Chapter Ninety-Eight: Those Who Stand in My Way Must Die (III)

The pursuers who had been trailing behind him also included many experts, and by now they had closed in from every side, leaving the boy with nowhere to run. At least, that was how they saw it.

Ever since he smashed through the city gate, Qi had felt his blood beginning to boil. As he cut his way forward, his excitement only grew. He had a hunch that after this battle, his core technique would break through to the fourth level of Qi refinement, allowing him to cultivate spiritual sense. By then, his power would rise again, and this mission would become much easier.

Licking his lips with fierce excitement, Qi laughed loudly and strode forward, charging at the dozens of experts. The diamond staff in his hand grew longer and larger, and then he leaped high into the air before bringing it crashing down like a pillar that could support the heavens.

The experts’ expressions changed dramatically, and they scattered at once. But the unlucky ones Qi had locked onto were crushed into pulp no matter how far they fled.

“Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful! Come on, then!” Qi roared with exhilaration as he plunged into the crowd.

His attitude instantly offended the experts. They were renowned masters, yet this boy looked down on them so brazenly. Even an Imperial Arm user had no right to behave so arrogantly.

They attacked in fury, each unleashing their strongest techniques, some with weapons and some with bare hands. Qi had no intention of dodging, nor did he need to. He only had to keep smashing his enemies away with his staff, or crushing them into bloody paste.

His sturdy, compressed diamond armor could withstand more than ninety percent of all attacks. Only a very few could penetrate it enough to shake his body. The gap between them was simply too vast.

After a brutal slaughter that lasted the time it takes to drink several cups of tea, fewer than ten experts were still standing. These were the true masters among masters, strong enough to contend with members of Night Raid.

“You can’t stop me,” Qi said with confidence, smiling as he advanced.

“You little brat. If not for that Imperial Arm protecting you, I’d have punched you to death long ago.”

“Arrogant fool. My great blade is already stained with your blood.”

“Keep attacking. An Imperial Arm drains a huge amount of stamina and spirit. He won’t last much longer.”

“Do you see that? Swallows are dancing in the sky.” Qi lifted his head slightly, watching the swallows chasing each other. “I’ve thought of a new move. I’ll use you to test it.”

“I call it the Spinning Domain.”

Dozens of diamond boomerangs were hurled out. The remaining men hurried to dodge or block, but attacks of this level naturally could not wound such battle-hardened experts. Yet the moment the first boomerang came back, hell descended upon them.

Around the boy’s body, more than a hundred razor-sharp diamond boomerangs began to spin, like conscious perpetual machines, darting back and forth at unbelievable speed without pause.

And these few experts just happened to be within the boomerangs’ rotation range.

So they were doomed.

Faced with attacks coming from every direction, the experts with weapons could barely protect themselves. Those empty-handed, such as the old man, could not block the indiscriminate barrage at all and were instantly sliced into countless small pieces.

“What is going on? We have to get out!”

“But now we can barely move a step, let alone escape.”

Tat-tat-tat-tat...

Suddenly, outside the Spinning Domain, rows of soldiers opened fire. The bullets struck the boomerangs flying through the air, disrupting their trajectories and causing the originally ordered pattern to collide with itself. In an instant, the Spinning Domain collapsed.

“Oh? So that’s how it is. Not bad power, but as long as a wide-area attack destroys the formation I calculated in advance, the Spinning Domain falls apart on its own.”

Qi smiled, not taking it too seriously. After all, it had only been a spur-of-the-moment idea. To have killed several experts with it was already quite impressive.

The few surviving experts fled immediately after escaping danger. A battle so completely one-sided had stripped them of any desire to continue.

Qi’s excited grin faded as he picked up speed once more. The imperial capital was now clearly in sight. And there, guarding the city gate, stood that great gatekeeper-like figure. Qi could already feel the danger emanating from him.

“You are strong. Strong enough that no other faction would be willing to send you as a spy. And your actions have earned our trust as well, so Night Raid welcomes you. Of course, the final decision must wait until the boss returns. For now, come away with us.”

Crimson Eyes emerged from the shadows with the other members of Night Raid.

“No. My performance is not finished yet. I won’t be satisfied until I tear down this imperial capital.”

Qi shook his head and refused them, walking around them toward the guardian at the gate.

“The man guarding the front is not like those ordinary fighters you faced before. He is General Bud, one of the two strongest men in the empire. His Imperial Arm, Thunder God's Wrath, Adramelech, grants him control over thunderclouds and the ability to summon lightning to strike his enemies. Its power is immense, its range enormous, and anyone it hits is paralyzed and unable to move.” Mine frowned as she tried to persuade him, displeased with his stubbornness.

“So what? If I don’t try, how will I know who is stronger? Even if I lose, I’m still confident I can protect myself. Don’t forget, I can fly.”

“Even if you can fly, the sky is still within General Bud’s lightning range, and the thunderclouds are even closer to you. Do you know why no other Imperial Arm users came to stop you? It’s not only because of the iron rule that if Imperial Arm users kill one another, one side must die. It’s also because they all believe you can never get past Bud, so they left you alone and hid nearby to watch the show.” Leone also tried to persuade him.

“I’m immortal, and that iron rule doesn’t apply to me anyway, because... I don’t have an Imperial Arm.”

How could Qi stop now? This was the crucial moment. He could already feel that his breakthrough was at hand.

“What?”

“How is that possible?”

“No way.”

His words struck the six Night Raid members behind him like a heavy blow, but Qi’s eyes were fixed only on the guardian at the city gate, General Bud, one of the empire’s strongest men.

“Boy, stop where you are,” General Bud said in a deep voice.

“Enough nonsense. Fight me.”

To be honest, in this world of tenfold gravity, he had no real confidence in taking on this imperial powerhouse. But if he did not fight him, how could he be reconciled?

“Die.”

General Bud shouted and widened his eyes. A bolt of lightning came crashing down, striking Qi squarely in the chest.

It was not that Qi had failed to evade it, but that he had deliberately allowed himself to be hit, just to see how much damage the opponent’s probing attack could inflict.

The result proved that he had still underestimated the strongest fighter in this world.

A massive explosion and shockwave instantly shattered Qi’s diamond armor and sent him flying more than thirty feet away. After somersaulting several times in the air, he finally landed on his feet. Looking down, he saw that his chest had already been scorched black.

On Monday, the number of member clicks reached more than forty. This week may reach more than three hundred, and if it does, there will be extra chapters. Also, as for the recommendation votes, why are there none again?