Chapter 28: Overlord-Level Powerhouse

"Hah!"

With a thunderous roar, Ye Mingqiu completely tore through the shield formation. His blood-red spear swept across, instantly carving a massive gap into the iron-clad defense. He charged deep into the enemy lines alone, brandishing his spear with unstoppable momentum.

"You insolent brat, cease your arrogance!"

Seeing this, the general directing the battle from the rear was so enraged that his eyes seemed ready to burst. Those soldiers he had kept in the back to conserve their strength were his own personal guard!

The general spurred his horse forward, his nine-ringed broadsword whipping up a gale of blade-energy as he brought it crashing down.

"Clang!"

Ye Mingqiu blocked with his spear. A sharp, metallic screech rang out, and an overwhelming pressure surged through his arms.

[Xian uses Falling Wind Slash; Strength check failed, Stun effect reduced by half.]
[Notification: Your Control Resistance check succeeded; you have resisted the Stun effect.]

Another skill?

Ye Mingqiu was not surprised. How could anyone capable of commanding a battlefield be weak? At the very least, they would be a boss-level entity; he had long known that bosses in Hell-difficulty dungeons possessed unique skills.

But at this moment, he did not want to risk his life gambling as he had before, leaving himself vulnerable.

Because...

[Psionic Energy - Enchantment]

The blood-red spear was reinforced. The crimson veins on its shaft grew increasingly eerie, and the blood-crystal at the tip erupted with a baleful red light. At this moment, the weapon's performance far surpassed that of the nine-ringed broadsword!

"Crack!"

A crisp sound of snapping metal echoed. Cracks appeared on the blade of the general's nine-ringed broadsword, rapidly expanding under the clash of power until it was on the verge of shattering.

This was the power of a Silver-grade weapon reinforced with [Psionic Energy - Enchantment]! It was truly invincible!

"Oh no!"

The general turned pale with shock, but it was too late to react.

The nine-ringed broadsword shattered instantly. In the next heartbeat, the blood-red spear pierced through the general's chest, lifting him high into the air before throwing him from his horse. The fresh blood lingering on the spear's crystal was absorbed into the weapon, vanishing as raw power.

To take the head of an enemy general amidst ten thousand troops!

Ye Mingqiu looked at the Zhou soldiers retreating in terror and felt a surge of contempt. Then, his eyes widened, and a terrifying killing intent erupted, sweeping across the field like a gale.

"Killing Intent Ripple!"

Suddenly, swathes of Zhou soldiers collapsed to the ground, losing consciousness as if they were corpses.

Ye Mingqiu looked at the scattered loot chests and realized that the Killing Intent Ripple had killed the ordinary soldiers outright; its effect was even stronger than he had imagined.

Primarily, the Killing Intent Ripple dealt mental damage, which even armored soldiers could not resist. Most soldiers on the battlefield focused on Strength, Agility, and Constitution, with their Spirit usually hovering around 4 or 5; 6 was already considered quite high.

Ye Mingqiu’s Spirit, enhanced by the alcohol he had consumed, had reached a staggering 22. This meant his Killing Intent Ripple dealt at least 22 points of mental damage. Furthermore, the passive effect of the skill dictated that the greater the difference in Spirit, the higher the damage.

Compared to 4, 5, or 6, a score of 22 represented a difference of more than four or five times. The damage had skyrocketed, making it perfectly normal to kill fully-stamina soldiers with pure mental damage.

"Whew..."

"Only when I use the Killing Intent Ripple do I remember that I am a Spirit-specialized fighter," Ye Mingqiu thought to himself.

He surveyed the scene: all the Zhou soldiers within a hundred-meter radius had fallen. Most were dead, while a few on the periphery had barely managed to cling to life.

A brief silence descended upon the battlefield. The gazes the Zhou soldiers cast toward him grew increasingly fearful.

"Form ranks! Archers, fire!"

A new command rang out.

The Zhou archers formed a triple-layered formation three hundred paces away and drew their bows in unison. The cold light of the jagged arrowheads merged into a silver wave, and a dense rain of arrows once again blotted out the sky.

"Hmph!"

Ye Mingqiu merely smiled with contempt. He was long accustomed to such barrages; they were nothing more than a daily routine on the battlefield.

...

Not long after, the man with the blood-red spear broke into the core of the Zhou army. He looked at the soldiers swarming him and at the white-haired general, whose face betrayed a flicker of shock. The corners of his mouth curled upward; if he could just get past this hurdle, Zhaoge should be safe.

However...

He felt something off about the white-haired general's aura. It felt dangerous—extremely dangerous—more so than anyone he had encountered thus far.

"Detection Spell!"

[Li Jing (Level 1 Overlord)]
[Race: Human]
[Attributes: Strength: 48, Agility: 35, Constitution: 59, Spirit: 33]

Looking at the stats on the panel, Ye Mingqiu froze. This guy... he was an Overlord-grade! Not a Boss-grade, but an Overlord-grade! These base stats were freakishly strong!

Are these really Level 1 stats?

59 Constitution at Level 1?

Lei Peng, a Level 3 Lord-grade tank, only had 30-something Constitution. Even if he reached Level 5, he might not hit 59. The gap in base stats was terrifying. Was this the power of an Overlord-grade entity?

Ye Mingqiu gasped, instantly understanding why textbooks described Overlord-grade units as absolute enemies to be avoided, even for those with Hero-grade professions!

With such a disparity in stats, even without skills, the opponent would be a peerless powerhouse. And it was impossible for an Overlord-grade unit to lack skills; his would only be even stronger.

"Hmph!"

Li Jing bent slightly, preparing to unleash his power. Golden, tangible energy rippled across his body, and a pressure as solid as a physical weight pressed against Ye Mingqiu's face, setting off alarm bells in his mind.

*Damn it! Run!*

*I need to settle the score and exit the world!*

[Notification: Settlement initiated.]
[Exiting the trial world...]

In the next instant, an explosion of internal energy burst forth. Li Jing's golden energy transformed into a sky full of armored fists, falling like a meteor shower. They loomed ever larger in Ye Mingqiu's terrified eyes.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!..."

...

A moment later, Ye Mingqiu returned to the boundless starry sky where he had arrived. He gasped for air, floating in the void, shaken to his core. He ignored the notifications from the Spirit Realm; the feeling Li Jing had given him was simply too terrifying.

How strong was an Overlord-grade boss?

Under normal circumstances, a full squad of Hero-grade professionals could only hope to challenge a King-grade boss. An Overlord-grade was a tier above King-grade. This meant that a Hero-grade unit was as fragile before an Overlord as a Lord-grade was before a King.

After his brief shock subsided, Ye Mingqiu regained his composure and muttered to himself, "Something's not right! Why are the other human generals Boss-grade, but he’s an Overlord? Two full tiers higher? The gap is so large it’s as if we aren't even the same species!"

"Wait... he’s Li Jing! Li Jing?"

"Isn't this guy a god? The legendary Pagoda-bearing Heavenly King, Li Jing? And he's human? Did I encounter a specialized version of the Spirit Realm where Li Jing hasn't been deified yet? If he's already an Overlord-grade before deification, what level would he be after?"

"I suddenly feel... like being 'Hero-grade' isn't actually that impressive," Ye Mingqiu whispered to himself.