Chapter 35: The Second Mask!

To facilitate the transport of forbidden objects, the corridors of Black Prison were exceptionally spacious.

Measuring approximately ten meters in width, they allowed clerical staff to transport forbidden objects freely.

However, it was ultimately just a corridor, unsuitable for a large-scale cavalry charge.

For cavalry, such terrain was effectively a death trap.

The narrow, elongated space left no room for a large unit of cavalry to sprint and then turn back.

Once the narrow path was blocked, they would lose their relied-upon mobility, becoming bloated and slow.

Yet, the steppe cavalry still gathered at the corner and began to accelerate their sprint toward the passage.

They knew that this terrain was indeed a death trap for cavalry.

Once blocked by heavy troops, cavalry would become lambs to the slaughter.

But... where were the heavy troops?

In front of them, there were only two people!

Could a mere two people block the Zhulan Iron Cavalry?

Hahahaha!

Thus, the cavalry let out wolf-like howls and began their high-speed charge, with the foremost riders even drawing their bows and nocking arrows.

In an instant, arrows flew, their cold glints flickering like the wind and rain of the Northern Lands.

They were like the gale of the North, poised to crush anything in their path with an unstoppable momentum!

However, the gale of the North struck a towering mountain range. All they received was fragmentation!

The flying arrows were sliced apart instantly. The Dual-Blade Knight materialized through a mist-like flash, appearing before the army. His dual blades swung with godlike speed, shattering the arrows the moment they left the bowstrings.

The foremost cavalrymen were caught off guard; before they could even lower their bows, the Dual-Blade Knight had flashed before them, his blades sweeping through to decapitate them.

Simultaneously, the sound of a violent, thumping heartbeat echoed in the ears of all the cavalry.

Facing the charge of hundreds of riders, Li Yelae did not retreat; instead, he accelerated and charged straight into them.

Compared to the warhorses that had not yet reached full speed, Li Yelae, bolstered by the Heart of Slaughter, was actually a notch faster.

With a lift of his hand, he performed a leaping strike, crashing into the formation like a meteor!

He cleaved through a steppe cavalryman who had just dropped his bow to raise a scimitar, cutting through both man and horse in a single blow!

Stinking black blood splattered everywhere, and the corpses of the riders and horses decayed rapidly upon hitting the ground.

But Li Yelae did not stop his assault. Gripping his crimson longblade with one hand, he strode toward the oncoming wave of cavalry.

Using his left foot as a pivot, he rotated his body with his right foot, letting out a thunderous roar.

He lunged forward like a spinning top, crashing into the cavalry formation!

Wherever the blade light reached, man and horse were shattered!

Cavalry, spears, scimitars, and warhorses—all crumbled upon contact!

Countless sprays of blood flew, but before they could even stain the ground, Li Yelae had already stepped through the rain of blood, charging toward even more riders!

Seeing this, the steppe cavalry felt shock and terror in their hearts, yet they roared and charged forward!

They had no way to retreat; behind them were their own charging comrades. If they stopped, they would be trampled and crushed by the iron hooves behind them.

All they could do was overwhelm this monster!

"Charge!" one spearman commanded.

In the next second, he collided with the advancing Li Yelae.

Li Yelae punched the warhorse's head with his left fist, causing the charging beast to bleed from all its orifices. Before the rider could even hit the ground, Li Yelae impaled him with his blade. Then, roaring, Li Yelae swung the longblade to hurl the corpse into more riders, sending them tumbling.

Before they could rise, they saw Li Yelae’s blade descending.

At that moment, Li Yelae carved his way into the formation like a God of War. None could stop him!

Under the influence of the Heart of Slaughter, Li Yelae possessed inexhaustible strength.

Every punch and every slash could be delivered with full force, without any fear of exhaustion!

Combined with the weakness-detection of his Heavy Pupils, Li Yelae didn't even need much strength to directly shatter the cavalry.

As the longblade swung, man and horse were crushed! It was like the formation of a Mo-Dao!

"You Xiongnu have never seen a Mo-Dao formation, have you?" Li Yelae continued his sprint, his desire for slaughter driving him to roar: "I'll open your eyes!"

He was, of course, not using a Mo-Dao, but for the steppe cavalry of the Xiongnu era who had never experienced one, the result was the same.

Li Yelae drew his jet-propelled axe, holding the steel axe in his left hand and the longblade in his right. The Dual-Blade Knight protected his flanks.

Like a continuous mountain range, they blocked the gale blowing from the North, smashing the wind into pieces (physically)!

Some cavalry finally realized something was wrong; facing Li Yelae in this terrain was impossible. They began calling for a retreat from the rear.

Instead, they heard an obscure, violent roar: "Come back!"

The warhorses that were about to turn around actually turned back.

This was Li Yelae's second awakened ability: the Beast Tongue of the Void Realm!

This group of cavalry did indeed possess some abilities, such as psionic barriers and arrows that could be infused with psionic energy.

But their warhorses were merely ordinary horses.

Under Li Yelae's command, the cavalry attempting to retreat were forced to charge toward him once more, watching helplessly as they rushed toward their own deaths.

They let out terrified howls, frantically raising their weapons, only to be met by the mercilessly falling blades.

Breaking weapons, piercing armor, shattering bodies, and severing horses—it was all done in one seamless motion!

By the time Li Yelae burst through the corner, the path behind him was soaked in blood; the stinking black blood covered almost the entire passage.

Over seventy steppe cavalrymen lay scattered throughout the corridor, rapidly decaying and vanishing.

Li Yelae truly acted like a Hegemon, carving a path straight through the cavalry formation!

But in the distance, several arrows came whistling toward him.

Li Yelae's Heavy Pupils rotated, and his crimson longblade slashed diagonally to intercept the arrows. He knocked down three heavy arrows in succession.

Yet, he felt a sharp sting in the webbing of his thumb!

Even with the enhancement of the Heart of Slaughter, he could not withstand such force.

The power of these arrows was immense!

At the same time, Li Yelae noticed more cavalry converging from all directions.

There were even more elite armored cavalry among them, clad in full iron armor, wielding long spears and carrying heavy bows. They were the ones who had just fired the three heavy arrows—likely elite soldiers similar to the Eagle-Shooters.

And currently, they were guarding a knight wearing a golden crown.

Behind that knight, a flag fluttered even though there was no wind.

"The Zhulan Royal Banner!" Li Yelae's heart stirred, and he snapped out of his bloodlust.

This was the most special one among the forbidden objects breached in this containment break. An originally mediocre Grade D forbidden object had summoned a massive number of steppe cavalry.

In terms of destructive power, it could barely be considered a Grade B forbidden object, given the sheer numbers.

'Then who is the one in front?' Li Yelae narrowed his Heavy Pupils, looking at the crowned cavalryman.

That man wore wolf skins, carried a great bow, and possessed the piercing gaze of an eagle and a wolf. He indeed possessed the aura of a high-ranking ruler.

'The King of Zhulan?'

From the recent combat, Li Yelae had learned that these cavalrymen possessed a certain level of self-awareness. That meant this King of Zhulan might possess thought.

Perhaps that was why these cavalrymen were gathering.

'Does he want to find the Möbius Strip Map? Does he want to use the map to expand the chaos so his true self can escape Black Prison?'

Li Yelae pondered. If the King of Zhulan, with his thinking capacity, truly obtained the Möbius Strip Map, the lower half of Black Prison would suffer.

The situation would become even more terrifying.

If their intelligence were even higher and they could utilize other forbidden objects, the danger would be even greater.

But... Li Yelae let out a cold laugh: "Too bad, you're too late!"

They were indeed too late. As Li Yelae carved through the steppe cavalry formation, he felt a slight tremor in the ground. The previously disordered map labyrinth was gradually returning to its original state.

Whether Sha Li and the others had suppressed the Möbius Strip Map, the chaotic labyrinth was disappearing.

As for the danger before him, Li Yelae didn't care.

So what if they called for reinforcements? The Möbius Strip Map had been suppressed; he could call for reinforcements too!

Cheese and the others were in the passage right behind him. With the map suppressed, they could support him at any time!

Thus, looking at the endless waves of cavalry surrounding him, Li Yelae prepared to retreat back into the passage.

The passage was a good place; he wouldn't have to worry about cavalry projectile fire and could force them into close-quarters combat.

And at this moment, Li Yelae feared no cavalry charge...

But when Li Yelae turned around, he could not see the passage!

???

The passage he had just carved through, now littered with corpses, had vanished?

What was happening? Where were the people? Where was the path?

Li Yelae froze, then immediately realized.

The Möbius Strip Map!

The ability of the Möbius Strip Map was to splice space at will.

For example, turning "abcdefg" into "cfad"...

Of course, the actual situation was much more complex, which was why one might open a containment room door only to find a toilet inside.

With the suppression of the Möbius Strip Map, the originally disordered space was immediately restored.

This caused the space Li Yelae occupied to return to its original position, separating him from Cheese and the others.

So, for Li Yelae, there was both good and bad news.

The good news was that the Möbius Strip Map had been successfully suppressed, so he didn't have to worry about it affecting the lower half or suddenly facing a Grade B forbidden object.

The bad news was that Li Yelae was separated from Cheese and the others, and was in the same space as a massive army of enemies.

He had to face the Zhulan Iron Cavalry alone!

"Hiss..." Li Yelae exhaled, looking at the surrounding cavalry: "Damn it, my luck really is terrible..."

At this moment, Li Yelae did not know that this was the curse spoken of by the Ghost-Calculating Nuo Mask—the curse of inevitably encountering powerful enemies.

To meet dragons and tigers!

But even if he knew, Li Yelae had no heart to complain.

Having gained a larger area of movement, the cavalry began to surround him.

Countless arrows were aimed at him.

Back in the passage, they couldn't organize an effective attack. They couldn't utilize their horse-archery skills and were forced into melee combat with Li Yelae, resulting in heavy losses.

But now, in the larger transit hall, they had him surrounded tightly, seemingly intending to turn him into a pincushion.

Li Yelae, however, fixed his gaze on the King of Zhulan. Although it was a deviation from the plan, there was nothing left to say now.

Then let's try it—to see if he could take the enemy general's head from the midst of ten thousand soldiers! To see if he could pull off an assassination of a king!

He would take the head of this King of Zhulan to sacrifice for the heroes who died today!

As if noticing Li Yelae's gaze, the King of Zhulan let out a laugh.

With a slight wave of his hand, countless arrows were aimed at Li Yelae.

The King of Zhulan was not as honorable as Cao Cao; he wouldn't refrain from shooting just because a warrior like Zilong had fought his way through seven ranks.

Facing Li Yelae, who had just wiped out over seventy of his men, the King of Zhulan's only command was: Kill him!

However, at the very moment the rain of arrows was about to fly...

Li Yelae suddenly vanished from their sight.

Simultaneously, an obscure, incomprehensible language echoed through the field.

"Charge!"

It was the Beast Tongue of the Void Realm!

In an instant, the out-of-control warhorses launched a charge. Countless cavalrymen collided head-on. The rain of arrows that should have poured down was delayed because the target had vanished, and many stray arrows even hit their own fleeing cavalry.

In that split second, a figure lunged into the chaotic cavalry lines.

It was Li Yelae, utilizing Visual Disturbance!

The psionic Visual Disturbance allowed Li Yelae to successfully penetrate the formation.

It was somewhat ironic; Visual Disturbance was suited for assassinations, yet Li Yelae used it to charge into a battlefield.

Roaring, Li Yelae swung his longblade, beginning his hunt once more.

In an instant, he shattered several cavalrymen blocking his path, while the Dual-Blade Knight protected his rear to prevent arrows from behind.

Li Yelae's target was directly aimed at the King of Zhulan!

The King of Zhulan clearly noticed this and ordered more cavalry to fire volleys at Li Yelae, disregarding the fire from his own troops!

In an instant, countless arrows fell, aimed directly at the cavalry formation where Li Yelae was.

In that moment, the number of Zhulan cavalrymen dying under their own comrades' arrows nearly caught up to the number killed by Li Yelae.

But Li Yelae still did not die. Amidst the mountains of corpses and seas of blood, a figure burst forth.

Li Yelae held his blade with one hand; skewered upon the blade were several steppe cavalrymen, their bodies riddled with arrows.

He was using the steppe cavalry as a shield!

He blocked this volley and launched another charge toward the King of Zhulan!

Looking at this god-like figure, even the King of Zhulan was momentarily stunned.

He immediately ordered: "Continue the volley!"

"Where do you think you're running?" Li Yelae roared, swinging his longblade violently to use corpses to block the arrows, and once again used the Beast Tongue.

He closed the distance to the King of Zhulan once more.

Fifty meters! Only fifty meters left!

But the King of Zhulan seemed to have realized Li Yelae's beast-tongue ability and directly ordered the horses' ears to be plugged.

Consequently, when Li Yelae charged again and used the beast tongue for a third time, it had no effect.

Instead, the cavalry that had pulled back began to engage in horse-archery tactics around Li Yelae.

They had seen his immense melee strength and refused to engage him in close combat.

They would use their horse-archery to kill him!

Li Yelae was already wounded; his left arm and right calf had been grazed by arrows.

These were still minor wounds; the lethal ones were the heavy arrows from the armored knights!

Those heavy arrows were incredibly powerful; even a Li Yelae continuously enhanced by the Heart of Slaughter could not safely block them.

The cavalry corpses he used as shields were being pierced straight through.

The armored knights were too elite; the Dual-Blade Knight had intended to use the mist-like flash to assassinate the King of Zhulan, but was repeatedly blocked and even had his shoulder pierced by a heavy arrow.

It wasn't working. The Dual-Blade Knight with the flash ability couldn't kill the King, and Li Yelae with his immense melee strength couldn't catch him!

Having dodged another heavy arrow ambush, Li Yelae felt his heart pounding violently. He didn't know if it was due to extreme rage or the desire for slaughter.

His breathing became increasingly rapid.

He was in an awkward position: he couldn't catch up, and he couldn't outrun them.

He could only passively endure the horse-archery. If this continued, even with infinite stamina, he would be worn down to death.

Furthermore, Li Yelae had been using the Heart of Slaughter for over half an hour. How long had it been?

Forty minutes? Fifty minutes?

At this moment, Li Yelae did not know. He had been immersed in slaughter for so long that he had lost track of time.

He had no idea he had been carrying the Heart of Slaughter for over an hour!

Moreover, Li Yelae even felt as if the Heart of Slaughter was afraid of something, as if it wanted to flee his body.

"Damn it, what are you running for? Keep tempting me, you bastard!" Li Yelae tore off his upper clothing and pressed the restless Heart of Slaughter against his scarred chest.

If he lost the Heart of Slaughter now, he would fall into a weakened state and be killed instantly.

No, even with the Heart of Slaughter, he couldn't catch the King of Zhulan.

Just bad luck. Even if he was in the same area as the enemy, the terrain should have been better.

In this terrain, he could only be kited!

Was he forced to trade with Mr. Shadow?

'As expected...' As Li Yelae dodged arrows, a thought suddenly struck him.

No, it wasn't time for that yet. He... he still had the second mask!

Yes, the second mask! Give me a mask that can catch the King of Zhulan!

In a trance, Li Yelae saw a pitch-black tentacle extending from his own shadow.

The tentacle unfurled, revealing a snow-white mask.

Li Yelae grinned and smeared it across his face.

In the distance, the King of Zhulan suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of dread, as if a natural predator had descended...

On the other side, Li Yelae arrived within a vision.

It was a strict, ancient military camp, where a young general laughed within the camp.

"Uncle, I'm going to go catch a tongue..."