Chapter Five: In Dire Peril

Seeing the smile on the captain's face, Li Ao knew something was wrong, even though he didn't know what. Turning to the two remaining soldiers, his eyes glowed with a blood-red hue. A single-petaled, blood-red rose bloomed at the center of his forehead, and blood-colored patterns spread across his body.

As the patterns spread, a scorching sensation attacked every nerve. His heartbeat thundered, and his blood surged, bringing him back to his peak condition.

The Nine Li Clan's secret technique—First Stage Blood Surge!

Blood Surge had seven stages in total. The first three stages primarily enhanced vitality and quickly restored source power. Beyond the fourth stage, only those above the Diamond level could use it, allowing a brief burst of power far beyond their own, with increasingly severe consequences as the power surged.

The number of petals on the blood-red rose at his forehead corresponded to the stage of Blood Surge, a burst technique fueled by burning life essence and blood. After Blood Surge, one would enter a period of weakness proportional to the extent of the surge, with excessive use causing irreversible damage to the source.

Feeling his source power replenished, Li Ao spun gracefully, employing a simple yet practical Knight's basic skill—Cross Slash.

A cross-shaped sword light formed at the tip of Xue Ji, crashing into Soldier B, who had no time to retreat. The serpent-shaped dagger swiftly followed, stabbing into Soldier B's heart. Blood splattered everywhere, happening so fast that Soldier B couldn't even register a look of fear before collapsing, coughing blood, eyes lifeless.

Li Ao, with blood-red eyes, turned to the last remaining soldier. His face and chest were smeared with blood, the dagger in his hand dripping. Those blood-red eyes stared coldly at everything, like a reaper of souls.

Soldier A, despite his experience, felt fear creeping in as he watched this boy, who had just killed his two comrades, remain so indifferent. Especially those cold, inhuman, scarlet eyes. He was terrified.

The fear once sparked, grew uncontrollably, like a flood breaking through a dam. He trembled, backing away, trying to distance himself from Li Ao.

Li Ao did not move. He stood his ground, raising Xue Ji high above his head. Source power flowed within him, making Xue Ji glimmer. Moments later, Xue Ji's phantom appeared above Soldier A's head, crashing down and piercing his entire body from top to bottom.

The Knight's basic skill—Judgment.

After finishing this, the blood-red color in Li Ao's eyes faded, and the rose petal at his forehead wilted. The shattering of the Dragon Battle in the Wild phantom had already drained his source power. His subsequent actions were solely sustained by the Blood Surge, leading to waves of aching pain from his source center—a side effect of overextending his source power. The accompanying weakness from depleted life essence further debilitated him.

Li Ao wanted to move forward, but his limbs felt like they were filled with lead. His brain's commands were met with resistance. His body refused to obey, each step becoming a battle of will against flesh. Gritting his teeth, he propped himself up with his sword, dragging his right foot after each step of his left, inching towards the alley's exit.

Not far from the alley, Kuchaz, having received the distress signal, was rushing towards the alley with his four personal guards. His target was the ancestral temple, the same place from where Li Ao had come. They had just missed each other, and the distance between them was not far.

Seeing the corpses of the Black Armored soldiers along the way, Kuchaz's eyes grew colder. The soldiers equipped with distress signals were elites of the vanguard. Whoever killed his best men would have to pay.

As Li Ao neared the alley's exit, a strong sense of crisis arose within him.

"No, if this continues, I'll die," a warning echoed in his mind.

Trusting this innate ability had helped him avoid sandstorms, quicksand traps, and ambushes in the past. Now, he chose to believe in this sense once more. Struggling, he wiped away the blood obscuring his vision and looked around.

At this moment, Li Ao had reached the edge of the alley, flanked by the corpses of his tribesmen and the Judgement Army. He glanced at the alley's exit, then at the pile of bodies beside him, making his choice. He stored the conspicuous Xue Ji sword in his storage ring and, dragging his weakened body, collapsed by the roadside, maneuvering himself into the pile of corpses.

Not long after Li Ao hid among the bodies, five black-armored Judgement Army soldiers turned into the alley. Li Ao squinted and took a quick glance, then immediately averted his gaze. The middle-aged man leading the group exuded an imposing aura, his ornate sword distinct from the other soldiers.

Kuchaz, commander of the Third Legion's Vanguard Camp of the Judgement Army, had arrived. Feeling the faint yet palpable pressure from this Golden-ranked warrior, Li Ao carefully controlled his breathing, silently thanking his luck. If he hadn't hidden earlier, he might already be dead without a trace.

Kuchaz and his four guards walked deeper into the alley, soon discovering the three recently killed soldiers. Recognizing these high-ranking Silver soldiers, Kuchaz's eyes flared with anger. Losing three high-level Silver soldiers was a significant blow to the vanguard camp.

The four guards inspected the bodies in silence. After exchanging glances, they looked to Kuchaz for orders. Kuchaz met their eyes, shifted his gaze from the corpses, and surveyed the alley's surroundings. Closing his eyes, he began to simulate the battle in his mind.

How would he handle a three-on-one attack if he weren't at the Golden rank? The answer came quickly: he would trade injury for injury. Opening his eyes sharply, his eagle-like gaze swept over the corpses in the alley, and he appeared deep in thought.

Drawing his ornate sword, he unhesitatingly stabbed it into a nearby corpse. As he continued to stab bodies, he explained to his guards, "The Nine Li warriors have gone to the front lines. This person must be at the Silver peak or high Silver rank. To kill three high-ranking Silver soldiers, he would have used a strategy of trading injury for injury. He can't have gone far."

Hearing the commander's words, the four guards realized he was right. From the moment they received the distress signal, they had rushed here at full speed. If the person was severely injured, they couldn't have gone far.

As Kuchaz spoke, his sword had already pierced several corpses in succession—elders, women, children, even infants. He even stabbed the bodies of fallen Judgement Army soldiers without hesitation. The guards, understanding his intentions, began to follow suit, splitting into two teams and methodically stabbing every corpse in the alley to ensure none were overlooked.

"We can't let any remnants of the Nine Li tribe escape." After battling the tribe's old and young, this was the vanguard camp's shared sentiment. They feared that one day, the surviving remnants of the Nine Li tribe would slit their throats or stab their hearts in their sleep.

Thud, squelch. Thud, squelch. The sound of swords piercing flesh and being pulled out grew closer. Li Ao's eyelids twitched uncontrollably. A guard, sword in hand, approached the pile where Li Ao was hiding, the footsteps drawing nearer. The sword occasionally clinked against the ground, making a metallic clanging sound.