"Ji Changyin, you promised me!!"
A shrill roar erupted from the crowd.
Then, Qin Zheng saw a figure blazing with golden light suddenly charge out.
In the blink of an eye, he crossed dozens of meters and arrived before Qin Zheng.
"You bastard, die!!!"
His palm, as large as a cattail fan, came crashing down in fury.
The fierce gust of wind nearly struck Qin Zheng head-on, sending his black hair flying wildly.
An intense sense of mortal danger exploded in his heart!
At that instant, Qin Zheng could only swiftly raise his Ghost-head Saber and use its blade to block the descending palm.
Bang!!!
An irresistible force surged through the saber and instantly flooded Qin Zheng's limbs and bones.
Then Qin Zheng was sent flying backward, hurtling dozens of meters before crashing onto the ground.
Shi Dian's eyes reddened. With a flicker of his body, he was about to pursue and kill him.
"Shi Dian, you've gone too far!!"
At that moment, Ji Changyin, who had been entangled with two men in black on the other side of the execution ground, knocked both of them back with a single slash.
Then his entire aura changed at once. Vital energy burst forth from his body, not the least bit weaker than Shi Dian's.
He stamped his foot, blasting apart the muddy ground beneath him, and instantly arrived before Shi Dian before bringing his saber down in a fierce slash.
In an instant, a garrison captain and a gang leader began battling on this execution ground.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The two were like human-shaped beasts. Every collision produced a tremendous boom.
The soldiers and commoners inside and outside the execution ground all watched this scene in horror.
At that moment, Qin Zheng lay on the muddy ground of the execution ground, feeling intense pain shooting through every part of his body.
The gap was simply too great!
Even though he had hastily improved the Ghost-head Saber Technique to mastery, he still could not withstand a single palm strike from his opponent!
Moreover, the golden light covering his opponent's body was enough to prove that the martial art he cultivated was extraordinary.
There was surely no small gap between his Ghost-head Saber Technique and his opponent's martial art!
Listening to the unceasing thunderous impacts beside him,
Qin Zheng endured the pain throughout his body and struggled to turn himself over and rise.
Then he spared a thread of attention to look at the Merit Scroll within his mind sea.
Qin Zheng Lifespan: 70 (17) Martial Art: Ghost-head Saber Technique (Mastery) Merit: 1 tael, 2 mace Current martial art · Ghost-head Saber Technique can be improved. Requires 8 mace of merit. Improve?
It could still be improved!
Joy rose in Qin Zheng's heart. Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately murmured inwardly, Improve!
In an instant, countless memories related to saber techniques surfaced in Qin Zheng's mind.
At the same time, he felt a current of heat emerge from within his body, soaking into his bones and muscles before finally merging into his skin.
Under the effects of that heat, his skin seemed to become somewhat tougher.
The pain throughout his body was also suppressed a little.
But before he could carefully experience the changes in his body,
Qin Zheng's gaze was drawn to the two figures fighting ahead, and a trace of shock appeared in his eyes.
Could human strength truly reach such a level?!
"Hmm?!"
At the same time, Shi Dian caught sight of Qin Zheng standing up from the corner of his eye and was first startled.
But fury immediately followed!
That executioner who had chopped off his son's head was actually still alive?!
So he let out a roar. The golden light over his body brightened again, and he thrust out his palm, batting Ji Changyin's saber aside with one strike.
Then he turned, stamped his foot, and charged fiercely toward Qin Zheng.
Qin Zheng's expression suddenly darkened. He clenched the Ghost-head Saber in his hand.
His feet pressed into the earth as strength coursed through his entire body, seeming to rise from the ground, travel through his spine, and finally spread into both arms.
Then he shot forward!
The Ghost-head Saber Technique had no fancy flourishes, only the most extreme slashes!
With courage in one's heart, one saber strike fell, and heads rolled like rain!
That was the essence of the Ghost-head Saber Technique!
Seeing Qin Zheng take the initiative to meet him with saber in hand, the expressions of the commoners and soldiers around the execution ground changed slightly.
They had not expected a mere executioner to truly have the courage to raise his saber against the leader of a major gang in Black Goose City!
For a moment, all manner of emotions tangled in everyone's hearts, leaving their expressions complicated.
There was anger toward Shi Dian, as well as admiration for Qin Zheng.
They were angry that Shi Dian, as the leader of a gang, had allowed his son to bully men and dominate women in Black Goose City, committing every evil deed imaginable!
They were angry that after his son had been beheaded, Shi Dian only dared vent his rage upon the weak!
At the same time, they admired Qin Zheng's courage in daring to draw his saber against Shi Dian!
One had to know that Shi Dian, as the leader of the Golden Cicada Gang, was one of the foremost experts in all of Black Goose City!
Even that garrison captain dispatched by the imperial court to oversee the execution ground had been unable to take him down for the moment!
Before him, ordinary people likely did not even have the courage to look him in the eye, much less draw their blades against him!
As ordinary people themselves, the commoners present all hoped for a miracle at that moment, hoping Qin Zheng could win!
Though that was impossible.
Ji Changyin also revealed a trace of surprise when he saw this scene.
He had thought that the young executioner had been beaten to death by Shi Dian's hatred-filled palm strike earlier.
He had not expected Qin Zheng not only to survive, but to still have the strength and courage to face Shi Dian with saber in hand.
Meanwhile, the fury in Shi Dian's heart burned like oil poured upon blazing fire!
That executioner actually dared resist him of his own accord!
Had Shi Dian gone too long without making a move, allowing even a mere executioner to become confident enough to fight him?!
He roared, and the golden light radiating from his body grew even brighter.
Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, his golden palms and the Ghost-head Saber collided fiercely.
Clang!!
The crisp sound of weapons striking echoed across the execution ground.
Shi Dian's expression stiffened slightly. He seemed both surprised and confused.
Though the power behind this slash was far inferior to his own, it had clearly improved greatly compared to before!
The executioner before him was already capable of barely receiving one of his moves!
Everyone took in this scene, surprise appearing on their faces along with a trace of hope.
But the stalemate did not last even a breath before Qin Zheng once again felt a vast force pass through the saber and invade his body.
And the force this time was even stronger than before!
Bang!
Under that force, Qin Zheng was once again blasted backward like a cannonball.
A trace of disdain flashed through Shi Dian's eyes. He took a step forward, about to pursue once more.
Yet before he could take even half a step, his expression changed drastically.
Ji Changyin's saber had somehow already descended upon his back.
The golden light radiating from his skin showed faint signs of scattering beneath that slash.
"Ji Changyin!!!"
Shi Dian roared. His body suddenly sank low, evading the slash, before he fled wildly toward the outside of the execution ground.
Ji Changyin remained where he was, holding his saber-swinging posture without pursuing him.
Only after Shi Dian's figure had vanished did a soldier step forward and respectfully ask, "My lord?"
"Gather everyone. Today, we wipe out the Golden Cicada Gang!"
Ji Changyin spoke slowly, his expression calm.
"Yes!"
The soldier's expression shook as he felt that Black Goose City was about to see its sky change.
Ji Changyin's gaze, meanwhile, turned toward the distance, toward the figure struggling to rise.
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