Gu Yechen, along with Ru Hua and Little Daoist Zhang, emerged from the valley after a convivial discussion. He was preparing to take them to the valley where he had made his initial discovery when, abruptly, he received a mental message transmitted by Xin Jia. Gu Yechen’s expression immediately darkened. (This novel is reprinted from Shiliu Literature Network)

“Hmph! I’ve taken the three drops of Hanba essence blood. The subsequent deal is off!” Gu Yechen sneered at Ru Hua and Little Daoist Zhang. “You two can find the location of that valley yourselves! If you dare try to default on the remaining cash and pills, I’ll bring my men and storm your sect’s gates!”

With a slight tap of his toe, a faint shimmer of cloud light flashed beneath Gu Yechen’s Bu Yun Boots. The water-cloud aura lifted his body tens of meters high like a wisp of blue smoke, traversing nearly three hundred meters horizontally as if in flight, before vanishing into the dense forest.

Ru Hua and Little Daoist Zhang watched Gu Yechen’s rapidly receding silhouette with lingering alarm. They exchanged glances, speechless for a long time.

After a considerable pause, Ru Hua managed a strained laugh. “Nearly crossing the void without aid, ha. What level has he reached?”

Little Daoist Zhang, however, furiously snatched up a small communication device and roared, “What is it? What happened?”

A dry voice returned from the device: “Wu Qing-jiao of the Three Witch Sect has left the main contingent with a medium-sized transport ship. He intends to use the servant clan ninjas he brought to assassinate the fighters of the Hell Angel Mercenary Group!”

Ru Hua fiercely stomped his foot. “Damn it!”

Little Daoist Zhang’s face instantly grew grim. He commanded, “Transmit this matter back to the Dao Alliance headquarters and request the elders to hold the Three Witch Sect accountable! … As for the Wu Qing-jiao incident, no one is to interfere! Anyone who dares assist him is to get out! It’s outrageous; they are jeopardizing the major affairs of the Dao Alliance over a personal grudge with Gu Yechen. Absolutely outrageous!”

Ten kilometers away in a dense wood, Ducat Holsom sat on a tree stump, quietly observing Wu Qing-jiao, the chief disciple of the Three Witch Sect, and the seven servant clan ninjas standing behind him. A faint, strange greenish-blue metallic glow occasionally flickered across Ducat Holsom’s pale skin. His black eyes radiated a cold light, rational to the point of ruthless indifference, much like those of a robot’s electronic eye.

Several massive Zakla energy crystal ores hovered around Ducat Holsom, continuously revolving around him. Filaments of electric arcs erupted from Ducat’s body, striking the energy crystals to siphon the energy within the ores into Ducat.

With a crisp snap, one of the beads on the crimson prayer bracelet worn by a disheveled young man behind Wu Qing-jiao suddenly exploded, its color rapidly fading to dull gray-white.

The youth trembled violently. The large black saber strapped to his back, taller than a man, emitted a low, mournful howl.

Ducat Holsom asked coolly, “What is it?”

The youth ignored Ducat Holsom, focusing instead on Wu Qing-jiao, speaking dryly, “Keiko is dead… My only sister, dead!” Streams of black energy, coiling like giant pythons, surged out of the youth’s body. The surrounding temperature plummeted, and flakes of black snow began to drift down from the sky.

Ducat chuckled, a light, mocking sound. “Mr. Wu Qing-jiao, it seems our cooperation has a basic foundation of trust. The grief displayed by this Mr. Zhan Hao of Dizang Temple is not something that can be feigned. Therefore, I believe your subordinate died while attempting to assassinate one of Gu Yechen’s fighters. Well, we can discuss the next phase of our plan.”

Zhan Hao of Dizang Temple roared in fury, “Ducat Holsom, you allowed my sister to die for such a vague pretext!”

He reversed his grip on the hilt of the black saber and pulled it out, savagely hacking at a large tree beside him.

With a loud crack, the tree was split in two. Streams of black, frigid energy rushed over the trunk. Accompanied by a tremendous explosion, the tree froze solid and shattered into a sky full of icy splinters.

Wu Qing-jiao’s expression shifted slightly. He slapped Zhan Hao across the face with the back of his hand, the heavy impact sending the disciple flying dozens of meters. The scorpion tattoo on Wu Qing-jiao’s forehead flashed sharply. Zhan Hao, who had just staggered to his feet, suddenly wailed, clutching his stomach and rolling repeatedly on the ground. Veins swelled beneath his skin, and large beads of cold sweat oozed out of his body.

Ducat Holsom glanced impassively at the struggling Zhan Hao. He lightly pointed his right hand, and a flash of white cold light pierced the air. A skeletal armed robot, two meters tall, strode out of the light. Carrying an ammunition box and equipped with twin three-centimeter, six-barreled rotary cannons on its arms, the robot’s eyes glowed with cold, red electronic light. It bowed deeply to Ducat Holsom and roared in an emotionless electronic voice, “Great Master, what do you wish to destroy?”

Several huge Zakla crystal ores silently disintegrated into dust, and streams of white light erupted around Ducat Holsom. One armed robot after another marched forth until an army exceeding five thousand machines had assembled around him. Ducat Holsom wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and stated calmly, “This is the limit... But this force should be sufficient.”

Glancing at the two thousand Roman warriors and nearly a hundred pitch-black, leopard-shaped bio-beasts standing beside the robotic army, Ducat Holsom asked blandly, “Are there truly only thirty-odd fighters and a few hundred mercenaries surrounding Gu Yechen?”

Wu Qing-jiao replied coldly, “That is the intelligence I gathered. If you and I join forces to kill Gu Yechen, our Three Witch Sect will finally settle our scores with him, and you, Ducat Holsom, can achieve great merit. Remember, Gu Yechen destroyed one hundred and thirty of your Roman first-class warships. Taking him down will significantly boost your standing within your family.”

“Standing within the family?” Ducat Holsom gave a few dry, mocking laughs. He stated coolly, “Very well, we can try. The Holy Unicorn Mercenary Group, our family’s business partner on Earth, has been declared an illegal organization by the Federation. The family requires new collaborators. The Three Witch Sect, I believe, could become a new partner for the Holsom family.”

Wu Qing-jiao extended his right hand and smiled. “I concur. Every major Earth power needs ties to a great Roman family. No exception.”

Ducat Holsom frowned and grasped Wu Qing-jiao’s hand. The palm felt damp and cold, like the body of a venomous snake. Ducat Holsom barely managed to suppress the urge to order his nearby robots to blow off Wu Qing-jiao’s head.

Three minutes later, the great Roman army began to advance toward Gu Yechen’s location, with nearly a hundred black, leopard-shaped bio-beasts silently taking the lead and melting into the forest.

××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

Alright, comrades, please recommend and click... A new week is about to begin, and we are one step closer to the scheduled updates after going on sale... Pig Head is working hard on writing, so comrades, work hard on your recommendations and clicks!