Chapter 338: Dead End?

【What?】

In the same quiet chamber, the same burly old man who played Go against himself let out a startled cry upon seeing the latest Star-Picking Order emergency report.

Shang Tai, a seventh-rank sixth-layer cultivator, was killed; three sixth-rank ninth-layer peak cultivators and four sixth-rank late-stage cultivators all perished—only Feng Yi, a seventh-rank eighth-layer, barely escaped with his life.

The two targets had only fourth-rank mid-stage cultivation, but behind them stood a fifth-rank alien army.

It was precisely this fifth-rank alien army's concentrated fire that killed Shang Tai.

The number of elite fifth-rank aliens was around three hundred.

One piece of intelligence after another tightened the burly old man's brow, but the final report caused the go stone in his fingers to instantly crumble to dust.

The five slain sixth-rank cultivators' bodies were shattered, yet their heads remained intact—as if deliberately spared by the enemy!

【Feng Yi, is this your first mission? What are you good for? Why didn't you destroy the corpses and leave such damning evidence?】 The old man picked up the Star-Picking Order and roared a transmission.

This was the first time the burly old man had lost his composure so badly.

The roar caused the Star-Picking Order to flash, and instantly, the projection of a short, shadow-dwelling old man appeared.

【My lord, Feng Yi says he tried—but failed! The lightning torrent from the three hundred aliens' concentrated fire was swift, ferocious, and incredibly agile—he had no chance. He tried charging twice and was already wounded; he says if he'd moved any slower, he wouldn't have made it back.】 The Shadow Division chief reported from the shadows.

After only a moment of losing composure, the burly old man's expression returned to normal. 【Have Feng Yi go heal. Now, the real problem is damage control. Have you compiled the identities of the five sixth-rank cultivators whose heads were left behind?】

How sensitive are they?

How many of them can be directly tied to me?】 the burly old man asked.

【My lord, I've confirmed: among the five slain with heads intact, three publicly were gang members, one was captain of a Hammer Mercenary squad, and only one can be tied to you—he once served under you.】

【My lord, should we immediately eliminate all connections tied to these individuals?】 the Shadow Division chief asked.

【Does this kid have any other distinguishing traits?】

【Feng Yi says the kid's soul cultivation is extremely strong—his soul attack seemed to affect Shang Tai; otherwise, Shang Tai wouldn't have died.】

【A soul cultivation strong enough to affect Shang Tai must be at least fourth-rank sixth-layer. Such a young man doesn't come from an ordinary background. And within such a short time, he's gathered three hundred fifth-rank aliens in the Spring Thunder Star Domain and secured their loyalty.】

【Who do you think this kid is? How many others are aiding him?】

【Or is he an undiscovered genius from some reclusive sect?】 the burly old man asked.

【My lord, we can first rule out the Heavenly Sun Star Palace. The fifth-rank Spring Thunder Star Domain's passage lies within the Da Hong War Zone—if he were a Heavenly Sun genius, we'd have had no chance to ambush him.】

【The Nirmala Palace can also be ruled out!】

【If Nirmala disciples knew they were trapped, they'd immediately open a temporary star-gate back to Nirmala Mountain—they wouldn't force their way through!】

【The other sects' disciples remain possible.】

【The Wood Spirit Palace is more likely—their disciples have a great need for thunder-related celestial star will.】 the Shadow Division chief said.

【His origin doesn't matter anymore—what matters is that, given the current situation, he's clearly from a powerful background! If such a person hands these heads to his elders, he could expose me.】

【Though this evidence won't affect my current authority, it will trigger their vigilance—even a counterattack!】

【So, eliminate him completely!】 the burly old man instantly decided.

Hearing this, the Shadow Division chief in the shadows frowned. 【My lord, the Da Hong Poryi Army has already launched from the Star River passage—whether they'll clash with the emerging fifth-rank aliens is uncertain, but we've lost our chance to act.】

【I'm not talking about the Star River passage. There are three hundred trained fifth-rank aliens backing that passage—without three to five seventh-ranks, you can't kill him! But when he returns from the Star River passage, he must enter Da Hong War City, right?】

【Strike him inside Da Hong War City.】

【Send orders to all involved gangs and mercenary squads: kill these two, and all of you live!】

【If you fail, you must either flee to other star domains or be generously compensated!】 the burly old man ordered.

At these words, the Shadow Division chief's brow tightened further. 【My lord, the Heavenly Sun Star Palace still exerts strong control over Da Hong War City—especially within the city, where disorder is forbidden.】

【If you can't take down this kid within twenty to thirty breaths, the Heavenly Sun Star Palace's guards will intervene. Then—】

【Ah!】

The burly old man sighed. 【Old Yin, you've been hiding in shadows so long your brain's rusted shut. No opportunity? Then create one! Have Old Xia from the Domain Division assist you.】

In the next instant, the burly old man's Star-Picking Order flashed again, and another tall figure suddenly materialized. Seeing the Shadow Division chief, he smiled. 【My lord, you're calling me again to clean up Old Yin's mess, aren't you?】

【Talk properly. Do you think I won't perform a ritual on your concubines?】 Old Yin grumbled.

【Go ahead—I doubt you could even reach them.】

【Enough. Focus on the matter at hand!】

The burly old man grunted. 【Old Xia, you know the situation. How do you plan to eliminate this kid inside Da Hong War City?】

【Easy. Seven years ago, Da Hong War City had a seventh-rank star-gate. When it was sealed, I left a few tricks—now, just open it. When the city descends into chaos, Old Yin, you can eliminate whoever you want!】

【Dead?】

【Aliens did it!】

【Pretty, isn't it?】 The refined-looking Old Xia proposed a plan that was utterly vicious.

Old Yin lowered his head, breathing heavily. This plan was flawless. 【But there's one problem—even if we open a seventh-rank star-gate, the aliens inside won't rush in immediately, right?】

【It might take days before they organize a full assault.】

【By then, the gate will be sealed again.】

【That's where you need my lord to send someone to act—just a trace of celestial star will as bait, slightly stirred, and the aliens inside will rush through the gate like beasts seeing blood.】

【Don't need many—just a few hundred breaking in is enough.】 Old Xia said.

Hearing this, Old Yin nodded slightly. 【You're ruthless.】

【Then proceed as planned. Though the Poryi Army has moved, I suspect—unless they're fools—they won't let the alien army clash directly with them. This kid won't take long to enter Da Hong War City.】 the burly old man said.

【Yes, my lord! We obey!】

Inside the Star River battlefield passage, Xu Jin scanned the battlefield, collecting the five remaining heads into his Nirmala space, searching for anything else he could gather—especially remnants from the slain seventh-rank cultivator.

Seventh-rank cultivators are usually prominent figures—not easily erased. Their identities are more likely to be traced.

Unfortunately, the concentrated lightning torrent from nearly two hundred fifth-rank aliens was too fierce—everything was reduced to ash.

Not even a scrap of cloth remained.

The only clues were two names.

"Old Shang" and "Old Feng."

The slain seventh-rank was called "Old Shang"; the fleeing seventh-rank eighth-layer was called "Old Feng."

At this moment, Xu Jin no longer cared for evidence—he only wanted to trace the clue, find the mastermind.

Then kill him.

If he can't kill him now, he'll kill him in a year.

If not in a year, then in three, in five.

This was too much.

He'd just come for a simple trade—and they tried to bury him alive!

Do they really think a decent man won't fight back?

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

In the distance, the war drums of the Da Hong Poryi Army grew louder; the formation's starlight surged skyward, appearing from afar like a colossal star radiating light, like a great sun.

But straining his vision, he could see the formation was woven from hundreds of tiny starlight threads.

The Da Hong Poryi Army's formation, though composed of cultivators from third to fifth rank, was rigidly disciplined—thousands fused into one unified aura.

At this moment, the first thousand had advanced along the war drums to the outer edge of the Star River passage, about five miles away. Suddenly, a thought struck Xu Jin: Could the ambushers be the Da Hong Poryi Army?

After thinking, he dismissed it.

If it were the Da Hong Poryi Army, they wouldn't have made it so complicated.

When he passed the checkpoint, they wouldn't need seventh-ranks—just a few sixth-ranks launching a surprise attack at close range would've had far higher success.

Looking back at the nearly three hundred silent fifth-rank elites behind him, then at the slowly advancing Da Hong Poryi Army formation, a wild idea flashed through Xu Jin's mind.

If he ever got the chance to control a sixth-rank star domain—or even a seventh-rank one—

He could create a thousand-man formation with fifth-rank elites as the core, sixth-ranks as the backbone, and seventh-ranks as commanders. With that power, wouldn't he be able to sweep the Star River battlefield?

After all, the main forces of all armies on the Star River battlefield were third- and fourth-rank.

But that was for the future. For now, he must stay low-key.

【Lei Ming, take your people back. Fight under Lei Ling Wang, help him unify the Spring Thunder Star Domain, and await my summons!】 Xu Jin turned and ordered.

【Your servant obeys the Thunder God's sacred decree!】

In the next instant, the five-rank aliens knelt and bowed to Xu Jin as the Thunder God, then filed through the fifth-rank Spring Thunder Star Domain's star-gate.

Within five breaths, all had vanished.

【Xiao Yu, when we meet the Poryi Army, say we accidentally killed their prince and were chased out by their army.】 Xu Jin instructed.

In the next instant, he steadied his emotions and rushed toward the Poryi Army's guarded Star River passage with Ji Hongli.

From five li away, he saw the Poryi Army formation suddenly activate—terrible starlight began coalescing!

The sight startled Xu Jin.

If they mistook him for an alien and blasted him, he'd die a fool's death!

He immediately raised the passage jade tablet he'd taken earlier, infused it with star power, and activated it.

This was another vital function of the passage jade tablet.

In situations like this—with armies forming up—only the passage jade tablet could prove their identity.

Without it, sorry—you had to kneel, bind your own hands, and wait for soldiers to verify your identity.

You want dignity?

You want treatment?

Sorry!

This is the battlefield front!

Anyone who makes a move—focus fire and eliminate them!

Wherever you go, there's no place to cry injustice!

This Pass Jade Tablet was issued by them; when claimed, it binds to the claimant's spiritual soul, and shatters if the claimant dies—impossible to impersonate.

When the two Pass Jade Tablets glowed, someone in the Bao Ri Army shouted, instructing them to circle in from the left flank of the formation and not charge head-on.

Naturally, another layer of inspection followed.

A few breaths later, Xu Jin once again saw the broad-faced, wide-mouthed general who had met them days before; upon seeing them, the general chuckled first, "You two brats, learned your lesson this time, huh?"

"We were lucky—and grateful for your warning. As soon as we realized we were being hunted, we fled straight to the Star River Passage!" Xu Jin smiled.

"Be more careful next time. The world is dangerous—stay alert," the broad-faced general warned again.

This was a reminder for Xu Jin to watch out for ambushes in the future.

They must have observed a bit of the battle inside the Star River Passage from afar and guessed it might involve them.

But these border troops were already used to such situations.

As long as no trouble broke out at the checkpoint or within the city, they ignored it.

It was only because Xu Jin and Ji Hongli appeared so young—under twenty—that the general spoke up to warn them.

"Thank you, General. Your righteousness is great! May I ask your surname?" Xu Jin bowed with a smile. This broad-faced general had warned him multiple times—he was a good man, worth asking.

"No need for formalities—my surname is Yu."

"General Yu, thank you! We take our leave!"

The Yu Guard General bowed back with a smile, about to dispatch men to further investigate the alien activity inside the Star River Passage, when suddenly, one after another crimson alert signal rose above the Da Hong Battle City.

As the crimson alert shot into the sky, it suddenly curved and streaked toward the northern edge of Da Hong Battle City.

Gazing in that direction with all his strength, he saw a swirling vortex of starlight appear beyond the northern wall.

Because it was daytime, the details were unclear.

The Yu Guard General squinted carefully, then saw clearly—his face changed.

"A Star Gate? How could a Star Gate suddenly appear outside the battle city?"

"Get back to the city immediately—find a safe place and stay there!" The Yu Guard General, stunned, added one last instruction to Xu Jin.

Xu Jin pulled Ji Hongli and hurried away from the checkpoint. By the time they entered Da Hong Battle City, the Star Gate outside was already blazing with starlight, filled with roars and howls.

The entire Da Hong Battle City had grown chaotic.

Though called a battle city, the majority of its inhabitants were ordinary people, especially those below the third realm.

They were the backbone of supplies and logistics for all these cultivators, plus countless souls from all corners of the mortal world seeking survival and profit.

Now, seeing a Star Gate suddenly appear outside the city, they were terrified.

Even with a large army stationed here, chaos erupted instantly.

"Seventh realm!"

"My god—it's a seventh-rank Star Gate!"

"Run! Run!"

Someone shouted that the newly opened Star Gate was seventh-rank—and chaos doubled instantly!

Any being living in the Star River Battlefield knew what a seventh-rank Star Gate meant.

And in that very moment, scattered aliens had already burst out!

"Come on, let's head to the Pick Star Tower!" Xu Jin pulled Ji Hongli, sprinting toward the Pick Star Tower to teleport out of Da Hong Battle City, while sending a starlight message to the Grand Master, sounding the alarm first!

Just as Xu Jin's first starlight message was sent, a group of clearly terrified cultivators came rushing toward him from afar, screaming as if fleeing home.

Five of them!

Their cultivation ranged from fourth to sixth realm.

Xu Jin paid no mind—chaos had erupted, and such people were everywhere!

But the next instant, his expression changed: as the five passed directly above him, they suddenly struck in unison, focusing all their attacks on Xu Jin!

Three fourth-rank, two fifth-rank, one sixth-rank!

The sixth-rank's attack was the most terrifying.

The distance was too close—only thirty to forty meters.

And it was utterly unexpected!

Like a passerby on the street, brushing past you, suddenly slashing a knife at you—who could guard against that?

In an instant, Xu Jin was plunged into utter despair!

(End of Chapter)