A Grand Gift for Xue Xing

In the courtyard, the five death warriors clad in night-traveler gear were sent flying by the overwhelming, irresistible shockwave the moment the Emperor Colt crashed down!

They slammed into corners and walls like discarded sacks, blood spilling from their mouths and noses, bones shattered, their eyes filled with extreme horror and disbelief!

They hadn't even seen what the attacker was before this destructive force completely crushed their ability to fight!

The leader of the death warriors, whose strength was slightly superior, barely managed to stabilize his stance amidst the impact, avoiding being blown away entirely.

But when he looked up and saw the golden figure emerging from the dust—radiating celestial majesty and descending like a deity—the blood drained from his face in an instant!

"Wh... what is this?!" His voice was completely distorted by extreme terror, raspy like sandpaper rubbing together.

He had never seen such an entity; the light and pressure radiating from that armor made his very soul tremble! This was power no human Spirit Master could ever possess!

"Thud!" "Thud!"

The death warriors behind him struggled to crawl to their feet.

But the mere pressure unconsciously emitted by the Emperor Armor forced them back down onto their knees, as if they were bearing the weight of a mountain. Their bodies shook like leaves in the wind, unable to even lift their heads!

The voice from beneath the Emperor Armor's mask, filtered through metallic resonance, became grand, majestic, and cold, devoid of any human emotion, like the decree of a god:

"Speak. Whose men are you?"

He took a step forward.

"Crack!" The shattered ground beneath his feet sank another inch!

That terrifying pressure surged instantly!

The death warrior leader felt the bones throughout his body groaning, as if they would be crushed by this invisible force the next second!

The spirit power within him was like a frozen river, completely impossible to mobilize!

His pride as a Spirit King felt as insignificant as dust before this golden deity!

"Ugh—!" The leader let out a painful hiss as his knees gave way, and with a bone-grinding crunch, he collapsed heavily onto the gravel-strewn ground!

"I, I don't know what you're talking about."

As a death warrior, even if he didn't know who this sacred figure was, he could never betray his master.

Ye Yang's voice remained devoid of fluctuation: "You are certainly loyal."

The moment those words fell, the figure of the Emperor Hero blurred!

There were no flashing spirit rings, no eruption of spirit power—only a streak of pure golden light that tore through space!

"Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!"

Four subtle, almost negligible sounds of air being pierced rang out nearly simultaneously.

The four Spirit King-level death warriors who had been struggling to rise or attempting to trigger their spirit skills suddenly froze.

Their heads slid from their necks without warning, the cuts as smooth as mirrors; not even a drop of blood had time to spray out!

The four headless corpses maintained their previous postures before collapsing with a boom, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The Emperor Hero's figure solidified once more in front of the last remaining death warrior leader, as if he had never moved at all.

[Ding! Instant kill of four Spirit Kings, Presence +1, Majesty +1!]

"Uh... uh..." The death warrior leader's pupils dilated to their limit from extreme fear, his throat emitting unintelligible, rattling sounds.

He had watched with his own eyes as four colleagues with strength comparable to his own were wiped out in an instant like ants, without even a chance to resist!

The Emperor Hero slowly raised his right hand, covered in a golden gauntlet, and spread his fingers toward the leader's head, which was twisted in terror.

"Since your mouth refuses to speak..." the cold voice came through the mask, "...then let your soul provide the answer."

Hum—!

An indescribable, terrifying mental force—vast as a sea of stars and domineering as an emperor's personal arrival—erupted from the Emperor Hero's palm!

"No—!!!"

The death warrior leader let out a shrill, inhuman shriek.

Ye Yang's cold consciousness invaded the man's mind directly, and within moments, he knew the entire situation.

"Heh..."

"So it was you, that old dog barking impotently while hiding in the gutter, Xue Xing..."

He slowly released his grip.

The death warrior leader's body went limp, as if every bone had been removed, and he collapsed to the ground. His pupils dilated completely, and there was no longer a breath of life in him.

Golden light flowed around the Emperor Hero, his majesty as heavy as a prison.

"Trash... as expected, you only know how to use such underhanded tricks."

[Ding! True culprit exposed, Insight +1, Majesty +1!]

The Emperor Colt sensed its master's will and floated silently to his side.

"Oh, right. Since that old geezer Xue Xing prepared such a gift for me, I must repay him properly."

Ye Yang waved his hand, and several round objects were collected into his system space.

Ye Yang cast one final glance at the courtyard of death, thick with the stench of blood and conspiracy, before his figure transformed into a brilliant streak of golden light. He shot into the sky, vanishing instantly into the vast night.

Now that he knew who the culprit was, he had plenty of time to play with him. He just hoped Prince Xue Xing could hold out a little longer and not bore him.

Early the next morning.

"Ah--!!!"

A shriek so shrill it nearly pierced his eardrums struck like a cold steel needle, dragging Prince Xue Xing from his chaotic dreams back into reality!

"You bastard! Which ignorant wench dares to disturb this Prince's sleep!"

Prince Xue Xing bolted upright from his silk quilts. The hangover-like headache and the fury of being disturbed sent his temper soaring, and he roared harshly.

He had tossed and turned all night, only managing to close his eyes as dawn approached, and his rage was currently at its peak.

However, when he opened his bloodshot eyes, fueled by towering fury, and his gaze focused on the foot of his bed.

All his curses and all his rage were choked off, as if an invisible giant hand had clamped around his throat!

His entire body stiffened as if struck by the most terrifying immobilization soul skill, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks from sheer, absolute horror!

There, lined up neatly along the edge of his luxurious carved rosewood bed, were several... severed heads!

They were the heads of the five Spirit King-level death warriors he had sent out to carry out the frame-up!

Their faces were twisted and distorted, frozen in the extreme terror and agony of their final moments, eyes wide open, "staring" blankly at the bed.

The jagged edges of their necks were covered in dark, congealed blood that looked like ugly scabs, emitting a thick, nauseating, metallic stench of gore.

Prince Xue Xing's mind went blank, and a chill of icy terror surged from the soles of his feet straight to his scalp.

"Ah!!!"

A scream of pure terror erupted from Prince Xue Xing's throat!!!