Chapter 148: Chapter 147: We Are All Living with All Our Might

"About two hundred people have gathered now, almost three hundred."

Looking at the dense crowd gathered at the entrance to Flying Serpent Canyon, Xue Hongling’s eyes filled with worry.

She gripped her scabbard tightly with her left hand, her right resting on the hilt of her blade, ready for any sudden move from the crowd.

"Don’t be so tense~"

In stark contrast, Wu Chen, lounging in a chair slightly behind her, said casually:

"If you had just sat quietly in the chair beside me from the beginning, they wouldn’t have dared to make a move. They probably would have already come forward obediently to hand over what they got in Flying Serpent Canyon."

"But you’ve been so tense this whole time, and you wear every single thought on your face."

"Even though we killed those four old dogs, they see it as an act of desperation. They think we’re insecure and just trying to look tough."

"That’s why they’re still huddled together over there, looking for an opportunity to get the better of us."

"Now that I’ve explained it, do you see where you went wrong?"

Xue Hongling: "..."

"But don’t blame yourself too much. No matter what happens, they’re no threat to me."

Xue Hongling: "..."

"Of course, what I mean is, if it comes to a fight I can’t win, I can escape just fine. But you, being in the Meridian Passage Realm... I can’t say the same for you."

Xue Hongling: "..."

"But don’t you worry. I’ll be sure to gather your clothes for a proper memorial. Just remember to thank me when the time comes."

Xue Hongling: "..."

Xue Hongling met every one of Wu Chen’s statements with silence.

’She knew Wu Chen would never run. Otherwise, wouldn’t everything he’d done so far have been for nothing?’

’The only reason he hadn’t made a move yet was that he was waiting for everyone in the valley to gather.’

"You just killed four masters at the Perfection of the Jade Bone Realm. I admit, you’re very strong."

Xue Hongling thought for a moment, then said with a hint of resignation, "But those men were old and frail. They can’t be compared to the young geniuses within the sect who are also at the Perfection of the Jade Bone Realm."

"Their Qi and Blood was depleted. Even though they were all at the Perfection of the Jade Bone Realm, the difference between them and the young prodigies is like heaven and earth. They’re not in the same league."

She shook her head, clearly unimpressed by Wu Chen’s earlier feat. With a sigh, she continued:

"But let’s not get into that. Let’s talk about the situation right now."

"Once these eight hundred people in the valley gather, if they all try to escape at once, how can you and I stop them?"

"If they just flee, that would be for the best. But what if they don’t? What if they set their sights on those storage pouches you have and charge us all at once?"

"You don’t have inexhaustible Qi Power, do you? Could you really kill all of them?"

Wu Chen looked at Xue Hongling standing before him, quietly listening to her hushed questions.

He saw how she was clearly scared to death, her shoulders trembling, yet she still stood one step in front of him.

Wu Chen smiled.

"If these Blood Slaughter Sect members had the kind of backbone to ’charge into the fray and fight to the death,’ as you put it, they would’ve broken free from the sect’s control long ago."

"Instead of being forced into this mystic realm to act as the Blood Slaughter Sect’s dogs."

From his months of dealing with the Blood Slaughter Sect, Wu Chen knew exactly what these people were like: they preyed on the weak and feared the strong.

He said dismissively:

"You see them huddled over there, not moving? Do you really think they’re waiting for everyone to gather so they can charge us?"

"The truth is, not a single one of them dares to be the first to move!"

Hearing the conviction in his voice, much of Xue Hongling’s fear subsided, replaced by confusion.

"Why are you so sure no one dares to charge forward?"

"Because, just as you said, I probably can’t kill eight hundred people, nor can I stop eight hundred people."

Wu Chen said, still wearing that same smile:

"But I can definitely kill the person who leads the charge."

"And they know this better than anyone!"

"But..."

That one sentence stunned Xue Hongling, and at the same time, answered all of her questions.

’It was just as Wu Chen had said. If the Blood Slaughter Sect disciples had even an ounce of defiance in them, they would have charged when those four men were blocking the path to take their loot.’

’Why else would they still be hesitating now?’

CREAK~

But at this moment, Xue Hongling heard a sound from behind her.

It was Wu Chen, who had been sitting still for a long time, brushing himself off as he stood up.

He looked at the distant crowd and said softly:

"Well, it’s been half an hour. It looks like most of them are here, and I’ve just about run out of patience."

"These guys don’t want to hand over their loot, they don’t dare to charge, and they don’t dare to lead a breakout. They’re the very picture of cowardice."

"Tch! They call themselves the Blood Slaughter Sect, but among hundreds of them, you can’t find a single one with any courage."

"They’re worse than a girl who dared to flee thousands of miles all by herself to escape the Demon Sect..."

"These useless bastards deserve to die here!"

Wu Chen muttered to himself, his face a mask of disgust as he looked at the crowd at the pass.

Though it was an unintentional remark, it made Xue Hongling, who stood before him, blush.

However, the simple act of Wu Chen getting to his feet was enough to make the crowd at the pass—now five hundred strong—stumble back several steps in unison.

RATTLE!

After the wave of movement passed, the crowd stilled, but the atmosphere grew even more tense and restless. They had no idea what Wu Chen was planning.

Hundreds of pairs of eyes darted between the four heads hanging from the fifty-foot-high wooden post and the distant figure, filled with utter terror.

Many had witnessed Wu Chen slaughtering the four overseers at the Perfection of the Jade Bone Realm, and word of it had naturally spread through the entire crowd.

Sensing Wu Chen’s unconcealed killing intent, someone finally managed to speak up:

"Brothers, no matter how strong he is, he’s still only at the Perfection of the Jade Bone Realm. And what’s more, there are only two of them blocking our way now, not four."

"The exit is sixty or seventy feet wide. There’s no way two people can guard it all. This is a great opportunity! We should just charge through and we won’t have to hand over a single thing!"

This sentiment resonated with most of them. After all, with the guards down from four to two, their defenses were weaker, and the chance of escape was far from small.

"Exactly! You think the two of them can kill every last one of us? I say we can do it!"

A number of people nodded in agreement, but someone immediately shot back with a sarcastic retort:

"In that case, why don’t you two lead the charge! You go first, and I’ll be right behind you!"

"..."

The crowd fell silent. For a moment, everyone was speechless.

Everyone knew what would happen to the one who led the charge; safety lay only in hiding at the back of the crowd.

But with so many people watching, the one who made the initial proposal couldn’t back down. "Fine, we’ll charge!" he shrieked, trying to save face.

But he immediately added a condition: "We’ll wait for a few more people to arrive. To be safer. Then I’ll lead the charge!"

"Fuck that!"

The man who had retorted before laughed derisively. "When there were only a hundred of us, you said to wait for more people."

"At two hundred, you said the same thing. At over three hundred, you still said the same thing. Now there are almost six hundred people, and you’re still saying it? How many more people can there be in Flying Serpent Canyon?"

"What’s that supposed to mean? You doubting me? You got the balls, come out here and we’ll settle this!"

Having been so thoroughly embarrassed, the first man started cursing furiously.

The other man, not to be outdone, rolled up his sleeves.

The crowd began to shove and sway as the two men looked ready to brawl.

But just then, a terrified scream came from the front of the crowd:

"Look, what is that guy doing?!"

The voice cracked with fear, and the crowd’s commotion instantly ceased. All eyes snapped to a spot several dozen yards outside the canyon.

They saw the figure who had just stood up had already reached the edge of the canyon pass.

The ground there was littered with countless rocks and boulders of all shapes and sizes, some sharp and jagged, others smooth and round.

Wu Chen walked up to a roundish boulder that was about half as tall as a man.

The boulder looked to weigh three or four thousand pounds, and there were many more like it nearby.

Wu Chen spread his arms, wrapped his fingers around the sides of the stone, and before anyone could grasp his intent, he had hoisted it over his head.

Wu Chen balanced the boulder on one hand, hefted it a couple of times, then tossed it a few feet into the air and caught it. It felt surprisingly light to him, just the right weight.

This action, however, sent the crowd in the canyon into a complete uproar:

"What in the hell is that monster? How did he just lift that?!"

"That stone has to be five thousand pounds! Five thousand pounds!"

"Could he have an Overlord Body? He doesn’t look like it!"

"..."

Countless eyes widened in shock. Someone asked with a tremor in their voice, "What’s he going to do with a rock that big?"

"Heh, you think he’s just putting on a show for us?" someone sneered. Realizing things were about to go south, he started to shrink back into the crowd.

Someone else finally came to their senses, realizing they were no match for this man. "Senior, we’re willing to hand over our gains!" he yelled. "We beg you to show mercy!"

But it was too late.

By now, Wu Chen’s patience had run out. He acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing, and abruptly put his strength into it.

Power surged up from the ground.

With a sudden exertion from his feet, the ground beneath him cracked, fine lines spreading out in all directions like a spiderweb.

CRACK! CRACKLE!—

No flashy techniques, no graceful maneuvers—only the raw, ultimate expression of strength.

After bearing the immense force, the ground beneath Wu Chen’s feet let out a series of short, dense cracking sounds.

Then, he twisted at his hips and waist, channeling power through his arms as the full force of his body erupted, and he hurled the massive boulder.

WHOOSH!

The massive stone soared through the sky above the canyon like a falling meteor, hurtling toward the crowd at the pass with a deafening whistle.

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