"What's going on?"
Zhao Xuan was the first to speak.
"Jiji jiji!"
The Big Golden Rat stretched out its paw and pointed in the direction it had come from, chirping urgently.
"As expected!"
Zhao Xuan's eyes immediately flickered.
"So they really went to pick a fight with the Gold Guards? They really don't take me seriously at all."
"Do they really think that just because they have more people, I wouldn't dare touch them?"
"Hmph!"
"They're underestimating me far too much!"
A thick trace of mockery appeared on Zhao Xuan's face.
"This is something you brought upon yourselves!"
Muttering to himself, Zhao Xuan asked again,
"Have they already started fighting the Gold Guards, or are they still on the way?"
"Jiji jiji! (They've already started fighting!)"
"Quick! Take me there!"
"Jiji! Jiji! (This way! This way!)"
Led by the Big Golden Rat, Zhao Xuan rushed toward a certain direction within the ancient city.
At the same time—
Somewhere in the ancient city.
On a street close to the inner city walls.
"Tap tap tap tap tap tap!"
"Tap tap tap tap tap tap!"
"…"
A squad of ancient city guards was marching in neat formation along the street.
At the front were two generals clad in golden armor, each holding a golden halberd.
Powerful auras continuously radiated from their bodies.
Without question—
Just from these auras alone, it was clear that these two Gold Guard generals ranked among the strongest even among Eighth-Rank lower-tier Kings.
Especially the leading Gold Guard commander.
The aura emanating from his body already rivaled that of an Eighth-Rank mid-tier King.
The difference between an Eighth-Rank mid-tier and lower-tier King was enormous.
Because—
Mid-tier Eighth-Rank Kings had already successfully tempered their hematopoietic organ—the spinal marrow.
Their recovery and endurance capabilities were several times greater than those of lower-tier Kings.
Suddenly—
Just as the guard squad passed by an alley entrance—
"Kill!!"
A roar of battle erupted from within the alley.
Immediately afterward—
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Fourteen figures charged out simultaneously.
Their targets were extremely clear.
They did not rush the two Gold Guard generals directly. Instead, they focused their attacks on three Silver Guard soldiers.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Violent collisions shook the air.
Caught completely off guard by the sudden ambush, the three Silver Guards were instantly killed.
After killing them, the fourteen attackers scattered without pause.
Six of them split into two groups of three and charged at the two Gold Guard generals.
The remaining eight attacked the remaining ten Silver Guard soldiers.
Their division of labor was crystal clear.
In an instant—
The battle between the two sides erupted in full force.
The two Gold Guard generals were incredibly strong.
Extremely strong.
Although they were puppet-like beings—
There was not the slightest sign of stiffness or artificiality in their movements.
Facing the coordinated assault of three enemies each, the two Gold Guards quickly stabilized their footing and began counterattacking.
For a moment—
The battle between the six attackers and the two Gold Guards fell into a stalemate.
Neither side could gain the upper hand.
However—
The situation on the other side was completely different.
After the three Seventh-Rank peak Silver Guard squad leaders were killed, the remaining ten Silver Guards were only around mid-Seventh Rank.
Although they had numerical superiority—
Facing eight elite geniuses from various countries and factions, they were steadily forced back.
Before long, another Silver Guard was slain.
Seeing this—
Joy immediately appeared on the attackers' faces.
But just as they prepared to press their advantage—
Suddenly—
One of them frowned sharply and shouted a warning:
"Something's wrong! Someone's coming! Five-o'clock direction! Closing in fast! At this speed, he'll reach us in three seconds!"
The moment those words fell—
All fourteen faces changed.
"How many people?"
A man who was entangled with a Gold Guard shouted urgently.
"One!"
The scout paused, then shouted again in alarm:
"It's Zhao Xuan! The one charging toward us is Zhao Xuan!"
"Damn it!"
"How could it be that guy!"
"Shit!"
Hearing this—
Everyone's expressions darkened instantly.
Although Zhao Xuan was alone—
The threat he posed was no less than that of an entire elite squad.
At that moment—
Images of corpses scattered throughout the Life City—bodies brutally beaten to death by Zhao Xuan—flashed through their minds.
Before they could fully react—
Zhao Xuan already appeared in their field of vision, charging toward them with ferocious momentum.
"Proceed according to the original plan!"
The squad leader shouted decisively.
As his words fell—
"Boom! Boom!"
Almost simultaneously—
From each of the two three-man groups fighting the Gold Guard generals, one person suddenly erupted with terrifying aura.
Two people activated their limit techniques!
Their power surged explosively.
For a short time, just the two of them managed to suppress the two Gold Guard generals.
"Hurry! We can only hold for thirty seconds! If we maintain the limit technique beyond that, the backlash will be devastating!"
"You must deal with Zhao Xuan within thirty seconds!"
As the warning rang out—
The four remaining fighters disengaged from the Gold Guards and charged straight at Zhao Xuan.
"They're using limit techniques? Then I'm not fighting you."
Seeing the four charging toward him, Zhao Xuan's eyes flickered.
Then—
He stopped abruptly.
Just as the four were about to reach him—
Zhao Xuan suddenly grinned at them.
Next—
"Tap!"
His figure flashed.
He turned and fled instantly.
The four froze.
After a brief moment of shock, they chased after him.
After a few seconds, Zhao Xuan vanished completely.
Their faces darkened.
Without hesitation, they turned back toward the battlefield.
But before they could rejoin—
The teammate with master-level Observation Haki shouted again:
"Damn it! He's back! That kid is back again!"
The four spun around—
Only to see Zhao Xuan charging at them once more.
Their expressions sank.
They turned and rushed toward him again.
But—
Zhao Xuan turned and ran yet again.
Seeing this—
Every face twisted with frustration.
They finally realized what Zhao Xuan was doing.
"That bastard is harassing us on purpose!"
One burly man roared furiously.
"Stop chasing him! Come back!"
The blond man who was holding a Gold Guard general alone shouted urgently.
"Everyone focus! Kill one Gold Guard first!"
Hearing this—
The four turned back again.
"So you want to concentrate your strength and kill a Gold Guard first?"
Zhao Xuan sneered from afar.
"Nice idea. But do you think I'll give you that chance?"
As the four turned back—
Zhao Xuan turned as well.
Then he charged at them once more.
This time—
The four ignored him completely and returned to the Gold Guard battlefield.
Cooperating with the two limit-technique users—
Five of them attacked a single Gold Guard general simultaneously.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The violent impacts shattered the Gold Guard's halberd.
Their attacks crashed onto the Gold Guard's body.
"Boom!"
The Gold Guard was blasted backward.
He struggled to his feet—
But the attacks came again.
"Boom!"
After two consecutive waves of attacks, the Gold Guard's once overwhelming aura weakened dramatically.
The five attackers were just starting to celebrate—
"AAAHHH!!"
A scream tore through the air.
They turned sharply—
Only to see Zhao Xuan punching one of their teammates who was fighting the Silver Guards.
"Damn it!"
"Attack him!"
The five roared in fury and rushed toward Zhao Xuan.
After landing one more punch on that man's head, Zhao Xuan fled without looking back.
Those two punches didn't kill the man outright.
But—
He was unlucky.
After being sent flying, he landed directly among the Silver Guards—
And was immediately impaled to death by two of them.
Just as the five prepared to chase Zhao Xuan—
"Damn it! Hurry! Come help me! I can't hold much longer!"
The other limit-technique user screamed desperately.
The five glared hatefully at Zhao Xuan, then turned back to assist their comrade.
Zhao Xuan was about to leave.
After all, one Gold Guard was already dead.
The other wouldn't last long under their assault.
If he interfered now, he risked being trapped.
But—
Leaving just like that felt unsatisfying.
Then—
His gaze locked onto the heavily wounded Gold Guard general lying forty to fifty meters away.
His eyes lit up.
Whoosh!
In the next instant—
Zhao Xuan appeared before the dying Gold Guard.
"Boom!"
One punch—
Ended the wounded Gold Guard's life.
He quickly searched the body—
And found a thumb-sized Life Stone.
"This is—!"
Zhao Xuan's face lit up with joy.
"A high-grade Life Stone!"
Just as he rejoiced—
"Boom!"
Not far away—
Under the combined assault of the six attackers, the second Gold Guard general finally collapsed.
"Time to go!"
Zhao Xuan grabbed the high-grade Life Stone, waved it mockingly in their direction, then turned and fled.
"Damn it!!!"
"Bastard!!!"
The five roared in rage.
They had worked themselves half to death—
Only to have their spoils stolen.
Damn it!!!
Fury engulfed them.
They did not immediately chase Zhao Xuan.
Instead, they finished off the remaining nine Silver Guards.
Then—
Something even more infuriating happened.
They failed to find a high-grade Life Stone on the other Gold Guard's body.
In other words—
The greatest reward of the entire Gold Guard squad—
Had been stolen by Zhao Xuan.
Intercepted. Stolen. Snatched clean.
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Read Chapters ahead: [email protected] / KaiOynx