172: Chapter 172 Overwhelming Power, Princess's Fall! The Infinite Resurrection That Brings Despair to the Gods

Boom—!!

A dark red Protective Aura erupted like a sudden storm, sweeping outwards from Qin Ji in a frenzied whirlwind. Luolin Muye and the others, who had been trying to close in and surround him, felt as if they had slammed into a high-speed moving wall of bronze. They were thrown back uncontrollably, stumbling and staggering.

Amidst the swirling wood splinters and shattered stones, the figure was wreathed in a tangible aura of bloody energy. With every step he took, the ground beneath his feet cracked and splintered, unable to withstand the terrifying pressure.

"O... Overpowering Physique?!"

Luolin Muye gripped his longsword so tightly his knuckles turned white. The killing intent that had filled his eyes moments before was now replaced by sheer, incredulous shock.

Overpowering Physique.

Forcibly immune to all control effects.

This was a divine skill coveted by all melee professions in the world of *Zhu Tian*, and the nightmare of countless fragile classes.

"How... how can an Archer have Overpowering Physique?!"

In the distance, Archmage Abid was so shocked he nearly bit his tongue off, his staff trembling slightly in his hand. In his understanding, Archers were dancers on a knife's edge—fragile, agile, and vulnerable to crowd control. But this monster before him not only had the health pool of a world boss, he had now even pulled out the warrior's ultimate trump card!

"Surprised?"

Qin Ji's voice cut through the dust and smoke, calm to the point of being unnerving.

He ignored the horrified gazes around him. His violet-gold pupils locked directly onto Princess behind the crowd.

At this moment, all traces of her usual haughtiness had vanished from Princess's stunningly beautiful face, replaced by a tremor from the depths of her Soul. The instant Qin Ji's oppressive gaze fell upon her, she felt like prey caught in the sights of an ancient Vicious Beast, her breath catching in her throat.

"Stop him! Stop him now!!"

Princess shrieked, frantically waving her staff. Thick walls of ice erupted from the ground, attempting to block the approach of the grim reaper.

However.

Qin Ji had no intention of going around.

With [Overpowering Physique] activated, he was like a heavy tank charging at full speed.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The ice walls, strong enough to withstand a full-power strike from a Gold-Rank warrior, shattered into a shower of icy crystals the moment Qin Ji crashed into them. His momentum didn't falter. The god-beating whip in his hand traced a shrill arc through the air and lashed down with a sound that tore through the atmosphere!

"No—!!"

Princess let out a despairing roar. All her defensive artifacts activated simultaneously, enveloping her in a brilliant, multi-colored glow of protective shields.

Crack!!

A sharp, sickening sound of shattering rang out.

The god-beating whip ignored all the flashy magical shields. That pure, tyrannical force directly pierced through Princess's entire defensive System.

Amidst the crisp sounds of shattering shields, Princess was sent flying backwards like a kite with its string cut. While still in mid-air, her body disintegrated under an invisible force, dissolving into a shower of white light.

[Ding! You have slain "Princess"!]

[Ding! Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Snow Emperor" for successfully slaying the Star Kingdom's "Princess"! This announcement is made to encourage all players to strive further!]

[Ding! Server-wide Announcement: Congratulations to player "Snow Emperor" for successfully slaying the Star Kingdom's "Princess"...]

The cold, mechanical voice of the System echoed throughout the entire world of *Zhu Tian*.

...

At that moment, whether it was the guild elites fighting desperately in dungeons or the life-skill players setting up stalls in the main cities, everyone's movements froze.

First, King Abra.

Now, Princess.

Was this man called "Snow Emperor" planning to wipe out the entire royal family of the Star Kingdom?!

Outside Gu Feng City, the cloaked leader of the demonic cavern gazed towards the direction of Tianxing City, a playful smile curling at the corner of his lips. "Interesting... After all these years, is this land finally about to change hands?"

Meanwhile, deep within the Tianxing City palace, inside the hidden dungeon named "Traces of the Snow Corpse".

Leona, who had been locked in combat with a giant ice serpent, suddenly stopped. Her ash-white eyes seemed to pierce through the Void Realm, fixed intently on the direction of the guardians tower.

"One already dead, and so soon?"

Leona's voice was icy and piercing, the air around her seeming to freeze solid. "Snow Emperor... The more joyfully you kill, the deeper your despair will be when you finally fall into my hands. I will emulate the sealing of the Son of the Demon King and imprison you for eternity beneath the frigid ice plains!"

Boom!

She backhandedly slapped out. The terrifying ice serpent didn't even have time to cry out before its head exploded like a watermelon.

...

Inside the guardians tower.

Silence.

A deathly stillness.

Luolin Muye, Village Chief Wang, Archmage Abid... Everyone stared dumbfounded at the spot where Princess had vanished.

That was the Princess.

The one they had pledged their loyalty to.

The very core protection target of this encirclement operation.

And just like that... she was gone?

"Since the Princess has already been sent down, why not let this holy man go down to accompany her as well."

Qin Ji's indifferent voice shattered the silence.

With a flick of his wrist, the ancient and mysterious [book of life and death] materialized once more. This time, that heart-palpitating aura of death locked onto the Gold-Rank priest who was frantically healing himself—Routwas.

Hum!

Routwas's body stiffened abruptly. A gray skull mark slowly formed above his head.

-93,200!

-93,200!

Horrifying numbers of True Damage began to jump frantically above his head.

"Save me!! Archmage, save me!!"

Routwas let out a pig-slaughtering scream. Even as he desperately cast healing spells on himself, his health bar plummeted at a visibly rapid pace.

"Berserk!!"

Village Chief Wang finally snapped back to reality. With a furious roar, his originally hunched body instantly swelled. Veins bulged on the surface of his skin as his entire frame expanded like an inflating balloon.

If they couldn't protect the Princess, then they would kill the murderer!!

"Berserk."

The corner of Qin Ji's mouth lifted slightly as he uttered the same low shout.

Boom!

Two berserk auras collided within the confined space. Qin Ji felt the power within his body boiling like magma, his attack power and attack speed surging once more! As for the defense reduction that came with Berserk?

Heh.

For a cheater with infinite lives, did something like defense even matter?

"Three Cloud Pierce, Heart-Lock Shatter!!"

Archmage Abid had now gone completely mad. A turbid, earthy-yellow ball of light gathered at the tip of his staff. The surrounding space even began to distort from the sheer volume of magical power being concentrated.

This was definitely no ordinary skill.

This was the prelude to a forbidden spell!

Qin Ji's eyes narrowed slightly.

The instant Abid raised his hand, Qin Ji's body had already reacted.

"Instant Slash!"

Swish!

His figure vanished into thin air. When he reappeared, he had crossed dozens of meters, closing in directly on the screaming Gold-Rank priest.

"Don't even think about it!!"

Luolin Muye's eyes nearly burst from their sockets. His longsword transformed into a streak of light as he unleashed a "Cloud-Piercing Strike," sealing off all of Qin Ji's forward paths.

"Get lost!"

Qin Ji didn't engage head-on. This Instant Slash was originally meant to create distance from Abid. The moment Luolin Muye's sword was upon him—

"Spatial Blink!"

Hum!

Spatial ripples shimmered. Qin Ji's figure vanished once more, forcibly executing a second displacement mid-air and appearing on the other side of the battlefield.

However.

"Not good."

The moment Qin Ji landed, his heart gave a jolt.

He looked down. On his chest, an earthy-yellow light point had somehow appeared. The light point was flashing rapidly, emanating a heart-stopping aura of destruction.

A lock-on skill?!

Two displacements and he still couldn't shake the old mage's lock?

"Die!!" Archmage Abid roared with aferocious laugh.

Boom—!!!

An ear-splitting explosion.

The earthy-yellow light detonated violently on Qin Ji's chest. This wasn't just magical damage; it was a terrifying physical shockwave!

The ground instantly cratered, creating a pit ten meters in diameter. Shattered stones and dust shot into the air. Qin Ji was blasted into the air like a ragdoll.

"Now!!"

Village Chief Wang's eyes flashed with intense light. His body, enhanced by Berserk, transformed into a blur as he appeared directly above Qin Ji in an instant.

"Thousand-Jin Descent!"

Thud!

The rusted iron sword, carrying the force of ten thousand jun, smashed down viciously onto Qin Ji, slamming him hard into the ground.

Immediately after, Luolin Muye's combo arrived.

Knock-up, float, stun...

A dense rain of crowd control skills poured down.

"Snow Emperor!! Let's see you survive this time!!"

Luolin Muye's face was contorted. He swung his longsword frantically, each strike sending sprays of blood flying.

Suspended in mid-air, caught in an infinite float state, Qin Ji looked at his nearly depleted health bar. Yet, a faint, almost imperceptible smile suddenly curled at the corner of his lips.

Did he still have trump cards left?

Of course he did.

His basic attack amplification wasn't active yet. Those life-preserving Divine Artifacts hadn't been used.

But... was it necessary?

Looking at these NPCs who had revealed all their cards and twisted their faces in their desperate attempt to kill him just once, Qin Ji suddenly felt a sense of boredom.

Since you all want to kill me so badly... then I'll let you kill me once.

The moment this thought arose, Qin Ji abandoned all resistance, allowing the final magical beam to pierce through his chest.

Squelch.

Health bar zeroed.

Qin Ji's body crashed heavily into the ruins, devoid of life.

"Huff... huff..."

Village Chief Wang leaned on his iron sword, gasping for breath in great heaves. His muddy old eyes were filled with the relief of having survived a calamity.

"Finally... he's finally dead..."

Luolin Mye simply collapsed onto the ground. Staring at Qin Ji's corpse, he let out a series of hysterical laughs. "Dead! Hahahaha! Snow Emperor is dead!!"

However.

Before their smiles could fully bloom.

Before that breath they were holding could be completely released.

The corpse on the ground suddenly dissipated into specks of starlight.

Immediately after.

A dazzling, eye-piercing pillar of Holy Light descended from the heavens without warning, directly enveloping the blood-stained ruins.

Three seconds.

Only three seconds passed.

The pillar of light faded.

A figure, completely unharmed and radiating an aura of Peak condition, slowly walked out from within the light.

Qin Ji cracked his neck, producing crisp popping sounds. He glanced down at his status panel.

Rank: LV.1.

Attributes:

Strength: 99,999+

Agility: 99,999+

Health Points: 8.3 million / 8.3 million.

"Tsk, turned into a level-one newbie," Qin Ji remarked nonchalantly, brushing off nonexistent dust from his sleeves. His tone was as relaxed as if he'd just returned from a stroll. "But at least the attribute points stolen from killing monsters are permanently retained."

He slowly raised his head. A hint of mockery flickered in his violet-gold eyes as he looked towards the faces opposite him, which had instantly frozen, looking as if they'd seen a ghost.

"What's wrong? Judging by your expressions, you don't seem too welcoming of my return?"

Silence.

A deathly silence.

Village Chief Wang's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He sucked in a sharp breath, his voice trembling like a leaf in the wind. "Re... resurrection on the spot?! How is that possible?! No fluctuations from any item... This is a rule-level resurrection?!"

As a high-intelligence NPC, he was well aware that Adventurers could resurrect.

But that was resurrection back in the city! That required a price!

A resurrection method like this—standing up on the spot three seconds after death, at full health and full status, and seemingly with zero cost—completely shattered the underlying logic of the *Zhu Tian* world!

"Ret... retreat..."

Village Chief Wang swallowed hard. His iron sword clattered to the ground. His aged heart was convulsing violently.

Fight?

Fight my ass!

They had risked their lives, used all their trump cards, and finally managed to kill him once.

And he came back at full health in three seconds!

How were they supposed to fight that?!

"No!! I refuse to accept this!!"

Luolin Muye's eyes were bloodshot. He stared fixedly at Qin Ji, his gaze filled with a hatred that wished to devour his flesh. "The Princess is dead... If we just run like this, how will we ever face the King?!"

"As long as the green hills remain, there will be no shortage of firewood!"

Village Chief Wang grabbed Luolin Muye, who was about to charge to his death. Gnashing his teeth, he said, "We wait for the King to emerge from the Snow Corpse ruins! Once the King obtains that item, even an immortal monster like this can be suppressed!!"

"Go!!"

At the command, the remaining few hesitated no longer. They turned and fled.

Qin Ji did not pursue.

He simply stood there, casually picking up a strange fragment emitting a black-and-white glow from the spot where Princess's body had vanished.

[Ding! You have obtained a special item: Wheel of Time and Space (Fragment · Heaven)]

[Description: One of the core fragments of the legendary Saint-Destroyer grade treasure "Wheel of Time and Space," created by the Dominator of Time and Space. Even as a mere fragment, it contains the terrifying power to distort space. Gather the Earth and Human fragments to restore the might of the Wheel of Time and Space.]

"Saint-Destroyer grade treasure?"

Qin Ji raised an eyebrow. He tossed the fragment casually a few times before storing it in his inventory.

At that moment, the last rays of the setting sun shone through the shattered dome of the guardians tower, dyeing the ruins on the ground a mournful, brilliant crimson. Qin Ji stood with the whip in one hand, his feet resting on the shattered fragments of the golden armor. His violet-gold pupils shimmered in the interplay of light and shadow, just like a deity or demon newly awakened, gazing with a mix of languor and indifference at the fleeing figures as they gradually vanished into the distance.