Volcanic Age

Zhou Xuchuan didn't leave any trace of the Arsenic Pig or his forces. Although most of the Arsenic Pig's forces had lost their will to fight and surrendered when they saw their leader's head rolling on the floor, the Phantoms' swords showed no mercy.

There was no need for sympathy in the underground arena.

The regular people had already fled, and the people left were those who had indulged in the actions of scum thanks to the backing of the Arsenic Pig.

Not even a normal person would feel guilt over killing such scum, let alone the Phantoms, who had no emotions at all.

The screams coming from all over the underground arena continued without stopping.

This should be enough to make Vast Gate angry.

The thought of Vast Gate getting angry when he heard the news made Zhou Xuchuan feel better.

"Please save us!"

As he finished up, Zhou Xuchuan went through the entire underground arena, coming across slaves who had been chained up in prison.

He considered leaving them to rot, as many, like the Arsenic Pig's men, were evil. But he could tell that there were some among the prisoners who had been kidnapped or brought in unjustly.

"Let them go."

He ordered the Phantoms to release all of the prisoners.

Although they were all skeptical when they heard that they were free, they were happy to see the chaos in the underground arena and bolted out of the prison cell.

"Yes!!!"

"We're alive!"

"Thank you! Thank you!"

Half of them immediately disappeared, wanting to escape, while the other half didn't forget the favor and expressed their gratitude.

"Since everything is settling down here, half of you stay here and guard it so that no one can take over. The other half will follow me."

"We have received your order."

While the east was in ruins, the west was still under a fierce battle.

The Tough Bastard and the Viper Sword.

Neither one was giving up any ground.

The Viper Sword used the terrain and clever tactics to defend, while the Tough Bastard also fought with considerable wisdom.

"Ugh!"

"Agk!"

While the screams of pain and people losing their lives rang through Zhengzhou like usual, on this day, the night felt even longer than usual.

"We've broken through!"

Cheers erupted from the Tough Bastard's side, while the faces of those on the Viper Sword's side turned ashen.

Although the Viper Sword's forces had deployed spearmen, effectively blocking the advance of the Tough Bastard's troops by using the narrow alleys, the real problem was the enemy on the roof.

A few of the Xia Wu Sect members, including the Tough Bastard, had taken care of the archers, broken through the blockade to the roof, and eliminated the spearmen.

"You useless bastards!"

The Viper Sword finally stepped forward.

"Agk!!!"

The Viper Sword's cultivation was impressive for the Xia Wu Sect, roughly in the Peak Realm.

There were few Xia Wu Sect members who could stop him. When he swung his sword, the Xia Wu Sect members fell like autumn leaves.

"Viper Sword. You finally slithered out."

Jiang Nengchu smirked at the Viper Sword.

"How arrogant you are to provoke the heavens just because you've grown a little."

Bloodlust seemed to drip out of his snake-like pupils.

"It's not too late, even now. If you tell your scum to stand down and hand over control of the Red and Blue Houses, I'll spare your life."

"So you're not even worth fighting then."

"Do you really have to choose punishment? Fine, let me show you what it means to attack a viper!"

The Viper Sword dropped the sword in his hand and instead grabbed the soft sword wrapped around his waist.

"Ha!"

Shing!!!

The soft sword shot out like a viper. As expected of a soft sword, the sword bent and twisted like a slithering snake.

The fangs of the viper, targeting its prey, instantly aimed for the Tough Bastard's chest.

"Hmph!"

The Tough Bastard held his breath. Before his brain could even process what was happening, his body reacted instinctively, stepping back just as a soft sword whipped through the space where he had been standing.

"Hehehe!"

A soft sword was a rare weapon even within the murim. It was incredibly difficult to handle as the sword itself was flexible and bent with every move. One of its key characteristics was that it was impossible to read its trajectory, making it incredibly powerful once it was used.

"Jiang Nengchu."

Viper Sword wet his lips with his tongue and laughed unpleasantly.

"I know a little about you."

"What, that I'm an orphan abandoned in Zhengzhou who struggled to survive?"

That was a fact that everyone knew. If one was a resident living in the night streets of Zhengzhou, even the children knew that fact.

Since he had only recently gained power and fame within Zhengzhou's Xia Wu Sect, the basics about him were relatively well-known.

"A servant enslaved to the Blue House."

Jiang Nengchu's cold expression flickered. Although it was only for a moment, the Viper Sword didn't miss the change.

"See, I've been looking into you ever since the Red House fell."

The Viper Sword's viciousness and meticulousness were unparalleled in the Xia Wu Sect. Before resorting to his cultivation, he always first devised a strategy.

One of his favorite things to do was to bite down on his enemy's weakness and never let go, slowly digesting them. The Arsenic Pig and the Murderous Harlot were reluctant to talk to him precisely because they hated his conniving nature.

"That who used to beg with you under the bridge… she got noticed by the Blue House's pimp, didn't she? Yeah, she lucked out and went with him, right?"

Jiang Nengchu, who was an orphan, had only been able to beg.

Fortunately, he wasn't alone back then. There were many orphans in similar situations, begging under the bridge.

While the orphans had banded together and survived by relying on each other, the pimp of the Blue House had come to visit them, just as the Viper Sword said.

After washing the girls, the pimp of the Blue House had taken some of them away. This was something that the pimps would do on occasion, raising them as courtesans.

From the perspective of the orphans who were worried about their next meal, it was a great opportunity as they could solve the problem of food and shelter in one fell swoop.

Initially, only the girls should have gone back then. However, one of them had begged the pimp to take Jiang Nengchu in as a servant.

"Shut up," Jiang Nengchu, who had maintained his composure until that moment, responded.

The smile on Viper Sword's lips deepened.

"Isn't it a common story to fall in love with a courtesan who spent her childhood with you and even saved you?"

If one only talked about the ending of the Tough Bastard's story, that love never came to be.

A courtesan's life was short.

As a courtesan received a man's energy several times a day, naturally, she would also get exposed to violence.

Most importantly, it was too difficult to treat them if they got sick.

It was cheaper to just bring in a new courtesan and teach her than to call a doctor.

While Jiang Nengchu had wanted to do something at that time, he wasn't able to do anything in the face of reality.

As time passed, his sense of helplessness increased, and in the end, as expected, things didn't end well.

"It really brings a tear to my eye!" Viper Sword sneered, his reaction contrary to his words.

"Viper Sword!"

When his reverse scale was touched, Jiang Nengchu's iron fortress-like reason could no longer hold out. His eyes flickered with rage.

Bloodlust like never before exploded out of Jiang Nengchu as he charged at the Viper Sword.

He fell for it!

The Viper Sword held back his laughter and stretched out his hand, the soft sword he was holding rippling like a wave.

The soft sword, which traced a winding path like the path of a snake, cut Jiang Nengchu's shoulder diagonally.

"Ugh!"

The sharp, searing pain jolted Jiang Nengchu back to his senses, as if he'd been stabbed with a blade dipped in fire. He realized he'd fully lost the thread of reason he'd been clinging to and quickly twisted out of the way.

However, it was too late.

The Viper Sword persistently swung his soft sword, not wanting to let go of his prey once he had it in his grasp.

If I just take the Tough Bastard down, it's as good as winning!

He wanted to take care of the Tough Bastard, who had been a thorn in his side from the very beginning, but no matter how many orders he had given his subordinates, nothing had worked.

He had even sent a few people to take Jiang Nengchu out as he ran wild over the rooftops, but not a single one of them succeeded. Even though he called the Tough Bastard's forces his enemies, weren't they all still from the Xia Wu Sect at the end of the day?

As long as their leader, the Tough Bastard, dies, they would be no better than rabble.

"Hey, aren't things getting dangerous over there?"

"The Tough Bastard is losing!"

In fact, the Xia Wu Sect members on the Tough Bastard's side reacted in real-time.

Just a moment ago, their successful invasion of the Snake Den, which had been considered invincible, had raised their morale.

However, that morale dropped in an instant.

Anxiety was written on their faces, and some even began questioning whether they should flee.

"Quiet!"

"That's impossible!"

"We have to help Hyungnim!"

Despite the Xia Wu Sect generally fostering little to no loyalty, mostly consisting of weak Third Class weaklings, there were always a few exceptions.

A few of the members were genuinely loyal to the Tough Bastard.

However, they weren't strong enough to have much influence, making it hard for them to convince the rest of the group.

"Hyungnim! I'm coming!"

Even so, someone stepped forward.

However, the Viper Sword wouldn't let that happen.

When the Viper Sword motioned, several of his subordinates came out and blocked the path leading to the Viper Sword and the Tough Bastard. In order to prevent the Tough Bastard from escaping, the Viper Sword's forces completely blocked the escape route.

Was I wrong…

Though Jiang Nengchu regained his composure, the pain in his shoulder made it difficult to continue the battle. He regretted his impulsive actions, however, regret was an emotion that always came too late.

"I just wanted to change this place, even if it's only a little…"

Was it because his resolve had weakened a little?

Jiang Nengchu absentmindedly muttered to himself about his desires.

Zhengzhou, the hometown where he was born and raised.

He loved Zhengzhou, but he also hated it.

When he was young, he saw countless children die.

Some died because they couldn't find food, and others were beaten to death by people in bad moods when they begged.

Even after becoming a servant, he had often been subjected to violence whenever he delivered food late.

Although he may have been a human, he wasn't treated as a person, and even with his position, he would always worry and wonder where his next meal was coming from.

He had always lived with a fire in his heart, holding the name of the person he had loved close to his chest, refusing to yield to reality.

When he came to his senses, he had earned the title the Tough Bastard, and the orphan under the bridge had become a man who looked after the Blue House.

While he had somehow managed to survive alone in this harsh world, that was all there was to it.

Jiang Nengchu hung his head, staring at the dark sky, the moon nowhere in sight, and muttered to himself.

"I've lived so diligently on my own without any complaints… can't you help me a little?"

The one who answered him was not the Primordial Heavenly Lord or the Buddha, but the Viper Sword who had long ruled the Snake Den.

"Expecting help from someone in the Black Hand? That's a sign of your own defeat! Blame yourself for being too weak!"

The sword flicked out, aimed directly at Jiang Nengchu's throat.

Swish!

The soft sword sliced through the air, flickering in the dim light.

In that split second, when Jiang Nengchu's eyes locked onto the blade and engraved its image in his mind, his body had already reacted. It was thanks to his nerves, which were always on guard, and his muscle memory that he had trained for decades.

His muscles contracted as he put strength into his legs.

The pain in his bleeding shoulder surged with that small movement.

Not even dying is easy…

His life flashed before his eyes, starting from when he had lived under the bridge. Is this what they called a trotting horse lamp?[1]

"This is the end!"

The Viper Sword's voice, grim like the God of Death, sentenced him to death.

Jiang Nengchu's emotions, full of regret, surged.

However, it was already too late.

Flicker.

"Hmph!"

Clang!

The moment the Viper Sword's soft sword was about to cut into his neck, a dagger flew from out of nowhere, striking the soft sword.

The sword that was about to pierce Jiang Nengchu's neck barely grazed his skin before it was knocked aside.

His breath caught in his throat as the Viper Sword's eyes also widened in disbelief.

"Who the hell are you?!"

The Viper Sword stepped back without continuing his attack.

"Dagger Phantom…" Jiang Nengchu muttered, caressing his clammy neck.

"Dagger Phantom? Oh, that's right, I've heard that name."

Suddenly, a figure appeared.

When the Viper Sword blinked, the figure was standing there as if he had always been there.

"There's no way…"

The Viper Sword's face distorted as if he had chewed shit.

"Nice to meet you, Viper Sword. I was a little late because I had to deal with the pig first."

Zhou Xuchuan stretched his neck, the sound of his bones cracking loudly.

"And now I'm going to kill you."

1. A form of a zoetrope, it's a lantern painted with different scenes that get spun to make an illusion of a moving picture. ☜