Since he did not deliberately conceal himself, Ben was discovered by the guards as soon as he passed through the first courtyard layer. After killing three people, the seven-man patrol squad scattered, spreading the news of the intruder to every corner of the castle.
Yusong Castle had thirty-two guards, most of them mercenaries. The captain among them was the leader of Jandener’s mercenaries, a skilled warrior. Not only did he possess the mid-tier strength of a Black Iron Knight, but he also had a strategic mind.
Therefore, when Ben reached the banquet hall on the second floor, he was ambushed by eleven guards. As soon as he pushed open the door, he saw a brightly lit hall as he had imagined, with archers stationed in the upper-floor corridor immediately unleashing a flurry of arrows.
At such a close range, the sound arrow was almost upon him as soon as the bowstrings twanged. Ben only had time to raise his hand to protect his face, chest, and lower abdomen. The blue glow of his protective gloves flickered faintly, deflecting the most accurately aimed arrows to the side—though a few still grazed his arm and thigh as they flew past.
Ben gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly. Although his Level 4 energy constitution allowed his muscles to automatically shed most of the force, turning severe injuries into minor ones, what would have been a superficial wound now became a mere scratch, and lighter weapons couldn’t even break his skin.
But even so, the pain didn’t diminish at all.
Had it been any other time, Ben might have immediately retreated upon realizing the large number of guards ambushing him from the upstairs corridor, choosing instead to find another route to the spiral staircase on the other side. Although that area was likely also heavily guarded, at least the terrain there wouldn’t be as treacherous.
But now was different.
With a diagonal swing of his sword, a transparent ripple extended from his blade, spreading across half the hall—the long table scattered along the wave in a crashing sound, candlesticks and utensils toppled, the chandelier on the ceiling shattered with a boom, and the upper-floor corridor’s railings split in half with a crack—sending the guards tumbling down, severed and falling.
White Crow Swordsmanship, Erune’s court swordsmanship, this secret skill was one of the rare long-range attacks that warriors could learn in the early to mid-phase of their profession: Level 0 White Crow Swordsmanship Blade Wind could reach five or six meters away, with the attack’s horizontal cross-section doubling in size. At Level 25, this swordsmanship could strike enemies hundreds of meters away, making it nearly equivalent to a knight who had unlocked elemental power.
Moreover, its stamina cost was a mere 3 points, an insignificant amount compared to the enormous consumption required to awaken elemental power, which explained why so many pursued the intermediate skill so eagerly back in the day.
Ben’s astonishing strike rendered the hall silent for a moment, until the sound of splintered wood falling from the second floor jolted everyone back to their senses with a light crack—
"Martha above! Apuno, sir, let’s retreat!" The guards screamed, losing their will to resist as they frantically retreated.
The separation of sword qi from the body was a basic skill for warriors who had awakened their elemental power. Traditionally, the Flame Temple would grant these individuals the title of Official Knight, and to distinguish them from the knights of various countries, they were also called Templars.
In the face of a knight, a three-level power system was like floating clouds, let alone for ordinary people like them, unless enough people could exhaust the knight’s stamina, any amount of reinforcements would be futile.
"Knight, my ass!" Captain Apuno yanked back one of his nearest subordinates, cursing inwardly. That was definitely a court swordsman. Were they caught in a court dispute? As a knowledgeable mercenary leader, he knew all too well who was behind Yusong Castle’s residents. Though it wasn’t the first time he had been involved in political strife, it was his first time witnessing a legendary court swordsman.
That must be the pinnacle of court swordsmanship, one of the core powers controlled by the royal family. The sheer strength a mere Black Iron Lower Rank Swordsman could unleash made Apuno somewhat envious for a moment.
But recalling his mercenary responsibility, he looked around. Most of the guards had fled, and those remaining were either fearless or frozen in fright.
Ben had killed four men with that one strike.
Apuno couldn’t afford to lament; he stood up, made a hand gesture, and shouted, "Retreat! Retreat! Call back the men from the spiral staircase, we can’t hold this floor. We’re heading to the upper level."