CHAPTER 531: CHAPTER 515: WAY OF KILLING_1

"Deputy General, go and count the casualties!" Guan Yu lowered his proud head, weakly waving his hand. His voice was low and hoarse, as if his throat had been pierced by a sharp sword, causing his very soul to tremble. Ma Chao, Zhang Fei, and Huang Zhong stood to the side, their faces grim, but they remained silent, quietly awaiting the casualty report.

Since the beginning of their campaigns, they had been invincible, conquering all foes. This led them to subconsciously believe that there were no formidable enemies on the Primeval Continent and that their glorious invincibility in battle would last for a very long time, perhaps forever. Even before embarking on this battle, they were brimming with confidence. But as the saying goes, a proud army is bound to be defeated. In their first battle upon entering the Middle Region, they had ended up defeated.

Although the failure of this battle was primarily due to Guan Yu’s strategic misstep, as high-ranking generals, they had failed to prevent it in time and thus bore an undeniable responsibility.

An hour later, the Deputy General approached with heavy steps and announced sorrowfully, "Generals, the number of casualties has been tallied!"

"Quickly, tell me, how many?" Guan Yu snapped his head up, his eyes bloodshot and terrifying to behold.

Though proud, he was also a good commander who cared for his soldiers as if they were his own sons. Zhang Fei, Ma Chao, and Huang Zhong also quickly looked towards the Deputy General.

The Deputy General hesitated for a moment, then bowed his head and reported, "Based on my recent count, the current number of soldiers in the four armies is only 12,000,000..."

The four armies had set out at full strength! Each army comprised 4,000,000 soldiers, totaling 16,000,000! Now, only 12,000,000 remained, meaning the number of soldiers killed in action was a staggering 4,000,000!

Such colossal losses left Guan Yu completely stunned.

Four million men! Four million vibrant lives! They were the heroes of the nation, with bright futures and happy lives ahead of them. Yet, because of my command error, they are forever buried in this foreign land, their bodies perhaps never to be found. Guilt! Self-reproach! Anguish...

"PFFT!"

A torrent of negative emotions overwhelmed Guan Yu. He trembled violently as his qi and blood reversed their flow. He tilted his head back and spat a mouthful of fresh blood, his face turning deathly pale, and his entire being became utterly listless.

"What’s the specific breakdown of casualties?" Ma Chao asked in a low voice.

"The Fan Qiu Army: 730,000 casualties!"

"The Long Plank Army: 1,090,000 casualties!"

"The Blood Fight Army: 960,000 casualties!"

"The Ding Yang Army: 1,220,000 casualties..."

The Deputy General reported with a salute, each figure delivered with a heavy, desolate tone that echoed in the vast, empty space around them. It made everyone feel as if the sky had suddenly darkened.

"Pass the order! Attack!"

Within the territory of the Myriad Demon Saint’s Court, Bai Qi stood before the ancestral land of a large alien race, a three-foot-long blood sword in hand, and commanded coldly. Wisps of murderous aura drifted into the sky with his words. A single command determined the life or death of an entire race!

"KILL!"

The soldiers of the Vermilion Bird Army, Azure Dragon Army, White Tiger Army, Black Tortoise Army, the Overlord’s Iron Cavalry, and the Bei Wei Army roared. The voices of tens of millions converged, an earth-shattering sound that resonated throughout the world. Even the living beings in the four surrounding territories could faintly hear the echoes of the battle cries.

Led by their respective generals, the six armies launched their assault. An overwhelming murderous aura formed a domain, dyeing the Void within a hundred-li radius blood-red.

"Warriors of our race, defend against the enemy!"

"Grind these despicable humans to dust, scatter their bones and ashes!"

A bloody glow illuminated the bodies of hundreds of millions of Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe members. The Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe, possessing the bloodlines of both the Rhinoceros and Bull Tribes, were massive in stature. Their heads bore three exceedingly sharp horns, their tips glinting menacingly.

One Jade Rhinoceros Bull tribesman stood atop a high mountain, roaring at the sky. Its powerful voice dispersed the blood-red clouds. This was the Clan Leader of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe, possessing cultivation at the Ten-thousand-year Emperor Realm. He was a hundred zhang tall, with golden horns upon his head that were covered in arcane patterns. They glowed with a yellow light, emanating an infinite sharpness that seemed capable of piercing through the very heavens.

"FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!"

Countless terrifying auras erupted, throwing the heavens into turmoil. The sun and moon lost their brilliance, and the surrounding Void shattered completely. The land for tens of li around was plunged into pitch darkness.

Then, within the pitch-black Void, hundreds of thousands of pairs of scarlet eyes appeared, radiating a berserk, destructive, and dreadful aura, as terrifying as the eyes of Death itself.

The earth quaked violently! Countless towering ancient trees were snapped in half at their trunks! It was clear that in the darkness, innumerable fearsome entities were launching a ferocious charge.

In the face of this, the Qin soldiers of the six great legions showed no fear!

BOOM! BOOM!

When the two sides clashed, the pitch-black Void was instantly dyed crimson with fresh blood. The gruesome sounds of tearing flesh and shattering bone filled the air, enough to make one’s hair stand on end.

Sword in hand, Bai Qi walked step by step towards the ancestral land of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on his calm face. By the time he arrived on the battlefield, the outcome had already been decided.

Across the battlefield, which spanned tens of li, corpses of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe members were piled up like mountains. Rivers of blood flowed, and the thick stench of gore permeated the space between heaven and earth.

"How terrifying!" The Clan Leader of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe gasped, sucking in a sharp breath. Even after gathering the elites of my race, were we still so vulnerable?

The strength of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe, though not comparable to the Twelve Saint Clans, still ranked among the top-tier alien races. After undergoing two great cosmic empowerments, their power was comparable to that of a Sacred Land. No wonder! No wonder the Wild Bull Demon City fell! No wonder the City of War Tiger Demons was breached!

"Relay my command! Activate the Ancestral Formation!"

"Relay my command! Open the spatial passage and escort the clan’s young prodigies away!"

The Clan Leader of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe quickly calmed himself and issued composed orders. In truth, he had already made preparations for retreat even before the Qin army had arrived at their borders.

RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

As his words fell, dazzling rays of brilliant light erupted from the ancient Stone Palace, coalescing into an immense Formation that enveloped a thousand-li area. Countless illusory beasts roared, exuding an aura of rock-solid protection.

"SLASH!"

Bai Qi gazed into the distance, his eyebrows twitched slightly as the killing intent in his eyes surged. The blood sword in his hand pulsed with a dazzling crimson light, and the profound intent of innumerable Laws of Slaughter swirled around him.

High above the Nine Heavens, a colossal, blood-red Sword Qi materialized.

KILL! KILL! KILL!

Countless cries of slaughter echoed through the cosmos, as if the entire world had transformed into a realm of carnage.

The Sword Qi descended!

In that instant, the sky, the earth, the vegetation, the very laws of existence, karma, and Reincarnation—everything turned crimson, saturated with a palpable killing intent!

RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

The ancestral land of the Jade Rhinoceros Tribe was instantly cleaved in two. The Formation shattered, mountains exploded, and ancient trees turned to ash...

A dense blood mist billowed towards the sky! Innumerable members of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe perished tragically under that sword strike!

Bai Qi levitated into the air. After a cold glance, he saw that a large number of Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe members had survived. He then issued a chilling command: "Relay my order: Exterminate the entire tribe!"

This command did not surprise the soldiers of the six armies. The great host moved upon receiving the order, storming into the ancestral land of the Jade Rhinoceros Bull Tribe. They transformed into merciless executioners, their blood-red war blades flashing through the air, slaughtering tens of thousands and stirring up a sky thick with blood mist.

Bai Qi watched the slaughter on the battlefield, his once clear, black-and-white eyes turning completely crimson.

"Those I dislike, I kill!"

"Those I detest, I kill!"

"When my mood sours, I kill!"

"With a single thought, I can slaughter hundreds of millions, exterminate entire races and bloodlines!"

"This is the Regulation of Slaughter!" Bai Qi slowly closed his eyes, murmuring to himself.

This massacre, which he had initiated, allowed him to comprehend the true essence of the Regulation of Slaughter amidst the endless carnage: to wield the absolute power of slaughter with his own hands. He had achieved enlightenment on the battlefield.

A terrifying aura erupted from him! Strands of the principles of the Regulation of Slaughter, like blood-red jade, swirled around his body, growing more dazzling, resembling flowing fresh blood. He was now one step closer to the Fundamental Principles.