Ark Chess Player.

"Old Wei said that there's no need to consider capturing him alive; just kill him directly."

The leading guard in black raincoat spoke in a deep voice, his thick, unassuming Yan language masking a chilling coldness.

"Here."

The other guards drew their broadswords from their sheaths beneath their robes and unleashed a barrage of hidden weapons at the monster. These weapons could melt even iron when they hit it, but even so, they could not completely kill the monster.

A monster is a monster precisely because it is beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

The only thing that can kill a monster is a monster.

The black-clad guard, with an aura of overwhelming power, raced against gravity outside the high walls, his movements as light as a swallow. He had once decapitated a charging Ursus cavalry horse with a single stroke. The horse seemed oblivious to its severed head, continuing to gallop forward for several more meters before collapsing. The bloody, severed flesh of that fiery steed was still etched into his mind; it was his source of confidence, the pillar of his strength. His sword, capable of cleaving mountains, possessed a power that could overwhelm rivers and mountains.

Everyone firmly believed that Lao Wu could, just like many years ago, lead the charge on the battlefield against Ursus and break through the enemy lines with a single strike.

"Ugh."

Lin Lu let out a melodious sigh and slowly raised the long sword in his hand.

“Amiya…” Lin Lu noticed Amiya’s expression and changed his original thought, “I’m entrusting Dr. Kal’tsit to your protection, Amiya.”

"Leave it to me, Doctor!"

Amiya said with great confidence, raising her little fist.

Lin Lu turned to look at Kal'tsit. Given their relationship, they could understand each other's thoughts with just a glance.

"Go without worry, I'll take good care of Amiya."

—Kal'tsit's sharp eyes conveyed her thoughts.

"Your eyes are scary, but you're still so cute, Kal'tsit."

Lin Lu nodded very seriously and gave her a thumbs up.

"Wait a minute, Doctor from Rhodes Island."

Who is it? Who is this guy who's acting as a third wheel at such a romantic time?

Don't you know there's an 8 AM morning drama going on here? Get lost, you insensitive idiot!

"So you mean my Shadow Guards can't handle a mere infected person?"

Wei Yanwu frowned involuntarily. His already fierce face, combined with this expression, made him even more intimidating.

Lin Lu looked up at the uncooperative light bulb at a 45-degree angle in the new house... no, he was a stubborn old man still living in the old WIN98 system and not knowing how to update his ideas.

"While you still think this is just an ordinary infected incident, your Shadow Guards have already been covered with flags, full of death flags." Lin Lu shook his head helplessly, slowly walked to the window, and sighed softly, "Let me show you the reality."

Lin Lu stood by the window, extending his right hand outwards.

Because the reinforced glass had cracked due to the previous high-frequency vibrations, he was almost half-suspended on the edge of falling.

Wei Yanwu frowned, puzzled by Lin Lu's behavior.

He suddenly had a ridiculous thought: Could it be that this person had burned his hand with the flames and wanted to stick it out of the window to get some fresh air?

The next moment, Wei Yanwu's ridiculous and perverse idea was brutally crushed by reality.

A dark shadow fell from the sky at an extremely high speed, as if it had been hit head-on by a cannonball.

Lin Lu narrowed his eyes slightly, his incredibly slender arms catching the falling shadow with remarkable precision, and casually tossing it onto the floor of the reception room.

The dark figure was none other than the black-clad guard known as Fifth Brother! He was still holding a broken knife in his hand, a large wound torn in the tiger's mouth, and a piercing mark on his chest. The vital organ that was originally in his left chest... his heart, had been hollowed out.

"—?!"

Wei Yanwu's expression changed. The ruler, who had been standing on a high position, was finally willing to look down and see clearly what was under his feet.

“Mr. Wei.” Lin Lu wiped the bloodstains off his right hand, raised his head and said coldly, “Don’t underestimate Rhodes Island, and don’t underestimate… the Reunion Movement.”

Chapter 198 Jianghu

"Fifth Brother!!"

The leader of the black-clad guards stared wide-eyed as blood splattered from above, landing on his straw hat and slowly dripping down.

Decades of friendship, sworn brothers, were pierced through by a sharp object before his very eyes, their bloody hearts protruding from their broken skeletons, displayed before everyone.

The fifth brother died just like that.

His knife failed to even sever one of the monster's forelimbs; with a burst of intense sparks, the shattered blade flew off into the distance.

The guards in black raincoats were momentarily stunned, unable to accept this reality. Everything had happened so suddenly that they couldn't even react in time.

They had been thieves and soldiers, and now served as guards for nobles in the Yan Kingdom. They had long since resigned themselves to this life of living on the edge. They had lived almost half their lives, stumbling and struggling along the way. Some of the brothers had wives and daughters, but in this cruel world, there was no room for someone with blood on their hands to live a good life.

What is Jianghu? Wherever there are people, there is Jianghu.

What is the martial arts world? It is the delusion of chivalrous heroes, and also the cradle of those who live a life of cowardice.

In their drunken stupor, they had imagined how they would die: either being hunted down by enemies for revenge, or paying the price for their actions.

...They just didn't expect this day to come so suddenly.

Pieces of charred carbon fell off the mutated researcher's body, and the sharp, black body kept breaking free of the cocoon, throwing away the corpse of the black-clad guard along with it.

Don't answer it!

The leader in the black raincoat shouted, stopping a guard who was about to take his brother's body away.

The other person paused upon hearing this, but it was too late. They reached out and grabbed Lao Wu's arm, lifting his corpse. In an instant, he felt a piercing pain in his palm! Countless black lines stretched along his veins—was this poison, or a deadly poison?

The excruciating pain, as if it were melting his brain, caused him to involuntarily loosen his grip, letting Lao Wu's body fall to the ground.

"Second brother, retreat! Retreat!"

The leader in the black raincoat shouted, his eyes bloodshot and his voice rough and hoarse. He could not accept the death of yet another brother.

Who could have imagined that the previously favorable situation would be reversed in the blink of an eye? Just minutes ago they were the hunters, and now they have become the prey.

The seed of evil took root and sprouted within the researcher's body, bearing rotten fruit. He was tempered in flames, hardened by explosions; evolved in poison, and reborn in corrosion. All traces of his former humanity had vanished without a trace; four pairs of sharp, blade-like limbs clung to the wall, his body gleaming with a blend of carbon fiber and alloy. A neurotoxin capable of rendering a person unconscious within seconds was hidden in glands in his forelimbs; his entire body was a deadly weapon.

"Boss, what do we do?"

A guard in a black raincoat was sweating profusely. They weren't without experience dealing with harmful beasts. However, the fact that these ancient people had transformed into monsters before them created a disorienting feeling, as if their reality had been shattered. An instinctive fear welled up in their hearts, and their hands and feet seemed to become much slower.

"...Listen to my command."

The leader in the black raincoat spoke in a deep voice, like the roar of a wild beast. He stepped on the curtain wall, leaving a deep indentation in the surface.

"Hold your tongue and kill! Unleash your true energy, avoid the brunt of the attack, and avenge Fifth Brother!!"

"Here!"

--------

"Don't touch it, it's poisonous."

Lin Lu reminded him, stopping Wei Yanwu from reaching out to check the body's vital parts.

Although this minor poison didn't hurt him as much as Amiya's cracking of his knuckles, an ordinary person would probably die from the poison in less than a minute if they came into contact with it.

"Mr. Wei, let me handle this."

Kal'tsit beckoned, and Mon3tr, acting on her will, floated to the corpse of the man in the black cloak. Like a scalpel, she slashed through the pinnacle of Yan Kingdom's handcrafted special clothing, capable of withstanding blades, spear tips, flames, and lightning, revealing terrifying penetrating wounds and black lines that permeated the entire body.

This is the Yan Kingdom's top-grade Heavenly Silkworm Armor, which even bullets from guns could not penetrate, yet now it is torn to shreds like a rag.

"--snort!"

Wei Yanwu's pupils slowly narrowed. If anyone who knew his temperament were here, they would be able to sense how furious he was at this moment! These shadow guards were not just pawns to him, but also very important retainers, and now they had died tragically before his eyes! All because of his wrong judgment, all because of his incorrigible arrogance, all because of his conceit.

"Mr. Wei, let Rhodes Island handle this matter."

Lin Lu said softly, within his spiritual domain, he sensed that the life value of another guard in black raincoat was decreasing.

"...Do you need personnel, equipment, or supplies?"

Wei Yanwu said in a deep voice. Although there was no change in his tone and attitude, he had indeed let go of something.

In a sense, Wei Yanwu was indeed a high-ranking businessman who knew how to adapt his stance to changing circumstances, making it possible to make choices quickly.

"I just need your shadow guards to get off the field." Lin Lu didn't give him a hard time. The situation was now so dire that he couldn't afford to be leisurely any longer. He looked Wei Yanwu straight in the eye and said, word by word, "Your shadow guards are consumed by anger. I can feel their resentment. People who are blinded by negative emotions in a life-or-death battle can't think straight or follow orders. I don't need them. They're just getting in my way, understand?"

"...Let me see the power of Rhodes Island."

Wei Yanwu snorted coldly, clearly finding Lin Lu's words too harsh.

"Mr. Wei, please wait and see."

Lin Lu smiled gently, then turned to look at Kal'tsit and Amiya, giving them an approving look.

"Don't worry, I'm here."

Lin Lu smiled proudly, then flipped over and jumped out of the window.

The wind whipped his long silver hair, adding a touch of madness to his smile.

Lin Lu doesn't know the light-footed skills of the Yan Kingdom, but he is currently in a state of being controlled by a heroic spirit, so he cannot be judged by ordinary common sense. His god-like stats of A in Strength, Agility, and Magic allow him to climb vertical walls using pure power, breaking free from the constraints of gravity.

The mutated monsters had already been forced to the helicopter landing pad of the Lungmen Administrative Hall by the Shadow Guards. Only on this solid ground could the Shadow Guards unleash their true power.

Lin Lu used one hand to hold onto the top of the circular platform and easily leaped onto the rooftop, once again feeling the wonderful sensation of his feet landing on the ground.

As a third-party force, Lin Lu had no intention of pausing even for a moment to observe the situation.

Because everything that happened was exactly as he had anticipated.

Chapter 199 Flames, Burn!

Group 4 8 8 ⑦ 4 9 ⑦ 9 9

"retreat."

"Old Wei! But—"

"I'll say it again, retreat."

Wei Yanwu's voice reached the ears of the guards in black raincoats through a communicator hidden in their black straw hats. The guards expressed their confusion and bewilderment at the order. Even though they were now down to only three, the Great Yan's light-footed skills had been able to be used since they returned to flat terrain.

Despite the fierce offensive, the Shadow Guards were no longer injured and seemed to be handling the situation with ease.

“A ‘professional’ person has taken care of this. You may leave.”

Wei Yanwu's voice sounded somewhat tired; the repeated unexpected events had left him feeling slightly... bewildered.

This is definitely not a good thing for the rulers. The person at the top can make mistakes, but he must never admit that he has made a mistake.

This sounds contradictory, but there's more to the story than meets the eye.

A ruler with clear goals and a firm will can gain the support of the majority of people no matter what policies he issues.

Conversely, when indecisive and hesitant senior management makes ambiguous judgments, the execution capability will be greatly reduced, and they may even be overwhelmed by opposition.

Therefore, no matter how unreasonable the behavior or how absurd the decrees, once the leader firmly believes in and implements them, the masses will also believe them and obey. Once the mediums for disseminating information—the tools, channels, carriers, intermediaries, or technologies used to transmit and acquire information—are firmly controlled, the information constantly being fed into the public consciousness will solidify the thinking of most recipients, guiding their development accordingly.

Like a shepherd, they control the sheep with whips, shears, tender grass, and canine teeth.

Wei Yanwu narrowed his eyes. He knew his position; he was a ruler, and he was also a businessman.

The nature of a businessman lies in maximizing profits, minimizing burdens and losses, and...

Wei Yanwu seemed to have figured something out and gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"Wait and see what happens, and await further instructions."

"...Yes, Elder Wei."

The guards in black raincoats had no choice but to agree. To them, Elder Wei was more than just an employer-employee. They were retainers, and they had to obey their master's orders. Even if their brothers were killed by this monster, they had no choice but to obey Elder Wei's command.

Even if the resentment and anger in one's heart are almost driving one mad.

Just as the Shadow Guards were preparing to retreat, they sensed a surge of heat rising up. Cautiously, they looked over and saw a girl effortlessly ascend the rooftop from the curtain wall. Intense flames erupted from her left hand, while her right hand held a sword; she landed with the lightness of a Valkyrie.

She was an absolutely stunning girl, with long silver hair, dazzling golden eyes, and an exquisitely beautiful face that seemed almost unreal. Words like "beauty that could make fish sink and geese fall from the sky" and "a celestial being" couldn't adequately describe her beauty. She stood there quietly, as if everything would become peaceful.

Lin Lu calmly surveyed his surroundings, his gaze fixed on the monster in the center of the rooftop, completely ignoring the other three shadow servants; he didn't care.

Thanks to these shadow guards, the poor researcher was reborn amidst the flames and poison, seemingly evolving from infancy to full maturity. He skipped both the growth and maturity stages. "Very well, very well," Lin Lu thought, wanting to curse and conveniently finish him off with a single sword strike.

At this moment, the monster's ferocious limbs resembled meter-long blades, its entire body made of a substance resembling a mixture of carbon fiber and alloy. This combination provided unexpected toughness, sharpness, and lightweight construction while retaining its biologically characteristic glands. These glands, densely packed across its limbs, secreted chilling toxins; literally, its entire body was covered in thorns.