“Why are you smiling? Are you a fighting maniac?” the prince asked, his comment drawing chuckles from the nearby members of the Yang clan. It wasn’t that funny, but it helped relax the group, easing the tension before the fight.

Liu Xing decided to lighten the mood further. “No, I’m just happy because I think I might break through to the next realm during this fight.”

The prince raised an eyebrow, understandably surprised. After all, Liu Xing had only recently advanced to the seventh stage of Lock Opening. Claiming he could break through again so soon was like someone who’d just built a raft saying they could now construct a sailing ship. It was far too fast.

While all seven of his locks had been opened, advancing to the next realm wasn’t easy. Liu Xing visualized his cultivation as a ball of lightning bound by a silver chain. Every cultivator had their own imagery to describe their cultivation—he’d heard disciples describe their cultivation as a sun bound to a mountain with seven burning ropes, a writhing liquid trapped in a well, or even a beast caged by seven locks. But no matter the image, the essence was the same: to break through, you had to destroy whatever bound your cultivation.

For Liu Xing, that meant destroying the silver chain around his ball of lightning. There were many ways to achieve this, but the best method was to have the cultivation absorb the thing that bounds the cultivation. This would improve the quality of qi and make future progress easier.

To do this, he simply needed to continue cultivating—absorbing qi and sending it to his consciousness. But this time, instead of focusing on opening his locks, he’d channel it directly into his ball of lightning.

And with so many enemies below, all waiting to be fought, he was sure this battle would push him to that breakthrough.

“Disciples from the great sects really are crazy,” someone muttered nearby. Liu Xing saw a few others nod in agreement, but he didn’t care. He just grinned at the prince, then stepped to the edge of the tower.

Below, the abominations turned their heads up toward him, growling and shouting, pointing in his direction. Twelve of the abominations, each with a giant eye for a head, began sending pulses of air, as if issuing orders to the army.

Liu Xing aimed his gun at the enemy, reloaded it with six bullets, infused it with Exploding Fist, and pulled the trigger in rapid succession. He then flicked the Ethereal Pearl into his mouth, channeling its qi into his right gauntlet to form a massive ball of lightning, which he unleashed in the form of thousands of lightning bolts.

His movements were swift, and from the perspective of the army below, it was as if the sky had turned blue and lightning rained down like a storm of arrows.

Several of the abominations, their faces covered with tiny eyes, rushed forward, slapping the ground with their hands. Their writhing hairs began to dig into the earth, and soon black vines sprouted upward, growing taller and thicker before curving to form a shield over the army.

The six bullets struck the black wall, causing six massive explosions that tore through the defenses. However, the vines quickly regenerated and closed the holes. Meanwhile, Liu Xing's barrage of lightning struck the black wall like rain on a sandcastle, gradually thinning it. Several of his lightnings pierced through, crashing into the ground and scattering dozens of abominations.

More and more lightning crashed against the black wall made from vines, creating a series of loud explosions as if a thousand cannons were firing in unison. Dust swirled around the battlefield, and though the wall was riddled with holes, it stood firm.

As his attacks began to recede, Liu Xing realized the wall was stronger than expected. Instead of spreading his attack into thousands of strikes, he’d need to focus his power into one giant blast. But before he could act, the abominations with yellow claws, so long they dragged along the ground, began to rush around the wall in unison, their footsteps creating a rhythmic pounding. Their faces, each sporting hundreds of twitching mouse noses, seemed to be searching for him.

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They stopped in formation and slashed their right hands through the air, launching hundreds of crescent-shaped wind blades in his direction.

"They are from Wu clan!" The prince and the Yang clan rushed to his side, standing on the edge of the earthen tower. “On my mark!”

The prince and the Yang clan inhaled deeply, their cheeks bulging as they gathered their qi. Liu Xing quickly created bullets, gathering qi in his gauntlet until a basketball-sized orb of lightning formed in front his palm.

“Attack!” the prince shouted, spitting out a fireball the size of a barrel. The Yang clan followed suit, releasing fireballs of various sizes, some larger, some smaller but more numerous. Liu Xing unleashed his lightning attack, sending out thousands of lightning bolts that were smaller and weaker compared to his last attack.

When the crescent wind blades collided with the fireballs and lightning, the sky erupted in a chain of explosions, sending plumes of white smoke into the air and obstructing their view.

Liu Xing’s mind raced, searching for a way to win this battle. The answer was clear: there were hundreds of abominations in the Core Splitting realm, and if they were defeated, his side could win. Killing them was his responsibility, and to do that, he first needed to take down one of the Core Splitting abominations. Once he did, he could use its core as his bullets and defeat the others.

He aimed his gun at a nearby Core Splitting abomination—a creature from the Wu clan, its long yellow nails scraping the ground. Judging by its aura, it likely had two or three cores, the average for Core Splitting abominations. Its body was blackened, probably from one of Liu Xing’s earlier attacks.

Six bullets tore through the air toward the creature. Its twitching noses flared as it swiped its right hand, launching a crescent-shaped wind blade toward the bullets. The other Wu clan abominations looked up and sent their own wind blades to intercept the shots. In total, six wind blades met his six bullets, triggering six massive explosions that rocked the air and sent shockwaves across the battlefield, toppling what remained of the nearby buildings.

Liu Xing pressed his lips together. Long-range attacks wouldn’t work. He’d have to get up close.

“Prince, cover me!” he shouted, then leaped from the tower before the prince could respond.

As he plummeted toward the ground, the wind whipping through his hair, Liu Xing activated his Lightning Cloak. For a moment, he considered using his invisibility but decided against it. Being invisible would make him harder to see not just for his enemies but also for his allies.

The Wu clan abominations sent more wind blades his way. Liu Xing aimed his gun, infused it with Exploding Fist, and pulled the trigger. Most of the wind blades exploded mid-air, and those he couldn’t destroy, he dodged with the help of his shield.

He landed between the rubble of shattered buildings and quickly scanned his surroundings. Hundreds of abominations surrounded him, all from the Wu clan. As they spotted him, they charged like hounds scenting their prey.

Liu Xing’s eyes darted over the battlefield, looking for a target. He saw a weaker-looking abomination—it only had right arm with no signs of injury, which meant that it was a man who had already lost one of his hands before being transformed into an abomination.

Liu Xing kicked off the ground, leaving a web of cracks in his wake as he charged at his target. He activated his lightning blade and swung it from his right, aiming at the left side of the abomination. Just then, two more abominations lunged at him from the front, their nails slicing through the air toward his lightning blade.

When Liu Xing’s lightning blade met their claws, his blade cut through several nails but ultimately stopped short. Five more abominations jumped at him. Liu Xing quickly pulled back his blade and slashed at the abomination attacking from the right and narrowly dodging another abomination that lunged at him from the behind.

His mind, along with his senses, went into overdrive. He was merely at the peak Lock Opening realm, yet here he was, holding his own against dozens of abominations in the Core Splitting realm. Part of his success came from his incredible speed—so fast that the abominations couldn’t keep up. Another advantage was their lack of coordination. Their sheer numbers, instead of overwhelming him, caused them to get in each other’s way. Occasionally, they’d stumble over one another, and sometimes their long claws even tangled together.

Liu Xing whipped his lightning blade in every direction—left, right, up, and down—deflecting and slicing through the nails of the Wu clan abominations. The sound of clashing metal echoed through the battlefield, and clouds of dust rose thicker and thicker with every movement he made.

His strikes were so fast that it seemed as if there were not just one lightning blade but dozens, each one parrying the claws aimed at him.

For a moment, the battle was evenly matched—Liu Xing alone against hundreds of abominations. But then, he added his gun into the mix