Volcanic Age

Clang, clang, clang!

The clash of weapons filled the air with harsh, grating sounds.

"Agk!"

The sound was soon drowned out by the groans and screams of warriors. Chaos erupted all over the place.

An immoral child betrayed his father and rose up against him. It might have been simpler if he'd acted alone, but half of the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao had joined forces with him.

While pretending to return home, he had informed his allies about his plans to attack and recruited experts.

The number of experts he was able to gather was a whopping five hundred. Half had joined from the outside, while the other half had arrived inside the compound in advance and set up camp.

"Xia Wu Sect!"

The door opened, and a warrior covered in blood came in.

"Whose side are you on?"

"Of course, I'm on Dan Libai's—ugh!"

An arrow struck the warrior's forehead.

'Who should I help first? The Evil Valley? The Evil Valley Master?'

Zhou Xuchuan glanced around. Even at a glance, he could see that the attacking side had the advantage.

"J-Jin Ke, you dare betray me?"

"Hyungnim! Go with the flow, go with the flow!"

"Ugh!"

"I'm not one of them! I didn't betray you!"

"How can I believe that?"

"Damn it!"

While all the traitors could recognize each other through a common mark, the Evil Valley Master's side couldn't do the same.

Since they couldn't tell who was an ally and who was an enemy, they couldn't launch a proper counterattack.

"Ugh! You… you tricked me…"

"Hmph!"

Moreover, the traitors continued to pretend to be their allies while stabbing them in the back, and there was nothing they could do. The situation quickly spiraled out of control.

Let's help this side first.

The Evil Valley Master wasn't one of the Ten Empyrean Overlords for nothing. Even if he were left alone, he wouldn't be defeated right away.

Instead, Zhou Xuchuan had to do something about how the Evil Valley forces were being pushed back unilaterally right in front of him.

"The betrayers!" Zhou Xuchuan shouted at the top of his lungs. However, who didn't know that? Naturally, no one even pretended to hear him.

However, the next thing he said drew all eyes to him.

"The Beast Gate, the Heretical Formation Gate!"

Everyone stopped.

"The Twin Saber Gate, the Neidan Sword Gate!"

They were all sects belonging to the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao.

"They're the betrayers!"

In the future—no, they had become traitors in the present. They had joined Dan Libai and had made the Evil Faction a mess.

"Come to think of it…"

While his opponents were flustered, barely able to grasp the situation, Zhou Xuchuan noticed that the techniques of those he'd been clashing with felt familiar.

Even though they were all Evil Faction martial artists, the traitors' techniques narrowed down to four types.

Claw arts that resembled the claws of beasts, techniques that dazzled the eyes, twin blades held in both hands and qi that seemed to belie all techniques!

"Nonsense!"

A member of the Heretical Formation Gate's neck turned red.

"Do you even know who he is to trust him?"

"It's embarrassing just from the fact that you were shaken up!"

He wasn't wrong.

If a bastard of an unknown identity were to appear and suddenly start shouting, it would only cause more confusion.

No, beyond confusion. It was closer to suspicion now.

"That bastard must be one of Dan Libai's lackeys—ugh!"

The Heretical Formation Gate member's head jerked back, an arrow piercing through his eye and out the back of his head.

"A-archery?"

Everyone was bewildered.

Its speed was impossible to follow with the naked eye.

This wasn't normal archery. At the very least, the person must have been a trained archer.

Taking advantage of their moment of confusion, Zhou Xuchuan nocked an arrow on the bow and released it. With a swish, it tore through the air, leaving a piercing hole in the sky.

"You dare!"

A Beast Gate member scoffed as if Zhou Xuchuan was being ridiculous and bent his fingers halfway, trying to block with the pride of the Beast Gate, the Beast Gate Claw.

Usually, it was just a flying arrow. Even if they were imbued with qi, they would just bounce off.

Clang!

"Ugh!"

The breath of the Beast Gate member caught in his throat. While he had successfully blocked the arrow, the qi contained within it dispersed through his claws as the shock rippled through him in full force.

His lower abdomen ached as if it was burning.

Just how did this…?!

The amount of qi contained in the arrow wasn't ordinary. He had never heard of a master archer who could handle this much power.

Squelch!

"Ugh!"

The Beast Gate member's eyes widened in disbelief. He could clearly see an arrow stuck in his abdomen.

When?

He had only seen and blocked one arrow.

However, when he came to his senses, there was a second arrow stuck in his abdomen.

Yes, the power was incredible, but the speed was unbelievable.

Although he wondered where such a master had come from, he died without being able to finish his thoughts.

"Tsk tsk tsk, what shit."

An Elder of the Twin Saber Gate, Yi Changdao, was annoyed.

"What are you doing there, just standing? Deal with him!"

Seeing Yi Changdao suddenly get angry, the Twin Saber Gate members hurriedly moved. They planned to subdue the archer before Zhou Xuchuan had the chance to nock an arrow.

As befitting people of a force with the word Saber in it, the warriors gripped their sabers tightly with both hands, eyes flashing as they swung repeatedly.

There were five of them.

"Look carefully!" Zhou Xuchuan shouted as if he was deliberately trying to stand out.

"Three!"

He hung several arrows and set the bowstring.

Thwip. Thwip, thwip!

While it wasn't a rain of arrows, still, several arrows, not just one, shot out with a threatening momentum.

One, two, three!

The power contained in each arrow was like a spear thrown with one's full strength.

When three of the Twin Saber Gate members fell with a scream and rolled across the ground, gasps of shock erupted around them. It was like a divine bow.

But!

A bow took time to reload after firing. An archer wouldn't be able to aim properly if an enemy gets too close.

The two remaining Twin Saber Gate members aimed for that moment, a satisfied smile spreading across their lips.

It was questionable why a master of archery had suddenly appeared in the first place. Still, they weren't a threat. It wasn't as if archery was everything, anyway.

Everything would be over if they got close. Thinking that way, the two tried to finish the archer off.

But…

"Huh?"

Zhou Xuchuan let go of the bow, not even attempting to fire another arrow. He just drew the sword hanging from his waist and gripped it firmly.

At first, they thought that he was just preparing for the coming combat by pulling out his sword and trying to struggle. However, their jaws dropped at the sight of his attack.

Boo–oom.

It was an incredibly heavy sword strike for what looked like a normal iron sword. The air itself was blasted away, crushing the very atmosphere around it.

It almost felt like he was swinging a massive greatsword. While the sword in his hand was an ordinary iron sword, for some reason, it looked like he was using a greatsword.

That's impossible! I need to change tactics!

No, I'll deflect it!

The reactions of the Twin Saber Gate members were different.

The bladesman in the front didn't dodge or block but instead he added strength into his hands and poured all his qi into the first blow.

The bladesman at the back prepared himself for the incoming internal injuries and forcibly stopped the flow of qi to his first attack before raising his double sabers and taking on a defensive stance.

Time seemed to slow and the sabers creeping from the front collided with Zhou Xuchuan's Ten Thousand Jin Sword.

Boom!

Zhou Xuchuan's Thousand Level Ten Thousand Sword unleashed a terrifying destructive power.

The ground where he stood caved in.

"Ugh!"

The moment the swords collided, the explosion was overwhelming. The Heavy Sword cut through the twin sabers with ease.

Just being able to cleave through the sabers was incredible enough, but he also separated the body of the Twin Saber Gate member in mid-air.

His attack was so precise that not even a drop of blood fell.

"I'm-I'm okay…"

As the space between the torso and legs of the bladesman in front widened, the Twin Saber Gates member following behind smiled brightly, thinking he'd survived.

However, the relief was short-lived, and his face twisted in horror.

Despite having just used an ignorantly brutal Heavy Sword, Zhou Xuchuan advanced without any difficulty.

The sword that had swung to the right suddenly stopped, almost as if it had been frozen in place, before slashing to the left without any hesitation.

Squelch!

With a single step, Zhou Xuchuan's strike gained both power and weight. It was a sword that weighed twice as much as before. The result was obvious.

"What the…"

They were warriors of the Twin Saber Gate of the Right Gates of the Evil Dao.

Moreover, they weren't just any low-level warriors, but at least First Class warriors. However, they were defeated without even being able to put up much resistance.

It happened so quickly that many people didn't understand what had happened.

Even though it happened right before their eyes, the sight was so overwhelming that their minds couldn't keep up with the situation.

"A bow and a sword?"

Yi Changdao's expression stiffened, as if he couldn't believe what was happening.

"Ah…!"

A few of the martial artists gasped, as if they had suddenly remembered something. Those one or two voices gathered together like a falling snowball and spread throughout the surroundings.

"The Phantom Bow Swordsman!"

A master of the Evil Faction who appeared like a comet about two years ago!

He was one of the newest One Hundred Experts Under the Heavens who had been hired by the Miao Family Sword Gate and played a decisive role in the destruction of the Flowing Waterfall Saber Gate before disappearing.

As there had only been rumors about him afterward without any traces, most had assumed he was dead. Who could have thought that he would have shown up here like this?

There was only one swordsman in the Evil Faction, or actually, even throughout the Central Plains, who could handle a bow like some sort of ghost.

"Why is the Phantom Bow Swordsman here?"

"Wait, before that, isn't he an Elder of the Xia Wu Sect?"

More and more people who recognized his fake identity increased.

"Why of all people…"

The expression of a middle-aged man with a scholar's robe suddenly distorted.

"What's the plan, Luo Jiao?"

"Luo Jiao? The head of the Heretical Formation Gate?"

The Heretical Formation Gate was a sect with incredible mental prowess, so much so that it was said if the Martial Alliance had the Zhuge Family, the Evil Valley had the Heretical Formation Gate.

However, just as the importance of mental prowess was belittled within the murim's circles, the Heretical Formation Gate had the lowest authority within the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao.

In particular, since it was a part of the Evil Faction, where not even a hint of courtesy existed, the contempt and disregard were even worse. Dan Libai had taken advantage of this and approached the dissatisfied Luo Jiao and suggested that they display their strength through rebellion, a suggestion the Heretical Formation Gate accepted.

"Wow, even the Gate Masters are part of it. Then the Evil Valley Master must be fighting to the death right now," Zhou Xuchuan muttered, piecing the situation together.

Even if Dan Libai were insane, he wouldn't have tried to face one of the Ten Empyrean Overlords on his own. He must have brought experts with him. It was obvious where the other Gate Masters of the Beast Gate, the Twin Saber Gate, and the Neidan Sword Gate would be.

In comparison, our side…

What had just happened to the Evil Valley was an ambush in itself. The top experts of the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao, who were on good terms with the Evil Valley Master, weren't present.

Even if they were to come running after hearing the news, they were too far away, and it would be impossible for them to arrive anytime soon. It was highly probable that they would arrive after everything was sorted out, so Zhou Xuchuan knew that it should be assumed that they weren't getting any support.

"Hmph, what do you mean, what's the plan?"

Luo Jiao laughed, straightening up.

"Yes, the Phantom Bow Swordsman was unexpected, but what can he do alone? We have the advantage in both numbers and cultivation."

"Hmm…"

There wasn't a single flaw to Luo Jiao's words, even those on the Evil Valley Master's side agreed.

"Is this even winnable?"

"We're all going to die."

"I don't want to die here!"

The situation was hopeless.

For those of the Evil Faction, one's life was the most important thing.

As martial artists, they also had pride and valued honor. However, they could never value something like that over their own lives. That was the difference between them and the Evil Faction.

Above all, the probability of victory was too low. It seemed impossible to handle even if they were to give it their all. As a result, their morale plummeted.

If there had been an order from the Evil Valley Master, things would have been different. However, since there was no news, they grew dispirited.

"Enough!"

With a loud stomp and a shout, Zhou Xuchuan commanded everyone's attention, their gazes drawn to him.

"Look carefully at the situation in front of you! How many of them before you can even be considered a master?!"

At those words, those of the Evil Faction froze.

The Heretical Formation Gate Master Luo Jiao wasn't a master. While he may have been talented in the art of traps and the art of formations, his actual cultivation was quite weak.

The elder of the Twin Saber Gate, Yi Changdao.

As a Transcendent, he was famed for being one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven. However, he was actually quite low on the list.

Beyond those two, there weren't any other famed Masters.

Though there were many martial artists in the First Class or Peak realm, their numbers weren't so overwhelming as to be unmanageable.

Things weren't as hopeless as they had thought.

The morale of the Evil Valley Master's side began to rise, thinking that maybe it really was worth a try.

Luo Jiao was about to say something in retort, but before he could, Zhou Xuchuan raised his sword high into the sky, releasing a powerful aura.

"Follow the Phantom Bow Swordsman, the Hua-Harmony Realm Master!"

He had almost identified himself as Zhou Xuchuan of the Mount Hua Sect.

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