151: Leave no one behind

Pei Mingce couldn't believe it; this was actually thought up by a twelve-year-old boy!

If he were the First Chief, upon hearing this intelligence, he would definitely set out immediately for support, and wouldn't bring too many people. After all, it was about splitting the spoils, and the more people there were, the more chaotic it would be.

And Lu Chen probably wanted to use this psychology to ambush them in the middle and launch a proactive attack.

Pei Mingce said, "Aren't you afraid I'm feigning surrender, and will go back and say you killed the Second-in-Command and Third Leader?"

Lu Chen laughed, "Trust people you use, and don't use people you distrust! Since I chose to use you, I will trust you. Even if you told the truth, it's still my plan. My goal is to trick the First Chief out and kill him as well. Don't doubt my strength! I have that confidence.

But you will lose the only chance in your life for Immortal Ascension!"

Pei Mingce knelt on one knee, completely convinced: "Young Lord's wisdom is rare in this world. I, Pei Mingce, will dedicate myself to you until death! I will definitely complete the mission!"

With that, he rode off alone on his warhorse.

"Stop that traitor!" The other bandits still tried to block him.

Pei Mingce's sleeve concealed a hidden weapon, which shot out with a ' Shoot Shoot' sound, hitting two bandits between the eyebrows. They fell to the ground with wide, staring eyes.

Lu Chen roared, "Kill them all! Don't leave a single one alive!"

Village Chief's hunting knife clattered to the ground. He stared with wide eyes: "Lu Chen? This… isn't this a bit too cruel?!"

The dragon fiend spear in Lu Chen's hand hummed: "Village Chief, if we don't exterminate them all…" He flicked his wrist, and the spear tip precisely pierced the back of a bandit trying to escape. "What if they go back and report? There's a saying: 'Strike once to avoid a hundred blows.' Kill them!"

Village Chief's throat bobbed, and a chill ran from his feet up his spine. He understood the reasoning, but hearing these words from the twelve-year-old Lu Chen felt particularly chilling.

Lu Chen's dragon fiend spear erupted with dazzling golden light. The pressure of his extraordinary Realm collapsed like a mountain. Those bandits in the Body Tempering Stage couldn't even stand steadily, and those in the Meridian Opening Realm only lasted for half a breath longer.

The long spear swept across, and a malevolent wind, sharp as a blade, sent seven or eight heads flying simultaneously. Blood spurted three zhang high—killing these small fries was truly easier than slaughtering chickens.

The men of Lu Family Village's hunting team formed a encirclement. Though shocked by Lu Chen's ruthless methods, they still faithfully carried out his orders.

The whoosh of arrows, the thud of blades entering flesh, and screams blended into a cacophony.

Lu Chen's figure flickered through the crowd, each pause accompanied by a pillar of blood shooting skyward.

One bandit had just knelt down to beg for mercy when the dragon fiend spear pierced his throat;

Another turned and fled ten steps, only to be impaled against a tree trunk by the thrown spear.

In less than half an hour, the ground was covered with severed limbs and broken bodies. Over a hundred bandits were all killed, truly not a single living soul left.

Lu Chen's actions were not only for extermination, but also because in the Immortal Record, regarding the advancement path of Metal, there was a path called Evil Metal.

It could stimulate the Evil Qi within the Metal through seeing blood, drinking blood, and transforming blood.

At this moment, the dragon fiend spear was frantically devouring the blood on the ground. The spear's temperature grew higher and higher, and the absorbed blood Qi flowed back along the spear shaft, surging through his Meridians.

Lu Chen was surprised to find that he had inadvertently completed the "Dragon Blood Transformation," reaching the second layer of the Transcendent Realm—this was the third step of the Golden Scale Art's five-step Cultivation!

However, Lu Chen had not yet completed the second step.

Interesting. Lu Chen understood: the five steps of the Golden Scale Art did not have a fixed order.

Bloody corpses piled up like a mountain, and the thick smell of blood permeated the air, attracting flocks of crows to circle low.

Village Chief and the villagers' faces were pale. Their hands, gripping weapons, trembled slightly. Their gazes towards Lu Chen were filled with unfamiliarity and fear.

This familiar young man, at this moment, felt incredibly strange, covered in blood, like a god of slaughter.

Only Liu Xiaohua bit her lip, standing firmly behind Lu Chen.

Though she was also shocked by the gruesome scene, she understood in her heart: Lu Chen must have his reasons for doing this.

"What, are you scared?" Lu Chen flicked the blood drops from the spear tip, his voice as cold as a blade. "Think about it, if we don't kill them today, one day in the future, our Lu Family Village might also be piled up like this." He scanned the crowd, his gaze like burning torches. "Do you want to pile others up, or be piled up by others?"

Village Chief and the adults in the village understood this principle, but looking at the severed limbs and broken bodies on the ground, their stomachs churned.

They had been honest and law-abiding for generations; when had they ever seen such a bloody scene? Several women could no longer hold back and bent over, dry-heaving.

Wang Chunlan muttered to herself, "I can't possibly marry my daughter to him now."

"What are you all afraid of! Come here! It helps with Cultivation!" Lu Chen said calmly.

Lu Xiaohu was the first to rush forward, his eyes shining with excitement: "Brother Lu Chen, I support you! These bandits deserved it. If I become a great hero in the future, I'll definitely kill more than you!"

Lu Xiaoyu, though her legs were weak, still gathered her courage and stepped forward.

She lowered her head, her cheeks flushed: "What Brother Lu Chen does must be right."

The adults exchanged glances, still hesitant.

They were bound by ingrained thinking, finding it difficult to accept such slaughter at once.

Lu Chen no longer paid attention to these stubborn adults and immediately began to teach martial arts: "In the advanced Cultivation Technique of the Iron Shirt Technique, there is a branch called Evil Metal." He circulated the Golden Scale Art, and a faint golden light emanated from his body. "It is to obtain Killing Intent from slaughter, and fuse it with the Metal Qi obtained from the Iron Shirt Technique, transforming it into Evil Qi!"

Seeing the fear on everyone's faces, he emphasized, "Be careful, don't hear 'Evil Qi' and assume it's bad. Evil Qi is similar to Protective Aura; they are both a type of energy, just with different focuses!"

With that, Lu Chen guided Lu Xiaohu and Lu Xiaoyu to sit cross-legged in front of the pile of corpses, while circulating the Iron Shirt Technique and teaching them the Evil Metal incantation:

First kill, see blood, sharpen the blade; second kill, drink blood, temper the metal essence; third kill, transform blood, condense the Dragon Soul; fourth kill, refine bones, forge the battle form; fifth kill, achieve an immortal body.

With the Iron Shirt Technique as the foundation, draw Metal Qi into the body.

Visualize a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, absorb Killing Intent into the Meridians.

Metal and Evil Qi merge, forming upon seeing blood… Only to see wisps of bloody mist float from the corpses. This was a mixture of Killing Intent, murderous Qi, and resentment Qi, which, under Lu Chen's guidance, slowly infused into the bodies of the two teenagers.

In less than an hour, astonishing changes occurred!

"Haha, I broke through!" Lu Xiaohu suddenly jumped up, excitedly waving his arms and legs. "I finally broke through to Body Tempering Stage seven, no, eight, oh my god, nine!" He felt the surging power within him, incoherent with excitement. "This… this is something I never even dared to dream of before!"

Even the ordinarily talented Lu Xiaoyu stood up, her face flushed: "I… I advanced two layers, reaching Body Tempering Stage five!"

She looked at her hands in surprise, unable to believe it was true.

This scene shook the adults' psychological defenses.

Lu Tieshan was the first to rush forward and plop down in front of the pile of corpses: "Who cares about cruel or not cruel! I've been stuck at Body Tempering Stage nine for twenty years! I'll give it a try too!"

With that, he followed Lu Chen in reciting the Evil Metal incantation, frantically circulating the Iron Shirt Technique.

In less than an hour, his bones crackled, and a powerful aura shot into the sky.

"Meridian Opening Realm! I broke through!" Lu Tieshan, this tough man, now cried like a child. "Twenty years, hahaha, twenty years, I finally broke through!"

At this, no one said anything about cruelty or bloodiness anymore. The villagers scrambled to surround Lu Chen.

"Little Master Lu Chen, teach the incantation again, I didn't remember it just now!"

"Lu Chen, is it true that the more people you kill, the faster your Cultivation speed?"

"Next time you kill people, call us, we'll kill more!"

Village Chief Lu Zhengde watched this scene dumbfounded, unable to believe his own eyes.

Was this still his Lu Family Village, known for its simple and kind folk?

"Hey! Make some room! Excuse me, I'm the Village Chief, can you give me a spot! I want to Cultivate too!"