Chapter 264 - 224: War Between the Two Kingdoms, the Secret Realm Opens

Chapter 264: Chapter 224: War Between the Two Kingdoms, the Secret Realm Opens

Zou Hui drew his bow again, but Gu Jie swatted the second arrow out of the air with his sword. By now, he was within three hundred meters of the city wall. Zou Hui ordered his soldiers to draw their bows and fire, but they were too slow. Before they could loose a single arrow, Gu Jie had already reached the top of the wall.

As if stepping into an undefended land, the blade at the front of Gu Jie’s right-arm armor extended several meters. With a sweeping motion, it cut through metal like mud, effortlessly killing any soldier who dared to swing a blade at him.

’He’s like a player who’s activated a cheat code.’

Zou Hui clashed with Gu Jie, but Gu Jie easily shattered his blade.

’To think the weapon he’d treasured and protected was so fragile.’

None of the surrounding soldiers dared to make a move, no matter how frantically Zou Hui commanded them.

Zou Hui tossed aside his broken blade and looked at Gu Jie.

’This boy before me looks to be only fourteen or fifteen, yet he possesses such martial prowess. I have no idea which faction could have trained him.’

’But for someone so bold and reckless, it’s time he learned just how treacherous this world can be.’

BOOM!

Zou Hui’s Qi and Blood surged. The green bricks beneath his feet cracked as he lunged at Gu Jie with his claws.

Gu Jie retracted his weapon and met the attack with his own techniques.

In terms of strength, Zou Hui had barely reached the B-tier. However, with the enhancement of his armor, Gu Jie’s power was no less than that of an ordinary B-tier master. He often sparred with such experts, so his actual combat ability was a cut above the average B-tier fighter.

Even though it was with the help of an external item, achieving this was a sign of extraordinary talent.

Fists and feet collided. The bricks atop the city wall shattered and cracked, sending out fragments that flew like bullets. In the final exchange, Zou Hui channeled all his Qi and Blood, his claws glowing with red light as he struck at Gu Jie.

Gu Jie didn’t back down. The Wind Element gathered as his Alchemy Heart began to beat faster, the vibrations sounding like a drum. His skin turned purple from the rapid blood flow. He integrated all the power in his body, amplified it with his battle armor, and threw a punch of his own.

BOOM!

In an instant, a corner of the city wall crumbled. Zou Hui’s arm was completely shattered, and Gu Jie’s blow had obliterated more than half of his body. What was left of him was embedded in the masonry, showing no signs of life.

Gu Jie stood tall, stabilizing his Qi and Blood. Under the awestruck gazes of the soldiers, he strode to the city gate, removed the bar, and pushed it open.

Once his subordinates entered the city, Gu Jie notified the logistics team. In less than five minutes, a dense swarm of drones arrived, and all necessary supplies and administrative personnel were in place.

Gu Jie then set off once more for the next city.

...

「Meanwhile.」

Far away in the Liu Country, Hudson received the news that Gu Jie had conquered another city and couldn’t help but chuckle.

"Senior Brother is so fast... I can’t fall behind!"

The Liu Country had not suffered any disasters, so logically, Hudson’s sieges should have been much more difficult.

But in reality, it was the complete opposite.

Hudson wasn’t targeting cities directly. He was taking the village route. A small display of force and a glimpse of his logistical resources were enough to incite large numbers of the lower class to join his rebellion.

In a feudal society with low productivity, the exploitation of the common people was even more terrifying.

Hudson gathered a large number of people without having to worry about food. He would then lead the charge himself, and they could generally take a city very quickly. Afterward, he would rapidly screen for powerful combatants among the populace and absorb them into his core team. In a short time, he had amassed an army of over ten thousand.

As long as someone reached the level of a professional martial artist, their running ability was no worse than that of a pack animal.

With solid logistical support, it wasn’t a problem to engage in continuous high-intensity activity for five days and five nights without rest.

Later on, they spent most of their time just traveling. Once they reached a city, it rarely took more than an hour to capture it.

They didn’t even rest after a battle, simply eating to recover while on the move, maintaining a relentless pace.

Anyone who truly couldn’t keep up was simply left behind. They would just recruit more at the next city.

Hudson had also encountered two B-tier masters.

But he killed them instantly.

He possessed the dual bloodlines of the Wind God Fudoli and the Sun God Dela, and he had already mastered a powerful ultimate move that combined wind and fire.

Later, he consulted a martial arts expert from the Supreme Capital and had Shen Xi custom-design a skill to better utilize his bloodline’s power: the Wind-Fire Wheel Blade Slash.

He could condense the power of wind and fire from a distance. Rubbing his hands together rapidly, he would spin deep cyan and crimson-gold energy into a wheel blade. He could then hurl it from hundreds of meters away, slicing both his opponent’s weapon and body in half.

In terms of sheer killing efficiency, he was on a level even higher than Gu Jie.

.......

.......

Zhang Ji wasn’t paying much attention to his two disciples’ wars.

By this point, he had officially been a member of the Qingcang Sect for eighteen days.

He had also held the top spot on the "Newcomer Leaderboard" for those entire eighteen days.

Today was the day the rankings were finalized. The top three thousand disciples would all receive rewards, with additional prizes for the top one hundred, the top ten, and of course, first place.

As the first-place winner, Zhang Ji received a large number of contribution points, the choice of one Profound Tier Magical Artifact, a spot to train in a Secret Realm, and, most precious of all, a bottle of Divine Acupoint Pills.

It was an Earth-grade pill that could open one’s divine acupoints with no side effects—a high-end item that couldn’t be bought with money.

Of course, this meant little to Zhang Ji.

He didn’t even care about the contribution points or the Magical Artifact.

All he wanted was the spot to enter the Secret Realm for training.

After the rewards were distributed, Zhang Ji chose the "Nine Wonders Celestial Realm" as his Secret Realm. Feng Chen gave him some details the day before, and on the following day, Zhang Ji prepared to enter.

The Nine Wonders Celestial Realm training grounds were not on Divine Peak, but on another main peak: Huaxiang Peak.

Zhang Ji was not the only new disciple heading to this training ground; there were hundreds of them.

Before the entrance to the Secret Realm stood a tightly shut bronze gate, a thousand feet high. Someone was distributing training Tokens to them.

Only those with a Token would be allowed entry. The Token also served as a lifeline; if they encountered mortal danger, they could activate it to be teleported directly out of the Secret Realm.

Even so, a number of disciples still died during the Secret Realm training every year.

The Qingcang Sect, however, didn’t care. It was considered normal attrition. If you died, it simply meant your fate had run its course and you lacked the fortune to ascend the Great Dao. That was all.

Zhang Ji stood in the crowd. People kept sizing him up, having apparently recognized him. One person tried to approach and chat, but Zhang Ji ignored him completely. After being rebuffed, the man’s experience discouraged anyone else who had been thinking of approaching.

Just then, a streak of light descended, transforming into a handsome young man in green robes.

This was the Peak Master of Huaxiang Peak, Master Huaxiang, an S-class-plus expert at the Profound Heart Realm.

Upon his arrival, his gaze swept over the crowd, pausing imperceptibly on Zhang Ji for a moment before moving on. He then handed a Token to the elder in charge of the Secret Realm and said, "Open the Secret Realm!"

Zhang Ji wasn’t worried about his true power being seen. He was wearing a disguise and had stored all his excess martial crystals in his Boundary. Right now, he appeared to be an ordinary cultivator at the peak of the Molting Realm. ’The only reason Master Huaxiang paused,’ he thought, ’must be out of curiosity, since I’m this month’s number one on the Newcomer Leaderboard.’

The elder placed the Token into a recess on the gate. The thousand-foot-high bronze gate then swung open, revealing a blue membrane that rippled like water.

The Secret Realm elder looked at the crowd and announced, "The Secret Realm will only be open for seven days, after which you will be teleported out. Fighting among fellow disciples is forbidden within. Anyone caught will be severely punished. If you encounter a life-threatening crisis, you can activate your Token with your Qi and Blood to be teleported out. But remember, do not lose your Secret Realm Token. If you lose it, you will never be able to leave."