Infinite Hunter

Turgen slowly lowered his bow. In his opinion, Cheng Yijiu had the advantage in terms of skill, and the gap in strength didn't seem that big, so he shouldn't add to the chaos. With the two fighting inside, shooting arrows would only be a distraction. Cheng Yijiu had a firm advantage. Although he hadn't yet drained Zuo De's health, each attack left Zuo De with fewer options and brought him closer to the cliff.

Cheng Yijiu thought he could probably withstand a passing attack, but he didn't want to try—Zuo De had a second form. Another clash ensued, and this time Cheng Yijiu's cold iron sword directly chopped off the blade of Zuo De's defensive broadsword. Then, like lightning, he struck a second blow. Zuo De crossed his arms and pressed down, blocking Cheng Yijiu's blow with muscle and bone.

The blade sliced ​​halfway into both arms, lodging in the bone—this was also because it was difficult to apply force when slashing. "This guy's arm muscles are really tough. If it weren't for the cold iron sword with the power to break magic, I'm afraid a normal steel sword would only be able to break his skin at best."

"What a remarkable martial skill I've never seen before..." Zuo De, holding the greatsword with his muscles and bones, licked his lips and said with a chuckle, "This is truly... truly a beautiful day!" At this point, Zuo De's voice suddenly changed into a terrifying, majestic roar, like the sound of a giant bullhorn. Amidst the powerful horn sound, the giant continued to rise higher and higher.

In the blink of an eye, long black hair sprouted from Zuo De's body, and his body expanded into a massive, upright beast with ox-horns and a lion's face. His height suddenly reached over six meters. With a roar, he swung his now-healed arm, clawing directly at Cheng Yijiu. At this moment, Turgen took action, unleashing a barrage of arrows at Zuo De's face. Cheng Yijiu swung his sword, slashing directly at the inside of the giant monster's arm.

"What a force!" Even Cheng Yijiu couldn't withstand such power. The violence displayed by this monster was probably the most violent he had ever seen—a Nemean lion on all fours might have been able to withstand a blow. Cheng Yijiu was completely thrown back by this force. The only reason he wasn't pursued was because Zuo De raised his left hand to block his face. His palm and arm were penetrated by the long arrow—unfortunately, the arrow that used to penetrate could only penetrate a small part of the arrow shaft this time, unable to penetrate the monster's arm.

The arrow, having pierced his palm, was unable to inflict further damage. With a roar, Zod clenched his fist, crushing the arrowhead to pieces. The force of his fist knocked the piercing arrowhead out of the wound behind him. The monster ignored the arrows stuck in his arm, which were ejected by the tense muscles, and the wound began to heal. Turgen, already strapping his greatbow, drew his cold iron blades. He leaped forward like a tiger, charging forward with powerful force, and unleashed a two-handed slash.

Cheng Yijiu also used a back-up technique to avoid injury, but even so, he still felt a dull pain in the area where he had hit, and his wrist felt sprained. He stood up and grasped the greatsword in his hand - the cold iron greatsword was very solid and did not deform at all. Cheng Yijiu took a deep breath and strode forward again.

A tail whipped towards him from a blind spot, its powerful tail like a giant python, a thick, powerful tail that whistled with a sharp sound as it swung. Cheng Yijiu wasn't prepared for a direct confrontation, so he resorted to a versatile roll... The tail swept over his head, and Cheng Yijiu closed in on the relatively still end of the tail. Using the momentum of the roll, Cheng Yijiu clenched his sword with both hands and slashed down fiercely.

The sword's force was so immense that the lion's skin seemed to roar. Its tail snapped at the blow, and now it was Zuo De's turn to roar. Zuo De spun around and grabbed it, but it was impossible to escape; the only option was to block. Cheng Yijiu decisively swung the lion's skin forward, his sword raised to block—and as he was sent flying, the sword left a deep wound on Zuo De's hand. Cheng Yijiu flew several meters before he stopped himself with his foot.

At this moment, Zuode was also being hacked and slashed by Turgen's frontal assault, causing him to howl. Turgen, including half the tiger's body, was not much smaller than Zuode, and Turgen, on all fours, was certainly powerful when he struck. The tiger's front paws rested on Zuode's legs for support, while Turgen wielded his scimitar with both hands, slashing furiously. Zuode's claws were like steel, and he had previously used both hands to block and counterattack, blocking most of Turgen's blows and even causing damage to Turgen's body.

But Cheng Yijiu's attack gave Turgen an opportunity, leaving several long, deep wounds on Zuode's front. Furious, Zuode launched a punch, and Turgen, who had blocked with his two swords, was knocked back, and blood rushed to the ground. Cheng Yijiu leaped in at this moment, taking Zuode's attack. Cheng Yijiu had already figured out the monster's routine and treated it as if he was using dual fighting claws.

While this thing was a strange weapon, it was ultimately easy to deal with—without any additional extensions, the attack range was the length of the arm to the fingers. As a swordsman, Cheng Yijiu had an idea for breaking this weapon—just watch out for Zuo De's sudden attacks and use the horns on his head to strike. Zuo De's claws swept past, but Cheng Yijiu blocked them with the lion's hide. He spread his legs to lower his center of gravity, so even Zuo De's claws couldn't damage the lion's hide.

Cheng Yijiu felt as if he'd been hit by a dump truck; his vision was blurry and his entire body was buzzing. He felt a little weak, but he gritted his teeth and swung his sword, severing the tendons in Zuo De's arm. Then, Cheng Yijiu lunged forward, piercing the monster's abdomen. Amidst a roar, before Turgen charged again, Zuo De flinched, letting the sword rip from the monster, spilling a large amount of blood.

The monster let out a rumbling laugh, "There are always surprises, powerful warriors." The guy looked at Cheng Yijiu's chest with eyes like big copper bells, "Isn't it yours yet? Maybe there will always be gifts from fate." Zuo De turned his head and looked at the half-tiger Turgen, "That's all for today." He grabbed the broken tail and pressed it on the broken end, and it was connected just like that. Then the monster spread its huge bat wings, knocked open the ceiling and flew away.

Cheng Yijiu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Protected by the lion's skin, he appeared to have no other injuries besides bruises. Turgen looked even worse off—his fur had been scraped off, his body was covered in claw marks, and blood was flowing over most of his body. Turgen himself didn't care, but Cheng Yijiu was the one who took care to clean and bandage his wounds.

"Here, use this." Turgen was still rummaging in his bag. "I don't think it's a big deal. It's just a flesh wound." Turgen took out a small bottle and said, "Just apply it." Then he took out a large roll of dry things that looked like rice dumpling leaves. "This is a natural bandage someone gave me. It seems that it can be dissolved with water." Cheng Yijiu took a look and said, "You seem to have quite a lot of treasures here."

The small bottle contained something like ointment, which stopped the bleeding immediately upon application, though it did seem irritating, causing Turgen's cheek to twitch slightly. The bandage itself was truly bizarre. Cheng Yijiu pulled out a long strip and confirmed it was indeed a leaf from some plant. He then poured a pot of water over it, and the leaf visibly swelled and quickly regained its fresh, emerald green color. "From the shape and smell, is this aloe vera?"

This was indeed an aloe vera leaf that had grown into a long strip. Cheng Yijiu could even feel the mucus oozing from its surface. The bandage was applied to the wound and wrapped tightly, automatically adhering to it. Turgen's expression clearly relaxed. "I heard that you called Doctor Aloe Vera. Wounds like this can probably be completely healed overnight." Cheng Yijiu was also quite surprised. "One night? You have several wounds here that need stitches. Can they heal in one night?" Turgen nodded. "Yes, I guarantee it in my name as a druid."

Cheng Yijiu rolled up the dried leaves and returned them to Turgen, who then took out a small bag. "I've tried this thing, and it can't be planted with leaves. You have to use seeds. It's the same as regular aloe vera, but the soil must be fertile." These were the seeds of the Doctor Aloe, a gift from Turgen to Cheng Yijiu. The small leather bag Turgen was carrying was definitely magical equipment, and its capacity was definitely much larger than it looked to the naked eye.

Chapter 25 Prey

Turgen activated the magic stone once more, transforming into a humanoid form. Like Cheng Yijiu, he sat on the ground to catch his breath. The battle hadn't lasted long. Including their earlier encounter, he'd only fought Zuo De for less than three minutes. Yet, both men looked exhausted. It wasn't surprising; the physical strain wasn't the only issue, but the mental drain was truly immense.

Zuo De was an extremely dangerous opponent, his physical prowess possibly surpassing both Cheng Yijiu and Turgen—probably on par with Cheng Yijiu before his transformation, and slightly stronger than Turgen after his transformation. While Zuo De's skills weren't as good as Cheng Yijiu's, his extensive combat experience more than made up for it—after all, he was a monster with centuries of experience on the battlefield. His transformation was even more terrifying, and even if Cheng Yijiu wore a lion's skin, it was unlikely he would be able to withstand a single blow from him.

Even if the claws couldn't penetrate the lion's skin, the force was enough to make Cheng Yijiu lose his fighting ability - maybe...

As for Turgen, the armor on his body was almost the same as having nothing when facing Zuo De. Fortunately, Zuo De was the same as him, and his defense was probably not as good as Cheng Yijiu. In fact, the three of them were all eggs to the other side... except that one was an egg with a rubber shell and the other two were eggs.

Cheng Yijiu slumped on the ground, looking up at the broken ceiling above him, then lowered his head to check the greatsword. He took out the Behelet, "This thing has heated up before." He said, Turgeon did not respond, but looked at the arrows recovered in his hand. "They are almost unusable. The arrow shafts are broken and all the arrowheads are deformed." The half-tiger sighed. "Anyway, this fortress has finally been taken. Mission accomplished."

No one, including the governor of the Yoda Empire, said anything about Zod's appearance, and there was no news of Zod's return. Guts, the protagonist, was once again missing, while Cheng Yijiu and his team took on a field attack and defense mission—"Drive the enemy out!"

The battle unfolded around a fortress. The Mitlan Kingdom's army was approaching, and the Yoda Empire was determined to drive them away to maintain the integrity of the front. This time, the enemy might be the Eagle Regiment. Cheng Yijiu and Turgen exchanged glances and made their decision. Cheng Yijiu's mission was to recover the Overlord Egg and Behelet, while Turgen had no idea, believing he would eventually find out as long as he continued.

Whether it is a shaman or a druid, the purpose is to listen to the voice of nature. As long as Turgen keeps doing this, he will definitely find the meaning of his coming to this world.

This time the two of them rode in a carriage again - Cheng Yijiu could ride a horse, and there was no shortage of horses here, but Turgen couldn't. When he rode a warhorse, the horse would automatically become weak, which made him useless. However, he was good at driving a carriage... The heroes of the field battle were the regular army - the White Whale Super Heavy Knights were the main force responsible for the battle this time, and Turgen and Cheng Yijiu were considered temporary reinforcements.

The regular knights naturally looked down on the two mercenaries. This heavily armored order numbered over 300 knights, all clad in Maximilian plate armor. Their helmet resembled a whale's head, while their leader's helmet resembled the head of a great white shark. Cheng Yijiu considered the leader's martial arts to be average, but the real killer was his younger brother, who was also two meters three inches tall and one meter wide, wearing exceptionally thick plate armor.

This monster, too, possessed incredible strength and power. It wielded a flail-like meteor hammer, the steel head of which was likely the size of a human head. This monster could wield such a weapon for at least half an hour... Due to Cheng Yijiu and Turgen's reputations, while some discriminated against them, these individuals weren't foolish enough to provoke them. Relying on the fortress, the White Whale Super-Heavy Knights set up their battle line, facing a vast array of mercenaries mounted on warhorses and equipped with a wide variety of equipment.

Cheng Yijiu and Turgen both spotted the young man leading the group, wearing white armor and a half-covered helmet that completely obscured half his face. "That's our target—Griffith." Next to him was a man in black armor and a cloak, riding a horse. He also wore a black helmet that partially obscured his face, and the weapon he held was familiar. "Isn't that the protagonist, Guts, you mentioned?" Turgen said.

"Using a single-edged command sword, Griffith seems quite confident in his martial arts skills," Cheng Yijiu muttered. As the two sides engaged, neither Cheng Yijiu nor Turgen moved—their strengths lay in direct combat. Turgen was fine, but Cheng Yijiu was truly unfamiliar with the tactical command of medieval cold weapons. The swordsman's participation was in a competition, and the few times he participated in battle, he relied on his own prowess to wage decapitation battles.

The two men stood aside and watched the battle. Turgen held a bow and arrow while Cheng Yijiu had already drawn his greatsword. "What a clever command, using shield soldiers to absorb the impact of the heavy knights, and then using spearmen to limit their distance. But this way we can only remain undefeated?" Turgen muttered, while Cheng Yijiu was looking at the mercenary group that seemed a little chaotic. "There should be some means." He said.

As expected, the Eagles suddenly dispersed, revealing three stubby cannons at their rear. The shells they fired were not particularly lethal, but they disrupted the Knights' formation. While men and horses were thrown to the ground, a closer look revealed no casualties. The artillery of this era was ultimately underpowered, and not just due to the gunpowder issue. The Eagles seized the opportunity to outflank the disorganized Knights, attempting a flank attack.

Cheng Yijiu and Turgen also found their opportunity. Turgen let out a whistle, as if he were hunting gazelles on the grasslands. He drew his bow halfway and fired continuously, his rapid-fire skills truly remarkable. Cheng Yijiu watched as Turgen unleashed over ten arrows in just a few breaths, each one hitting a target without missing a single one. The mercenary who was shooting was the one blocking Griffith's path. Turgen's rapid-fire arrows cleared a path for Cheng Yijiu.

Cheng Yijiu charged forward like a furious lion, charging straight for Griffith like an infantryman behind cover from artillery fire. Some tried desperately to stop him, but Cheng Yijiu didn't even bother to look at them, knowing Turgen would handle it for him. Only if he blocked Turgen's shot did Cheng Yijiu strike with his sword. His ferocious swordplay wasn't meant to kill the man who blocked his path, but simply to move him out of the way.

Cheng Yijiu faced Griffith head-on. The young man on the horse was indeed a character. Instead of turning his horse around to run away, he rushed over and swung his command knife horizontally, ready to fight with Cheng Yijiu.

Chapter 26: Mutation

Griffith, riding a white horse, swung his first blow. The technique of this blow was indeed perfect, a cavalry beheading knife. However, it was useless against Cheng Yijiu. Griffith jumped off his horse at an extremely fast speed. The warhorse under his crotch screamed and was cut open, and the saber in his hand also slashed directly into the air. "What a great reaction! Just a little bit short." Cheng Yijiu exclaimed.

He didn't simply chop at the warhorse. Instead, when his blade touched Griffith's body, it hit something that seemed to be curved and very hard, causing it to slip and split the white warhorse in half. Standing on the ground in plate armor, White Eagle Griffith was probably about to face the strongest opponent of his life. At least for more than ten seconds before the other warriors of the Eagle Corps arrived to protect him, he had to rely on his own strength to block Cheng Yijiu.

Guts on horseback was already rushing over madly, but unfortunately his teammates blocked his way.

"Lion Sword Saint?" Although it was a question, Griffith said it with certainty, and he took a duel stance. Cheng Yijiu didn't want to listen to him at all. He didn't have to kill Griffith. He just wanted to win by taking the Overlord's Egg. So Cheng Yijiu launched an attack, and he started the offensive with the upper part of the slash. Cheng Yijiu was ready to chop down the little devil in front of him with one blow and take the Overlord's Egg.

Then he slipped...

When he stepped forward, he found a stone slab in the loose soil under his feet, and underneath the stone slab was another layer of loose soil, so Cheng Yijiu lost his balance all of a sudden. Although he relied on his super body reaction to avoid falling into a split, the original chop was definitely not effective and was avoided by Griffith. Griffith's knife even almost hit Cheng Yijiu.

"Damn it! What kind of luck is this?" Cheng Yijiu cursed. His movements had suddenly changed, so Turgen's arrow didn't hit Griffith, but instead shot another mercenary, who was more than ten meters away from Griffith and in a line with Turgen Griffith, off his horse. So Turgen cursed too. "What the hell!"

By this time, Guts was already on the scene, and he seemed to have done something inappropriate to his horse. In short, the horse was bleeding and could not continue fighting. Guts jumped down - this guy was not wearing stirrups, so he was able to jump up. He swung the sword in his hand and slashed at Cheng Yijiu who was adjusting his center of gravity and movements. "This kid!" Cheng Yijiu cursed and had to roll over.

Now he had to face the siege, but fortunately he had Turgen's assistance, and some mercenaries rushed towards Turgen, trying to interfere with this terrible archer.

Cheng Yijiu wasn't too worried about the two-on-one situation. Guts was an exceptionally strong and fast swordsman, while Griffith was a skilled swordsman with both speed and technique. With his swordsmanship, Cheng Yijiu wasn't worried about facing these two directly. So, Cheng Yijiu took the initiative and attacked, targeting Guts. Griffith wasn't strong enough, and with the lion skin protecting him, Griffith couldn't hurt him at all.

The battle with Guts continued with a back-and-forth. Cheng Yijiu used the strong blade and guard to deflect Guts's strikes, choosing the distance and timing when Guts's power wasn't fully exerted. He twisted his wrist, and the cross guard and strong blade formed a lock, leveraging Guts's greatsword once again. "This kid's gotten stronger." Cheng Yijiu shifted his feet, letting the lion skin block Griffith's sword as it slashed towards his shoulder.

It hurt a little, but that was all. Griffith's attack couldn't penetrate the lion's hide, and the thick skin even absorbed a lot of kinetic energy, so at most, it would only cause Cheng Yijiu to bruise under the skin. Cheng Yijiu turned his wrist to put more pressure on Guts, but Guts took it well—last time, he had let the sword slip out of his hand. So Cheng Yijiu counterattacked, and this time, Guts finally let go of the sword—if he didn't give up, he would lose his hand.

Cheng Yijiu then swung his sword at Griffith again, but at this moment, a huge explosion sounded from his side, directly pushing Cheng Yijiu away. An officer of the Eagle Regiment decisively turned the short cannon around and fired a shot at Cheng Yijiu from the side, completely ignoring the possibility that Griffith might be put in danger. Although the distance was a bit far, the power of the cannonball was still enough to hurt him.

The lion skin protected Cheng Yijiu, otherwise he would have been injured. The shattered stone bullets hitting him felt like being beaten with iron-clad clubs. Cheng Yijiu was just out of position, and a group of soldiers immediately covered the two men. Turgen in the back also sacrificed several mercenaries who rushed over, but ultimately lost the opportunity to kill Griffith. The White Whale Heavy Knights had begun to retreat, but the Eagle Regiment was even faster, breaking away from contact almost immediately. The lightly armed soldiers still had the advantage.

Cheng Yijiu stood there, the lion skin fluttering in the wind, and the blood that had splattered on it gradually disappeared. Turgen walked over and said, "A man wrapped in luck, this guy's luck is abnormally good."

"Yeah, it's not normal," Cheng Yijiu sighed, his cold iron sword drooping. He pulled back the lion hide and looked at the bruises all over his body. "They've all turned black. I need to rub them with ointment." This engagement could only be considered a test. The Eagle Regiment didn't achieve much, but they did suffer heavy losses, most of which were caused by Cheng Yijiu and Turgen. The White Whale Heavy Knights lost only a few soldiers, but there were also many injured people and horses.

The next day, Cheng Yijiu heard that the Eagle Group had evacuated, and he and Turgen were forced to leave as well. They wanted to follow the Eagle Group, but for some reason, no one in the mercenary group knew where they had gone. "Let's go back to the big city; they'll eventually get out," the two men discussed.

The next news of the Eagles came after they had breached the fortress guarded by the White Whale Heavy Knights. Unexpectedly, the mercenary group hadn't left, but had instead been lurking for a while before suddenly reappearing and defeating the Knights. Hearing of Zod's presence during the battle sparked much discussion among the mercenaries. "I thought it was just a legend," more than one person remarked.

Cheng Yijiu didn't return to the battlefield. He'd taken on another mission and was on his way with Turgen. "It's so hot!" Cheng Yijiu quickly pulled a leather pouch from his chest and tossed it to the ground. Smoke was already rising from the pouch, and the stench of burnt protein wafted off. Turgen stepped forward. "What's going on? Why do I feel a strange 'magic' gathering?" he asked, reaching for the burning pouch.

"Don't pick it up!" Cheng Yijiu had just shouted this when Turgen, with a bewildered look on his face, suddenly woke up, but his hand had already picked up the Behelet. Cheng Yijiu saw that the creature's facial features had returned to their original positions, and he even shed exaggerated tears of blood. "What the hell is going on here?" The two of them said almost in unison. Then, the environment changed.

The surrounding trees and hills seemed to come alive, developing facial features and strange, repulsive forms—most crucially, the sun overhead had turned black. The illumination remained largely unchanged, but countless indescribable creatures emerged from the void, like a nightmare come true. "Is this the Eclipse?" Turgen asked, now fully transformed into his half-tiger form, having lifted the magic that had been used to conceal his presence.

"Be prepared, or we might be in for a bloodbath - why the hell did this thing activate? Is anyone going to become an apostle? Could it be one of us?" Cheng Yijiu cursed, and Turgen also had a bitter smile on his face. Neither he nor Cheng Yijiu felt any despair, nor did they have any plan to sacrifice their beloved ones to create a void in their hearts, let the power from the depths of the underworld fill their hearts, and thus become an apostle.

"I feel it, it seems to be me?" Turgen said uncertainly after a moment. Cheng Yijiu touched his arm and found a strange wound. "How strange?" Cheng Yijiu frowned. At this time, the first wave of monsters with physical form rushed over. These monsters relied on claws to fight against the strange flesh. They looked like upright goats, their hands transformed into extended blades.

Cheng Yijiu swung his greatsword, easily beheading the monsters before him. The cold iron greatsword had begun to emit a faint white glow, and its blade had become sharper and more indestructible, slicing through the monsters' flesh with unparalleled ease. The enemy's flesh was as soft as butter pudding before it. The same was true of Turgen's twin scimitars, a spontaneous effect of the cold iron alchemical weapon, which was enchanted with the power of light and magic-breaking magic. The evil magic here activated it.

The alchemical sword spontaneously draws power from the magic. As long as the warrior holding it can still wield the sword, it will never lose its sharpness and magic-destroying power. Using such a sword to slay these demons greatly saves Cheng Yijiu a lot of effort. The most crucial thing is that when the black sun appears, the lion skin suddenly emits a golden light, as if a constant warmth is pouring into Cheng Yijiu's body, offsetting his physical fatigue, and also a continuous influx of anger and strength.

So Cheng Yijiu seemed to have turned into a ferocious and incomparable light of destruction, directly stirring up a huge wind of killing. But Turgen was not so magical. "I don't feel good!" He swung his two swords to kill the monsters, but pain was clearly visible on his face.

Chapter 27: A Person's End

Turgen's situation was indeed not good. Something was moving through his body, causing his torso and limbs to deform from time to time. If it weren't for the luminous Cheng Yijiu wielding his greatsword around him, killing with extremely high efficiency, Turgen would have been dragged away and killed. As time passed, his half-human tiger body became less and less able to exert its full strength. On the contrary, Cheng Yijiu became more and more courageous as the battle went on, and no matter what kind of monster it was, he would kill it with a single sword.

A tall, slender figure emerged from the sky. It had no skull, revealing an enlarged brain. It was earless, its lower face devoid of skin, its nose, gums, and chin exposed, and its eyelids sewn shut. It had a strange, distinctly different aura. Cheng Yijiu recognized it as one of the God's Hands at first glance, looking like the leader. Then the other three appeared.

Leaving aside the two short, fat men, the prostitute from the Sea of ​​Corruption was the most conspicuous. She had emerged from the sea of ​​blood and shattered entrails of the countless demons Cheng Yijiu had slain. Her viscera quickly transformed into a normal appearance. Even Cheng Yijiu gulped, as he wasn't sure he could handle the Hand of God. He let out a long breath and slew two more upright monsters that were approaching.

These monsters were indescribable, seemingly incredibly powerful. However, facing Cheng Yijiu, he felt them as weak as tofu—unstoppable under the wielding of his greatsword. As the prostitute appeared, Cheng Yijiu roared like a lion, plunging his greatsword directly into the sea of ​​blood on the ground. Cheng Yijiu's entire being glowed, especially the lion's hide, which radiated a fiery sunlight that rippled outward from the point where the sword had pierced his body.

Under the light, the sea of ​​blood and internal organs quickly dried and weathered, and the original malicious aura was swept away by the light - this was the merciless and fierce sunlight. The hemispherical light shield erupted at the center of Cheng Yijiu and continued to expand. Under the propulsion of this light shield, the demons and monsters were reduced to ashes. The sword art of wide-area annihilation was no longer a sword art, but an explosion of power from Apollo, the god of light - of this, Cheng Yijiu was well aware.

It was this force that made Cheng Yijiu sense the thick malice and evil within this enclosed space. One of the supporting points was Behelet. This wailing stone egg was now stuck to Turgen, the very point where his human half and tiger half merged. Light also swept over Turgen, gradually burning away Behelet's facial features, while Turgen collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

The first of the four God's Hands to face the light was the Whore of the Fetal Sea. Her bat wings blocked the way and were gradually burned away by the advancing light. The wing membrane was the first to be burned, revealing the bones underneath. Then the bones turned black and brittle and began to break. At this time, the other God's Hands also took action. This was a collision of power. The magic power they burst out curbed the advancement of the light shield.

This wasn't Cheng Yijiu's power; it was the power of the sun and light—a power the world's malice couldn't contain. As long as the Netherworld and the Deep Realm existed, the concepts of light and the sun would persist. Cheng Yijiu's light burned away Behelet before him, and Turgen became an energy-absorbing black hole, directly plundering the planet's power with the help of light.

Turgen's body shifted, the half-tiger now more like an apostle. After Behelet was burned, the wailing echoed through the air. The God's Hand, faced with the light before it, could only sigh and fade. "It seems that without the Overlord's Egg, these God's Hands can't unleash their true power." Cheng Yijiu understood this perfectly; his tentacles alone allowed him to sense it all.

Turgen convulsed, and ulcers appeared where the Behelet had been embedded. The original fur quickly peeled away, revealing the muscle and bone beneath. The muscles melted like candles, and blood appeared on the bones, and growths appeared. A black vortex appeared from nowhere in this space, forming a funnel and converging on this bone. "Is this the pelvic structure?" Cheng Yijiu deduced. This must be the joint structure where Turgen's human body and tiger body were connected. Relying on the spine would not be enough.

It was clear that Turgen's spine was also changing, some growing and some being devoured—a complex pelvic structure was shifting and growing, making this area thicker and stronger, while the vertebrae also began to proliferate here piece by piece. Cheng Yijiu saw the new structure forming. Although the Eclipse was still there, the four divine hands had left. The Eclipse seemed to be seized by something, like a greedy vampire trying to suck blood.

"It's going to break, but this little bit of energy should be enough, right?" Turgen was absorbing the energy of the entire space unconsciously. It had to be said that the consciousness of this planet had done something stupid and unprofitable. Cheng Yijiu watched in amazement as a large piece of bone began to grow from Turgen's extended spine. When he saw a quarter of it, he realized it was the occipital bone. "Aha, is he going to grow a head?"

Cheng Yijiu, an experienced hunter, knew immediately that this was a tiger skull. Even based on the body proportions, this tiger skull was much larger than an average tiger's. Cheng Yijiu watched the bone take shape, and flesh began to grow on it... "Now here comes the problem, what should I do with two brains?" Cheng Yijiu watched the gradually crumbling space, and finally became interested in studying this problem.

Organs, muscles, fur, Turgen's new image was soon fixed. He was still half-man-tiger, but now he had two heads. His upper body now looked like it was resting on the shoulders of a giant tiger, growing out from between the shoulder blades. Cheng Yijiu was quite satisfied with this. "This way, the balance is actually better, and it also gives us an extra weapon. Let's think positively."

Before Turgen woke up, he gradually disappeared like a particle - Cheng Yijiu's light was still there, telling him that Turgen was safe, that he had achieved his "goal" and left. "This means I'll be alone again. I'm used to it." Thinking that he would have to collect Behelet again, Cheng Yijiu became open-minded and shrugged. "It's just a waste of time. Maybe I was really close to getting the Overlord Egg just now."

Chapter 28 Assassination

Well, now, overnight, we've been transported back to the pre-liberation era. The Overlord's Egg wasn't obtained, and Behelet was also completely destroyed. Cheng Yijiu could only sigh and start over again—after all, there would be plenty of Apostles after him. As long as they weren't troublesome guys like Zuo De, Cheng Yijiu wouldn't find ordinary Apostles difficult. As for the Overlord's Egg... that thing was quite tricky. Cheng Yijiu could only hope for a chance, otherwise the punishment mission would be extremely difficult.

The lone mercenary once again joined the Yoda Empire's army, this time hired as the Governor's bodyguard. Before a certain point, the Apostles were relatively difficult to find, but if you wandered around the Eagle Order, you'd always run into them. The focus was this fortress. If the Mitlan Kingdom captured it, the Hundred Years' War would be over. After all, it had been captured by the Yoda Empire in a surprise attack a century ago, and there was a dispute over its ownership at the time.

It was nothing more than some tricks of fiefdom claims between nobles, which resulted in centuries of war.

The Governor was a merchant, and aside from his somewhat disgusting XP bonus, he was quite generous with his guards. Cheng Yijiu earned a good commission, and his reputation as the Swordmaster and Mercenary King spread. Knights from the Order and seasoned mercenaries constantly sought out Cheng Yijiu, and the Lionskin Hunters welcomed them all, defeating them all in the training grounds. Cheng Yijiu usually avoided extreme, dangerous combat, instead using skill and footwork to deftly disarm their weapons.

Cheng Yijiu was now considered a master swordsman, ready to accept disciples—he could master everything from longsword to rapier, even short spear. He even had the army's blacksmith forge him a training rapier, an unsharpened blade. He was invincible in single combat, even faster than a wooden hand and half-sword could defeat an opponent. Cheng Yijiu often practiced tricks, from Italian metronomes to Spanish flamboyant steps, and now he seemed to have mastered them all.

"Maybe I should wear a mask and call myself Zorro." Cheng Yijiu also found it quite interesting. During this time, he had witnessed a lot of military swordsmanship and unconventional methods, and even encountered many unique weapons. This had greatly broadened his horizons and helped him take a step forward in his swordsmanship. His reputation as a swordsman had naturally spread. Although some people in the fortress still protested, no one could defeat him on the training ground anymore.

Even the leader of the Purple Rhino Paladin Order—the bald, burly man—had once battled Cheng Yijiu on the training grounds. Both sides were naturally fully armed, their blades sheathed in cotton and wooden sheaths. The long-handled axe and spear were significantly longer and heavier than Cheng Yijiu's cold iron greatsword. Though unmounted, the foot-to-foot leader, Bosgo, was still a formidable, heavily armored warrior. He swung his axe and spear, weighing at least thirty kilograms, like a wick, the centrifugal force delivering a tremendous impact.

If Cheng Yijiu was constantly controlled by him on the periphery, the outcome would be uncertain. After a few tentative sideways clashes, Cheng Yijiu felt that the absolute strength of this strongest warrior seemed to be comparable to his own—this was already inhuman strength. So Cheng Yijiu directly used the strong sword body and sword guard to block the long handle of the axe spear, slid inward, and turned his wrist, using the power of leverage to deflect the blade of the long-handled axe spear.

Then it was his turn, a single blow of his sword slicing off General Bosco's head. The onlookers watched as the Lionskin Swordmaster, after a few tentative exchanges with General Bosco, slid and dodged, his sword coming to rest on Bosco's neck. The Governor clapped his hands, delighted that his hired guards possessed such skill. His safety was assured.

Among the mercenaries, Cheng Yijiu's price was probably the highest. His price alone was comparable to that of a small mercenary group, and his guards were indeed worth the price. In order to seize the fortress, the Kingdom of Mitlan had been constantly assassinating the governor and generals. General Bosco was a formidable warrior himself, and he had easily killed several assassins. However, the governor relied entirely on Cheng Yijiu.

The assassination was very strange, launched from the shadows. According to the employment agreement, Cheng Yijiu was only responsible for the Governor's safety when he was at work, and would not protect him when he was enjoying himself. Although the Governor had offered him beautiful women and jewelry more than once, Cheng Yijiu refused to join in the Governor's pleasure-seeking activities.

The Governor's office was exceptionally spacious, as if this were insufficient to reflect his authority. Sunlight streamed in through the large window behind him, casting long shadows on him and his desk. The assassination attempt had occurred from the shadow beneath the window sill, cast on the underside of his chair. Cheng Yijiu was also in the office at this time. He had a sofa about two meters away, diagonally across from the Governor, where he usually rested his eyes or read a book from this world.

The assassination was a rising shadow, a black blade, and Cheng Yijiu leaped up immediately, unsheathing his greatsword and slashing down. The shadow dispersed, and Cheng Yijiu kicked the governor aside. The old man was quite perceptive, knowing that Cheng Yijiu was trying to save him, and he immediately rolled and crawled to the side without a word. The shadow could move, but it was stopped by the sudden burst of golden light from Cheng Yijiu's lion skin, and the shadow deformed and twisted, "standing up."

This was a "person" wearing a strange mask with eye patterns all over it. At least it looked like a person. "What monster? An apostle?" Cheng Yijiu remembered this guy. He seemed to have appeared in the New Eagle Group later, but whether he was an apostle or not was not certain. In short, this guy seemed to be an assassin. Cheng Yijiu didn't say much to this monster. If he was an apostle, then Cheng Yijiu would have made a profit today.

This assassin was merely strange, not powerful. His method of dodging Cheng Yijiu's attacks was also bizarre—separation. It seemed as if this thing was simply a mask with a three-dimensional shadow underneath. When Cheng Yijiu swung his sword, it separated into pieces of "darkness" that fell and vanished into thin air. However, it wouldn't give Cheng Yijiu the chance to slash it in two, nor would it allow him to strike its mask.

"Interesting, I'm starting to think this is actually an apostle." Cheng Yijiu slowed down his attack slightly—he hadn't been using his full strength before, and now he slowed down even more, wanting to get a closer look at this strange creature. The Governor? That wasn't important. He died at Griffith's hands in the story anyway—a self-destructive act that destroyed the fortress and the war.

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The shadow killer's movement was strange, and it was precisely because of this that he had dodged several of Cheng Yijiu's attacks. However, now he was finally unable to dodge - the monster was forced to stretch out a black hand from the shadows, probably because it was holding a dagger, which blocked and deflected Cheng Yijiu's attack. Under this blow, the monster's true appearance was fully revealed.

It was a slender figure wrapped in black cloth, wearing a strange multi-eyed mask, and a body that was strangely "soft." It seemed as if it had no joints, its entire body squirming like noodles. The monster tried to escape, but Cheng Yijiu's light severely restricted its escape route—it could only escape through the original window. Even more than the sunlight, Cheng Yijiu's light frightened him more.

The monster moved incredibly fast. As it vanished into the shadows through the gap, Cheng Yijiu only had time to slash off a quarter of its body with one sword. With a strange sound, the creature vanished. The slashed shadow still trembled, but after a few seconds, it transformed into black mist and vanished without a trace. The Governor was only now beginning to rage. Cheng Yijiu paid no attention to the Governor's humiliation over having wet his pants. He simply walked out of the office without a word, allowing the Governor to call for a servant to clean up after him.

Of course, Cheng Yijiu received his reward: a palm-sized leather bag filled with gems, none smaller than a thumb. The Eagles had shifted their focus once again. They were now renowned, considered among the finest mercenaries employed by the Mitlan Kingdom. Legend had it that if they continued to perform meritorious deeds, they would likely be inducted into the Mitlan Kingdom's regular Knights Order, and their leaders would receive titles of nobility.

Cheng Yijiu was one step ahead of them. With his exceptional fighting skills, he was already qualified for the title of knight. More than one noble from the Yoda Empire offered him an olive branch, willing to grant him manors and fiefdoms, allowing him to become a knight under their command. A knighthood was considered a quasi-nobility, lasting only one generation; no one was granted the title of knighthood right away. Cheng Yijiu had no interest in becoming a knight of the Yoda Empire; he had no intention of finding a superior in this world.

There was no chance right now, and it wasn't realistic for him to chase the Eagles alone. He could only wait until the Eagles faced the fortress again. Perhaps there was another chance, after Griffith was captured? But Cheng Yijiu vaguely remembered that the Overlord Egg wasn't in Griffith's hands at that time, but returned to him after he was rescued. "Things involving causality are really annoying!" Cheng Yijiu thought.

This wasn't just the Overlord's Egg; even the Behelet were like this. Cheng Yijiu ultimately failed to keep the Behelet he'd obtained, perhaps just as Zuo De had said. "Anyway, I'll just try to kill every Apostle I see. Accumulating enough Behelet will ultimately be beneficial. If I can get the Overlord's Egg, I'll be able to complete this mission." Cheng Yijiu wasn't very confident. The Overlord's Egg was too causal, making it difficult to deal with.

As for himself, he found that he had made great progress - mainly manifested in a small silver box that appeared from nowhere in his bag. When he opened it, he found a fragrant ointment inside. Instinctively, Cheng Yijiu knew what it was. It was the divine ointment bestowed by the God of Light. No matter how he used it, the box would be filled again at the first ray of sunlight every day.

This ointment, when applied to the body, can provide excellent defense - no matter if facing physical or mental attacks, and can also stop bleeding and heal wounds, restore physical strength, increase speed and strength, and can gain a great bonus of power from light amidst darkness and evil - he no longer needs chain mail or a helmet, he only needs wrist guards, greaves and a skirt of armor.

This leather bag had also suddenly appeared, much like Turgen's, both being "space" equipment, but it couldn't hold much—aside from chain mail and a helmet, it could also hold ointment, some daily necessities, and money. It couldn't hold weapons or lion skins. However, this was enough. After Cheng Yijiu applied the ointment, his body resembled that of a well-built warrior—not as exaggerated as in the competitions, which were the result of medication and injections.

This fellow's body was like a marble sculpture. He wore nothing but an open linen shirt, or if it was hot, he'd go bare-chested, draped in a lion skin before going into battle. Cheng Yijiu was now practically invulnerable to swords and spears; at least, ordinary soldiers' mundane weapons couldn't possibly penetrate his flesh. His fighting style was even more brutal, essentially a one-hit kill, as ferocious as a roaring waterfall, slashing and slashing across the battlefield, one strike after another.

Even General Bosco tried several times to get Cheng Yijiu to join the Yuda Empire's Heavy Knights, even offering him a knight's fiefdom as a reward. Cheng Yijiu declined, and not only that, he fled to the Mitlan Kingdom. It seemed that this kingdom had more apostles. As a free mercenary, Cheng Yijiu wasn't stopped when he rode around the battle lines and entered the kingdom from another direction.

There were no official soldiers to intercept him, but Cheng Yijiu was threatened by bandits, as well as villages and black shops that specialized in making lone travelers disappear. He had already killed dozens of bandits, and that afternoon, he saw a two-story house on the side of the road. A sign outside indicated that it was an inn, offering drinks and food on the first floor and accommodation on the second.

The hotel is not small, and there are stables and side rooms at the back. After Cheng Yijiu got off the horse and took out his luggage, which was wrapped in a lion skin, there were two young men waiting to greet him at the door. When he walked into the house, he found four people sitting in the living room on the first floor, a man at the counter, and two women walking back and forth between the tables. Cheng Yijiu ignored everything else and went straight to the counter, "A room, and prepare dinner for me. The horses also need to be fed well. Do you have anyone here to repair horseshoes?" As he said that, he took out a few silver coins and put them on the counter.

The man at the counter looked kind, and the two women were probably his wife and daughter. His wife was quite sturdy, and his younger daughter was about the same size as her mother. The other people in the store had a friendly atmosphere—but Cheng Yijiu felt it was all fake...