Chapter 21: The Intent of Slaughter

At the foot of Qiyun Mountain, amidst a torrential downpour, a vast horde of demonic beasts surged like a tidal wave, causing the very earth to tremble incessantly.

Lin Tiandu stood with a resolute expression, gripping a colossal bow the size of a man. With a single motion, he drew ten arrows, each as thick as a spear.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

The ten arrows fanned out like a peacock’s tail, propelled by a violent surge of surging true essence. They plunged into the beast tide, instantly unleashing a rain of blood.

Beside Lin Tiandu, other figures flickered through the fray. These were the grandmaster-level experts who had arrived as reinforcements; naturally, their superior strength allowed them to reach the front lines first. Yet, even as grandmasters, they felt the crushing pressure of such an overwhelming number of beasts.

Simultaneously, experts were arriving at every point where the tide surged. Beyond the disciples of the Martial Academy, there were warriors from all corners of the land. Though the beasts were numerous, to these coordinated grandmasters, they were mere targets; the faster they charged, the faster they died.

Suddenly, a thunderous wolf howl rent the air.

*Boom! Boom!*

From an inconspicuous spot within the herd, a silver wolf leapt into the air, its body expanding against the wind until it became unimaginably massive—easily the height of a five or six-story building.

"A Moon-Howling Celestial Wolf! A Moon-Howling Celestial Wolf capable of shapeshifting! It’s a Tier 9 demonic beast!" Lin Tiandu’s face drained of color. He shouted a sharp warning and drew his bow again.

The giant wolf moved like lightning, barreling directly toward Lin Tiandu and his companions. Its high-speed charge felt like the end of the world. Lin Tiandu fired arrows capable of easily piercing the hides of Tier 7 beasts, but they were reduced to dust the moment they touched the wolf, failing to slow its momentum in the slightest.

Some grandmasters could not react in time; their defenses, forged from the fusion of natural energy and true essence, were shattered instantly. Bloodied figures were sent flying. Nothing could impede the giant wolf's path.

Lin Tiandu’s expression shifted wildly. He fired arrow after arrow, but against such a terrifying beast, his barrages could not buy even a moment’s delay. The gap in their strength was too vast. Gritting his teeth, he saw the wolf closing in and reached for a special talisman...

At that very instant—

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

A scorching red light flared, and the sky seemed to streak with tiny meteors. Twelve streams of light flashed from the forest behind Lin Tiandu.

Lin Tiandu’s eyes lit up. "This is..."

They were twelve giant, blood-stained flying swords!

Arranged in a precise formation, the twelve blades whipped up turbulent air currents, arriving before the giant wolf in a heartbeat.

*Hum!*

The wolf’s forward momentum froze. Silver light shimmered around its body, clashing with the blood-red aura of the swords. In a split second, the twelve streams of light merged into a single, massive blade two or three yards long. The crimson glow intensified, the blood-red sword energy swelling until it completely swallowed the silver light surrounding the Tier 9 beast!

*Boom!*

Even the Tier 9 wolf was instantly shredded by the crimson light, blood spraying wildly as its massive body crashed heavily into the ground, crushing countless smaller beasts into a bloody pulp beneath it.

Lin Tiandu looked back, his eyes widening. A young man in embroidered robes drifted gracefully into view. He appeared pale, one finger slightly extended. The surrounding grandmasters recognized his attire and stiffened. "An Embroidered Guard... he’s from the Embroidery Pavilion..."

Lin Tiandu looked at the newcomer with manic joy. "Brother Le, thank heavens you arrived in time!"

The youth nodded slightly at Lin Tiandu before turning his gaze to the wolf in the herd, his eyes flashing with icy coldness. "A wolf that has grasped the art of transformation—if you had chosen to flee Qiyun Mountain alone, you might have kept your life. But you were foolish enough to lead the beast horde in a counterattack. Truly..."

"You are seeking your own death."

He flicked his extended index finger, and the sword energy of the crimson blade in the sky swelled once more.

*Shing!*

The massive blade instantly split into hundreds, then thousands of individual flying swords. They circled the Tier 9 wolf, the myriad blades shimmering with a blood-red light. The wolf’s silver fur stood on end, a layer of fluorescent light flickering over its skin, while waves of terrifying energy rolled off its body.

Brother Le watched indifferently, waving his finger. "Go!"

*Zzzzt!*

Thousands of sword beams spun in sequence, instantly tearing the silver light surrounding the giant wolf to shreds. Blood erupted like a tidal wave. After a single, piercing, and mournful howl, the giant wolf’s flesh was reduced to mincemeat in mere seconds, leaving behind only a gleaming silver skeleton.

Even a Tier 9 demonic beast could not withstand such a terrifying technique!

Brother Le’s face turned slightly paler, but his cold gaze shifted to the surging herd. Again, he commanded, "Go!"

Crimson sword light filled the sky. Under the omnipresent blades, the charging horde began to perish, one by one. In the distance, more beasts pushed forward, unaware that they were rushing headlong into their own demise.

Meanwhile, at the foot of Qiyun Mountain, more human warriors arrived, beginning the systematic slaughter of the beasts. The initial surprise attack had indeed dealt a devastating blow to the warriors at several outposts. But once reinforcements arrived, the beasts lost the advantage of the complex terrain of Qiyun Mountain and were being wiped out at an even faster rate.

The demonic beasts were, after all, at the end of their tether.

***

At the border, Chen Fan used his Martial Academy token to verify his identity and was immediately sent to the military medics for treatment. Although his "Unified Realm" movement technique was powerful, he had faced multiple Tier 7 beasts, plunged into the tide, and even drawn natural lightning into his own body; his injuries were severe. Had he not swallowed the Jade Returning Pill in time, he would not have survived until now.

Exhausted to his core, he fell into a deep sleep after his treatment, waking only after an entire day and night. Feeling the soreness in his muscles, he felt as though he had lived a lifetime.

"Regardless, I survived..."

As his energy returned, he checked his martial arts status screen, his face filled with pleasant surprise. Though the mission had been perilous, he had slain countless beasts, and the harvest was significant.

Especially the final strike, which had harnessed the natural lightning, killing at least a hundred beasts in an instant, including the Tier 7 demonic ape! This was entirely different from his earlier luck in landing finishing blows. His "Three-Foot Sword" had finally broken through to the Unified Realm, and he had simultaneously grasped a second state of mind—the Killing Intent.

Everything in the world possessed its own state of mind, but the Killing Intent, profound and mysterious, was among the most formidable.

"Such a state of mind cannot be grasped simply by killing people or beasts, otherwise every grandmaster at the border would possess it... I wonder what grade the 'Three-Foot Sword' really is, to allow me to comprehend such a unique intent!"

Of course, the manual only provided the entry point; his "talent" was the key to unlocking this special state of mind. Simultaneously, having faced the lightning head-on, his Lightning Intent had also leapt forward significantly, no less effective than absorbing the spirits of nature. More importantly, his idle cultivation efficiency had surged; in a few months, it would reach perfection!

"My overall strength has more than doubled. If I meet a Tier 7 beast again, I won't be as fragile as I was before." Chen Fan was filled with excitement. He was now confident in his ability to protect himself in a one-on-one encounter with a Tier 7 beast. Though he had used up his Talisman Treasure and the Jade Returning Pill, the gain in strength was well worth it.

After resting, Chen Fan stayed in the border camp, inquiring about the final results of the Qiyun Mountain mop-up. A few days later, news finally reached him: the counterattacking beasts had been dealt with by the arriving reinforcements, and the horde had been almost entirely wiped out.

As for the outposts that had been attacked first, few had survived, and several grandmasters had fallen. One of them was Rong Wuchen, whom Chen Fan had met at the outpost.

"Brother Rong is dead?"

Hearing the news, Chen Fan felt a complex mix of emotions. Rong Wuchen was not even forty, a rare talent who had achieved the rank of grandmaster. It was a pity to die so young. Yet, recalling the massive, sixty-foot-tall silver wolf, Chen Fan shook his head. If he had to choose again, he would still not have gone back to help Rong Wuchen. That beast was too terrifying; his return would have only added another life to the tally.

In the grand scheme of things, clearing the demonic infestation in Qinghe County was a massive victory, and these sacrifices were, unfortunately, part of the cost.

"Still, many Tier 7 beasts possess special abilities—the Spider Demoness, the Shadow Leopard... if they want to flee, they are hard to track. There might be some stragglers." Even if there were, one or two would not cause much trouble.

Chen Fan felt a sense of relief. The infestation that had endangered half of Qinghe County had finally come to an end.

***

Chen Fan did not stay in the camp for long. After resting for ten days and reaching a near-full recovery, he joined a supply convoy and traveled to the largest city on the border: Shanyun City.

It was not as prosperous as the capital or the prefectural cities, and given the recent chaos, the atmosphere in the city was heavy and oppressive. Chen Fan found an inn, ate his fill, and tossed a piece of silver to the waiter, asking where he could purchase a mount.

In these troubled times, mounts with strategic value were hard to find, especially those with demonic beast bloodlines. Chen Fan spent a considerable sum but managed to buy only an ordinary horse.

He set off alone, heading toward the capital. With the region in a state of flux and the environment complex, and with the specter of the Silent Gate potentially lurking, Chen Fan dared not reveal his identity, continuing to use his "Heavenly Heart Formless Art" to conceal himself.