Chapter 41: Chapter Forty: One-Man Army

Dozens of assassins had both arms broken, lying in the distance softly crying out in pain.

Over a hundred assassins gripped knives with both hands, expressionless as they stared at Wu Tie.

The river wind howled, the blood-red banner fluttering, Wu Tie stood beside the banner holding a long spear, his cold gaze sweeping over the crowd.

He emphasized again: "This place is my territory. All the game here is my game… You have occupied my land, seized my game, delayed my cultivation… This is not right."

Over a hundred uninjured assassins let out a low, deep shout in unison.

Blade light like snow, blade light like lightning, countless long and short glints of cold swept from all directions, covering Wu Tie's entire body.

Wu Tie's spear in hand was like a sturdy bamboo in the wind, tracing supple yet powerful arcs; straight blades hacked at the spear, sending sparks flying and shattering the blades. Moreover, a barrage of flying knives, needles, darts and other hidden weapons came at him, all swept away by his spear.

Whenever a straight blade touched his spear, the Mist Blade assassins all cried out in pain and were flung backward.

At the third layer of Foundation Establishment, Wu Tie's physical strength was beyond imagination; fighting these Mist Blade assassins was like a bull bullying a bunch of rabbits, their strengths utterly incomparable.

Even among these assassins, there were many who had condensed qi into gang at the third layer of Foundation Establishment.

In the span of a single breath, another dozen assassins were sent flying; moreover, dozens who had unleashed all their concealed weapons stood frozen, eyes wide.

"Kill!" rang a shrill, angry howl, and a dozen assassins drew their straight blades, ferociously charging at Wu Tie.

They drew Wu Tie's attention; they were still a dozen meters away, when in a patch of large ferns behind him a gray dwarf 1.23 meters tall, square-built like an anvil, silently rushed out.

Among the Mist Blade assassins, human assassins were merely the regular elite.

Within the Mist Blade, there were also many non-human assassins—ox tribes, wolf tribes, gray dwarves, even stone dwarves. Any non-human group that could join the Mist Blade must possess its own formidable traits.

Just like the gray dwarf that rushed out from behind Wu Tie.

Short and square-built, the gray dwarf's body was knotted with muscle, exuding a domineering, savage ferocity. He charged out holding a pickaxe in each hand, his arms thicker than a normal person's thigh swinging the pickaxes silently, brutally striking at Wu Tie's back and head.

The fern thicket where the gray dwarf hid was twenty to thirty meters from Wu Tie, yet the dwarf leapt like a flea, emerging from the ferns and in a single bound appearing behind Wu Tie, his pickaxes flashing with two cold glints as he smashed them down.

On the strangely shaped pickaxe, several faint blood-red patterns flickered with dazzling light.

The pickaxe vibrated violently at high frequency, the air before its tip condensing into a white veil due to the intense oscillation.

When the gray dwarf reached behind Wu Tie, his swinging speed finally broke the limit; the two pickaxes' forward white veil exploded with a thunderous roar.

This gray dwarf swung his pickaxe, breaking the sound barrier and erupting with a deep, deafening blast.

The blast echoed, and a dozen assassins charging head-on shouted in unison; their synchronized roar faintly suppressed the blast, perfectly covering the gray dwarf's surprise attack.

Mist Blade, the local tyrant of the Cangyan Realm, the most terrifying assassin syndicate in the dark world, naturally possesses its own unique assassination methods. The coordination between these assassins and the gray dwarf is flawless; ordinary people cannot evade this meticulously designed killing trap.

Wu Tie is no ordinary person.

An invisible force field enveloped him; when the gray dwarf sneaked into the ferns, Wu Tie had already noticed him.

When the gray dwarf silently leapt from the ferns and swung his pickaxe in a fierce attack, the invisible force field roiled; the air behind Wu Tie undulated, and when the pickaxe was just over a foot from his body, the air behind him nearly solidified.

Two booming blasts struck the semi‑transparent, rapidly undulating air wall.

Forged from refined steel and bearing strange blood‑red patterns, the pickaxe exploded in a blinding flash, shattering into fragments. Countless iron shards flew backward; the gray dwarf, quick to react, dropped the haft, raised his broad, heavy palms to shield his face, and curled his body into a ball as he retreated hastily.

Wu Tie, spear in hand, whipped it back with a vicious strike.

The spherical gray dwarf was sent flying by Wu Tie's spear; amid the dull impact came the crack of breaking bones like popping beans, he spat a mouthful of blood and was flung dozens of meters into a clump of huge mushrooms.

A nest of poisonous spiders that couldn't dodge was crushed by the gray dwarf; covered in unknown slurry and mud, he staggered to his feet, roared "Retreat!", and was the first to turn and flee toward the Mist Blade stronghold.

The surrounding Mist Blade assassins, having received the order, turned and left without a word.

Even those with broken arms suffered no hindrance to their legs; employing the Mist Blade's unique afterimage footwork, they each ran at breakneck speed.

On the contrary, the gray dwarf was short; though his thighs were thick, they were far too short. He ran with all his might, yet could not outpace the Mist Blade assassins, lagging behind and cursing loudly in frustration.

Two Mist Blade assassins ran over, grabbing his left and right arms, hauling him to speed up his escape.

Wu Tie smiled, pulled out the flagpole, and stepped toward the Mist Blade stronghold.

He appeared to stroll, his invisible force field enveloping his whole body; each step effortlessly covered ten‑plus meters, his movements light and agile, not much slower than the assassins fleeing at full speed.

In the Mist Blade stronghold, a sharp alarm sounded.

On the walls, a large crowd of assassins and warriors surged forth, weapons in hand, gazing toward Wu Tie's position.

By the time the fleeing assassins rushed back to the stronghold, Wu Tie was already shouldering the banner, standing on the riverbank outside the stronghold.

With a clang, the flagpole was driven deep into the ground; Wu Tie held his spear and pointed it toward the Mist Blade stronghold. From the great river behind came a clamor, as many fishfolk and frogfolk thronged a hundred‑meter wooden boat, shouting from the opposite bank as they approached.

The Three Venerable Overseers of Mist Blade appeared at the stronghold's gate, standing side by side, their gazes like blades scrutinizing Wu Tie.

Wu Tie was actually quite nervous.

He knew he was no match for the Three Venerable Overseers.

Were it not for the confidence given by his armor, Wu Tie would not have the bravado to block the gate and declare war.

Gripping his spear, Wu Tie drew a deep breath and repeated the words he had just spoken to those Mist Blade assassins: this fertile secret realm of a thousand li radius is his domain; every creature here, even the tiniest spider or lizard, is his prey.

The Three Venerable Overseers snorted coldly in unison.

The Eighth Overseer said calmly: "Are you a native here? A lone wanderer? Never mind who you are, or perhaps this secret realm is indeed an inheritance from your ancestors… So what? What Mist Blade sets its sights on becomes Mist Blade's."

The Seventh Overseer spoke more overbearingly: "Cut the nonsense; nothing taken by Mist Blade is ever returned. Kid, you have some talent—join Mist Blade… or tell me how you want to die."

The other Overseer, the one who had recently launched a surprise attack that gravely wounded Red Granny, remained silent.

He merely sized Wu Tie up and down, his chilling gaze making Wu Tie feel ill at ease.

Behind Wu Tie, on the great river, the Changsheng Sect's wooden boat had already drawn near; over two thousand fishfolk and frogfolk brandished weapons and roared, stirring wave after wave on the water. Several large fish that couldn't evade were slain by the frogfolk, torrents of blood staining the river red.

Elder Bone, Elder Orchid, and several clan heads stood on the bow, keenly watching the standoff between Wu Tie and the three Mist Blade Overseers.

Elder Bone suddenly laughed: "This one… Mist Blade are a bunch of unreasonable killers; what's there to say with them?"

Elder Orchid chuckled: "Our Changsheng Sect is different; we open our doors wide, recruiting all aspirants of longevity from across the world to jointly pursue the supreme Dao of immortality. Our sect embraces all things and offers countless pleasures—truly a premier place in the world."

Elder Bone laughed: "Look at your stature; if you joined our Changsheng Sect, you'd surely overwhelm Mist Blade… and monopolize this secret realm."

Elder Orchid's eyes gleamed as he chuckled: "You say this is your territory… no problem. If you can join our Changsheng Sect, drive out—no, annihilate these killers, this secret realm will be yours, becoming a branch hall under your charge—absolutely no problem!"

Elder Bone and Elder Orchid laughed, feeling greatly reassured.

The recruitment terms they offered were certainly not bad.

"You are alone here, lonely and desolate—where is there a master of a branch hall, with countless sons and daughters at your disposal to enjoy yourself?" Elder Bone looked around, then praised: "If this secret realm were fully developed and utilized, it could support millions of people..."

Elder Lan exclaimed loudly: "Millions of people… In the Cangyan Realm, no family has ever been able to reach such a scale."

The faces of the three Mist Blade Leaders darkened a bit.

Although they didn't care about a mere Wu Tie.

But Wu Tie could defeat over two hundred elite assassins, clearly he is a minor master not to be underestimated.

Such a person, if he joined the Changsheng Sect… and then been trained by those heretical methods of the sect, Wu Tie, whose strength surged, would pose some threat to them.

The enemy is strong, we are weakened—this is certainly not a good thing.

Simply, that is the tradition of Mist Blade; they are accustomed to ferocity and tyranny, and they could never lower themselves to recruit Wu Tie.

Wu Tie pondered for a moment, then turned his body and looked toward Elder Bone and Elder Lan on the wooden boat.

Elder Bone and Elder Lan burst into laughter.

They are highly skilled in all kinds of recruitment tactics; even a man as tough as steel, under the Changsheng Sect's painstaking efforts, rarely fails to be won over.

Even if you were a Blazing Vajra, they could melt you into a puddle with their various methods.

Several girls standing behind Elder Bone and Elder Lan, gorgeous and alluring, only slightly inferior to Shi Lingqing, stepped forward and gave Wu Tie a bewitching smile: "Sir, the Changsheng Sect opens its gates wide, specially welcoming heroes of the world."

From over two hundred meters away, as these girls swayed, their long sleeves fluttering, a faint fragrance drifted over, rich and intoxicating, making people feel drowsy.

Wu Tie bit the tip of his tongue hard, breaking free from the ambiguous, decadent atmosphere those girls had created.

He took a deep breath and suddenly removed his helmet.

On his forehead, the bloody characters "Changsheng" were strikingly visible.

Elder Bone raised his brow sharply, Elder Lan let out an angry howl, he pointed a finger, a point of red light flickered at his fingertip, and the "Changsheng" characters on Wu Tie's brow suddenly heated and shone.

"Was it you who killed Lingqing that lass?" Elder Lan's face twisted: "How could you bring yourself to do it?"

Wu Tie gave a cold snort: "Shi Lingqing wasn't killed by me… she plotted against Granny Hong, she…"

Elder Bone and Elder Lan both shouted loudly: "Shut up!"

The two glanced at each other, a fleeting smirk of collusion passing, Elder Bone said coldly: "Kid, since you killed my Changsheng Sect disciples, no matter what, we cannot accept you into the sect… otherwise, how could we face the countless disciples of the sect?"

The three Mist Blade Leaders stationed at the stronghold's entrance simultaneously snorted coldly.

Elder Bone and Elder Lan glanced at the three leaders, also snorted coldly; a trace of Blood Light flashed in Elder Lan's eyes as he pointed at Wu Tie and roared: "Kill him… to avenge our sect's disciples."

Before the wooden boat, a black-scaled fishperson warrior nearly three meters tall let out a strange cry and leapt up from the water.

This fishperson warrior had a long fish fin protruding from his back, like dozens of small blades stuck there; sharp fish-fin-like protrusions also covered his limb joints, and his mouth full of jagged teeth was quite ferocious.

This guy's leaping ability was astonishing—one jump carried him tens of meters, and in an instant he was before Wu Tie, hoisting a huge white bone staff and smashing it down upon his head.

These fishpeople bore no traces of cultivation; given their intelligence, they could hardly learn any cultivation techniques, relying solely on their innate physique for battle. The great white bone staff sounded "whoo-whoo", as rushing air passed through its hollows, producing a flute-like tone.

Wu Tie thrust his long spear straight forward.

The spear pierced the white bone staff; the over-two-meter-long, thigh-thick staff shattered into fragments, the spear pierced the fishperson's shoulder, and Wu Tie, using both hands to lift, flung the fishperson dozens of meters high in an arc, where it crashed heavily onto the boat's prow.

A large amount of blood spurted from the fishperson's shoulder wound, splashing onto the boots of Elder Bone and Elder Lan.

Their faces slightly changed, and they both snorted coldly.

Merely, the fishperson whose shoulder had been pierced suddenly swelled up, then with a "pop" exploded into a cloud of blood mist, which Elder Lan flung away with his wide sleeve into the river.

"Kid, you've got some skill—no wonder Lingqing died at your hands… hum, it seems Granny Hong's death is also related to you?" Elder Lan gave a sinister laugh and immediately slapped a big black pot onto Wu Tie.

Wu Tie said nothing, merely tapping lightly with his long spear on the flagpole beside him.

He had already declared war on Mist Blade, and at this moment also declared war on the Changsheng Sect.

Although each side had tens of thousands of subordinates, Wu Tie was alone.

One man, one spear, yet he feared them not.

The river wind blew strong, the great flag snapping "lie lie".

Wu Tie was merely one person, yet he stood toe-to-toe with Mist Blade and the Changsheng Sect.

"A little interesting… I'll come kill you." The Eight Mist Blade Leaders gave a light chuckle.