Ferocious might!

Hong Yuan did not bother checking for survivors. He surged forward a step and landed inside the private room.

He thrust the short staff in his hand forward, spinning it into contact with the short spear still embedded in the armored soldier's chest. With a crisp clang, the two fitted together seamlessly.

The Life-Taking Throat-Locking Spear was in his hands!

Hong Yuan did not even pull the spearhead free. A slight lift of his palm hoisted the soldier's corpse, which he abruptly hurled into two armored soldiers charging toward him, knocking them down.

Before either could rise, two sharp whistles tore through the air.

Two thrusts pierced their throats almost simultaneously. Before that cold iron spear, the armor plates guarding their throats tore like silk!

Guo Zhen cried out hoarsely, "I am Guo Zhen, left captain of the Jintang Battalion! Whoever kills this villain for me, I will recommend him to the Jintang Battalion as a company commander!"

His words echoed through the courtyard.

At this declaration, the remaining fighters, who had been cowed by Hong Yuan's savagery, began weighing their chances, as did the guards beside the other dignitaries.

A company commander in the Jintang Battalion commanded at least a hundred or two hundred regular soldiers. For martial men like them, that was practically ascending to heaven in a single step.

Third Master Jin of the Canal Gang's expression shifted. Gritting his teeth, he ordered his guards, "Go save Captain Guo! Hurry! Hurry!"

He naturally had no interest in a company commander's position. But rescuing Captain Guo would earn him an enormous favor, one that could greatly help him secure his standing in the Canal Gang and even advance further.

Before any of them could act, a razor-sharp aura suddenly burst forth beneath Hong Yuan's feet, like a venomous snake that had lain hidden for ages, striking only when the perfect opportunity arrived.

A longsword flashing with cold light suddenly stabbed through the floor, thrusting upward from below straight at Hong Yuan's vulnerable underside.

As that chilling aura erupted, an indifferent voice rang out. "Heart-Piercing Sword Lin Xiu will slay this brute for the captain!"

Of all the fighters at this Hero Arena, three had been the strongest favorites: Smiling Buddha, Iron Chain Across the River Zhao Heng, and Heart-Piercing Sword Lin Xiu.

When the other fighters had first rushed to kill Hong Yuan, Lin Xiu had moved too. But instead of leaping onto the terrace to confront him head-on, he had slipped into the private room beneath Guo Zhen's.

He had been waiting.

Only now did the true force he had secretly gathered erupt, surging power converging on his longsword.

Lin Xiu had not yet reached the level of receive-and-release-at-will, but he had already touched its threshold. His eruption of power was truly like a raging hurricane. The floor shattered inch by inch, and his sword flashed like cold lightning, arriving in a single dazzling instant.

It was a swift, vicious thrust that could pierce an enemy from bottom to top in the blink of an eye.

A savage grin spread across Lin Xiu's face. He seemed already to hear his opponent's screams, already to see himself draped in splendid official robes, ordering others about with imperious gestures.

Then came a soft puff, and that swift sword light was gently snuffed out like a candle flame.

What snuffed out that flame was a foot!

Hong Yuan stamped down. That lightning-like sword light should have pierced his sole, but beneath his foot, the longsword shuddered and tilted sideways. Then he pinned its blade underfoot.

In the next instant, tremendous force traveled through the sword and spread into Lin Xiu's hand.

Lin Xiu was an aloof young man in his twenties. To have attained such martial prowess at his age already made him an outstanding young talent with a brilliant future.

But as that vibrating force struck, Lin Xiu had no time even to release his sword. The blade became a lever, and with a dull boom, it flipped his entire body into the air.

He shot straight up into the second-floor private room.

A large hand descended and closed around his neck, hoisting him into the air like a squawking duck seized by the throat.

"Who were you going to kill?"

Hong Yuan met his eyes, his expression hostile.

During that brief delay, several guards beside Guo Zhen had already smashed through the rear wall and leaped down with him.

Lin Xiu suddenly felt weak all over. He squeezed two words from his throat. "Spare me..."

"A grown man, and still so childish!"

Hong Yuan shifted his gaze and saw an enormous figure rushing at Yang Erhu on the terrace.

It was a Great Monk wearing prayer beads and a welcoming smile—Smiling Buddha himself.

That was also why Hong Yuan had not pursued Guo Zhen.

His expression unchanged, he swept out with Lin Xiu in his grip. Though he moved later, he arrived first, swinging Lin Xiu's entire body like a heavy hammer and smashing him toward Smiling Buddha.

But Smiling Buddha chuckled, evidently prepared, and shifted nimbly aside.

Though broad and bulky, his footwork was exceptionally swift and agile. His monk's robes fluttered around him like the wings of a fat goose.

Whoosh!

As he deftly dodged the blow, he moved to Hong Yuan's side. His bowl-sized fist blasted out toward Hong Yuan's temple!

Lin Xiu's body smashed through the railing. Sharp wooden splinters burst outward and pierced his chest.

With Hong Yuan committed to that swing, his spent force had yet to be renewed. Smiling Buddha's fist tore through the air at his side, while a fierce surge of force came at him from behind.

Clatter!

A chain rattled wildly as it whipped toward Hong Yuan from behind, lashing at his neck. The last of the three, Iron Chain Across the River Zhao Heng, had made his move.

The two had noticed that Hong Yuan and Yang Erhu shared an unusual bond. Attacking Yang Erhu had merely been a feint, intended to lure Hong Yuan into a trap and strike him from front and rear.

Now both unleashed their prepared blows simultaneously, erupting with true force in a killing strike!

"Die!"

Zhao Heng was a dark-skinned middle-aged man. Half of his twenty-foot chain was wound around his arm, while one end writhed like a dragon. That venomous dragon seemed poised to devour his opponent whole.

Hiss!

Silver light suddenly flashed at the corner of his eye. A silver streak tore through the air, piercing the gaps in the chain like savage lightning and driving toward him in an instant.

Zhao Heng felt a chill in his chest. He looked down, the ferocity on his face frozen stiff.

A silver spear had plunged into his body. As its head withdrew, it took all his strength with it.

Hong Yuan wielded the spear backhanded, taking Zhao Heng's life with a single thrust. At the same time, he clenched his left hand and punched straight into Smiling Buddha's oncoming fist.

Whether the swordsman Lin Xiu or Smiling Buddha and Zhao Heng, all three were seasoned fighters with exceptionally ruthless methods.

Even a Subtlety grandmaster caught by those two ambushes would likely have suffered injuries, if not death.

After all, in this world's martial arts, Subtlety meant only a stronger physique and a deeper mastery of changing force. There was no fundamental gulf separating its practitioners from the martial men beneath them.

As long as they remained mortal, they could be killed in an ambush.

Hong Yuan too was flesh and blood, but he had gradually begun developing traces of supernatural qualities. His spiritual perception had detected all three ambushes long before they struck.

Even now, avoiding the Great Monk's punch would have been effortless.

But there was no need.

Bang!

Fist met fist. Smiling Buddha stopped smiling. His face turned the color of pig liver, and he looked about to roar as the sound of shattering bones erupted from his enormous fist.

It was not merely his finger bones that broke. Tremendous force surged upward, pulverizing his wrist bones inch by inch. Just as he was about to scream, a fist flashed and struck his broad, fat face.

Smiling Buddha's body spun through the air, flew off the terrace, and crashed onto the paving tiles below.

The courtyard descended into chaos. The remaining fighters, the wealthy nobles in the private rooms, and their guards all gaped in horror.

Third Master Jin of the Canal Gang had sent his dozen or so guards to rescue Guo Zhen. They had barely run a dozen paces before freezing in their tracks, their faces pale.

They were supposed to fight a monster like this?

Was this some kind of joke?

He was far too savage, far too ferocious!

When had they ever seen such a vicious figure?

How much time had passed since this man appeared, battered Young Master Hua, killed He Xiaofeng, and then fought the martial men who rose against him?

At most, fifteen or twenty breaths!

He had slaughtered several armored soldiers and more than ten highly skilled fighters as easily as chopping melons and slicing vegetables. They had never seen such a savage man, nor even heard of one. Only the fiends and vicious ghosts in storybooks possessed such ferocious might. Who could fail to fear him?

Who still dared step forward to fight?

Hong Yuan flicked his wrist, touching the dark spear tip to the chain. With a harsh grinding sound, sparks sprayed outward, landing on the drapes trailing along the floor and swiftly kindling a blaze.

He flicked the Long Spear upward!

Clatter!

The nearly twenty-foot chain whipped into the air and hissed into Hong Yuan's left hand. He squeezed it lightly. The chain was only two fingers thick, but tough and durable, evidently forged from excellent material.

"So you enjoy watching people fight and kill each other?"

"What's the fun in just sitting there watching?"

"I'll give you a little chance to participate. Let's all play a battle royale!"

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

With the chain in his grasp, Hong Yuan moved his hand. It surged up like an enraged dragon and lashed violently outward.

Four massive stone pillars stood around the arena, each topped by an enormous gilded bronze basin filled with oil. Their brilliant flames illuminated the vast courtyard.

But as the dragon-like chain struck, it shattered the top of one pillar into flying fragments. A bronze basin instantly came loose, and the chain swept it into the air.

Roar!

The bronze basin shuddered with a deep hum. Fire blazed within it, scattering countless sparks that bloomed in midair like fireworks. Then those blossoms of flame fell toward the buildings on every side.

Hong Yuan did not stop. The chain spun rapidly in his hand, striking the shattered stones through the air before they could fall. A succession of clangs rang out like bells and chimes.

Oil splashed from the three bronze braziers, sending fiery sparks in every direction. Some even landed on people who were fleeing in panic and could not dodge in time. Miserable screams instantly filled the air.

At the same time, flames rose inside the buildings on all four sides.

Cries of alarm erupted. Countless figures scrambled about, wailing for their mothers and fathers as they fled outside.

Only now did Young Master Hua pull his head out of the floor, screaming in unbearable pain. His once rather handsome face was a mangled mess of blood and flesh.

Suddenly, his head sank again as a foot stamped it back into the floor. He heard a voice ask, "Teacher, why are you here?"