Chapter 277: The Great Escape
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
After one night of recovery, Wang Tong already felt much better. He was convinced that his amazing healing ability was a unique strength that he needed to utilize, so he quickly improvised a plan that hinged on his faster healing speed.
His plan was simple, to let Zachery keep on fighting the Zergs until he burnt out.
With his new strategy in mind, Wang Tong waited impatiently for Zachery to show up. However, after waiting for two hours, there was still no sign of Zachery.
Wang Tong figured that Zachery must be recuperating somewhere out there, and he could not afford to let him do that. So, he decided to head out and hunt him down.
Wang Tong's opponent was not a simple-minded brute. Instead, he was a cunning pirate king. Zachery had anticipated Wang Tong's strategy, and therefore, decided to give up chasing and wait for Wang Tong to come after him instead.
In order to defeat Zachery, Wang Tong would have to find him first, but where the heck was Zachery? Or, a better question would be, how did Zachery find him?
Wang Tong chewed over the question but failed to find an answer, as he got more and more anxious. The anxiousness also seemed to slow down the rate healing, which made him feel even more stressed.
Wang Tong quickly realized the vicious cycle he had fallen into, so he held back his train of thought and tried to calm himself first.
A day had passed, as both Wang Tong and Zachery spent the day in unease and waiting.
On the fourth day, Wang Tong was completely recovered, so he made up his mind this time to seek out Zachery, since if he didn't do so, the odds of him winning later were only to going to get smaller.
Although he didn't know where Zachery was, he figured that the easiest way to find the pirate king was to head back the way he had come.
Wang Tong headed towards the ancient battlefield where they had first met, thinking that Zachery wouldn't wander too far away from there.
After six hours, Wang Tong could already sense Zachery's powerful soul energy. The air around Wang Tong seemed to waft towards the direction were Zachery's soul energy was detected. Wang Tong wagered that this was Zachery's unique way of recovering his soul energy by absorbing the energy inside this world.
Wang Tong paused, fearing that Zachery might be able to detect him the same way Wang Tong would detect him. Instinct told him that he had to interrupt him.
Wang Tong then guessed that Zachery had already found him, and the reason that he didn't attack him was because he was still too weak to do so.
Wang Tong was almost right. Zachery was indeed hiding and licking his wounds. He could have done away with Wang Tong then and there without recovering his soul energy. However, he figured it was too risky.
Wang Tong had taken form in the crystal space through his soul energy, and if Wang Tong perished from this world, he would still have a body to return to in the real world. However, this soul energy form was the only form that Zachery had. Simply put, if he died here, he would be gone forever.
Zachery reasoned that if he actively sought out Wang Tong, he would risk overdrawing his soul energy again. However, if he bid his time and waited for the perfect moment, Wang Tong could be dealt with in one strike.
Wang tong probed his opponent with his soul energy a few times, attempting to lure Zachery out of his hiding spot. Failing that, Wang Tong gave up and disappeared for three days.
Three days later, Wang Tong showed up again. After sensing that Zachery had only recovered a small amount of his soul energy, he nodded and pressed forward.
This discovery encouraged Wang Tong as he strode toward Zachery's hiding spot without worrying about any danger. In Wang Tong's hands, he held a box with a large boulder attached to it.
Wang Tong paused at about a hundred meters away from the source of the soul energy. He cracked a wicked smile, and then hurled the stone towards the location of Zachery's hiding place.
The box rattled after it landed right beside Zachery, and then a dozen tiny creatures escaped out from it and scattered while chirping along their way.
When Zachery realized that these were Encephalon Zergs, it was already too late for him to block the message sent to their ferocious cousins from these seemingly harmless creatures. The Encephalon screamed in unison, and soon, the ground started to tremble due to the fast approaching Zergs.
Wang Tong immediate went into hiding after he had dropped the Zerg bomb on his enemy. Within the three days, he had spent most of his time finding Zerg hives and capturing their Encephalon to make a home-made bomb.
Wang Tong's heart sank after having sensed Zachery's approaching soul energy that threatened to reveal Wang Tong's hideout.
However, the Zergs acted faster, as a tsunami of Zergs rushed towards Zachery.
In about five minutes, the first wave of Zergs appeared. The Encephalon had only provided the Zergs with a general direction, and when the Zerg army was close by, they were led by Zachery's soul energy that was burning like a bright torch in the night.
Wang Tong sunk in the shadows, biding his time. He was curious as to how Zachery would handle this situation. When the opportunity presented, Wang Tong would join the Zergs and attack Zachery with abandon.
Zachery didn't run away. Instead, he presented Wang Tong another incredible display of strength.
Zachery was convinced that Wang Tong was trying to use the Zergs to defeat him. However, Wang Tong simply wanted Zachery to burn out by not letting him take a rest.
Wang Tong's harassment tactic was brilliant. If Zachery chose to break free from the Zerg's encirclement and chase Wang Tong, Wang Tong would run away. Later, when Zachery had finally cleaned up all the Zergs and decided to stop and recuperate, Wang Tong would then lure a new wave of Zergs towards their old neighbor.
Although there had been some challenges in capturing these Encephalon Zergs, Wang Tong believed that it was nothing compared to standing up against Einherjar Wannabe.
He then lamented over how despicable Zachery was, since the ten days limit had already passed and he was still here.
Within the few days of skirmishing with Zachery, Wang Tong had broken three bones, and it took him another three days to fully recover. On the bright side, Zachery could not sleep nor rest well, as he had been fighting the Zergs for days on end.
Despite the fact that Wang Tong's opponent had been becoming more and more cunning and hard to deal with, he didn't lose hope as time passed. Every time he was on the brink of falling into despair, Ma Xiaoru's tender and soft gaze would always bring him back.
He would not die here!
Wang Tong lived on the edge every day ever since he arrived at this crystal space. He needed to not only find a way to improve his own power but also to prevent Zachery from recovery. He knew that once Zachery was back to his full soul energy, Wang Tong would have lost the battle.
Wang Tong lived under immense stress every day; his tough enemy had somehow made him miss the Zergs on Norton. Wang Tong would have to harass Zachery at least twice a day in order to do some real harm to the pirate king's soul energy, and every harassment was as dangerous as a suicidal mission. Zachery had mortally injured Wang Tong a few times, but every time, Wang Tong was able to recover in a few days. Time had lost its meaning to Wang Tong in this perpetual motion of fighting and running away, but Wang Tong had not yet felt that he had weakened Zachery enough for him to confront him directly in a fight.
However, Wang Tong was not entirely devoid of any advantages. He had learned to blend his soul energy perfectly into Zerg's life force, so that he would not be detected while skulking near his enemy among the Zergs. Therefore, should Wang Tong decide to attack, the element of surprise would always be on his side. Also, Wang Tong possessed much faster-healing speed than the old pirate.
The immense pressure had helped Wang Tong improve his soul energy by leaps and bounds. Wang Tong was no longer certain what level of his soul energy he was currently at. However, he knew that it was still not enough to counter even one strike from Zachery. Therefore, in order to save his life and to see Ma Xiaoru again, Wang Tong decided to hold back the thought of fighting Zachery directly, at least for now.