Chapter 21: Not a Single Man Among Them

Under the cover of night, countless eyes were fixed upon the Imperial Prison.

Qin Yin, veiled in light gauze, stood upon a rooftop, watching the prison in the distance. Two figures clad in black stood beside her.

One of the black-clad figures looked on with sharp eyes. "My lady, could these be people arranged by you? How shall we assist them?"

"They are not our people," Qin Yin replied coldly. In truth, she was equally perplexed, yet she was certain they did not belong to the Fenglin Kingdom.

She turned to look at another smaller, petite figure in black. "Eighteen, you had contact with Yang Zhan before. Did you discover anything?"

Eighteen raised her eyes and shook her head. "My lady, I found nothing. However, Yang Zhan was unwilling to let us intervene; he did not even want the Princess and the others to be rescued."

The man nearby grew anxious. "My lady, regardless of whose side they are on, as long as they are dealing with those powerful guards, they will keep them occupied. This is a rare opportunity to rescue the Princess!"

Qin Yin spoke coldly, "Do not act rashly. What if this is a performance staged to lure us into a trap?"

The man stiffened and lowered his head. "That is possible."

Qin Yin then instructed him, "Scout the perimeter of the prison. Find out exactly who has appeared in the vicinity tonight. Investigate thoroughly!"

"Yes, my lady!" The man vanished into the darkness instantly.

Qin Yin and Eighteen kept their keen eyes fixed on the entrance of the prison.

"My lady, what is the cultivation level of those three at the front? Even from this distance, I can feel an immense pressure!"

"They are three first-rank martial artists."

Upon hearing this, the expression on Eighteen’s pretty face froze, and she felt as if she were suffocating. To be a first-rank martial artist—even in their entire Fenglin Kingdom, there were fewer than twenty such individuals. Whether in the Great Xia or the Fenglin Kingdom, such experts were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

"To deploy three first-rank martial artists at once... then Yang Zhan and his men..." Qin Yin’s voice grew heavy.

"There are also twenty martial artists of the fourth rank or higher!"

Eighteen’s face changed drastically. "It is rumored that Yang Zhan is also a first-rank, but how can he possibly counter three first-rank experts, let alone all those fourth-rank warriors? If these people mean the Princess harm..."

"Watch first."

At the prison gate, the air was thick with a murderous intent. A bitter wind whipped the snow, causing the robes of both sides to snap violently.

Sanzi and Si'er gripped their heavy blades, standing to the left and right like Yang Zhan’s own arms. Even facing an enemy with such overwhelming momentum, they showed no fear, only a fierce will to fight. Yang Zhan stood like a reef in the ocean, unmoving as a mountain, regardless of the turbulent energy crashing against him.

Yang Zhan looked at the twenty-three masked men in black, unknown to him. "Hiding your heads and showing your tails? State your names!"

No one on the other side spoke.

Yang Zhan shook his head. "Twenty-three of you, and not a single man among you."

Suddenly, someone grew enraged. "Yang Zhan, cease your sharp tongue! I shall test you myself!"

Before the words had faded, a palm struck out. The wind from the blow arrived before the palm itself, causing Yang Zhan’s hair to flutter, yet he remained motionless. Just as the palm reached his face, the expert froze.

Yang Zhan had simply vanished.

*Thud!*

With a muffled sound, the expert suddenly realized he was flying through the air. Then, he saw Yang Zhan standing exactly where he had been a moment before. But in that instant, he heard someone roar, "Careful!" and "You dare!"

Only then did he realize he was airborne, but Yang Zhan had suddenly grabbed his ankle, pulling him back with an irresistible force.

*Thud! Thud!*

Two dull impacts followed. He could no longer hear the sounds of the outside world; he could only vaguely see that figure looming above him like a god of war. Hot blood poured from his mouth, filling him with a sense of desolation.

Why? They were both first-rank—how could he be defeated so quickly, so thoroughly? Even in his unwillingness, he was swallowed by endless darkness, no longer able to feel a glimmer of light.

The scene fell silent, as if nothing had happened. Yet, the corpse lying between the two parties, blood leaking from its seven orifices, sent a chill rising from the soles of the remaining twenty black-clad men. Watching the calm and collected Yang Zhan, their momentum faltered.

Terrifying and powerful. A first-rank expert, gone in the blink of an eye. Even the two remaining first-rank martial artists subconsciously took two steps back, let alone the others.

Suddenly, the lead expert barked, "Yang Zhan, no matter how strong you are, you are but one man! Attack him together!"

*Boom! Boom!*

Countless blasts of energy surged forward. Sanzi and Si'er engaged the attackers. Yang Zhan did not move, for the two remaining first-rank experts had not moved either. They stood to his left and right, confronting him. Neither dared to act rashly; the fate of their comrade on the ground made them painfully aware of the gap between them and Yang Zhan.

They figured that as long as they kept Yang Zhan occupied, the others would finish off his subordinates. Yang Zhan, being only one man, could not be in two places at once; he could not guard the prison forever. They could wear him down to death.

Cries of agony rang out continuously. The blood-lust of the battle flared, but neither Yang Zhan nor the two first-rank experts were affected. Yang Zhan paid no attention to the two first-rankers, focusing instead on Sanzi and Si'er. They were fighting twenty martial artists of the fourth rank or higher. Each was taking on ten, and even in this war of attrition, Sanzi and Si'er had already cut down two or three in this short time.

This caused the enemy's will to fight to weaken even further. The two first-rank experts noticed this, and their hearts filled with horror and tension. How could twenty men not be a match for two? And there were even second-rank experts among them!

The two exchanged a look and simultaneously lunged toward Sanzi and Si'er.

But in that moment, Yang Zhan kicked a sword lying near the corpse, sending it flying toward one of them. Simultaneously, he charged at the other.

Both experts felt a terrifying energy rushing at their backs and were struck with horror. Thinking it was Yang Zhan attacking both, they turned around wildly. One saw the sword and, with surging blood-energy, braced against its power.

*Boom!*

With a roar, he was forced back several yards. The other, turning around, saw Yang Zhan bearing down on him. He hurriedly raised his fists to protect his chest, but it was too late—Yang Zhan’s fist was too fast, striking him square in the chest.

*Thud!*

The expert’s chest caved in, and he was sent flying like a stone. *Boom!* He slammed into the snow, kicking up a flurry of white.

In a short time, two great experts had been defeated. The others had lost all will to fight. Someone turned and fled, and soon, the rest followed suit, scattering in all directions. It was a perfect definition of a rout.

*Whoosh!* The first-rank expert who had been forced back by the sword flashed away, instantly grabbing his comrade who had been punched into the snow, and fled in a panic.

"Do not pursue!" Yang Zhan called out. Sanzi and Si'er returned from nearby. They were radiating killing intent, but their faces were full of excitement.

"General, these people were nothing! They were practically lining up to be slaughtered!"

"This was merely a probe."

Even so, Sanzi and Si'er remained enthusiastic, their eyes filled with contempt for the enemy.

"Check if they have any identity tokens on them."

"Yes!"

In the distance, witnessing this short but intense confrontation, Qin Yin and Eighteen were deeply shaken.

Eighteen suddenly said, her voice tinged with tears, "My lady, I wanted to assassinate him before... what was I thinking?"

It took a long while for Qin Yin to collect herself. "Don't even mention yourself. Before this, I thought I wasn't far behind him. Now I realize I am far, far inferior. He is truly worthy of being called the War God of Great Xia, the man who could stand firm against the Barbarian Emperor."