Floating Island - Triple S Talent

Feeling slightly better, William began to regain his consciousness. Trembling, he checked his status panel, trying to assess his condition. His gaze briefly scanned the glowing text on the panel, until his eyes landed on a notification at the bottom.

[Soul damage detected, remaining soul: 40%]

[Due to the soul being only 40%, all attributes are reduced to 40%]

"What?!" William gasped, his desperate cry echoing in the air, making him cough up fresh blood that spurted from his lips. "Damn... a soul attack?!" He gritted his teeth, feeling both anger burning in his chest and shivers of fear running through his spine.

William's mind raced, spinning without direction. "What should I do now?" Even with full attributes, he couldn't defeat that cultivator. Now, with only 40% of his strength left, he was certain he would be the next victim.

"No... no... there must be a way!" William muttered, trying to grasp onto the fading hope. He kept thinking hard, but the situation seemed to offer no way out.

"The tower? No... it's all destroyed..."

"Harrison? No... he's in the middle of a fight too..."

One by one, names crossed his mind, people who might be able to help him. But that hope disappeared as quickly as it came. Despair gripped him even more when he saw the cultivator, the inevitable figure, preparing to attack again from a distance.

"President... let's get out of here..." a soldier captain tried to persuade him in a desperate tone. His face showed anxiety, knowing that William was in no condition to fight. He wasn't sure William could face that cultivator either.

Thud!

Without warning, William threw a punch, hitting the captain with enough force to send him flying ten meters, crashing into a building at the side of the road. "Coward! Leave if you want!" William shouted, his eyes red with anger.

Yet, behind his rage, William knew he was cornered. He had lost to Lein in the inter-race war competition, failing to even reach the top three. And now, he couldn't protect the American Alliance from the threat of foreign invaders. The feeling of failure overwhelmed him. "What is there left to be proud of?" His S-class talent seemed meaningless in the face of this situation.

"What should I do...? No... Lein?" William suddenly muttered, his eyes brightening as if finding a glimmer of hope. "Yes, if there's someone who can save him now, that person is Lein."

Lein, the leader of the World Market Trade Alliance. William may have never met him in person, but Lein's reputation as a protector of humanity was well-known. Lein was someone who cared about the safety and progress of the human race.

Without hesitation, William opened the chat system panel and wrote a short but urgent message:

"Lord Lein, I need your help. I will fulfill whatever you ask!"

He read the message three times, ensuring there were no mistakes before pressing send. But before his finger could touch the button, his body froze. William could feel the presence of someone approaching at incredible speed.

---

Meanwhile, in the distance, the middle-aged cultivator preparing his attack paused for a moment, sensing a strong aura approaching. His casual expression tightened slightly, showing signs of discomfort.

"Another intruder?" he muttered, his voice still full of arrogance. He smiled disdainfully. "Hah, no matter how many of them come, they are still newborn creatures... There's no way any of them has broken through the Nascent Soul stage (Tier Master)."

He didn't give much thought to the approaching aura. His focus returned to William, who now lay helpless. The cultivator began to dance with hand gestures, gathering immense energy, then raised both of his palms. From a distance, William's body lifted like a feather caught in the wind, flying towards the cultivator with an unstoppable speed.

"No... President!" a soldier shouted as he witnessed the situation, running to try to stop the attack. The other soldiers joined in, attacking the cultivator with all their abilities. Large fire magic rained down from the sky, while giant wooden roots emerged from the ground, trying to ensnare the cultivator.

But all of it was in vain.

Clang!...

The soldiers' attacks struck a transparent barrier protecting the cultivator, as if all their power was nothing more than a gentle breeze.

"Nooo, President..." muttered a soldier hoarsely. They all knew this was the end for William. In front of them, the cultivator's fist, filled with glowing blue energy, began to shine brightly, ready to deliver the final blow to William's chest.

William was trapped under the cultivator's control. He tried to summon his star power, attempting to respond to the attack, but it was all in vain. The stars he commanded seemed to explode before they could even approach his enemy, disappearing as if powerless in the face of the overwhelming force confronting him.

"It's over!" declared the middle-aged cultivator with a smile of satisfaction, ready to unleash the fatal blow that had previously nearly destroyed William.

The sound of the wind whistled.

Suddenly, William felt a cold wind sweeping over his body, as if something very fast had passed by him. His eyes, which had been closed in resignation, now opened wide. He saw a dark figure standing in front of him. The figure wore a black cloak that reached the ground, with a skull-like head containing glowing red eyes that stared sharply at the cultivator.

In the figure's hand was a large scythe, a weapon that looked like it could reap souls.

"Who... who are you?" William shouted in fear, his mouth trembling, while his body felt free from the cultivator's control. He jumped back fifty meters, joining the soldiers who had been fighting by his side all along.

His soldiers stared in awe.

"Mr. President... we're saved!" the team captain exclaimed with excitement, his breath ragged but his face full of hope. "Sir Haikal has arrived," he continued, looking at the old man who had just appeared on the battlefield.

William frowned, his eyes narrowing. "Haikal...?"