Chapter 36: Street Showdown
[Use 100 Experience Points]
[Jinghong Saber Technique has leveled up to Entry Realm]
In a daze, Gu Zhan seemed to be in a world of his own—a world belonging to the Jinghong Saber Technique. There, he explored, he cultivated,
and in just a split second,
he had become a saberman who had spent years immersed in the cultivation of Jinghong Saber Technique.
At this moment,
inside White Rat Pavilion, the fierce battle raged on, the stench of blood overwhelmingly pungent.
Gu Zhan gripped his Horizontal Saber, raised and swung,
everywhere he passed, a corpse fell,
and soon, Gu Zhan hacked his way to the entrance.
On the long street, snowflakes swirled, thick layers of snow covered treetops and rooftops, the sky was gloomy, making everything feel stifling and oppressive.
And in the middle of the long street,
hundreds of figures blocked the way, hundreds of glittering steel sabers gleaming, all the more fitting in this snowy season, the already cold blades seemed even colder.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards had nearly wiped out the White Rat Gang members in the Pavilion and were now converging behind Gu Zhan.
But compared to the five or six hundred White Rat Gangsters, the Guards’ numbers looked pitifully small.
Even so, there was little fear among them,
because everyone’s eyes were fixed on that youth at the very forefront—that slightly thin, solitary back, standing tall and proud in the snowstorm, untouchable.
He shook the blood off his saber with a flick, stepped forward,
one man’s aura suppressed hundreds; even those hundreds of Martial World thugs instinctively backed away, startled.
"Do you all want your entire clans exterminated?"
Gu Zhan’s face was frosted over, his voice grim: "Suspect Wang Bai, accused of trafficking Five Stone Powder, harboring criminals, resisting arrest in public, assaulting Embroidered Uniform Guards—should be executed! Any who side with him, equally guilty!"
The wind and snow howled,
Gu Zhan’s words pierced through the long street.
Hidden within the crowd, Wang Bai spoke in a low voice: "Lord Gu, at this point, either you walk away, or..."
"Ching!"
Suddenly, in an instant,
Gu Zhan kicked a steel saber off the ground and sent it flying straight toward Wang Bai.
"Boom!"
The steel saber stabbed through the chest of a Martial World thug in front of Wang Bai, the force sending the body flying backward and knocking over several others.
"Kill!"
Gu Zhan roared, leading the charge, his Horizontal Saber ringing out, shattering the snow-soaked silence of the long street. Like a flood dragon unleashed, the blade’s movement looked slow on the surface but was actually lightning fast, hacking toward the man in front.
The saber came down,
landing straight on the man’s head,
with a harsh clang, the Horizontal Saber split the skull, crushing the bone, slicing a straight line down through his neck.
"Bang!"
Amid a booming crash, the body was cut in two,
blood spraying like rain, a crimson bloom bursting in the air,
Gu Zhan, like a Demon God, charged into the mass of Martial World thugs through the surging bloodshed.
The hundreds of yelling, bloodthirsty thugs were instantly stunned silent; their eyes widened in shock at their companion’s explosive death, then quickly, terror gripped them, sabers in hand turning icy cold.
"What are you afraid of?" Wang Bai immediately roared, "There’s hundreds of us—just wear him out, kill him! Charge!"
That’s Martial World, that’s the times,
never short of hot-blooded fools, risk-seekers craving famous kills, or cowards turned bold by strength in numbers.
Hearing Wang Bai’s shout, the hundreds of gang members raised their steel sabers and charged, shouting!
The White Rat Gang was the second-rate gang in Linjiang City—their overall strength not weak. Though they lacked many elite fighters, they still had more than a handful of Fourth and Fifth Grade Martial Artists. Most importantly, they had numbers—hundreds, even if most were unofficial members; together their aura was a raging tide.
"Kill!" "Kill!"
The South City Embroidered Uniform Guards rushed out to meet them.
Over a hundred strong—even if not elite, as Embroidered Uniform Guards they were far superior to any Martial World gang, with plenty of Fourth and Fifth Grade Martial Artists among them.
The great battle was on a hair trigger, and the sounds of slaughter rang out.
In the chaos, Wang Bai’s face darkened. Even now, he couldn’t believe Gu Zhan really dared to fight to the death.
Is it worth it? Is it really worth it?
Wang Bai now wanted to cut Gu Zhan’s head open and see what was inside,
Are you fucking crazy?
It’s just infighting among the Embroidered Uniform Guards, just a struggle for power,
Is it worth betting your life?
Even if you win in the end, what will you get out of it?
"Damn crazy bastard!"
Wang Bai cursed through gritted teeth, but now there was no turning back—no matter what, he had to leave Linjiang City. Even with Gao Jun backing him, he’d have to lie low for years.
This bloody battle would cost the Embroidered Uniform Guards dearly,
and there was no way to keep things quiet after this,
especially since everyone knew Gu Zhan was backed by Nine Hundred Households Gu Chuan, a man as tough as nails.
"Kill Gu Zhan as quickly as possible!"
Wang Bai made the decision—there was no peaceful resolution now. The best he could do was minimize the impact. As long as he could kill Gu Zhan quickly, the other Embroidered Uniform Guards would lose their backbone, and the battle would die down, keeping the fallout to a minimum.
At Wang Bai’s command,
the White Rat Gang’s top fighters beside him charged at Gu Zhan.
Wang Bai didn’t hesitate, snatching up a steel saber from the ground as he ran toward Gu Zhan. He had to kill him, and quickly.
He’d fought Gu Zhan before,
and he knew his strength to some extent. Out here on the open street, his lightweight body technique wouldn’t be hampered. He was confident he could hold his own, especially with old comrades at his side—victory was nearly certain!
In the chaos,
Gu Zhan, blood-soaked, charged in foremost, his saber rising and falling, cutting down many foes.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards charging behind him were already used to it,
some had fought alongside Gu Zhan at the Battle of Changning Fang, some had worked with him on missions—most knew his style; in a fight, he never hid at the back.
And precisely because of that,
under his lead, the Embroidered Uniform Guards’ morale soared unbroken.
Gu Zhan rampaged madly, the system’s prompt sounds ringing endlessly in his mind.
But just as Gu Zhan lost himself in the slaughter,
he suddenly heard Chen Fei’s shout: "My lord, fall back now!"
Gu Zhan’s mind jolted—
only then did he notice that, at some point, the Guards who’d been behind him were separated by the White Rat Gang. To be exact, it was a deliberate move to isolate and cut him off, leaving him alone and unsupported.
"Lord Gu, you’re only realizing now? Too late, I’m afraid!"
A squad of White Rat Gang brutes came hurling forward,
Wang Bai hidden among them.