“Ah! Such speed.” Chi Yuan and the others gasped, surprised that he had completely evaded that barrage of dense magical attacks.

Kill! Soon, dozens of "bandits" rushed towards Xing Chen with fierce cries.

"Roar!" A powerful roar sounded. From Xing Chen’s green silhouette, several blurred figures suddenly flashed out.

Swish, swish! Several ghostly silver-white streaks flashed into existence, instantly severing the heads of more than a dozen men, sending columns of blood soaring to the sky, and leaving a dozen severed heads rolling on the ground. His speed never slackened. He pressed straight toward the heart of the stockade. Everyone was struck dumb with terror, not expecting the newcomer’s blade to be so swift, killing over a dozen high-level warriors in the blink of an eye.

“You all fall back!” Chi Yuan roared. “Tong, Lin! Stop him.” Chi Yuan shrieked, leaping forward himself. It was obvious even to him that the strength of the advanced ranger class could never halt this intruder.

Simultaneously, several Soul Fire Talismans and Great Fireballs hurtled toward him like lightning. The attackers were Chi Lin and Chi Tong, while Chi Xiong and Chi Han rushed swiftly toward Xing Chen’s landing spot.

“Get out of the way!” In mid-air, Xing Chen delivered a mighty downward slash. Dou Qi instantly condensed. To maximize his power, Xing Chen had changed into the ZUMA Set immediately after knocking Chen Zhen unconscious. Now, augmented by the set, the Dou Qi energy within him reached its limit. Furthermore, needing to breach the stronghold in the shortest possible time, he unleashed his full strength in this opening move. After all, the essence of the Hundred Battles Blade lay in momentum—no regrets in striking, holding absolutely nothing back. Victory or defeat was determined in an instant; it was either you die or I perish. Moreover, Xing Chen, already boiling with rage, intended only to smash his way into the stockade.

Boom! Boom! The incoming Soul Fire Talismans and Great Fireballs were shattered by the fierce crescent-shaped Sword Qi. Not only that, but the crescent-shaped Sword Qi, after dispersing Chi Lin and Chi Tong’s attacks, continued its astonishing trajectory toward the nearest mage, Chi Lin.

Hmph! Clang! A brilliant flash of golden light erupted as a dazzling Magic Shield instantly sprang up. Yet, the sharp crescent-shaped Sword Qi still jolted Chi Lin backward, causing him to vomit blood violently—a truly pathetic sight.

Roar! Swish!

Two streams of Hellfire simultaneously struck toward Xing Chen’s front. There was simply no time to dodge.

Swish, swish! However, Xing Chen, still airborne, smoothly rotated and swept out another crescent blade horizontally across his body.

Clang! A dazzling ball of light exploded in the air.

Xing Chen had taken on the Hellfire attacks from both of the Red Moon Warriors head-on.

The terrifying shockwave of the Dou Qi explosion raged wildly, causing the high-level warriors within ten meters of Xing Chen to be thrown back and tumble to the ground in disarray.

But Xing Chen was not faring much better. Fortunately, relying on his exceptional reflexes, he used the shockwave from the explosion at the moment of impact to spring backward rapidly. He hadn't been blown away, but rather propelled backward by the force of the blast. Even so, Xing Chen felt a churning in his chest, as if his entire lung was on the verge of tearing apart.

Damn it, something is wrong!

In the mere instant of contact, he sensed that things were going south. According to Chen Zhen’s description, Kunlong Stockade only had three Red Moon-level experts, and the main army was currently assaulting the main gate with full force. Therefore, it should have been impossible for them to dispatch more personnel to defend the side entrance. It was precisely based on this assumption that Xing Chen was confident in breaking into the stockade, but the situation was far beyond his expectations.

As soon as he charged up the city wall, he was met with heavy resistance. These four experts were all beyond the Red Moon level. The potent magical energy, the sharp Soul Fire Talismans, and the two subsequent streams of Hellfire had shocked Xing Chen greatly. This meant Xing Chen had been ambushed by four Red Moon-level masters in an instant. Caught completely off guard, he had nearly suffered a major setback. This proved that Kunlong Stockade's strength was far from what Chen Zhen had described, meaning the attacking army ahead was surely in for losses.

What on earth was going on? Although Xing Chen was inwardly horrified, his concern for his mother’s safety only intensified. Clang! As he landed, Xing Chen stamped his foot onto the city wall, his figure surging forward again. His new target was the mage he had just injured.

I’ll risk it all. If I can’t break through this time, I’ll never get another chance. With this thought, I forcefully suppressed the terror in my heart and steadied my mind. I quickly formulated a viable tactic: keep attacking that mage. If pressed, the mage would be forced to fight to create distance between us. During this high-speed pursuit, it would be difficult for the two warriors to attack me as well. This was a common tactic used by warriors during mass PK fights in my previous life in Legend. Mages had lower defense; once a warrior closed in, it was their most terrifying nightmare. Especially in the current situation, with so many enemies present, it was the perfect time to use this strategy. Hidden by the crowd, the enemy Red Moon Warriors couldn't attack me unrestrainedly, but I, with my speed and defense, was immune to harm from ordinary high-level warriors. This meant I could unleash carnage while my opponents were hesitant to risk hitting their own men.

Having made up my mind, I felt much calmer.

Roar! In the blink of an eye, with speed surging, I instantly closed within ten meters of Chi Lin. My Hellfire Sword Qi shot toward the mage’s chest with astonishing speed.

“Ah!” The mage, greatly startled, kept his Magic Shield at maximum strength while simultaneously firing a Beam of Light and frantically moving toward the positions of Chi Xiong and Chi Tong. As a mage, one must always be wary of being cornered by a warrior. Once entangled by an enemy warrior, the best course of action was to rely on the assistance of their own warriors to break free. How could Chi Xiong and Chi Tong fail to see through Xing Chen’s intentions?

Swish! Clang! Perhaps my speed was too great; although the mage tried desperately to dodge, my Hellfire Sword Qi accurately struck his chest.

Clang! With a thud, the mage was jolted backward several steps again, and the golden light instantly dimmed. His Magic Shield had clearly been shattered by my Hellfire Sword Qi. Even as I struck, my speed did not decrease; I charged straight through. However, two streams of Hellfire quickly swept across my middle. It seemed their coordination was quite timely. The two Hellfire streams were spaced apart, one in front and one behind. This meant that even if I deflected the leading stream with my crescent-shaped Sword Qi, I would inevitably be struck by the trailing one. This was an exceptionally clever coordinated attack tactic. But I had anticipated such a maneuver. Relying on superior speed, I merely stepped aside slightly, executing a bizarre Fox Step. My body traced an S-shaped arc in an instant. This move, in fact, had another name; it was akin to the dribble crossover in my past life’s basketball—achieving maximum evasion with the smallest arc of movement. The difference now was that combined with this body’s explosive power and flexibility, maneuvers that were once extremely difficult were now accomplished easily. The only distinction was that this time, instead of dribbling, I was weaving between the interception of two warriors to pursue the mage. I skillfully exploited the subtle gap in speed and distance between the two Hellfire Sword Qi streams.

Swish! In the blink of an eye, I slipped right through the gap between the two Hellfire Sword Qi attacks.

“Ah!” No one had expected that the interception of the two Hellfire strikes would be pierced through so effortlessly. Indeed, to outsiders, my body seemed to pass directly through the two Hellfire attacks, becoming like a phantom.

This sudden, drastic change caught the mage off guard as well. By the time he realized it, I was within six meters of him. He hadn't even managed to raise a Magic Shield yet.

Roar! Immediately, a sharp Assassination Sword Qi whistled out.

Splurt! A mist of blood sprayed out. The mage, whose Magic Shield I had just dispersed, was now impaled directly by my Assassination Sword Qi.

“Ah!” With a scream, the mage collapsed painfully to the ground.

“No! Ah Lin!”

“Bastard, I’ll kill you!”

“Roar!” The two warriors lunged forward madly. But I didn't pause for even a moment. Having eliminated the mage, I immediately lunged toward the Taoist. After all, like mages, Taoists are extremely vulnerable once a warrior gets close. How could the two warriors fail to see my intent? They chased me desperately. Sharp Assassination Sword Qi and Hellfire Sword Qi struck toward my back almost simultaneously. The Taoist, too, looked utterly horrified. He clearly understood my objective and retreated desperately while his massive Holy Word Divine Beast charged toward me with astonishing speed.

Roar! With a heaven-shaking roar, the Holy Word Divine Beast spewed out a massive pillar of fire ten meters long. My vision was filled with a dazzling, scorching red glare; I felt as if the surrounding air itself was being burned away, emitting a suffocating, scorching heat.

The Holy Word Divine Beast. The ultimate skill of all Red Moon Taoists. Summoned through immense spiritual power, the Holy Word Divine Beast possessed astonishing defense and attack power. Furthermore, its speed was considerable, almost matching that of a Red Moon Warrior of the same rank. In the world of Mafa, a Red Moon-level Taoist was undoubtedly the strongest in a one-on-one fight because they had the aid of the Holy Word Divine Beast, whose strength was in no way inferior to a Red Moon Warrior of equal level. With proper coordination, ordinary Red Moon Warriors barely stood a chance of closing the distance, let alone inflicting damage. And now, I was facing such a massive Holy Word Divine Beast.

It stood a full three meters tall, its appearance similar to that in Legend, but facing a real Holy Word Divine Beast was a truly shocking experience. Its roar could almost rupture a man’s eardrums, and the massive pillar of fire it spewed radiated an astonishingly high temperature. I imagined that even carelessly touched steel would instantly vaporize.

Clang! Unable to dodge in time, I was directly engulfed by the wide-area attack of the fire pillar.

A scorching sensation instantly enveloped me.

“Ah!” I thought I was done for. I had charged too fast to change direction, and the pillar of fire spewed by the Holy Word Divine Beast was incredibly wide—four meters across—completely blocking my escape routes.

I could only instinctively push my Body Protection Dou Qi to its strongest state.

Swish! Finally, the giant pillar of fire completely enveloped me.

But in that very instant, something unbelievable happened. I felt absolutely no searing heat of burning. The flames wrapping around me seemed to be nothing more than an illusion. The flames, upon touching me, inexplicably bounced back slightly before stopping, as if an invisible, intangible wall of air surrounded my body, separating the flames.

“Ah!” Before I could figure out what was happening, although I was shrouded in roaring flames, the Taoist’s figure was perfectly clear before my eyes. A cruel smile played on his lips, and his gaze toward me was as if he were observing a dead man. He showed no intent to flee. What was this fellow doing? Was he insane?

A perfect opportunity! Although I didn’t know why the flames hadn't burned me to death, an opening had suddenly appeared. Without hesitation, another Assassination Sword Qi shot out.

Splurt! Without suspense, the Taoist was pierced clean through by my Assassination Sword Qi. He then slumped to the ground, his face etched with shock and confusion. Perhaps he died without ever understanding why I, having been hit by the Holy Word Divine Beast, could still kill him.

But I was even more bewildered—why did he not even attempt the most basic evasion?

However, I was unaware of how bizarre the scene that just unfolded was. To outsiders, I had been completely enveloped by the Holy Word Divine Beast's fire pillar. The Holy Word Fire was far more terrifying than a mage’s Exploding Flame; being hit by it meant even a Red Moon Warrior wearing the ZUMA Set could not withstand it. The only outcome was being burned to ash. Thus, in one-on-one combat on the Mafa Continent, no one willingly fought a Taoist, as the Holy Word Divine Beast was a truly terrifying entity. With incredible speed and frighteningly powerful flame projection, once targeted by the Divine Beast, most warriors only had the option to flee, never getting a chance to counterattack.

Yet, what they saw was a streak of white light shooting out from amidst the roaring Holy Word flames, directly piercing Chi Tong’s body. It wasn't until Chi Tong fell that they realized it was an Assassination Sword Qi. At such close range, even a well-equipped Red Moon Taoist struck by an equal-level Red Moon Warrior’s Assassination Sword Qi was doomed. Taoists couldn't rely on protective spells like mages; the defense layered by Ghost Shield and Sacred Armor was very limited. It couldn't resist the piercing power of a Red Moon Warrior’s Assassination Sword Qi, so death was inevitable. But all of this was simply unbelievable. The only explanation might be that the warrior’s strength far exceeded their imagination; he must have used a Dou Qi energy far greater than they expected to sustain his Body Protection Dou Qi, successfully weathering the Holy Word Divine Beast’s flame spray, and thereby killing Chi Tong. If this were true, they stood no chance against this person. Such Dou Qi mastery indicated a cultivation level at least at the peak of the Red Moon realm, whereas the five of them were merely at the initial stage of Red Moon.

Woooo... The moment the Taoist fell, the massive Holy Word Divine Beast let out a mournful shriek, transforming into a blurry afterimage and vanishing. The Taoist’s death directly caused his spiritual power to dissipate, and the fundamental force sustaining the Holy Word Divine Beast’s presence in this world vanished, causing it to disappear as well.

The flames enveloping my body quickly faded. The world around me became clear again. Could this be the effect of the Demon Devouring Body? For a moment, I was also stunned. Legend had it that the Demon Devouring Body was immune to all magic attacks, similar to how modern insulators block electricity. Any attack relying on magical elemental energy as its source of power could not harm me. Could this actually be true? The Holy Word Divine Beast’s attack was based on fire-elemental energy, making it a magical attack—it must be correct. With this thought, an urge for wild ecstasy rose in my heart. It seemed if my opponent was a mage, I was virtually invincible.

From when I leaped off the wall to killing the mage and the Taoist, only four short seconds had passed. The remaining few seemed somewhat stunned, staring at me with looks of utter dread. But they quickly recovered. The first two warriors charged forward recklessly. Almost simultaneously, two Decisive Blades conjured two blurry afterimages—one chopped downward overhead, the other swept across horizontally—while another stream of Hellfire roared in from the left.

There was another Red Moon Warrior after all, I thought with a slight start. Honestly, after consecutively killing two of the enemy’s Red Moon experts, I had gained considerable confidence in my combat abilities. Facing the attacks of two Red Moon Warriors now, their momentum looked impressive, but they were wielding heavy weapons like the Decisive Blade; no matter how strong their power, their speed must be greatly diminished. With my reaction speed, dodging their attacks was not difficult. Moreover, breaking through their defense was also achievable with my strength. Although my strength was not equal to theirs, it was close. When strength is nearly equal, speed and technique become the deciding factors. I was supremely confident in surpassing them in those two areas.

Furthermore, having already killed two Red Moon experts would certainly have dealt a psychological blow to the enemy, which was a significant advantage for me.

I met the assault of the two by ducking low and flipping sideways onto the ground. Simultaneously, the Hundred Battles Blade carved out a low arc with astonishing speed. The sharp crescent-shaped Sword Qi sliced across the ground, aimed directly at the opponents’ lower legs.

This move, Searching for Flowers in the Waves from the Ground-Skimming Blade Style, had a tricky angle. It not only cleverly evaded the two attacks and the surprise Hellfire strike but also targeted their lower bodies. Moreover, its speed was incredible. The warrior closer to me was immediately struck!

“Ah!” With a cry of agony, both his calves were cleanly severed by my blade, and he collapsed to the ground. The other saw clearly; he leaped into the air, bringing his Decisive Blade down from above with terrifying force onto me, who had rolled to the ground.

Hmph! I rolled several times to the left in response. In the flash of lightning and flint, I covered a distance of five or six meters.

Boom! The Red Moon Warrior who missed with the Decisive Blade did not pause; he immediately swept horizontally. A sharp crescent-shaped Sword Qi, nearly scraping the ground, rushed toward me with astonishing speed.

The other Red Moon Warrior had also closed in. His Hellfire Sword Qi swept diagonally upward toward me at waist height.

These two coordinated remarkably well. One sword energy attacked, the other blocked my retreat path—it was exceedingly fierce. I had no choice but to plant my left palm on the ground, leap into the air, and sweep out a crescent blade to meet the incoming Hellfire Sword Qi.

Clang! A brilliant ball of light instantly exploded. Gritting my teeth, I used the force of the explosion to propel myself toward the other Red Moon Warrior.

“Roar! Die!” the other Red Moon Warrior roared.

He brandished the Decisive Blade with both hands, creating layers of blade shadows to meet me flying toward him, launching a ferocious attack with wild slashes and chops. It seemed he was truly fighting to the death, intending to bring about mutual destruction.

Hmph! Attempting to forcefully break through the storm of the Decisive Blade swings with the Hundred Battles Blade was impossible in terms of sheer force. My mind raced, and I quickly settled on a plan. I channeled power into the Hundred Battles Blade and flung it out, simultaneously drawing the Straight Sword from my back.

Clang! The hurled Hundred Battles Blade was batted away by the frantically swinging Decisive Blade. However, this defense created a minute, subtle opening in the dense array of blade shadows.

Roar! Seizing this fleeting moment of obstruction, the Straight Sword I held in my hand instantly pierced into the encirclement with astonishing speed.

Splurt! This sudden, lightning-fast sword thrust accurately pierced the throat of the Red Moon Warrior.

“Ah! En! So fast!” The Red Moon Warrior stared at me with an expression of utter shock and disbelief. “It’s you!” Then his neck snapped, and he fell to the ground.

“It’s you again! Blue-robed man!” A cry of grief and fury echoed from behind me.