Whose General Was This? So Fierce?

The one wearing the strange mask was Lu Yuan.

Atop the pass's walls, two figures rapidly closed in, each swinging their weapons at the other.

Blade and axe collided!

The crash of metal upon metal was deafening.

"Pfft!"

The burly man's tiger's mouth split open instantly. Blood surged up his throat and sprayed wildly from his mouth, his axe flying from his grip. Terror filled his heart, but before he could react, Lu Yuan twisted his wrist and swept his blade sideways, slicing open his throat.

Then his figure darted away.

The savage head tilted back and fell to the ground. The headless corpse toppled backward, blood splattering everywhere.

"Brother Tiger is dead!"

"Kill him!!"

"Leave your life behind!"

This burly man had been one of Iron Dragon Stockade's notable experts and Yi Zheng's trusted confidant, carrying no small amount of prestige within the stockade. His death immediately drew the attention of many Iron Dragon Stockade bandits. Amid waves of furious roars, four or five bandits lunged at Lu Yuan with murderous ferocity.

Every bandit who still dared to charge after Brother Tiger had been killed was among Iron Dragon Stockade's most hardened men, their Killing Intent pressing down on all around them.

"Kill!"

Blades and swords tore through the air, seeking to hack Lu Yuan into a thousand pieces. Yet he remained calm.

Though his combat experience could not yet be called abundant, he was no calf fresh from the barn. Such a minor scene could not stir much emotion in him.

Enemies surrounded him from every direction, but Lu Yuan's heart was clear as a mirror. Everything within several yards of him lay within his senses.

Seven Star Dragon Swimming Steps!

Lu Yuan moved his feet, seeming like a swimming dragon. His shifting figure was impossible to grasp. The bandits' blades passed through the afterimages behind him, failing even to touch the corner of his clothing.

Once he broke free of the five bandits' encirclement, they became lambs awaiting slaughter before Lu Yuan. Blade light flashed again and again, and in merely two or three seconds, all five bandits died beneath his blade.

"There's a Taiping Sect expert here! Come and kill him!!"

The bandits roared endlessly as they surrounded Lu Yuan.

Unfortunately for them, they were far too weak in Lu Yuan's eyes. It was like a grown man charging into a kindergarten—what harm could children only a few years old possibly inflict on him?

With the Seven Star Dragon Swimming Steps cultivated to its perfect, pinnacle level, these bandits could not harm even a single hair on his head.

Yet every casual movement Lu Yuan made carried the force to split steles and shatter rocks. Any random strike could break their bones and tendons, crush their organs, leaving them either dead or crippled.

Only experts who had undergone the Second Blood Change were worth a little of Lu Yuan's attention.

Yet among Iron Dragon Stockade's thousand or so bandits, there were fewer than ten experts who had undergone the Second Blood Change.

"Holy shit! Whose general is this? He's so fierce?"

The Taiping Sect followers discovered in shock that one of their companions was like a Fierce Tiger Descending Mountain. Less than ten seconds after charging onto the pass walls, he had already killed seven or eight bandits, ferocious beyond all reason.

They had no idea how badly this companion wanted to kill them too—he was merely forcing himself to endure it.

Lu Yuan still possessed his reason. Disguising himself as a Taiping Sect follower and killing Iron Dragon Stockade bandits allowed him to fish in troubled waters. But if he killed Taiping Sect followers as well, he would become the target of everyone's arrows.

Thus, although his hatred for the Taiping Sect had already surpassed his hatred for Iron Dragon Stockade, he still kept his reason and killed only bandits.

As he slaughtered the bandits, Lu Yuan kept watching Yi Zheng versus Li Zongming and Li Jing versus Gao Han from the corner of his eye.

The former pair were not far apart in strength. Li Zongming held a slight advantage over Yi Zheng, but victory would certainly not be decided anytime soon.

As for the latter pair, Li Jing held an absolute advantage, and Gao Han's injuries were already severe.

Li Zongming and Yi Zheng are definitely stronger than Four Blood Changes...

Lu Yuan estimated inwardly.

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On Li Jing's side, he had been about to press his advantage and kill Gao Han, but a group of Taiping Sect experts blocked him, leaving him unable to succeed. Then he suddenly heard a familiar furious roar beside him. Turning his head, he saw a Taiping Sect follower wantonly slaughtering his subordinates, while miserable screams rang out one after another.

"Dog thief! Die!"

Li Jing flew into a rage. Abandoning his attempt to kill Gao Han, he dragged his horse-chopping saber and charged forward.

A chilling shout rang in his ears. Lu Yuan turned his gaze and saw Li Jing's figure weaving through the crowd as swiftly as a tiger or leopard, breaking free from the masses.

"Come at me!!"

Lu Yuan sneered inwardly. He had been planning to seek out Li Jing.

Li Jing stomped down hard. Under the tremendous force, the blue bricks beneath his feet exploded. He raised his horse-chopping saber high, took a deep breath, and puffed out his chest.

"Die!"

Accompanied by a thunderclap-like roar, the air before Li Jing shook violently. At the same time, his horse-chopping saber hacked down savagely, directly tearing through the air like an enraged dragon emerging from the sea, producing a shrill howl of splitting air.

Even from over ten meters away, Lu Yuan could feel a considerable pressure.

After only one exchange, he could tell that Iron Dragon Stockade's Third Boss was actually stronger than the Second Boss.

A faint surprise rose in his heart.

Didn't bandits rank themselves by strength?

Why could Long Ying, who was weaker, sit one rung above Li Jing?

If Lu Yuan had known that Long Ying was Yi Zheng's cousin, he would have understood why Long Ying ranked above Li Jing.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

In an instant, their blades collided again and again. Explosions rang endlessly through the air, and every impact was deafening.

After several seconds of exchanges, Lu Yuan had already gauged Li Jing's strength. He was stronger than Long Ying, but only by a limited margin.

Lu Yuan was about to seize the momentum and kill Li Jing with all his strength when he caught sight of Gao Han charging over. An idea flashed through his mind, and he held back some of his strength, entangling Li Jing in battle instead.

Meanwhile, Gao Han saw that a Taiping Sect expert could actually fight Li Jing to a standstill, leaving him utterly bewildered.

"Does the Helm Master have such an expert under his command?"

Gao Han searched his memories. He was Li Zongming's absolute confidant, and among Li Zongming's subordinates, he was the strongest. He also knew of the other experts who were somewhat weaker than himself.

But the moves used by this masked man were utterly unfamiliar to him.

"Perhaps he is an expert the Helm Master hired in secret."

Gao Han wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. Unable to spare any thought for more, he rushed over, intending to join Lu Yuan in besieging Li Jing.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

In the blink of an eye, Lu Yuan and Li Jing had exchanged more than a dozen moves. Wild winds howled, Killing Intent filled the air, and after failing to win for so long, Li Jing began to grow impatient.

"Damn it! Li Zongming has an expert like this under him? His saber technique is this brilliant?"

He was no stranger to Li Zongming, the Taiping Sect's person in charge in Lingbao County. Li Zongming's strength was no less than his eldest brother's, and while Li Jing had never met his most capable subordinate, he knew that man's name was Gao Han.

He was the very man Li Jing had just defeated.

Yet he had never expected Li Zongming to produce someone even stronger than Gao Han.

This man's strength was inferior to his own, but his saber technique was extraordinarily refined, allowing him to fight Li Jing evenly.

"I'll help you!!"

Gao Han shouted. His gold-backed broadsword swept out a golden streak as he joined the battle.

In an instant, Li Jing's pressure increased greatly with Gao Han's addition.

Blade light crisscrossed, furious shouts rose one after another, and the three men became locked in a tangled battle as Killing Intent surged through the air.

"Yes, just like this..."

Lu Yuan's eyes flickered. He held back another portion of his strength, making Gao Han bear more of Li Jing's attacks.