"Hey, protect Mu Xuan!"
An Yi said calmly as the ring in his hand transformed into a sleek black longsword. He charged toward the third floor.
Mu Qingyi snapped coldly, "Who are you calling 'hey'?"
How disrespectful! And this man actually wanted to be her disciple's partner?!
"Alright, Master, let's get to the car first! It's dangerous here!"
Shen Muxuan sighed helplessly, grabbing Mu Qingyi's hand and following the crowd out.
Watching An Yi wield his sword and fight off several attackers, Mu Qingyi gave Shen Muxuan a strange look. "Is this how you two live every day?"
"Occasionally... well, not that often, really."
Shen Muxuan forced a smile.
Mu Qingyi glanced at An Yi's figure and remarked flatly, "He's pretty good at fighting."
"Right?!"
Shen Muxuan grinned proudly.
Mu Qingyi rolled her eyes. "I wasn’t complimenting him! What kind of security can a man who only knows violence offer?"
Shen Muxuan: "..."
A shooting at Yida Plaza was no small matter.
But with the opening of the Hongtian Secret Realm, the entire Great Xia nation had been swept into a frenzy over the battle for tokens—chaos reigned.
The law enforcement bureau was already overwhelmed and couldn’t spare the manpower for a place like Jiangbei City.
An Yi swung his demonic sword, sending out air blades that struck down the black-clad gunmen hiding in the shadows.
He casually collected their firearms, his expression icy.
These were just ordinary martial artists—no real threat.
"Found him! The Night Emperor is here!"
Below the mall, a short man in a bomber jacket raised a crossbow, aiming at An Yi and preparing to pull the trigger.
Bang!
A bullet shot through the air.
The bomber-jacket man collapsed, a bullet hole between his brows.
An Yi blew the smoke off his gun.
"Guns really are handy."
Unless you’ve reached the Dark Force level, there’s no surviving one.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
An Yi fired a blind volley downward.
He’d never trained in marksmanship, but his mastery of hidden weapons had reached Lv3—his accuracy was terrifying.
A pistol only needed aiming and a trigger pull; in some ways, it was easier than handling hidden weapons.
The gunfire had already scattered the crowd.
The vast Yida Plaza was now eerily empty.
An Yi frowned as he spotted figures moving against the fleeing crowd below.
"So many people after the tokens..."
Without hesitation, he dashed upward, shattering a glass panel with a kick and stepping out onto the sixth-floor ledge.
"These people are insane."
Gripping his demonic sword, An Yi climbed outside, sighing.
Stairs and elevators were no longer an option—people were swarming from all directions. The only way was up.
With two tokens on him and his exposure at an all-time high, he was now a target for factions across the nation.
In other words, he was a walking piece of "Tang Monk meat"—every demon and monster wanted a bite.
An Yi pondered. His strength alone wasn’t enough.
Should he call Lin Chen over?
Nah, that’d be a bad move between brothers.
Better just head to his place directly.
Wham!
A manhole cover shot toward him like a projectile.
Clang!
It embedded itself into the wall beside An Yi’s head.
An Yi gulped, cold sweat dripping.
If he hadn’t turned at that exact moment, his head would’ve been gone.
"Who the hell threw a manhole cover?!"
He glared furiously downward.
"Your grandpa—Hong Shan, the King of Strength!"
Below the plaza, a 400-pound behemoth with spiked hair grinned savagely, flexing his iron gauntlets.
Then, he grabbed a nearby lamppost, snapped it off with his bare hands, and hurled it like a javelin.
An Yi dodged, his gaze turning cold.
This guy was aiming to kill.
Heh. Things just got more interesting.
Scanning the growing crowd of attackers, An Yi smirked.
Fighting them one by one would exhaust him.
But if he could make an example of one, the rest might back off. And this fat bastard was perfect.
Hong Shan, the King of Strength—ranked 27th on the Hidden Dragon List.
Killing him would shoot his own ranking way up.
Hong Shan tore off a car door with his iron grip and flung it like a giant shuriken at An Yi.
An Yi swung his demonic sword, cleaving the door midair.
"Come down here, coward! I’ll hit you eventually!"
Hong Shan laughed maniacally, ripping off a tire and hurling it next.
An Yi’s demonic sword shrank back into a ring as he summoned a massive, ancient greatsword—its weight staggering even for his current strength.
"You want death? Fine, I’ll oblige."
From the sixth floor of Yida Plaza, An Yi leaped down, wreathed in blazing flames.
A streak of crimson light, he plummeted like a meteor.
"Dragonfall—Second Form of the Dragon-Slaying Nine Swords!"
Hong Shan’s face paled.
An indescribable terror gripped his heart.
How could a kid ranked outside the top 50 on the Hidden Dragon List possess such monstrous power?!
He tried to flee.
But his massive body couldn’t move fast enough.
Trapped, Hong Shan let out a primal roar and raised his iron fists.
"I’ll take you with me!"
Boom!
The impact shook the earth.
A massive crater exploded open in the plaza’s open space, flipping nearby cars like toys.
At its center lay Hong Shan’s colossal corpse.
Hidden martial artists watching gasped, throats dry.
Was this really the work of a twenty-year-old?
Dark Force level?
No… perhaps even Transcendent Force!
The thought sent chills down their spines.
They knew better than to provoke a Transcendent expert.
Many wondered—had the King of Strength survived?
Ranked 27th on the Hidden Dragon List, he was the strongest among them.
Thud.
Heavy footsteps echoed.
An Yi emerged from the crater, battered but alive, dragging a bloodstained greatsword.
His handsome face, dust-streaked and fierce, radiated killing intent—his aura suffocating.
Hong Shan didn’t follow.
The outcome was clear.
The infamous King of Strength had fallen.
Ranked 27th, obliterated in one strike.
That single sword swing cowed every would-be attacker eyeing his tokens.
The Hongtian Secret Realm was valuable, but opposing this man meant death.
An Yi scanned the crowd and roared, "Who’s next?!"
Silence.
One by one, the martial artists retreated.
The Night Emperor—An Yi of the Asura Gate—was far more terrifying than they’d imagined.