Chapter 52: Absolute Strength

At this moment, Lin Ling fully believed Fang Yue's words.

If he couldn't discern the trajectory of Lady Chen's strikes,

then Chen Mu couldn't either!

His strength and Chen Mu's were evenly matched.

Chen Mu merely had the advantage of possessing a complete set of Martial Arts, giving him a slight edge in actual combat.

As for foundational skills, Lin Ling's were undoubtedly more solid.

So if he couldn't decipher the strange strikes, Chen Mu certainly couldn't either.

"Captain Lin, what should we do?"

Watching Lady Chen step forward slowly, the knife scars on the ground spreading toward them, Lao Yang couldn't help asking.

Fang Yue also turned to Lin Ling. To everyone's surprise, after a moment of silence, Lin Ling decisively spat out one word.

"... Run!"

Run? That suits me perfectly!

As long as the green mountains remain, there's no worry about lacking firewood.

Fang Yue turned to flee first, but Lin Ling gripped his wrist tightly.

Fang Yue looked at him in confusion, only to see Lin Ling staring fixedly at the creeping knife scars on the ground, then shouting loudly.

"All residents of Gu Yue Cun! In my capacity as Captain of the Guard, I order every villager to flee Gu Yue Cun immediately! All members of the Guard Team, follow me in holding back the anomaly and covering the villagers' retreat!"

"I do not demand that every Guard Team member obey this order! If you're afraid, take off your uniform, drop your weapons, and flee with the villagers now!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Ling ignored everyone else's reactions and turned directly to Fang Yue, suppressing his emotions, speaking sincerely.

"Brother Ye, I've never begged anyone in my life. Tonight, I beg you for one thing."

"I know you have no desire to fight. You may leave, but take Hua Wuye with you—protect her, keep her safe."

"If you agree, I'll have Lao Yang and the others retreat with you. Lao Yang often travels to neighboring villages; if any path is safe, he'll guide you. You'll reach the neighboring village safely."

Upon hearing this, Lao Yang immediately understood Lin Ling had embraced death. He opened his mouth to say something, but Lin Ling silenced him with a single glance.

This, this, this—how am I made out to be a coward who fears death?

Am I that kind of person?

Fang Yue slapped his chest and shouted loudly: "Brother Lin, your wife—ah no, your sister—I'll take care of her! Just rest easy!"

Lin Ling heard this and thought it wasn't wrong, but it sounded strangely off.

"Don't talk nonsense. She's still a virtuous maiden—don't ruin her reputation."

While the two were speaking, those around them had already heard Lin Ling's order.

Instantly, the crowd erupted in murmurs.

Fleeing without fighting was a grave taboo.

Everyone was confused.

Some cursed Lin Ling as timid and cowardly; others believed his decision was sound.

But most villagers showed no intention of retreating.

When the Gathering Fire Order appeared, they came to reinforce.

When the anomaly arrived, they did not retreat.

When their Captain was wounded, they shielded him with their lives.

Gu Yue Cun was their home—and to protect this home, they were willing to give everything!

"No retreat!"

From the crowd, someone first shouted those two words—and soon, the cry echoed everywhere.

"No retreat!"

"No retreat!"

"No retreat!!"

As if the noise was too loud, Lady Chen slightly turned her head.

"No..."

Ssssh!!

A head flew off; a Soul Torch dropped.

The last Guard Team squad leader to shout collapsed silently.

The next instant, time seemed to accelerate abruptly.

Around him, the crowd suddenly erupted with flying limbs—like sliced tofu, they fell in unison, their severed bodies piling into mounds of flesh and bone, horrifying to behold.

And it all happened in a mere instant.

Then, more heads flew high into the air, bodies scattering like broken toy blocks across the ground.

Fang Yue watched, trembling with dread.

A rough count revealed that in just a few seconds, over a dozen Human Soul Torches had been extinguished, and over a hundred people had been silently wiped out.

"Monster!"

Lin Ling's eyes turned red; he charged forward with his spear.

"Go!"

Fang Yue didn't hesitate—he retreated violently in the opposite direction from Lin Ling.

Lao Yang froze for a moment, clearly stunned that Fang Yue had abandoned his comrade so decisively.

When he came to his senses, he quickly gathered over thirty trusted squad members and followed behind Fang Yue.

The direction Fang Yue retreated toward was unmistakably where Hua Wuye lay.

Next to Hua Wuye stood Hong Dafu, who had been forcibly dragged out at some point, his face grim.

Where Hong Dafu was, Xiao Hu was naturally there too.

There was also Niu Niu, circling Hong Dafu like a sweet little dog, eagerly fawning over him.

Lin Ling's charge created a huge commotion, directly causing the surrounding Guard Team to rush toward Lady Chen.

Thus, Hong Dafu, who had been scowling while taking Hua Wuye's pulse, naturally looked up instinctively toward the front.

He hadn't looked—then he saw Fang Yue charging straight at him.

Instantly, he panicked, his face turning deathly pale in an instant; he fell to the ground and scrambled backward on hands and feet, diving into the crowd and vanishing in an instant, leaving only screams echoing in the air.

"Don't come near me!!"

Fang Yue froze.

I'm not possessed—why is this guy so terrified of me? Did he do something guilty?

As Fang Yue puzzled over this, Xiao Hu and Niu Niu also happened to look up at him.

The next moment, their expressions changed with visible speed into pure terror; Niu Niu collapsed onto the ground as if struck by some great horror, trembling uncontrollably.

Seeing their reactions, combined with Hong Dafu's exaggerated one, Fang Yue's heart sank.

A terrifying hypothesis formed in his mind.

He didn't slow—he accelerated, stiffly turning his head to look back.

Swish—

A withered head, its face twisted in terrified despair, passed by his side.

Fang Yue recognized the owner of that head—Lao Yang.

At that moment, time seemed to slow.

Behind that head, severed limbs and arms floated through the air like a storm, and over thirty Guard Team members fell in slow motion, screaming in agony; the ground was utterly ravaged.

Farther off, Lin Ling's furious roars could still be heard, but Fang Yue could no longer make them out clearly.

Because Lady Chen had arrived.

In an instant, her figure blurred.

Her beautiful face was almost pressed against Fang Yue's.

Ssshh—

The next instant.

Blood spattered out—drop by drop, like ink dots—splashing onto Fang Yue's face.

The flow of time seemed to return to normal.

Tap-tap-tap-tap.

Blood rained down on Fang Yue's face, coating half his cheek.

And Fang Yue's right hand had already flown high into the air.

199!

He felt no pain at all—only a sudden lightness in his right shoulder, as if his hand had simply detached from his body.

Only then did Fang Yue open his mouth, stunned into silence.

He wanted to scream, but found he could not make a sound; his entire body was rigid, unresponsive.

All combat techniques, all methods of redirecting force, were forgotten.

Before such overwhelming dread, he even forgot he couldn't truly die—that this was just a game.

Then he saw Lady Chen raise her hand.

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(End of Chapter)