Chapter 272 – Emperor Lei

The leader of the group appeared to be in his forties, but his hair was completely white, even his eyebrows were white.

A twisted and invisible force field extended around him, causing large snowflakes to fall from the sky. Before they could touch him, they were shredded into powder by the force field.

“Grandmaster?”

The imposing old man wearing a suit and a flat cap pushed his sunglasses up his nose and spoke with a hint of surprise in his voice.

The white-haired man laughed heartily. “That’s right, Grandmaster. You never expected it, did you? The realm you’ve been dreaming of, yet I reached it first.

I entered the Grandmaster Realm three years ago, waiting for you to show yourself. Finally, I’ve caught you… Lei Fusheng, today is the day you die!”

As the white-haired man laughed, the dozen or so people standing on either side of him stepped closer to the old man, their faces filled with undisguised, intense killing intent, as if they held an irreconcilable grudge against him.

Facing a pure martial artist Grandmaster, along with a dozen Ancient Martial Arts experts, the old man showed no trace of panic on his face.

He gently removed his sunglasses, revealing a pair of deep purple eyes, like gemstones.

“Do you know what I’ve been doing these past three years?”

The old man spoke calmly.

The white-haired man’s eyes narrowed, and he suddenly sneered. “I don’t care what you’ve been doing. Today, you must die!”

With that, the white-haired man stepped forward, seemingly defying gravity, floating in mid-air.

He walked towards the old man, each step creating a series of tiny explosions in the air, generating an awe-inspiring momentum.

At the same time, the other dozen or so Ancient Martial Arts experts rushed towards the old man.

In the snowy field, an extraordinary battle began.

Half an hour later.

Everything fell silent.

In the scorched battlefield now devoid of life, a broken-down taxi burned quietly, reduced to a twisted metal frame.

Scattered on the ground were the bodies of those who appeared to have been burned and electrocuted.

The white-haired man lay on the ground, his eyes wide open, gazing at the sky. The light in his eyes was long gone, leaving only the shock and bewilderment from the moment of his death frozen on his face.

With a soft “plop,” a foot stepped over the corpse, picked up the flat cap that had fallen to the ground, and carefully placed it back on the head.

The old man in a suit, now wearing the hat, lifted his briefcase and continued walking calmly in the direction he initially set out, his expression serene and steps unhurried.

All that remained were the corpses behind him, telling the sky and snowflakes the story of the battle’s conclusion.

…

In the forest, a figure was swiftly moving through the trees.

Though he had no wings and exuded no special aura, he moved rapidly through the forest, bouncing around like a nimble monkey.

Suddenly, the figure halted mid-air.

It revealed a middle-aged man, ghastly pale and thin, with a bulging shape on his back, like a backpack under his clothes.

The man stood quietly in mid-air, and upon closer inspection, one could see he was standing on an almost invisible white filament.

The white filament, resembling spider silk, was strung between the trees, enabling the man to move swiftly through the air.

“Come out,” the pale-faced man said softly.

Shortly after, a burly man with a body covered in beast-like fur emerged from behind an ancient pine tree, thick enough to require several people to encircle it. He resembled a bloodthirsty black bear.

“Didn’t expect the first person I’d encounter would be the Spider Protector,” said the black bear man, standing under the pine tree. The vigorous flow of his blood raised his body temperature, causing steam to rise from his head and melt the snow on the pine leaves above. The melting snow dripped onto his body, creating more white steam.

The Spider Protector swayed gently in mid-air with the breeze.

The flesh on his forehead rippled, and suddenly, four small eyes emerged, tilting slightly as he looked down at the black bear man without saying a word.

The black bear man’s expression suddenly changed. His furry arms abruptly struck out in various directions, swelling in mid-air to become as thick as doorposts and releasing a strong, bloody odor.

Crack-Crack-

The black bear man’s arms seemed to tear something apart. Under the sunlight, white spider silk shone with a crystalline luster. Several robust ancient trees nearby silently split in half from the middle, collapsing to the ground with a thunderous roar, bringing down a large amount of snow.

“You’re courting death!”

The black bear man roared, his eyes suddenly turning a ghastly green. He stomped hard on the ground with both feet and shot into the air like a cannonball.

An eerie smile appeared on the pale face of the Spider Protector. His form vanished like a phantom.

He reappeared in a different location, and behind him, a large quantity of white, transparent spider silk was ejected, forming a dense, giant web that enshrouded the black bear man below.

The black bear man roared, a blood-red glow emanating from his strong body as he instantly swelled in size.

With a light wrench of his raised arms, he tore the massive web of spider silk overhead apart.

The Spider Protector’s expression remained stoic as he stood mid-air, his mouth moving rapidly, and his six eyes transformed into pure black, glowing with an eerie light.

Soon, countless rustling and murmuring sounds echoed through the forest.

The sound seemed like countless insects crawling into the black bear man’s brain through his ears.

Just as the black bear man’s eyes turned bloodshot, nearing a berserk state, a brilliant flash of lightning streaked through the forest.

Zzzla-

The rustling and murmuring sounds filling the forest abruptly ceased, and the Spider Protector quickly closed his mouth.

An old man in a suit, wearing a flat cap and carrying a briefcase, appeared between the two combatants.

The old man’s sudden appearance immediately halted the clash. The black bear man quickly regained his composure, his body reverting to its normal size.

Both he and the Spider Protector, who had descended from mid-air, stood before the old man in a suit, bowing respectfully in greeting. “Protector Lei.”

The old man in a suit gave a slight nod, his face devoid of much emotion.

Although all three were of Protector level, the old man’s status seemed inherently higher, and neither of the other two found this inappropriate. On the contrary, they considered it completely natural.

“Didn’t expect Protector Lei to be here as well.”

The black bear man brushed off the snow and water droplets from his body by bumping his fists together in front of his chest. “It seems the rumors about the Evil Emperor’s treasure are true this time.”

“It should be true.”

The Spider Protector said coldly from the side, “The stone slab those three brought out, I have seen it in the hands of the predecessor before last of the Evil Emperor, and I’ve also heard of this matter. Everyone has been searching for the Evil Emperor’s treasure, but I didn’t expect those three to find clues first…”

“If those three had already gotten hold of the clues, why didn’t they go after the treasure themselves? Instead, they chose to share the information. This doesn’t seem like their style…” the black bear man mused, narrowing his eyes.

The Spider Protector glanced at the black bear man, his four spider eyes on his forehead now closed.

“Elephant, Eagle, and the third one have been trying to support a kid who got the Former Evil Emperor’s relics to take over, but they couldn’t find any supporters.

I guess…”

The Spider Protector turned his gaze to the old man in a suit before them and said in a low voice, “They’re planning to use the treasure as leverage to make us compromise.”

The black bear man remained silent, also watching the old man, seemingly waiting for his response.

The old man in a suit, who had been listening to them, remained expressionless.

Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes slightly, and bolts of faint purple lightning began to surge around him.

Terrifying force field fluctuations caused his suit to billow, and surrounded by a vast amount of lightning, the old man exuded an unmatched domineering presence.

“Whoosh-“

The purple lightning converged into the old man’s right hand, forming a purple electric ball the size of a human head.

The old man slowly extended his hand forward, directing the ball of electricity ahead.

In an instant, the terrifying lightning burst forth in an intense beam.

“Boom!”

The scorching high temperatures filled the space, and the blinding light that exploded caused the black bear man and Spider Protector to instinctively close their eyes.

When they reopened their eyes, the sight before them made their scalps tingle.

Directly in front of the old man, a charred passageway with a diameter of five meters stretched out for over a hundred meters.

Everything that once obstructed this path had vanished without a trace.

White steam rose abundantly, and the ground was covered with large patches of crystallized rock.

The black bear man and Spider Protector both knelt on one knee, their mouths dry and their throats tight.

The old man in a suit, after executing the electric attack, spoke in a low voice without displaying any emotion, “The position of the Evil Emperor isn’t something that can be obtained through mere transactions. Ultimately, it still comes down to strength. What do you think?”

The black bear man and Spider Protector responded respectfully, “Emperor Lei, you are absolutely right.”

Hearing their words, the old man’s expression seemed to soften slightly. He then lightly dusted off his suit, maintaining his leisurely demeanor, and said, “Let’s go and see what those three are up to.”

“Yes.”

…

“So this is the headquarters of the evil martial alliance?” Lu Yuan looked around the room, his face showing a hint of surprise.

Accompanied by the Elephant Protector and Hawk Protector, Lu Yuan had arrived in a small town called Longan, several hundred kilometers away from Weishan. After trekking dozens of kilometers into the mountains, they discovered this so-called secret base of the evil martial alliance inside one of the mountains-a huge room with a simple style, filled with various modern equipment for monitoring and defense, reminiscent of the command center of a modern military fortress.

“Reporting to the Demon Emperor, this is merely a branch. There are dozens of similar branches within the alliance, all established to guard against pursuits from the evil deity sect…” Explained Hawk Protector from the side.

“A wily hare has more than one burrow.” Lu Yuan understood Hawk Protector’s implication.

Hawk Protector smiled awkwardly but nodded before continuing, “Sometimes, they’re also used for emergency gatherings, just like this occasion. Demon Emperor, please follow me. I will take you to the meeting hall up ahead.”

Lu Yuan nodded and glanced to the side. The Elephant Protector, who had lost an arm, was receiving treatment from Lin Protector. With the help of the power of the evil deity, stolen from the Cavern Sect by Lin Protector, his severed arm had been reattached. This power possessed formidable healing abilities. To Lu Yuan’s surprise, it could also be used on others. No wonder the horse-faced middle-aged man, despite his mediocre strength, could hold the position of a protector within the evil martial alliance-turns out he was a “healer.”

Lu Yuan followed Hawk Protector over to the meeting hall located in front of the control room. To his surprise, the style of the meeting hall was entirely different from what he had just seen.