Chapter Ninety-Six: One Strike Shatters the City Gate; Those Who Stand in My Way Die

Thanks to Traveler 2015, the immortal friend, for becoming the top vote-getter with seven votes, one third of the total.

“Boy, you have quite the nerve.” The guards, who had been strolling over at a leisurely pace, suddenly flew into a rage. This was a blatant challenge to the authority of the Empire; they would be the first to bear the punishment from above.

“Those who block my way die.”

With steady steps, Qi Mai marched toward the gate. His goal was to carve a path from the South Heaven Gate to the Hall of Supreme Heaven, to taste once more the fearless grandeur of the Monkey King in days gone by.

“Ah—”

Screams rang out. The two guards who had rushed in to attack were both flung away by a single blow, smashed hard against the city wall more than thirty feet away. Then, without even another cry, they lost all trace of life.

“Go. Kill him.”

With a wave of his hand, one of the gate commanders sent out a squad of ten soldiers to charge.

“Those who block my way die.”

Beneath the wall, ten more corpses were added to the tally. The squad leader was terrified to the marrow of his bones. “Quick, close the gate! Notify the upper ranks! This man is no ordinary person. Send reinforcements at once. Sound the alarm!”

“He’s not really going to fight his way from the city gate all the way to the palace, is he? That’s impossible. Only a true strongest, someone like Esdeath or General Budo, could ever do something like that.” Lubbock cried out in shock.

“He really was reckless. Setting aside how many Imperial Arms users are in the Imperial Capital, even if Esdeath is away for now, the one commanding the palace guard is General Budo, one of the so-called strongest. He has no chance at all,” Leone said with a frown.

“But if that is so, does it count as him earning my trust?” Mine asked, frowning.

“This is getting my blood boiling. I almost want to charge the palace together with him,” Brand shouted, eyes shining.

“Should we go save him?” Sheele asked.

“Let’s see what level his strength reaches. General Budo will not leave the palace lightly. If he truly can fight his way from the gate to the palace, we will stop him before he enters. Then he will already have earned our trust. If he falters along the way, we must rescue him at the most critical moment. At the very least, that will prove he is not an Imperial spy, and then we cannot allow such a powerhouse to fall here.”

Akame rarely spoke so many words. As the acting leader in the absence of the boss, she said little, but once she had made up her mind and given an order, everyone obeyed.

“What is he doing?” Mine’s sudden exclamation drew everyone’s attention.

Step by step, he reached the foot of the towering wall. Even before the colossal gate, he did not stop. Under the terrified gazes of the guards atop the wall, the diamond staff in his hands began to swell, inch by inch.

When he stood only a single step from the gate, he let out a thunderous roar that echoed through the Imperial Capital.

His not especially robust body spun once, and he brought down the diamond club, now massive like a siege ram, with all his strength. He could already hear the sound of his muscles tearing.

Boom!

“How is that possible?” Nearly everyone cried out in unison.

Because with only a single blow, the thick, enormous gate had been smashed through with a gaping hole, a square opening nearly ten feet across. Through that breach, the stunned guards saw the culprit still walking inward, slow and steady as before.

His gaze lifted toward the grandest and tallest structure of all, the very center of the Imperial Capital, the legendary imperial city.

Faced with the boy’s step-by-step approach, the dazed guards finally came to their senses. Crying out in panic, they turned and fled at once. In their hearts, a monster that could blast open the city gate with one strike was not something ordinary men could contend with. To stay meant only death. Their hearts, long since numb, held not the slightest thought of dying for the empire.

“So strong. Such terrifying power. And that staff—could it be an Imperial Arm?” Brand murmured in excitement.

“I’ve never heard of an Imperial Arm like that. And when we saw it yesterday morning, wasn’t it a long blade?” Leone said with a frown, deep in thought.

“It should be something similar to my own Imperial Arm, able to change at random. Didn’t it just become as large as a siege ram?” Lubbock said, toying with his own weapon.

“Why doesn’t he walk a little faster?” Sheele asked in confusion.

“He’s deliberately giving the enemy time to react. He really does want to face the entire Imperial Capital alone. If he isn’t a madman, then he must be supremely confident. Arrogant bastard,” Mine snorted.

Step after step, then another step. Not once did his pace slow. Before him, the guards had retreated again and again, and even with their captain shouting and cursing at them, no one dared rush forward to die. Earlier, several fools who failed to read the situation had already been “slain by those who blocked his way.”

“You there—tell me exactly what happened!”

Suddenly, a troop of men sped in from the far end of the street. The burly man in the lead grabbed the squad leader and demanded an explanation.

“Lord Oka, that boy wearing a monkey mask suddenly beat the guards at the gate to death, then shattered the gate with one strike. He must be an Imperial Arms user. We are no match for him at all.”

The burly man called Oka glanced at the hole in the distant gate, and his pupils shrank. “You’re saying he made that hole with a single blow?”

“Yes. And anyone who tried to attack him, or even block his way, was killed in one strike. Not a single living soul was left behind,” the squad leader said, wiping away the cold sweat pouring down his face.

“Not even ranged attacks work?”

“We tried. More than a dozen soldiers opened fire, and he didn’t even bother to dodge. The bullets could not get through, and then the heads of those dozen soldiers all burst apart.” The squad leader’s face was as mournful as if his own funeral had already been arranged. Whatever the outcome, he would not escape blame now. In the worst case, he might even be executed.

“Where did this monster come from? Is he the same one who was just shouting those seditious words?”

“Y-yes. His target is the imperial palace... and he’s already coming this way. What are we supposed to do?” Seeing the boy drawing nearer and nearer, the squad leader could not help trembling as he spoke.

“If we can’t stop him, then we all die. We cannot let him leave this street. Everyone, charge! He’s only one man, and his strength is finite. Besides, Imperial Arms consume a tremendous amount of mental and physical stamina. He won’t last long,” Oka roared.

“But...” The squad leader was about to say more when Oka kicked him flying straight toward Qi, and Qi naturally smashed him to death with a single club stroke.

“Is this really all the Imperial Capital can muster? Truly disappointing. At this rate, I might as well hurry and reach the palace a little sooner, kill the minister, and butcher that foolish tyrant.”

Qi’s voice was calm, yet it carried far. Even those two figures within the palace, as well as General Budo, one of the Imperial Capital’s legendary strongest, could hear him clearly.

“All of you, attack! Anyone who does not move, I’ll kill his entire family. If you kill him, you’ll be promoted and get rich!” Oka shouted furiously.

Lately I noticed that on Saturdays and Sundays, the view count rises several times faster. There really are quite a few middle-school and high-school students among the readers. Thinking back, I used to be one of them too. Time really does fly. It’s already 2016. And to think the first commentator is me, the author myself. Just thinking about it makes me want to cry.