Jing Hongchen, the helmsman of the Illustrious Virtue Hall and the pinnacle representative of Soul Guidance Technology in the Sun Moon Empire, was wearing a magnificent Level 9 Soul Engineer's robe and the Mingde badge, symbolizing the highest honor, on his chest.
His face no longer held its usual confidence and composure, nor the rage and distortion of someone who had been deceived; instead, it bore a deep, unyielding weariness, bitterness, and an unbelievable complexity.
His gaze passed over the despairing array of Soul Cannon and was fixed on Toji.
That gaze seemed to pierce through time, revealing the gentle figure of him in his home years ago, laughing and playing with his grandchildren, whom they adored and called "Toji."
I saw that genius I had genuinely admired, even placed high hopes on, and hoped would stay in the Sun Moon Empire...
Until that day, a shocking change occurred, a large number of core talents were swept away, and years of hard work and planning went down the drain.
He spent countless hours and used the empire's deepest intelligence network to finally uncover the truth that struck him like a thunderbolt and shattered his heart.
This young man, whom he regarded as a close friend and poured his heart and soul into, turned out to be the deepest pawn planted by the Body Sect of the Heaven Dou Empire, the most fatal blow to the heart of the empire.
Jing Hongchen's heart was bleeding; it was the pain of betrayal, and even more so, the agonizing pain of the severe damage done to the empire's future.
" Toji." Jing Hongchen's voice was dry and hoarse, carrying a heavy weariness. It sounded weak amidst the humming of countless Soul Tool charging, yet it clearly reached Toji and Du Busi's ears, "Stop."
"If you surrender now, out of consideration for our past relationship, and for the fact that Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen genuinely regarded you as their teacher, I will spare your life."
He spoke with an almost pleading tone, a last, unrealistic hope.
He really didn't want things to come to the point where they had to fight each other and completely break off relations.
That's too ugly, too heartbreaking.
Upon hearing Du Busi's rugged face revealed a strange expression. He turned his head to look at Toji, as if to say:
"Hey kid, looks like you're pretty popular? This old guy's got a knack for keeping old friends?"
However, Toji's reaction shattered Jing Hongchen's last shred of hope.
Faced with the Soul Cannon array powerful enough to Destruction a city, and faced with Jing Hongchen's complex and indescribable gaze and almost pleading words, Toji's expression remained unchanged.
He didn't even glance at the deadly cannons aimed at him; instead, calmly, even with a hint of indifference, he fixed his gaze on Jing Hongchen's face, which was etched with bitterness.
"Master," Toji's voice was as calm as stating a fact, without the slightest ripple, "Don't overthink it."
He paused, his deep eyes like a cold pool, clearly reflecting Jing Hongchen's face, which froze instantly.
"I haven't made a move yet." His Toji calm, yet carried a chilling indifference. "I'm only doing this out of politeness."
These words, like the most powerful Soul Cannon, slammed into Jing Hongchen's heart.
It shattered his last shred of hope and tenderness.
Give him face?
What utter arrogance!
What a humiliation!
Faced with this inescapable, deadly trap, he actually claimed he didn't attack out of politeness?
Jing Hongchen's refined face flushed red instantly, then turned ashen.
A surge of fury, born from being utterly despised and ruthlessly trampled upon, erupted within him like a volcano.
Reason was completely consumed by anger.
"Utterly arrogant!" Jing Hongchen roared hysterically, his eyes wide with fury.
He abruptly raised his right hand, trembling violently with extreme rage, his voice a hoarse roar like that of a wounded beast:
"Fire!! Blast them to dust!!!"
"Fire!"
"Target locked, attack!"
As Jing Hongchen roared, the Soul Engineer Legion, which had been poised to attack, responded instantly.
Countless Soul Cannon erupted with blinding light.
A Destruction surge of energy is about to erupt, completely submerging the elevator exit.
Du Busi's eyes flashed with a fierce light. He let out a low roar, his muscles bulging, and a dark green light was about to shoot into the sky, preparing to withstand the first wave of devastating volley.
However, Toji raised his hand and blocked the impending attack of Du Busi, signaling him not to intervene.
At the same time, as if by magic, he grasped the broadsword with his other hand.
The blade emitted a deep, resonant hum, as if it came from the deepest hell.
The next instant, Toji's figure vanished.
It wasn't a fleeting afterimage left by high-speed movement, but a true, complete disappearance, as if erased by space itself.
Almost at the same instant that Jing Hongchen's order to fire had barely faded away.
Countless streaks of blood-red blade light suddenly burst forth from the dense formation of the entire Soul Cannon array and the Soul Engineer Legion.
It was fast, indescribably fast, beyond thought, beyond sight, beyond the charging and firing speed of Soul Tool.
That speed is beyond human capability; it's the trajectory of death's scythe as it reaps Life.
Every slash of the blade was precise, ruthless, and extremely efficient.
Like scarlet lightning, they frantically weaved, leaped, and slashed through the crowds and artillery positions.
"Crack, boom, splat."
The sickening sound of metal tearing apart, the explosion of Soul Tool core, the dull thud of a sharp blade cutting through flesh and bone...
In an instant, they intertwined into a chilling symphony of death.
Those Soul Tool Turret, gleaming with a ferocious light, were as fragile as paper toys before the dark red blade light, regardless of their heavy barrels, intricate bases, or energy cores.
In an instant, it was cleaved, shattered, and exploded into countless flying metal fragments and bursts of electric sparks.
The elite Soul Engineer, who were holding Soul Tool and standing ready for battle, didn't even have time to show any signs of fear before their protective Soul Tool Shield shattered silently like bubbles.
The sturdy Soul Tool Armor was easily pierced as if it were thin paper.
Their bodies, under the lightning-fast blade, were like fresh meat thrown into a meat grinder, instantly severed, torn apart, and disintegrated.
Severed limbs, mixed with scalding blood and fragments of internal organs, were scattered like a torrential rain.
Only 31 seconds had passed.
Jing Hongchen felt a blur before his eyes, and his vision was filled with countless crisscrossing scarlet trails. His ears were filled with a dense, maddening sound of metal breaking, energy explosions, and flesh tearing apart.
Then, everything came to an abrupt end.
Absolute silence replaced the previous clamor.
The pungent, nauseating stench of blood, like a tangible wave, instantly overwhelmed Jing Hongchen's sense of smell.
He stiffly and slowly turned his seemingly rusty neck, looking around.
What I see before me is a true hell on earth.
The once imposing and orderly Soul Cannon array has been reduced to a metal ruin emitting smoke and sparks.