Starting from the imperial palace guards, his clones spread all over the world.

Chapter 651 Completely Out of Control
"Good boy!"

Hong Wei's pupils suddenly contracted as he stared intently at the proud figure standing before the Meridian Gate. He squeezed out these three words through clenched teeth, his voice low and rumbling like muffled thunder.

"They actually hid their strength so well!"

His brows were furrowed tightly, and his heart was already churning with turmoil.

That earth-shattering shot just now—its power, its speed, and its exquisite control over internal energy—are beyond the reach of ordinary martial artists!
That was clearly the external manifestation of internal energy, condensed into a substantial state of profound skill!
Fourth grade?

Do not!
It might even be... a third-rank official!
This judgment, like an ice pick, pierced Hongwei's heart.

If that's the case, tonight's events are probably a hundred times more troublesome than he imagined!
"This kid has been lurking in my Imperial Guard for years, unknown and unknown. What is he after?"

"Could it be... all for tonight, in this very place, to help this mad king turn the tables?!"

Hong Wei's sinister gaze passed over Liang Jin and shot once more toward the huge iron cage in the deep doorway.

With disheveled hair, Zhao Yu gripped the cold iron bars tightly with both hands, his obese body trembling violently from extreme fear.

But in those eyes, apart from fear, there was no trace of the foolishness and turbidity that had been there before.

Instead, illuminated by the firelight, it revealed a chilling despair and will to survive belonging to the sober!

An absurd yet terrifying thought, like a venomous snake, slithered into Hongwei's mind:
"Could it be... that this 'Pig King' isn't crazy after all?! He's been faking it all along?!"

Once this thought arose, it grew wildly and instantly seized Hong Wei's entire mind!

"Great...very good!"

Hong Wei's face turned extremely ugly.

A furious outburst of being fooled and manipulated, and a profound unease at the complete loss of control over the situation, overwhelmed him like a cold tide.

"One conceals his sharpness, the other feigns madness!"

"You two are treating everyone like monkeys! You've manipulated the entire capital city like puppets!"

He originally thought that the game was already decided and that Zhao You, the Prince of Shanyang, ascending the throne was just a formality.

Unexpectedly, a mysterious force suddenly appeared and assassinated Zhao You with swift and decisive action, instantly overturning the chessboard!

What was even more unexpected was that the "Pig King" who had long been considered a pawn and his insignificant guards were actually venomous snakes who had been lurking for a long time, and at this moment they revealed their venomous fangs!
out of control!

Completely out of control!
This was the feeling he hated most in his life!
We must nip this in the bud immediately! Right now!

Use the most direct and violent methods to forcibly reverse the derailed situation!
Only blood can wash away this humiliation and end this accident!

A murderous glint flashed in Hong Wei's eyes. Without any further hesitation, he suddenly raised his arm and, with all his might, let out a thunderous roar:

"Shoot the arrow!!!"

"Shoot them! Turn them into sieves!!!"

Orders are absolute!

The archers, who had been waiting in ambush, simultaneously released their bowstrings!
"Buzz—Whoosh!!!"

In an instant, the trembling sounds of countless arrows leaving the bowstring converged into a deathly buzzing!

The black arrows, like a raging locust swarm, blotted out the sky and drew countless deadly parabolas in the air, whistling as they rained down on the lone figure at the doorway and the iron cage behind him!

"Shhhhhh!"

The whistling sound of arrows tearing through the air was enough to make anyone who heard it shudder and feel their liver and gallbladder tremble!

Zhao Yu, trapped in the iron cage, was terrified. His teeth chattered wildly, making a "clucking" sound, and he closed his eyes in despair.

In his perception, the world was completely filled with this deadly downpour, leaving him nowhere to escape!
however.

Faced with this terrifying rain of arrows, enough to turn any expert into a hedgehog, Liang Jin simply stood quietly, without even the slightest fluctuation in his eyes.

Just as the dense barrage of arrows was about to engulf him and the iron cage—

He slowly raised his right hand.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment!
The countless arrows that came whistling in, containing powerful kinetic energy, were all strangely suspended in mid-air, as if they had hit an invisible but indestructible wall of copper and iron, three feet away from Liang Jin!

The arrow fletching continued to tremble at a high frequency, emitting a mournful "buzzing" sound, but the sharp arrowhead could no longer advance even an inch!

This incredible scene defied all reason and shocked everyone present!
The next moment, Liang Jin gently waved his raised right hand.

"Om-!"

The countless arrows suspended in the air seemed to be controlled by an invisible giant hand, all changing direction in unison, their cold arrowheads instantly aimed at the direction from which they came—the dark, imposing Imperial Guard formation!

"Boooooooooh!!!"

The sound of air being torn apart was even more rapid and violent than when they arrived!
This time, however, the storm of death swept towards its creator!
"Oh no! Hide!"

"Raise your shields! Raise your shields!"

"Ugh—!"

……

Chaos erupted instantly within the army formation!
The archers were terrified and tried to find cover; the shield bearers hastily raised their shields, but they couldn't protect everyone.

Arrows rained down, the dull thud of arrows piercing flesh, the clanging of shields, terrified screams, and agonizing howls instantly replacing the previous chilling atmosphere!

At the front lines, men and horses fell, blood splattered, and a mass of soldiers collapsed in an instant!
"Rank 3! Definitely Rank 3!!!"

Hong Wei stared intently at this unbelievable scene, his eye muscles twitching wildly, and he roared inwardly!
To be able to control such a large number of arrows to launch a counterattack with such ease is something that no fourth-rank official could do!
This is a sign that one has reached an extremely high level of mastery over internal energy!

But a huge amount of doubt also overwhelmed him:
"But he... is so young! His resume is as clean and simple as a blank sheet of paper!"

"How...how could he have secretly cultivated to such a level?!"

He knew about Liang Jin's background: he had taken his deceased father's place in the military and become a soldier, standing guard for ten years, as mediocre as a pebble on the roadside.

If Zhao Yu hadn't been imprisoned at his post later, he would never have noticed the pebble.

But this very pebble suddenly transformed tonight into a meteorite powerful enough to shatter his entire plan!

Just as Hong Wei was in shock, his officers managed to regain their composure.

A lieutenant stepped forward, his voice trembling as he asked for instructions:

"My lord...should we...continue to wear them down with a rain of arrows?"

"He must guard the iron cage, and dare not move, as long as..."

This is undoubtedly the safest tactic.

In order to protect Zhao Yu, Liang Jin had no choice but to stay at the doorway and become a sitting duck.

If everyone organizes their formation well, adds more shields for protection, and continuously uses arrows from a distance to deplete Liang Jin's internal energy.

Then it would probably only take one or two hours to exhaust Liang Jin's internal energy!

Hong Wei won't even need to lift a finger; his men will be able to take care of Liang Jin.

But Hong Wei abruptly waved his hand, rudely interrupting him.

He has no time!

This Liang Jin is incredibly audacious; he dared to confront all the Imperial Guards in the palace, he's absolutely insane.

The commotion here is huge!

Every moment of delay could lead to more unforeseen changes!

Before long, it will inevitably attract a lot of attention and influence.

If by then we still can't kill Zhao Yu and completely thwart some people's plans...

Then all the hard work and planning that Hong Wei and his many colleagues put into would inevitably be in vain.

It could even destabilize the situation.

This is something Hongwei cannot tolerate!
It must be resolved quickly!

We must use the most forceful and brutal methods to completely eradicate these two scourges from this world!

He personally intervened, ending it all with overwhelming force!
"Qiang——!"

Hong Wei suddenly drew the long, forged sword that had accompanied him in battle for many years from his waist. The blade reflected a cold, icy light under the torchlight.

He took a deep breath, his voice booming like thunder, shaking the entire audience:

"Form ranks!!"

"Imperial Palace Spear Formation!!!"

Upon receiving the order, the well-trained Imperial Guards immediately suppressed their panic and swiftly changed formation!
The soldiers ran, stood still, and linked their breaths together. In the blink of an eye, a huge, sharp triangular attack formation had taken shape!

Countless spears pointed forward like a forest, and all the killing intent, fighting spirit, and internal energy unleashed by the martial artists began to converge madly towards the core of the formation—the location of Hong Wei!

A vast and boundless power surged through the army formation, and the air was compressed by this terrifying force, emitting an unbearable buzzing sound!

A sharp and incomparable aura, powerful enough to pierce through metal and stone, soared into the sky and firmly locked onto Liang Jin at the entrance of the Meridian Gate!
Liang Jin had never witnessed the true power of the Imperial Guard's formation before because he was just an ordinary soldier at the time, and had neither the qualifications nor the strength to participate in the actual formation practice.

At that time, Liang Jin participated in most of the drills, which were ordinary military formations, and he knew very little about the formations of martial artists.

After Liang Jinsheng took over as the flag commander, he learned a lot about the martial arts formations of the Imperial Guards.

The "Imperial Palace Spear Formation" before us is the Imperial Guard's trump card combined attack formation, which gathers the strength of the masses to attack a single point, making it extremely powerful!

At this moment, standing in the shadow of this terrifying military formation, Liang Jin clearly felt as if his skin was being pricked by countless invisible needles, and a dangerous tremor came from the depths of his soul!

"Formation!!!"

Hong Wei roared again, channeling all the overwhelming power he had gathered into the blade!
The longsword in his hand emitted a violent hum, and its blade even emitted a dazzling white light! His aura rose steadily, reaching an unprecedented peak!
He didn't waste any words, nor did he give Liang Jin any chance to breathe!
His move was earth-shattering!
"Charge out!!!"

Accompanied by this heart-wrenching roar.

Hong Wei's arms bulged with muscles like dragons, and with the combined strength of the entire army, he slashed down fiercely at Liang Jin, who was a hundred paces away!

"boom--!!!!"

This slash was no longer just a simple blade of energy!
It was a terrifying blade aura, condensed to the point of being tangible, immense in size, and seemingly capable of splitting the heavens and the earth!
The blade energy detached from the blade and grew longer in the wind, instantly transforming into a colossal weapon tens of feet long and radiating boundless light!

Wherever it passed, the air was torn apart, distorted, and evaporated, emitting a shrill whistle like the howling of ghosts and gods!

Even before the blade's aura arrived, its destructive pressure had already descended!

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

On the ground, the hard bluestone slabs shattered and crumbled like fragile biscuits along the straight line from which the blade's energy traveled!
A terrifying ravine started from Hong Wei's feet and spread forward at lightning speed, heading straight for Liang Jin!

The next moment, the massive, devastating light blade crashed down!
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The earth trembled violently, as if a dragon were turning over!
The entire Meridian Gate tower shook violently, and countless dust and brick fragments fell down!
The city wall above the gate was struck by the edge of the blade, and the bricks and stones instantly shattered, leaving a shockingly huge gap!

The most powerful force of the blade energy was unleashed entirely in the small area where Liang Jin was located!

After the loud bang, smoke and dust shot into the sky, as if explosives had been detonated, instantly engulfing the entire doorway!
Within the military formation, countless martial artists who had contributed their inner strength collapsed from exhaustion, while many more were thrown about by the explosive shockwave.

But at this moment, everyone struggled to raise their heads, countless eyes fixed on the place where the smoke and dust were billowing—

Hong Wei was also slightly out of breath, standing proudly with his knife in hand, his cold gaze piercing through the smoke and dust.

He needed to know whether that wretched brat had been reduced to dust by his powerful strike, which combined the strength of the entire army!
The smoke and dust slowly dissipated.

The first thing to be revealed is that bottomless, menacing ravine, which extends all the way to the depths of the doorway.

Then, a figure slowly appeared.

He remained kneeling, arms crossed in front of him.

The ground beneath his feet had shattered into a large pit, sinking three feet deep.

The armor on his arms had long since turned to ashes, and the exposed skin on his arms presented a strange and powerful appearance.

It was covered with dark gold patterns resembling dragon scales, the patterns were deep and the edges gleamed with a dark luster.

It exudes both an ancient and sacred aura, and a chillingly eerie feeling!
On those arms covered in scales, a clear white slash mark was clearly visible!

That's the mark left by that devastating strike!
This strike shattered his "Iron Cauldron Golden Body Skill" and broke through Liang Jin's protective true energy.

If Liang Jin were an ordinary third-rank martial artist, he would probably have been cleaved in two by this strike by now!

However, in the end, this blow was still blocked by his dragon arms, which seemed to be made of flesh and blood but were actually harder than divine iron!
Liang Jin slowly lowered his arms and stood up.

He moved his slightly numb wrist and frowned slightly.

"The feeling of one person fighting against the combined attack of an entire army is indeed not very pleasant."

His voice was calm, yet it reached everyone's ears clearly.

"If it weren't for the final outcome, I really wouldn't want to stand here as a sitting duck."

There are many ways to protect Zhao Yu.

With his lightness skill, he could have easily taken Zhao Yu and fled thousands of miles away.

But he chose to stay, choosing the toughest and most direct approach, to face the thousands of troops directly before the Meridian Gate!
Because he knew very well that the decisive battle was tonight!
When his clone arrives, all the groundwork will come to an end.

He didn't care about the undercurrents in the capital; he simply pushed the game forward at his own pace!

And this Meridian Gate is the key!
It is the final hurdle to whether the dead emperor can "return to the palace," and also the judgment seat for Zhao Yu's fate.

There will be many people who try to stop them.

In fact, there are even some peerless masters among them!
Wang Jin will handle anything that happens on the road.

Liang Jin guarded this place in advance to ensure that there would be no problems at this last checkpoint.

By holding onto this place, we hold onto all possibilities.

They guarded the pass while simultaneously protecting Zhao Yu, employing a two-pronged approach.

He has absolute confidence in this!
Liang Jin stood up straight, his gaze sharp as lightning, piercing through the smoke and dust, and shooting straight at Hong Wei, whose face was filled with horror in the distance.

He slowly, very slowly drew the standard-issue sword from his waist.

The blade rubbed against the scabbard, making a soft "shh" sound, which, in the deathly silent square, was so clear it sent chills down one's spine.

Despite the great distance between them, the moment Liang Jin drew his sword, Hong Wei and the countless imperial guards behind him instinctively took a step back in unison!
It was as if that ordinary waist knife had transformed into an invitation to death!
"Hongwei!"

Liang Jin's voice boomed like thunder, echoing across the fields, carrying undisguised contempt and fighting spirit:

"Show me what else you've got!"

"Let me see just how capable you really are as a commander!"

Faced with such arrogant provocation from a mere flag officer, Hong Wei's fear was quickly replaced by rage!
His face turned ashen, and he shouted sternly:

"Liang Jin! Stop putting on airs!"

"That attack just now would be extremely painful even for someone of the same rank at the third level!"

"You're lucky you're still alive. Your meridians must be damaged and your internal energy must be trembling. You're just putting on a brave face to scare us off?"

"dream!"

He knew the power of the third-grade realm all too well!
I absolutely do not believe that anyone can withstand a combined attack from an army formation and emerge unscathed!
Having said that, Hong Wei, disregarding the churning blood within him, forcefully raised his long sword once more and roared in a hoarse voice:

"Again! Formation!!"

The Imperial Guard soldiers looked distressed, but dared not disobey.

They could only grit their teeth and desperately squeeze out the remaining internal energy in their bodies, trying to reassemble the Imperial Spear Formation that had already been broken once.

"Formation!!!"

Hongwei roared, desperately trying to gather his strength again.

The lion fights the rabbit with all his strength.

Although Hong Wei believed that Liang Jin was merely outwardly strong but inwardly weak and would be easily defeated.

However, when faced with a great undertaking, he absolutely could not afford to make the slightest mistake.

This time, he will still unleash this strike with all his might!

Even if it was only 50% or 60% of its power, he was convinced that it would be enough to completely crush Liang Jin, who was at the end of his rope!

The terrifying blade light was about to coalesce once more—

"stop!!!"

"Stop right there, all of you!!!"

A majestic, anxious, yet undeniably powerful roar exploded like thunder!

The appearance of this sound caused the energy of the military formation to suddenly stagnate, almost collapsing!

Because this is the order from the Supreme Commander of the Southern Imperial Army—the First Commander of the Righteous Guard!
really.

In the distance, the First Guard was seen leading his personal guards, with Wu Huan as the guide, his face ashen as he strode over!

Wu Huan finally made his choice!

The military order is like a mountain!

Upon hearing this, most of the Imperial Guards instinctively stopped channeling their internal energy, and their formation immediately relaxed.

The gathering of internal energy within the formation has also been interrupted.

however--

Hongwei's pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints!
What he was most worried about happened!

Outside interference!

Once the First Guardian has the situation under control, killing Zhao Yu will be as difficult as climbing to heaven!
Even... he himself might be held accountable!

Can't wait any longer!
This is your only chance!
"Roar!!!"

Hong Wei let out a wild howl like a beast, completely ignoring the First Guardian's orders!
He stomped his foot hard, the bricks on the ground shattered, and he shot off like an arrow towards the doorway all by himself!

Once the army formation was broken, he used his third-rank cultivation to kill Liang Jin!

Upon seeing this, the First Guardian was filled with shock and rage, and roared thunderously:

"Hongwei!"

"You dare disobey orders?! What do you want to do?!"

But Hong Wei had gone mad at this point, with only Liang Jin and Zhao Yu's lives in his eyes!

While he was still in mid-air, the long sword in his hand, imbued with all his strength, transformed into a streak of lightning, and slashed down resolutely towards Liang Jin, who had just drawn his sword!

"Die, you son of a bitch!!!"

A terrifying blade of energy tore through the sky, determined to cleave its target in two!

(End of this chapter)