Northern Liang City
The thick city wall was violently breached by Li Yuanba.
In that instant, every soldier on the battlefield fell into a deathly silence.
The very next moment, Li Yuanba roared, "Kill!"
The battlefield instantly erupted into a thunderous clamor of war cries.
Countless soldiers charged forward—some galloping on horseback, others drawing bows and firing volleys of arrows without pause, while some shouldered battering rams, advancing steadily step by step…
As the army surged toward the city, Li Yuanba leapt down from the sky, landing atop a tiger, copper hammers hanging from his waist, and his tiger-like eyes fixed unblinkingly on a figure in the distance.
His gaze, sharp as lightning, pierced through the sea of soldiers and landed on the gravely wounded Zhang Liang.
"Your reinforcements will not arrive. Today, Liang City will fall. Surrender the city and I might spare your lives!"
Li Yuanba's lips moved, his voice like muffled thunder exploding in Zhang Liang's ears.
Zhang Liang trembled all over. He struggled to lift his head and looked at Li Yuanba with defiance etched into every line of his face.
"The Yellow Turbans would rather die in battle than live on their knees!"
"To arms! Fight!"
The clash of steel erupted once more—arrows flew like rain, blades gleamed, and the sounds of battle filled the air. Blood sprayed and pooled, forming rivers of red across the ground.
Though the defenders fought bravely, they couldn't match the overwhelming force of Li Yuanba's siege troops.
As the first wave of attackers broke through the breach and carved out a path, more soldiers followed in a relentless tide.
Watching this, Zhang Liang—who had appeared to be standing idly with his sword, but was in fact secretly tending to his injuries—could sit still no longer. With a roar, he charged to the breach, standing alone to block the onslaught of tens of thousands.
"Today, Zhang Liang stands here! Who dares to break the city?!"
His great blade swept out, sending a brilliant white arc of energy that felled hundreds of attackers in one strike.
One slash, a hundred dead.
Zhang Liang laughed wildly. "Who else?!"
The moment the words left his lips, a streak of light fell from the sky and struck him like a meteor, blasting him into the air and embedding him into the city wall.
"So noisy."
Floating in the air, Li Yuanba landed lightly, as though brushing off a trivial matter.
He began striding toward the breach, preparing to enter Liang City and bathe its streets in blood.
"From today onward, Liang City is mine!"
Grinning, Li Yuanba gazed through the massive opening in the wall, watching the slaughter unfolding within.
"He's here! The God of Slaughter has entered the city!"
"It's over! Liang City is doomed!"
"Heaven has forsaken Great Liang! Heaven has forsaken the Yellow Turbans!"
Just as Li Yuanba lifted a foot to step through the breach—
His leg froze midair.
His body abruptly recoiled.
In that very moment, a radiant barrier of light descended from the heavens, sealing Liang City beneath a glowing dome.
A… barrier?
Where did that come from?
All eyes turned toward the dome. Fear vanished in an instant, replaced by confusion.
Li Yuanba's expression darkened as he stared at the barrier before him.
Without hesitation, he raised his twin hammers and smashed them down upon the light.
Ripples spread from the impact, but quickly returned to calm.
Suddenly, a powerful force rebounded, launching Li Yuanba backward.
He stood up, suppressing the chaotic energy in his chest, face grim.
"Retreat!"
With a single command, his entire army halted mid-charge and began withdrawing in perfect order.
Inside the city, Zhang Liang stared in stunned silence.
They… held the city?
Did he just… win?
"Kill them!"
From the ruined walls, thousands of defenders saw the enemy retreating in order and their eyes turned bloodshot.
"Kill! Slaughter the bastards!"
Someone among the defenders shouted, and that was all it took.
Driven by hatred, a mob of soldiers surged forward with weapons in hand.
Clang! Clang! Clang…
Thud! Thud! Thud…
A dull chorus of impacts rang out—arrows flew but struck the barrier with heavy thuds, like iron against steel, and fell harmlessly to the ground.
No distinction between friend and foe?
That single thought crossed Zhang Liang's mind. He frowned, eyes narrowing, and turned toward the military kitchen compound.
"The Four Mighty Ones, follow me!"
At his command, four bronze-skinned, yellow-headbanded giants burst forth from the ranks.
———
Inside the compound, Zhang Yingjun gazed at Liu Yuan with a strange look of surprise.
"Didn't expect you to be an otherworlder."
His eyes flicked to the "Newcomer's Protection Token" in Liu Yuan's hand, then back to Liu Yuan himself.
Suddenly, Zhang Yingjun's gaze turned deadly. Killing intent surged from him like a tidal wave, drowning Liu Yuan in its wake.
"By Heaven's decree—kill all otherworlders on sight!"
Coldness… darkness… bone-deep pain…
As that killing intent enveloped him, Liu Yuan's mind blanked. It felt like someone had smacked him on the head with a mallet.
But the pain faded as quickly as it came.
In a flash, Liu Yuan snapped back to awareness and stared at Zhang Yingjun.
Before he could speak, Zhang Yingjun said, "You've got guts. Not bad. Withstood my pressure without flinching."
The icy edge in his voice softened slightly, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
Without flinching?
Buddy, I almost pissed myself just now!
If this game's character feedback system wasn't a little slow, that old geezer would've seen a puddle in my pants!
"Though Heaven commands your death, you've saved Liang City. The Yellow Turban Army doesn't repay kindness with betrayal. Tell me, young friend—what would you like as a reward?"
Reward?
'Payoff time!'
'Treasure!'
'Artifacts!'
Liu Yuan's eyes lit up like stars.
In his mind, the scenario played out—save the city, receive divine artifacts, unlock the protagonist route, go on epic adventures, and rise to power across space and time…
"What treasures do you have?" Liu Yuan asked eagerly, eyes full of hope.
Smiling, Zhang Yingjun raised his hand. A scroll appeared in it, which he handed over to Liu Yuan.
Liu Yuan's breathing grew rapid. His hands trembled as he reached for it, then snatched it up in anticipation.
But the moment his eyes landed on the list, his breath stopped. His pupils shrank. It was like seeing a horror movie jump scare in real life.
City Infantry CaptainGrain Logistics OfficerMilitary Camp InspectorChief Guard of the City Lord's Manor
…
As he scanned the list from top to bottom, Liu Yuan's fantasy shattered piece by piece.
His mouth twitched. He stared at the old man in front of him, gritting his teeth.
'This is the treasure?'
Just a bunch of vacant posts in Liang City?!
This is what you call a reward?
Sure, maybe to the average NPC this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—but Liu Yuan was a player!
A proud, untouchable, zero-spending leopard-head VIP!
And all you're offering is a low-level government job?
'What kind of freeloading nonsense is this?!'
Liu Yuan cursed up a storm in his heart but forced a smile on his face.
After all, one can't fight fate under another's roof.
Recalling that wave of terrifying killing intent just now, Liu Yuan had no doubt—show even the slightest dissatisfaction and he'd be killed and respawned on the spot.
Fine. If it's a job, then let's at least find one where he could coast a little.
Captain, battalion leader—those were off the table.
First, he was low level and weak in combat—he couldn't intimidate anyone.
Second, those jobs involved fighting day in and day out—far too risky.
Liu Yuan was a cautious player. Naturally, those were non-options.
Suddenly, something caught his eye at the bottom of the list.
'Executioner?'
'Chops people's heads off?'
Liu Yuan's eyes gleamed.
That's the one!