Xue Ning had been waiting for this moment—a chance to settle things with Lu Ding over the Dingfeng Pearl incident.
Now, the opportunity had finally come.
With his long bangs partially covering his eyes, the teenager exuded confidence in his own strength. His tone was casual as he spoke, "Lu Ding? He’s just a scavenger, nothing but an overrated name. Today, I’m not just here to deal with this Yin Domain Overlap—I’m also here to…"
Before he could finish, a deafening crash erupted nearby—like something had just fallen from a great height.
But no one was paying attention.
Lu Ding had literally stomped Fang Du in half.
His upper and lower body were completely separated at the waist, intestines spilling onto the ground.
"I heard from your men… You were all waiting for your general to revive, weren’t you?"
Fang Du no longer had the strength to speak.
He could only breathe in ragged gasps, his eyes filled with unwillingness—but also a trace of mocking laughter.
Unwilling, because he lacked the power to kill this monster of a man before him.
Mocking, because no matter how strong this man was—once the General revived, he’d end up as nothing more than another soul sacrificed to his blade.
The General would avenge him.
Lu Ding saw right through his thoughts and leaned in slightly.
"Don’t bother hoping. Your general died before you did. And yeah… I was the one who killed him. I pried open his coffin, dug up his grave—ripped him apart piece by piece right inside his burial chamber."
Fang Du wanted to deny it.
But in the next second—
Lu Ding’s boot came down and crushed his skull.
"There’s nothing impossible about it. You, your general—you were both just unlucky. Your plan fell apart because you ran into me."
【Containment Acquired: General Sha】
【Containment Reward: General’s Armor Technique】
[General’s Armor Technique: Summon the armor of a fallen general, merging with it seamlessly. The armor, infused with battlefield malice, repels ghosts and demons alike.]
In ancient records spanning five nations, General Sha was mentioned—a phenomenon where a general’s armor, drenched in blood, became spiritually awakened, absorbing battlefield slaughter and malice. When buried together with the general, it could result in the formation of a General Sha, a spectral entity bound to the armor itself.
For this reason, later generations strictly forbade generals from being buried with their armor.
Fang Du, whatever era he was from, must have either forgotten this rule or simply didn’t care.
Or maybe he died in battle, merging with the armor purely by accident.
Either way, he became the General Sha.
As for the General’s Armor Technique, it was a well-known ability in the 749 Bureau—easy to use, incredibly versatile, and visually imposing.
Not only did it enhance a user’s combat abilities, speed, and strength, but each person who used it had their own unique manifestation of the armor.
What would his General’s Armor look like?
But now wasn’t the time to experiment.
He had clearly heard what those people outside were saying just now.
Footsteps approached through the dust cloud.
A group of six, all of them tense.
Something shot through the smoke.
A shadow flashed forward.
Xue Ning instinctively blocked with his spear—
An immense force slammed into the weapon, right at its center.
Xue Ning’s palms split open from the impact. His spear bent, and he was sent flying backward, tumbling over a dozen meters before finally planting his weapon into the ground to stop himself.
Lu Ding hovered two inches above the ground, his gaze indifferent as he looked sideways at Xue Ning—whose spear tip was now dragging limply on the floor.
"You called me overrated?" Lu Ding’s voice was calm, almost lazy. "And yet, you can’t even hold onto your weapon. Barking behind my back, but you crumble in front of me?"
The air around them grew heavy.
"Brother Xue Ning!!!"
The lollipop-chewing girl gasped, throwing caution aside.
She hurled several throwing knives straight at Lu Ding’s face.
Lu Ding casually flicked most of them away with his fingers.
One, however—he caught between his fingertips.
If the girl's throwing knives were as strong as handgun bullets, then Lu Ding’s return shot was a sniper round—
Single shot. High precision. Devastating impact.
The knife pierced through her collarbone, out the other side, and continued flying, embedding itself deep into a tree in the Dinghao Complex’s greenery.
The sheer force of it lifted the girl into the air, sending her crashing into a flower bed.
Lu Ding floated over, looking down at her.
"You called Ming Jun and Bei Heguang trash. Said Yan Feifan and I were even worse."
"I’m willing to treat you as a worthy opponent—so fight me."
The girl—nicknamed "Little Bear"—didn’t dare respond.
She was struggling to breathe, let alone talk.
Lu Ding’s overwhelming presence was suffocating.
Not only had he caught her knife with his bare hands, but he had thrown it back with enough force to nearly cripple her.
Right now, who was the real weakling?
Xue Ning tightened his grip on his spear.
"Picking on a girl? What kind of man are you?! Fight me instead!"
Before he even finished—
Lu Ding was already in front of him.
Xue Ning didn’t even have time to react.
He was blasted backward, slamming into the wall. Bones shattered.
Lu Ding hovered in front of him.
"Fight you? Who do you think you are?"
"You blocked my first kick because I held back. But now? The same attack—you didn’t even see it coming."
"If you’re weak, just admit it. Hold it in. Endure. That’s how the weak survive."
He turned toward the girl, who was still clutching her shoulder in pain.
"You. Next time you see me—take a different road."
"Or I might just cut out your tongue."
The man who had earlier tried to stop the girl from talking stepped in front of her, facing Lu Ding head-on.
"Investigator Lu, we’re here to help you. Isn’t this a bit too much?"
Then, as if talking to himself, he muttered, "The strong exist to crush the weak. That’s just how the world works. Snakes eat rats. Mantises hunt cicadas."
"Humans are different only because the strong choose to show restraint. But that doesn’t give the weak the right to provoke them."
"If she dares talk sh*t, she should be ready to face the consequences."
"You at least tried to be rational, so I answered your question. But if you keep standing in my way, then in the next second—"
Lu Ding lifted his hand, pointing to a flower bed ten meters away.
"—that’s where you’ll be lying."
The man swallowed hard.
Lu Ding was as terrifying as the rumors said.
He wasn’t just brutal toward monsters.
He wasn’t just ruthless toward enemies.
Even when dealing with his own allies, he gave no leeway.
The girl peeked out nervously from behind the man, voice trembling.
"I-I understand… I won’t talk sh*t anymore… I’m sorry, Investigator Lu. I… apologize."