Chapter 17 Inexplicable

Two minutes ago...

Wang Tanzhi regained the ability to move after watching the opening CG and listening to the mission prompts.

As luck would have it, his initial teleport point was right in front of a group of demon soldiers.

Originally… that group of demon soldiers was resting under the command of their superior, Jiao. Unexpectedly… a white light suddenly appeared in front of the formation, and a second later, a man dressed in Renaissance-era Assassin's Creed garb abruptly appeared.

Seeing this, several demon soldiers closest to Xiao Tan immediately stepped forward with their spears, surrounded him, and questioned him in a guarded tone, "Who goes there?"

"Uh..." Xiao Tan's reaction wasn't slow either. Through the CG, he already knew that this group of fierce-looking creatures (the demon soldiers were similar in size to humans, with bluish-gray skin and white hair; most of them had yellow eyes, pointed ears, sharp teeth, and sharp nails) were the "Orochi Army" grunts. Therefore, after thinking for two seconds, he replied, "I'm here to participate in the martial arts tournament, but I got lost. Do you know how to get to Demon City?"

"Huh? You? Participating in the martial arts tournament?" The demon soldiers sized Xiao Tan up and down, seemingly not believing him.

"If you don't know… you can find someone in charge to talk to me." Xiao Tan didn't want to waste time with the grunts. As he spoke, he scanned the enemy ranks and quickly spotted a guy who looked different from the average grunt. "Ah… that fatty over there seems to be your commander. How about you help me report in…"

"What did you say?"

Before Xiao Tan could finish speaking, "that fatty" he mentioned turned his head, revealing a fierce look, and interrupted him with a roar.

"Geez... he can hear from so far away..." Xiao Tan muttered in a low voice, "And he seems angry... Did I say something wrong..."

This time... his reaction was a bit slow. Of course, it wasn't entirely his fault, because... generally speaking, men don't react as strongly as women when called fat... most men don't mind it, and many even find nicknames like "Fat Zhang, Fat Wang, Little Fatty" quite endearing.

However… the demon general Xiao Tan encountered was clearly one of those few who extremely resented being called "fat."

His name was Jiao.

As a demon general, Jiao's appearance was naturally different from those of the grunts…

He had light gray skin, gray eyes with blue pupils, protruding brow bones, and a pair of huge fangs protruding from his mouth.

He wore a strange mask on his face, shaped like… a special leather underpants… the lower half of the mask covered his nose, mouth, and chin below his cheekbones, with two holes for his fangs to pass through; while the upper half of the mask was inverted triangular, covering the top of his head and extending to the back of his head.

Jiao wasn't bald; he had a ponytail on the back of his head that looked like a scallion stalk…

He wore black shoulder pads, the straps of which crossed in front of his chest, connecting to a curved piece of armor on his stomach.

By the way… objectively speaking, he was indeed a fat man. Although his exposed pectoral muscles and biceps were quite developed, his short stature, potbelly, and overall appearance made him look like a demon version of Dwarf Tiger (a character from *Water Margin*).

"You bastard... do you know who I am?" Seeing that Xiao Tan showed no remorse, Jiao immediately roared again, "Are you tired of living?"

"What did I even do?" Xiao Tan squinted, still confused.

"Still pretending?" Jiao's patience had reached its limit. "I'll flay you alive!"

…………

Time returns to the present...

"This is just ridiculous..." Wang Tanzhi ran wildly across the wilderness. "Just because I called you a fatty... Is that necessary?"

"You actually said it again!" Jiao was extremely sensitive to those two words, and roared in uncontrollable rage, "Men! After him! Tear him to pieces!"

"Yes!" The demon soldiers behind Jiao received the order, roaring and increasing their momentum.

"Tch... looks like reasoning is useless..." Xiao Tan thought. "I'd better speed up a bit. If I run seriously... they shouldn't be able to catch me..."

Thinking of this, he exerted force on his feet and increased his running speed again, instantly rushing into the rocky terrain ahead.

"Hmm... good opportunity..." Watching Xiao Tan flee in panic, Feng Bujue hesitated, muttering to himself, "Should I attack or not..."

Here, to avoid any misunderstanding, I must explain... the "attack" that Jue-Ge was referring to wasn't "helping him," but "taking advantage of the situation to ambush him."

"Hmph…" After a couple of seconds, Feng Bujue seemed to have made up his mind, coldly snorting, "I'm being too soft... What's there to hesitate about? He should have experienced the cruelty of team battles long ago..."

His actions seemed somewhat heartless, but they were actually justifiable.

In a real match, such "ambushes" were commonplace; opponents wouldn't let you off just because you were being chased by a group of NPCs.

It's better to be taught a lesson by one's own people here than to be taught a lesson by outsiders in a match... Thinking of this, Jue-Ge decisively decided… to launch a ruthless surprise attack on Xiao Tan.

However… at this moment, an unexpected change occurred.

"Orochi's lackeys... don't get too cocky!" A clear whistle pierced the sky, leading to a cyan and white figure.

He was seen… wearing a brocade headband, with long hair flying; clad in silver armor, reflecting the sunlight; wearing iron armor on his lower body, tightly bound with leather straps; with floral pleats on his feet, walking like starlight.

"Zhao Zilong of Changshan is here!" Zhao Yun made a dashing entrance, his Haolongdan (Zhao Yun's weapon in the *Dynasty Warriors* series) swirling out layers of spear shadows, stopping the demon soldiers' advance.

"What the..." Feng Bujue already had a grenade in his hand, but when he saw General Zhao's figure, he immediately put it back into the grenade pouch. "Where did he come from?" He couldn't help but look up at the sky, complaining, "Did someone insert a coin?"

On the other side, Xiao Tan stopped immediately after hearing Zhao Yun's voice and turned back in surprise, "Eh? Zhao Zilong?"

In the next few seconds, many images flashed through Wang Tanzhi's mind… He remembered very clearly that in the *Dynasty Warriors* series, the combat power of an unparalleled warrior like Zhao Yun was vastly different from that of those generic-faced warriors. Killing grunts was like mowing grass to him. A group of demon soldiers like the hundred or so in front of him, plus a generic sidekick demon general like Jiao… basically wouldn't last a minute against Zhao Zilong.

"Oh? So that's who it is..." After seeing the person clearly, Jiao sneered, "Hmph… Azure Dragon soaring through the battlefield… is it…"

His tone made Feng Bujue, who was observing in the dark, feel a strange sensation.

"What's going on? As a generic face… this attitude is a bit arrogant…" Jue-Ge thought.

"Heh heh… a defeated general, dares to appear before me again?" Jiao's next sentence shocked both Jue-Ge and Xiao Tan.

"Defeated general?" Xiao Tan questioned in confusion, "How is that possible..."

"Ah… I'm sorry, righteous warrior…" In the next second, Zhao Yun actually turned back to answer Xiao Tan's question, "My strength is still insufficient… for now… I'm probably not Jiao's match." He said in a deep voice, "However, I'm confident that I can hold him off for a while…" As he spoke, he took a stance, ready for battle. "You go first! I'll hold them off here!"

"What the f***?" Feng Bujue could only use this curse word (because he was talking to himself, so the system didn't censor it) to express the surprise in his heart. "An unparalleled warrior actually admitting that he can't beat a generic face, and even setting up a death flag?"

As for Xiao Tan… as a very conscientious person, he definitely couldn't leave. "Although I don't understand what's going on, General Zhao is a stranger to me, yet he's willing to help me selflessly. How can I be so greedy for life and afraid of death that I just run away?"

"Righteous warrior, you're too kind." Zhao Yun replied, "Anyone who dares to stand up against Orochi is my comrade. It's only right that I help."

"Alright... are you two going to keep blabbering on and on?" Jiao interrupted their conversation. "Say whatever you have to say in the Yellow Springs!" After saying that, he raised his arm and ordered, "Men! Charge!"

Before his voice faded, the demon soldiers had already swarmed up, charging toward Xiao Tan and Zhao Yun.

The battle had begun, so there was no need to say more.

Perhaps it was battle instinct, perhaps it was the habit of an assassin... At this moment, the first thing Xiao Tan thought of was "capturing the leader." So, he consciously moved toward Jiao's location.

He spread his hands, and the punch blades and combat daggers were ready. He used a move called [Reverse Blade Whirlwind Slash] to break into the enemy formation, using the momentum of the spin to directly attack the demon soldiers' abdomen.

Unexpectedly…

"Righteous warrior! Be careful!" Before Xiao Tan's whirlwind slash could finish, Zhao Yun's shout rang out.

Unfortunately, the shout came too late.

Clang clang clang...

Accompanied by a burst of rapid sounds, Xiao Tan's figure… stopped.

At this moment, he was horrified.

"Blocked..." Xiao Tan thought in shock, "Actually… all of them… blocked it..."

His shock was understandable. Who would have thought that his super-fast continuous whirlwind slashes would be completely blocked by those grunts, with not a single strike hitting anyone.

"Could it be…" Even Feng Bujue, who was watching from a distance, was shocked. "The fighting power of these guys is all at the Asura difficulty level?"

Asura difficulty, in the *Dynasty Warriors* series... a difficulty that challenges players' reaction speed, patience, endurance, and strategy to the extreme. In this difficulty, the enemy's attack, defense, health, and reactions such as blocking and attacking are all strengthened to an outrageous level. Unparalleled warriors who haven't reached the maximum level or haven't equipped powerful equipment are usually killed by a round of random attacks (which could be spears, swords, or arrows) from the grunts. A generic-faced warrior can also easily take a player's life with a set of combos.

"Crap..." Looking at Xiao Tan, who was now surrounded after the previous move, he was completely exposed with all those enemies carrying long weapons.

"Kill him!" The demon soldiers naturally wouldn't let this self-inflicted idiot off, shouting as several of them thrust their spears.

"Ha!" At that moment, Zhao Yun roared, spun his spear, forcefully breaking through a path with battle aura, and came to Xiao Tan's side. The demon soldiers were staggered by this force, retreating one after another, but… none of them died.

"Righteous warrior, don't be impulsive!" Zhao Yun stood back-to-back with Xiao Tan, gasping for breath. "There are over a hundred enemies, and you… let alone battle aura, you don't even have a piece of solid armor on your body. How can you charge in to kill the general?"

"I was wrong…" Xiao Tan's words were sincere this time. "I'm dragging General Zhao down…"

He was regretting everything now, feeling depressed in his heart. "If I had known this would happen… I would have listened to Yun-Ge and just ran away… I'm just a burden here! What's wrong with those grunts? Everyone's reaction speed can keep up with my whirlwind slash, and they all successfully blocked my attacks… Are you crazy? Are you really just grunts?"

Thinking of this, Xiao Tan couldn't help but look at General Jiao outside the crowd and felt a chill down his spine. "I think I understand… why Zhao Yun would lose to this kind of generic face. In this universe… the strength of the Orochi Army is all ridiculously strong…"

"Righteous warrior." Zhao Yun's voice soon rang out again, interrupting Xiao Tan's thoughts. "I've exhausted my Musou power in order to reach you. Next, I'm afraid I won't have time to protect you. You…"

"I'm fine, General Zhao doesn't need to worry about me." As Xiao Tan spoke, he activated the [Heaven and Earth Reversal Divine Skill].

In the blink of an eye, his figure shot into the sky.

Since his "flying" act was completely unexpected, the surrounding demon soldiers didn't have time to react. By the time they wanted to move, Xiao Tan was already five or six meters off the ground and could no longer be stopped.

"That way… he can fight with all his strength without any worries, right…" Xiao Tan thought, looking at Zhao Yun on the ground.

"You want to run? You bastard."

Just when Xiao Tan thought he could breathe a sigh of relief, Jiao's voice appeared behind him.

At that moment, Wang Tanzhi's blood turned cold…

"This guy…" Xiao Tan's body moved before he could think. When the feeling of "horror" flashed through his mind, his hand had already risen, and Altair's Touch special effect: [Assassin's Edge] had been activated.

Clang—

A dull thud of metal clashing rang out.

Xiao Tan's indestructible hidden blade barely managed to block the sweep of the spear in Jiao's hand.

Even so… Xiao Tan's survival value still dropped by 9%, his arm was numb, and he was sent crashing toward the ground.

"He can jump higher than me in an instant…" Xiao Tan thought while flying backward in mid-air, "And he can use this kind of monstrous power attack with such ease and high speed in the air, where he has no leverage…"

A few seconds later, Wang Tanzhi's feet touched the ground again. Due to the effect of the [Heaven and Earth Reversal Divine Skill], Xiao Tan felt as if he had been hit "upward," so his speed slowed down a lot as he approached the ground. Taking this opportunity, he canceled the skill at the moment of contact, reversing the direction of gravity and standing firm.

Also… because Jiao's attack direction wasn't perpendicular to the ground, Xiao Tan's descent trajectory deviated from his ascent trajectory. When he returned to the ground, he was no longer in the midst of the demon soldiers and Zhao Yun's battle.

"Ho? Not bad... looks like you're handling it with ease." Feng Bujue thought as he watched the battle from the sidelines, "Using the enemy's attack to escape the predicament with minimal losses."

He was a typical example of someone watching a show not knowing the hardships of performing…

At this moment, what Xiao Tan was thinking was: "What to do… If it's a one-on-one fight, I might have a chance to win, but it would definitely be a pyrrhic victory… If I run away, Zhao Yun will be in great danger. And if he dies… I'll be responsible."

Just as Wang Tanzhi was struggling with his thoughts, another uninvited guest… broke into this battle.

"First hate talent without virtue; second hate beauty with misfortune..."

Before the person arrived, the opening verse arrived, revealing the identity of the person coming.

"Third hate the endless river waves; fourth hate the cold world..."

When the fourth line was recited, an extraordinary figure rushed in like a lightning bolt.

"Fifth hate the leaky moon terrace; sixth hate the scorched orchid leaves..."

Chilling—chilling—

The sword edge moved, the sword aura sang.

The sound of the sword dance, as swift as a flowing wind, opened up a wave of wails.

"Seventh hate the poisonous pufferfish; eighth hate the thorns of the hibiscus..."

"Who is it?" Jiao shouted sternly in mid-air, stepping down to block the sword wielder's attack.

"Ninth hate the mosquitoes in summer nights; tenth hate the vipers hidden in the creepers..."

Ping ping ping ping ping ping…

Fast, one word—fast!

The clash between the sword and the spear brought out a series of sounds of weapons colliding, as fast as lightning and as dense as rain.

"Eleventh hate not meeting an opponent; twelfth hate being invincible!"

The opening verse stopped, and the figure appeared.

The two entangled figures stopped, forming a confrontational stance.

One side was a fat man. His name was Jiao, a demon general under Orochi.

And the other side was a black-clad swordsman, wearing a light purple shawl, carrying a set of sword racks on his back, with long flowing hair, sword-like eyebrows, and starry eyes. His name was Jian Jun Shi Er Hen (Sword Sovereign Twelve Regrets), a lone ranger with a proud spirit in the Thunderbolt sword world.

"This show is really getting more and more interesting..." As an observer, Feng Bujue was very interested. He couldn't wait to get some popcorn and sit down to watch slowly. "I don't believe... Jiao can beat a master from the Thunderbolt world..." After muttering this sentence, his expression changed slightly, "Eh? Wait... that's not right! When those two exchanged blows just now, Jiao didn't actually fall behind..."

"Hmph... this time, a troublesome guy has arrived..." On the battlefield, Jiao spoke again, "However... to defeat this lord..." His confidence made Jue-Ge, who was familiar with the *Dynasty Warriors* and *Thunderbolt Fantasy* worlds, unable to complain, "...it's still a hundred years too early!"