The Sudden Turn of Events: Defeat the Junior, and the Senior Arrives

"Fire!"

Pei Jingzhe couldn't even be bothered to engage them in close combat, coldly waving his hand. The Imperial Guard's firearms battalion on the perimeter quickly raised their guns. But this time, they weren't using ordinary lead bullets. Instead, they wielded the "Rune Firearms," newly developed by the Great Xia Arsenal and engraved with armor-piercing array formations!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Accompanied by deafening gunshots, several faintly glowing rune projectiles tore through the air. The protective true qi that the four great Acupoint Opening Realm guards took such pride in was like wet paper before the rune bullets, instantly pierced through.

Pfft! Pfft!

With a few teeth-aching thuds, the charging bodies of the four great guards suddenly stiffened. They looked down in disbelief at the bowl-sized bloody holes in their chests. The rune bullets had not only penetrated their flesh, but the accompanying destructive force had directly shredded their heart meridians. Without even the chance to utter a last word, these four martial arts masters collapsed in unison into a pool of blood, completely devoid of life.

The remaining fierce bandit remnants who were still stubbornly resisting on the outskirts were scared out of their wits upon seeing this, their courage shattering. They let out strange cries as they tried to scatter and flee for their lives, only to be intercepted like herded sheep by the Imperial Guard infantry and heavy cavalry that had already set up a perimeter. Blades flashed and sword shadows danced wildly. Heads rolled one after another. Accompanied by the trampling of warhorses, the remnants were mercilessly slaughtered one by one. Not a single person could escape this asura slaughterhouse.

In the dead center of the encirclement, Ye Chen was already at the end of his rope. With disheveled hair and bathed in blood, he struggled desperately like a trapped beast. The longsword in his hand parried left and right, frantically blocking attacks coming from all directions.

In the distance, Wang Hao watched Ye Chen, who was still holding on, and could not help but feel secretly shocked. He remembered clearly that when he besieged Ye Chen a few months ago, this kid had only just broken through to the fifth tier of the Martial Dao. Yet now, in such a short period of time, he had actually soared all the way to the peak of the Acupoint Opening Realm!

"This ridiculous cultivation speed... he truly is a Child of Destiny, simply a walking bug." Wang Hao's eyes turned completely cold. "If this boy does not die today, he will definitely become a massive threat in the future! I absolutely cannot give him half a breath's chance to recover!"

"Sun Li! Get in there and chop him to pieces!" Wang Hao commanded without hesitation.

"This old servant obeys the decree!"

Sun Li, the number one expert of the inner palace at the seventh tier of the Martial Dao who had been hiding in the shadows, answered the call. His figure flashed violently, appearing directly in front of Ye Chen as if teleporting. Sun Li emitted a terrifying aura as vast as the ocean, a pressure far exceeding everyone else present. Gripping a heavy long saber with both hands, he made no flashy movements. Relying on absolute realm suppression, he cleaved down at Ye Chen's head, carrying the sound of wind and thunder!

Ye Chen was already heavily injured, suffering from the backlash of his destiny, and had been frantically worn down by Pei Jingzhe and the others. Now, facing the full-force strike of a peerless expert at the seventh tier of the Martial Dao, a trace of despair finally flashed in his eyes. He could only grit his teeth, squeeze out the last sliver of true qi in his body, and raise his sword to block it head-on.

Clang—Crack!

A deafening sound of metal clashing rang out. The treasured sword in Ye Chen's hand let out a wail and was directly chopped into two pieces! Sun Li's terrifying saber qi penetrated his body, and Ye Chen was struck as if by lightning.

Pfft!

Ye Chen's sternum caved in, breaking several ribs, as a large mouthful of blood mixed with visceral fragments spewed out. His entire body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, smashing heavily into the muddy ground and creating a large crater. He struggled, wanting to climb up, his eyes still retaining an obsession for life, but his body could no longer muster a single ounce of strength. He could only lie on the ground full of resentment, his breath extremely weak, like a flickering candle in the wind that could go out at any moment.

The outcome was set. As long as one more strike was landed, this Child of Destiny would thoroughly perish.

However, right at this most critical, most fatal moment, a bizarre scene occurred.

The originally murderous Wei Zhongxian, Yu Huatian, and Pei Jingzhe, who were ready to swarm up and chop Ye Chen into meat paste, suddenly paused their steps for some unknown reason. Their eyes seemed to hold a moment of confusion. Immediately after, as if collectively inflicted with an "intelligence-lowering halo" by the Heavenly Dao, they all surprisingly stopped their hands.

They put away their weapons, slowly formed a circle, and looked down condescendingly at Ye Chen on the ground, actually starting to... mock him?!

Wei Zhongxian raised his pinky finger and sneered with a shrill voice, "Oh, isn't this the world-renowned Great Hero Ye? Why are you lying in front of me like a dead dog? Where is your earlier majesty?"

Yu Huatian wasn't in a hurry to finish him off either. Playing with the silver needles in his hand, he chimed in with a sarcastic tone, "What bullshit Child of Destiny? You're just an overconfident rustic villager, yet you vainly attempt to provoke the might of Heaven? It really makes me laugh my teeth out."

Pei Jingzhe even stabbed his saber into the ground, crossed his arms, and snorted coldly, "With just your meager cultivation, you think you're worthy of opposing His Majesty? When you reincarnate in your next life, keep your eyes peeled... blah blah blah..."

A group of villainous experts clamored noisily, spewing endless trash talk, forcefully starting a "Villains' Criticism Conference," yet nobody made a move to take Ye Chen's life!

"Fuck! What the hell are you guys doing?!"

Watching from the rear, the corners of Wang Hao's eyes twitched wildly. Fire rose in his heart, and he almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. He was simply going mad with anger!

These idiots! Not finishing off the boss and reciting lines here instead?! Have they never read web novels?! This was obviously the Heavenly Dao forcefully intervening to stall for time for the Child of Destiny!

Wang Hao did not hesitate at all; he knew he couldn't wait any longer. He shoved aside the heavy infantry blocking his way. With a shing, he drew the Son of Heaven's Sword from his waist, circulated his entire body's Emperor True Qi, and darted over personally like an arrow leaving the bowstring.

He only had one thought in his mind: As long as it was a Child of Destiny, they had to die! Only a thoroughly dead Child of Destiny was a good Child of Destiny!

"Die!"

Wang Hao's figure leapt high into the air, the Son of Heaven's Sword carrying unparalleled, sharp sword qi, aiming straight for Ye Chen's neck. Seeing that the tip of the sword was less than ten centimeters away from Ye Chen's throat, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal wouldn't be able to save him.

Boom—!

Right at this hair-raising moment, without any warning, a dark shadow flashed out from the void to Wang Hao's left like a ghost!

No one had noticed the appearance of this dark shadow. The martial aura emitting from his body was terrifying to the extreme, even far surpassing Sun Li's! It was a suffocating feeling that made one's very soul tremble.

"Not good! Your Majesty, watch out!" Sun Li and Cao Shaoqin's eyes widened to the point of tearing. They roared madly and lunged over, but it was simply too late.

Before Wang Hao could react, the dark shadow casually struck out with a palm. This palm seemed ordinary, yet it contained a thick true qi capable of destroying heaven and earth, smashing directly onto Wang Hao's body like toppling mountains and overturning seas.

Bang!

Wang Hao didn't even have time to organize a defense before his entire body was viciously struck by this terrifying power. He flew backward in mid-air like a cannonball, but the dark shadow's attacks didn't stop at all!

The shadow followed like a phantom. In the instant Wang Hao lost his balance, the shadow's hands transformed into a sky full of palm silhouettes, striking out over ten consecutive palms!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Every palm strike slammed heavily into Wang Hao, accompanied by the heart-wrenching sound of shattering bones.

"Pfft—!" Wang Hao's eyes bulged as he spewed a massive mouthful of crimson blood. His body crashed heavily through a dirt wall behind him, burying him deep within the rubble. His armor was blasted to dust, every bone in his body was pulverized, and his aura instantly withered to the absolute limit. He was beaten into a bloody pulp on the spot, completely losing all ability to move.

"Your Majesty!!!"

The forces of Great Xia instantly went mad. Whether it was the Imperial Guard commanders, the Brocade Guards, or the agents of the East Depot, everyone's eyes turned bloodshot, practically tearing at the seams. Their Emperor had been shattered right in front of them; this was a capital offense punishable by the execution of nine generations!

"Kill him! Tear him to pieces!" The furious roars of an army of over a hundred thousand shook the heavens and the earth, surging madly toward that dark figure like a tsunami.

Right at this moment, Ye Chen, who had been lying on the ground at death's door, sensed a familiar aura. He struggled to open his swollen eyes, looking at the dark figure before him. Pulling his lips into a smile uglier than a crying face, he called out with extreme weakness:

"Master..."

With that said, his head tilted to the side, and he passed out completely.

The dark figure was cloaked in a long robe, not even revealing his face. He didn't so much as glance at the tidal wave of Great Xia soldiers rushing toward him. With a cold snort, a terrifying wave of air instantly sent the hundreds of soldiers at the very front flying. Bending down, he scooped up the unconscious Ye Chen with one arm, and with a flash of his silhouette, transformed into a streak of rainbow light.

This person's strength was simply too formidable. In the face of such absolute martial power, the encirclement of a hundred-thousand-strong army was as fragile as paper. Like a tiger leaping into a flock of sheep, he carved a path through the heavy siege with devastating ease. Stepping on the corpses of countless soldiers, he vanished into the vast, distant mountain forests with Ye Chen in just a few bounds. He left behind only a ground littered with bodies, the frantically shouting Imperial Guards, and a battlefield in utter ruins.

...

Meanwhile, dozens of miles away in Great Xia's Ganquan Palace, inside the heavily guarded Ganquan Hall.

Enshrined upon a jade platform in the center of the hall was a "Substitute Death Doll" covered in yellow talismans.

Suddenly, a soft "crack" echoed.

The Substitute Death Doll began to tremble violently, its surface instantly covered in spiderweb-like cracks. Immediately after, the doll erupted with a blinding, blood-red light! As the crimson light dissipated, the wooden doll had miraculously transformed into the exact likeness of Wang Hao! However, this "Wang Hao" had all of his bones shattered and was dripping with blood. It had endured that fatal, killing blow in place of the real Wang Hao, subsequently turning into a pile of fine dust and entering its cooldown phase.

Back at the edge of the battlefield in the ruins, Wang Hao, whose aura had previously been severed and who had been beaten to a pulp, miraculously recovered a trace of vitality the moment the Substitute Death Doll took effect.

The fatal wounds on his body were instantly transferred. Wang Hao gasped sharply and opened his eyes. Coughing up blood-stained saliva, he struggled to crawl out from the rubble. Although he hadn't died, the agony of having every bone in his body shattered inch by inch just moments ago was genuinely seared into his brain.

He looked up toward the distant mountain forest where the dark figure had vanished. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he pointed at the sky in exasperation and cursed furiously:

"Screw you, Heavenly Dao! Have you no shame? Beating the young one brings out the old one—how can you even use such a trashy, cliché trope? You absolute double-standard bastard!"

Wang Hao panted heavily, but a burning, fervent madness and battle intent ignited in his eyes. He had known all along that completely killing a Child of Destiny would never be this simple or smooth. Some mysterious old grandpa or hidden master was bound to jump out and save the day, which was exactly why he had prepared the bizarre artifact, the Substitute Death Doll, in the imperial palace ahead of time.

"Good! Very good!" Wang Hao sneered through gritted teeth, the killing intent in his eyes nearly materializing into form. "Heavenly Dao, since you want to play with We, then We will play with you to the bitter end! The appearance of Ye Chen's master is no accident. The real contest has only just begun. We shall see what is greater: the number of cheats you bestow, or the mighty ships and devastating cannons of Our Great Xia!"