The Human Emperor
The Human Emperor - Chapter 259: Battle of the Profound Martial

If the Goguryeon elites were unable to regroup, then no matter how numerous they were or how powerful they were individually, it would be impossible for them to stand against an entire army.

From the moment that Wang Chong charged through their formation for the second time and scattered their formation, the fate of the thousand Goguryeon elites were already sealed.

"Retreat! Everyone, retreat!"

The assassins fled chaotically, like birds scattering into the surroundings. No one wanted to retreat to the monastery; they would only be completely trapped then.

Boom!

On the other hand, Wang Chong's troops pursued the Goguryeons, who were marked by brilliant halos in the dark night.

——In truth, they could have posed a threat were they to retaliate. However, with their minds fixed on escaping, death only came faster for them.

【Congratulations to user for killing 1111 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

【Congratulations to user for killing 1112 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

【Congratulations to user for killing 1113 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

...

【Congratulations to user for killing 1257 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

【Congratulations to user for killing 1258 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

【Congratulations to user for killing 1259 soldiers of the Goguryeo Empire!】

...

A whole bunch of notices cascaded down on Wang Chong's head. His Bane of the Battlefield grew to a radius of more than ten thousand meters, and it continued to expand outward swiftly.

The adrenaline from having his strength growing rapidly left Wang Chong feeling exhilarated.

Another seven hundred, and I will be able to reach level 2 in it!, Wang Chong thought.

It was getting harder and harder to upgrade his halo the further he progressed. Initially, Wang Chong only had to kill a single foreign soldier to activate his halo.

But from level 0 to level 1, he had to kill one hundred soldiers, and each of these soldiers had to possess a cultivation realm of at least Origin Energy Tier 9. This was no easy task at all.

On the other hand, to reach level 2, Wang Chong would have to kill two thousand foreign soldiers!

At level 1, Wang Chong's Bane of the Battlefield was a destructive nerfing force against all martial artists of True Martial realm 1-dan and below.

However, its effects were limited against martial artists of True Martial realm 2-dan and above.

If Wang Chong wanted to strip off the martial halo of a True Martial realm 2-dan expert, his Bane of the Battlefield would have to reach level 2 first.

Roar!

While Wang Chong was in the midst of contemplating on the back of his horse, a furious howl suddenly echoed from the monastery. A huge gust of wind swept into the surroundings, blowing a huge wave of tree leaves down the mountain.

"It's from the monastery. They are currently crossing blows with the Goguryeon leaders!" Miyasame Ayaka's voice whispered in his ear. The frenzied wind had left her night suit fluttering in the wind.

Wang Chong glanced over and saw that the walls of the monastery had been knocked down. Within the monastery, Uncle Li Lin, Ma Yinlong, Old Eagle, Solitary Wolf, Steel Arms, and the austere Imperial Army commander dispatched from the royal court were currently engaged in an intense battle against the three Goguryeon heads.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A deluge of Stellar Energy gushed out and covered the entire area. Everything that stood in its way, be it the walls, monastery, fake mountain, stone tablets, or dormitories, it all collapsed as if made of tofu.

As various Stellar Energies clashed with one another, a huge tempest that rose up several zhang high covered half of the entire monastery.

Amidst this destructive storm of Stellar Energy, all of the Imperial Army soldiers were forced to retreat from the area around the monastery.

Hu!

Several dozen zhang of flames gushed into the air, bringing a bright shade of crimson to the night sky. The saber qi and sword qi intermixed with it threatened to tear even heaven apart. Amidst the searing storm, one could even see some fearsome phenomena.

Even Miyasame Ayaka couldn't help but blink in astonishment looking at the huge storm on the hill, and she subconsciously retreated in fear.

Profound Martial realm!

Miyasame Ayaka was very certain that all of them were Profound Martial realm experts. Even if that wasn't the case, it was certain that they weren't too far from that level. Because only Profound Martial realm experts could conjure up such a fearsome storm.

They are strong!, Miyasame Ayaka thought.

It was impossible for a True Martial realm to stand against a Profound Martial realm. If not for the numerical advantage and the presence of Profound Martial realm experts in the midst of the Imperial Army as well, she would never participate in a fight of this tier.

"Don't worry, their fight won't affect us,” Wang Chong smiled.

Even though Miyasame Ayaka was skilled, she had never been on the battlefield before, so she wasn't very experienced with this. “Soldier against soldier, general against general”; while the others could escape, the three Goguryeon heads couldn't possibly flee, and needless to say, the Imperial elites rushed over here to get rid of them.

This was also the reason why the Imperial Army general which the royal court dispatched had been waiting alongside Wang Chong before. This was also the same reason why the Goguryeon heads didn't flee; Great Tang was not going to let them get away.

Unlike normal soldiers, many eyes were on them, and unless they were confident of getting away, they wouldn't escape.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Stellar Energies that were far beyond the capability of any True Martial realm expert clashed furiously, their fearsome shock waves diffusing into the surroundings. Even the entire mountain shook beneath the might of these top-notch experts.

In just a short moment, the monastery which took four months to build was two-thirds destroyed. Shattered bricks and wooden fragments were swept into the air by the Stellar Energies, mixing together with the searing storm.

Ever since his reincarnation, this was the first time Wang Chong had seen a fight among Profound Martial realm experts.

A battle of this fight was far beyond Wang Chong's tier, and it would be impossible for him, or any of his allies, such as Miyasame Ayaka, or the troops from the Zhuang and Chi Clans, to lend their assistance.

However, it was still possible for him to slightly interfere in it.

"Call Luo Chong over!" Wang Chong instructed with a smile.

Luo Chong was the name of the brawny master archer whom King Song had assigned to Wang Chong's side. It had taken him much effort before he managed to get the man’s name out of him.

The fellow was simply way too reticent!

"Gongzi." Amidst the frenzied wind, the fully-armored Luo Chong arrived behind Wang Chong with a specially-crafted humongous bow behind his back.

Standing at two-meters tall, his presence was pressurizing all by itself.

As a subordinate highly-regarded by a qinwang of Great Tang, Luo Chong's archery was indubitably formidable. In this battle, he had killed several times the number of True Martial realm experts as the master archers from the Imperial Army.

This was a true disparity in capabilities.

Without a doubt, Luo Chong was the strongest person he had here, as well as the one he trusted and relied on the most.

"Luo Chong, can you see the situation within the monastery?" Wang Chong said as he pointed to the bottom of the hill.

Those words immediately caught the attention of everyone around Wang Chong. The hundred elite cavalry troops that Wang Chong brought immediately turned their sights to him.

"It's useless, they're moving too quickly. Besides, the interference from the storm of Stellar Energy is too great. I fear that I might accidentally hit an ally," Luo Chong's voice echoed from within his thick armor.

Wang Chong's intentions were clear. His thought was good, but it wasn't feasible.

“Every split second counts in the fight between experts”. With Luo Chong's capabilities, he could pin the heads of True Martial realm martial artists onto the ground with certainty—they wouldn't even have a chance to dodge at all. However, against Profound Martial realm experts such as the three Goguryeon heads, the effectiveness of his arrows would be greatly lowered.

Their reaction speed was simply too fast!

Besides, his enemies and his allies were in close proximity to one another. In such close combat, the slightest error in one's actions could lead to one's death. Should his arrow miss, he could end up hindering his own allies instead.

Furthermore, given the huge number of potential obstructions to his arrows around the monastery—the tree leaves, soil, brick, wooden shavings, flames, saber qi, etc...—he wasn't entirely confident that his arrows would stay on his anticipated trajectory.

Since that was the case, he was of little use at all.

This was also the reason why he hadn't made a move despite seeing the battle in the monastery.

Wang Chong was simply underestimating things.

"Do you see the toad's head behind the monastery?" Wang Chong smiled as he suddenly lifted his fingers and pointed to the bottom of the hill.

"Toad's head?" Luo Chong was taken aback. Along with many other astonished gazes, he turned to look in the direction where Wang Chong was pointing at.

Of the one-third of the remaining monastery, at the part closest to the battlefield, there was indeed a toad standing at the top of the roof.

In the construction of buildings, this kind of design was rather common.

Just that, no one could understand how it would help them deal with the Goguryeons.

"Later, when the flames blaze up to eleven zhang, I'll issue an order and you'll lower your wrist by three fen, four li, and two hao from the toad's glabella and shoot." Wang Chong pointed at the distance and instructed confidently, his other hand behind his back.

(1.199cm)

Weng!

Hearing Wang Chong's words, Luo Chong's heart suddenly jolted. A hint of astonishment reflected in his eyes. Three fen, four li, and two hao, such precise measurement terms were used only by archers.

As precision stood at the core of archery, there was very little room for errors. Top-notch Imperial Army archery instructors would usually use such terms to correct the shooting position of their trainees.

However, as everyone had different heights, arm lengths, bow-wielding habits, and centers of gravity, this correction had to be specially tailored to the individual.

And to do so, one had to possess a deep understanding of archery. However, there wasn't the slightest archery callus on Wang Chong's hands. On top of that, he had never seen Wang Chong wield a bow before.

He found it hard to believe that Wang Chong would possess an expertise in archery as well.

But doubtful as he was, Wang Chong's confident expression and posture made it hard to doubt him.