Fierce Tiger Gang was a powerful gang whose fearsome name echoed throughout Li City. Usually, they were the ones who rode into villages and towns, and it had been a long time since anyone had attacked their mountain stronghold.
But today.
Someone had fought their way in!
In a courtyard to the northwest of the stronghold.
More than three hundred gang members had surrounded the courtyard, with even more rushing over from every corner of the stronghold.
As the gang's headquarters, and with its forces having just been gathered, the stronghold now held over seven hundred members—a truly terrifying force.
"I never expected that prison courtyard to have two hidden guards inside, in addition to the eight guards in plain sight." Wu Yuan sighed inwardly.
He moved like a ghost, dodging several arrows that streaked toward him before thrusting out his spear in a flash.
"Pfft!" A gang member charging at the front suddenly had a bloody hole in his forehead. He fell to the ground, dead.
He hadn't been Wu Yuan's match for even a single move.
"There are too many of them. The expert I killed at the start was probably a Third-class Expert, but I don't know which of the six leaders he was." Wu Yuan pondered.
Fierce Tiger Gang had six leaders, all of them Proficient Experts.
According to Stellar Tower's intelligence, only the First Leader was a Second-class Expert. The rest were Third-class Experts.
In truth, Wu Yuan's infiltration and his diversionary fire, which had drawn the attention of so many gang members, had both gone quite well.
Even four of the eight prison courtyard guards had left to put out the fire.
Wu Yuan had exceeded expectations, throwing four throwing knives and killing four guards outright.
But he had never imagined that two hidden guards would be inside the main courtyard, beyond his field of view.
The flare calling for reinforcements had gone up at once.
With no other choice, Wu Yuan had launched a direct assault!
In the end, he had been surrounded on all sides.
"Still, taking such a risk was worth it. At least I've confirmed that the clan leader is still alive." Wearing a bronze mask, Wu Yuan recalled seeing the clan leader's scarred body in the prison courtyard.
Had Wu Yuan chosen to withdraw at once instead of breaking into the prison courtyard to check on things, the gang members—Martial Warriors and Martial Masters—would never have been able to trap him with his strength.
But.
Wu Yuan had only confirmed the clan leader Wu Qiming's location and that he was still alive. He hadn't taken him out of the prison courtyard; instead, he had turned back and withdrawn.
"Taking the clan leader with me would have severely hindered my movements. There's no way I could escape."
"Even if I survived, the clan leader would surely die."
"Now that I'm acting alone, even if I can't wipe out the Fierce Tiger Gang, they may not realize I came here because of the clan leader." The instant Wu Yuan confirmed that the clan leader was alive but too badly injured to move, he had made his choice—fight his way through!
He would scatter the entire Fierce Tiger Gang by himself.
"Fierce Tiger Gang is just a band of robbers. They won't fight to the death as a whole." Wu Yuan was calm. "As long as I kill their leaders and take out a group of their men, the rest will naturally scatter in fear.
"Even elite troops will break after losing thirty or forty percent of their men.
"Much less a bunch of bandits looking to make money?"
"Attack!"
"Old Xu's dead! He had to be at least a Second-class Expert! Why hasn't the gang leader come yet?"
"Surround him! Hurry, loose the arrows!" Gang members swarmed in from every direction, but the courtyard was narrow, hemmed in by walls, buildings, and trees. At most, only a dozen or so could attack Wu Yuan at once.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!" Arrow after arrow tore through the air. The gang members might have had only a few thousand jin of strength, but the arrows carried terrifying force, and Wu Yuan didn't dare take them head-on.
But his senses were keen beyond compare, and his footwork had reached the pinnacle!
He moved as though out for a leisurely stroll.
Dodging arrow after arrow.
"Thud!" "Thud!" "Thud!" The arrows struck with such force that they blasted tree trunks apart or tore gaping holes in wooden doors.
"Pfft!"
"Argh!" A scream rang out as an arrow buried itself in one gang member's upper thigh, spraying blood!
The battle was chaos. The archers stationed around the courtyard could hardly afford to worry about whether they were hitting their own men.
"Die!"
The Flowing Light Silver Snow Spear in Wu Yuan's hands coiled like a swimming dragon. He swept it in a circle, deflecting the attacks coming at him from several directions, then twisted with the motion and sent them crashing back.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"
Blood sprayed. Three gang members' throats were slashed open, and they collapsed to the ground in an instant.
After launching his attack on that Proficient Expert and drawing the surrounding gang members into the fight, Wu Yuan had abandoned his saber and taken up his spear.
On a battlefield, the spear and the axe reigned supreme!
"Excellent! Excellent!" Wu Yuan's eyes shone ever brighter as bloodlust surged within him.
With every Fierce Tiger Gang member he killed, he felt more invigorated. The strength he had spent traveling and fighting seemed to be returning.
The more he fought, the bolder he became!
"What's happening?" A trace of confusion crossed Wu Yuan's mind. He could feel that something was off with his condition, but couldn't explain why.
He only felt an ever-growing sense of exhilaration, while an invisible bloodlust swelled stronger within him.
"Thud!" "Thud!" "Thud!" One gang member after another fell, their bodies beginning to pile atop one another.
Most had been shot through the forehead or throat, but some had taken spears through the chest or abdomen. They had died just the same.
In terms of strength,
Wu Yuan's physical strength had improved since several days ago. He had now reached nearly twenty thousand jin, the minimum threshold for a Fifth-Rank Martial Artist.
Against these gang members, he had overwhelming strength.
Even more formidable was his combat skill. He wasn't particularly skilled with the spear, but mastery of one weapon carried over to all weapons. Having reached the Hard and Soft realm, each thrust and sweep seemed to come naturally to him.
Anyone among these ordinary gang members who came into contact with his spear was either dead or wounded.
And that was with Wu Yuan conserving his strength and not using Triple Extreme Strength. If he unleashed multiple layers of force, his strength would be ten times theirs; he could sweep them all aside without needing to rely on superior technique!
His spear work was so terrifying that the gang members had taken him for a Second-class Expert.
"Thud!" "Thud!" "Thud!" He swung the spear in a lightning-fast arc, unleashing its terrifying force and sweeping six Fierce Tiger Gang members off their feet.
The silver spear suddenly accelerated, then whipped back and jabbed forward!
"No!" A gang member's eyes filled with terror. He was suspended in midair with nothing to push off from, left only to watch helplessly.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"
Four of the six gang members were pierced through the head and killed on the spot.
The other two were pierced through the shoulder and arm, respectively, blood pouring from their wounds. At least they hadn't died outright.
"This is terrifying!"
"His spear technique is like something from a ghost or god. We can't kill him!"
"Where did such a terrifying expert come from, here in Li City?" The gang members swarming around him were frightened, their steps slowing despite themselves.
If they thought victory was possible, they'd naturally dare to fight.
But who would willingly throw their life away?
By now, Wu Yuan had killed over a hundred gang members, and bodies covered the entire courtyard. Who wouldn't be terrified at the sight?
The gang leader Yang Long, Hall Master Li Ye, and the Beast-clothed Tall and Thin Youth had arrived in time to witness that thrust.
"What incredible spear work! Even among Second-class Experts, it must be rare," the Beast-clothed Tall and Thin Youth praised. "But his strength doesn't seem all that great. I doubt he's as strong as a Second-class Expert."
His keen eye had spotted that Wu Yuan's strength was lacking.
"Die, brat!" came a thunderous shout.
The hundreds of Fierce Tiger Gang members surrounding the courtyard all heard it and looked over. Wu Yuan saw it too, from a distance.
A burly man carrying a massive Mountain Splitting Saber came bounding toward them at astonishing speed, leaping across rooftops several times.
He charged straight into the courtyard.
"The gang leader!"
"The gang leader's here! He'll definitely kill him." Hundreds of Fierce Tiger Gang members were thrilled, confident in their leader's strength.
"Let's see first." The Beast-clothed Tall and Thin Youth swept over, but he was half a step behind and didn't rush into the fight.
At that moment,
Everyone taking part in the battle focused on the courtyard, eager to see how the two men would fare.
The Fierce Tiger, Yang Long, moved like a phantom. He crossed more than ten zhang without losing any speed, then charged with a roar at Wu Yuan, who stood motionless.
"Whoosh!" A terrifying blade of light flared!
If that slash landed, it would cut Wu Yuan clean in half.
"The gang leader's Mountain Splitting Saber!" the Fierce Tiger Gang members cried, watching with excitement.
Yang Long had made himself famous among the million people of Li City with that very saber.
"My junior brother isn't especially gifted, but after decades of training, his saber technique is no weak thing," the Beast-clothed Tall and Thin Youth thought.
"Pfft!" The spear tip pierced flesh.
"Crash!"
The burly Yang Long smashed through the door in front of him. Splintered wood scattered across the ground as he crashed down without a sound.
Blood trickled from his forehead, slowly staining the ground red.
At that sight,
The courtyard, which had been noisy only moments before, fell utterly silent. Everyone stared at the scene in shock.
The mighty gang leader of Fierce Tiger Gang! A Second-class Expert!
Killed with a single thrust?
As for Wu Yuan, he seemed not to have moved at all. Only the blood gleaming on his spearhead told the story. His gaze swept over the courtyard walls.
"Who's next?"
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