Chapter 86: Victory

While Meng Dayong was leading the hunters and the yamen runners in a great battle, Meng Yifan was locked in a bloody struggle with Zhang Butou.

Zhang Butou's eyes had already been blinded by Meng Yifan, and he was poisoned internally, but as a Third Grade Martial Artist, his defensive power was too strong; Meng Yifan's own attack power could not break through his defense at all, so he could only rely on the Elm Cannon to fire Iron Balls to bombard Zhang Butou.

However, although Zhang Butou's eyes were blind, his ears were extremely sensitive; listening for sounds to determine position, the Binding Demon Rope in his hand could always intercept the Iron Balls at critical moments, and he even launched fierce counterattacks based on the direction from which the Iron Balls flew.

Fortunately, Meng Yifan was careful and cautious, changing his position after every shot, and with his speed now far exceeding Zhang Butou's, he was not bound by the Binding Demon Rope.

"A Third Grade Martial Artist using a Dharma Artifact is truly formidable; he is even harder to deal with than that Third Grade Middle Rank Flying Tiger Demon."

Meng Yifan was secretly alarmed; he had already exhausted almost all his trump cards, yet he still had no way to quickly finish off Zhang Butou. If it were a fair fight, even with his high speed, Meng Yifan would definitely be no match for Zhang Butou.

Meng Yifan fired the Iron Ball three more times, but all were blocked by Zhang Butou using the Binding Demon Rope. During this time, the thunderous roar of cannons from Meng Dayong and his men caused great interference for Zhang Butou, who relied on hearing to determine positions.

Meng Yifan's heart stirred, and seizing this opportunity, he hugged the Elm Cannon, mobilized his True Qi, and unleashed his Lingbo Microsteps lightness skill, his body instantly surging to supersonic speed.

His body was faster than the speed of sound, which meant that Meng Yifan had approached Zhang Butou before the sound of his body breaking through the air had even arrived.

Zhang Butou's eyes were blind, his ears were interfered with by the cannon fire from Meng Dayong's side, and coupled with Meng Yifan's supersonic movement technique, these factors meant that Meng Yifan had already appeared three meters away from him before Zhang Butou had even noticed.

Meng Yifan grinned and gently raised the Elm Cannon, the massive muzzle almost pressed against Zhang Butou's head.

Although the Elm Cannon did not touch Zhang Butou's skin, Zhang Butou felt as if his brow was being pricked by a needle; he immediately realized something was terribly wrong and moved to dodge to the left, but it was already too late.

"Boom!" The Elm Cannon let out a roar, and an Iron Ball shot out, smashing fiercely into Zhang Butou's head.

"Thud!" Zhang Butou's head and the Iron Ball collided head-on. Even though he was a Third Grade Martial Artist with strong defensive power, he was not strong enough to withstand a cannonball with his head; his head was like a rotten watermelon, directly smashed to pieces as red blood and white brains sprayed out.

Zhang Butou's body twitched a few times, and then he collapsed into a pool of blood.

"Ding! Killed a Third Grade Lower Tier Martial Artist, gained 500 Experience Value." The prompt from the Game Panel sounded again, and Meng Yifan was incredibly excited; it hadn't been easy, but he had finally finished off Zhang Butou.

Meng Yifan activated the Guitou Left Eye and, with some effort, sucked in Zhang Butou's soul, then immediately picked up Zhang Butou's Binding Demon Rope.

This Dharma Artifact had immense power, and like the Ghost Head Blade, a martial artist's True Qi could also activate it; such a Dharma Artifact was a divine weapon for a martial artist.

Meng Yifan looked at the battle situation; half of the Luolong County constables and yamen runners had been killed or wounded, and some had already run off without a trace. At this moment, only Lv Dazhi remained, his legs trembling, clutching his precious sword, standing all alone on the blood line he had drawn himself, looking quite ridiculous.

Meng Dayong, leading the hunters, held Bird Guns and mounted cannons, already aiming at Lv Dazhi, ready to blast him into nothingness at any moment.

At this time, Lv Dazhi gritted his teeth and persisted, not retreating a single step; even though his body trembled and he could not hold his sword steady, he still stood on the blood line, confronting Meng Dayong and the others, seemingly upholding his dignity as the County Magistrate of Luolong.

"You bunch of rebels, you are committing treason! The imperial army will soon come to suppress you, and you will all meet a miserable end!" Lv Dazhi roared hysterically.

Meng Yifan walked over and said in a clear voice: "I give you two choices: death, or surrender?"

One-third of the commoners in Luolong County still identified with the rule of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty. If Lv Dazhi, the County Magistrate, surrendered, it would certainly lead many others to surrender as well, which would be beneficial for the subsequent rule of Meng Yifan and his father.

"Pah! This official is a Juren of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty, the County Magistrate of Luolong appointed by the imperial court, a Seventh Grade Civil Official who has studied the books of the Saint and sages—how could I surrender to a mountain rebel like you?"

Lv Dazhi mobilized the Vast Righteous Qi in his chest, his voice like rolling Thunder, and combined with his official robes, he was actually awe-inspiring and untouchable.

Among the hunters of Qinghe Village, some were inwardly afraid of officials; seeing the imposing Lv Dazhi, they were so scared they almost knelt on the ground.

"Hmph!" Meng Yifan let out a cold snort and shouted: "If an official does not act for the people, they might as well go home and sell Sweet Potatoes. At a time like this, you still want to show off your official prestige and display your integrity as a civil official? Where were you before?"

"Thousands of refugees are outside the city crying out for food; what have you, the 'parent official,' done besides hoarding goods and driving up grain prices?"

"In the villages outside the city, how many commoners have been devoured by Demon Beasts, waiting day after day for you, the great County Magistrate, to send help? And you? You hid in the city to enjoy yourself, completely abandoning your subjects."

"Selling children, trading sons to eat, villages turned into ruins, white bones exposed in the wild—such human tragedies are happening right outside Luolong County. Tell me, are you, such a piece of trash, worthy of being their parent official?"

Meng Yifan's words were resonant and powerful, making Lv Dazhi feel very ashamed. If he had worked diligently and cherished the people, he would surely have gained the support of the commoners. Holding the County Magistrate Seal, he could have drawn upon several times the Dynasty Luck and the People's Will, making it easy to wipe out Meng Yifan and his father, Meng Dayong. Unfortunately, it was too late for regrets now.

"Say no more! This official will not surrender. You rebels will soon be wiped out by the imperial army!" Lv Dazhi shouted loudly.

"Then go to hell." Meng Yifan roared, then gripping the Ghost Head Blade, he lunged forward and chopped off Lv Dazhi's head with one strike.

Magistrate Lv was dead, Zhang Butou was dead, most of the constables and yamen runners were dead or wounded, and the others had already fled. The battle had happened suddenly and did not last long, and the result was a complete victory for the hunters of Qinghe Village.

Meng Yifan had always been on guard against that mysterious master of Wanxiang Tower, fearing that he would jump out at a critical moment to help Lv Dazhi, but from beginning to end, that master never appeared, as if he didn't care at all about Lv Dazhi's life or death, nor who controlled Luolong County.