Chapter 151: The Terrifying Bourne

As the Tin Man was locked in combat with Byrne, Liu Zong did not rush to join the fray, choosing instead to observe the flow of battle between the two.

The Tin Man’s combat prowess was unquestionable, but Byrne’s abilities proved far more troublesome. Liu Zong watched as the Tin Man’s chainsaw sliced through Byrne’s flesh, only for the sticky syrup to instantly seal the wound the moment the blade was withdrawn.

However, just as the Tin Man could not effectively deal with Byrne, Byrne was equally helpless against the Tin Man. Byrne’s movement speed was simply too sluggish to land a single blow on the agile automaton.

Taking in the situation, Liu Zong gradually formed a plan in his mind. He turned his head and issued an order to the Shepherd Doll: "Go and assist the Tin Man. Whatever part of the enemy the Tin Man attacks, freeze that area first. As for the enemy’s counterattacks, find a way to dodge them."

Although telling a tank-type minion to somehow dodge enemy attacks felt slightly absurd, it was undeniably the best tactical choice available right now, especially since the Shepherd Doll possessed mobility superior to Byrne's.

Acting on Liu Zong's command, the Shepherd Doll charged forward, wielding its broken shepherd's crook, and struck Byrne without hesitation.

Having consumed a fragment of the [Ice Magic Hat] and been equipped with the [Evil Heart of Frost], the Shepherd Doll's attacks carried a frost attribute that far outweighed its undead nature. Under this single blow, a portion of Byrne's body instantly turned a grayish-blue, appearing thoroughly frozen.

Spotting this opening, the Tin Man naturally refused to let it slip. He brought his chainsaw down directly onto the frozen section.

To his surprise, however, the frozen syrup had become extraordinarily hard, and the chainsaw failed to bite even a fraction of an inch into the crystalized mass.

The Tin Man delivered a heavy kick to the frozen area, then swiftly retreated several paces to evade Byrne's sweeping counterattack, cursing loudly as he did so, "What the hell? I never expected freezing it would make it this tough—way harder than regular candy or sugar crystals."

Observing the scene from afar, Liu Zong realized this particular tactic was unviable. He immediately pivoted his strategy and barked a new order: "Freeze his legs! Pin him down right where he is."

Hearing the command from a distance, the Shepherd Doll obeyed without a moment's hesitation, rushing directly toward one of Byrne's legs. While its physical attacks barely scratched the surface of Byrne's defense, bitter chills were continuously pumped into Byrne's body. Within moments, one of Byrne's legs grew stiff and immobile.

The Shepherd Doll did not pause, immediately darting toward the other leg. Sensing that the doll was the linchpin of the battle, Byrne shifted his aggression away from the Tin Man and focused entirely on the Shepherd Doll.

Yet the Shepherd Doll was essentially a slippery, immovable obstacle. Originally designed as a tank, it dodged whenever evasion was possible and absorbed blows head-on when it couldn't. After all, both Byrne and the Shepherd Doll were Level 1 entities with minimal disparity in overall power. Both were standard tanks characterized by deep health pools, heavy defenses, and low offensive output; even if the two stood toe-to-toe trading blows for half a year, there was no guarantee of a definitive outcome.

Realizing that his repeated attacks were being withstood entirely by the Shepherd Doll, panic began to creep into Byrne. By this time, his second leg had also been frozen solid, leaving him supported only by his remaining limbs, barely managing to stand upright without toppling over.

If things continued this way, once all four of his limbs were completely frozen, even if it caused no direct physical damage, he would be reduced to a stationary target, completely at the mercy of his attackers.

At the very least, if the Tin Man chose to summon a wave of subordinates for ranged assault, it would only be a matter of time before his syrup reserves were depleted, leaving Byrne dead for certain.

Understanding this grim reality, Byrne did not wait for his health to dwindle further before taking action. He brought his hands down heavily against his own torso, causing his body to visibly swell to a much thicker girth. Lowering his head, he curled into a ball and rolled directly toward the Shepherd Doll.

The momentum of this roll was terrifying. Once Byrne coiled his body into a sphere, he resembled a colossal sugar ball over five meters in diameter. Once set into motion, virtually nothing could obstruct his path.

As he plowed forward, every single candy tree in his path was shattered into splinters. Even the Shepherd Doll and the Tin Man were forced to scramble out of the way to evade the monstrous charge.

In the blink of an eye, a wide trench was carved straight through the candy forest, culminating in a heavy crash as Byrne slammed violently into a massive hill composed entirely of refined white sugar.

When Byrne finally came to a halt, he remained seated in place, completely motionless. It was evident that the impact had taken a severe toll on him; at the very least, he was suffering from acute dizziness, completely disoriented and unable to tell up from down.

Noticing that Byrne was positioned relatively close to him and lacked any immediate capacity for retaliation, Liu Zong drew his longspear and positioned himself atop a nearby tree branch to prepare his strike.

This time, Liu Zong did not fixate solely on inflicting damage with Byrne, nor did he harbor expectations of what kind of impact his strike might achieve. He simply wanted to test whether this attack would yield any unexpected discoveries.

Driven by this experimental mindset, Liu Zong successfully executed his first technique. Countless skeletal phantoms swirled around his longspear, accompanied by a swirling vortex of yellow sand.

The manifestation of this attack immediately alerted Byrne, but the giant was presently incapable of even standing up. He could only press his hands tightly behind his back, seemingly bracing himself to endure the blow head-on.

A strange notion suddenly crossed Liu Zong's mind, causing the potency of his strike to wane significantly. When the longspear pierced into Byrne's body, it merely blew open a large gash on the surface. Before the churning sand and phantoms could burrow deeper, they were squeezed out by the gushing torrent of syrup.

In an instant, Byrne's body reverted to its original form, and judging by his appearance, his health had barely been depleted at all.

However, Liu Zong, who had already retreated to his original vantage point, harbored different thoughts. He stared fixedly at the hands Byrne had concealed behind his back, a peculiar gleam flickering in his eyes. Byrne had never made such a defensive gesture before—so why would he hide his hands precisely when targeted by an attack?

A realization suddenly dawned on Liu Zong. Byrne's true body was concealed within the mountain of flesh, giving him an overwhelmingly massive appearance that shielded him from direct hits. But just how much of that flesh-mountain constituted Byrne's original anatomy, and how much was merely absorbed biomass accumulated over time?

The only reason those hands were tucked away behind him... could it be because the attack risked destroying those hands and injuring the actual body belonging to the real Byrne?

With that thought, Liu Zong shouted aloud, "Freeze Byrne's hands! I'm going in for another strike."

Neither the approaching Tin Man nor the Shepherd Doll understood the rationale behind the command, but the doll promptly executed the order, flash-freezing one of Byrne's hands as requested.

By this time, Liu Zong's spear skill was fully prepared. Swirling with yellow sand and biting frost, he thrust the weapon straight toward Byrne's frozen hand.