Chapter 145 - 143: Imperial Guard
Under the shadow of the helmet, Song Changming’s gaze swept around.
In the courtyard, besides the immensely powerful Xiong Dang Mountain, there were numerous exceptionally strong imperial guards, a formidable group of adversaries.
Tonight’s assassination mission was predictably not going to be easy, and it was thanks to Li Yan using the Governor’s authority to bring them into the residence and divert much of the defensive forces.
This was what made the success of this assassination feasible.
On their side, Lu Zheng had invited a total of four Jianghu experts, including Song Changming, all martial artists of the eighth realm!
Additionally, there were a few martial arts experts under Gu Wenhui’s command, including one extreme realm master and two eighth realm martial artists.
In total, seven people served as the main force for the mission.
No matter the process tonight, as long as the young prince was successfully assassinated, all seven of them would receive the martial technique.
And the one who claimed the young prince’s head would receive the extra reward.
"Gentlemen, I’ll scout ahead!" One Jianghu expert saw the fight had already started and chose not to join forces against Xiong Dang Mountain. Instead, he headed straight for the inner room where the young prince was.
Claiming to scout the path, it was clear he intended to claim the head.
His light body skill was superb, moving fast like a ghost in the night, swiftly reaching the vicinity of the inner room.
Soon, numerous darts shot forth from the imperial guards surrounding him.
The Jianghu expert narrowly escaped being hit and had to retreat.
However, the imperial guards had already surrounded him like a massive net closing in on the slightly rash Jianghu expert.
These imperial guards, cultivated by the imperial family since childhood, were martial arts experts individually, and their teamwork was seamless.
Within moments, the surrounded Jianghu expert was in peril.
He barely managed to escape, returning already wounded and bloodied.
"Underestimated these guards..." he muttered, feeling embarrassed.
At this time, those imperial guards looked sternly as they advanced towards the group.
Xiong Dang Mountain was already engaged in combat with the lone extreme realm expert among them.
This was exactly why Gu Wenhui sent him here; he understood Xiong Dang Mountain’s strength.
Only by containing Xiong Dang Mountain’s power could the assassination have any chance of success.
Song Changming drew his Dragon Pattern Saber and glanced at a group of innocent women who had been captured, urging, "Quickly hide in a corner to avoid being caught in the crossfire."
Panicked and at a loss, the women finally reacted to Song Changming’s words and hurriedly found places to hide.
At this moment, the imperial guards dispersed, forming groups of four to five, attacking each person to prevent them from getting close to the young prince’s inner room.
They only needed to stall until the city’s army arrived, at which point Song Changming’s assassination mission would end in failure.
Therefore, for Song Changming and his group, every second counted, and there was no room for delay.
With the wind rushing in, five imperial guards assigned to Song Changming approached with their own light body skills, gliding low over the ground.
Song Changming, without a trace of fear, swung his saber and charged forward proactively.
As imperial guards, they were tasked with protecting the royal lineage.
Even though this group wasn’t as prestigious as those beside the Fifth Prince, their martial arts cultivation was at least in the sixth realm, with many reaching the seventh or even eighth realm!
In the Jianghu, these would all be renowned experts.
Yet in the imperial palace, they were just one of the numerous unknown imperial guard members.
Usually inconspicuous, but when it came to a fight, their strength was undeniable.
Song Changming moved as lightly as a swallow, leaping several meters in a step. Before the imperial guards could form a siege, he engaged one of them.
The long saber sliced out.
Flying Swallow Technique, Hundred Birds Flying into the Forest!
With one slash, a cacophony of bird cries arose.
The peak blade momentum crushed down in an instant, causing the face of the imperial guard to change drastically.
Faced with such a terrifying blade momentum, his own sword form was thrown off balance.
The two blades clashed, accompanied by a splash of blood like mist, and the two figures crossed paths.
The imperial guard didn’t even grunt before collapsing to the ground, lifeless.
His chest armor shattered, a clear saber cut penetrating his heart, killing him instantaneously.
He possessed the seventh realm body refinement strength, but against Song Changming’s sudden strike, he lost not only the duel but his life as well in a single exchange.
This was the first bloodshed of this night raid mission.
Song Changming’s powerful strength also sent chills down the spines of the other imperial guards.
"Be careful!"
The remaining four imperial guards took positions at four corners, continuing to attempt to encircle Song Changming for another multi-person siege.
This time, they were even more cautious, but ultimately, it was to no avail.
Song Changming’s Sword Skill was perfect and flawless, with not the slightest weakness to be found, and he handled the four opponents with ease even when outnumbered.
With a single slash, he knocked down yet another imperial guard, sensing the fierce blade winds from the other three directions. Using the top-level Wandering Body Step martial arts technique, he dodged and flashed, then turned and slashed back to drive away another imperial guard.
He sidestepped and executed a Mountain Crushing Kick, striking with such speed that his attack landed before the opponent could react, sending the third imperial guard flying over ten meters away, his body filled with massive power, causing him to vomit blood profusely.
Now, having inherited Liu Dingsheng’s fist and foot skills, he was able to seamlessly integrate them with his Sword Skill, unleashing even greater power.
Every motion was a technique, leaving his opponents defenseless.
Confronting the last imperial guard, as their dual blades tangled, he used an even more exquisite Sword Skill to forcefully disarm the opponent of his long saber.
The Dragon Pattern Saber swung to the side, sending the disarmed long saber spinning like a dart.
The guard who had been kicked away over ten meters struggled to stand, only to have this thrown saber pierce his chest, as though shot by a bullet, sending him crashing back to the ground.
Seeing the ground littered with dead and injured imperial guards, Song Changming didn’t linger, heading straight for the inner room where the Young Prince was.
Regarding the few comrades still trapped in the encirclement, he didn’t spare a glance.
Under Gu Wenhui’s recruitment, they were both collaborators and competitors.
If help was required, it would be after he eliminated the detestable Young Prince and completed the mission.
"Stop him!!" someone shouted in alarm.
But Song Changming was incredibly fast, using his Light Body Skill to reach the building’s exterior in just a few steps.
The remaining guards, who were still blocking the path, immediately hurled concealed darts at him.
Song Changming had anticipated this, combining his Sword Skill with his Light Body Skill, allowing these hidden weapons to cause him no harm.
Inside the room, several partially dressed women curled up on a large bed, trembling in fear.
Chu Huai was uncharacteristically ignoring the beauties on the bed, pacing the room anxiously, listening to the fierce chaos of battle outside, his heart growing ever more panicked.
"Why isn’t this settled... why hasn’t it ended..."
Chu Huai knew full well that the people outside were there to kill him.
This was a moment when his life hung in the balance!
"Damn Li Yan, daring to betray me and my father, I’ll make you pay!"
"Shut up! Anyone who keeps crying, I’ll kill them first!" he yelled angrily at the women on the bed, who he had previously favored, venting his nervous tension.
Suddenly, the door shattered with a resounding crash, cut down from the outside.
This commotion completely unraveled Chu Huai, only to see Song Changming, covered in blood, coming inside with a saber in hand.
At his feet lay a string of imperial guard corpses!
"You! You!" Chu Huai was so frightened he couldn’t utter a word.
Song Changming immediately locked onto him as the target of his mission, charging at him without hesitation.
The five-hundred-year-old Mountain Ginseng treasure was about to be his!
"How dare you!"
A voice roared with fiery anger as Xiong Dang Mountain, who had been holding back, now rushed straight towards him, unable to ignore the threat any longer.
Song Changming didn’t heed the rapidly approaching threat from behind, slashing down towards Chu Huai with his saber.
"Save me!" Chu Huai was scared out of his wits, instinctively rolling under the bed.
His quick and agile movements seemed like a sudden explosion of potential in a life-and-death situation.
At this point, he cared nothing for his image as royal; survival was the most important thing now.
Having missed his target with the slash, Song Changming had to turn around to deal with the charging Xiong Dang Mountain.
Xiong Dang Mountain slashed down from above, and Song Changming met his attack with his own saber.
The sound of sharp, piercing clash of refined iron echoed, Xiong Dang Mountain initially believed that his strength should be enough to cut Song Changming and his saber in half.
But both possessed astonishing brute strength!
The two sabers clashed, with powerful qi overflowing, sparks flying everywhere, yet Xiong Dang Mountain couldn’t force his slash through!
Their initial bout of raw power ended in a stalemate.
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