“Stop…Stop beating me…Please stop…” Cang Liqun pleaded in pain as he realized that he had made a mistake by taking things too superficially. This group of men did not even want to reason with him.

　　Only then did Yunxiao speak coldly, “Stop! Do you know what rights we have now?”

　　“Yes! Yes!” Cang Liqun answered hurriedly.

　　When the soldiers and officers of the Golden Lion Army saw their commander in chief, who had always been so aloof and behaved like an emperor, plead in front of someone with such a humble attitude, they all gaped and felt their hearts filled with grief, indignation, and contempt while their morale dropped to the lowest level. One after another, they drooped their heads.

　　Yunxiao sneered. “As a man who has lived in this world for so many years, don’t you know that the reasons are always with those with bigger fists? I really wonder how you managed to become a Martial Lord. In any case, it’s good that you understand this now, because you can finally die in peace.”

　　His voice turned extremely cold as he said, “Kill him.”

　　“What!” Lying on the ground, Cang Liqun trembled and cried out in disbelief. “Kill me? You want to kill me?” His eyes filled with horror and shock as he said furiously, “I’m a courtier and a general who guards the border of the state! You will violate the laws if you kill me without permission! Do you have His Majesty’s decree?”

　　Yunxiao looked at him as if he were a fool. “You’ve committed a capital crime when you nearly killed me! Laws and imperial edicts are nothing in my eyes. When I want you to die, that’s the law and the imperial edict!”

　　The contempt on Yunxiao’s face made Cang Liqun feel like he was really just an ant, and that his biggest advantage was suddenly gone. By now, he was really afraid as he said with a pale face, “Don’t kill me! I’m a Martial Lord! You will find me very useful if you keep me! As long as you spare my life, I will remain faithful to you until my death!”

　　Chen Dasheng and the others remained silent. After all, Cang Liqun was a Martial Lord, and that made him one of the few mighty experts in Tianshui. If he could surrender to them, he would definitely become a great help.

　　“A Martial Lord?” Yunxiao scoffed. “In my eyes, a Martial Lord has not even stepped into the door of martial arts. Just die when I ask you to and stop wasting my time! Kill him!”

　　A Martial Lord had not even stepped into the door of martial arts!

　　All the Martial Lords present, including Xiao Qingwang, were stunned by that. A Martial King could control the lifeblood of a nation, and a Martial Lord could at least influence a power in a nation. But in Yunxiao’s eyes, such a strong force had not even stepped into the door of martial arts. However, they did not feel offended even in the slightest bit. Instead, they agreed with what he said.

　　With a soft, wet sound, Cang Liqun’s neck was cut open by Ji Meng. Blood spurted out, blooming like a firework before death descended. Just like that, Cang Liqun, one of the important figures in the military and the commander-in-chief of the Golden Lion Army, died worthlessly in the wild outside the city of Yangpu.

　　What came after that did not require Yunxiao’s attention, so he was helped into the commander’s chariot to rest.

　　Chen Dasheng’s eyes gleamed with joy as he glanced at the four hundred thousand soldiers of the Golden Lion Army. With a cold face, he cried out, “Cang Liqun had abused his power to seek personal gain and colluded with our enemy! He had committed crimes deserving death ten thousand times! Now that he is executed, justice has been served! Who is your deputy commander-in-chief? Steps out of the rank right now!”

　　Two middle-aged generals walked slowly out of the troops. Their faces were flickering, and they seemed to be struggling. But, when they walked past Cang Liqun’s body, they breathed a long sigh at the same time, as if they had made up their minds.

　　“The deputy commander-in-chief of the Golden Lion Army, Huang Hong/Hua Man, offers greetings!” Both men said in unison, their voices booming like a great bell.

　　“A two-stars Martial Master?” Chen Dasheng gave Huang Hong a surprised look. “To be promoted as a deputy commander-in-chief with such a weak cultivation base, you must be either from a powerful family or an intelligent and resourceful man. But, as far as I remember, there is not a Huang family in Tianshui’s court. So, you must be a wise man.”

　　He immediately attached greater importance to Huang Hong. What they lacked now was not troops or high-end fighting forces, but a strategist who knew everything about Baizhan. Although Chen Dasheng was a genius of the art of war, as he was sick and had been dwelling in seclusion for so many years, he did not know much about the current military affairs of the two states.

　　“That is correct, my lord!” Huang Hong thundered. The deputy commander-in-chief, on the other hand, was filled with admiration for Chen Dasheng’s sharp judgment. He was indeed the brains for the Golden Lion Army, and it could be said that since the army was formed to the present, he had personally presided over almost all the major affairs.

　　His colleague, Hua Man, was a Great Martial Master, which meant he was promoted purely because of his strength.

　　“Very good!” Chen Dasheng looked at both men as a murderous air poured out of his eyes. “You’ve seen how Cang Liqun colluded with the enemy. Now, I will incorporate and reorganize the Golden Lion Army. Do you have any objections?”

　　Shocked, they answered in unison, “We have no objections and will follow my lord’s orders!” Their palms were wet with cold sweat. If they did raise an objection now, they would never have the chance to voice out again. When they walked past Cang Liqun’s body, they had already decided to yield.

　　“Good! The Golden Lion Army will keep its structure and is now under Huang Hong’s command!” Chen Dasheng took out a token and shouted aloud, “Huang Hong, step forward to receive the commander’s token!”

　　“Yes, my lord!” Huang Hong boomed as he strode forward and took the token, his face beaming with great joy. He did not expect that Chen Dasheng would appoint him, a surrenderer, as the commander-in-chief of the army; at the same time, he admired his way of using talented people.

　　‘If you use a man, don’t suspect him; if you suspect a man, don’t use him! This is the way of a great general!’

　　After that, Chen Dasheng took a deep breath, bringing it down to his dantian, and then shouted out at the top of his lungs, “All four hundred thousand of you fled without putting out a fight and abandoned a military stronghold! This is a capital crime! But now, I will give you a chance to atone for your crime by meritorious service. Return to the front line and protect our nation!”

　　Huang Hong echoed aloud, “Atone for your crime by meritorious service, protect our nation!”

　　The soldiers and officers of the Golden Lion Army looked at each other in bewilderment, but soon many picked that up and began to shout as well. Eventually, their cries were uniformed and their voices shook the field and sky.

　　“Atone for the crime by meritorious service! Protect our nation!”

　　…

　　As the soldiers were shouting outside the city, Wu Liantian, the City Lord of Yangpu, was pacing anxiously in his mansion.

　　“Do you think that General Cang can recover all my things?”

　　Those were the wealths he had accumulated through years of sucking the people’s life-blood, regardless of his honor and integrity.

　　The swollen-headed Wu Guang mumbled, “Of course! General Cang is the commander-in-chief of the Golden Lion Army! He’s a Martial Lord!”

　　“I was not asking you!” Wu Liantian scolded. He knew his son’s intelligence, so that answer could be ignored. “What do you think, Commander Ban?”

　　Looking at the father and son, Ban Bingbai sighed helplessly and said, “Cang Liqun should be able to recover everything, but it is unlikely for him to spit it all out.”

　　“I knew it!” Wu Liantian wailed. “But, it’s still better than losing everything.”

　　While fuming, he said, “It would be best if he could capture the few bast*rds and bring them to me! I’ll definitely rip them to pieces!”

　　At that moment, a city guard ran hurriedly into the hall and reported, “My lord, the Golden Lion Army is back!”

　　Exulted, Wu Liantian grabbed the man’s arm and asked, “Did you see the few bast*rds?”

　　The guard blinked and thought for a moment. “Yes, I saw them among the crowd. But…”

　　“Haha! Great! I’m going to break their bones one by one!” Not waiting for the guard to finish, Wu Liantian jumped up happily and started for the door. “Guang’er, Commander Ban, come with me to meet the army!”

　　“Don’t bother!”

　　A derisive voice came in through the door as a bundle wrapped in cloth flew over and fell on the floor, from which a round object came rolling out and stopped beneath Wu Liantian’s feet.

　　At the glance of the object, the smile on his face froze—it was Cang Liqun’s head. He looked up in horror and saw Yunxiao and others standing at the door and looking coldly at him.

　　His heart sunk in an instant. “Little brother, this is a misunderstanding, a mis…”

　　Before he had finished, he found that his body was departing from him and the world spun around him. It was then he realized that it was his head that was flying up into the air. A brief moment later, he fell on the floor with a thud, sitting right next to Cang Liqun’s head.

　　Soon, they were joined by another head, but this one was much larger, as it was Wu Guang’s swollen head.

　　“You will temporarily be in charge of all the affairs in Yangpu.” After giving Ban Bingbai a casual glance, Yunxiao disappeared from the hall.

　　Ban Bingbai’s face was extremely pale, and he did not even dare to breathe too loud. There were several auras out there that filled him with apprehension, so he stood quietly and blankly in the mansion, not daring to move and just listening to the sound of the army marching through the city.

　　It was after two hours that the rumbling sound of the marching finally dwindled into the distance. Only then did Ban Bingbai breathe a sigh of relief. He rested his gaze at the three heads on the floor, his face flickering.

　　…

　　Chen Dasheng and the few others had too many questions to ask Yunxiao, including the God of Slaughter’s finger and the Great Wind and Cloud Palm. But, Ji Meng and Jia Rong were guarding outside the tent on the chariot with serious faces, stopping anyone from disturbing him.

　　“What do you think?” The few people sat in a circle in Chen Dasheng’s tent, their faces thoughtful. Chen Dasheng broke the silence first.

　　“Is this boy still a human? He’s too over the top!”

　　There was a look of terror in Chen Lin’s eyes as he said, “I’ve been in the army for decades, and I’ve only seen the dark-purple murderous air emanated from the two thousand student troops on some extremely bloodthirsty killers, and they were far fainter. These two thousand students are simply gods of slaughter!”

　　Chen Dasheng glanced at the few people and saw everyone was sunk in deep thoughts with a look of puzzled, except Yunshang, whose eyes were slightly glazed and face calm.

　　Chen Dasheng’s face grew serious. His eyes seemed to look into the past as he said in a deep voice, “There is an ancient legend that if the killing on the battlefield is too violent, it will attract the God of Slaughter to the world. It is said that the God of Slaughter was covered in scales, shrouded in dark-purple air, and no one can look straight at it.”