The bullet, composed of pure Death Energy, tore through the air at a terrifying speed, heading straight for the goateed man's forehead.
The First-stage Martial Artist felt a chill crawl down his spine, his heart pounding violently in uncontrollable fear.
The bullet was mere inches away from ending his life.
Logically, something so small shouldn't have posed any real threat to him, but his instincts screamed of impending death. He had heard the elders speak of what this little thing was truly capable of.
At the final moment, his Will manifested, a giant bell encasing him in a protective shell.
The Death Energy bullet froze in mid-air, unable to advance a single inch further.
Gang Reyong narrowed his eyes. Although he couldn't perceive or see the Will directly, it was clear that the goateed man's Will had something to do with defense.
For a First-stage Martial Artist, revealing one's Will was rare, unless they chose to display it openly.
"Hmm?" Gang Reyong's brows furrowed in thought.
He pulled the trigger, unleashing a barrage of Death Energy bullets.
But not a single shot came close. None even grazed the goateed man by an inch.
Instead, the man walked forward calmly and arrogantly.
"You brat who knows nothing of the immensity of heaven and earth… I'll show you how terrifying First-stage Martial Artists truly are."
Gang Reyong remained silent. He kept firing relentlessly, yet every shot failed, utterly and completely.
The Death Energy in his dantian was rapidly draining. At this rate, he had enough for only ten more bullets and the enemy was already closing in.
Death Energy bullets didn't form out of thin air. Especially not the concentrated ones powerful enough to kill a First-stage Martial Artist.
Unlike Qi, Death Energy couldn't be absorbed from the surroundings. It only manifested in the presence of death and even then, only in faint strands.
Those strands were nowhere near enough to fill his dantain so he could use it.
"Haha! Brat, you're dead."
The goateed man now stood twenty meters apart from him, ready to end his life at any moment.
Gang Reyong had to find a solution, and fast.
His mind raced, frantically searching through every possible path, every sliver of hope that could turn the tide.
He was thinking, thinking hard, about what to do and how to do it.
And in the end, Gang Reyong let go of the sniper rifle as a swirling black haze enveloped it.
In the blink of an eye, the weapon transformed.
It was instantaneous. The very next moment one looked—
The sniper was gone.
In its place stood a bazooka.
Gang Reyong swiftly hoisted it into his arms, channeling all of his remaining Death Energy into the weapon, then pulled the trigger.
"If I can't break through your turtle shell," he muttered coldly, "then let's see if you can still walk through Death Energy itself."
Bang!
Once again, the bullet froze in mid-air just as it was about to reach the goateed man.
But then—
It exploded.
"Eh?" The goateed man was momentarily stunned.
The bullet erupted into a massive surge of Death Energy, flooding the area in an instant. Not a single inch was spared.
Flowers on the side withered rapidly.
The ground itself began to die.
Every living thing in the vicinity perished.
A thick haze blanketed the surroundings, obscuring all vision.
"Hmm?"
The goateed man frowned, then scoffed, shaking his head.
"This won't be enough to kill me, you brat."
But just then—
From within the black haze, a giant sword tore through the mist, radiating a bone-chilling cold.
A wave of frost followed in its wake, freezing the ground solid.
"Snow-blossom First Sword: Ice."
"Snow-blossom Second Sword: Frost Flower."
Jian Ruxue attacked with her Sword Will, mercilessly at the goatee man but couldn't even penetrate his Will.
Her expression turned cold as she hmphed.
She traced the blade of her sword:
"I have been meaning to use my third sword; however, I couldn't even use it when I fought before because I was too injured, but after death, I have finally realised the truth of my third sword."
As her fingers slid across the blade, a thick layer of frost spread over it.
Then, her body began to levitate, rising gently into the air as she merged once more with her Sword Will.
In that moment, the surroundings lit up with a blinding, radiant white light.
"Snow-blossom Third Sword: Crystal Petal."
The chilling ice transformed into millions of razor-sharp flowers, their thorny tips all aimed directly at the goateed man.
They whizzed through the air in unison, striking him relentlessly.
But, the attack was once again halted by the goateed man's Bell Will.
'Hmph,' he sneered inwardly, 'I possess the strongest defense with my Will. How could they possibly hope to break it?'
To this, Jian Ruxue calmly uttered a single word:
"Fool."
Suddenly, his confident thoughts froze.
The icy flowers shattered, breaking apart into billions of glimmering shards.
The invisible bell surrounding him began to crack.
The goateed man's face drained of color.
From the fracture, Death Energy surged out violently.
He immediately tried to retreat, but his foot was frozen in place, trapped by ice.
That moment of delay was all it took.
Death Energy engulfed him completely.
Within seconds, his body collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
"One down," Gang Reyong said coldly. "Twenty more to go."
He closed his eyes briefly, then spoke in a chilling tone:
"Arise."
The other twenty First-stage Martial Artists watched the scene in horror, realizing their fate was sealed.
And soon enough, one by one, they were mercilessly overwhelmed and slain by him.
Jian Ruxue landed softly on the ground, separating from her Sword Will with a sigh. She gazed at her sword thoughtfully.
"My First Sword turns everything to ice.
My Second Sword transforms that ice into flowers that strike the enemy.
And my Third Sword..." She exhaled a breath of chilling air,
"…shatters beauty into death. Every petal, a shard; every shard, a curse."
Her eyes shone.
But, beneath it all, she felt conflicted.
"I've finally comprehended the true meaning behind my Third Sword, but after death."
Her gaze shifted toward Gang Reyong's growing army, countless First-stage Martial Artists now joining the fray.
"But if I want to be someone valuable in his army. I must become even stronger. I must never allow him to slaughter an innocent life."