no wonder he couldn't tell her before.

Mogad's expression, however, changed: "Does your world follow the Path of Annihilation?"

Zu An was slightly startled. He hadn't actually lied; if they knew he was from the future, it was uncertain what kind of ripple effect it might have on the world.

However, the other party's counter-question was interesting. What was the Path of Annihilation?

Mogad, being who he was, immediately noticed Zu An's unusual expression and couldn't help but feel a touch of annoyance: "You're lying to me!"

Rage value from Mogad: 110,110,110...

"What is this Path of Annihilation you spoke of?" Seeing that Mogad had caught on, Zu An simply asked directly.

Mogad sneered, "If you don't even know that, your strength must be limited."

With that, he no longer held back and attacked Zu An directly.

As he charged, his entire body suddenly began to mutate. His arm and leg muscles rapidly expanded, and his whole body grew several times in size.

He exuded an oppressive aura, like a prehistoric behemoth.

The Mermaid Queen urgently cried out, "Be careful! That's a demon's Bloodline Berserk Transformation, which greatly increases strength and speed. Avoid close combat with him!"

As she spoke, she plucked the zither strings, sending streams of negative musical notes floating towards Mogad.

She wasn't yet clear about Zu An's abilities and fighting style, so she dared not suddenly apply buffs to him, fearing it might hinder him instead.

After all, powerful individuals have precise control over their strength and speed; sudden changes could easily backfire.

At this moment, Zu An, however, stared at his opponent with some curiosity and asked, "What material are your clothes made of? Why don't they burst when you grow so large?"

Mogad: "???"

"You're concerned about *this* at such a critical moment in battle?"

He thought the man before him was insane, and an insane person should be utterly crushed. Immediately, he aimed a ferocious palm strike at Zu An's head.

The Mermaid Queen's weakening notes only glowed on Mogad for a moment before being shattered by his powerful body.

He sneered inwardly, "In the face of absolute strength, these tricks are meaningless."

Feeling the opponent's fierce strike, Zu An worried that dodging would cause the poor little maid, who was still clinging to his leg, to be flattened into a paste. So, with a gentle force, he "kicked" Cherry towards the Mermaid Queen and then met the strike with his own palm.

The size difference between the two was immense; his hand appeared pitifully tiny before the opponent's millstone-sized palm.

However, when their palms met, there was no sound. Instead, a black hole-like void appeared between them. The two sides' energies were so immense that they annihilated the space in their palms at that instant.

Mogad, who had lunged forward, was repelled, and Zu An was also pushed back more than ten meters by the powerful impact. "Your strength is indeed impressive," he remarked.

He had just deliberately tested the opponent's strength with a head-on collision, confirming that he was indeed very powerful.

The current Mogad was not the weakened, struggling Mogad of later generations, nor did he possess the authority of the world at this time.

"Excellent!" Mogad laughed heartily and pursued him again.

Even without his Spirit Word art, he was still proficient in close-quarters combat.

The two quickly engaged in battle, but soon Mogad grew annoyed: "If you've got guts, fight me head-on! What's the point of playing dirty like that?"

The opponent no longer fought him head-on as before. Instead, it was as if Zu An had black holes all over his body; his punches and kicks would have their elemental energy absorbed before even touching Zu An, making the fight exceptionally frustrating.

Rage value from Mogad: 120,120,120...

"You are a renowned figure in this world, sir. How can you speak such childish words?" Zu An's tone carried a hint of faint sarcasm.

Mogad gasped. He knew well that having such a miraculous skill was also a testament to the opponent's ability, and he himself wouldn't refrain from using it if he had it.

It was just that the opponent's suction power was somewhat too strong; even his own strength couldn't quite withstand it. A moment of inattention, and some of his elemental energy would be siphoned away.

"This feeling is like the legendary Taotie. What is your connection to the Taotie?"

Zu An's heart stirred slightly. This wasn't the first time someone had mentioned this. The Taotie they spoke of was clearly not the same monster he had encountered in the secret realm earlier.

Could there be a more mysterious and powerful Taotie in the cosmos?

"First you say I'm from the Path of Annihilation, then you say I'm connected to the Taotie. It seems you're just guessing wildly." Zu An deliberately provoked him, hoping to glean some relevant information from his words.