Yang Cheng's spiritual power was already no weaker than that of a god.
Every Martial Sovereign radiating killing intent was instantly marked by his spiritual sense, allowing the Blood Shadow Guards to lock onto their positions effortlessly.
Amusingly, one of the assassins even thought to hide right under his nose—lodging at an inn just outside Yang Cheng's temporary residence.
Swish, swish, swish…
In an instant, dozens of Blood Shadow Guards rushed to the inn where the assassin was hiding.
This assassin wasn't weak—he was a Seventh-Level Martial Sovereign.
The average Blood Shadow Guard was at the Martial Emperor realm, while some had even reached Martial Saint. With the Twenty-Four-Star Divine Crossbows in their hands, their combined firepower could rival that of a Martial Saint.
And with their numbers, even a Seventh-Level Martial Sovereign would find them overwhelming.
On the second floor of the inn, the window lattice suddenly shuddered without wind, and the bronze wind bell at the eaves clanged sharply, startling a few sparrows into flight.
A black-clad assassin placed his wine cup gently on the sandalwood table, his fingers brushing across the engraved Taotie pattern on its rim. His gaze turned sharp. "Who's there?"
He had been observing Yang Cheng, even planning to strike amidst chaos later. But before he could act, he sensed a chilling aura approaching.
Before his words fell, several black shadows leaped through the window.
The leader of the Blood Shadow Guards raised his weapon; the Twenty-Four-Star Divine Crossbow at his waist gleamed coldly. "You dare come to assassinate His Highness the Crown Prince? You're courting death."
The assassin's expression darkened, though he didn't panic. Slowly wiping the blade of his soft sword, he replied evenly, "Courting death? I wonder if you even have the strength to make that claim."
Before his voice faded, his soft sword shot out like a viper striking from its hole, piercing straight for the lead Blood Shadow Guard's throat.
The Blood Shadow Guard didn't even flinch. His hand moved slightly, and the Divine Crossbow thrummed to life.
Buzz!
Twenty-Four dark-gold bolts tore through the air, weaving together into a brilliant net of cold light.
"What—?"
The assassin's eyes widened in shock.
He had dismissed them at first—just a few Martial Emperors and Martial Saints, hardly worth concern. He hadn't expected them to wield such terrifying weapons.
He immediately retreated, his sword spinning in intricate arcs, scattering the incoming bolts one by one.
But just then, the twanging of bowstrings echoed from outside the inn.
The other Blood Shadow Guards had already unleashed a coordinated volley.
The air filled with the shriek of piercing arrows and the clash of steel, the sounds blending into a storm of death.
Within three feet around the assassin, flashes of cold light danced wildly.
His sword technique shifted. The long blade roared like a dragon breaching the sea, sword qi sweeping forth in a violent surge. The surrounding bricks shattered, and wooden beams splintered.
Yet the Blood Shadow Guards worked in perfect unison. Some raised shields to block, while others seized the moment to fire. Together, they trapped the assassin firmly at the center of the inn.
The assassin's expression grew darker. His sword trembled as he shouted lowly, "Heaven and earth as the furnace, all things as copper, yin and yang as coal, creation as the craftsman—Great Smelting Law!"
At once, the temperature inside the inn soared.
The air itself seemed to ignite, and the entire building became a blazing furnace.
The Blood Shadow Guards felt the breath sear in their lungs. The metal frames of their crossbows glowed red-hot.
Their leader reacted instantly. "Formation!"
Dozens of Blood Shadow Guards shifted formation at once. The crossbows in their hands flared with dazzling light, merging above them into a vast celestial diagram.
Within the star map, twenty-four constellations shone brightly, each sending down beams of starlight converging upon the assassin.
The assassin's face changed drastically. He swung his sword in desperation, but there was no stopping the rain of divine light.
Moments later, his body was riddled with bolts—looking like a hedgehog, yet still twitching with disbelief.
"What… what kind of crossbows… are these…"
His eyes were filled with shock and unwillingness.
He had thought they were nothing but a pack of ants, but with these strange divine crossbows, they had turned him—an exalted Martial Sovereign—into a corpse.
The humiliation burned hotter than his wounds.
Meanwhile, Yang Cheng, from far away, watched it all through his spiritual sense.
"This is only the beginning," he murmured softly.
His consciousness drifted on, locking onto other Martial Sovereigns scattered across the area.
At this moment, he was like a god overlooking the mortal realm—
and the Blood Shadow Guards were his divine envoys, carrying out his will.
The feeling was nothing short of divine.
For the first time, Yang Cheng truly felt the strange thrill of this kind of battle. It gave him a different kind of enlightenment on his Martial Dao.
Inside a secluded manor, a scar-faced man sat at a desk, flipping through a stack of documents. Every page detailed information about one person—Yang Cheng.
"According to the intel, Su Lingchen was most likely killed by this Yang Cheng," he muttered, his tone calm but sharp.
He was extremely cautious. After arriving in the Wasteland Realm, he didn't rush to assassinate Yang Cheng. Instead, he spent time buying every bit of information about him.
'Only by knowing yourself and knowing your enemy can you win every battle,' he thought coldly.
This man wasn't from the Azure Jade Realm, but from the Tanghe Realm. During his past travels to the Azure Jade Realm, he had heard about the bounty from the Qingming Sect. Intrigued by the massive reward, he came to the Wasteland Realm.
His participation slot had been obtained by killing a Martial Sovereign from the Azure Jade Realm and taking his place.
"Ten million supreme-grade spirit stones… that's really a fortune," he sneered, eyes flashing greed. "With that much wealth, I'll never have to worry about resources for breaking through to the God Realm."
He was a Ninth-Level Martial Sovereign, a point in cultivation where the hunger for resources was bottomless.
He toyed with a dart in his hand—an artifact he'd acquired by sheer luck. With it, he was confident that as long as he seized the right opportunity, Yang Cheng's head would belong to him.
But before he could finish that thought, the door suddenly burst open.
Dozens upon dozens of Blood Shadow Guards surged in—nearly one hundred men in total.
Without a word, they raised their Divine Crossbows and fired in perfect unison.
A dense storm of bolts blanketed the room like a torrential downpour.
The scar-faced man instantly felt true fear.
Even with his cultivation as a Ninth-Level Martial Sovereign, he couldn't unleash his full power in such an enclosed space under that kind of crossfire.
After only a few dozen breaths, his body was riddled with bolts, lifeless on the floor.
"Continue."
The Blood Shadow Guards' leader gave the order, his tone calm, almost mechanical. The killing didn't stop.
This scar-faced Martial Sovereign was the fourth they had slain tonight.
Tonight, the Blood Shadow Guards had become machines of death—reapers of Martial Sovereigns.
All across Zhen'nan Pass, the assassins who had infiltrated the city began to sense that something was wrong. Fear spread among them like wildfire, and they tried desperately to hide.
But none could evade Yang Cheng's spiritual sense.
Time passed unknowingly.
By the time dawn's first light brushed the horizon, it was over.
"Seven Martial Sovereigns."
A thousand Blood Shadow Guards had fought through the night and killed seven Martial Sovereigns.
If word of this spread across the Wasteland Realm, it would cause an earthquake.
After all, Martial Sovereigns were rare—each one a top-tier powerhouse in their own right. To the common cultivator, a single Martial Sovereign was a figure that could dominate an entire region.
Yet tonight, these beings had been slaughtered like cattle within Zhen'nan Pass.
Yang Cheng stood quietly on a balcony, the morning light brushing his face.
"It's time for me to act personally," he murmured.
His fingers twitched slightly—he was getting eager himself.
This time, he wanted to take down a truly formidable Martial Sovereign. He wanted to send a message—to make every assassin think twice before daring to target him again.
"Night Owl."
His lips curved into a cold smile. That was the name of his next target.
Night Owl—a legend among assassins, infamous across realms for having once tried to kill a god and surviving the attempt.
If Yang Cheng killed someone like him, it would shake the entire Azure Jade Realm to its core.
Boom!
His spiritual power erupted violently, spreading outward in every direction.
Unlike before, he no longer held back or concealed himself. Earlier, he had restrained his aura to avoid alarming the assassins too soon. But now, after so many had died, there was no need for restraint.
Night Owl was deeply hidden—far deeper than any of the previous Martial Sovereigns.
But it didn't matter. Even he couldn't escape Yang Cheng's overwhelming spiritual perception.
"So that's where you are."
Swish!
In the blink of an eye, Yang Cheng vanished from where he stood.
[Divine Ability · Shrinking the Earth to an Inch]
A heartbeat later, he reappeared a hundred zhang (roughly 300 meters) away.
At that same instant, several Martial Sovereigns still hiding in the city felt a chill crawl down their spines.
Their expressions turned pale as they realized what that surge of power was—Yang Cheng's spiritual might, vast and suffocating, far beyond anything they could have imagined.
It was the power of a god walking among men.