Squelch!
A sharp, icy pain pierced Dick's chest.
"?!?"
His pupils contracted, his breath seemingly frozen in shock.
Dick looked down in bewilderment at the black sword impaling his chest.
Huh... How?
He stared blankly at the half-smoked cigar in his hand, then at the untouched room around him.
Had he... been in this room the whole time?
Then what about everything that just happened...
His mind went blank as he stiffly turned his head, locking eyes with the ghostly figure behind him.
His voice was hoarse, his gaze shattered, blood trickling from his lips. "This... was all an illusion..."
Squelch!
Gu Yan pulled the black sword from Dick's chest and said indifferently, "Maybe this is still part of the illusion. Why don't you... take a guess?"
At those words, Dick's pupils dilated, his consciousness fading.
Thud!
His body collapsed heavily to the ground.
The leader of the Grim Reaper Organization, a master at the late-stage of the Grandmaster realm... had fallen!
The moment Dick laid eyes on the sword—Illusion's End—he had already been ensnared in Gu Yan's illusion.
The lighter... was merely a small trick to mislead him.
The real goal was to wear down his mental defenses, bit by bit.
With that done, Gu Yan stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, his gaze calm as he observed the blood-red formation in the sky.
Under his watchful eyes, the formation gradually dissipated.
And then... a crimson orb appeared at its center.
The Blood Fiend Pearl!
The most treasured artifact of the Grim Reaper Organization.
It seemed Ling Fa had successfully dismantled the Blood Fiend Formation.
Gu Yan raised his hand in a beckoning motion.
Whoosh!
The Blood Fiend Pearl flew toward him.
Crash!
The window shattered as the pearl shot through it. Catching it in one hand, Gu Yan gripped Illusion's End in the other.
Then—Hum!
The Blood Fiend Pearl transformed into a streak of bloody light, merging seamlessly into the crimson vein running through the sword's blade.
[Congratulations! Illusion's End has absorbed the Blood Fiend Pearl. The Blood Qi Blade technique is now available!]
Hmph, Blood Qi... Not a bad ability.
Perfect for dealing with certain people.
With that thought, Gu Yan tightened his grip on Illusion's End and looked outward.
Unnoticed until now, five figures had appeared in the sky.
"Night King!"
"Night King, you ruthless bastard! Not only did you kill Dick, you even took the Grim Reaper Organization's lifeblood treasure!"
Bai Jun stood at the forefront, his expression one of shock as he stared at the familiar figure atop the spire.
But when his eyes landed on the corpse at Gu Yan's feet, horror overtook him. "Dick?! Dead?!"
The other four were all Grandmasters as well.
The man on the far left paled. "Oi oi oi, Bai Jun, this is bad. How the hell did Dick die? There wasn’t even a sound!"
"From the time we were attacked until now, it's barely been fifteen minutes!"
Another warrior hesitated, fear creeping into his voice. "Dick was a late-stage Grandmaster. Even the five of us together might not have been a match for him. This..."
Swish! Swish! Swish!
At that moment, dark figures emerged behind Gu Yan.
"Lord, mission accomplished."
Shitou and the others bowed respectfully, their masks splattered with blood.
Gu Yan gave a slight nod.
His gaze returned to the five in the sky, his voice indifferent. "Come at me together."
Those words sent a chill down Bai Jun's spine.
The Night King, now empowered by the Blood Fiend Pearl, was even stronger than before.
They... stood no chance.
"We have to retreat," Bai Jun muttered under his breath.
But—
"Bullshit!"
A burly man roared, his eyes bloodshot with rage as he glared at the black-clad figure below. "The Night King sent his men to kill my wife! This is an unforgivable grudge! Today, Lei Tian will avenge her, no matter what!!!"
Hearing this, Gu Yan glanced at the man dispassionately.
"Oh? Your wife... was this one?"
He raised his hand, and a spectral figure of a woman materialized in his palm.
It was a soul—one of many Shitou and the others had collected after slaughtering the Grim Reaper Organization's lesser members.
"Lei... Lei Tian... run..."
The woman's spirit sobbed weakly, her voice fragmented.
Then—
Crunch!
Before Lei Tian could react, Gu Yan clenched his fist, crushing the soul into nothingness.
"NO!!!"
Lei Tian's sanity snapped. Teeth gritted, he charged at Gu Yan like a maddened beast.
"Night King!!! I’ll kill you!!!"
"Wait! Lei Tian, don’t be reckless!" Bai Jun shouted, but it was too late.
"To hell with waiting!!"
"If you cowards won’t fight, I’ll do it alone!!"
Lei Tian hurtled toward the Night King, his rage unstoppable.
Then—
Under the watchful eyes of all, Gu Yan merely looked up and uttered a single word.
"Annihilate."
BOOM!!!
A surge of black-and-crimson Blood Qi erupted in Lei Tian's path.
The collision was instantaneous.
BOOM—!!!
Lei Tian's body disintegrated on impact.
"Lei Tian!!!"
Bai Jun screamed in disbelief.
Lei Tian had been a mid-stage Grandmaster, the leader of the Thunder Sect.
And yet... he had been obliterated in one move?!
His face twisted in terror. The remaining Grandmasters panicked.
"Run! RUN!!"
They turned to flee.
But—
As Bai Jun spun around, he saw the black-clad figure slowly raise his sword horizontally.
Then, with a single, effortless swing—
BOOOOOOM!!!
A blinding dark-red sword beam tore across the sky, its sheer power enough to make one's scalp tingle.
It swept forward with unstoppable force, obliterating everything in its path—buildings, terrain, even the fleeing Grandmasters.
Bai Jun and the others were fast, but the sword beam was faster.
"Is that... a sword beam?!"
"You’ve got to be kidding me..."
The slash was so vast it blotted out half the sky, like the scythe of death itself.
Squelch—
Flesh and stone alike were shredded apart. A macabre dance of blood painted the air.
One by one, the Grandmasters were pierced through, their bodies reduced to crimson mist.
"ARGH—!!"
Bai Jun poured every ounce of his energy into escaping, but when he glanced back—
The dark-red slash was already upon him.
No escape.
Despair flooded his heart.
Was this... the end?
Suddenly—
"Bai Jun!"
A black void materialized before him.
A familiar voice echoed in his ears, but before he could process it, he was sucked into the abyss, consciousness fading.
SWOOSH—!!!
The dark-red slash razed everything in its wake, stretching for hundreds of miles before finally dissipating.
Crash...
A supernatural phenomenon altered the weather, gathering dark clouds that unleashed a downpour upon the land.
Patter, patter!
The heavy rain fell upon the ground, relentlessly washing away the bloodstains in the mud.
Gu Yan stood amidst the ruins of a shattered spire, calmly surveying the scorched remains of everything around him.
The Grim Reaper Organization had been annihilated.
Yet another faction responsible for the extermination of the Leng Family had been erased from existence.
With the Thunder Sect's high-tier combatants wiped out, the progress of universal martial cultivation would undoubtedly accelerate once more.
And this time... both the Western Nation and the Eastern Nation ought to recognize the severity of the Night King's threat, uniting to form an alliance.
Hah. Everything was proceeding according to plan.
As for the one who had taken Bai Jun away, Gu Yan had already deduced their identity.
He had long since detected their presence—precisely why he had felt no hesitation in launching his assault on Bai Jun.
Still... he wondered how Bai Jun would react upon learning the truth of his rescuer. Would it be joy... or sorrow?
At that moment.
An umbrella was raised above Gu Yan's head.
"My lord."
Little Bai approached on tiptoe, using her clawed ability to manifest an umbrella, which she held aloft for him.
Gu Yan gave a slight nod, a faint smile curling at the corners of his lips. "Let's return."
"And while we're at it... let the world know the Grim Reaper's final fate."
"Yes!"
Whoosh!
Their figures vanished into the rainy night, as though they had never been there at all.
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
