Zhu Neizhen Ce stared blankly at Qian Jin, shaking his head violently. He had only come to observe Qian Jin this time, perhaps even planning to use every means necessary to recruit him as a retainer; he certainly hadn't intended to help out.

More importantly! Mu Neizhen Ce slowly straightened his chest. This Prince comes from the Zhen Ce Clan! The blood of Emperor Fulong Zhen Ce flows through my veins! At a time like this, should I rely on an ordinary warrior to take the burden for me? How could I face Emperor Fulong Zhen Ce in the embrace of the stars if I did?

As a descendant of Emperor Fulong Zhen Ce, how could my spirit be overshadowed by that of an ordinary warrior! Mu Neizhen Ce took a step forward: "Qian Jin, I merely intended to take you as a retainer; I haven't helped you with anything, so you don't need to—"

"But you did help me," Qian Jin looked at Mu Neizhen Ce. "That time with the Bilma bandits, if you hadn't yelled at me to retreat quickly, I might have been blown to death by the blast from the magic cannon right there. You saved my life, in a way. There’s nothing to argue about regarding this. If you died, I might have a chance to live; I have more value than you."

"Value your sister!" Mu Neizhen Ce roared, spitting out an obscenity at Qian Jin, abandoning all royal etiquette and his usual gentle demeanor: I am a Prince, the Sixth Prince of the Zhen Ce Dynasty! In terms of value, a hundred of you aren't worth as much as one of my fingers...

Qian Jin looked at Mu Neizhen Ce's outburst and laughed, a few tears glistening in his eyes. These past few days with Mu Neizhen Ce, he always felt a barrier between them. Although Mu Neizhen Ce acted intimately and tried to get close, Qian Jin always sensed a gulf.

Now, in this moment, as Mu Neizhen Ce suddenly roared, the barrier seemed to vanish. "Whether you live or die, I can’t care about that. And I don’t care if you’re a Prince." Qian Jin patted Mu Neizhen Ce’s shoulder and pointed at Hua Yanbujian under the blade: "This woman saved me. She saved the lives of several of my close friends. I cannot let anything happen to her. You can just treat this as my condition for the whole affair."

"A condition?" Mu Neizhen Ce was startled.

The hand Qian Jin had placed on Mu Neizhen Ce’s shoulder suddenly exerted force, launching a preemptive strike—a palm blow to the back of the Zhen Ce Dynasty Prince’s neck.

"Damn it... Qian Jin... you—"

Mu Neizhen Ce struggled to keep his eyes open and maintain consciousness, but Qian Jin's sneak attack was too swift, leaving him utterly unprepared. Moreover, the striking point was too precise. His body swayed, and he passed out.

"Young man, you say you have value; what makes that so?" Ba Huang Wusheng watched Qian Jin quietly. "What do you use to prove it?"

Qian Jin retrieved a bandage from the Dou Realm and began wrapping his wounded shoulder: "I don't know, King Ma Fu. What aspects of my value do you wish to see?"

"The value of a bandit..." Ba Huang Wusheng looked at Qian Jin, falling into contemplation. "First, you must be able to fight." Qian Jin smiled at Ba Huang Wusheng. His previous knife attack nearly killed even this unprepared King Ma. Doesn't that count as value? Those two Great Commanders, had they not been restrained by the Bandit King, should have been thrown directly into that conflagration to be incinerated.

Ba Huang Wusheng looked somewhat troubled at Qian Jin. He hadn't used his full strength in the last engagement, expecting to capture the boy with a single palm strike. This kid was certainly skilled at escaping; despite only possessing the strength of a Zhu Mo Ninth Battle, he evaded that strike.

A knife sneak attack? Ba Huang Wusheng nodded repeatedly. That aspect was indeed outstanding! However... he hadn't witnessed a genuine frontal confrontation yet. While he assumed it would also be good, he still wanted to see the boy perform.

An ordinary warrior, at this age, possessing the strength of Zhu Mo Ninth Battle?

Could this child have inherited the Battle Heart from his closest kin? Otherwise, this strength is too astonishing! Scanning the historical records of the three Barbarian tribes, one cannot find a single ordinary warrior who, through sheer effort, attained the Battle Heart at this age, let alone reaching the near-peak state of Zhu Mo Ninth Battle.

"Still need to fight?" Qian Jin finished tying his bandage and smiled at Ba Huang Wusheng: "Then let’s fight! If you send a warrior at the level of a Soul Warrior for a direct confrontation, I might not have much chance of winning. But if you let me set up an ambush, I am confident I can take his life."

Ba Huang Wusheng laughed. He wanted to see his skill, not engage in a fight to the death. The brutes under him were the most precious treasures; there was no need to lose any of them. "King Wusheng, let me do it!"

One of the bandits clearing the battlefield, tall and broad, carrying a long broadsword, approached, his muscles twitching beneath his skin. He smiled at Qian Jin: "Shall I spar with this kid?"

"King Wusheng, let me do it!" "Let me!" "King Wusheng, let me do it!" Nearly ten warriors approached from different directions, carrying various weapons, all boasting and eager to step forward.

Qian Jin blinked, inwardly praising them repeatedly. No wonder they dared to call themselves a King! The strength of this foremost Outland Bandit Group was absolutely incomparable to the Tenth, Seventh, or Fifth Bandit Groups. Every random person emerging possessed the strength of a Golden Battle Heart!

With such a lineup of power! Qian Jin pouted. Perhaps only the main regular armies of the Zhen Ce Dynasty, the Lucifer Dynasty, or the Barbarian Tribes could match this force. Come on, fight! (Third update)

"King Wusheng, let me go," the warrior kneeling beside Hua Yanbujian, the one who had charged out with her, looked up at Ba Huang Wusheng: "Let me go."

"You?" Ba Huang Wusheng smiled: "Fine. Ferdinand, you still have a bit of wolf spirit left in you. Go..." Ferdinand slowly stood up and walked towards Qian Jin, gripping the chain in his hand: "Ferdinand, Mo Extermination Seventh Battle."

"Shall we fight with weapons or fists?"

Qian Jin glanced at Hua Yanbujian on the ground, then at the Zhanmadao (Horse Slaying Blade) left stuck in the earth that someone hadn't managed to retrieve in the hasty departure: "Forget it, let's use fists. You just saved Hua Yanbujian; it wouldn't be right to kill you."

"Kill you?" Ferdinand doubted if he heard correctly. This young man’s speed was indeed fast, but judging by feel, he was only at the peak of a Mo Extermination Warrior, meaning Zhu Mo Ninth Battle. Ferdinand didn't even need to use his full strength to kill him. He only came out because he feared the others might hit too hard and actually kill this person, since he had come to save Hua Yanbujian after all.

The surrounding bandits burst into wild laughter. Young people nowadays truly had no idea how high the stars were. A Zhu Mo Ninth Battle warrior dared to claim he could kill a Mo Extermination Seventh Battle warrior like Ferdinand.

The Heart of Earth Fire greedily swallowed a large amount of Ice Flame Dou Qi, causing the three cores, under this pure energy, to approach a peak state—as if ready at any moment for a new metamorphosis, to reach the legendary Golden Battle Heart realm.

All three Battle Hearts were at the peak state of Zhu Mo Ninth Battle. Even if not at their absolute apex, the speed of the Dou Qi released in an instant was astonishing. Qian Jin didn't even know what realm he currently occupied.

Zhu Mo Ninth Battle? One Battle Heart reaching this peak state, combined with sufficient Dou Qi volume, constituted Zhu Mo Ninth Battle. But he possessed three Battle Hearts all in the state of Zhu Mo Ninth Battle, with enough Dou Qi volume to match. Did this mean three Zhu Mo Ninth Battles were layered upon him?

No! This was far more powerful than three Zhu Mo Ninth Battles. Qian Jin knew that even at the Zhu Mo Second Battle level, his burst strength already far surpassed Zhu Mo Ninth Battle.

Now, with all three Battle Hearts in their utmost peak state, Qian Jin unconsciously gained immense confidence. Even facing a Golden Battle Heart warrior at the Mo Extermination Seventh Battle level, he might not necessarily lose. If it were a fight to the death, he was certain to win!

After a smile, Ferdinand slowly closed his eyes. The aura of hesitation vanished entirely from his body; his spirit and body instantly adjusted to a very high level.

Warriors, after agreeing to a battle of life and death, often choose several days in seclusion to adjust their bodies and spirits, allowing them to reach their optimal state to unleash their true peak strength.

In a brief instant, Ferdinand completed a rapid adjustment of his body and spirit. This action drew a hint of satisfaction from the Bandit King’s eyes. True warriors could rapidly adjust their mental and physical states. Although far inferior to the meticulous adjustment achieved during days of seclusion, Ferdinand’s current level of proficiency was quite commendable.

Qian Jin watched the change in Ferdinand’s aura and nodded his head slightly, a gesture that looked strangely awkward to the others—was it arrogance? Or something else? The auras of both men slowly expanded. There was no need for a referee to shout 'Begin.' The moment their auras touched, Ferdinand’s eyes snapped open, two sharp glints shooting out, a biting killing intent instantly enveloping his entire being, his aura erupting suddenly.

Qian Jin pressed his toes into the ground, leaning his body slightly forward, bending his knees once, and easily launched himself forward, moving before Ferdinand, who was about to attack!

This launch, this rush, lacked the brutal violence of his previous sneak attack on Ba Huang Wusheng. His aura carried a hint of softness, like the languidness of an Outland sunset, akin to the feeling of slowly strolling under the evening sun across the wilderness.

Returning to the Outlands, seeing Hua Yanbujian again, had stirred Qian Jin’s memories of his life there. In an instant, his body seemed to develop a special intimacy with the Outlands.

This seemingly leisurely launch was not slow in reality; it was just that his aura gave an impression of leisure and comfort, yet he had already positioned himself less than a meter in front of Ferdinand.

The engagement between the two required no words. Qian Jin raised his hand, turning his arm into a Zhanmadao, and brought it down against Ferdinand.

This chop lacked the imposing aura of the Great River and Long Flow seen before. The Star River did not manifest in his arm; at best, it was only the momentum of a few shooting stars swirling around his limb, channeled through his back, shoulder, and entire arm.

The sharp gleam in Ferdinand’s eyes suddenly contracted, as if he had instantaneously sucked the emitted light back into his eyes. He instantly felt the ferocity of Qian Jin’s move—to strike with his forearm substituted for a blade and generate such momentum! He mobilized all his strength, channeling it to flow turbulently through his arm and back.

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