48: One against four

Shen Xiaochuan stood in the center of the ruins, gripping the sky-rending blade tightly, its tip lightly touching the ground. Lightning danced and flickered across the blade, moving like a living creature.

His gaze was cold as he took a step forward. The ground beneath his feet cracked in response, several fissures spreading out.

Zhang Benyifeng sneered, his face filled with contempt. "Today, I'll let you witness the true power of the four of us working together!"

"Four?"

Shen Xiaochuan looked up at him, his tone indifferent. "In my eyes, you're nothing more than four corpses-to-be."

To the left, Xiaoyu Jiro was clad in dark red armor, his hands glowing with a crimson light;

To the right, Kameda Akikai growled like a beast, his right arm swelling and deforming into a hideous claw;

In mid-air, Uchiha Tanghua leaped up, a ball of blazing fire condensing in her palm;

Behind them, Kawashima Xulang knelt on the ground, his back tearing open as a pair of wings made of bone slowly unfurled.

"You killed our people and destroyed the altar."

Zhang Benyifeng gritted his teeth. "Today, you will surely pay the price."

Xiaoyu Jiro grinned, his face full of ferocity. "I won't die. My body can regenerate endlessly—what can you possibly do to me?"

"Is that so?"

Shen Xiaochuan narrowed his eyes. "Then let's see if your arms can still grow back."

Before his voice had even faded, he suddenly kicked off the ground, causing it to collapse with a bang. His figure shot out like a cannonball, charging straight at Xiaoyu Jiro.

Xiaoyu Jiro crossed his arms to protect his face, hurriedly chanting an incantation. However, in the next instant, the blade was already upon him.

It was too fast. He only saw a flash of white light pass by.

Both arms were severed cleanly from the shoulders, blood gushing out. The wounds were charred and carbonized, without the slightest sign of healing.

"Impossible!"

He roared hoarsely and slumped to his knees, pressing his hands firmly against the stumps, his face filled with horror. "How could my ability fail!"

"Your Godhead was already shattered by the lightning."

Shen Xiaochuan watched him coldly. "This so-called immortality is nothing but a joke."

Kameda Akikai roared and rushed forward, reaching out to seize the sky-rending blade.

"Seeking death." Shen Xiaochuan flicked his wrist, pulling the blade across in a horizontal sweep.

The moment Kameda's hand touched the edge, an electric current surged into his body. His skin cracked inch by inch, his veins turned purple, and blood seeped from his eyes.

"Ah—!" Before his scream could end, his entire body suddenly exploded. Flesh and blood flew everywhere, and bone fragments were thrown as far as three meters away.

"The consequence of greed." Shen Xiaochuan remained expressionless, as if he had merely brushed away a speck of dust.

In the air, Uchiha Tanghua threw out three watermelon-sized fireballs, which rained down on Shen Xiaochuan in a triangular formation.

"Die!"

Shen Xiaochuan leaped two meters into the air, striking the ground with the back of his blade to flip over. The first fireball grazed his back, and the wall behind him melted and collapsed on the spot.

The moment he landed, he spun and swung his blade, tracing a semicircular arc of light. Lightning followed the blade, turning into a rotating wind of blades that whistled away.

The second fireball was struck head-on and exploded violently, the shockwave toppling the surrounding ruins.

The third followed closely behind. He didn't have time to strike again, so he slammed into a wall and rolled on the ground to dodge.

The blast of the explosion sent him tumbling twice, and a charred hole was burned into the back of his robe. He slowly stood up, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

He raised a hand to wipe away the blood and looked up with a cold smile. "Not finished yet? Then let's continue."

By then, Kawashima Xulang had completed the summoning ritual. His bone wings were fully unfurled, spanning ten meters. He mounted the neck of the Bone Dragon and began chanting incantations in a low voice.

"With my blood, I awaken the Lord of the Abyss! I offer my Soul in exchange for power!"

His voice was low and resolute. The Bone Dragon raised its head and roared, a ghostly green light gathering in its mouth, growing brighter and hotter until even the air began to warp. If this strike landed, this place would surely be turned into scorched earth.

Shen Xiaochuan gripped the sky-rending blade tightly, preparing to meet the attack.

At that very moment, a sonorous shout suddenly rang out in his mind:

"Yunchang is here!"

A warm current poured in from the top of his head, and his muscles tightened instantly. Crimson-gold runes appeared on his skin, his eyes transformed into a phoenix-like shape, and his pupils shone brightly.

The sky-rending blade vibrated violently, its body extending and deforming, transforming into the phantom of a giant azure blade. The hilt was decorated with a coiled Dragon pattern, and the blade had a crescent moon curve—it was the form of the Green Dragon Crescent Blade.

System Notification: [Divine Sense Resonance] activated for the first time.

Guan Yu's Heroic Spirit possession successful.

combat power +50

Duration: 3 minutes

"A man of loyalty and righteousness."

Shen Xiaochuan whispered, "I borrow your blade to slay all evil."

With a stomp of his foot, his figure vanished.

In the next instant, he appeared beneath the Bone Dragon's belly. He swung the blade upward, slashing fiercely at the joint.

Crack! The base of the left wing snapped, and bone fragments flew everywhere. The Bone Dragon's body tilted, relying only on its right wing to maintain balance.

He used the momentum to flip through the air, swinging his blade again before landing. The second strike accurately hit the right wing joint.

The entire bone wing crashed down, the dull thud of it hitting the ground deafening. The Bone Dragon wailed as it fell from the sky, crashing heavily into the ruins.

Kawashima Xulang was thrown five meters away, his chest caved in as he spat out a mouthful of black blood. He tried to crawl, but his limbs were weak, and he could not move.

"Spare... spare my life... I can serve you... as long as you let me go..." His voice trembled, his eyes filled with fear.

"You don't even understand what loyalty is."

Shen Xiaochuan glanced at him coldly. "You don't deserve to speak of forgiveness."

He stood firm, the phantom of the great blade in his hand humming incessantly, before turning toward Uchiha Tanghua.

She was backing away step by step, fear appearing on her face for the first time.

"Weren't you quite arrogant just now?"

The corner of Shen Xiaochuan's mouth curled up, the tip of his blade pointing directly at her. "Did you have fun playing with those fireballs?"

"Don't come any closer! You're not human! That's a forbidden technique!" Her voice shook as she backed away repeatedly.

"forbidden technique?"

He sneered. "When dealing with people like you, why should I follow the rules?"

With the first step, the ground trembled slightly; with the second, his figure blurred; by the third, he had appeared a hundred meters away.

"You'll die a horrible death!" she screamed, throwing out the last fireball.

"Just because of those words?" Shen Xiaochuan's gaze turned cold as he raised his blade and swept it across. The fireball split in half at the touch, the aftershocks igniting the broken walls on both sides.

He continued forward, the earth trembling slightly with every step he took.

She turned to flee, but just as she leaped half a meter into the air, a shadow fell over her.

Shen Xiaochuan dove down from high above, holding the blade with both hands and striking down with all his might.

The blade's light pierced through her waist and abdomen, severing her body in two. Her upper half flew two meters away, landing in the rubble, while her lower half remained standing for a few seconds before crashing to the ground.

Silence returned to the surroundings.

The fire was still burning, and thick smoke rose in curls. The remains of the Bone Dragon emitted ghostly green flames. Xiaoyu Jiro was dragged away from the battlefield by two people, Kameda's body was gone without a trace, and Uchiha Tanghua's death was gruesome.

Kawashima Xulang lay on the ground, his fingers clawing at the dirt as he struggled to escape. But his injuries were too severe, making even moving extremely difficult.

Shen Xiaochuan stood quietly as the phantom of the great blade gradually dissipated, the golden light in his eyes faded, and the runes on his skin quietly vanished.

Three minutes were up. The possession had ended.

He panted slightly and gripped the sky-rending blade again. The blade was still clean, without a single stain of blood.

High upon the platform in the distance, Zhang Benyifeng's hand holding the scepter trembled incessantly. He wanted to retreat, but his legs were so weak he could barely stand.

Shen Xiaochuan walked toward him. His pace was not hurried, yet every step struck fear and trepidation into the heart.

"You said you would make me die more miserably than a pig."

The corner of his mouth curled slightly, his voice not loud, but extremely oppressive. "And now? Do you still dare to say those words?"

"You... you will get what's coming to you!"

Zhang Benyifeng's voice was hoarse. "The people behind me won't let you go! All of Japan will hunt you down!"

"Then let them come."

Shen Xiaochuan's expression was calm. "I have walked through so many battlefields; I am not afraid of one more."

He stopped and looked down at his watch.

The faith points value ticked up: 3271, 3272, 3273... He gave a light laugh and gripped the hilt of his blade.

"You only have a few seconds left to live."