Chapter 6: Fleeing the Battlefield

Seeing Liu Xiu’s air of absolute confidence, Wang Liang said no more. He swung himself onto his horse and gripped the Life-Severing Blade.

At that moment, he was enveloped in a shroud of purple mist. The two ancient Wengzhong statues—one silver, one black—that had previously vanished into his body reappeared. The silver-clad scholars stood close by his side, while the black-clad warriors hoisted their weapons, forming a battle formation before him. Simultaneously, the trinkets upon them representing the dragon, phoenix, tiger, and tortoise dissolved rapidly, and the spectral shadows of countless beasts emerged within the purple haze.

Glancing back at Liu Xiu one last time, Wang Liang turned away and urged his bronze warhorse toward the gates of the ruined city.

The moment he burst through the gates, he saw an enormous army closing in from all directions. Wang Liang could immediately gauge the caliber of these forces; compared to this host, the coalition forces of Yanggu County were nothing more than children out on a field trip. Judging by the rising dust clouds, Wang Liang knew there were at least one hundred thousand soldiers. He could also feel the ground trembling—a rhythmic vibration that spoke to the discipline of the advancing ranks. Furthermore, the faint, distant roars of elephants and tigers indicated that this army was accompanied by a vast number of war beasts.

Facing one hundred thousand disciplined, well-trained troops equipped with beasts, Wang Liang looked back at the ruined city, wondering where Liu Xiu found such confidence.

"Forget it. I'll just keep my head down and charge through."

Wang Liang estimated the speed of his bronze warhorse. With the protection of the ancient Wengzhong, confronting this army head-on was impossible, but carving a bloody path to escape remained a viable option. With this in mind, he tightened his grip on the Life-Severing Blade and fixed his gaze upon the approaching enemy. He had only one chance for a decisive strike; after that, he would have to commit fully to the charge. He could not afford to stop, for to stop was to be trapped and destroyed.

Just as Wang Liang prepared to initiate his charge, a different kind of tremor rippled through the ground. Instinctively, he looked down, but before he could discern the cause, a wave of intense heat washed over him.

High in the sky, two figures were locked in a fierce battle. One, dressed in Taoist robes and wielding a long sword, was the source of the heat; every time he swung his blade, a streak of sword energy like molten fire tore through the air. His opponent was a humanoid creature with the head of a leopard. With every strike from the beast-man, air currents shattered around him, shredding the fiery sword energy before it could even reach him.

However, the leopard-headed creature was clearly the weaker of the two. After a few exchanges, he was struck by a blast of flame-like sword energy and plummeted like a meteor into the ranks of the advancing army. With a thunderous boom, dust billowed into the air, and the leopard-headed creature smashed through the army’s formation, scattering the troops.

The creature scrambled to its feet, batted away the soldiers attempting to attack him, and let out a roar toward the heavens. Suddenly, his body began to swell rapidly, growing thirty meters tall until he sat like a small mountain. He took a deep breath, and with a powerful inhalation, he pulled nearly a thousand soldiers into his maw. After a few crunches, he spat out blood-stained iron armor, roared at the sky once more, and took flight. As he ascended, a black gale stirred up dark clouds, sweeping hundreds of nearby soldiers into the sky along with him.

The battlefield fell into chaos, and a massive, empty clearing appeared where the formation had once been.

Seeing this, Wang Liang couldn't help but mutter, "Is he really that divine?"

He looked back, incredulous, and saw that Liu Xiu had already ascended the half-collapsed city wall, accompanied by his skeleton subordinates. Liu Xiu wore a calm, confident smile, looking as if he were merely watching a trivial passerby trip on the side of the road. Liu Xiu’s expression sent a chill through Wang Liang’s heart; he felt it was best to stay as far away as possible from such an unfathomable existence.

Since the enemy formation had been shattered by the impact, there was no reason to linger. Without a second thought, Wang Liang spurred his bronze warhorse toward the spot where the leopard-headed creature had landed. It was the most chaotic part of the army, and Wang Liang’s judgment was sharp; though soldiers rushed to intercept him, they could not form an effective perimeter.

Wang Liang pushed the bronze warhorse to its limit, not only hitting a speed of 180, but also activating the Divine Travel Talismans on all four of the horse's legs, boosting its speed to an unimaginable 380. At this velocity, it was no longer merely running; it was flying just inches above the ground.

At such speeds, it was nearly impossible for the soldiers to surround him. Just as Wang Liang was about to break through the formation, a giant standing over two meters tall—with a waist just as wide—let out a roar and hurled a massive iron hammer toward him. The hammer was a meter in diameter, a weight requiring four strong men to lift, yet the giant tossed it as if it were a beanbag. He had even calculated the trajectory to intercept Wang Liang’s path.

Wang Liang saw the hammer flying toward him. Under normal circumstances, he could have maneuvered the warhorse to dodge, but at this speed, turning was impossible.

"Mystic Light Ruler!" Wang Liang roared.

The ruler flew from his body, and seven bubbles of different colors enveloped the hammer. Yet, the hammer smashed through the bubbles without losing momentum. The ruler then struck the hammer, but with a sharp *clink*, it was sent flying, and the hammer only shifted its course slightly.

Seeing this, Wang Liang shouted again, "Demon Tiger Mirror, Absorb!"

The heart-protecting mirror on his chest rose, forming a hemispherical defensive barrier of brass-colored light. It looked as if it were composed of countless small copper mirrors; from the outside, it seemed impenetrable, while from the inside, it offered a clear view. Relying on this barrier, Wang Liang braced for the impact. The hammer shattered the shield in an instant, but Wang Liang used the momentum of the collision to blast through the range of the attack.

He did not slow down. He steered the bronze warhorse, burst through the remnants of the formation, and vanished in the blink of an eye.