A Thunderous Slash, Intimidating Everyone

The sound of Lin Hanzhou's horse hooves approached from afar, each beat striking the heartstrings of the warriors gathered outside the palace gate.

The closer he drew, the greater the temptation of the merit that felt within their grasp.

Just as he reached within thirty paces of the crowd, someone among the Tiger Brave Guard under the Third Prince could no longer restrain themselves.

"Hahaha! Truly, there is a path to heaven you refuse to take, yet you insist on barging into the gates of hell!"

A rough, explosive roar rang out as the Tiger Brave Guard commander, a man as burly as an iron tower, strode out from the crowd.

He carried a ghost-head saber wider than a door panel, appearing to possess immense strength.

With every step he took, the ground seemed to tremble slightly.

The formidable aura of a ninth-stage Houtian realm expert was released without reservation, whipping up a gale that made the surrounding torches crackle and snap.

The burly commander bared his yellow teeth in a wide grin, his eyes filled with the contempt and disdain of a cat playing with a mouse.

"Eleventh Highness, have you been well?"

"Why not continue living like a dog outside the city instead of running back here to throw your life away? Do you miss the final meal of a condemned man in the capital?"

As his words fell, the Tiger Brave Guard behind him erupted into raucous laughter.

They began to jeer, their words filled with insults directed at Lin Hanzhou.

On the other side, the men of the Green Garment Tower under the Ninth Prince did not intervene, choosing instead to watch with arms crossed.

In their eyes, it mattered not who struck the blow; the result would be the same.

Facing this blatant provocation, there was not a ripple of emotion on Lin Hanzhou's face.

He did not even spare the burly man a second glance, calmly dismounting and tossing the reins aside.

This dismissive gesture instantly ignited the commander's fury.

"Brat, you dare to put on airs when death is at your doorstep?"

"Fine, I'll send you on your way. Let's see if you can remain so calm once you meet the King of Hell."

Before his voice had even faded, he roared, his arm muscles knotting as he swung the heavy ghost-head saber as if it weighed nothing.

The ghost-head saber whistled as it tore through the air, descending directly toward Lin Hanzhou's head.

The strike was so powerful and heavy that even an Xiantian expert would not dare to meet it head-on.

However, just as the blade was about to make contact, Lin Hanzhou finally moved.

He did not retreat, nor did he dodge; he simply drew the longsword from his back.

It was the very same ordinary longsword he had swiped from one of Lin Yuan's guards.

Yet, in his hands, this mundane blade bloomed with unprecedented brilliance!

"Noisy."

Lin Hanzhou spat out the word coldly.

At the same time, he channeled the spiritual power within his body, following the technique he had practiced thousands of times in his memory, pouring it entirely into the blade.

Yellow-tier high-grade martial skill—Thunder Slash!

"Hum!"

The longsword let out a clear, resonant hum, and blue-purple electric arcs suddenly ignited along the blade, crackling loudly!

A sharp, lightning-like Sword Qi detached from the blade, striking the burly commander before his own blow could land.

The savage grin had yet to fade from the commander's face when he felt a flash of lightning before his eyes, followed by a chill at his neck.

The ghost-head saber in his hand lost its support and slammed into the ground with a loud clang.

His massive head flew high into the air, trailing a spray of vibrant blood.

"Thud!"

The headless corpse collapsed with a boom, blood gushing from the neck like a fountain, staining the white jade tiles beneath it.

The entire scene fell into dead silence.

The Tiger Brave Guard, who had been roaring with laughter a second ago, now stood as if their throats had been throttled, their laughter cut short.

Their faces were masks of extreme terror and disbelief.

The men from the Green Garment Tower were equally dumbstruck, their eyes filled with horror.

A one-hit kill!

A top-tier ninth-stage Houtian expert had been killed in a single strike by this rumored trash prince?!

That... that lightning-like Sword Qi...

"Xiantian! He is a Xiantian expert!"

Someone let out a scream laced with fear, instantly shattering the silence.

Panic, like a plague, spread rapidly through the crowd.

They finally realized exactly what kind of existence they had provoked.

Lin Hanzhou looked at his masterpiece and nodded inwardly.

As expected, not only could his cultivation be synchronized, but the martial arts he practiced on Blue Star could also be perfectly executed in this dream world.

His previous Thunder Slash had used less than ten percent of his strength, yet it achieved such an effect.

This gave him even more confidence in his upcoming struggle for the throne.

However, to Lin Hanzhou's surprise, this group of Houtian martial artists did not scatter and flee after their initial panic.

Although their faces were pale with terror and their legs were trembling, they still gripped their weapons tightly, blocking the palace gate stubbornly.

They dared not disobey the prince's orders.

The consequences of deserting in the face of battle might be even more miserable than dying here.

"Oh? You have some backbone?"

"Since you are in such a hurry to be reincarnated, then this prince shall grant your wish."

Lin Hanzhou raised an eyebrow, a flicker of coldness crossing his eyes.

This time, he did not hold back in the slightest.

He raised his long sword once more, and the spiritual power of the third level of the Meridian Opening Realm surged out from within his body!

"Thunder Slash!"

With a low shout, an even more dazzling electric light erupted from the blade.

This time, the Sword Qi that detached from the blade became longer, its power far beyond what it had been moments ago.

"BOOM!"

The Sword Qi, like a destructive thunderstorm, instantly swept toward the center of the crowd ahead.

"Ah--!"

Piercing screams rose one after another, only to be instantly drowned out by the thunderous explosion.

Any martial artist touched by the Sword Qi, whether at the seventh or ninth level of the Houtian Realm, was torn apart as easily as if they were made of paper.

In an instant, their bodies were blown to pieces by the violent power of the thunder, flesh and blood flying everywhere!

With just a single strike, more than twenty of the dozens of martial artists blocking the gate were killed on the spot, reduced to charred remains scattered across the ground.

This terrifying scene, akin to a divine punishment, finally shattered the last shred of psychological defense in the survivors.

"Devil! He is a devil!"

"Screw this, you want me to fight a Xiantian expert?"

"Run! Everyone, scatter and run!"

It was unclear who took the lead, but the hearts of those remaining were filled with fear, and they no longer cared about any prince's orders.

They threw away their armor and weapons, fleeing in panic in every direction, wishing their parents had given them two extra legs.

Lin Hanzhou watched their retreating backs coldly, making no move to pursue.

Chasing down these insignificant people was a complete waste of his time.

He sheathed his pristine long sword and stepped forward, crossing the ground littered with corpses and pools of blood, walking toward the tightly shut vermilion palace gate.

Now, before him, behind that majestic palace gate, lay the pinnacle of power.

And behind him, that mountain of corpses and sea of blood was a living hell.

The two were separated by nothing more than a single door.