Kill Without Mercy!

Step, bend, draw the saber—all in one smooth motion!

Lu Qing, also at the Third Blood Qi Realm, did not even have time to put up a decent resistance before dying miserably on the spot, his death utterly aggrieving.

"Who is it?!"

But Lu Qing's cry before his death jolted Ding Feihu and the other bandits awake from their dreams.

In the darkness, Ding Feihu and the others happened to witness Lu Qing's ferocious head soaring into the air. Their hearts all jolted as shock and fury surged within them.

Chen Yan gave Ding Feihu and his men no chance to catch their breath. At that moment, he only felt the blood qi throughout his body boiling hot, while everything around him seemed to fall silent. As his focus reached its peak, the night before his eyes became as bright as day.

Dragon Step was unleashed to its utmost limit, his figure ghostlike.

Buzz!

He flashed past and slashed with his saber.

A bandit who had yet to react was cut cleanly in two at the waist. Blood and entrails sprayed across the ground, staining it red.

Yet Chen Yan's expression remained calm, his heart still as water.

Every subtle change along the path of his blade was laid bare before his eyes.

"Is this the change brought by the Blood Fiend Saber Technique reaching its pinnacle?"

The Blood Fiend Saber Technique at its pinnacle had vastly sharpened Chen Yan's perception. In his eyes, whether it was the dead Lu Qing or the bandits present, even the pores enlarged by terror before death were all clearly visible.

The thought flashed through his mind, but the Fish Dragon Saber in his hand had already struck the next bandit.

The chilling saber light became a crescent moon, severing him in a single stroke.

In the blink of an eye, he had slain two men in succession!

Only then did Ding Feihu and the others finally react. Looking at the mangled corpses and severed limbs scattered across the ground, Ding Feihu fixed Chen Yan with a bloodshot stare, veins bulging across his forehead as he gritted his teeth and roared:

"Who exactly are you?!"

"Who am I?"

Under the moonlight, Chen Yan's face was utterly cold.

"I am the one who will kill you."

Only Ma Wenfeng seemed to have realized something. Half terrified and half enraged, he cried out, "Flying Fish Guard! He must be from the Flying Fish Guard!"

"What?! The Flying Fish Guard?!!"

"It's over! The Flying Fish Guard has come to kill us!!!"

A man's reputation was like a tree's shadow. The three words "Flying Fish Guard" seemed to carry immense magic, throwing the surrounding bandits into panic.

"Shut up!!!"

Ding Feihu roared, cowing the crowd.

"He's alone! What are you afraid of?!"

Then Ding Feihu stared fixedly at Chen Yan, his eyes brimming with bloodshot veins and a savage smile spreading over his face.

"You little bastard, there's a road to heaven and you refuse to take it; hell has no gate, yet you barge right in."

"Get him together! Kill him!"

With a ferocious expression, Ding Feihu let out a low roar that burst from his throat. He lunged forward like a starving tiger pouncing on its prey, bringing with him a shrieking rush of air.

His right fist slammed out, metal gleaming at his fingertips. The sharp knuckle guards were like rows of barbs growing from Ding Feihu's fist. As tremendous force erupted, his already thick arm swelled as though inflated.

Seeing Ding Feihu charge in, Ma Wenfeng hesitated for half a breath, but in the end his figure swayed as he rushed straight at Chen Yan. The longsword at his waist left its sheath like a white rainbow, stabbing toward Chen Yan's heart.

With Ding Feihu and Ma Wenfeng taking the lead, the remaining bandits finally recovered their courage.

"Kill! He's only one man! Kill him!!!"

"Kill!!!"

Facing the onslaught of the bandits, Chen Yan's heart remained still as water, his expression utterly indifferent. In his eyes, there were only Ding Feihu and Ma Wenfeng, charging at the forefront.

As for the others, Chen Yan did not take them seriously. He was not fighting alone.

"Ah—"

Just as the cries of slaughter rang out, an ordinary bandit screamed and collapsed without warning. His throat bone had been pierced open by a sharp blade, blood gushing forth as he died with his eyes wide open.

"He has help!! He has help too!!!"

Among the crowd, the ordinary bandits who had no idea what was happening cried out in alarm.

It was Facai!

Facai fully exploited its advantage in speed. The night was its finest camouflage; in the darkness, Facai was like a grim reaper of the night, every strike claiming a life.

More cleverly still, Facai targeted only ordinary bandits who had not undergone Blood Exchange. As panic spread among the ordinary bandits, even those at the Blood Qi Realm felt fear in their hearts and did not dare act rashly.

By then, Ding Feihu had already reached Chen Yan.

"Die!"

With a vicious grin on his face, Ding Feihu smashed out a heavy punch. The sharp knuckle guards gleamed faintly white beneath the moonlight as they drove straight for Chen Yan's neck.

Under such crushing pressure, Chen Yan felt neither fear nor panic. Instead, a surge of exhilaration rose within him.

At that moment, his blood raced through his veins, and his surging blood qi power rushed into every limb and bone like ten thousand galloping horses.

Scorching!

Boiling!

He took a step forward, his foot sinking into the ground and leaving a footprint half an inch deep. The long saber in his hand swept across, its chilling light flashing like a crescent moon as it slashed straight ahead.

Clang!

The crash of metal exploded, sparks flying in all directions!

Just as Chen Yan blocked Ding Feihu's heavy punch, a faint, almost silent whistle of air sounded. A sharp sword blade cut through the air and stabbed in from the side.

It was Ma Wenfeng!

As Chen Yan and Ding Feihu exchanged blows, Ma Wenfeng had arrived in an instant. The moment he struck, it was a killing move aimed directly at Chen Yan's back!

However, ever since the Blood Fiend Saber Technique had reached its pinnacle, Chen Yan could sense the slightest movement within thirty feet of himself.

Unless someone's speed and strength vastly surpassed his own, no one could possibly ambush him.

Almost the instant Ma Wenfeng drew his sword, Chen Yan sensed it keenly. He turned and raised his saber, blocking the thrusting longsword.

At the same time, Ding Feihu closed in and launched another killing attack.

Yet Chen Yan seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. The Fish Dragon Saber in his hand swayed out afterimages, faint white light glimmering along its blade and weaving into an impenetrable net of saber light.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid series of metallic crashes burst forth like pounding drumbeats. The force that spilled out whipped up fierce gusts, smashing the surrounding grass and trees.

Facing the pincer attack of Ding Feihu and Ma Wenfeng, Chen Yan did not fall into the slightest disadvantage. He even seemed at ease, calmly fending off their repeated charges.

"Did this brat start practicing saber techniques in his mother's womb?"

The longer Ma Wenfeng fought, the more alarmed he became, and the greater the pressure he felt.

Especially since he was only at the Second Blood Qi Realm, his strength inherently weaker than Chen Yan's at the Third Blood Qi Realm.

No matter how he thrust his sword, Chen Yan easily dissolved every move. Yet every saber strike Chen Yan sent back afterward forced him into a frantic scramble.

But it was not only Ma Wenfeng. Even Ding Feihu's heart pounded with alarm as the battle continued.

The youth before him was only fifteen or sixteen, yet his saber techniques were so ruthless and seasoned that even martial arts masters might not compare.

Having calmed down, Ding Feihu could not help saying in a deep voice:

"Sir, why not let matters end here? Let my brother and me leave, and you can take Second Brother's head back to account for your mission."

A Third Blood Qi Realm fighter whose saber techniques had reached the level of a master was not someone Ding Feihu could be certain of defeating if the battle continued. Having been a bandit for many years, Ding Feihu knew well that one's own safety came first in all things.

"Weak... too weak..."

However, Chen Yan did not answer him at all. He lowered his head, as though speaking to himself.

"???"

Ding Feihu and Ma Wenfeng froze.

Then Chen Yan raised his head and bared his teeth. Beneath the night sky, his bright eyes shone like stars, yet his gaze was ice-cold.

"I'm saying, so you were this weak..."

"What?!!"