Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"shooting!"

Bang bang bang bang bang——

Puff puff puff puff puff——

The moment the gates of Xulong Mountain opened, the Imperial Guards infantry, who had been lined up dozens of steps outside the gates, unleashed a barrage of bullets from their guns at the Blood Fiend Alliance disciples who had just appeared, at Meng Gong's command.

The poor disciples didn't even understand what was happening before they were suddenly dancing on the spot, with beautiful flowers blooming all over their bodies.

"Damn it, what the hell!"

The Blood Fiend Ancestor was quick-witted; he flipped over and hid behind a stone tablet, and in the process, kicked out a Karami who was trying to hide with him.

In that brief moment, a chorus of wails echoed both inside and outside the mountain gate.

Blood Fiend Ancestor witnessed two disciples at the Transcendent Realm preparing to unleash their ultimate techniques when they were riddled with holes by a barrage of "copper thorns."

At the same time, a shrill scream rang in my ears.

"Brother, my Kun'er has been badly beaten, I'm so sorry! I can never play cards with my sister-in-law again, please don't blame me in heaven, oh dear~"

One disciple, clutching his bleeding lower body, stared at the two "quail eggs" not far away and let out a heart-wrenching cry.

"Ancestor, where are you? I am your disciple! Please save me! My intestines have been ripped apart! It hurts so much!"

Another disciple, dragging a long, tangled intestine, crawled laboriously toward the Blood Fiend Ancestor.

But he soon stopped moving, and his expression remained extremely "ecstatic" until his death.

Smelling the stench of gunpowder and blood in the air, and glancing at the countless disciples lying before him, Blood Fiend Ancestor felt an inexplicable fear emanating from every part of his body for the first time in his life.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid! I am the Blood Fiend Ancestor, a figure feared throughout the entire martial world. This little scene can't scare me! Whoosh—"

He held the blood-stained knife, trying to calm his uneasy emotions.

Bullets kept hitting the stone tablet he relied on, and the sound of each bullet colliding with the stone terrified him.

boom--

Suddenly, a distant cannon blast sent a shiver down his spine.

Looking up, it seemed to be coming from the direction of the main headquarters.

But before he could examine it closely, something fell directly onto him from mid-air.

Upon closer inspection, it was half a charred buttock, still steaming.

Before the Blood Fiend Ancestor could react, he picked up the half of the roasted buttock that was still smoking from the fire, and for a moment he had the outrageous thought of "should I sprinkle some salt on it and take a bite?"

"what--"

The moment his mind cleared, he didn't even have time to take a bite to taste the tenderness. He screamed in fright and hurriedly swung the roasted buttock into the air.

Just then, the intense gunfire stopped.

Immediately following was a crisp "click" sound, and Meng Gong's loud voice.

"Go on the bayonet!"

"Team One, Team Two, follow me to the mountain gate for inspection!"

The sound of leather boots hitting the ground immediately reached the ears of the Blood Fiend Ancestor.

Only then did he realize that all the disciples who had charged into battle with him had died at the mountain gate.

He was the only living person left.

Suddenly, he felt like a clown, utterly defeated before even leaving the mountain gate.

This feeling is so damn frustrating.

He took a deep breath, gripped the blood-stained knife tightly, and began to secretly gather his strength.

Although so many people died, as long as they got close to him, with his powerful strength at the Great Perfection of the Innate Realm, killing one or two hundred of them by himself would be no problem at all.

However, he was still too naive.

Boom——

Suddenly, a crisp, booming sound rang in his ears.

Before he could react, two grenades landed five or six meters in front of him.

Boom, boom—

Before he could react, the grenade exploded on the spot, blowing the ancestor and the stone tablet away together.

puff--

Blood Fiend Ancestor coughed up a mouthful of blood, and felt a soft humming and booming sound in his ears.

The two grenades had just blasted through his protective aura, and a shrapnel fragment had even pierced his abdomen.

"Damn it, they dared to ambush me! I'll make them pay!"

"Grenade, throw!"

Once he regained consciousness, the Blood Fiend Ancestor continued cursing, but before he could finish his tirade, more than thirty grenades were thrown at him simultaneously.

"My mother!!!"

Blood Fiend Ancestor roared at the guards with all his might.

Boom boom boom boom——

Ding--

After a thunderous roar, only a blood-stained blade fell from mid-air and stood alone on the ground.

As for the Blood Fiend Ancestor, he was now lying under the stone tablet, his flesh and blood mangled.

His body parts were all destroyed, and it was impossible to piece together a complete corpse.

"Report: The mountain gate has been cleared!"

"Everyone, load your guns. After a 15-minute rest, head towards the Blood Fiend headquarters. Anyone who resists will be executed on the spot!"

"Yes!"

On Thunder Abyss Valley, Shen Lang saw through his monoculars that Meng Gong's troops had taken control of the mountain gate and were slowly advancing towards the main headquarters. He then decisively ordered a halt to the firing.

"After today, the Blood Fiend Alliance will cease to exist."

Lowering the viewing mirror, Shen Lang revealed a faint smile.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shangxian, who had been listening to the cannon fire behind him for a while, stood up and said, "I have truly witnessed the power of technology. You were right after all."

With such formidable firepower, what's the point of having those martial artists? Look at today, these self-proclaimed superiors can only take a beating, unable to even get close to us.

He painstakingly cultivated for decades or even centuries, only to be wiped out by a single gunfire. Impressive, impressive indeed, Brother Shen. Thank goodness you're on our side.

If we were enemies, the centuries-old state of Chu would probably have to take your surname.

Shen Lang flicked his cloak and turned to Jiang Shangxian, saying, "Your Highness, the matter here is basically resolved. Dealing with the affairs of the Heluo area will be much easier from now on."

Jiang Shangxian nodded: "I know, the next step is to recapture Luoyang, right? The Blood Fiend Alliance is gone, which is equivalent to the Qiang people losing their left and right arms."

"Once we drive those Qiang people out of Luoyang, this battle will be over. Heh heh, this is probably the easiest battle I've ever fought."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang shook his head: "Your Highness, I think you have misunderstood. My real goal has never been Luoyang City."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Jiang Shangxian narrowed his eyes, not understanding what Shen Lang meant by that.

Shen Lang looked towards the northwest, then pointed.

"My true goal is Chang'an!"

……

As the Blood Fiend Alliance's annihilation became inevitable under intense artillery fire,

Dozens of miles away, on the banks of the Han River outside Luoyang, Lü Meng and Zhang Dingbian gazed at the outline of the towering city in the distance, lost in thought.

"Alas, without artillery support, taking Luoyang is as difficult as climbing to the heavens!"

Helpless, Zhang Dingbian plunged his bayonet into the soft ground beneath his feet.

Lu Meng, on the other hand, was relatively calm and not as impulsive as Zhang Dingbian. Instead, he set up a simple sand table on the spot and carefully considered how to break through the city.

"The head instructor has given us little time. Tomorrow will be the sixth day. Since a direct assault is not advisable, we might as well try other methods."

"You make it sound so easy. What other options are there? There aren't any outstanding martial artists in the army. What do you plan to do?"

"Let me think about it carefully."

Just as Lü Meng was deep in thought, he suddenly noticed an unusual ripple on the surface of the Han River.

Looking up, three merchant ships, each capable of holding nearly a thousand people, appeared in the northwest direction.

"Hmm? A merchant ship!"

"These are the fleets that came from the direction of Chang'an to deliver supplies to the Hu people in Luoyang."

"That's it."

Suddenly, Lü Meng smiled.

"The method to break through the city is right here. Just listen to my instructions."

Soon, Lü Meng shared his thoughts with Zhang Dingbian.

After listening, Zhang Dingbian's eyes lit up: "It has to be you. No wonder the instructors always take good care of you. You've got some skills."

Lu Meng showed no pride whatsoever: "Let's not talk about this nonsense for now. Quickly stop these merchant ships. Tonight at midnight will be the best opportunity to break through the city!"

Zhang Dingbian nodded emphatically: "There's no time to lose, I'll go back and make the arrangements right away!"