A man walked unhurriedly down the avenue, two breathtaking women following at his back.
"It's him—the Empire's most wanted!" People lining the street whispered, faces flushed with excitement. Tales of Goku had spread to every corner under heaven: some watched in awe, some in yearning, and some with naked greed. The reward posters on the city walls promised a fortune enough to last several lifetimes.
A few onlookers slipped away, hurrying toward the magistrate's office to report what they'd seen.
Before long, squads of Qin soldiers emerged at both ends of the street, boxing the three in.
"Sir, that's them!" a scrawny, ferret-eyed man fawned to a commander in armor.
The officer compared their faces to the portrait and nodded, satisfied. "Good. That's him. Go to my yamen and collect your bounty."
"Thank you, sir! Thank you!" The informer bowed again and again and scurried off—unaware the commander had already signaled a sergeant, who slipped after him. Government silver was never that easy to take…
"You're Goku, the so-called sword god? You've got nerve—coming to the capital when you're wanted across the Empire." The commander tried to sound stern, but the man before him was the very demon their emperor had mobilized a million soldiers to crush. He was only a gate captain; not bolting on the spot already counted as bravery. Still, this was the imperial capital—heavy garrisons gave him courage. No matter how strong, once exposed inside Xianyang, a man did not return.
"Move."
Goku didn't spare him a glance. The two flat syllables were calm and toneless, yet carried a weight that pressed on the heart.
Without quickening their pace, the three simply walked forward. The Qin ranks… opened. By the time their figures receded into the distance, the commander and every soldier around him collapsed to the paving stones, legs gone to water.
Only then did they notice their robes were soaked through with cold sweat. Remembering that suffocating aura, they trembled all over—there had not been a wisp of will to resist. Now they finally understood why His Majesty had sent a million men: this opponent was terrifying.
As they went, more troops rushed to block the road. Annoyed, Goku let a pulse of invisible pressure roll out. Soldiers toppled like sheaves of wheat, fainting where they stood.
Bodies lay crosswise all along the route. Residents of the capital stared, speechless. The palace everyone called unassailable might as well have been made of paper. With two peerless beauties at his side, Goku strolled as if through a garden toward Xianyang Palace.
Whoever tried to bar the way—elite guards or "top masters" of the inner court—crumpled silently before they could even raise a hand.
His invincible figure weighed on the city like a mountain. He was undefeated—untouchable. This was no longer strength a human should possess.
He wasn't forcing his way in. He was taking a walk.
Word of what was happening inside the walls flashed across the capital like lightning. Everyone in the palace was shaken; the three silhouettes on that avenue would haunt their dreams forever. No matter how many squads they dispatched, the result was the same: appear, and collapse. In front of this man, they finally understood the meaning of "ants."
Fear blanketed the imperial city.
In the inner hall, Ying Zheng sat scowling, killing intent boiling—and beneath it, the faintest flicker of panic. The First Emperor at last knew fear. Only now did he grasp what sort of being he had tried to erase.
He could no longer sit still. The fortress of his glory had become a joke. "Elite layers of defense" were empty words; thousands fell in an instant. This was not human strength. This was divine majesty.
Where Goku passed, soldiers dropped. Step by step he advanced until he stood at the threshold the world called forbidden—the heart of Xianyang—face to face with the slightly flustered yet still imposing sovereign.
Four men guarded the emperor's sides. From their presence alone, they were first-rank masters, the emperor's last shield.
"Feng, Lin, Huo, Shan… or…?" Goku glanced at the quartet, expression mild. "It doesn't matter who you are. In front of me, you're still ants."
He stretched out his hand. The four tensed to move—then discovered, horrified, that they could not.
"I told you. Before me, you are small." His fingers closed lightly. Blood sprayed from four mouths; bodies folded to the floor.
Ying Zheng blanched. He knew exactly how strong those four were—and they had been brushed aside like dust.
"What are you?" For the first time, terror filled the emperor's chest. Perched at the peak, he feared death more than anyone. One death, and everything ended—and as an emperor, he could not show fear.
"You already know my name," Goku said, voice even. "Goku. Nothing more. Now then—what do you have left to say?"
"Victory crowns the king, defeat the captive," Ying Zheng replied, imperial poise returning. "In your hands, what else can I say?"
"Oh? You've already overcome your fear?" Goku smiled faintly. "To be honest, I do admire you. Unifying the realm—that will live for ages. Whether your methods were right or wrong is for others to argue. But you were too cruel, too domineering—and too eager to eliminate any threat."
"I had no intention of meddling with a mortal like you. You chose death, convinced I endangered your throne, and ordered my removal. Laughable. So—are you prepared to die?"
"I admit I misjudged you," Ying Zheng barked. "I never imagined one who scorns a million men existed. But do not forget—I am Heaven's chosen, ruler of the world, a conqueror for the ages. How could I lose to a mere man of arms?"
He stamped back a pace. Stone slabs split; he dropped through a panel in the floor and the tiles snapped shut.
Above Goku, a hidden hatch snapped open. Violet mist streamed down with a sibilant hiss, spreading in a choking cloud. The stench bit the nose; Goku's brows drew together—this was poison.
With a clang, a meteor-iron cage slammed down, imprisoning the three.
"Mm—" Shi Lan gave a soft groan and collapsed. Goku caught her swiftly. Her face was veiled in purple; her breaths thinned to nothing in heartbeats—poison surging straight to the core. Such lethality!
"Shunxin Zi—one of this world's deadliest toxins," Ling Yue said quietly. To her, there was nothing to worry about; even if Shi Lan's body failed, she could bring her back with a thought.
"Goku," Ying Zheng's voice echoed as mechanisms whirred. A crystalline viewing wall slid open, sealing the poison on Goku's side of the chamber. Surrounded by ministers and generals, the emperor stood behind the transparent barrier, face composed, as if all were in his grasp. "How do you like the gift I prepared?"
A white-bearded official stepped forward, voice resonant. "That violet vapor is the most vicious poison—Shunxin Zi. Smell a trace or touch a mote and your qi will shatter and your heart will fail. Even with profound cultivation, you'll last an hour or two at most. And that cage was forged from fallen star-iron—nothing can break it. No matter your skill, you won't fly out today."
Goku laid a gentle glow into Shi Lan's body, then passed her to the Ling Yue and rose, gaze cooling as it fell on the men behind the wall. "I was inclined to spare you. It seems you're the ones in a hurry to die."
"He… he isn't poisoned?" Ying Zheng and his court stared. Goku's color had not changed in the least. Under that calm, detached look, their hearts lurched and pounded; a mortal chill crept into their bones—as if death was already walking toward them.
Ching—
A single clear note. Light flashed. The "unbreakable" cage parted neatly in two. One sweep of a sleeve, and the violet fog unraveled and vanished.
Goku walked toward the crystal wall, each step sending Ying Zheng and his courtiers stumbling back. Only now did they understand: they had truly enraged him.
Before absolute strength, all schemes are worthless.
"Protect His Majesty!"
....
Translator's Note:
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