Dimensional Suppression

Upon hearing this, Zhou Heng stepped out from behind Qin Wangchuan.

He met the gazes of Sun Yue and the band of bandits, and the fear in his heart was filled with surging anger.

Four years ago.

"Zhao Biao from your village, along with seven other men, eight in total, ambushed and killed my father and his men on the road."

"Including my father, six lives were lost that time."

The words had barely left his mouth.

Zhao Biao, hidden in the crowd, felt a sudden sinking feeling in his heart.

They really came for me.

These words confirmed Sun Yue's guess.

A barely perceptible hint of helplessness flashed across his eyes.

Sure enough, it was that troublesome fourth brother who caused all the trouble again.

He's made enemies everywhere, causing trouble and creating problems; he hasn't had a moment's peace in years.

Despite his complaints, when the time came, the man was his own brother, and as the Eldest Brother, he had no choice but to take the blame for him.

The thought crossed his mind, and Sun Yue raised his hand and gestured for the noisy crowd behind him to be quiet.

He then turned to Qin Wangchuan, his expression remaining calm and composed.

"So, young hero, you want me to hand over those eight people?"

"Yes." Qin Wangchuan nodded.

As soon as he finished speaking, a troubled expression appeared on Sun Yue's face.

"Young hero, you may not know this. It is true that Zhao Biao is a member of my stronghold, but he violated the stronghold rules many years ago and was expelled by me. He is no longer with Broken Tiger Stronghold."

"Fart!"

Zhou Heng couldn't hold back any longer. He stepped forward and pointed a finger at Sun Yue, saying, "He's back today! I saw it with my own eyes!"

These words immediately caused a stir among the bandits.

Three immature boys, barely out of their wits, killed their own brothers and dared to spout nonsense in front of the entire village; some people couldn't contain themselves any longer.

"Eldest Brother, why waste your breath talking to them!"

"Exactly! Just chop him up and feed him to the dogs!"

"Shut up!"

Sun Yue let out a loud shout, silencing all the noise behind him.

At the same time, he quickly gave Zhao Biao a wink in the crowd.

Although Zhao Biao didn't fully understand, he subconsciously shrank deeper into the crowd, hiding himself more thoroughly.

After doing all this, Sun Yue turned around again to face Qin Wangchuan.

The bragging kid behind him was insignificant in his eyes.

The one we really need to deal with is the one right in front of us.

"Young hero, your information network is quite impressive."

He spoke calmly and deliberately, revealing no flaw in his demeanor, "Zhao Biao did indeed set off for the village today. However, I heard there were some unforeseen circumstances on the way, and he hasn't reached the village yet—"

Qin Wangchuan didn't let him finish speaking.

Although he didn't recognize Zhao Biao, he couldn't miss the wink Sun Yue gave to the crowd or the figure that hurriedly hid.

Too lazy to listen to that rhetoric anymore, he simply raised his hand.

The next moment.

Zhao Biao, hidden deep within the crowd, suddenly felt a tightness in his throat, as if an invisible hand were gripping it tightly.

His feet left the ground, and he and his knife were lifted by that force, suspended in mid-air from the crowd.

"Big... Eldest Brother--!"

This scene, witnessed by Chen Yan who was not far away, deeply shocked him.

He stood behind Qin Wangchuan the whole time, not daring to utter a sound.

Is this person before me... truly a boy around my age?

With a simple gesture, he pulled a living person out of the encirclement of hundreds of bandits, leaving the bandits no chance to struggle.

What made his scalp tingle even more was --

Hundreds of people were lurking all around, armed with swords and spears, exuding a murderous aura.

But the young man stood in the middle, his aura was in no way inferior. Instead, he was like a lonely moon surrounded by stars, making all the fierceness in the room seem like mere background.

Who exactly is this person...?

Chen Yan's throat bobbed, but he couldn't utter a single word.

Zhao Biao's horrified scream pierced the rain.

An invisible force not only dragged him all the way to Qin Wangchuan's front, but also suddenly pressed him down.

His knees slammed heavily into the muddy water with a dull crack, as if his kneecaps had shattered on the spot.

The scream suddenly rose in pitch, but he was still held down firmly, kneeling on the ground, unable to even lift his head.

The entire room Deathly Stillness.

For the first time, a crack appeared on Sun Yue's usually composed and steady face.

As the dignified leader of the village, he had already humbled himself, maintained a composed demeanor, and dealt with the other party in a way that offered them ample room to maneuver.

The young man didn't even bother to answer, not even lifting an eyelid, and dragged the person out right under his nose in front of everyone.

Show no mercy whatsoever.

A surge of anger, stemming from feeling utterly humiliated, rose from Sun Yue's chest.

He was about to have an attack.

Qin Wangchuan didn't even look at him, but turned his head to ask Zhou Heng beside him.

Is it him?

Zhou Heng stepped forward.

Zhao Biao, who was pressed firmly to his knees in the mud by that force, was unable to move. Hearing the noise, he barely raised his eyes and met Zhou Heng's face. A look of confusion flashed in his eyes.

But Zhou Heng recognized him.

After such a long investigation, we finally met the True Person.

"It's him."

Zhou Heng gritted his teeth and nodded emphatically.

Qin Wangchuan withdrew his gaze and uttered only three words.

"Let's do it."

Upon hearing this, both Zhou Heng and Sun Yue were taken aback.

Sun Yue was the first to come to his senses.

"You dare—!"

He shouted sharply and charged forward with his knife.

At that sound, Zhou Heng suddenly came to his senses.

The enemy is right in front of me; the moment I've waited four years for has finally arrived.

Without hesitation, he drew his long sword from its sheath with a clang.

A flash of Sword Light.

Before Zhao Biao could even beg for mercy, his head flew off and rolled into the mud.

Blood splattered all over Zhou Heng's face.

That was the enemy he had been chasing and hating for four years.

And so, he died by his own sword.

Sun Yue, who had rushed halfway, suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He watched helplessly as Zhao Biao's body fell into the mud, momentarily forgetting to move.

"The first one."

In the silence, Qin Wangchuan's voice rang out, neither too loud nor too soft.

"Seven more."

"Will you pay it yourself, or should I do it?"

These words jolted Sun Yue out of his daze.

He snapped back to his senses, the grief and anger surging in his eyes becoming uncontrollable, and stepped forward, sword in hand.

"... Kill them!"

"None of these three will leave this mountain alive today!"

The long-suppressed bandits, as if waking from a dream, let out a shout and surged forth from all directions.

Hundreds of figures, their eyes bloodshot, pounced on the three like a pack of hungry wolves that had caught the scent of blood.

The flashing blades were like a forest, and the shouts of battle shook the entire mountain.

Faced with the overwhelming crowd, Qin Wangchuan remained unmoved.

The next moment--

The sky cracked open.

A bright streak of light fell silently from the sky, stretching for dozens of feet, swallowing up the rain and the entire crowd at the forefront.

A hundred or so lives were wiped out in that instant.

The world suddenly fell into Deathly Stillness.

Then came the second and third rounds.

Bright streaks of light descended continuously from the heavens, without ceasing.

With each strike, swathes of people vanished, without even a chance to scream.

The bandits who were rushing behind were pinned to the spot by the continuous killings, watching helplessly as wave after wave of their comrades turned to ashes before their eyes, and the blood at their feet formed a river.

Amidst the utter devastation, some people gradually discerned something eerie in the repeated witnessing of the event.

Those attacks...

It only landed on those who rushed towards it.

Without exception, all those who stepped forward and raised their swords to slash were reduced to a mist of blood.

I don't know who was the first to stop.

Then came the second, the third...

The wave of suppression, at a speed visible to the naked eye, solidified and receded inch by inch.

The remaining thugs, gripping their knives, stood frozen in place, none daring to take another step forward. They even held their breath, afraid of disturbing the murderous intent hanging overhead, ready to fall at any moment.

In deathly silence.

Qin Wangchuan trudged through the blood, mud, and corpses covering the ground, heading towards Sun Yue's direction.

The bandits blocking the way automatically made way for them.

No one dared to move.

No one dared to utter a sound.

Their eyes widened, their faces filled with a fear etched into their very bones, much like the people who had just stood on either side of the village gate.

Sun Yue was startled.

It's not that he hasn't seen strong people before.

To be this powerful is something I've never seen before in my life.

So shocked was he that he even forgot to raise his knife.

Qin Wangchuan strolled up to him and stopped, looking down at him.

"Hand over those seven people."

"Your village can still be preserved."

This is a way out.

It's also the only one.

However, the words had barely left his mouth.

A ruthless glint suddenly flashed in Sun Yue's eyes.

His inner True Qi surged to its peak, and with lightning speed, he slashed down at Qin Wangchuan's head with his sword.

Qin Wangchuan neither dodged nor retreated.

He just stood there quietly, letting the knife cleave down on his head.

Zheng--

The blade barely touched the body before encountering a faint shimmering light, making it impossible to get any closer.

That was his Protective Astral Energy.

Both are protective forms, but the Gang Qi formed from Spiritual Power is worlds apart from the True Qi of this world.

That strike, imbued with the power of ninefold strength, couldn't even penetrate half an inch into that layer of radiance.

Qin Wangchuan lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on Sun Yue's frozen face behind the knife.

"Incorrect answer."