At the instant the Mangox energy sprayed toward him, William King hesitated slightly, but the three-inch Mangox energy was simply too short. By the time it pierced William King's defenses, it had already lost its momentum. If Henry Carter's Mangox energy had been over a foot long, then William King would have had no chance of survival.

　　"Bang!"

　　A tremendous force slammed into Henry Carter. The moment he was struck, Henry Carter felt as if his body was about to be sent flying. Under the impact of that force, the bones in his body crackled and popped.

　　"It's over!"

　　As this thought flashed through Henry Carter's mind, his heart trembled and he felt nothing at all. Just then, the small black gourd that had always hung at Henry Carter's waist suddenly shot out a jet of inky-black vapor, which, the moment it emerged, clung to Henry Carter's body.

　　"Poof!"

　　Henry Carter, who was already about to be sent flying, suddenly opened his mouth and spat out. The Mangox energy, originally only three inches long, instantly extended to a full foot, viciously stabbing into William King's skull.

　　Henry Carter's body flew three feet before crashing heavily to the ground, while William King's pair of savage eyes were filled with disbelief and ferocity. Blood gushed from the top of its head, but its steps still continued to move forward, inch by inch.

　　It wanted to kill Henry Carter, to kill the one who had caused it so much pain!

　　Closer, and closer still—the villagers, dumbfounded by the scene before them, didn't dare to move a muscle, while Henry Carter had already fainted away in bliss.

　　"Boom!"

　　William King collapsed with a thunderous crash, falling completely, filled with endless unwillingness!

　　William King was finally dead!

Chapter Five: The Red-Robed Daoist

　　Henry Carter, who had breathed a huge sigh of relief, was suddenly overcome by a wave of dizziness. Waves of piercing, bone-deep pain radiated from every part of his body.

　　He was about to pass out. Having experienced this in the army before, Henry Carter was just about to blissfully lose consciousness when a wisp of black smoke rose from his body, and his spirit once again floated out along with the smoke.

　　Once more surveying his surroundings in soul form, Henry Carter hadn't even considered whether the villagers might see him when a presence even more fierce and menacing than William King's swept over. Under this aura, the black smoke seemed to sense something, and immediately carried his soul straight into the gourd!

　　"Whoosh!"

　　A streak of red light tore through the sky and landed beside William King. As the red light faded, a Daoist in a red robe, with a deathly pale face, appeared next to the wild boar. The Daoist didn't spare a single glance at the astonished villagers; his gaze was fixed entirely on William King.

　　"How infuriating! After all the effort I put in, this William King, who was about to become a demon, is still dead!"

　　Staring at the dead William King, the Daoist gnashed his teeth and cursed. His ghostly face glanced at the trembling villagers not far away, then, with a flick of his hand, produced a small blood-red banner and said, "For you people to encounter a Daoist master is your fate. Today, I'll send you all to the afterlife."

　　From the blood-red banner, a dozen streaks of bloody light shot out in an instant. The villagers ensnared by these lights screamed a few times, then collapsed to the ground like dried corpses.

　　Hiding his soul inside the inky-black gourd, Matthew Turner saw everything clearly, but at this moment, he didn't dare make a sound.

　　A cultivator—this was the legendary cultivator. During his three years in the army, he had heard many tales of cultivators. In these stories, every cultivator possessed the power to move mountains and seas, to turn stone into gold. Although he had never witnessed a cultivator's might firsthand, he had seen a few people on the battlefield who, relying on treasures bestowed by cultivators, rampaged with impunity.

　　Though the spells of those he had seen were different, they all shared one trait: they were nearly unbeatable. No matter how formidable the general, once these cultivator disciples unleashed their treasures, they were invariably defeated, and the more unfortunate ones lost their souls entirely. Now, faced with such a fierce cultivator, he could only endure in silence.

　　The cultivator walked up to William King, shook the blood-red banner twice more, and William King's massive body was immediately enveloped by a crimson rainbow.

　　"Hmm? This fellow isn't dead yet." The fierce cultivator suddenly noticed that Henry Carter still had some breath left, and began to examine Henry Carter closely.

　　"This foolish boy's bones aren't much, but his blood and energy are quite abundant. If cultivated properly, he should be good for one use."

　　Muttering to himself, the Daoist picked up Matthew Turner by the waist and, like a rainbow, sped off in a certain direction.

　　Even inside the gourd, Henry Carter could still sense the Daoist's incredible speed. The Daoist's feet never touched the ground; as he flew, it was as if an invisible force was propelling him forward!

　　With this rapid flight, Henry Carter's mind gradually calmed down. Thinking of all that had happened in just an instant, the desire to become stronger burned even more fiercely in Henry Carter's heart.