Chapter 197 - One Guards the Gate, Thousands Can’t Break Through (Part 2)

The Princess of Light and her companions examined Lu Ran’s familiar, an apparent malevolent Bone Hound, and realized that something felt off.

This dude wasn’t a normal beastmaster!

A normal beastmaster might, on a whim, out of sheer curiosity, choose the Undead Faction, but their familiars wouldn’t be so inherently sinister.

Yet Captain Doofus, the Bone Hound, looked exactly like what an Undead-attribute familiar should: an evil creature born from the Land of the Dead.

And what was that grass?

This kind of familiar, paired with such an unorthodox weapon, was something they had never encountered before. Within moments, the Knights of Light concluded that Lu Ran likely belonged to some underground organization, not the International Beastmaster Alliance.

After all, the Knight of Sunlight had personally witnessed Lu Ran roasting souls!

The Other Shore! There is a strong possibility this man is part of The Other Shore!

As the Knights of Light processed their realization, Lu Ran spoke again.

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

“Come now, let the beastmasters of the Stellar Moon Continent experience a small taste of the fourth calamity. Granted, it’s just me here.”

As he spoke, an unexpected scene unfolded. The bone swords that had previously fallen inert on the ground suddenly vibrated and rose once more.

Unlike before, when they flew chaotically due to distance limitations, this time they were sharper and more controlled. They streaked through the air, aiming directly for the heads of familiars.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sound of heads exploding reverberated across the battlefield as the swords tore through one familiar after another, throwing the imperial army into chaos once more.

Terrified that they might be the next targets, the imperial army prioritized defending themselves against the flying swords rather than attacking their user. Yet Captain Doofus’ sword control was far from something easily countered.

The imperial army was utterly powerless. One by one, they fell to the Bone Swords, unable to mount any effective resistance. Even Captain Kai En, who commanded his familiar to intercept one of the swords, could only barely hold his ground.

“You bastard—!”

The Princess of Light and her group, watching Lu Ran decimate their forces, felt a wave of fury rising within them.

He knows who we are, yet he’s this cocky!? Does he think so little of the Golden Generation?

Suddenly, as the Bone Swords flew through the battlefield, golden elemental energy appeared out of nowhere. It coalesced into massive rock shields which intercepted the swords mid-flight. The previously unstoppable Bone Swords found themselves lodged halfway through the shields, unable to break through.

As gusts of wind swept across the battlefield as Captain Doofus attempted to recall the swords, but the rock shields, quickly reinforced through formation, sealed the swords in place. The barriers, formed of solid stone, left no opportunity for retrieval.

At that moment, even Lu Ran had to admit that the Princess of Light was formidable. His gaze shifted toward her towering Rock Monarch, standing proudly beside her.

Surrounded by elemental lifeforms, the Princess of Light took a step forward. Her golden hair fluttered in the wind as she spoke slowly.

“Aren’t you a little too arrogant? You’re alone, yet you dare to come here and stop us? Are all beastmasters from The Other Shore this brazen?”

Having summoned an Intermediate-King species elemental familiar to assist the imperial army in halting his attack, the Princess of Light locked onto Lu Ran with her icy blue eyes filled with hostility. In that moment, the imperial army quickly regrouped.

Among them, none were more furious than Captain Kai En who shouted, “Reorganize the formation! Attack!”

Even though Lu Ran had just killed so ferociously, the imperial army still had the advantage of numbers. In an instant, over a hundred projection-based skills rained down on him in waves. The sky became a kaleidoscope of flames, lightning, hurricanes, frost, and boulders.

At that moment, the Princess of Light and her companions also joined in, unleashing beams of light that wove through the gaps in the barrage to strike at Lu Ran.

“He’s done for!” shouted the beast doctor, unable to imagine how Lu Ran could withstand such a massive onslaught.

But things were never that simple. Faced with the torrent of attacks, Lu Ran remained utterly composed. Amidst a deafening thunderclap, crackling lightning surrounded a massive figure.

A towering Lightning Dragon, its energy-forged form standing over ten meters tall, materialized before him and Captain Doofus, shielding them from the barrage.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Countless skills slammed into the Lightning Dragon’s body. However, only a few managed to leave minor wounds, breaking through its Lightning Armor to reach its physical form. The majority of the attacks merely left faint scorch marks before vanishing without a trace.

Even those skills that did harm its physical form only managed to dent its armor, failing to deal any significant damage.

“

RAWR!!!

”

The Lightning Dragon, its energy restored through energy acceleration, spread its massive wings and let out an earth-shattering roar at the enemy army!

This display left the imperial beastmaster corps in stunned silence, their morale visibly shaken. It also left the nine participants dumbfounded.

Standing safely behind Sudden Death King were Lu Ran and Captain Doofus, completely unscathed by the overwhelming barrage.

“One against many has always been my style. What’s this? Are you all planning to go against me? And who said I’m from The Other Shore? It’s just a faction choice, nothing more. Isn’t it perfectly reasonable for me to roleplay as a necromancer after picking the Undead Faction?”

His gaze fell upon the Princess of Light and her companions. He hadn’t expected opponents from the Golden Generation to be among his competitors. They were his greatest threat.

Lu Ran reached up and pulled back the hood of his black robe, revealing a youthful face, barely 18 years old. This simple action made the other nine participants visibly shocked.

“Oh!!! My!!! God!!!” one of the youths exclaimed, his pupils dilating as he recognized the figure before him.

“It’s him! The one who obliterated the Tyrannosaurus Rex Squad and solo-cleared a Legendary Secret Realm—Lu Ran from Xia!”

“The strongest of the fourth generation, and the one who destroyed the Golden Generation!”

”How is this possible!? He’s here too? And he picked the Undead Faction!?”

“That’s definitely his Lightning Dragon, and he’s always had a dog familiar skilled in sword control. Look closely, that grass looks just like a sword! And those bone projectiles earlier, don’t they look like swords too?”

“The tail-wrapped sword, the flying sword. He’s shown all these techniques before! It’s Lu Ran, Pedestrian A!”

What had initially seemed absurd—one man challenging a hundred—suddenly felt entirely plausible. This was true even for the Princess of Light, whose calm demeanor faltered the moment she saw Lu Ran’s face. To her, that face was far more terrifying than the name The Other Shore.

“Captain Doofus, Storm Slash!”

At Lu Ran’s command, Captain Doofus summoned a tempest with its immense power. The swordgrass flew into its mouth, where it compressed a storm into a violent turbulence.

This condensed power transformed into a colossal, 10-meter-long green sword qi that slashed toward the enemy with unstoppable force!

The terrifying sword qi cut through the sky, its power far exceeding anything seen in the previous flying sword attacks. Faced with this overwhelming skill, the imperial army paled once more.

“All units, defend!” shouted Captain Kai En.

Streams of Earth-attribute energy flowed from the ground, forming a towering wall to block the attack. However, the sword qi cleaved through the earth wall effortlessly, shattering it in an instant.

Beyond the wall, the next line of defense was a barrage of skills from the beastmasters. These succeeded in weakening the sword qi, but it still tore through.

It wasn’t until the combined efforts of the Knights of Light, who erected a massive light wall, took effect that the sword qi was finally halted.

However, the collision between the sword qi and the light wall triggered a violent explosion. The resulting shockwave transformed into a raging windstorm, scattering corpses and throwing the imperial army into disarray.

“Not bad.”

Lu Ran, standing alone against hundreds, still had the composure to compliment his opponents. This remark plunged the nine participants into even deeper despair. Their gazes toward Lu Ran now resembled those directed at a demon king.

Did this guy deliberately choose an unpopular faction just to challenge overwhelming odds and boost his score?

The thought lingered among them. It certainly aligned with Lu Ran’s reputation as the man who solo-cleared a Legendary Secret Realm. Of course, no one felt the weight of despair more than Captain Kai En of the imperial army.

He regretted it all. He regretted listening to the suggestions of those civilian beastmasters, and regretted leading his troops to attack Ming An City.

How could I have known that the city harbored such a monster? Who is this guy!?

Yet, his despair was far from over.

Both the earth and the sky seemed to darken. In the distance, over a hundred necromancers dressed in black robes were marching toward the battlefield.

“Protect the future Holy Son!!!”

The necromancers, driven by fervent devotion, approached rapidly. According to Gao Li, Sudden Death King’s talent made him the perfect candidate to become the Holy Son of their cult. No matter the cost, they were determined to protect Lu Ran.

However, as they neared the battlefield, they were stunned by what they saw. The imperial army was in complete chaos with corpses scattered around and soldiers fleeing in panic. The scene was nothing short of a rout.

Could all of this... really have been caused by Sudden Death King alone?

“You came just in time!!!”

Seeing his reinforcements arrive in full force, Lu Ran grinned while baring his teeth. He then raised his voice to issue a clear command.

“Don’t attack. Prioritize protecting yourselves. Don’t let any of you get hurt. Leave everything to me. Now, spread out and encircle them. Today, not a single soldier from the imperial army escapes!”

The arrival of Lu Ran’s reinforcements, coupled with their reverent title for him and his confident commands, sent another wave of disbelief through the nine participants.

Holy Son? The Holy Son of a death cult? What kind of joke is this? How did Lu Ran manage this? Didn’t we all enter the secret realm at the same time!?

Choosing the Undead Faction was one thing, but becoming the leader of that faction? This was far beyond their comprehension. Something was clearly not right!

“Investigate him thoroughly!!!”

At that moment, the Knight of Sunlight, recalling how Lu Ran had been roasting souls alongside another necromancer, finally broke down.

“I suggest the International Beastmaster Alliance launch a full investigation into him and his entire family tree. This guy doesn’t seem like he’s just acting!”