“Take one more of his attacks and observe the situation. If it really doesn’t work, then we’ll drop the matter,” Granny Xuanhua sighed, and within her withered palm, a massive sphere of red energy condensed once again.

At the same time, the three old men with one-star Douzong cultivation, who had remained motionless before, finally began to act.

The technique Granny Xuanhua was using could temporarily absorb a portion of others’ supportive energy. So now, the three behind her acted in unison, channeling their Dou Qi into her body.

Though these three only had the strength of one-star Douzong, their combined effort managed to enhance the power of Granny Xuanhua’s technique by ten to twenty percent.

Before long, under the watchful eyes of countless people below, the enormous red flower before Granny Xuanhua began to shed its petals. Within a designated space, those petals began to move in a peculiar formation.

At this moment, each of those petals resembled a bright red longsword, weaving through the air in an orderly pattern.

“Go!”

In the next instant, under Granny Xuanhua’s control, those countless red petals—sharp as blades and brimming with terrifying energy fluctuations—shot densely toward Xiao Jin.

Granny Xuanhua’s technique covered a wide area. If Xiao Jin failed to block it, then those wide-ranging and powerful energy petals would surely kill off the entire group of Mercenary Guild experts he had brought along.

Therefore, once she launched this strike, Xiao Jin made his decision. He had just said he would strike only three times. But if the enemy forced him to unleash a second blow, then a third would inevitably follow.

In that moment, watching the stream of flower petals raining down from the sky, Xiao Jin slowly pulled his black longsword from the ground, then abruptly swung it toward the heavens.

In a flash, a dazzling golden light once again filled everyone’s vision.

A golden sword qi dozens of zhang in size surged upward with the momentum of splitting the sky in two, colliding head-on with the stream of petals.

Under the fierce assault of the golden sword qi, the red petals shattered one by one, and in almost an instant, were completely obliterated.

“Boom!”

In the blink of an eye, the sword qi struck directly in front of Granny Xuanhua. In her horrified gaze, it shattered the energy shield surrounding her!

“No, this is impossible!”

As the energy shield was destroyed in an instant, disbelief filled Granny Xuanhua’s eyes. She let out a shrill scream and tried to act further, but the sword qi had already swept past—her entire body instantly reduced to a mist of blood.

The three one-star Douzong elders behind her were also caught in the blast. Under the terrifying energy of the sword qi, their bodies were torn apart without the slightest resistance.

With just one sword strike, the so-called trump cards of the allied forces—Granny Xuanhua and the three Douzong experts—were all wiped out completely, not even stirring a ripple.

“Hiss!”

Catching sight of the sweeping sword qi, Yan Luotian’s heart skipped a heavy beat. His eyes were filled with fear. If Xiao Jin’s first sword had only carried the power of a six-star Douzong, then this second strike must have been at least at the level of an eight-star, or even nine-star Douzong.

“To think the Vice President of the Mercenary Guild is actually such a powerful figure!” Yan Luotian thought in terror. At this point, he had completely lost the will to fight.

After deciding to flee, Yan Luotian wasted no time and immediately took action.

In the next moment, golden light surged from his body. A pair of golden wings flapped rapidly, and in an instant, he broke away from the Mercenary Guild elder with two-star Douzong strength.

Although Yan Luotian was only at the three-star Douzong level, his movement technique was extremely fast. After escaping the battlefield, he fled straight toward the sky behind the fortress without looking back.

“Trying to run?”

Seeing Yan Luotian turn into a streak of golden light and flee into the distance, a trace of disdain flashed across Xiao Jin’s youthful face. This Yan Luotian was likely the instigator of the Three-Nation Alliance. Xiao Jin had already killed even those who came to assist, like Granny Xuanhua—how could he possibly let the true mastermind, Yan Luotian, get away?

At once, Xiao Jin’s figure flashed into the sky. Raising his black sword, he unleashed three consecutive strikes of sword qi toward Yan Luotian’s direction.

“Damn it!”

Sensing the fierce sword qi closing in, Yan Luotian immediately realized the danger. This was the same sword qi that had utterly overwhelmed Granny Xuanhua—there was no way he could face it head-on. In that moment, he activated the wings on his back and pushed his speed to the limit. Just as the sword qi neared his body, he narrowly escaped the range of the first strike.

However, to his dismay, the second wave of sword qi followed closely behind.

At this point, Yan Luotian fully understood—this level of attack was nothing more than an ordinary strike from Xiao Jin. If even a normal strike carried such speed and power, an overwhelming sense of helplessness rose in his heart, accompanied by deep regret.

The Mercenary Guild’s entry into the Jin Yan Empire would, at most, have reduced Jin Yan Sect’s influence and profits. But now, with things having escalated this far, the sect had completely fallen out with the Mercenary Guild. Even if they weren’t eradicated, they would surely be suppressed moving forward.

Amidst these thoughts, Yan Luotian ultimately failed to escape the second wave of sword qi. His body was obliterated within that dazzling golden light.

The three elders from the Mulan Tribe, having just witnessed the deaths of both Granny Xuanhua and Yan Luotian in succession, were overwhelmed with fear. Yet in such a situation, they dared not act rashly. If they tried to run, they would meet the same fate—shredded by golden sword qi.

“You three, listen carefully. If you run, you can go join Yan Luotian in the Yellow Springs. If you want to survive, keep fighting. If you can defeat Elder Mu Feng, you’ll still have a chance to live,” Xiao Jin said calmly as he sheathed his black sword, watching the three Mulan elders.

Hearing this, a glimmer of hope appeared in the eyes of the Mulan Trio.

Xiao Jin had chosen this course because he was curious about the cultivation technique created by the Mulan Trio. Despite only being at the peak of Douhuang, they could somehow display the strength of a three-star Douzong—an extremely strange feat.

The Mercenary Guild elder with three-star Douzong cultivation—Mu Feng, as Xiao Jin had called him—also felt his battle spirit ignite upon hearing Xiao Jin’s words, his gaze burning as he looked toward the Mulan Trio.

[End of Chapter]

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