Chapter 156: Collaborative Killers

"If we encounter such a situation, and you're worried that killing the opponent would waste too much time, then we can abandon them and go after another target. On top of that, we're not going to attack anyone that's also from the main church, but at the same time, we won't get in your way, so it'll be up to you whether you kill them or not.

“However, I should warn you that it's best to avoid killing people from the main church if possible. It's the best approach to take for your future."

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind."

"Even though you have your help, you're still not guaranteed a top-three finish. It depends on how many kills you have up to this point. If that number is too low, then you most likely won't be able to catch up to those ahead of you even with our help."

"I understand," Fang Che replied while internally calculating how many people he had killed up to this point. He had killed over a hundred Generals from the One Heart Church alone, and in total, his kill count had to be around three thousand to four thousand.

That's not enough, I have to at least get to ten thousand!

With that, the seven of them sprang into action. Ling Kong and the others were already aware of where the other ambush parties were situated, so they intentionally left the valley on a roundabout route to avoid the others.

***

A white shadow was racing through the undergrowth like a speeding arrow, seemingly searching for something.

Whenever they encountered a General, they would stop to take a look, then immediately continue on their way.

Yan Beihan's heart was filled with resentment as she continued her search for Fang Che.

This was the first time that anyone had ever taken anything from her, not to mention he had also humiliated her in front of so many people.

She was determined to find him, but she knew that he had most likely already been recruited.

The twenty or so Generals that were with her earlier were the people from the main church that had served as her lackeys for the longest time, and she had intentionally split them up into three groups and sent them away to give them this opportunity.

She knew that Fang Che was an extremely bright prospect.

She had told them to capture and eat him, but she knew that none of her lackeys would actually be stupid enough to do that.

Securing a powerful future ally was much more beneficial over the long term, and killing him now would be an enactment of the classic cautionary tale of killing the golden goose.

What made him even more valuable was that he was from a subsidiary church and knew next to nothing, making him essentially a blank slate.

***

There was a faint chill in the air up ahead, but it was close to completely fading away.

"There are people from the Ice Demon Church up ahead!" Ling Kong declared in a wary manner.

The Ice Demon Church was the top church of the northern path, and it was ranked near the top among all of the subsidiary churches of the Church of the Self-Righteous.

It was a far more powerful church than the One Heart Church.

"The Generals of the Ice Demon Church like to stick together in groups and nominate a leader to support, so there should be a bunch of them up ahead," Ling Kong said. "Let's go take a look."

As they continued onward, the chill in the air only became more and more pronounced, and the sounds of a battle began ringing out up ahead.

"Sounds like there's a battle of a pretty large scale taking place. What should we do?" Lu Yuan asked.

"Let's go take a look first."

After continuing onward for a while longer, they spotted two groups of Generals locked in a fierce battle in a clearing.

One side had around seventy to eighty people, while the other had close to fifty.

"They're from the Ice Demon Church and the Fire Demon Church, but there are too many of them!"

"The Ice Demon Church and the Fire Demon Church are sworn enemies. However, even though the Fire Demon Church looks to be at a disadvantage here, they haven't been crushed, so it seems like neither side is truly serious about eradicating the other," Ling Kong analyzed.

He then turned to Fang Che with an inquisitive gaze, and he clearly wanted to give up and turn back around.

However, Fang Che wasn't going to pass up such a golden opportunity.

This is exactly what I've been waiting for!

"Let's go get 'em!" he said as he held his saber in one hand and his sword in the other, preparing to spring into the clearing.

"Hold on a second!"

Ling Kong hurriedly grabbed onto his arm to stop him.

"Even if we're going to attack, we have to think of a plan first! There are over a hundred of them, for heaven's sake!"

"The battle's almost over! If I wait any longer, they'll part ways, and my chance will be gone!" Fang Che said in an urgent manner.

"Don't be reckless!" Ling Kong snapped.

"Do you have any poison on you?" Fang Che asked.

Everyone instantly turned to him with bewildered expressions upon hearing this.

"You want to use poison?"

"It's the quickest way to get the job done."

"We don't have any."

"I do!"

Fang Che pulled out an entire stick of Soul Devouring Incense.

"Soul Devouring Incense?" Ling Kong exclaimed. "Isn't Soul Devouring Grass a resource available only to the Guardians? How did you manage to get your hand on this?"

"I was given two sticks by Pope Yin," Fang Che replied with a smile.

"Your pope sure is an impressive man," Ling Kong sighed, then turned his gaze to Xiao Jue. "Xiao Jue, you know what to do."

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

A hint of excitement appeared on Xiao Jue's face as he replied, "Leave it to me!"

He then extended a hand, and a palm-sized lizard with faint smoke billowing out of its nostrils crawled out of his sleeve.

"That's a Fire Lizard!"

"Precisely!"

As the name suggested, Fire Lizards were spirit beasts capable of blasting fire out of their mouths, and Xiao Jue communicated briefly with his Fire Lizard, then snapped the stick of Soul Devouring Incense into four parts.

He kept two of them, then returned the other two to Fang Che as he said, "Half a stick will be enough."

Fang Che could see the yearning in Ling Kong's eyes, so he smiled and said, "You can hold onto these, Boss Ling."

Ling Kong gladly accepted the gift, and he was already thinking about which of his enemies he was going to screw over using the incense.

It's a pity that this can only be used on warriors below the Lord tier, but it's still very useful, nevertheless.

The Fire Lizard held the two lengths of Soul Devouring Incense in its mouth, then burrowed its way into the ground.

Fang Che pulled out four antidotal pills and gave one each to the four people that were going to be involved in this operation.

Meanwhile, the two opposing churches were still locked in a fierce battle, and some of them had been assigned to lookout duty in case of sneak attacks.

However, no one noticed the faint plumes of smoke rising up from the ground in four different directions.

It was impossible for them to notice this as the cultivation arts used by the Generals of the Fire Demon Church also conjured up smoke, serving as perfect cover for the four plumes of smoke.

Four of Ling Kong's companions had been deployed, with one situated in each direction, and they were using their cultivation arts to send the poisonous smoke converging toward the center, while Fang Che looked on in amazement.

Ling Kong was staring intently at the two clashing factions in the clearing, and he was silently counting down from ten in his head.

On the seventh count, someone in the clearing abruptly collapsed, following which everyone else also began to sway unsteadily on their feet.

In the instant that the first person fell, Fang Che immediately shot forth like a speeding array, lashing out with his saber and sword in unison.

In the blink of an eye, he had already taken over forty lives, and he was like a conscientious farmer tending to his harvest.

The eight or nine Generals from the two churches standing on lookout duty were situated on the edge of the clearing, so they didn't inhale much of the poisonous smoke.

Even so, they were also feeling very lightheaded, and they yelled in a feeble voice, "Who... Who are you?"

"Underhanded scum!"

"You coward!"

Fang Che paid no heed to their insults as he quickly claimed their heads.

These Generals were among the most powerful ones present. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been assigned to lookout duty. However, the effects of the Soul Devouring Incense were too potent for them to withstand, and they were cut down without being able to put up any resistance.

Fang Che continued to cut down swathes of enemies, while his Five Spirit Parasite and the Golden Horn Flood Dragon feasted to their hearts' content.

After the 136th and final enemy was slain, Fang Che stopped in his tracks with a pleased expression.

At this point, both his saber and sword had already been completely stained red with blood.

Ling Kong and the others were all looking on in a slight daze.

He had just slain 136 people in a matter of seconds, yet it didn't seem to have had even the slightest psychological impact on him.

It was like he was born to kill!

"You really are destined for great things, Brother Night Demon!" Ling Kong praised with an earnest smile.

Only people like Fang Che could survive long and go far in the Church of the Self-Righteous!

"Thank you, everyone," Fang Che said with a wide smile, and he was truly overjoyed.

"Let's keep going!" he urged. "I only have a single stick of Soul Devouring Incense left, so let's save it for large groups only. You did a great job, Brother Xiao Jue. Our teamwork was seamless back there!"

He reached in to pat Xiao Jue on the shoulder as he spoke.

"The higher you climb, the more we'll benefit by association, so it's only right that I help you, Brother Night Demon," Xiao Jue said with a smile.

Xiao Jue was no fool, and he knew that Night Demon was trying to befriend him for his Fire Lizard.

This was a win-win arrangement for everyone, and they had been bound together by a vow sworn to the Heavenly Centipede Deity, so he naturally had no qualm about helping Fang Che.

With the assistance of Ling Kong's group, Fang Che's efficiency was drastically elevated.

As time passed, Ling Kong and his companions couldn't help but be stunned by the depth of Fang Che's bloodlust.

He would always rush headfirst into battle no matter who he was up against, and his sword and saber techniques were truly exceptional, allowing him to harvest the lives of his enemies with ease.

"What do you think, Boss? His saber techniques are pretty mediocre, but those sword techniques are far superior," Lu Yuan remarked.