"I am only here to exact revenge on the Jiang Family, and I have no wish to drag innocent people into this. Leave now, and there is still time," Zhang Ming said, his expression unchanged and his voice ice-cold.
"Arrogant fool. Let me see what you're truly capable of!" the man roared, storming into the courtyard and lashing out with a kick straight at Zhang Ming.
"Hmph. Even a little dog barks when it thinks it's brave." Zhang Ming spun around abruptly, striking the incoming foot with a single punch and sending it back with bone-shattering force.
"Ah!" Accompanied by a piercing scream and the sickening crunch of breaking bones, the man was sent flying backward, writhing in agony on the ground of the courtyard as his shattered leg bone pierced through his skin—a horrific sight.
"It hurts like hell... Get him! Kill him! I want his head!" the man wailed, issuing the order to attack.
Three hundred guards raised their firearms, and a deafening volley of gunfire erupted.
Yet Zhang Ming's figure flickered like a ghost, vanishing instantly. When he reappeared, everyone was frozen in shock.
"I had no intention of harming you, but since you brought this upon yourselves, don't blame me for being merciless," Zhang Ming said coldly.
Before his words had even faded, he flicked his hands, sending a flurry of pebbles flying through the air. They struck the guards' pressure points with pinpoint accuracy, freezing them in place and rendering them completely immobile.
Zhang Ming's medical skills were sublime; he could save lives just as easily as he could take them. Having absolute mastery over the human anatomy, a single strike was all it took for him to completely incapacitate an opponent.
In the span of just a few short seconds, three hundred guards lay collapsed on the ground, wailing in pain. Yet Zhang Ming had pulled his punches, sparing their lives.
They were merely following orders, and they had families waiting for them back home. How could he possibly transform into a cold-blooded killer right in front of his family's memorial tablets?
Seeing this, the seductive woman's face turned completely pale. She finally understood just how formidable Zhang Ming truly was. The man whose limbs had just been crippled was Teng She, a top-tier expert under the command of the Marquis of the Northwest, yet he had been defeated without managing to land even a single blow.
Among the three hundred guards, the weakest were already Human-tier martial artists, and there was no shortage of Earth-tier experts among them. Yet before Zhang Ming, they were utterly powerless to fight back. It was simply unimaginable!
"You... you are a Grandmaster expert..." the woman stammered, riddled with terror.
"Get lost," Zhang Ming commanded coldly.
Though the enchantress's heart was pounding wildly, hearing Teng She's desperate cries steeled her resolve. Seizing a moment when Zhang Ming let his guard down, she attempted a sneak attack.
Quick-eyed and fast-handed, Zhang Ming darted right up to the enchantress in a single stride. He casually brushed aside her ambush, and with a backhanded slap, sent her flying.
The enchantress spat a mouthful of blood, her leather armor split wide open, and she slumped motionless onto the ground.
"If you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish." Zhang Ming's words were chilling enough to make anyone shudder.
When dealing with opponents like Teng She, Zhang Ming would show no mercy. He walked over to Teng She and ended the fellow's arrogant days with a single stomp.
Two Earth-tier experts had fallen into pools of blood in the blink of an eye. The hundreds of surrounding soldiers watched in horror, their faces draining of all color—they had never witnessed such a terrifying display of martial might.
"Run! If you don't want to die, get out of here right now!" Zhang Ming roared, his presence commanding and majestic.
The soldiers under the Marquis of the Northwest were already scared out of their wits. Hearing this, they bolted in every direction like startled rabbits, not even daring to look back. Their commander had been killed with a single strike from the palm of his hand; who on earth would dare stay behind to throw their lives away?
Yet before these soldiers had managed to run far, a cold sneer echoed through the night air. "Such incredible audacity, running amok in the Northwest. You must have a death wish." Before the words had even finished echoing, a stern-looking elderly man strode into the courtyard followed by dozens of men.
As the lantern in the old man's hand flared to life, everyone could clearly make out his face.
He was around fifty years of age, dressed in military uniform, radiating an imposing aura, though his eyes gleamed with a vicious ruthlessness.
Without needing to guess, this was none other than the renowned General Li, the Marquis of the Northwest.
"Marquis of the Northwest," Zhang Ming greeted coldly.
"That's right. You told me to wait here for you, and now that I've come, you owe me an explanation," the Marquis said, his voice as cold as ice, before continuing, "This is the Northwest, not some place where you can run wild. You've killed my divine army commander and my experts; you must give me an accounting for this."
"An accounting? Are you even worthy? You're being used as a pawn by others and you don't even realize it, yet you still have the nerve to call yourself the Marquis of the Northwest. How laughable," Zhang Ming taunted.
"What did you say?" The Marquis's face darkened considerably.
"Don't you find it pathetic that you're being used as a tool by the Jiang Family?" Zhang Ming sneered.
At that moment, a young man behind the Marquis bellowed, "Impudent wretch! How dare you insult the Marquis of the Northwest!"
"I am speaking to your master. Where does someone of your status get off interrupting?" Zhang Ming's gaze sharpened as he spoke in an icy tone.
The young man was utterly suppressed by Zhang Ming's overwhelming presence, finding himself unable to utter a single word for a long while.
"If you talk nonsense again, you'll be off to see King Yama," Zhang Ming warned.
"Arrogant bastard! Do you really think you can kill me just like that?" The young man sneered, his eyes burning with fury.
Without another word, Zhang Ming flicked his wrist, and a silver needle shot forward like an arrow, striking the young man squarely in the throat.
The movement was so blindingly fast that no one had time to react. It wasn't until the young man collapsed that the crowd finally understood what had happened.
"Little beast, you're courting death!" The Marquis flew into a towering rage.
"Kill him!"
At the command of the Marquis of the Northwest, an elderly man behind him darted forward like a monkey, leaping high into the air and plunging directly toward Zhang Ming.
Every single one of the old man's attacks was lethal, as if he meant to end Zhang Ming's life in a single instant.
Before long, the two of them had already exchanged numerous blows.
"Seeing as you're getting up there in years, I'll let you have the first three moves. Now that three moves have passed, it's time to send you on your way." Zhang Ming said this casually, keeping one hand tucked behind his back.
Upon hearing this, the old man looked as though he had suffered the most extreme humiliation; his anger flared, and his attacks grew even more ferocious.
Yet all of this ended with a single palm strike from Zhang Ming. He slammed his palm fiercely against the old man's chest, the immense power instantly shattering his heart meridian.
A flush of deep red crossed the old man's face before he collapsed onto the ground, never to move again.
"Lord Li!" The Marquis's face drained of color in sheer terror, completely unable to believe what was unfolding before his eyes.
This deceased elder was one of his two top-tier experts, a peak figure throughout the entire Northwest region, yet he had fallen so effortlessly beneath Zhang Ming's hand.
"Who on earth are you? Coming to the Northwest to stir up trouble—what is your true aim?" the Marquis asked warily, suspecting that Zhang Ming might be an agent sent by hostile factions to deal with him.
"I keep telling you that I'm only here for the Jiang Family, but you refuse to listen. I've said it before: my target is solely the Jiang Family. Your own men came looking for death—how can you possibly blame me?"
"Leave now while you still can. Otherwise, given who you are, in my eyes you're worth even less than a dead dog. Killing you would take no more effort than lifting a finger."
Zhang Ming's words were outrageously arrogant, openly and mercilessly provoking the Marquis of the Northwest without showing him an ounce of respect.
"You're too brazen, boy! No matter who you are, and no matter how formidable your skills might be, if you dare to cause chaos in the Northwest, you must be prepared to die."
"If I were to let you walk away today, how could I ever show my face in the Xia State again?" the Marquis of the Northwest said through gritted teeth.
Today, Zhang Ming had gone on a bloody rampage right in his own backyard, costing the lives of several experts, including one of his absolute top-tier fighters.
If he simply allowed Zhang Ming to leave just like that, what dignity would he, the Marquis of the Northwest, have left?
"If that's how it is, then give it your best shot and see if you, the Marquis of the Northwest, actually have what it takes to keep me here," Zhang Ming mocked.
"Hmph! Thirty-eighth Guard, move in and capture that brat! Dead or alive!" the Marquis barked sternly.
"Uncle Li is certainly full of prestige! Who on earth are you planning to arrest?" Suddenly, a woman's voice rang out.
Just as the atmosphere in the courtyard reached its absolute breaking point of tension, a woman's voice suddenly chimed in, shattering the perilous deadlock.