A Grave Crime? I'll Behead the Guard Army!

Elsewhere.

Several kilometers away, the Guard Army captain lying in ambush here was the same captain who had been on the city wall earlier.

He spotted Xu Jie in the distance, but it was still not fully light and the distance was too great for him to see what Xu Jie was doing.

Where was Qin Lie's mercenary band?

Why had only Xu Jie come over?

What exactly was going on?

Behind the captain, more than ten genuine Guard Army elites lay in ambush.

The irritated captain came back to his senses and glanced at his men. Worried that Xu Jie might not come over, or might notice something amiss and flee, he coldly gave the order.

"Move! Let's kill that brat and avenge the general!"

"Yes!"

This well-trained Guard Army unit was both Zhao Du's trusted force and his personal guard, utterly loyal to him!

Aside from the captain at the Pulse-Opening Peak Stage, there were also three lieutenants at the lower levels of the Pulse Opening Realm.

The rest were all at the peak of the Blood Moving Realm. They could be considered an absolute elite squad, not inferior even to the city lord's personal guards.

The captain had absolute confidence. As long as Xu Jie did not run, he could easily kill this prodigy without even the slightest effort.

Thus, to avoid scaring Xu Jie away, the captain chose to advance covertly and lurked into the woods where Xu Jie was.

What was this kid... doing?

Those people were... Qin Lie's mercenaries?

As he drew closer, the captain finally saw clearly what Xu Jie, sitting on a tree trunk and tying ropes, was doing.

What shocked him was that most of Qin Lie's mercenaries had been brutally strung together with ropes in a state of having been cut in half at the waist, hanging upside down from a massive tree.

And the culprit was Xu Jie!

He actually dared to kill members of the Guard Army?

How many years had it been since Xia Country had seen such a heinous incident?

What was more, Xu Jie was outrageously arrogant, making no attempt to conceal anything as he hung every corpse from the tree.

This kid... still wasn't running even now!

The approaching captain swiftly went from shock to wild delight!

Because at this distance, Xu Jie definitely could not escape.

Moreover, their Guard Army squad had witnessed Xu Jie's actions.

Even if they killed Xu Jie on the spot and carried his head back to the city, no one would say a word.

Because killing members of the Guard Army was a grave crime!

And Xu Jie had killed dozens of Guard Army soldiers in one go!

Never mind whether Qin Lie's mercenary band was temporary; as long as they flew the Guard Army banner, they were Guard Army!

Xu Jie was as good as dead!

Realizing this, and certain Xu Jie could not flee, the captain took the initiative to reveal himself and strode coldly toward Xu Jie.

"Xu Jie, you dared to kill members of the Guard Army. What gall!"

Xu Jie had actually noticed people approaching long ago. He simply could not be bothered to care.

He had been wondering who exactly was lying in wait for him, only to find that it was Jincheng City's Guard Army.

The Guard Army was ambushing him?

Could it... be related to Zhao Tianyu's father?

Just then, more and more Guard Army soldiers emerged, surrounding Xu Jie on all sides.

One of the lieutenants glanced at the corpses hanging from the tree and shouted gravely.

"Xu Jie, surrender immediately! Otherwise, die!"

Xu Jie tilted his head without reacting and glanced into the distance. If he was not mistaken, Chu Mingyue would catch up soon.

Mm, I need to end this quickly!

Xu Jie leaped down from the tree trunk, pulled the war blade embedded in the ground free, and bared a cruel grin.

"I'd really like to know what dying feels like!"

The captain narrowed his eyes at those words. Rather than attack at once, he calmly threatened, "Xu Jie, you don't think you can still escape, do you? I advise you to surrender. That would be better for everyone!"

If he could avoid killing Xu Jie, it would be best not to act personally.

After all, Xu Jie was a prodigy from the martial academy. Now that there was irrefutable proof that he had killed Guard Army soldiers, handing him over to the city lord's residence for judgment would spare the captain a great deal of trouble.

This captain, who believed victory was already in his grasp, had clearly taken Xu Jie for the sort of young man who could be easily fooled, thinking a few words would shatter Xu Jie's mental defenses.

"Xu Jie, let me tell you! Apart from us, several other Guard Army squads like ours are stationed throughout this area, all for your sake!"

Xu Jie, who had originally been ready to attack directly, paused and asked the question in his heart.

"Are you men under Zhao Tianyu's father?"

"You're very smart!"

The captain explained proudly, "This Beast Tide was meticulously arranged by the general just for you! Stop resisting. You won't escape today!"

To kill him, they had not hesitated to orchestrate a Beast Tide?

Xu Jie drew a deep breath, and suddenly felt relieved.

So this was the kind of trash Xia Country's army was!

Or was it... only the Guard Army trained by Zhao Tianyu's father that was made up of such creatures?

No wonder that mercenary band had dared to fly the Guard Army banner and commit such deeds that angered both heaven and man.

Because they were birds of a feather!

Xu Jie knew that even if this Beast Tide was ultimately suppressed, tens of thousands of civilians on the outskirts would be killed or injured, perhaps far more than that!

And all of it was merely to satisfy Zhao Du's selfish desire for revenge!

Xu Jie was not afraid of death, nor did he think there was anything wrong with Zhao Du seeking revenge on him.

But what Zhao Du had done now truly made Xu Jie despise him.

Xu Jie raised his head and swept his gaze over the dozen or so Guard Army soldiers surrounding him.

He nodded, as though persuaded by the captain, and slowly lowered his war blade.

The next instant, a cold flash of light burst forth!

With one slash from Xu Jie, the three Guard Army soldiers closest to him were beheaded on the spot, including one lieutenant.

Successfully killed Wu Jie, seized 20 years of usable Lifespan!

Successfully killed Li Ningyu, seized 22 years of usable Lifespan!

Before the captain could react, Xu Jie charged into the crowd and began slaughtering the remaining Guard Army soldiers as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

"Xu Jie! You're courting death!!!"

The captain flew into a towering rage at the sight. Roaring, he drew his treasured sword and charged at Xu Jie.

At the critical moment, Xu Jie spun around and raised his blade, forcibly blocking the captain's attack.

He then staggered back several steps, each foot planting a deep footprint in the ground as blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Pulse-Opening Peak Stage, nothing more!

He had not even used Little Black's ability yet!

Xu Jie suppressed the metallic sweetness rising in his throat and met the captain's stunned gaze.

Xu Jie had not died!

That had been the captain's full-strength strike!

The captain could hardly believe his eyes. As a martial artist at the Pulse-Opening Peak Stage, a full-force strike from him should have been enough to kill even a high-level Pulse Opening Realm martial artist.

Yet Xu Jie, a mere mid-level Pulse Opening Realm martial academy student, had forcibly withstood his full-strength blow.

Yes, the instant Xu Jie made his move, the captain had seen through Xu Jie's cultivation.

That was precisely why he had chosen to strike with all his strength!