“Good! Slaughter them! Don’t spare a single one!”

As for the martial artists, they were undoubtedly high in spirits. Qi Gang had executed the enemy leader in battle, presenting a perfect opportunity to strike!

“Hmm?”

However, Su Changkong’s brows furrowed tightly; he noticed his pupils constrict slightly, sensing an impending danger.

At the same time, Cangwen Yu, who was closest to Qi Gang, felt his heart twitch. As an Innate Martial Artist who had reached the ’Three Flowers Gathering at the Top’, he could sense danger, and he felt an extreme threat emanating from… Qi Gang!

“Whoosh whoosh whoosh!”

Without any warning, sword Qi burst out from Qi Gang’s body like a tide, and his targets were not others but his own fellow Innate Martial Artists.

This attack had clearly been building up for a while, with over twenty strands of sword Qi condensing into Divine Swords, striking directly at each person!

The change was too sudden, completely without prelude.

“Pfft!”

Cangwen Yu, with his profound cultivation, had a premonition and managed to dodge to the side while simultaneously slapping away the Divine Sword aimed at him, causing it to deviate and sparing him the fate of having his throat pierced. Despite this, the side of his neck was grazed by the sword’s edge, severing his major artery and causing blood to spurt out as he stumbled backward.

“Tsch!”

Those who were too slow to dodge had their throats and hearts pierced directly. Not everyone could react to Qi Gang’s sudden attack, a Five-Qi Grandmaster. At least five Innate Martial Artists, even as they instinctively activated their True Qi to protect their bodies, were pierced through their vitals by the Divine Sword as if cutting through mud.

“Thump!”

“Thump!”

Five Innate Martial Artists were struck in their vitals, their eyes filled with incomprehension, unwillingness, and disbelief as they fell to the ground, limp. They didn’t understand why they were dying, why Qi Gang suddenly attacked them!

A sword Qi was also aimed at Su Changkong. The moment Qi Gang made his move, the Blade Intent in Su Changkong’s Sea of Consciousness vibrated with a warning, allowing him to be prepared in advance.

“Tsch!”

The sword pierced through Su Changkong’s afterimage, missing him entirely.

“Qi Gang!” But in Su Changkong’s heart, killing intent instantly soared to its peak!

Although he didn’t yet know why Qi Gang suddenly attacked his companions, his strike was merciless, intent on taking their lives!

“What… What’s going on?”

The Monster Warriors, originally distressed by Kouto’s death from a sword piercing his heart by Qi Gang, watched this scene unfold, becoming even more confused and failing to grasp what was happening.

“Qi Gang! Have you lost your mind?”

An angry roar shattered the silence. It was Cangwen Yu, wearing a tiger-head mask, clutching his wounded neck and glaring furiously at Qi Gang, bellowing his accusation.

Qi Gang’s sudden attack resulted in five martial artists dying on the spot. Those who reacted quickly enough survived, though nearly half of them were still injured.

Cangwen Yu, being close and with his level of cultivation ’Three Flowers Gathering at the Top’, had sensed the danger and nearly got killed by a sword through his throat; naturally, he was furious beyond measure!

“Big brother! Big brother!”

Another man wearing a bear mask held a corpse, crying out in sorrow. It was his elder brother, who had been killed on the spot by Qi Gang’s surprise attack because he couldn’t dodge in time.

“Could it be… Qi Gang was bewitched by a Demon Art?” Some of the surviving martial artists, enraged and suspicious, wondered if Qi Gang had fallen under a Monster Warrior’s Demon Art spell, as some Demon Monsters possess the power to confuse the mind!

But looking at Qi Gang, his expression remained as calm as usual, his eyes cold and indifferent. He didn’t seem to be affected by anything else; it appeared to be premeditated. Faced with everyone’s angry or puzzled gazes, he remained silent.

“Don’t you understand yet? You’ve been sold out by Lord Qi!”

At that moment, a robust voice rang out. Kouto, who was supposed to be ’dead’ with his heart pierced, got up from the ground. The blood that had flowed out returned to the wound, and his injury healed rapidly, leaving him unharmed!

“This…”

Qi Gang’s sudden attack on everyone, and Kouto’s ’resurrection’, how could this not make Cangwen Yu and the others realize that they had been sold out by Qi Gang!

The life-and-death battle between Qi Gang and Kouto was nothing but an act.

Qi Gang disregarded the questions and looks from others and instead turned to Kouto: “Kouto, is this satisfactory to your Life Extinguishing Association? I truly intend to join the Life Extinguishing Association and not for any ulterior motives.”

Qi Gang’s words caused Su Changkong’s brows to knit tightly; he was beginning to understand something.

Qi Gang had used his connections and influence to summon a large number of experts to assist him, not to annihilate a branch of the Life Extinguishing Association but to use it as a credential of his loyalty!

Qi Gang had previously made contact with people from the Life Extinguishing Association and wished to join.

Qi Gang, a Five-Qi Grandmaster, was a well-known figure in the Great Flame Empire and was the third-in-command of the Demon Suppressing Department. He wanted to join the Life Extinguishing Association, and even with good reasons, the high ranks of the association doubted his motives and suspected that he wanted to infiltrate their organization.

That’s why we have the scene today. To dispel the doubts of the Life Extinguishing Association, Qi Gang used his connections to gather friends with deep relationships or had friends recruit more, amassing a group of powerful fighters.

He planned to use them as a proof of his loyalty, and just now, he personally took action without any mercy, slaughtering several to demonstrate his sincerity without any ulterior motives!

Indeed, only someone ruthless enough to kill their own friends and relatives could do such a thing.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Madara Web Novel