Chapter 96

The Xu family, backed by Yuncui Mountain.

The ground before their mansion was open and expansive.

When the allied army of the three families arrived, the Xu family had already mustered their forces and stood ready in formation.

“Kill!”

The two armies met without a single word; only a shared, furious roar of murderous intent echoed between them.

In an instant, the two vanguard units collided head-on like two raging torrents across the open square before the Xu mansion.

In that single moment, multiple heads flew into the air as blood rained down.

“Kill!”

Xu Zhiyuan, clad in a black robe edged with gold thread, gripped his massive sword and leapt from behind his army, stirring up fierce winds as he skimmed low across the ground like lightning, heading straight for the rear ranks of the three-family alliance.

In mid-air, he casually slashed his massive sword downward at the warriors of the three-family alliance below, sending forth a black blade of light several feet long that shot out from the blade.

The black blade of light moved with extreme speed.

A fifth-rank Great Martial Master below, caught off-guard, had his neck severed as cleanly as if cut through tofu—head and body split apart.

Yet the blade of light, after severing the martial master’s neck, continued slicing toward another sixth-rank Great Martial Master.

The martial master hastily raised his blade to block.

“Clang!”

Sparks flew everywhere.

His blade snapped cleanly in two.

But the blade of light had also dimmed considerably.

Even so, as the sixth-rank martial master retreated, his chest and clothing were slashed open.

Flesh torn, blood gushed freely.

“Kill! Kill!”

As Xu Zhiyuan charged alone toward the elite rear forces of the three-family alliance, the Xu family’s patriarch and clan elders joined the vanguard, charging into the enemy’s front line.

It was clear they intended for Xu Zhiyuan alone to tie down the entire elite rear force of the three-family alliance, while the Xu side used overwhelming superiority to annihilate the enemy’s vanguard first.

“Kill!” Seeing the Xu patriarch and elders move, the patriarchs and elders of the three-family alliance dared not hesitate—they roared in unison and charged forward to intercept them.

“Where do you think you’re going!” Xu Zhiyuan coldly barked, skimming low through the air toward Ding Bangcheng and the others.

“Fire!”

The armored eighth-rank Great Martial Masters shouted orders.

The riders drew their bows fully.

“Whizz! Whizz! Whizz!”

A sky-full of arrows rained down upon Xu Zhiyuan.

Xu Zhiyuan’s lips curled into a sneer of contempt.

Rolling power surged from his body, forming a tornado that howled across heaven and earth.

Every arrow was shredded into fragments and fell to the ground.

Xu Zhiyuan pressed forward, still heading for Ding Bangcheng and the others.

“Throw!”

The three eighth-rank Great Martial Masters roared again.

They seized the spears slung beside their saddles and hurled them with all their might toward Xu Zhiyuan.

Sharp spears pierced the air from all directions.

Seeing this, Xu Zhiyuan finally changed expression—he abandoned intercepting Ding Bangcheng and others, instead moving like a phantom through the forest of hurtling spears.

A few spears he could not dodge were split cleanly mid-air by his sword.

In an instant, Xu Zhiyuan had closed the distance to the cavalry unit, less than seven or eight zhang away.

“How could he move so fast!”

The three eighth-rank Great Martial Masters, seeing Xu Zhiyuan about to break into their ranks, realized their carefully planned ranged attacks had failed utterly—their faces paled.

Yet this elite heavy cavalry had been rigorously trained; they did not panic. As Xu Zhiyuan approached, they continued alternating between throwing spears and shooting arrows while retreating in orderly fashion, trying to slow his advance.

“Roar!”

Just as one side prepared to charge into the cavalry, and the other to block him from breaking in, an immense surge of power burst from Xu Zhiyuan, coalescing in mid-air into a black-winged tiger that roared furiously at the cavalry unit.

The tiger’s roar shook the mountains and forests.

The terrifying sonic wave of the black-winged tiger, charged with fierce, predatory energy, slammed into the opposing cavalry unit.

“Neigh! Neigh!”

The warhorses, terrified, reared up, neighing in panic.

“Die!”

In that brief moment, Xu Zhiyuan charged into the front ranks of the cavalry.

His sword rose—and a blade of light flashed like a thunderbolt across the sky.

His fist struck—and a black-winged tiger burst forth.

Though the cavalry had been prepared, clad in heavy armor resistant to blades of light and wielding specially forged greatswords that wouldn’t snap from a single slash,

The terrifying power unleashed by the master still sent riders flying from their mounts.

Those thrown to the ground were either dead or grievously wounded.

Xu Zhiyuan charged through the cavalry ranks like a wolf among sheep—no one could stand against him. Even the three eighth-rank Great Martial Masters were crushed on contact and forced to retreat, needing precious moments to recover before charging again.

In an instant, the three-family alliance’s elite cavalry—meticulously prepared at great cost—had already suffered five or six casualties.

Fortunately, the cavalry was mobile and fast; once they put distance between themselves and the enemy, they could resume shooting arrows and throwing spears, or else casualties would have been far worse.

“Charge in! He’s old—he can’t sustain this power for long!” One of the eighth-rank Great Martial Masters, seeing his ranged attacks had failed to wound Xu Zhiyuan but had clearly drained his strength, shouted decisively.

“Kill! Kill!” Each rider gripped a massive sword the size of a door panel and charged forward, riding at full gallop.

But every single rider who charged was thrown back, some even cut cleanly in half at the waist.

One eighth-rank Great Martial Master was pounced upon and slain by the black-winged tiger Xu Zhiyuan had launched.

Soon, more than half of the forty-eight cavalrymen were dead or wounded, yet Xu Zhiyuan showed no sign of weakening.

“Damn it! Wasn’t Xu Zhiyuan supposed to be old and decrepit? How is he still this strong!” Ding Chushan, hiding behind the lines, turned pale.

Though the master's techniques lacked the unpredictable, mystical variety of cultivators', they were far more direct and brutal.

Even if Ding Chushan were a cultivator, with low cultivation base and no magic treasure to protect him, once targeted by such a force, death was inevitable!

“Chushan, you can’t delay any longer—act now! Otherwise, if he keeps slaughtering like this, morale will collapse. And once these men are all dead, no one will be left to hold him off—you’ll lose your chance entirely!” said a Ding clan elder who guarded Ding Chushan closely.

“Fine!” Ding Chushan knew he could wait no longer—he gritted his teeth and pulled a small handful of seeds from a brocade pouch.

Ding Chushan glanced mournfully at the seeds in his hand, muttered incantations, formed hand seals, then hurled them far toward Xu Zhiyuan.

The seeds struck the ground and exploded, sprouting thick black vines and leaves that surged wildly, wrapping around Xu Zhiyuan.

The attack came suddenly—the black vines and leaves were dense and spread across the ground like a living tide, instantly engulfing the entire area where Xu Zhiyuan stood.

“Cultivator!”

Xu Zhiyuan’s face finally turned grim.

Power surged from him, forming a near-solid armor that shielded his entire body.

Simultaneously, a colossal blade of light erupted from his massive sword, roaring outward to slash at the vines now coiling around him.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

The vines snapped and dissolved into green smoke.

But as soon as one vine was cut, another sprouted instantly—cutting them was futile.

For a moment, Xu Zhiyuan seemed trapped and entangled.

PS: Another chapter coming soon.