THE DEMON EMPEROR REBORN AS A SERVANT

Chapter 10: The Illusion Array

Lin Tian's small knees slammed hard onto the rocky ground. The skin of his palms was torn by sharp gravel, drawing fresh blood. The pain was instantly drowned out by a wave of absolute terror that froze his blood as he looked up.

Outside the canyon entrance, the eyes of Gou Yan, the leader of the tracking squad, smiled with satisfaction as he saw the boy's figure sprawled in the pale moonlight. The caution he had maintained was shattered by the temptation of an invaluable prize. That was the sole heir of the Lin Family. The boy's head was worth a general's position in Advisor Zhao's army.

"Hahaha! Heaven is truly blessing me tonight!" Gou Yan laughed hoarsely. "Don't let him get away! Take his head!"

Ignoring all his instincts, Gou Yan shot forward into the canyon, followed by his six subordinates. The speed of a Grade 2 Warrior allowed them to cross the fifteen-foot distance in a single breath. The large sword in Gou Yan's hand was raised high, reflecting a deadly gleam, ready to split Lin Tian's small body in two.

The ten-year-old boy's face went pale. He even forgot how to breathe, let alone scream. The tip of the sword was just an inch from his forehead.

But just as Gou Yan's foot landed on the sandy ground, two steps inside the canyon, crossing the invisible illusionary boundary set by Xiao Chen, the world suddenly changed.

BZZZZT!

The nine blood-smeared stones under the ground resonated in unison. A thick Yin aura exploded silently.

Gou Yan's sword blade suddenly felt as heavy as a mountain, veering off its target and slamming into the rocky ground right next to Lin Tian's ear, sending sparks flying. Gou Yan staggered. When he raised his head, the canyon landscape had vanished. The moonlight had turned blood-red. Illusory trees made of human bones grew from the ground.

And most terrifyingly, his six subordinates around him no longer looked human. In Gou Yan's eyes, they were monsters with the heads of wild boars, their tusks dripping with pus, swinging their weapons at him.

At the same time, the six subordinates also saw Gou Yan as a giant demon trying to devour them.

"Monster! Retreat!" one of the trackers shrieked in panic.

"Die, you damn fiend!" Gou Yan roared, his Grade 2 Qi exploding uncontrollably. He swung his large sword and sliced his own subordinate's chest in half. Blood sprayed into the air, thickening the illusionary mist.

On top of the dark canyon cliff, Xiao Chen watched the chaos with ice-cold eyes. "Now, General!" he commanded Lei Tie, who was hiding on the opposite side of the cliff.

Summoning the last of his strength in his right arm, Lei Tie kicked and pushed three buffalo-sized boulders that they had prepared at the edge of the cliff. Xiao Chen did the same on his side.

GRUMBL! BRAAAK!

The giant boulders rolled freely from a height of thirty feet, crashing directly into the middle of the enemy formation, where they were busy hacking at each other in confusion. Two trackers were killed instantly, their bodies crushed into a pulp of flesh under the rocks.

Gou Yan, who was swinging his sword, noticed the giant shadow falling from above. He tried to leap backward with his Grade 2 Warrior reflexes, but his Qi circulation was in chaos due to the hallucination.

KRAK!

A boulder crashed down and crushed his left leg from the knee down. Gou Yan screamed hysterically, rolling on the ground, clutching his leg, which was now a flat mess of gravel and bone.

Three trackers were left alive but disoriented.

Xiao Chen didn't wait for the dust to settle. He gripped his scavenged sword tightly, channeled all his remaining Grade 1 Qi into his leg muscles, and leaped down from the cliff like a bat out of hell.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, the dance of blood began.

The first enemy was swinging his sword blindly at the empty air. Xiao Chen lowered his posture, slid under the enemy's sword swing, and slashed the man's inner thigh artery. As the enemy fell to his knees, Xiao Chen's sword twisted and plunged straight through the base of his neck. One down.

However, Xiao Chen quickly realized the harsh reality of the cultivation difference. Grade 2 Warriors had a thin layer of Qi defense under their skin. When Xiao Chen pulled his sword from the first enemy's neck, the blade got caught for a split second on the Qi-hardened neck bone.

That one-second delay was fatal.

The second enemy nearby heard the sound of the real slash. Driven by survival instinct, the tracker spun around and launched a horizontal slash with a speed that a normal human eye couldn't follow.

Xiao Chen's Demon Emperor brain read the sword's trajectory perfectly, but his mortal Grade 1 muscles were too slow to respond to his brain's command.

SRAT!

The enemy's blade tore through Xiao Chen's coarse robe, slashing his left shoulder deep enough to cut through the muscle and touch the collarbone. Fresh blood instantly sprayed out, staining his clothes a deep red.

Xiao Chen didn't even flinch. He used the pain from the tear in his shoulder as an anchor to maintain his focus. Instead of retreating, he charged forward, crashing into the second enemy, ignoring any safe distance. At this point-blank range, the enemy's long sword was useless. Xiao Chen slammed his hard forehead into the enemy's nose, breaking the cartilage, then plunged his sword up into the man's solar plexus. Two down.

The third enemy, the most ferocious, finally realized the direction of the real attack. He charged forward, roaring, thrusting his twin swords at Xiao Chen like a deadly drill.

Xiao Chen used the body of the second enemy he had just killed as a meat shield. The twin swords embedded themselves in the corpse's back. Using that momentum, Xiao Chen kicked the corpse forward, making the third enemy lose his balance. Xiao Chen leaped from the side, swinging his sword at the man's neck.

But the third enemy pulled one of his swords back with a burst of Grade 2 Qi, parrying Xiao Chen's attack and kicking out at Xiao Chen's right thigh.

BUAKH! JLEB!

The Qi-infused kick tore through Xiao Chen's outer thigh, sending the tyrant staggering and spitting blood from the corner of his lips due to the internal energy impact.

But in the world of cultivation, a second of hesitation is death. Just as the third enemy thought he had the upper hand, Xiao Chen's free left hand shot out and caught the enemy's blade with his bare hand. Blood poured from Xiao Chen's sliced palm, but his grip was like steel. Locking the enemy's weapon, Xiao Chen's right hand slashed the third enemy's jaw diagonally, splitting his skull in half.

Three down. The forest fell silent again, filled only with the sound of ragged breathing and the pained moans of the one man left.

The dust slowly settled as the energy from the 9 Hells Illusion Formation faded. The illusion shattered, returning the canyon to its normal state.

In a corner of the canyon, hidden by the cliff's shadow, Lin Tian sat frozen. His pants were wet with urine he hadn't even realized he'd released. His wide, trembling eyes had recorded every second of the brutal fight. He saw his servant get slashed, saw his servant's blood spray, but not once did the servant retreat. The man traded wounds for lives, slaughtering his enemies with the efficiency of an emotionless monster.

In the depths of the ten-year-old boy's heart, an overwhelming horror began to merge with something very dark. A distorted admiration. This was the reality of the world Xiao Chen had spoken of. In the face of absolute power and demonic cunning, noble titles and mercy were nothing more than trash.

Xiao Chen stood in a pool of blood, his breathing heavy and ragged. His left shoulder and right thigh dripped blood continuously, making his face even paler. He looked at his left palm, which was torn from blocking the sword, then snorted in self-disgust.

'I was almost killed by a Grade 2 insect because this garbage body is so slow,' he thought irritably. Grade 1 strength was truly nauseating to him.

He raised his head, walking slowly with a slight limp towards the giant boulder.

Under the rock, Gou Yan was pinned, his left leg a pulp of bone and flesh. Sweat the size of corn kernels drenched the executioner's face. When he saw the blood-soaked figure of the young servant walking towards him, the last of his arrogance vanished without a trace.

"D-don't come any closer... You're not human... You're a demon!" Gou Yan whimpered, trying to crawl back, but his body was pinned by the rock.

Xiao Chen stopped right in front of Gou Yan. He looked the executioner up and down, his black eyes completely devoid of mortal sympathy. He placed the tip of his still-dripping sword slowly on Gou Yan's right eye.

The fresh blood from the sword dripped into the executioner's eye, making him let out a choked scream.

Xiao Chen smiled faintly, a curve of his lips that radiated absolute terror.

"Demon is too holy a name for me tonight," Xiao Chen whispered, his hoarse voice sending shivers down the spine. He pressed the tip of his sword a little deeper, forcing Gou Yan to look up in terror. "Tell me where your master is hiding tonight... or I will use this dull sword to slowly flay you, starting with your eyelids."