Wang Xuan stood amid a wrecked ruin. The smoke and dust had yet to disperse, leaving the air gray and heavy with the stench of blood. He lowered his gaze to the System Panel before him, his eyes swiftly scanning the list of martial arts.
The most numerous entry on the System Panel was the Northern Dark Divine Art. A full seven people had specialized in it, paired with the Tianshan Plum-Plucking Hand, Lingbo Micro-steps, and Tianshan Six-Yang Palm—all techniques of the Xiaoyao Sect.
Unfortunately, the Eight Desolations and Six Harmonies Sovereign Skill and the Small Formless Art were missing. Otherwise, the Xiaoyao Sect's core martial arts would have been complete.
The other martial arts were no less impressive. There were the fierce and domineering Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, the supremely yang and unyielding Nine Yang Divine Skill, and the Yan-Yan Art. Clearly, the enemy had not cultivated that Divine Art to mastery, because a Wedding Dress Divine Art had been absorbed alongside it.
Among the remaining techniques, the ones that caught Wang Xuan's eye were the Indra Claw and Mount Sumeru Palm, both among the Seventy-Two Shaolin Arts.
What puzzled him most was the Little Li Flying Dagger. This hidden weapon art was said to Never Miss a Target, yet its owner had not used it at all during the battle. He was probably still unable to use it at the Never Missing a Target level.
"One-Click Max!"
The familiar warm current instantly swept through his entire body, flowing slowly along his meridians. Every martial art on the System Panel was raised to its limit in an instant.
Wang Xuan did not stop to savor the explosive surge of power within him. He raised his eyes toward both ends of the street. Ahead, a dense mass of Brocade Guards stood waiting, the Spring-Embroidered Blades at their waists reflecting a frigid gleam that chilled to the bone.
Behind him came footsteps so heavy that the ground trembled. A fully armed army had already blocked every route of escape.
His gaze swept lightly across the distant rooftops, where two figures with formidable auras stood silently. Without even turning around, he could sense that two equally powerful presences were hidden among the army behind him.
Those four had never shown themselves during the fighting. Now that they had suddenly appeared, they were clearly here to oversee the troops.
Grandmaster Players?
Wang Xuan curled his lips, a trace of coldness flashing through his eyes.
It seemed they intended to use the lives of these soldiers to trap him to death in Yuhang City.
There was no need to think about it. As long as he remained in this city, troops stationed throughout the surrounding region would keep arriving without end, fighting him to the death.
"Sir Thousand-Household Commander..." The Deputy Thousand-Household Commander in a blue bear-patterned uniform edged toward the leading Thousand-Household Commander. His eyes swept across the Brocade Guard corpses scattered everywhere, severed limbs strewn across the ground, the stench of blood so thick it was suffocating. He lowered his voice until it was almost inaudible. "Th-this can't even be called human anymore, can it? More than half our brothers are already down. Crossbow bolts and cannon fire can't even hurt a single hair on him!"
The leading Thousand-Household Commander's Adam's apple bobbed. Looking at the sheets of blood and the cold corpses of his brothers, he instinctively shrank back, wanting to place the few surviving men behind him in front of himself.
But at that moment, an icy hand suddenly pressed against his lower back. His entire body stiffened, every hair standing on end as even his breathing paused for half a beat.
"Sir Thousand-Household Commander," said another Deputy Thousand-Household Commander in an emotionless voice, "our parents, wives, and children are all being held by the yamen. If you retreat out of fear, every one of our families will suffer. Sir, if we die, then we die. But our families... nothing can happen to them."
The Thousand-Household Commander did not turn around. In an instant, he saw the child at home who had only just learned to call him Father—the chubby little face, the bright eyes that seemed soaked in light. The fear in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a resolve that sank deep into his bones.
He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with the thick smell of blood and dust. The next instant, he violently drew the Spring-Embroidered Blade at his waist, its point aimed straight at the ruins, at the figure wrapped in golden True Qi.
"Brothers!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice reaching every ear clearly. "We have no way back! Think of your wives, children, and parents! In the next life, we'll still be brothers!"
As soon as his words fell, he was the first to stride forward and charge toward the ruins.
The Brocade Guards behind him were pale as paper. They looked at one another, their eyes filled with fear and struggle, but in the end they gritted their teeth, drew their Spring-Embroidered Blades, and followed behind their Thousand-Household Commander, charging forward without hesitation.
Watching this, the pleasure Wang Xuan had felt from his sudden increase in strength vanished without a trace. He let out a soft sigh.
These people might only be NPCs in a Plot World, but the frustration of having a blade held to their throats and being forced to die, the despair of being compelled to stand against the entire world—it all felt so real that it left him weak all over.
He drew the Blood Blade from his waist with a backhanded motion. This Demonic Blade of the Blood Blade Sect had encountered the mastered Indestructible Diamond Divine Skill when he first arrived in this world, unable to leave even the faintest mark.
But now, faced with this dense army and paired with the Blood Blade Scripture he had just maxed out, it was the perfect time for a satisfying slaughter.
"Kill!"
The cries of battle suddenly erupted, rising wave after wave until even the ground trembled slightly.
The cold gleams of sabers, spears, swords, and halberds intertwined, dazzling enough to make people unable to open their eyes.
The Blood Blade in Wang Xuan's hand trembled lightly, releasing a hum like that of a starving beast. Vast True Qi poured into the blade, and Blood-Drinking Blade Qi shot forth with a clang, expanding into a blood-red blade of light more than a yard long. He swung without any fancy technique, merely sweeping horizontally.
The scarlet blade qi swept through the charging front ranks as neatly as a sickle cutting wheat.
Rip—
The sound of flesh being torn apart rang out in one continuous, piercing chorus.
Several dozen Brocade Guards at the front were cut in half at the waist. Before their upper bodies even hit the ground, blood sprayed forth like fountains, while their lower bodies stumbled forward several more steps on momentum before crashing down.
The once gray street was instantly dyed red with blood, a horrifying sight.
The people behind could not stop in time. They crashed into the corpses ahead, tripped and fell, then were mercilessly trampled by the surging crowd behind them. Miserable screams and furious curses tangled together as everything descended into chaos.
Wang Xuan did not stop. With a step, he used Snow-Treading Traceless and Reed Crossing River simultaneously. His body moved as fast as a golden afterimage, instantly smashing into the tightly packed crowd.
The Blood Blade swung again, and several dozen more people fell at once.
He did not need any exquisite techniques. He simply chopped, slashed, and swept. Every strike carried tremendous force, every move was fatal.
Wherever the Blood-Drinking Blade Qi passed, severed arms and mutilated limbs flew through the air. Not a single person could withstand even one exchange beneath his blade.
The Brocade Guards' formation had long since completely collapsed. Many had not died in battle at all, but had been knocked down and trampled to death by the chaotic crowd.
Yet that Thousand-Household Commander continued charging forward, his trusted men tightly following at his side. Their eyes were bloodshot, and it was impossible to tell whether it came from fear or from having already fallen into despair.
Wang Xuan kept moving, steadily advancing in one direction as blood-red light bloomed endlessly around him. He was like a tireless killing machine, leaving behind a road paved entirely in flesh and blood wherever he passed.
The rear hall of the Three Offices Yamen.
Chu Lingtian reclined lazily on a soft couch covered in snow-white fox fur. Pinching a bit of fish bait between his fingers, he watched the servants and maids bustle about the courtyard, carrying rare treasures, antiques, gold, silver, and jade onto ten large horse-drawn carriages. Before long, they were piled full to overflowing.
"What's happening outside now?" His tone was casual as he casually tossed the bait into the fish pond by his feet. A school of brightly colored koi rushed to compete for it, stirring ripples across the water.
A Player in coarse clothes with a blank expression prostrated himself on the ground. "Master, the Servant Players who attacked the target earlier have all exited the Plot World.
We are now deploying the local native troops to hold back the target. Nearby garrisons have already responded. At most, a group of light cavalry will arrive in Yuhang City within half a day."
"Fine." Chu Lingtian clapped his hands, casually wiping the fish-bait juice from his fingers onto the snow-white fox fur. His voice was full of impatience. "Let these natives wear him down first. Report back to me once the others arrive."
He slowly rose and stretched, his bones letting out a series of soft cracks.
He had already spent a year in this lousy Plot World, and he had long grown sick of it.
What pinnacle of power? What glory and luxury? Compared to the high-tech city on his family's planet, it was all garbage, not worth mentioning.
As for Wang Xuan, that country bumpkin, and his three thousand-plus Grandmaster Servant Players, he intended to keep them around and play with them slowly. Once he grew tired of it, he would capture Wang Xuan alive and see what level of talent he truly possessed.
He stepped mercilessly onto the back of a kneeling maid and climbed into the foremost, most luxurious carriage.
The carriage interior was covered in thick cashmere rugs and scented with rich ambergris, as mellow as aged jade dew. Warmth and fragrance intertwined within, making it seem like a completely different world from the bloody slaughter outside.
The driver was another Player with a blank expression. Seeing that Chu Lingtian was seated securely, he immediately cracked the whip and shouted, "Hyah!"
The wheels began to turn as the carriage slowly rolled out of the yamen gates and sped toward West Lake.
At that moment, the arrogance of the Royal Clan was displayed in full.
Before you continue