Naya was a thousand-man commander, his strength rivaling a mid-stage Grandmaster. In terms of defense, he was even twice as tough as an early Grandmaster. Yet he was still beheaded by Ian Song with a single sword strike.
He died before his mission even began.
Naya was utterly unwilling to accept this ending, but with his head chopped off, what could he do—unwilling or not?
"Lord Naya!"
As for the other Strongarm Bull Devils, they were all stunned—Lord Naya had actually been killed with a single sword.
"Avenge Lord Naya! Kill this human!"
One of the hundred-man commanders roared, swinging a three-meter-long blade at Ian Song. A strange gleam flashed in his eyes—if he could kill this human and avenge Lord Naya, he'd be eligible to become the next thousand-man commander.
"Die, human!"
His blade flashed like lightning, slashing down in an instant. The intense blade force seemed strong enough to split heaven and earth in two.
Whoosh!
The human figure flickered—his blade missed, slicing nothing but air. At the same time, a purple sword-light flared.
At the same time, a purple sword-light flared.
After decapitating the hundred-man commander, Ian Song charged into the Strongarm Bull Devil ranks. His sword, Purple Thunder, became a reaping light, sending heads flying wherever it passed.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of Strongarm Bull Devil soldiers fell to his sword.
"Damn human—kill him!"
After decapitating the hundred-man commander, Ian Song charged into the Strongarm Bull Devil ranks. His sword, Purple Thunder, became a reaping light, sending heads flying wherever it passed.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of Strongarm Bull Devil soldiers fell to his sword.
In the next instant, Ian Song appeared inside the ninth pit.
He barked coldly, "Loose!"
The ninety-nine soldiers, who had already nocked their bows, instantly stood up from inside the pits.
"Swish swish swish!" Ninety-nine sharp arrows shot out under the cover of night, streaking through the darkness like black beams.
"Thud thud thud thud!" The arrows were specially made, easily piercing through the Strongarm Bull Devils’ defenses.
Naturally, these arrowheads were expensive—two taels of silver apiece. Ordinary soldiers only got ten each; squad leaders got twenty.
The ninety-nine soldiers had already quietly taken aim at the Bull Devils, so with this volley, at least ninety Bull Devils were hit and collapsed with screams.
"The humans are over there—charge and kill them!"
Even though they'd just lost dozens of their own to arrows, the six hundred-man commanders refused to retreat. Judging by the number of arrows, they figured the ambushing humans weren't many.
Lord Naya was dead, and another hundred-man commander had fallen. With over a hundred soldiers lost, if they retreated now, the ten-thousand-man commander would never let them off.
Their only choice was to slaughter this detestable group of humans.
If they succeeded, not only would their guilt be erased, they'd earn merit instead.
"Kill them!"
Over five hundred Strongarm Bull Devil soldiers howled madly, brandishing weapons as they charged.
Their speed was so great, they didn't notice the ground beneath their feet at all.
So, the dozens of Strongarm Bull Devils at the front all tragically tumbled into the pits dug in advance, crashing down in a daze.
But the pits weren't deep—just about two meters—perfect for trapping their lower bodies, making escape impossible for now.
Because the front-runners fell in, the next group instinctively leaped over their heads, only to drop straight into the second row of pits.
"Loose!"
By then, the soldiers had already nocked their special arrows again.
"Swish swish swish!"
Ninety-nine arrows shot out in a furious volley.
A chorus of "thud thud thud thud" rang out as nearly a hundred Strongarm Bull Devils trapped in the two rows of pits were shot dead.
Seeing this, the remaining Bull Devil soldiers halted their charge, stunned and shaken.
They'd become sitting ducks.
"Free fire!" Ian Song shouted. He himself picked up a longbow and began shooting arrows.
"Aaaah!"
Screams rang out one after another, and dozens more Bull Devil soldiers collapsed. Ian's arrow pierced through one Devil's skull, exited from the back of his head, and continued on, shooting through two more heads before finally stopping.
"Fengshi, what do we do now? These humans aren't like the ones before!"
The six Bull Devil hundred-man commanders gathered together, their faces dark as they discussed.
"There's only one way—we kill all these humans to wash away our guilt. Otherwise, even if we run back, the ten-thousand-man commander will punish us!" Fengshi snarled.
"But these humans seem really cunning. We've already lost over two hundred soldiers!" another hundred-man commander said worriedly.
"Hmph, even if we lose everyone, as long as we kill them, it's still a win!" Fengshi said coldly.
"Fine, let the troops keep charging. The six of us will swing around both flanks!"
"Got it!"
After a quick discussion, the six Bull Devil hundred-man commanders split into two teams and sped off toward both flanks.
"Liam Liang, Rohan Luo, Hank Han—you three go block the three commanders coming from the left! Everyone else, fall back two hundred meters and form the Big Dipper Battle Array!" Ian ordered.
Thanks to his Clairvoyant Vision, Ian could see the entire battlefield, so the moment the six Bull Devil commanders made their move, he knew exactly what they were planning.
He gave rapid orders, then flashed forward to block the three commanders coming from the right.
"Kill him!"
Without another word, the three Bull Devil commanders attacked at once.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Knowing how strong this young human was, the three commanders went all out, unleashing attacks like three raging torrents, deadly and relentless.
"Die!"
Ian narrowed his eyes, killing intent surging. He had no sympathy for these Devils—if he could kill them, he wouldn’t hesitate.
Sword intent!
In an instant, Ian merged with heaven and earth, and Purple Thunder amplified his power several times over.
Buzz!
A streak of purple sword-light sliced through the void at incredible speed.
The next moment, three heads flew up into the sky.
After killing the three commanders, Ian’s figure suddenly appeared on the left flank.
Liam Liang and the other two had already formed the Threefold Blade Formation, holding off the three commanders' attacks.
Splurt splurt splurt!
Another flash of purple sword-light—and three more heads soared into the air.
After killing another three, Ian dove back into the Bull Devil army.
He unleashed five Phantom True Bodies, and together with his real body, went on a wild killing spree—over a hundred Bull Devils were sent to permanent rest on this battlefield.
His brief but devastating interference bought just enough time for the rear troops to complete the Big Dipper Battle Array.
So Ian pulled back, letting the remaining three hundred-plus Bull Devils charge straight at them.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The three hundred Bull Devils surged forward like a flood, smashing down with their heavy weapons.
Facing the onslaught of three hundred Bull Devils, the eighty-one soldiers in the Big Dipper Battle Array felt a bit nervous at first.
But soon enough, they steadied themselves, realizing that even though the Bull Devils outnumbered them several times over, they could easily withstand the attacks.