At this moment, shatter the dimensional barrier

"Let me go! You lowly people, do you know who I am?! I am an earl, an imperial earl! Lowly people! How dare you offend the majesty of the empire! The imperial army will soon trample you to pieces!" A middle-aged man who was as fat as a pig shouted like a pig being slaughtered.

"Waaaaah...waaaah..." A man dressed in the clothes of the Anning Dao kept whimpering. His mouth was frozen by ice elements, so he couldn't make a sound. He was Berlik, the deputy of the Anning Dao leader. The reason for freezing his mouth was that he knew that many believers were easily instigated.

"I am the consul! I am an official of the empire! How dare you rebels treat me like this!" an old man with white hair roared.

They were completely unable to accept that, in such a short time last night, the entire elite of Jerok had been captured, and all the military and private forces had been paralyzed.

They were afraid that being tied up like this and shown to so many lowly people would not be like the revolutionaries talking to them in private.

They also secretly cooperated with the revolutionary army. As long as they supported the revolutionary army, they would still be powerful and wealthy when the revolutionary army overthrew the empire. Even if they lost, it didn't matter, because they would still be imperial nobles.

Hedging their bets is the true wisdom of the powerful and wealthy.

"They're all powerful and wealthy! It really is them, they're all here!"

"They took down all the powerful figures in one night while we were asleep! Who are they?! Are any of the rumored Teigu users among them?"

As the crowd grew larger, they were all shocked to see the powerful and wealthy bound hand and foot in the square. In their minds, the powerful and wealthy were invincible, acting recklessly and arbitrarily bullying ordinary people like them.

Of course, it's not that no one has resisted, but it's useless. The powerful and wealthy have all sorts of powerful executioners protecting them, and those criminal groups are also the henchmen of the powerful and wealthy, specializing in cracking down on those who want to resist them, and then using the 'law' to wantonly plunder their pockets.

"You sinners! Shut up!" A valiant female voice rang out.

boom--

An oppressive atmosphere descended instantly, as if gravity had increased several times over, instantly silencing the hysterical nobles. Their expressions were filled with extreme fear, and some even wet their pants.

The crowd fell silent abruptly, turning to look in fear at the source of the noise.

All that could be seen was a woman dressed similarly to those holding amplified instruments, with a tall and imposing figure whose powerful presence made one feel as if they were seeing an unyielding mountain.

She walked solemnly onto the platform that had been prepared beforehand, while the crowd watched her with fear in their eyes, swallowing hard.

Tao Jing looked at the crowd and saw faces weary from the struggle to make a living, their eyes filled with fear and worry about what was happening.

"My name is Tao Jing, and I am the leader of the 'Free Army.' I hereby declare that Jelock has been liberated by us." Tao Jing used her elemental power to amplify her voice, ensuring that everyone in Jelock could hear her.

This strange phenomenon terrified the common people who had never encountered it before, but the deep, resonant voice gave them a strange sense of security.

"We are not occupying, but liberating! Liberating you from the noose around your necks imposed by the empire and the powerful, freeing you from the freedom you have lost!"

"We, the 'Freedom Army,' are here for the freedom of all, as the name suggests."

"The empire is corrupt. Officials and merchants collude to exploit the common people. Criminal groups and gangs run rampant, causing countless families to be torn apart."

“Your wives and daughters will become slaves or servants if they are taken by the powerful and wealthy, and their lives will be out of their own hands.”

"As I traveled along, I saw that the necks of all the people at the bottom of the empire were tightly bound by the empire and the powerful, who could take everything from the common people at will."

"Therefore, we have gathered all those who yearn for happiness, justice, and a better world for future generations to form the 'Freedom Army'!"

Chapter 173: The Night Raid of Fear! You have shattered the chains that bind you.

The once quiet citizens of Jerok stared blankly at the powerful woman who was telling them about the empire's decay.

After listening for a minute, they snapped out of their daze and realized that the 'Free Army' was not what they had imagined. It was not a rebel army that was no different from bandits, but an uprising army similar to the 'Revolutionary Army'.

They breathed a slight sigh of relief; if it was an uprising army similar to the 'revolutionary army,' at least they wouldn't rob them of their property or humiliate their wives and daughters.

Furthermore, the terrifying sense of oppression emanating from the leader of the 'Freedom Army' confirms that he is the rumored 'Teigu User' with immense power.

At this moment, the crowd listened quietly to Tao Jing's speech under the influence of her aura, without making any noise.

This is what happens after reaching the fifth level, when one's mental strength becomes powerful enough to influence those affected by her mental radiation through mental power and willpower. It's similar to the influence of divine will on people, but it's far less absolute. At most, it can only appease or deter.

"So it's... a newly formed rebel army? You scared me." A hooded man in the crowd, who had hidden his face, said in a low voice.

“Yes, last night I was shocked to see how quickly and directly those people stormed the mansions of the powerful and wealthy.” Another woman, her face hidden under her hood, said in disbelief.

"They can fly, and each of them is much stronger than us. I can't even handle a single one of them. It's terrifying. Are they all Imperial Arms users?"

"But there are only 48 Imperial Arms in total, how is that possible?"

"What? Leone, you're saying you can't beat anyone? How is that possible?" another girl, who was hiding her face, asked in a low voice.

"This is the beastly intuition that I gained from transforming into the Beast King. Beasts can sense the difference in strength between themselves and others based on their aura. *gulp*" Leone swallowed hard, his voice trembling as he looked at the woman giving the speech through the shadows of her hood.

"The woman giving the speech on the stage... was terrifying, extremely terrifying. It was as if a mountain was pressing down on me, and if I showed any hostility, I would be killed by a single glance."

*Gulp* Since becoming the 'Night Raid Assassin', she has assassinated countless corrupt nobles, bloodthirsty and cruel executioners, and leaders of criminal organizations, including 'Teigu Users'.

But I've never met anyone as terrifying as that woman giving a speech on stage.

Not only that...

Leone's gaze, hidden beneath his hood, fell upon the 'Free Army' patrolling the square, and upon four men and women who appeared to be police officers, standing not far from the woman with their arms crossed and sharp eyes.

Each one made her tense all over. Even her weakest instincts told her that she would die, she was sure to die. The four officers with their arms crossed, although their auras were not as terrifying as that woman's, still made her feel as if she were suffocating.

"Hahoo...hahoo...hahoo..." Leone hurriedly withdrew from the 'Beast King Transformation' state, cold sweat dripping from his chin, his limbs trembling, his knees going weak, wanting to kneel down immediately.

"Big Sister! What's wrong with you! Are they so powerful that you don't even have the confidence to fight back?" Lubbock took a deep breath. He could feel the pressure, but he couldn't tell how big the gap was. Moreover, the pressure wasn't hostile, so he couldn't tell.

"Gulp~ Leone's intuition was right. They are terrifying. They are basically all Teigu users, and the kind of Teigu users who can perfectly unleash the power of their Teigu!" A man with a pompadour hairstyle peeking out from under his hood said in a low voice, cold sweat streaming down his face.

His Imperial Arms also allowed him to clearly perceive the gap between them, and even detect the weaknesses of his enemies, even the weaknesses of the Imperial Arms users.

But he couldn't see any weaknesses in those people at all. In fact, their aura was so overwhelming that he couldn't breathe. He knew what this gap meant, and he would definitely be killed in an instant.

"This 'Free Army' is so powerful, where did they come from? If they're so powerful, why have I never heard of them before? Brand... you were an Imperial General before, and you never heard of them?" Mine asked, her breathing becoming rapid.

"I don't know, I have absolutely no idea." Brand shook his head, his gaze fixed on the woman on the podium, a woman so powerful that she extinguished his will to fight.

"They are so powerful that I suspect the 'Free Army' has mastered the technology to manufacture Imperial Arms. They are all Imperial Arms users. Otherwise, I really can't think of any reason that could make them so powerful."

"Hiss... Everyone's a Teigu user! This, this is terrifying!" Mine took a deep breath, her eyes filled with shock. As a killer organization where everyone was a Teigu user, Night Raid knew the power of Teigu users better than anyone else.

No matter how much an ordinary person trains or becomes stronger, the gap between them and a Teigu user is absolute; they can easily crush them.

“That’s right, they must have mastered the technology to manufacture Imperial Arms. From what I can sense, there are more than two hundred people here who are stronger than me, a full two hundred.” Leone was sweating profusely, her clothes soaked through.

"Two hundred Imperial Arms users would be able to wipe out all the Empire's forces in a short time."

"Yes, the world has changed, completely changed." Cold sweat dripped from Brand's chin. "We've seen over a hundred Teigu users just by looking at them, but what about the others in secret?"

"Is it really that simple for the 'Free Army' to manufacture Imperial Arms? A thousand years ago, the emperor of the empire gathered all the artisans and scavenged countless legendary materials to create 48 Imperial Arms." Lubbock quickly asked in a low voice.

“I don’t know, but I’m sure the Free Army can manufacture Imperial Arms with ease,” Brand said.

“I never expected that we would run into something so big when we came here to assassinate the head of a slave-trafficking organization that deals in women.” Leone raised his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Who knows how terrified they were last night? They were almost scared to death.

They witnessed firsthand how the other party was carried by the flying 'Teigu User' directly into the mansions of various dignitaries, executioners, and criminal organizations.

All the weapons were as useless to them as paper; fire, lightning, ice, water, and other abilities they had never seen before appeared out of nowhere.

He even watched as a flying 'Teigu user' blasted a nobleman's mansion into a crater with a single punch. Judging from his furious voice at the time, he must have seen the various female slaves kept in the nobleman's house.

“However, although they are frighteningly strong, at least we can be sure that they are a rebel army similar to our ‘Revolutionary Army,’ which is good news for us,” Brand said thankfully.

“We can’t jump to conclusions too soon. In the beginning, so many rebels rose up against the empire, but behind the scenes they were no different from bandits. But we need to tell the boss what’s going on here as soon as possible,” Leone said solemnly.

Tao Jing's speech continued.

Tao Jing watched as the eyes of the people who had been somewhat numb to her speech, filled with fear and worry about the future, began to light up, and their voices became even louder.

"People of the Empire! Slaves of the Empire!"

"Open your blinded eyes! Look at this land!"

"We bleed and sweat, yet we go hungry."

"We build cities, yet we are homeless."

"We forge weapons, yet we die by the very swords we created!"

Listening to Tao Jing's voice, the people felt as if sharp swords were piercing their chests. They began to think, to listen carefully, to recall the injustices that had happened to them, and to clench their fists.

"Yes, why? I work hard, but most of my earnings go to taxes for the nobles. I've never even had a decent meal." A young man in the crowd clenched his fist, his eyes reddening.

"Why! I worked so hard farming, why is all the grain I grew being taken away!" A skinny middle-aged man dressed in the white robes of a follower of the 'Path of Peace' gritted his teeth in bewilderment. All the grain he grew had been confiscated by the lord under the pretext of imperial taxation. To survive, he had no choice but to take his wife and children to the big city to seek a living.

"Why? I've quarried so many stones, and so many houses have used the stones I quarried. Why do I still have to sleep in the stable?" A dirty man asked, puzzled.

The charm of language lies in its ability to create emotional resonance and convey will.

Tao Jing's heart pounded as she watched the confusion and anger gradually appear in the eyes of the crowd. This was her purpose.

In this soil, which has been oppressed by the powerful and wealthy for a thousand years, lies the resentment of the people for a thousand years. What she wants to do is ignite this resentment.

Of course, this is conditional; there are no religions that inexplicably advocate suffering in this life and enjoying happiness in the next, like those in India.

Otherwise, even she, a fifth-order transcendent being, would be of no use.

Tao Jing's voice was filled with anger, and she shouted, conveying her anger to the entire population of Jelock through her will.

"Why should I?!"

Why are they born noble while we are born lowly?

Why should their feasts be bought with our famine?

"Why should their palaces be built with our corpses?"

"People of the Empire, slaves of the Empire! Answer me!"

An anger that pierced the soul penetrated everyone's heart. Even those who were confused were aroused by an uncontrollable rage, as if the injustices that had been happening to them for a long time had turned into a raging fire.

"Yes! Why! Why should my daughter be taken to their palace to be a maid! To be played with by them! My daughter is gone! Gone!" A middle-aged man with dry hair roared with red eyes.

"Why should we be bullied by nobles! Why should we pay so much tax!"

"Yes! Why is that?!"

"Why should we be bullied! I work so hard, why should I go hungry!"

"Why should I?!"

The people's anger was ignited by the flames of injustice, and more and more people began to voice their opinions, their eyes fixed on the woman who had set their anger on fire.

As Tao Jing faced the growing number of voices, her deep breath intensified, and she raised her hand.

Suddenly, all the people fell silent, but they all clenched their fists. At this moment, they wanted to know an answer: why should they suffer, why should they be treated unfairly, why should they be bullied?

"Because of the empire, because of the powerful and wealthy, they greedily and cunningly seized the fruits of your labor."