The Fiercest Under Heaven!

The scene was gruesome. The ground was a sea of crimson, and the corpses could hardly be called bodies anymore. Not a single one remained intact, as if they had been crushed to death by massive boulders.

They must have died in a single instant, too quickly to even let out a groan of pain.

Otherwise, there surely would have been some cries of agony.

Zhu Youning cast his gaze toward the remains, his brow furrowing; the sight was truly physically unsettling.

He then looked toward the adjacent corridor.

A group of people emerged from the hallway, led by Jiang Renjie and his Xuanming Cult assassins. It seemed they had sensed something amiss and rushed over.

Zhu Youning addressed the approaching Jiang Renjie, "The state of these bodies is horrific. Benevolent Saint Yama King, among those present, you are the most knowledgeable. Can you determine the cause of death?"

Jiang Renjie cupped his hands in a salute before walking toward the mangled corpses.

After examining them for a moment, Jiang Renjie reached his conclusion.

"These people were likely crushed to death! The weapon used was probably a blunt instrument, like a meteor hammer." Jiang Renjie lived up to his reputation as the head of the Five Yama Kings, identifying the cause of death at a single glance.

Zhu Youning shook his head, however, and said, "No, I believe they weren't crushed by a weapon, but by a person."

"Crushed by a person? With what?"

"Fists!"

"There is no one in this world with fists that large!"

Jiang Renjie reflexively denied it, but as the words left his lips, a person suddenly came to mind. His brow furrowed, and he exclaimed in shock, "No, there really is someone in this world with fists that large! Could it be..."

Before Jiang Renjie could finish, a lewd laugh suddenly echoed from the horizon.

The sound came abruptly, followed by the thunderous, rhythmic thud of massive footsteps in the distance, each impact vibrating the ground like an earthquake.

"With this kind of commotion, could it really be him?!"

Jiang Renjie's expression turned grim, his face betraying a trace of fear and panic.

For someone like Jiang Renjie, the head of the Five Yama Kings, to feel fear, the newcomer was certainly no simple character!

One had to remember that Jiang Renjie was a man who could commit regicide without a change in expression; he had long ago buried the emotion of panic deep within his heart.

"What is happening? Is the earth dragon turning over?"

Wu Yi tensed his entire body, his face full of vigilance.

Zhu Youning, knowing exactly who it was, immediately issued orders. He had three hundred soldiers step forward to form a formation, then commanded the remaining troops to take up bows and arrows, climb onto the surrounding rooftops, and prepare to fire.

He already knew who had arrived.

Just then, a deafening crash rang out. A giant smashed through the courtyard wall with a single punch and stepped through the hole, his movements causing the ground to tremble. With every step he took, the floor tiles shattered, sinking under the weight of his massive footprints. The ground around the prints cracked and split, sending dust billowing into the air.

The giant soon came to a halt.

He stood nearly four meters tall, his body a mass of knotted muscles. His neck was thick, his shoulders and back as broad and heavy as rock, and his bare skin was covered in bulging, corded sinew.

At that moment, the giant's hand—larger than a normal man's head—was clamped around the neck of a horse. Combined with his ferocious, demon-like visage, his mere presence radiated a soul-chilling terror.

The horse, held in the giant's grip, could not touch the ground with its hooves and whinnied incessantly, but to no avail.

This horse was Zhu Youning's own mount.

And this man was none other than the master of the Filial Sect of Tongwen Hall, the tenth of the Jin State's Thirteen Taibao, known as the "World's Greatest Warrior," Li Cunxiao!

Seeing the towering Li Cunxiao, the many soldiers were stunned. Even Jiang Renjie, the head of the Five Yama Kings, could not hide the look of fear on his face.

Perched atop the giant's head stood a small, monkey-like figure. This was the master of the Loyal Sect of Tongwen Hall, the ninth of the Thirteen Taibao, Li Cunzhong.

Li Cunzhong let out a lewd chuckle and said, "It took some time to track down this beast that dared to provoke us, but I didn't expect you all to deliver yourselves to our doorstep! Tenth Brother, slaughter this beast first, then we shall kill this lot!"

At these words, Li Cunxiao let out a roar and gripped the horse's head, his fingers, hard as steel bars, sinking into its flesh.

The strong, tall steed had no strength to struggle in his grasp. Li Cunxiao applied a little more force, and with the sound of shattering bone, the horse's eyeballs burst out along with its brains as its skull was crushed to pieces.

The horse twitched violently a few times before collapsing, motionless. Finally, Li Cunxiao grabbed the horse's hind legs with his other hand and pulled with all his might.

Splat!

Horse blood sprayed into the sky, splashing everywhere, yet it was blocked by an invisible aura of internal energy just before it could touch Li Cunxiao.

After finishing this, Li Cunzhong looked at the terrified crowd in the courtyard and said with pleasant surprise, "Originally, the Holy Lord only ordered me to kill Wang Shifan. I didn't expect to find such a big fish here besides him! Rebel Zhu Youning, you have followed Zhu Wen in treason and rebellion, throwing the imperial court into chaos. Everyone has the right to punish you. Since you've come here, don't think about leaving!"

"Insolence! How dare you address His Majesty and Prince An by their names!"

Wu Yi stepped forward, shielding Zhu Youning with his body. He drew his sword from his waist, tilted it slightly, and pointed the tip at the small Li Cunzhong atop Li Cunxiao's shoulders. "Archers, ready!"

The creaking of bowstrings being drawn tight filled the air, but Li Cunzhong remained entirely unfazed. He looked around at the fully armed Longxiang Army soldiers, who stood with expressionless faces.

"As expected of the well-trained elite troops of the Liang State; they show no fear even when facing my Tenth Brother. It is a pity they are about to die."

"Die? It remains to be seen who will die!"

Wu Yi immediately shouted, "Shield-bearers, advance slowly! Archers, aim at Li Cunzhong—fire!"

In an instant, hundreds of archers on the rooftops drew their bows, and arrows rained down like a storm.

The target of this arrow rain was not Li Cunxiao, but Li Cunzhong on his back.

Li Cunxiao clearly had no intention of letting those arrows harm Li Cunzhong, immediately extending his arm to shield him. The sharp arrowheads collided with Li Cunxiao's corded, muscular arm, leaving behind nothing more than faint white marks.

This sight left Zhu Youning deeply worried.

He truly lives up to the title of the world's mightiest! Li Cunxiao's body is practically impervious to blades and arrows!

Li Cunzhong remained extremely calm from start to finish. Seeing all the incoming arrows blocked, he couldn't help but boast, "Do you really think a few pathetic arrows can harm the world's mightiest, Li Cunxiao?!"

Zhu Youning made a prompt decision and ordered, "All troops, switch to fire arrows!"

The archers on the rooftops calmly swapped to fire arrows, pulled their bowstrings with the strength of their arms, and took aim at Li Cunxiao, ready to strike.

"Volatile Fire, throw!"

Following Zhu Youning's command, the soldiers on the ground immediately hurled over twenty jars and canisters toward Li Cunxiao.

Just as these jars landed around Li Cunxiao, Zhu Youning immediately ordered, "Fire!"

With a thrum, the flaming arrows left the strings, tracing subtle arcs through the air before raining down upon the jars.

BOOM!

A series of explosions erupted one after another, and within a ten-meter radius centered on Li Cunxiao, flames instantly soared into the sky.