Chapter 28 Spacetime Storm

"Rumble..."
"Rumble..."

The spatial rifts of Dark Island were not indestructible.
Take Kaido, for instance.
With his iron fists capable of shattering the void, he could forcefully shake the spatial rifts, forge a channel between the void and the real world, and freely return to reality from within the cracks of space.

And just as Chu Yi fully unleashed the profound mystery of the Human Path—first using "Soul Sucking" on Kaido, followed immediately by "Soul Seizing"...
The lingering shockwaves emitted by the Human Path's profound mystery violently battered the spatial rift where Chu Yi stood!

Finally...
The true essence of the Human Path's mystery, "Soul Seizing," was successfully executed, seemingly on the verge of destroying Kaido's soul and shattering the legend of one of the "Four Emperors" from the original pirate lore.

Who would have thought that just as "Soul Seizing" was about to succeed...
Space collapsed!

It was not merely the shattering of the void; rather, the spatial rift utterly failed to withstand the terrifying might of "Soul Seizing." Like an overinflated balloon, it was forcibly blown apart!

Thus, in an instant, deafening roars echoed continuously!
The appearance of countless miniature black holes heralded that within the next few seconds, the mysterious spatial rifts of Dark Island would vanish forever!

At the same time...
"Hmm?"

Abruptly realizing the fact that the spatial rift was on the verge of collapse, Chu Yi could no longer care about the glory of destroying a "Four Emperors" legend. He stopped in time, channeling Kaido's soul back into his body.

"Huff..."
"Huff..."

The soul returned.
Kaido regained control of his body, but the trauma suffered by his soul was not so easily healed.
Although Chu Yi's "Soul Seizing" had not directly destroyed Kaido's soul, in the process of his soul being continuously compressed, Kaido had suffered severe damage. Even now, having regained bodily control, any movement required immense effort. Simply put, Kaido's soul was so deeply injured that he was like a frail and powerless patient, finding it difficult just to stand in place.

Yet, even as Kaido panted heavily, using every ounce of strength to regain control of his body...
His pupils shrank slightly. Spotting the anomalies around him, the usually confident Kaido actually twitched violently at the corners of his eyes. Then, looking at Chu Yi, he could no longer conceal the fear in his heart.

"Shura, you truly are formidable!"
"Your power is enough to make the spatial rifts collapse. I, Kaido, admit it—you are the first person to defeat me head-on!"

"Pity... Hahahahaha!"
"What a pity!"
"In our battle here, I still win!"
"Because even if you and your fish-man companion manage to escape, your comrades... are destined to be buried in this impending spatial collapse!"
"Hahahahaha!"

Amidst his wild laughter, Kaido's expression shifted abruptly. Relying on a final burst of strength, he forcibly seized total control of his body and suddenly plunged into a black hole connecting the spatial rift to the real world.
Clearly...
Having had the prior experience of breaking free from a spatial rift, Kaido could easily sense the aura of the real world and determine which black hole would lead him safely back to reality.

However, according to the laws governing spatial rifts...
A single black hole connecting to the real world could permit at most one person to pass through!
This meant that if Chu Yi wanted both himself and Fisher Tiger to escape, he would need to find at least two black holes capable of returning to reality. If Chu Yi wanted to rescue all the fish-man crew members on his ship, plus all the crew from Gecko Moria's ship as well...
Chu Yi would need to find a full hundred miniature black holes leading back to reality!

This...
was simply an impossible task!
At least, it was an impossible task in Kaido's eyes!
Were there really that many black holes returning to reality hidden within the spatial rifts?

What was more, the spatial rifts were already showing clear signs of collapse. As the collapse continued, an overwhelmingly terrifying force permeated the cracks of space.
That force was...
A spacetime storm!
It was not an ordinary storm, but a mysterious tempest generated when a certain part of the void collapsed.
Even someone with a physical constitution as monstrous as Kaido's could not endure half a second in front of the spacetime storm. Therefore, even though Chu Yi was "imbued with the demon statue" through the amplification of the spatial rift's nexus, relying on a physical body even more terrifying than Kaido's, Chu Yi could at most hold out for a few seconds!

"What should I do?"
"Am I really going to become a coward who runs away alone, unable to save all my comrades, just as Kaido said?"

One had to admit, Kaido's open conspiracy was brilliantly executed.
The parting words he left behind forced Chu Yi to make a choice through undeniable logic.
If he chose to stay in the collapsing spatial rift to rescue those comrades whose names he couldn't even remember, Chu Yi's chances of dying in the rift were at least eighty percent, and the remaining twenty percent of survival depended entirely on luck.

Yet, if he chose not to rescue the fish-man crew members of the God slaying Pirates...
That shadow would linger in Chu Yi's heart forever!
At the very least, he would never forget that one day, in order to save his own skin, he had failed to do everything in his power to rescue his shipmates.

Because of this...
For a moment, Chu Yi was lost in confusion.
How should he choose?
Should he set up a barrier on his path of cultivation and look out only for himself...
Or should he leave the green hills standing so he needn't worry about firewood, and simply escape with Tiger?

Hesitating, Chu Yi subconsciously looked toward Fisher Tiger, wanting to ask for his opinion. In the collision of their gazes, however, Chu Yi found that Tiger was remarkably calm. Even as Chu Yi's gaze landed upon him, a faint smile graced Tiger's face as he spoke serenely:

"Kid, you really don't need to stay here. You are someone adept at creating miracles; you shouldn't be held back by anything. So when necessary, you don't even need to worry about me. Anyway, I'm someone who died a long time ago—dying a little sooner or a little later makes no difference to me."

"But you're different..."
"So kid, while you still have a chance to escape, run quickly!"
"I'm going to stay here and accompany the fellows who were willing to set sail with me, to enjoy our final moments together."

"If I have any regrets in my life..."
Saying this, Tiger laughed heartily, first looking at Chu Yi, then touching the shameful mark upon his chest, and said calmly: "First is not getting to see you reach the peak, kid. And second..."
"It's carrying that shameful mark even after my death!"

When he finished speaking, unbidden tears slowly streamed down, wetting Tiger's face.
Yet, just as Tiger uttered those words...
Suddenly!
That reliable back, accompanied by a confident voice, was once again reflected in Tiger's eyes!

"Tiger, since you trust me this much, how could I..."
"How could I ever let you down?"