CHAPTER 223: CHAPTER 145: BLACK COCOON VS. SWALLOWING SILVER, CHERRY BLOSSOMS BLOOM IN MY HOMETOWN

Black Cocoon covered his eyes, shaking his head and waving his hand, looking like he was receiving red envelopes from relatives during New Year, shouting "No, no," while his actions suggested a welcome resistance.

"Answer me!" Swallowing Silver’s pale lips moved.

"Oh, Mr. Swallowing Silver, seeing you still full of spirit after a fight, why not do a set of calisthenics for primary and middle school students? It’d be great for longevity and fitness."

As Black Cocoon spoke, he used a restraint belt to bind Swallowing Silver’s waist and lifted his limbs from the ground.

With his arms crossed, he manipulated Swallowing Silver’s paralyzed body to do calisthenics, humming "one, two, three, four, one, two, three, four."

Like a coach blowing a whistle during a PE class, supervising students doing exercises.

The atmosphere of deadly combat suddenly relaxed, adding a youthful vibe. Luckily, no one was watching, or Swallowing Silver would have earned another nickname.

"Why do you have Blue Arc’s ability!" Swallowing Silver gritted his teeth and asked, "Why!"

"Good question... Why indeed?" Black Cocoon scratched his jaw. "Could it be because... I just killed Blue Arc recently?"

Swallowing Silver’s pupils shrank to the extreme. He stared at Black Cocoon for a moment before spitting out a word:

"No..."

However, that wasn’t the truth.

Two days ago, Black Cocoon stole Blue Arc’s superpower in the auction hall—yes, it was at the moment when Black Cocoon made a deal with Robert and Urushibara Osamu to exchange hostages.

At that time, he used the restraint belt to bind the unconscious Blue Arc, thinking it was too good an opportunity not to take advantage of, so he stole Blue Arc’s superpower.

Due to the skill [Capacity Enhancement] of branch "Li," Black Cocoon’s restraint belt could save two different superpowers and extend the maximum storage time to 48 hours, which is two days.

And the reason Ji Minghuan was so eager to come out and cause trouble was evidently because the superpower stored in the restraint belt was approaching its maximum storage limit:

──It had been 47 hours and 50 minutes since the superpower was stolen.

Less than 10 minutes remained before this precious superpower would vanish. So he hurriedly manipulated the No. 1 body to sneak out of the house and find an opponent to enjoy.

This was his big brother’s superpower!

This time he was completely lucky, getting hold of it by fluke. Next time, it would not be so easy to bind Blue Arc with a restraint belt.

Ji Minghuan felt like he was in an online game, luckily acquiring an expiring legendary item. If he didn’t use the item in an appropriate situation and let it disappear, it would be hard not to feel like he lost a billion.

On the other hand, Ji Minghuan’s actions also aimed to preserve Swallowing Silver’s life—who knows if Old Ghost Clock, when pushed, might roast and eat Swallowing Silver.

Of course, aside from that, the primary reason was he wanted to test the strength of the No. 1 body.

If he couldn’t even beat Swallowing Silver, it meant the No. 1 body still needed to hone its skills.

But from what he could see, No. 1 body’s strength had undoubtedly reached Dragon-level Peak. After all, he defeated the superpower-evolved Swallowing Silver without using the "Restraint Incarnation."

"Quasi-Calamity level is just around the corner..." Ji Minghuan thought, "Once that time comes, Black Cocoon can finally make a mark."

Thinking this, Black Cocoon said, "According to a friend of mine, Mr. Swallowing Silver, you were at the Kui Level pinnacle before, right... But these days you seem to have suddenly gotten stronger, even reaching Dragon-level mid-stage."

He paused, "It’s a pity, comparing to me, your progress is still too slow. Continue improving yourself amidst shame and resentment. Maybe one day you’ll have the chance to take me down."

"Shut up!" Swallowing Silver rhythmically jumped to calisthenics, shouting in shame and anger, "I want to kill you!"

"Actually, I just want to borrow your ability, nothing else."

After saying this, Black Cocoon suddenly tightened the restraint belt, binding Swallowing Silver entirely, then released "Superpower Stealing," storing Swallowing Silver’s superpower in the restraint belt.

["Superpower Stealing" has been activated, superpower user "Swallowing Silver’s" superpower has been stored in the restraint belt, with existence time limit of 48 hours.]

With the system prompt falling, Black Cocoon narrowed his eyes and suddenly noticed that "lips and teeth" grew above one of the restraint belts.

Indeed... eerie lips and teeth. The mouth was longing to feast on metal, drooling, soaking the restraint belt.

But as Black Cocoon focused, the lips and teeth slowly closed, turning back into a dark and night-like pitch black.

"I see..." he thought, "It requires me to use the restraint belt to devour metal to fulfill the superpower release conditions. Seems I don’t need to gnaw on iron like Swallowing Silver rodent. Sounds friendly enough; sure enough, my superpower adjusts based on my preferences."

With the superpower in hand, Black Cocoon continued manipulating the restraint belt, making Swallowing Silver perform calisthenics along the long street.

"Why do you have Blue Arc’s superpower!" Swallowing Silver continued to shout, "Did you really kill him?"

"Okay, okay, I know you guys have deep bromance, can you not shout so loudly?" Black Cocoon shrugged, "Blue Arc is sleeping well at home. I have his superpower because I helped him at the underground auction, that’s all."

"You better not lie to me."

"Mr. Swallowing Silver, actually I don’t plan on being your enemy. I think you’re somewhat promising as a superpower user, though that little bit might be too little, still, there is potential." Black Cocoon paused, "Someday you’ll need me; why don’t we exchange contact info?"

"Get lost..." Swallowing Silver lowered his face, snorting like an enraged buffalo.

"The moonlight is beautiful tonight." Black Cocoon said while reading a book.

"You beast! Get out!" Swallowing Silver jumped calisthenics, shouting in anger and frustration.

"The moonlight is beautiful tonight."

"Get out, you bastard! Beautiful my ass, beautiful." Swallowing Silver shouted tearlessly, thinking whether you’ll leave or not, if you don’t roll, soon passersby will see me doing calisthenics in front of you! Still letting me be human or not?!

"Alright, alright, I’m going, I’m going."

Black Cocoon shrugged, released the restraint belt binding Swallowing Silver, then extended it to grab a street lamp, swinging upwards and disappearing into the shattered neon lights.

Swallowing Silver’s body relaxed, limbs slumping to the ground. He slowly raised his head, watching Black Cocoon leave with a gloomy expression.

On the way home, Black Cocoon sent a message to Ghost Bell using his phone.

[Black Cocoon: By the way, Mr. Ghost Bell, weren’t you curious about "Rainbow Wings" members’ information?]

[Black Cocoon: Conveniently, I have it here.]