The Peerless Emperor (TPE)

"Young Emperor, such empty boasts don't work on me. Look at the faces of your three junior brothers—they're already filled with fear, which tells me that the Vientiane Sect didn't send anyone else here." The scar-faced youth twirled the artifact dagger in his hand, wearing a smug expression as if he had seen through everything.

At that moment, Bai Ren, Zhao Qiang, and Zhao Jian all wore grave expressions, their eyes fixed on the group before them.

The presence of a hundred Overlord Blade Sect disciples was already beyond their expectations and completely contradicted the information they had.

Even more alarming was that among them were six Nirvana Realm experts, along with a hundred Form Condensation Realm disciples.

Such strength wasn't just a threat to Ba Mountain City; even large cities under the Vientiane Sect's jurisdiction, with their own Nirvana Realm guardians, would struggle to resist this force.

Moreover, even if they sent for reinforcements, it would take at least two days for help to arrive at Ba Mountain City.

Yet, the three of them noticed that Lin Qian didn't seem worried at all—in fact, he appeared almost relaxed.

At first, they thought Lin Qian might be bluffing, but his demeanor suggested otherwise.

"Could it be that Senior Brother secretly sent for reinforcements from the sect?" Bai Ren clenched his folding fan tightly, speculating in his mind.

"Indeed, the Vientiane Sect hasn't sent anyone," Lin Qian said with a smile, as the soul power around him dissipated and he relaxed his muscles, assuming a stance that indicated he wasn't planning to continue fighting. "But my people have arrived."

The bright sun blazed overhead, casting intense light across the entire square.

But as soon as Lin Qian finished speaking, small shadows began to appear on the ground and gradually expanded.

The shadow in front of Lin Qian grew the fastest, slowly forming the shape of a person.

Bang!

The sound of metal striking the ground echoed as shattered stones flew in all directions. A man clad in black dragon-patterned silver armor landed on one knee in front of Lin Qian.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound of heavy armor striking the ground continued to reverberate through the air as a group of heavily armored soldiers, each wielding a long spear, landed one after another, kneeling in front of Lin Qian.

The general kneeling before Lin Qian was none other than Zhao Long, the most powerful growth-type general Lin Qian had personally crafted in his past life, now materialized in this world.

The heavily armored spear soldiers surrounding them were the most basic unit in Lin Qian's game empire, the spear infantry.

Even though they were the lowest-tier units, Lin Qian had spared no expense in upgrading them to the highest level in his previous life.

Heavy Armor Technology: Max Level! Mystic Spear Technology: Max Level! Life Technology: Max Level! Attribute Technology: Max Level!

Lin Qian was proud and confident. If this world's Form Condensation Realm soul cultivators formed armies, his lowest-tier unit would still be the strongest!

"You want to compare numbers with me? You have a hundred men, but I have a thousand!" Lin Qian looked at the scar-faced youth, who had been so confident moments ago but was now trembling in place. With a mischievous smile, Lin Qian pointed at him.

"Soldiers, these people are planning to kill me. What do we do with people like that?"

As soon as Lin Qian finished speaking, Zhao Long jumped to his feet, his eyes blazing with fury as he roared, "How dare you! Where do these wretches come from, daring to harbor such disrespectful thoughts toward His Majesty? They deserve to die, their entire clans deserve to be exterminated!"

"Kill!" Enraged, Zhao Long immediately led the thousand-strong force, now a steel torrent, charging toward the Overlord Blade Sect and the Li Family's direction.

In an instant, the two sides clashed.

"Merely Form Condensation Realm soldiers dare to…" A Nirvana Realm disciple of the Overlord Blade Sect stared into the cold, emotionless eyes of a spear-wielding soldier before him. The disciple unleashed the power of his weaponized artifact, his Nirvana Realm strength exploding as he slashed at the soldier with all his might.

Clang!

The disciple froze, staring at his now-empty hands.

"How… How could this be? I'm in the Nirvana Realm—I couldn't even cut through the armor of a Form Condensation Realm soldier, and my weapon was sent flying?" He couldn't comprehend it as he watched the soldier, whom he had struck down, rise from the ground unscathed.

Splurt!

In the next moment, several spear tips pierced through him from different directions, their combined force shattering his protective soul power and impaling him.

Other Overlord Blade Sect disciples and Li Family members were equally horrified to find that the emotionless soldiers before them were like steel monsters.

The sharpness of their spears easily pierced through their protective soul power, while the hardness of their armor allowed their enemies' attacks to leave only faint white marks.

And among this group, the strongest of them, the scar-faced youth, swung his dagger frantically, unleashing blade after blade of soul energy against Zhao Long.

Zhao Long, however, continued advancing toward the scar-faced youth with a terrifying expression, ignoring the soul-powered blades as they struck him and exploded.

Despite the powerful blasts, all they left behind were wisps of black smoke that gradually dissipated.

"This… This can't be happening," the scar-faced youth muttered in despair as Zhao Long drew closer. He finally let go of his dagger, letting it fall to the ground and disintegrate back into a small crimson dagger and metal spheres.

Glaring at the disoriented scar-faced youth, Zhao Long's face twisted with disgust. "Trash like you dares to offend the Emperor's authority? Death is too light a punishment for you!"

With that, Zhao Long thrust his spear forward, piercing through the scar-faced youth's heart.

It was a massacre—a complete and utter annihilation. The army that had descended from the sky effortlessly crushed the Overlord Blade Sect disciples and the Li Family members.

The arrival of the Overlord Blade Sect's disciples, threatening to massacre the city, had plunged the crowd into despair and terror.

But then, following Lin Qian's orders, his army had effortlessly shattered that fear.

"The weather sure is nice today," Ye Nanxin murmured, looking up at the sky.

Meanwhile, far away from Ba Mountain City, in a dark, grimy water prison, a man lay covered in blood and wounds.

Outside the prison, a beautiful woman stood, tears streaming down her face as she gazed at the man inside. "Lin, what should I do? I regret coming back so much. We never should have returned."

"It's just a bit of suffering—I'll survive. But Xiaoyun, no matter what they say, no matter how much they promise to cure Qian'er's soul power, don't agree. Don't tell them where he is."

"I'd rather he live an ordinary life as a useless person than let our son get caught up in all this." The woman nodded firmly, her eyes filled with sorrow and longing. "I wonder how Qian'er is doing right now…"

In the meeting hall of the Ye Family, the most prominent figures of Ba Mountain City surrounded a young man with flattering smiles, offering him tea, massages, and compliments.

Lin Qian, completely unaware of his parents' suffering, was overwhelmed with exasperation as he tried to disperse the crowd. "Why are you all crowding around me? Go back to your seats!"

As soon as Lin Qian spoke, the crowd scattered like a whirlwind, obediently taking their seats in the hall.

"Having the enemy explain everything just doesn't feel right," Lin Qian said as he stood up, nodding to the assembled crowd. "I am this city's patrol envoy for this trial—Lin Qian of the Vientiane Sect, also known as the Young Emperor."

"Tomorrow, the Ba Mountain Vientiane Trial will continue as planned. In addition, each family will receive an extra slot to participate, and the number of reward slots will be increased accordingly."

After Lin Qian finished speaking, the crowd erupted in cheers and excitement.

But just as he finished, his vision went dark, and he collapsed to the floor.

Before losing consciousness, Lin Qian's last sight was Ye Nanxin rushing toward him with a worried expression.