Six long swords flashed with cold light, like venomous snakes, devouring Lu Chen, who was leaning against the rock wall, from different angles.
The blade's sharp wind sealed off all his space to dodge.
Lu Chen's pupils contracted, and the faint light of the < Ten Thousand Year Black Tortoise Art > flashed across his body. He was prepared to withstand this attack head-on and trade injury for his life.
The cold gaze, however, pierced through the blade, fixed intently on the two imperial guards who stood like stone statues in the distance and the quiet carriage.
Just as the blade was about to strike—
That's enough.
A high-pitched, flat voice came from inside the carriage. The voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to carry some kind of invisible force, causing the six assassins' attack to falter.
Almost at the same time, the figures of the two Imperial Guards who had been standing still suddenly blurred!
They didn't rush to Lu Chen's rescue; instead, they slipped into the battle like ghosts, precisely positioning themselves between Lu Chen and the Ye Family's assassins. A flash of blades!
"Pfft! Pfft!"
Two heads flew into the air with expressions of disbelief, blood gushing out like a fountain. The speed and ruthlessness of the attack far surpassed that of the previous Ye Family assassins.
The remaining four assassins were so startled by this sudden turn of events that they retreated in shock, their hands holding knives trembling slightly as they looked toward the carriage with a mixture of fear and anger.
The carriage curtain was lifted by a pale hand, revealing half of Eunuch Li's face hidden in shadow. His gaze swept indifferently over Elder Ye's headless corpse on the ground, his tone calm and utterly emotionless:
"An incense stick has been burning for ages. Our deal with Ye Er was to watch him kill you." His gaze shifted to Lu Chen, who was covered in blood and barely able to stand. "Now that he's dead, the deal is naturally over."
Chen Ping, the commander of the Imperial Guards, slowly sheathed his sword. His icy gaze swept over the remaining four Ye Family assassins, and his voice was like cold iron. "Get lost. Or die."
The four assassins' faces were contorted with grimaces, their eyes filled with resentment and fear.
They glanced at Eunuch Li's cold face, then at the Sha Qi Imperial Guards, and finally, one of them let out a low, sorrowful roar, "Let's go!"
They quickly carried away the bodies of Elder Ye Er and the captain, along with the remains of their companions, and like stray dogs, disappeared in a sorry state into the shadows of the canyon.
Inside the canyon, only the pervasive stench of blood and a scene of utter devastation remained.
Lu Chen's tense nerves relaxed slightly, and he coughed violently, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth again.
But instead of immediately adjusting his breathing, he dragged his almost broken body and staggered to Elder Ye's corpse.
Under the indifferent gaze of two imperial guards and Eunuch Li, he squatted down expressionlessly and groped around in the pool of blood without any hesitation.
Soon, he found a storage ring stained with dark red blood.
He carefully and slowly wiped the bloodstains off the ring with the hem of Elder Ye's robe, and then, in front of everyone, put it on the index finger of his left hand. The action was natural, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Eunuch Li's gaze lingered on the ring for a moment, then his face broke into the cold, emotionless smile common in official circles, " Banner Sergeant Lu, you are truly... a man of profound skill. That earth-shattering attack just now, that technique at the level of the soul, truly opened my eyes. I wonder what kind of extraordinary inheritance could possess such power?"
Lu Chen straightened up, his face as pale as paper and his breathing disordered, but his eyes remained calm.
He bowed slightly to Eunuch Li, his tone carrying just the right amount of weakness and humility. "You flatter me, Eunuch. To be honest, this is a fragment of an unnamed manual that I stumbled upon in the South Mausoleum Demon Suppression Division Armory. It records some rudimentary methods of using the divine soul. Its power seems decent, but in reality, it is extremely dangerous. Each time I use it, I almost exhaust my divine soul and damage my very foundation. It is truly a life-or-death technique and is not suitable for serious use."
He attributed everything to the mysterious " Armory fortuitous opportunity," a pre-prepared explanation from Zhou Wei that was difficult to verify and was the safest course of action.
Eunuch Li squinted, giving Lu Chen a deep look, his smile still on his face, "Hehe, Banner Sergeant Lu, you're too modest. Being willing to risk your life is a good skill." He didn't delve further, slowly retreating back into the carriage. "Pack your things, let's get going as soon as possible."
The team regrouped, but the atmosphere was completely different.
The two imperial guards mounted their horses, one in front of the other, but when their gazes swept over Lu Chen again, the pure, prisoner-guarding indifference they had shown before had vanished, replaced by a deep sense of apprehension and scrutiny.
After all, the opponent possessed the power to kill him.
Lu Chen silently swallowed several healing pills, feeling the medicinal power dissipate within his body, nourishing his wounded and injured form.
He rode alongside the carriage, his Divine Sense quietly sinking into the newly acquired storage ring.
A mental scan revealed that the space inside was quite large, filled with numerous bottles and jars of pills, gold notes, and various other miscellaneous supplies.
But his attention was quickly drawn to two things.
One was a cold, jet-black token, neither gold nor wood, with a hideous demon totem carved on it, exuding an ominous aura.
The other was a map drawn on some kind of unknown animal hide, its lines winding and pointing to a hidden place.
The map's endpoint is already close to the Capital City.
Is it the Ye Family's secret stronghold? Or a contact point for the Rebirth Hall?
Lu Chen's mind raced as he memorized the appearance of the two items, then quietly withdrew his Divine Sense.
"Let's continue on our way." Eunuch Li glanced at Lu Chen's actions, a smile appearing on his lips.
The convoy rolled over the gravel on the official road, making a monotonous rumbling sound, leaving the bloody stench of Soulbreak Gorge slightly behind.
A faint, lingering smell of rust still hung in the air, clinging thickly to everyone's breath.
Lu Chen sat upright on his horse, his eyes slightly closed, as if he were regulating his breathing. Only...
He gripped the reins tightly, his heart surging with turbulent emotions.
The frenzied killing intent brought by [ Godslayer Slash ] had not completely subsided; it was still burning his soul, bringing a stinging pain like needles.
Without hesitation, he commanded in his mind, "Consume two hundred years of Demon Devil Lifespan to repair meridians and internal organs."
As soon as the command was given, a powerful surge of warmth burst forth from the depths of his Dantian, like a flood bursting its banks, rushing towards his nearly broken meridians and injured internal organs.
Nourished by the strange energy transformed from the Demon Devil Lifespan, the torn muscles writhed and healed, and the churning Qi and Blood were forcibly calmed.
The wounds on the skin even began to scab over at a speed visible to the naked eye.
" Banner Sergeant Lu."