"Let's hope you know when to back off."
Zhao Xuan withdrew his gaze from the two figures sprinting toward him from behind. He cast one last, lingering look at the silver-armored corpse on the ground, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.
Then—
He suddenly lunged forward, chasing after one of the fleeing Silver Guards.
Looting the bodies was important, yes.
But right now, Zhao Xuan's top priority was to eliminate the two Silver Guards who had escaped—within the remaining four minutes.
Otherwise, the one coming after him next would be an Eighth-Rank Golden Guard.
To be honest—
After successfully refining his internal organs with life energy and breaking through to the Sixth-Rank Grandmaster realm, Zhao Xuan had already developed the desire to face an Eighth-Rank powerhouse head-on.
So when he first learned from those two black men that if he failed to kill all the pursuing Silver Guards within ten minutes, the Ancient City would dispatch an Eighth-Rank Golden Guard after him—
A completely insane idea instantly formed in his mind.
Yes.
Exactly what you're thinking.
At that moment, Zhao Xuan had genuinely considered deliberately holding back—intentionally dragging things out for ten minutes to lure an Eighth-Rank Golden Guard into pursuing him.
Because that would allow him to fight without restraint.
To experience a battle to the absolute limit.
In fact, when that squad of Silver Guards first charged at him, he was still clinging to that bold thought.
But in the end—
Zhao Xuan crushed that idea with absolute resolve.
The reason was simple.
At this very moment, there were plenty of outsiders inside the Life City Ruins.
And because of what Zhao Xuan had done during the Kyushu National Examination, at least half of those people harbored killing intent toward him.
As for the other half?
Most of them weren't exactly friendly either.
Why?
Because hanging over Zhao Xuan's head was a bounty worth ten billion.
Ten billion.
That was no small sum.
Don't be fooled by how casually Zhao Xuan consumed spiritual herbs and elixirs worth billions.
How many people in this world could afford that?
None.
Not a single one.
Those chosen by nations and organizations to enter this ruin were all Seventh-Rank prodigies.
Their strength was nothing to scoff at.
Even if they were weaker than Zhao Xuan now—
One fact was undeniable.
They absolutely possessed the ability to injure him.
Zhao Xuan had no intention of fighting an Eighth-Rank Golden Guard to a standstill, only to have bounty hunters suddenly jump in from the sidelines.
That would be fatal.
Truly fatal.
That was why Zhao Xuan suppressed his instincts, chose caution over madness, and abandoned looting the Silver Guards' corpses to hunt down the two escapees first.
Even though, according to those two black men, every Seventh-Rank Silver Guard carried a Life Stone without exception.
What was a Life Stone?
A crystal infused with pure life energy.
Though the life energy within a Life Stone was far inferior to that of a divine medicine, it was far easier to obtain.
Kill a Sixth-Rank Black Guard—there was a small chance of finding one.
Kill a Seventh-Rank Silver Guard—a guaranteed drop.
Kill an Eighth-Rank Silver Guard—there was a high chance of obtaining a High-Grade Life Stone.
Kill a Ninth-Rank Silver Guard—
…
…
What nonsense was that?
Where would a Ninth-Rank Silver Guard even come from?
Besides, even if such a thing existed in the Life City Ruins, no one could kill it.
This ruin strictly limited entry to Seventh-Rank and below.
Even the strongest Seventh-Rank—
Even a peak Seventh-Rank—
Would never be a match for a Ninth-Rank Emperor.
After all—
There was an old saying:
Below the Ninth Rank, all are ants.
Back to the point.
Although ordinary Life Stones contained far less life energy than divine medicines, even a single one sold for one hundred million, and supply never met demand.
High-Grade Life Stones were even more terrifying.
Their life energy rivaled divine medicines of equal weight—and was far purer, far easier for humans to absorb.
As a result, their prices were astronomical.
A single High-Grade Life Stone could sell for six to seven billion on Sky Star Island.
And as mentioned earlier—
Life energy was essential for nearly all Eighth-Rank Kings seeking to advance to the Ninth Rank.
Only massive quantities of life energy could repair the old, accumulated injuries within their bodies.
That was why this place was called the Life City Ruins.
That was why nations and organizations were willing to sacrifice countless geniuses every year just to send people inside.
…
Zhao Xuan vanished in a blur, chasing down the fleeing Silver Guards.
The street fell silent.
But not for long.
Shortly after Zhao Xuan left—
A man and a woman appeared on the street.
Both had black hair and dark eyes—clearly Eastern in appearance.
"We're rich! We're rich! We're rich!"
Seeing the twelve Silver Guard corpses on the ground, their eyes lit up instantly.
In the next second—
Whoosh!
The woman rushed to one of the corpses and began searching it.
Soon, she pulled out a crystalline, diamond-shaped gem from its chest.
The moment she saw it, ecstasy flooded her face.
She swiftly put it away and immediately moved to the next corpse.
At the same time, she shouted to the man behind her:
"Choi Moon-ji, what are you standing there for?! Hurry up and help me find Life Stones! Once that guy comes back, it'll be too late!"
"This doesn't feel right, Soo-yeon," the man hesitated.
"These Silver Guards were clearly killed by that guy. Taking his spoils while he's gone… isn't that crossing a line?"
"What's wrong with it?" she snapped, pulling out another Life Stone, her face glowing with excitement.
"He didn't take them himself. He left them behind. That means they're fair game."
She pocketed the second Life Stone and sneered:
"Are you sure you're not picking any? If you don't, don't expect me to share."
Hearing this, Choi Moon-ji couldn't hold back any longer.
He rushed to a corpse and began searching.
In the blink of an eye—
They had already obtained four Life Stones.
Just as they were overwhelmed with joy—
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Footsteps echoed from the distance.
Both of them looked up at the same time.
And when they recognized the approaching figure—
Their faces lit up with wild delight.
"Moon-ji, I'll handle him," Jin Soo-yeon said coldly.
"We split the ten-billion bounty. You keep collecting Life Stones—fast. That guy who killed all these Silver Guards should be back soon."
With that, she stood up.
Two steps—
And she charged straight toward Zhao Xuan.
Yes.
The person returning from the chase was Zhao Xuan himself.
At this moment, he had already withdrawn from his Dragon-Man form, returning to his human appearance.
He did this deliberately—to appear weaker, to lower the guard of these uninvited guests.
That way, when they revealed hostile intent, he could erupt instantly and kill one of them first.
…
Just like the three black men before—
This woman from the Thief Nation didn't take Sixth-Rank Zhao Xuan seriously at all.
But unlike the previous one—
She had no intention of taking him alive.
Her fingers formed a spear.
Golden light flickered.
The finger spear shot straight toward Zhao Xuan's throat.
She meant to kill.
Watching her attack, Zhao Xuan's thoughts drifted to the Charm-Devil Fruit user from before—
Then to the two women who claimed to forgive him, yet secretly wished him dead.
He sighed inwardly.
Women truly are the most venomous creatures.
In the next instant—
Zhao Xuan raised his head and locked eyes with her.
A sudden sense of dread seized Jin Soo-yeon's heart.
Her heartbeat exploded—
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Before she could even react—
"ROAR!!!!!!!"
A deafening dragon roar erupted beside her ears.
A terrifying pressure crushed her entire body.
Her mind went completely blank.
When consciousness returned—
Zhao Xuan's fist was already before her eyes.
She had no time to dodge.
Boom!
His fist smashed into her face.
Her beautiful features collapsed instantly.
"S-Scream—!"
She flew backward, slamming into the ground beside Choi Moon-ji.
Boom!
The ground shook violently.
Zhao Xuan gave them no time to react.
No mercy.
No hesitation.
He charged again.
Boom!
Another punch smashed down on her head.
Thud! Thud!
Her skull slammed into the ground.
Then—
BOOM!
The third punch fell.
Pop.
Her head exploded.
"Soo-yeon!!!!!!!"
Only now did Choi Moon-ji react.
His shoulders trembled—not with fear, but rage and grief.
Tears streamed down his face.
"Zhao Xuan!!!"
With a hysterical roar—
A terrifying aura erupted from his body.
His hair turned white.
Wrinkles spread across his face.
He had activated an extreme forbidden technique.
"I'll tear you apart!"
Magma erupted from his body.
A massive lava sphere hurled toward Zhao Xuan.
"Another Lava Fruit user?"
Zhao Xuan's expression was icy.
He clenched his fists and unleashed dozens of punches.
Shockwaves obliterated the lava midair.
"One-trick trash."
But when Zhao Xuan looked again—
Choi Moon-ji was gone.
Already fleeing.
They exchanged one last glance.
Choi Moon-ji smiled mockingly.
Zhao Xuan's killing intent exploded.
People like this—
Had to die.
Because—
The King of Hell is easy to face.
Little demons are not.
"One-Second Technique."
Zhao Xuan vanished.
Then—
His aura faltered.
His face turned pale.
His speed dropped sharply.
"Backlash?"
"Hahahaha!"
Realization dawned.
He turned around.
And then—
Zhao Xuan pulled out a divine medicinal stone bamboo shoot.
At that instant—
Choi Moon-ji lost control.
Greed consumed him.
Life energy erupted.
One-Second Technique activated again.
Zhao Xuan threw a punch—
Straight toward Choi Moon-ji's blood-red eyes and twisted grin.
--------------------------------------------------
Read Chapters ahead: [email protected] / KaiOynx