I Am Immortal in Great Yu

Chapter 194: Chapter 81: Third Grade

"The ’Earthquake and Mountain Collapse’ was real, but did the ’Hero’ truly die?"

Fang Rui composed himself and looked down.

The Iron Butcher army hadn’t been completely wiped out. There were still survivors. However, not even ten or twenty percent of them remained, and most of those were severely wounded.

That was only natural.

After all, in the past two days, Fang Rui had only managed to subdue enough Earth Armor Centipedes to create a domino effect along a limited stretch of the gorge, not its entire length.

—For one, even with the drought, the conditions weren’t right for a landslide to engulf the entire area. For another, even if the external conditions had been perfect, the amount of work required would have been far too great. If he truly had the power to reshape the world in a day or two, why bother with subtle manipulations? Wouldn’t it be easier to just steamroll everything in his path?

Down in the gorge.

The remnants of the Iron Butcher army were a wretched sight. Some struggled on the ground, missing arms and legs. Others, caked in dust and utterly exhausted, gasped for breath. Still others sat in a stupor, scared witless, their eyes wide and vacant like a dead fish’s...

Amidst this scene, wails, sobs, and groans of pain intertwined.

It was like a living hell.

Fang Rui witnessed all this, yet his expression remained impassive, without a hint of change. "If I don’t kill you, you will kill my family. If I don’t stop you, you will slaughter Yunshan City just as you did Changhuai County."

"So, naturally, you die, and my family and I get to live!"

He looked up at the sky, a glint in his eyes. "If there is truly any lingering resentment or baleful aura from this slaughter, let all the sins fall upon me. What is there to fear?!"

His gaze swept over the survivors, but he couldn’t find the conspicuous figure in blood-red armor.

’The Iron Butcher... is he really dead?!’

The thought had just formed when Fang Rui dismissed it. ’Impossible! I refuse to believe the legendary Iron Butcher would die so easily. He must be buried somewhere and just hasn’t emerged yet...’

"But that’s fine too. I’ll still get the chance to kill my enemy with my own hands. Of course, before that, it’s time to break through to the Upper Three Grades!"

He murmured, turning and departing with an air of indifference. "My previous breakthroughs have always been fast. I wonder how long it will take to go from the Middle Three Grades to the Upper Three Grades. I just hope it’s not too long!"

Not long after Fang Rui left, a few Earth Armor Centipedes emerged and destroyed the cave.

—The cave had been secure enough to survive the landslide, but it wasn’t very well hidden. For his breakthrough, he would naturally need to pick a more secluded location.

...

「Night.」

「Changshan County Magistrate’s Office.」

FLUTTER FLUTTER!

Several waves of Signal Eagles arrived in succession.

"Strategist, wonderful news! Wonderful news!" an aide called out, pushing the door open with a report in hand.

Not long after, rewards were distributed, and the entire County Magistrate’s Office, from the highest to the lowest, rejoiced in celebration.

Zhen Yi, however, frowned as he walked to the window. "This will certainly be a huge boost to the Rebel Army’s prestige, but..."

He shook his head, his brow furrowed in confusion. It was as if he were watching actors on a stage toss aside their scripts and begin to improvise chaotically.

’Where exactly did things go off track?! Was this a natural disaster, or was it man-made?’

Zhen Yi stood there frowning, lost in thought for a long time, but he couldn’t make any sense of it. A blast of cold night air made him shiver, snapping him back to reality.

"What’s the point of thinking so much about it?!" he chuckled to himself.

’A ’great cleansing’ like this... it’s not the first time. No matter what, everything will continue to unfold according to the will of that behemoth. What’s a little accident in the grand scheme of things? It’s pointless. It won’t change a thing.’

’Besides, in this chess game, I’m just a supporting character. All I need to do is play my part.’

Zhen Yi mused, his gaze drifting out the window.

The Yunzhou night was starless and moonless, so pitch-black you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face.

...

「Yunshan City, County Magistrate’s Office.」

"Sorry to keep you all waiting!"

Li Xuantong strode in, brimming with energy. There was no sign that he had been injured; on the contrary, his aura was sharp and piercing, almost painfully bright to the eye.

It was the classic sign of someone who had just broken through and was temporarily unable to perfectly control their aura.

Seeing this, the hearts of the Taiping Army Military Leaders waiting in the hall skipped a beat. Then, whether out of sincerity, apprehension, or fear, they congratulated him in unison, "Congratulations, Grand General, on your full recovery and breakthrough into the Upper Three Grades!"

"Report!"

Just then, a messenger rushed in to report, "At dusk today, the Iron Butcher’s army was passing through Eagle’s Beak Gorge when they were caught in a landslide..."

After the messenger’s report, the hall fell silent for several long breaths before erupting in another round of congratulations.

"The Iron Butcher committed countless evils, and heaven has delivered its judgment! This is a sign that you are favored by the heavens, General!"

"A double blessing! We congratulate the Grand General!"

"We congratulate the Grand General!"

...

"Enough!"

Li Xuantong, however, waved his hand. "Today is a day of double blessings. We should have some heads to accompany our wine! Men! Take Zhou Shuangyu, Jin Wan, Feng Bo’ei... take all of these Yu traitors, drag them out, and behead them!"

...

The news that the Iron Butcher’s army had been buried in a landslide—a sign of the Taiping Army’s divine destiny—was spread so vigorously by them that it was known throughout the city before nightfall. Multiple versions of the story even began to circulate, each more vivid than the last.

"That’s wonderful! We finally don’t have to worry about that man-eating demon, the Iron Butcher, coming to wreak havoc on our Yunshan City!" someone cheered.

"Yeah, I heard that in Changhuai County, the Iron Butcher let his soldiers slaughter the entire city—burning, killing, and plundering. They say he even dug out children’s hearts and livers to eat, and that he’d devour three large buckets of them in a single meal..." The speaker’s tone was filled with fear.

"It’s karma! Even the heavens couldn’t bear to watch anymore and sent a landslide to punish him!"

"What do you mean, ’natural disaster’? I heard the Rebel Army did it. They’ve already claimed responsibility," someone retorted.

"Where’d you hear that rumor? That’s just ridiculous boasting. Since when can a person cause a landslide?"

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