Corpses littered the field.Blood flowed like a river.
The once-mighty Xiongnu army, tens of thousands strong, had been utterly annihilated in the chaos of their own camp.Under the morning sun, the golden light that bathed the land only made the devastation seem more tragic.
Countless Xiongnu had died clutching one another in mutual destruction. Even in death, their bloodshot eyes betrayed their utter descent into madness. They had died consumed by slaughter, never emerging from the insanity that gripped them.Out of the entire army, only a fraction survived. Even those who did were all wounded—scarred, battered, broken.
The scene was so gruesome that it seared into the mind of any who looked upon it.
Now, barely a few thousand warriors remained gathered around Liu Bao—far short of even ten thousand. Each one wore a blank, haunted expression. Their eyes brimmed with terror. Regret and fear churned in their faces as they looked out at the sea of corpses.Liu Bao's own face was black with fury, his eyes burning with wrath.
He could not have imagined that in just a single night, his once-mighty army would be reduced to a broken remnant. Each soldier injured, morale shattered—a defeated, demoralized wreck.The shift from heaven to hell was too brutal.Too swift.
Just last night, he had held a decisive advantage. The pit trap would soon have been filled, and the village overrun. But now, everything had changed.And the worst part? The enemy hadn't even lost a single man. With just one well-executed ruse, they had provoked mass panic, turning his own army against itself.
It was a slap in the face.An insult to his generalship.A strategic humiliation.
"Damn those Central Plains bastards! Daring to ruin this king's grand enterprise! Despicable! Unforgivable!"
Liu Bao's roar echoed as he glared toward Xuanhuang Village. On the walls, villagers could be seen laughing, drinking, and dining. It was mockery. It was disdain. It was a naked taunt.
"Damn you, Han bastards! You go too far!!"
Liu Bao stormed out of camp and shouted toward the village.
"I am Liu Bao, the Zuo Xian King of the Xiongnu! What sort of heroes are you, hiding behind tricks and cowardice? If you have guts, come out and face me! Who leads this village? Come out and meet me if you have even a shred of courage!"
His voice, infused with true essence, rolled like thunder across the plains and into the village. Everyone heard it, loud and clear.
"That damn Xiongnu dares to spew such nonsense? Outrageous!"
"I heard there was fierce fighting last night. Looks like the village chief outwitted them again—now Liu Bao's throwing a tantrum."
"Let's go curse him out from the wall!"
The villagers were just waking up, but rage instantly bubbled to the surface. People streamed toward the walls.
Meanwhile, Yi Tianxing sat calmly at a table on the wall, savoring his meal.
"Lai He's culinary skills are divine," he mused. "This braised meat has the perfect chew, and the dipping sauce is exquisite—definitely wild mountain mushrooms for flavor. The sauce has a rich umami from rare forest delicacies. Paired together… absolutely explosive. Genius."
Even as his Gourmet Cells absorbed the ambient Heaven and Earth Essence, his physical strength surged. He was nearing the threshold of Black Cauldron – Two Chimes, nearly 20,000 jin of brute force.One more feast like this, and he'd break through entirely.
He heard Liu Bao's bellowing, but only smiled. Slowly rising, he stepped onto the wall and looked down.
"Humanity has created brilliant civilizations because we possess wisdom, creativity, and knowledge.Unlike beasts, we have thought and emotion.Our intelligence—our knowledge—is our greatest power.To defeat you with strategy is not cowardice.Relying only on brute force—what are you but a savage beast?You Xiongnu eat human flesh, call us two-legged sheep, and treat us as livestock.Calling you 'human' is already flattering you.Against such beasts, I will use any means necessary.That you fell for it only proves your stupidity."
Yi Tianxing's words showed no mercy. He didn't even bother to mask his contempt.
"Who are you?" Liu Bao snarled.
"I am Yi Tianxing, leader of Xuanhuang Village," he replied calmly.
"So it was you who destroyed my army and my future? Then I challenge you to a life-and-death duel! If you win, all my soldiers will die. If you lose, I will wipe your village from the earth—no survivors, no mercy!"
A madness gleamed in Liu Bao's eyes as he produced a blood-red parchment, a sinister glow radiating from it. Whether it was made from a fierce beast's skin or a human's, no one could say—but it was saturated in bloodlight.
On the surface of the parchment were three ancient scarlet characters:Life-and-Death Pact (生死契).
"I, Liu Bao, offer everything I have.I sacrifice the flesh and blood of all who lie dead around me.For a chance to duel Yi Tianxing—one shall live, one shall die."
He slashed his palm with a curved blade and pressed his bleeding hand onto the pact.
Whoosh!
The pact reacted instantly, flaring with blood-red light. A whirlpool of energy opened above it, drawing in corpses by the hundreds.
Bodies vanished, absorbed entirely into the pact—flesh, blood, and even the blood soaked into the earth.The once-red soil returned to its original color as the life essence of the dead fed the mysterious artifact.
The Life-and-Death Pact hovered in the air, pulsating with ever-thickening bloodlight.
"This is bad! There's something very wrong here. He mustn't be allowed to go!" said Huang Chengyan, his expression grim.
"A noble man does not stand under a crumbling wall," added Yang Ye firmly. "Our lord must not accept this."
But Yi Tianxing merely gazed calmly at the swirling contract.
"It's useless. Once he activated the Life-and-Death Pact, I felt it—an invisible force locking onto me.It's a contract… an artifact.And now that it's begun, I can't avoid it."
He had sensed it from the start. This was no ordinary tool—it was a rare artifact, a contract-type treasure governed by cosmic rules.Once offered and accepted, it could not be escaped.
"Besides… I'm a man. A man doesn't run. I'm a cultivator. I'm a young man. When it's time to fight, I'll fight. When it's time to kill, I'll kill."
His battle intent flared like a storm.His black hair whipped behind him, wild with power. A battle spear appeared in his hand, and the aura around him roared with "I am invincible" dominance.
"Zuo Xian King! This is madness! We still have a chance!" the shaman Uma cried out.
"Our only chance," Liu Bao said coldly, "is to kill Yi Tianxing."
His eyes fixed solely on his foe.
"Yi Tianxing! Do you dare fight me?!"
"Why wouldn't I?!"
Yi Tianxing replied without hesitation.