World’s No. 1 Swordsman

A logistics hub on the outskirts of a newly developing light-industrial city in the southwestern region of Shu.

Trucks regularly drove in and out of the brightly lit warehouse compound, a clear indication of a well-functioning operation. Outside the main warehouse, in a relatively secluded staff passage at the southwestern corner, Huai Jing, a bald young monk in bright Buddhist robes; Liu Yunzhi, a handsome cultivator in flowing Daoist robes; and Shi Qianzhang, a casually dressed young man with spiky hair and a blank expression, walked up to block the closest path leading from the facility to a nearby forest.

Upon reaching their designated position, they concealed their auras and hid in the shadows. Liu Yunzhi adjusted the earpiece in his left ear. Huai Jing closed his eyes, pressed his palms together, and began silently reciting Buddhist scriptures.

Shi Qianzhang shrank back, squatted deeper into the shadows, and sighed softly. "Why isn't Brother Sheng here yet? The operation's already started. Without him around, this night really doesn't feel safe at all."

"It's just a few petty criminals," Liu Yunzhi replied calmly. "If you're scared, take ten steps back. Huai Jing and I can handle them."

"Scared? Me?" Shi Qianzhang craned his neck and lowered his voice. "I'm a core disciple of the Celestial Master Sect on Longhu Mountain. You think I'm afraid of a few corrupt cultivators?"

Through his earpiece, he heard Mou Yue scolding him.

—Group Six, quiet down! I can literally hear your conversation from here!

Shi Qianzhang rolled his eyes and silently backed up a few more steps. He stuck a concealment talisman onto himself and muttered, "I'm just getting ready to launch a sneak attack. Catch them off guard."

"No need to be so tense," Huai Jing transmitted calmly. "Tonight's just a minor skirmish, and we're only one of several blockers. The enemy might not even try to escape in this direction. Several Daoist masters and the Special Warfare Unit are on the frontlines. They should be more than enough."

Right after, they heard the order to engage in their earpiece.

In the skies above, swarms of unmanned drones buzzed in from all directions, swooping toward the warehouse's windows. The grenade-like canisters hanging beneath each drone were dropped straight down onto their targets.

At the same time, sniper gunshots echoed from all around. From the trailer of a truck slowly pulling into the front entrance of the warehouse, figures in camouflage uniforms suddenly burst out.

Explosive stun grenades went off around the warehouse, lighting up all sides with loud blasts. A booming voice rang out over the chaos.

"This is the police! Everyone inside, get down! All violent criminals will be arrested!"

Though briefly stunned, the workers inside immediately dropped to the ground, covering their heads and curling up into tight balls. From an office on the second floor of the warehouse, two men and a woman charged out, shouting angrily in a heavy local accent.

"Kill those cops! You'll be rewarded with five alchemical pills for each one you eliminate!"

From all corners of the warehouse, over twenty figures charged toward the front entrance. Waves of aura surged and filled the spacious factory floor.

The eighteen members of the Special Warfare Unit drew their longswords. Several middle-aged and imposing Daoist masters in robes leaped overhead, descending in front of them.

Despite the righteous faction's overwhelming formation, the corrupt cultivators still dared to engage them head-on.

The snipers opened fire again, making over ten rifles roar at once. Even if the bullets couldn't deal significant damage to the cultivators, the impact was enough to disrupt their formation.

The Daoist masters threw out talismans, summoned artifacts, chanted spells, and charged in with weapons in hand. The eighteen warriors of the Special Warfare Unit formed a sword formation and shot forward.

Shouts, bursts of primal qi colliding, gunfire, and the screams of panicked bystanders all combined into one gigantic chaos.

Police cars and armed officers immediately surrounded the warehouse from every direction.

The police lights were left flashing intentionally, not to hide their presence but to apply psychological pressure on any escaping cultivators. However, there were three noticeable gaps in this encirclement—intentional traps where cultivators had been hiding in ambush.

As soon as the chaos erupted in the warehouse, Shi Qianzhang frowned deeply. Liu Yunzhi had already gripped over ten talismans, his expression taut and focused.

Mou Yue's voice crackled through the earpiece again.

—Three of the main targets have fled from the warehouse in the confusion. Drones, track and lock onto them! Groups Five and Six, they're heading your way!

Huai Jing grinned, tightening his grip on his devil-subduing staff.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Shi Qianzhang's mouth twitched. He could now clearly see several drones flying fast overhead, locking beams of light onto three cultivators fleeing in their direction.

—Group Six, prepare to engage! Snipers, find support angles!

Huai Jing took a deep breath. "Here they come. Go all out and show no mercy. My Buddha is compassionate... and your Venerable Celestial will forgive you too."

He bent his knees slightly as his eyes narrowed, confidence enveloping his delicate face. Buddhist qi stirred within him as he began chanting quietly. Soon, he emitted golden light, and his monk robes began to glow.

"Great Vajra Arhat! Grant us defensive fortification, endurance reinforcement, critical strike empowerment, the shelter of Buddha's Light, and immunity to all malign influences!"

Seven or eight meters away, the three fleeing cultivators simultaneously turned toward him. Huai Jing jumped into the air, gripping his devil-subduing staff tightly.

"Ha!"

His furious shout thundered like a clap of lightning. Golden light surged from the staff as he swung it down at the three.

"We're being ambushed!"

"Kill the monk! Hurry!"

Among the three, one burly man crossed his arms above his head, a layer of iron sheen spreading across them. With a muffled clang, he blocked Huai Jing's staff, but a section of his right arm visibly caved in.

A powerful aura erupted from the corrupt cultivator—he, too, was at the Illusory Core Realm. Behind him, a man and a woman attacked in unison. The woman unleashed a barrage of dense, dark light, while the man swung a blood-colored saber straight at Huai Jing's throat.

Huai Jing used the Indestructible Vajra Art. Despite the dark light and the blade at his throat, his golden radiance kept him completely unharmed.

"Ha!"

Buddhist light surged in Huai Jing's eyes. The pair of Seed Formation Realm cultivators was forced back, while the corrupt Illusory Core Realm cultivator lunged forward again and threw a punch at Huai Jing's face.

Huai Jing swept his devil-subduing staff sideways and met the enemy's punch with his left fist. Buddhist light clashed with the iron-colored fist. Clanging blows rang out as they fought intensely without a clear winner.

"Hmph," Liu Yunzhi snorted lowly, as if psyching himself up. The talismans in his right hand sparked with flickers of electricity, transforming into a mahogany sword enveloped in lightning. He gripped it tightly.

"By the Decree of Shangqing, Swift Lightning! Descend!"

He threw a dozen talismans imbued with lightning, instantly surrounding the three corrupt cultivators and Huai Jing. Right after, he swiftly pointed his sword forward. Bolts of lightning cleaved down one after another, each one precisely avoiding Huai Jing.

The attack hit the two Seed Formation Realm corrupt cultivators within moments. Though injured, they swiftly circled Huai Jing and charged at Liu Yunzhi.

Calmly, Liu Yunzhi traced symbols in midair with his mahogany sword. A talisman formed from condensed lightning quickly took shape before him.

From behind, he heard Shi Qianzhang call, "Don't be scared, Little Liu! I've come to save you!"

A small, dark hand slapped Liu Yunzhi's backside, making him nearly lose control of the lightning talisman. He turned to the idiot who had jumped out beside him. Before he could say anything, though, he felt a wave of warmth surge from where he had been slapped. A Vajra Talisman had been left there.

Grinding his teeth, Liu Yunzhi channeled even more power into the lightning talisman. Bathed in the crackling radiance, his handsome features took on an almost transcendent aura, as if mirroring an immortal's visage.

The female corrupt cultivator hesitantly looked at him, seemingly unwilling to harm such a handsome Daoist master. Just then, beside Liu Yunzhi, Shi Qianzhang unfurled a pair of wings made of light and dramatically shot into the air.

The female corrupt cultivator waved her hands rapidly, flinging over a hundred poison needles at Shi Qianzhang. He cursed loudly as a gust of wind swept around him, pulling him backward to dodge.

Liu Yunzhi stopped swinging his sword. As his long hair floated in the air, the lightning talisman that he had just completed turned into a lightning orb the size of a cartwheel. With a sword thrust, he sent it hurtling toward the two corrupt cultivators.

"Out of the way!"

The male cultivator shoved the woman aside. Both narrowly dodged the lightning orb, but they still suffered enough burns from the arcs of electricity it released to put them in a sorry state. The true target of the lightning orb, however, was the corrupt Illusory Core Realm cultivator who was locked in battle with Huai Jing.

Clearly, there was little camaraderie between the three. As soon as the woman got back on her feet, she attacked Liu Yunzhi again, forcing him to retreat to maintain control of the orb. Taking advantage of this opening, the male cultivator dropped to all fours and darted along the ground, bypassing Liu Yunzhi and heading straight for the side exit.

In midair, Shi Qianzhang hastily tore the Gale Talisman from his chest, but it was already too late to intercept him. Liu Yunzhi hesitated for a moment. The lightning orb had already struck the Illusory Core Realm cultivator and couldn't be redirected to stop the escape.

Whoosh—!

At that moment, a familiar celestial-grade flying sword sliced through the air from the shadows behind him. Liu Yunzhi's eyes lit up, his furrowed brow relaxing at once. From the east, the sword shot forward, brushing past Liu Yunzhi and plunging into the fleeing corrupt cultivator's back.

A silhouette then flashed into view a dozen meters away. In just a few rapid movements, he circled to the back of the cultivator fighting Huai Jing, leaving only seven points of starlight in his trail.

Spiritless passed by swiftly, and a man followed without leaving so much as a shadow.

It was seamless, uninterrupted.

Liu Yunzhi quickly took two steps back to avoid the female cultivator's attack. The sword cultivator then shot past like a gust of wind, and a faint line of blood appeared across the woman's neck.

Liu Yunzhi blinked as he felt an icy chill creep down his neck. Despite standing so close, he still failed to see how the sword had sliced through her neck. He couldn't help but chuckle bitterly.

Meanwhile, before Huai Jing, the Illusory Core Realm cultivator's lower legs suddenly separated cleanly from the rest of his body. He collapsed to the ground, screaming in agony. Before he could even finish the cry, Huai Jing swung his devil-subduing staff down on his forehead, knocking him out cold.

In midair, Shi Qianzhang shouted joyfully, "Brother Sheng!"

"Mm," Wang Sheng responded. He emerged from the darkness carrying the unconscious male cultivator, his celestial-grade flying sword hovering beside him. Spiritless, which he held in his right hand, was completely unstained by blood.

He tossed the man down beside the woman's corpse and then frowned. "It's just the three of you guarding this place? Couldn't they have sent a couple more?"

Huai Jing patted his head and recited a Buddhist chant over the bodies before quickly replying, "Manpower's stretched thin. Too many squads are moving tonight. Fei Yu, hurry inside and help. We'll hold this spot."

Wang Sheng said, "No need. My senior sister has already gone in."

A heavy rumble echoed from nearby. Half the steel roof of the warehouse was suddenly torn off, and a massive Tai Chi diagram launched more than a dozen figures into the night sky.

The wall closest to Wang Sheng, over thirty meters long, tilted outward slowly before crashing down with a thunderous boom, sending clouds of dust everywhere.

Shi Qianzhang, who had just landed, gulped hard and muttered, "Say, does our senior sister need a lackey? One who's really good at yelling 'six six six'?"

Wang Sheng shrugged helplessly, equally at a loss.

We don't have to pay for property damages... right?