Conqueror Of The Four World

"Stop, everyone!" shouted a massive man wearing a tiger fur coat, a huge axe strapped to his back.

"Boss!" cried a bandit. "This guy killed all my brothers who went to hunt a tiger!"

He ran toward his boss, but before he could reach him, a strange light erupted. In the blink of an eye, his head fell to the ground.

"What just happened? I didn't even see anything! Who cut him?!" Several bandits roared in shock.

"An energy attack... and a fast one at that," said the bandit leader. His eyes narrowed as he studied Xian Yu. "Do you know what happens to those who kill my men? I feed them to my beasts."

A tall lion walked out of a nearby room and sat beside the bandit leader, its piercing eyes fixed on Xian Yu.

Xian Yu remained indifferent. He knew he had only two options—die or kill everyone and survive. Scanning his surroundings carefully, he noted about a hundred bandits, most at the beginner martial artist level, with a few martial warriors, and the bandit leader himself at peak martial warrior realm.

"This won't be easy," Xian Yu thought as he unsheathed his sword.

The bandit leader smirked. "What a powerful aura... and a marvelous sword," he said. Then, turning to his men, he declared, "Whoever brings me that sword, I'll reward them with five women!"

"Five?! That's generous, boss!" a bandit exclaimed.

"Haha! Kid, you're as good as dead!" another sneered. "I'm already excited just thinking about it!"

"Savages," Xian Yu thought in disgust. Without hesitation, he slashed toward a group of five bandits.

"Ember Slash!"

A crimson arc of energy flashed. The five bandits were cut clean in half, their bodies dropping lifelessly.

"What was that?!" one of the bandits screamed.

"He's a peak martial warrior!" another shouted in alarm.

"So what?! We'll overwhelm him with numbers! We still have our boss! He's nothing but a dead man delaying his trip to Yama!" a third yelled.

"Attack him from all directions!" the bandits roared in unison.

They swarmed Xian Yu.

"You're the ones about to meet Yama!" Xian Yu shouted, Xian Yu moved like a shadow, weaving through the horde. His blade flashed, leaving trails of fire in its wake. Though individually weak, the sheer number of attackers forced him into a defensive stance. Every time he struck one down, two more rushed in to take their place. He dodged a spear thrust, parried a sword swing, and countered with a quick slash—his energy draining faster than he expected.

Six martial warriors joined, launching coordinated attacks. Xian Yu felt the pressure mounting. He barely deflected a strike aimed at his head, his feet skidding backward from the impact.

"Damn, even weaklings can be troublesome when they come in waves," he thought, breathing heavily.

"You're struggling already?" one of the martial warriors mocked. "You're finished!"

Xian Yu's lips curled into a smirk. "So weak," he said with disgust.

Enraged, the six warriors lunged at him again. This time, Xian Yu didn't hold back. With a swift motion, he executed Ember Slash, cutting them all down in a single strike. Their bodies crumbled to the ground, lifeless.

Silence fell over the battlefield for a brief moment.

The bandit leader, who had been watching the fight, let out a deep chuckle. "Seems like I can't underestimate you after all." He pulled his massive axe from his back and took a powerful leap, landing in front of Xian Yu with a thunderous impact.

Xian Yu exhaled sharply, bracing himself. "This is the real battle," he thought, gripping his sword tighter.

He took a step back, attempting to execute Blazing Fang—the second form of Bloodstroke Blade, a devastating thrust meant to pierce through the enemy like flames consuming dry wood. But as he drove his sword forward, he felt resistance—his technique wasn't executed properly.

"This is harder than I thought..."

"Struggling already, little boy?" the bandit leader mocked. "Leave the sword behind, and I'll forget everything that happened so far. I'll even give you the five women I promised those dead fools."

Xian Yu's eyes turned cold. "They were your men, and you have no remorse for them?"

The bandit leader laughed. "Hahaha! These weak ants can be replaced anytime. Why would I care about them?"

Xian Yu clenched his grip on his sword. "I despise people like you the most—those who send their own men to their deaths without a second thought." His voice grew darker. "I don't regret killing them, but I pity them. Even in death, their leader shows them no respect."

A chilling silence filled the air.

Xian Yu took a step back, shifting into position. "I'll send you to meet them. Then, you can apologize to them yourself."

With a burst of speed, he lunged forward, his sword thrusting straight for the bandit leader's heart.

CLANG!

The attack didn't pierce through.

"It failed again. This is way harder than I thought," Xian Yu realized.

"You think that's enough to kill me?!" the bandit leader roared. Enraged, he swung his massive axe with terrifying force.

Xian Yu barely managed to dodge, but the sheer impact of the strike split the fortress wall in half.

A bead of sweat trickled down Xian Yu's forehead.

"Taking that head-on would've been dangerous."

"Stop dodging like a rat! Face me head-on!" the bandit leader roared.

"You said it!" Xian Yu shouted back.

"Ember Slash!"

A powerful sword intent erupted toward the bandit leader.

"This is nothing to me!" the bandit leader sneered, raising his massive axe to block it.

But he had underestimated Xian Yu.

The moment the attack connected, the force nearly severed his left hand—leaving him with only three fingers remaining.

"How dare you?!" the bandit leader roared in agony. "Hongmen, attack this rat!"

The ferocious lion, which had been watching the fight, suddenly leaped toward Xian Yu with a deafening roar.

"Here comes a wild cat," Xian Yu muttered, slashing at the beast.

But the lion's thick skin was tougher than expected. It clawed at Xian Yu's chest, leaving deep wounds.

Blood dripped onto the ground.

"I was careless... this lion isn't just some wild cat."

Xian Yu steadied himself.

"Ember Slash!"

The lion dodged, swiftly grabbing its master and retreating a few steps back.

The bandit leader laughed. "Hahaha! Look at you! You're as good as dead!"

"You're not one to talk," Xian Yu shot back, eyes burning with determination.

"I'll kill you!" the bandit leader roared, mounting the lion. With a mighty leap, they lunged toward Xian Yu.

Xian Yu closed his eyes, channeling all his remaining energy into the tip of his sword.

"Blazing Fang!"

A massive burst of fire erupted from his blade.

The attack pierced straight through both the lion and the bandit leader, burning them to ashes.

Xian Yu exhaled, his vision fading.

"Success. What a powerful attack," he thought before collapsing into unconsciousness.