Chapter 32: Die, Scum

"Die, scum!"

Paladins don't backstab? A paladin might not, but Li En will.

He gripped the Sword of Courage with both hands, pouring all his holy power into it until the silver light blazed intensely.

His dragon eyes opened fully, constructing the sword's trajectory in his mind.

When this blade swings down, the neck and spine are the fatal weak points on this strike.

Rage transformed into tangible power; the "Wallbreaker" turned this strike into a silver arc capable of shattering heavy armor.

Merely beheading? No, that isn't actually safe; in the supernatural world, those seemingly exposed weak points are not without protection.

"Clang!"

When the blade struck the void shield an inch from the neck, Li En, sensing the strange feel, felt joy rather than surprise.

The fear is that you have no reaction at all—that might be a puppet, a decoy, or a spatial technique.

It seems you are wealthy, but not wealthy enough; you are not qualified to own true top-tier goods!

The blade edge immediately shifted slightly, moving from beheading to the spine.

"Clang!"

In the void, along the direction the blade pointed, light flickered continuously; those were the lights of expensive shields.

Force field shield, mage shield, void shield—who knows how wealthy this guy is, how many protective items he has on him; any single one of them is a life-saving item for an adventurer.

With just one glance, Li En saw at least five different styles of supernatural shields activated.

Trying to behead by relying on the blade's sharpness? You greatly underestimate this set of super-money armor.

"You... how can it be you..." Eugene, struck by the force, turned his head sharply, his face filled with shock.

But on his face, there was little fear; instead, there was mostly rage and confusion.

Why are you the one killing me? Do we have a grudge?

Under normal circumstances, with the magic shield rings on his hands, even if he were hit by a steam carriage on the street, he would remain unharmed.

But this time, it was different.

"Armor Erosion."

The blade edge lifted again, drawing an arc in mid-air, then suddenly plummeted like a falling star.

This strike had shifted from beheading to a diagonal slash.

The place where the blade focused remained Eugene's spine.

"Clang!" Again, there is still armor; just how much are you afraid of dying?

Void shields, spell shields, even holy shields were activated one after another; at the same time, the various magic rings and necklaces on Eugene's fingers and neck burst in succession like popcorn.

Those valuable shield rings could only delay the blade edge by one second more.

But his right hand had already pulled out a token box.

Once the button inside is pressed, it will not only activate random teleportation but also summon the slave market's guard team immediately.

Time, perhaps, is reduced to mere seconds.

"Scum, are you afraid of dying too?!" Li En's low roar continued; the blade tore through the void, and he hesitated not at all.

The "War Sword: Armor Erosion" from Su Er continuously pierced and shattered shields, but the next moment, a new one was always activated.

He seemed to need a little more... rage.

"For justice?" No, for the dead, for the weak, for ordinary people who died with their eyes unsealed.

Rage against injustice burned in Li En's heart; in this instant, he understood why the description of the "Holy Sword: Evil Slayer (Rage)" included rage.

Soul abilities always originate from an individual's soul; they are monsters nurtured by emotion and the heart, so naturally, the one constructing them must have a subject.

Everyone is different, and everyone's soul ability is different, but certain human emotions are similar.

"So, you (Su Er) have always been angry."

And for what was Su Er's holy sword swung?

"Remember this darkness pressing down from all sides; when you can endure no more, swing your sword."

The final meeting scene recalled in his memory; the old man's teasing words were actually describing his own essence.

"... Swing your sword for the weak, to cut through this darkness! Swing your sword."

This is the so-called ultimate technique; it is merely infusing one's own rage into it.

What this holy sword originating from a heroic soul requires is simply rage—rage against unjust people, unjust acts, and even unjust gods!

The ancient heroes thought this way and acted this way, and their successor should also inherit this rage against injustice!

"I understand... so, my rage was not enough yet." The calm words meant Li En had finally mastered this sword.

In this instant, the blade edge, previously bound by the void shield, blazed with silver light once more.

"Crackle-crackle!" When the third sword fell, another round of magical items burst, terrifying Eugene out of his wits.

And Li En, gripping the sword with both hands, his pupils blood-red; he did not need to search for material to make him angry; he had witnessed too much inequality along the way, seen too much injustice.

What made him most angry was actually himself, for always daring not to swing the sword!

"This sword is also for my cowardice..."

Rage against this world filled with inequality, rage against his own weakness, ultimately condensed into a faint blade edge.

When "War Sword: Armor Erosion" was truly completely mastered, the blazing light instead condensed.

【Mastered War Sword: Armor Erosion (Proficient)】

The silver light was gone.

But the faint glow of the blade edge remained.

Just as extreme rage can lead to restraint; a person in a furious rage, with killing intent resolved, instead smiles silently.

When the rage sublimated, this time, the silver sword appeared ordinary and plain.

The restrained silver blade, like a butcher skillfully carving an ox, lightly sliced through a foolish life.

"Whoosh!" It was not a violent tear, but rather like a key opening a great door.

All the armor was flashed past; the sword pierced through every defense, and the blade was unimpeded this time.

It struck Eugene's back with a vicious thud!

"Aaaah!" The slave merchant screamed, rolling as he was knocked flying.

Injured inside and out, he rolled on the ground, his body twisted into a knot.

This strike showed no mercy at all; like a falling guillotine, it severed his spine directly.

He writhed in agony on the ground, vomiting blood continuously, only to find his limbs would not obey him.

He tried to press the button inside the open box, but his fingers would not move, and the item meant to save him simply slipped from his grasp.

"Crack!" It was crushed directly underfoot.

But even more ruthless was the axe light facing him.

Inside the fallen pot of chicken soup lay two adamant short axes.

Picking them up, the equally enraged Damon swung the war axes and hacked wildly.

"Clang."

Some shields were activated once more by the frontal brute force, but they were utterly useless.

"Shink." The paladin behind him stabbed him in the back again.

This time, Eugene, clearly a Tier Four Transcendent, did not even get the chance to display his abilities; his back was pierced again by the Heroine's Sword.

Entering through the spine, exiting through the chest.

When the sword tip pierced through his heart, Eugene, still vomiting blood, could go no further, even with his eyes refusing to close in death.

The righteous backstab succeeded.

Li En withdrew the blade, gave it a light flick, and the Heroine's Sword was clean once more.

Both panted heavily, then laughed simultaneously.

The arrogant head of the slave market, Eugene, was already dead; the assassination was a success.

"Proceed according to plan."

Facing the corpse, Li En took out a small bottle and slowly sprinkled the filthy potion upon it.

The original plan was to leave no trace of the living or the dead; since they could not achieve the corpse effect of the Tail-Breakers, they would simply make the body vanish.

But Miss Dragon Hunter had sent this strange potion through Miss Shaliman, saying it was more suitable for disguising the scene as a Tail-Breaker massacre.

And the development of events indeed followed her promise.

As the filthy black liquid fell, Eugene's corpse first convulsed at high speed, then rapidly aged and withered right before their eyes.

Soon, all that remained in the spot was a shriveled, emaciated mummy, curled into a ball with eyes still wide open in death.

This scene was very familiar to Li En and Damon; the corpse of little Wil earlier had been exactly the same!

This scene made the two exchange glances, sparking many associations, but clearly now was not the time to consider such things.

"Snap."

Li En severed the enlarged tail and threw it directly toward the door.

A pitch-black figure wearing a cloak was already waiting there; she grasped it directly in her hand and examined it carefully.

"How is the guard situation?" Li En asked, for monitoring the opponent was also her mission.

"Still enjoying himself; the silence barrier is working very well."

"Shadow Arbiter" Talia approached; she had been serving as the reserve combat power.

Originally, she was also responsible for intercepting the guard who might be awakened; if Li En's encirclement failed, she might even have to come here to assassinate and finish the job.

But clearly, Li En's design was too successful; Eugene, a minimum Tier Four Transcendent covered in top-tier treasures, died in an inexplicable manner.

Li En himself knew that, ultimately, it was the might of Surl's Legacy Sword.

This entire set of absurd magical defenses was pierced directly; this was power far exceeding the level.

【Synchronization Rate 50.1%, Satisfaction 32.9%】

And after delivering this strike, Li En's long-stagnated synchronization rate finally began to rise again.

Li En looked at the corpse below with eyes refusing to close in death; he somewhat understood why the noble Miss Dragon Hunter, upon learning of the historical battle records of the Heroic Soul Surl, would directly ask if she could master the secret sword techniques for slaying dragons and slaying laws.

This set of sword arts specialized in breaking defenses, cultivated to its extreme, could likely truly pierce through powerful dragon incantations and slay dragons powerful enough to be absurd.

Eugene's entire set of sky-high magical defenses might have been comparable to dragon scales, yet they were still pierced directly by the "Armor-Eroding Strike."

This was a crushing from the level of concepts and soul; it was a crushing of quality on a higher plane; piling up more low-level defenses was meaningless.

No matter how strong the opponent, once the defense is broken, reality is not a game of comparing numbers; once the heart is pierced, one dies.

Most humanoid strong beings have no essential difference in physiological structure; a single strike to a vital point kills them utterly.

Talia looked down and checked the fatal wound; it was a puncture wound from the sword tip through the chest, satisfying her previous requirement.

She nodded in satisfaction; knowing the Tail-Breakers well, she immediately took out a small knife to add some finishing touches, making it look more like an assassin's backstab.

"Next..."

"Come on." Damon spread his arms, turning his back to Talia.

Talia's dagger moved quickly, not only carving wounds on his back but also causing the paralyzing venom to knock him to the ground immediately.

At the same time, she threw out some oil cans.

Next, it was time to proceed according to plan.

"Aaaaaah!" A sudden male roar echoed throughout the entire villa.

"Thieves!"

The soundproof barrier was lifted; accompanied by explosions and roars, Xier, who was still enjoying himself, was instantly awakened.

He hurriedly grabbed the short spear and charged forward, but all he saw was the pig-man lying on the ground, life unknown, and his own BOSS, already turned into a desiccated corpse!

"Aaaah!"

He erupted in sudden fury; the movement of a Fourth-Rank Transcendent stirred up a violent hurricane, but it seemed too late.

He looked at the fully open window, where a footprint remained.

"Crack!"

A fist punched through the wall, and Xier rushed out.

Transcendent power gathered upon him, and he spotted the black shadow rapidly moving away not far off.

That assassin, he or she, leaped continuously within the shadows, like an illusory phantom.

"You dare!" He raised his arm, activating a short-range spatial artifact worth a fortune.

Under the fierce explosion, in merely an instant, he crossed the spatial limitation.

The Fourth-Rank Great Warrior-class guard erupted with sudden force.

Xier stared at the figure floating in midair and hurled his short spear!

"Clang!" That spear, too, underwent a short-range spatial drift.

The teleported spear pierced the black shadow but caused no wound.

However, the bag she was carrying was pierced right through, splitting open with a large tear.

A mass of red gemstones, gold coins, and jade seeped out from within.

The black shadow whipped around and fled once more, but part of the contents had already spilled down.

Treasures fell from the sky; passersby who had been dodging the disaster stopped and immediately rushed forward to scramble for them.

Even Xier instinctively reached out to grab some.

"A tail... is this Eugene's tail?" Before that tail swelled under the influence of life force, he recognized it.

He remembered his BOSS's corpse was still lying there and hesitated whether to continue the pursuit or return to check the body.

But the next moment, an instinctive craving made him stop.

He saw a blood-red gemstone, one of the falling gems being fought over by passersby.

He snatched it up immediately; upon close inspection, he felt life force seeping into his body, and his spirit instantly revived.

With this color, this power, and his vast experience, he immediately recalled a possibility.

"Hero's Blood?! How is that possible!!"

He instinctively turned back, saw the dried corpse behind that wall, and his original anger cooled into calmness.

"That bastard actually dared to eat alone." This wasn't the first time; recalling Eugene's urgency today, he instantly understood everything.

After weighing the matter, he sighed; after all, his charge was dead, and he still had to consider how to report this.

"Boom!!"

A sudden explosion from behind made him whip around.

The small house, which had been fine just moments ago, seemed to have some explosive or burning device installed, and it burst into flames at once.

"Damn."

He hurriedly rushed over; alive, he must find the person; dead, he must find the body. If the corpse truly vanished, he would have a hard time explaining himself.

But he did not rush to retrieve the corpse immediately.

"Bastards, hand over everything you picked up!"

That was Hero's Blood! How could you trash like you possess it?

He charged forward wildly, robbing the passersby. But many clever people had already grabbed their loot and fled.

Only when the area around him was empty and he had gained nothing did he turn back and hurriedly go to retrieve the body.

Perhaps only a few minutes passed, but what he pulled out was merely a half-burnt, desiccated corpse.

Looking at this tailless corpse that had lost all life force in such a short time, and at the twisted severed tail he had just picked up, he recalled a recent prominent figure in the Dock District.

"Tail Collector? He or she actually dared to provoke the Market... uh, if there is Hero's Blood, then indeed there is nothing they wouldn't dare."

Carrying this half-corpse, he intended to walk out of the fire, but his foot seemed to have stepped on something soft.

"... Not dead yet?" Looking down, he noticed a large pig-man lying face-up beneath his feet.

There was a wound on its back; its body twitched subconsciously, and a faint scent of meat lingered.

Recalling how this pig-man had planned things for him earlier, after a moment's thought, he still gave it a pull, dragging the struggling creature out.

"Remember, I didn't play with women; that assassin suddenly jumped out from the shadows. I didn't have time to react."

For him, whether Eugene died or not didn't matter; just replace him with someone else.

The key point wasn't that person, but the large bag that had been taken away.

"A whole bag of Hero's Blood... looks like the Dock District is about to get chaotic again..."

Xier, hurrying back to the Slave Market, did not know that behind his departure, a figure had been silently watching him all along.

Only after seeing him obediently drag the pig-man away did Li En vanish into the shadows once more.

Finally, Li En glanced at the house that had completely burned down and collapsed, nodding in satisfaction.

Making the crime scene disappear entirely would make this case even harder to investigate... although others said it was unnecessary, as this world's investigative methods were crude.

"If it's acting, act the whole part; if it's murder and framing, make it an ironclad case." Li En felt, however, that no amount of preparation was ever too much.

Eugene was dead; the bait of Hero's Blood had been scattered. Reaching this point did not mean the plan was over.

On the contrary, to make the wind blow in his direction, some arrangements had only just begun.

Time rewinds slightly; at the very start of this murder, in another direction of the Dock District, another slaughter was already escalating.

"Crack!"

"Paladin Li En" kicked open the door of the human trafficker's den and began today's eradication of evil.

"Judgment of the Sin Domain." His signature supernatural power, the one that made him famous, activated. Crimson verdict blood-light flooded the area, covering everything. How could human traffickers possibly be innocent?

Thus, "Li En" slowly drew his sharp sword.

"Die, scum!"

(End of this chapter)