Heads

Over the next few days, Su Yuan entered a state of constant hunting, tracking down both fierce beasts and those who deserved to die.

Gao Mian had pressed him into the tenth spot, and he could not afford to let her down.

[Dormancy: 1934/2000 (Perfect)]

[Slaughter: 156/500 (Minor Achievement)]

Another gong sounded; it was already the fifth day of the hunt.

Su Yuan returned with a heavy haul of prey, his ranking climbing rapidly.

He looked toward the high platform and noticed it was unusually empty today.

It was normal for a few young masters and misses to be absent, but several of the great figures at the Pulse-Splitting Realm were also missing.

Something happened? Did the Cloud-Striding Martial Hall make a move? Su Yuan speculated.

"They've gone mad! Absolutely mad!" Shan Xiongqing roared in fury from the high platform.

The Jiguang Society had ignited an unprecedented uprising in Ji City. This time, it was not merely about breaking into the prison; they intended to seize this opportunity to topple the Liang People's rule over Ji City entirely.

The entire city had now descended into chaos.

The Liang People had already divided their forces to guard against any disturbances during the sacrificial ceremony, even bringing captives along as bait, yet they had not expected the enemy's ambitions to be so grand.

"Mere mayflies trying to topple a tree," Chai Nian said calmly, waving his fan.

They only needed to divert a portion of their troops back to the city, and with the powerful suppression of the many Pulse-Splitting martial artists within, this turmoil would be nothing more than a minor ripple.

If they didn't come to cause trouble at the ceremony, it actually made things quieter on his end.

Shan Xiongqing naturally understood this logic, but what truly enraged him was that Yun Xu had been rescued and had vanished without a trace!

Gao Mian sneered from the side, casting her gaze toward the rankings and feigning surprise: "Oh? Su Yuan has actually risen to tenth place."

Only then did the others turn their attention back to the competition.

"How is he tenth?" Shan Xiongqing looked at the leaderboard, feeling even more stifled. He swept his gaze toward the members of his own martial academy, only to realize that many of his martial artists were missing.

In contrast, while the Chai Family had suffered losses, the Su brothers—whom he cared about most—were completely unscathed.

"A bunch of trash!" Shan Xiongqing could no longer endure it and slammed a palm onto the table.

Chai Nian was no longer calm either.

What made his expression change was not Su Yuan, but the fact that Su Tie Niu was about to be overtaken.

Following closely behind, eyeing the top spot with predatory intent, was Wang Jin of the Huishan Martial Hall.

Rong Yulian and the other Liang People present grew dissatisfied.

If a Jing person from a mere martial hall were to take the top spot, where would their dignity be?

"The rules must be changed again!" Shan Xiongqing gritted his teeth.

"With chaos in the city, there must be insiders manipulating things from the shadows. Great Liang wants to train loyal dogs, but we cannot guarantee that traitors aren't hiding among these martial artists. We should add a test of loyalty," he proposed.

"How do you intend to test them?" Chai Nian squinted at him.

"I have a batch of useless captives in my hands. We will release them into the mountains and order every contestant to bring back the head of a Jing traitor—refugees will also suffice—and we shall significantly increase the point value for such trophies," Shan Xiongqing said with a gloomy gaze.

Once these words were spoken, everyone understood clearly that this was Shan Xiongqing's scheme.

When it came to slaughtering refugees, the Shan Family Martial Academy had always been the most prolific.

However, this test of loyalty was indeed necessary, and it would serve to suppress those from martial halls like Wang Jin.

"I just wonder if they have the guts to turn their blades on their own kind?"

After some deliberation, the rules were changed once more.

Su Yuan and the others were stunned upon hearing the new regulations.

The points for a refugee's head were raised from five to ten.

As for the captives released into the mountains, a single head was worth a hundred points.

One had to realize that even killing a First-Rank fierce tiger with all one's might was only worth thirty points.

If one could identify a traitor among them, they would likewise receive a hundred points.

This had completely transformed from a hunting competition into a contest of murder.

More importantly, everyone was required to submit one head.

Failure to do so would be seen as disloyalty, resulting in disqualification and the suspicion of being a potential mole or traitor, requiring capture and interrogation.

Shortly after, soldiers drove the captives to the mouth of the valley, untied their bonds, and chased them forward: "Run! Run fast! The hunt is about to begin; this is your last chance!"

Most of the captives were covered in wounds, their leg bones shattered, forcing them to crawl through the mud using only their elbows, all for the sake of a slim chance at survival.

Su Yuan looked on and recognized most of their faces, and the most familiar among them was none other than Duan Hongyan.

Witnessing this scene, most of the martial artists fell into silence.

Du Hengfeng, however, licked his lips in excitement: "This game was practically tailor-made for me!"

"Brother Yuan, what should we do?" Tie Niu's voice was tight.

The fact that his ranking was about to be overtaken had already panicked him, and at this moment, he was completely losing his composure.

Su Yuan sighed inwardly.

If he still wanted to establish a foothold here in Great Liang, he had no choice but to participate in this game.

"Let's rob them," Su Yuan said hoarsely.

Not killing with his own hands, but snatching what others had obtained.

This was the most barely acceptable method he could conceive.

Yet they both knew clearly in their hearts that even if they did not stain their own hands with blood, by participating in the plunder, they were already accomplices.

The young masters and misses on the platform remained expressionless.

They firmly believed their subordinates were all loyal hounds, currently eager to tear apart their former kin to prove their innocence.

It was merely killing a few Jing People, after all.

Only Gao Mian looked at Su Yuan, remembering that scroll, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes.

The gong sounded again, and the crowd dispersed into the mountains to begin their search.

Du Hengfeng received a secret letter from Shan Xiongqing and whispered to his fellow disciples, "The young master has ordered us to join forces to hunt down the people from the Chai Family and the Martial Academy, and to seize their prey."

At this time, the supervision in the mountains had relaxed.

Du Hengfeng felt displeased; the young master still did not trust him, insisting that these trash cooperate with him.

But what annoyed him even more was, where had that brat Su Yuan hidden himself again?

The group began to sweep through the mountains.

The refugees in this area had been almost entirely slaughtered by him, forcing them to flee into the deep woods.

With only a few dozen captives left, it was not easy to snatch a head.

Su Yuan followed quietly behind them: "They've actually banded together? This is a bit troublesome."

It wasn't that he couldn't kill them, but if too many people died at once, it would inevitably invite a strict investigation.

He continued to tail them, waiting for a golden opportunity.

Some captives, knowing they could not escape, chose to commit suicide.

Du Hengfeng, facing these free heads, felt bored: "Where is that piece of trash Su Yuan hiding? It's more interesting to rob others."

This group was like a plague, beginning to ravage the mountain forest.

They not only snatched heads but, to silence witnesses, also dealt lethal blows to other contestants they encountered.

"The Shan Family is banding together!" A girl in blue-and-white training gear with braided hair noticed something was wrong, retreated rapidly, and cried out in alarm.

"Chase!" Du Hengfeng's eyes turned cold as he lunged forward.

However, the girl's footwork was exceptional; she dodged and weaved through the trees, and for a moment, Du Hengfeng could not catch up.

Her shouting drew the attention of more martial artists.

"Damn it! You lot, go deal with the others!" Du Hengfeng barked sharply.

Regardless of which martial academy they were from, he would kill them all.

When the time came, the top spot would naturally be his.

He recognized the girl; she was Huang Tong of the Rong Family Martial Academy.

Fury surged, and he pursued her relentlessly.

Su Yuan saw the scene descend into chaos; the original hunting competition had become a Shura field of melee combat between martial artists.

More and more people were being drawn in, all wanting to seize the opportunity to snatch heads.

He quietly followed Du Hengfeng.

This man was now isolated.

Su Yuan lay in wait to the side of his pursuit path.

"Little wench, let's see where you can run! Do you dare stop and fight me?" Du Hengfeng sneered coldly.

"Sister here doesn't bully shorties, you'd better get lost while you can!" Huang Tong's mocking laughter came from ahead.

"Who are you calling a shorty! Raging Horse Neighing Wind—" Du Hengfeng roared in fury, about to unleash his technique.

A large hand reached out from the shadows to the side without warning, violently clamping onto his skull, and then dragged him into the woods, disappearing in an instant.

"Eh? Did he really get scared off by me?" Huang Tong looked back and saw no one, feeling suspicious. She turned and headed back toward the chaotic battlefield, wanting to see if she could pick up any scraps.

By the time she returned, the slaughter was already nearing its end.

She was stunned to find that most of the people from the Shan Family Martial Academy were already lying dead on the ground.

Su Yuan severed the head of a Shan Family martial artist and shouted to the crowd: "Everyone, don't waste them! These heads are also points. As expected, the Shan Family Martial Academy harbored traitors who dared to band together to surround and kill us loyal subjects!"

After subduing Du Hengfeng, he had immediately rushed back, launched a sneak attack amidst the chaos, and spurred the others to finish off the remnants.

Those present were initially alarmed, wondering how they would explain killing so many martial artists from the Shan Family Martial Academy.

Su Yuan's words provided everyone with a way out; after all, the fact that the other side had banded together to hunt them was true, so they chimed in one after another.

"That's right! They are traitors!"

"Leave one for me!"

With Su Yuan taking the lead in shouldering the responsibility, the crowd swarmed forward to divide the heads among themselves.

He prioritized giving them to the Chai Family martial artists present.

Huang Tong witnessed this scene, her heart filled with surprise.

Was everyone actually following Su Yuan's lead?

She remembered this person was nothing more than a low-grade root with one blood-refinement.

She pulled aside a fellow sect member to ask, only then learning that Su Yuan had been elusive during the chaotic battle, his movement techniques bizarre, as he had ambushed and killed several people in succession.

No one wanted to make an enemy of him, so they chose to quit while they were ahead.

"Oh? Exceptional movement techniques?" A hint of interest flickered in Huang Tong's eyes.

"Miss Huang, thank you for this time. I'll leave these heads for you as a token of my gratitude." After saying this, Su Yuan picked up a few heads and quickly vanished into the forest.

[Dormancy: 2000/2000 (Perfected)]

[Acquired Trait: Shadow Concealment]

[Perch in shadows and restrain breath, lurk and wait for the opportunity]

[Can restrain and adjust one's own aura, body can merge into shadows, movements are swift, significantly weakens one's own presence, facilitating silent lurking and the accumulation of power]

The sound of the gong seemed to have rung out; he needed to return as quickly as possible to settle the score.

"Thank me? Because I drew away that short man?" Huang Tong's suspicions deepened.

At the camp at the valley entrance, most of those returning brought only the heads of refugees, solely to prove their loyalty.

Only a few brought back the heads of captives, causing their points to skyrocket and instantly placing them at the forefront, which made everyone else green with envy.

There were also those still struggling to hunt demonic beasts, such as Tie Niu and Wang Jin.

In the end, they could not overcome the hurdle in their hearts; although their rankings had not fallen, if they lacked loyalty, all of this would be wiped to zero.

"Brother Yuan, I've let you down. I couldn't get the medicine, and I've let the Young Master down too." Tie Niu's expression was ashen; having lost the heart to hunt, he hid himself in the mountain forest.

Chai Nian could no longer sit still: "Su Tie Niu! What are you doing!"

He had never expected that the martial artist he had poured his efforts into cultivating would have such a cowardly disposition.

Seeing Chai Nian's rare loss of composure, Shan Xiongqing couldn't help but grin.

He scanned the returning crowd, and not seeing Su Yuan's figure, he was overjoyed.

Has this brat finally died?

But where are the people from my Shan Family Martial Academy?

Gao Mian suddenly stood up, her face pale, as if she intended to leave the platform and enter the mountains.

Just at this moment, a familiar voice, carrying a hint of mockery, cut through the noisy crowd:

"The heads are here!"