Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

Although Matsumoto disliked Takeshita Yujiro, that naval idiot, he still hoped that Takeshita Yujiro could do something about it in the current situation. Ideally, he would be able to completely eliminate the Tentsu Parish, but he also knew that, given the current circumstances, such a hope was rather slim.

In this situation, he couldn't possibly make any move to provide assistance. He didn't have the ability, and even if he did, he wouldn't really want to. But he wanted to reap the rewards of this battle.

So he summoned his advisor and ordered him to arrange for the priests in the army to send out spirits to deliver a message to Takeshita Yujiro, telling him not to keep focusing on fighting that lightning spirit.

The solution is to break through that lightning demon and kill the people in the church. Since that lightning demon is killing Navy idiots, why don't you go kill his people too, and see who can bear the losses more?

"No wonder they're navy idiots, a bunch of useless trash," he cursed inwardly.

"Kill him!"

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Marines charged forward shouting "Long live!"

They hated the lightning-fast figure ahead of them from the bottom of their hearts. It was he who had single-handedly caused the loss of more than half of the elite Marines here, a disgrace unheard of in the entire Empire.

They came to this aid prepared to serve the Emperor faithfully.

But they never expected that, as soldiers, they would not die on the front lines amidst the chaos of battle, but in front of an unknown church.

How ridiculous! They died in a rival church in a foreign land. Can their souls rest in a shrine?

"A bunch of idiots!"

With a wave of his hand, the lightning avatar channeled the power of Qi into his body, unleashing a blindingly bright bolt of lightning. It was like a weightless yet incredibly sharp blade of light, which he swung out with a gentle, horizontal motion.

"Shh!"

The slash fell without any resistance. He directly severed the upper bodies of dozens of people in front of him.

Those people continued to charge forward due to inertia, running for several meters before losing their balance and collapsing to the ground with a thud.

Their bodies fell like wine glasses that had been overturned, spilling large amounts of shocking red as they fell.

Lightning materializes and forms a sword with its fingers, continuously unleashing deadly lightning.

Such an intense battle would be too much for anyone in the martial arts world to withstand, even with the protection of the "Saint Thief." Even the spiritual energy within the Tiantong religious district wouldn't be enough.

But who made Zhang Zhiwei connect the Qi formation with the earth's veins and the power of faith accumulated over many years in the Tiantong Diocese?
That's why the Lightning Incarnation can so easily inflict massive damage on enemies, seemingly without ever getting tired.

And this was arranged by Zhang Zhiwei, who was not good at setting up intricate Qi formations. If Zhang Zhiwei could be compared with the legendary Ziyang Zhenren Zhang Boduan in terms of setting up Qi formations, he could even set up a peerless Qi formation similar to the "Twenty-Four Heavenly Valley" at several key locations on the battlefield, completely annihilating all those who did not follow the rules across all timelines from the past to the future.

Of course, very few people throughout history have been able to set up such a Qi formation.

Even if it could be arranged now, it wouldn't necessarily be unsolvable.

If this Qi formation were set up at the beginning, it could indeed cause the deaths of many people who entered without knowing the situation. However, once it is discovered, heavy artillery can be used to bombard the terrain and destroy the closed structure, causing the Qi formation to collapse on its own.

On the contrary, Zhang Zhiwei's simple and crude Qi formation can have a powerful and explosive effect in this situation.

The lightning incarnation unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts, slaughtering most of the Japanese pirates charging forward. Blood flowed everywhere, forming a river. This kind of killing by the lightning incarnation was completely different from dying from a normal gunshot wound.

Even the most numerous bullet holes in a person's body cannot compare to the shock and horror of a scene where someone uses lightning as a blade to slice through a dozen or even dozens of people, causing their blood and organs to spill out all at once.

The scene was so terrifying that even the ruthless Fire Cloud Evil God gasped and felt a chill run down his spine.

Lightning, transformed into a god, stood proudly on this bloody slaughterhouse.

At this moment, he noticed that Takeshita Yujiro had stopped attacking him and instead charged towards the church like a red-eyed bull.

Zhang Zhiwei could easily imagine Takeshita Yujiro's plans.

However, he ignored it.

By fighting the lightning incarnation here, Takeshita Yujiro can live a little longer. Why is he rushing into the church in such a hurry? Is he looking for death?!

Now that Takeshita Yujiro had gone to the church, he felt even more confident and daring to kill those Marines.

In reality, by now, the Marine Corps has essentially collapsed across the board. In particular, the team that launched the frontal assault was almost completely wiped out.

The left and right wings did get closer to the building, but before they could rush into the cathedral, they clashed with the National Salvation Army warriors who were lying in ambush around it.

Moreover, the Landlord, Landlady, and the Guardian Squad, among other extraordinary individuals, didn't just stand by and watch the fierce battle as the Lightning Transformation clashed. They joined the fight and began eliminating any remaining enemies in the surrounding area.

So, despite the Japanese pirates' fearless attitude and fierce attacks, they failed to break through and instead left behind a trail of corpses.

At this moment, the lightning incarnation stopped paying attention to Takeshita Yujiro and began to wipe them out at full speed, making their situation even more dangerous.

The Lightning Incarnation is an elemental being, and conventional guns and cannons have no effect on him.

Moreover, with the speed of the lightning incarnation, even if it were useful, he could easily dodge it.

In order to avoid accidentally harming teammates and to resolve battles more precisely, Lightning Avatar no longer uses abilities with wide-area destructive power such as Palm Lightning.

He transformed into a streak of lightning, like a self-aware flying sword, traversing every corner of the battlefield.

Some Marines who were engaged in fierce fighting with the National Salvation Corps were suddenly cut in half by a streak of lightning.

The lightning flashed, leaving a long tail, and its residual force directly pulled out the intestines and internal organs from the abdominal cavity, which rolled into the pool of blood on the ground, steaming hot.

Whether they are ordinary Japanese pirates or extraordinary ones, they will all be slain by lightning!
For a time, the place was filled with mournful roars, desperate wails, and the splattering sound of blood.

Blood gushed forth in torrents, and the lightning incarnation darted through it at high speed. The misty blood vapor dyed the originally blazing white lightning into an eerie crimson, draping the lightning incarnation in a blood-soaked garment woven from the lives of countless Japanese pirates.

This scene was witnessed by outsiders. How could such a cruel sight not send shivers down their spines and fill them with fear and dread?

This was not a battle, it was a massacre, a one-sided massacre in which no one could resist.

On the terrace of the Municipal Council building, many of the usually high-ranking directors knelt down upon witnessing this scene. Trembling, they made the sign of the cross and began to pray to their respective gods.

They didn't know why they were praying, but they just wanted some kind of protection, as if that silver demon would rush at them at any moment. The spies from the Jianghu Inn were also gaping, so astonished that they dropped their pens to the ground without even realizing it.

In fact, at the very beginning of this great battle, almost everyone had little hope for the Tiantong Diocese.

After all, this place has the most powerful superhuman in Japan, as well as several thousand well-equipped and well-trained marines. No matter how you look at it, the Tian Tong Diocese has little chance of winning.

Even if the Little Celestial Master himself came, he would probably be ambushed and forced into a fierce battle.

But to their utter surprise, the little celestial master didn't even need to come in person; just an avatar was enough to wipe out almost all the attacking marines.

This is like a scene from a myth or legend!
"Is...is this even human?" a spy muttered to himself, his voice trembling.

"Everyone in the martial arts world says that the Little Celestial Master is about to become an immortal, and I think it's probably true," another scout said. "I even think that the Little Celestial Master could have become an immortal long ago, but he's just been lingering here."

Meanwhile, in the distance, Army General Matsumoto's reaction was even more intense. He couldn't bear to look at the tragedy unfolding before him; it was too cruel. Even though he loathed those naval idiots, he couldn't believe it had to come to this.

At the same time, he also felt the terror of that little celestial master most deeply.

This is not some compassionate monk; this is a devil, a complete and utter devil!

How can mortals stand against the devil?

He could only keep chanting "Long live the Emperor" to calm his wildly turbulent heart and try to dispel the fear in his heart.

While the lightning-infused figure was wreaking havoc, Takeshita Yujiro finally reached the entrance of the Tentsu Cathedral.

As the saying goes, those involved are often confused, while bystanders see things clearly. The reason he kept attacking the lightning avatar was because he was stuck in a fixed mindset.

But after Matsumoto arranged for the priest accompanying the army to send out spirits to inform him, he suddenly realized that he could change his approach, switch from defense to offense, ignore the invincible lightning incarnation, and directly kill the ordinary people inside!

This is also the nature of many Japanese people: meticulous in their work.

The source of rigor lies in following the rules and acting according to plan.

However, this approach can become rigid and inflexible when faced with unforeseen circumstances. For example, Takeshita Yujiro's initial plan was to work with the demons to suppress the lightning incarnation, and then let the Marines enter and wreak havoc.

But the result was that he and the ghosts and gods, despite their combined efforts, could not stop the lightning incarnation. Instead, they were defeated one by one by the lightning incarnation, and even a large number of marines were killed.

A wise commander would have changed tactics at this point. But Takeshita Yujiro did not; he continued to act according to the original plan, causing the Marine Corps to suffer more than half its casualties, until someone reminded him.

This characteristic was passed down by the Japanese pirates for hundreds or even thousands of years. The most typical example is the world-renowned rescue operation launched in later generations to save an old man who had fallen into a ditch while driving.

Because of their inflexibility, they not only killed the old man at the bottom of the pit, but also turned a simple rescue mission that could have been completed in a few tens of minutes into a nationwide project that lasted for more than three months and affected the lives of 1.2 million people in twelve surrounding cities.

Yujiro Takeshita had previously fallen into this vicious cycle, but after Matsumoto gave him some advice, he hesitated for a second before deciding to abandon his original plan and do as that annoying army idiot suggested.

No matter what, even if all the Marines are wiped out, he must kill all the ordinary people inside, lure the true form of the Heavenly Tong Sect Master over, and trap him like a turtle in a jar!

He was quite surprised to notice that the lightning incarnation did not come to stop him.

Did the leader of the Heavenly Tong Sect not care about the lives of these mortals? This question couldn't help but arise in his mind.

But at this point, he had no time to think further.

He arrived before the church's magnificent doors. His powerful senses clearly detected the presence of countless frail, ordinary people inside. Thousands of vibrant lives—the perfect bait.

"Kill them all! Kill them all!"

Yujiro Takeshita gritted his teeth and growled, gripping his long sword tightly with both hands, raising it high, and bringing it down fiercely on the door. He wanted to cleave the door open with one strike, and with it, sever all hope behind it!
"Aaaaaah, die!!"

He roared, his eyes turning blood red, gleaming with a ferocious, bloodthirsty light.

He swung his sword, displaying the full power of "Dojigiri Yasutsuna." A perfect yet deadly arc of blade, carrying an aura of annihilation, crashed down towards the church door!

But just then, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of a bald old man wearing a shabby vest and plastic slippers in the corner of the church's magnificent entrance.

The old man sat there on a small stool, legs crossed, just like any other ordinary old man you'd see sitting in the alleyway enjoying the cool air.

"Hmph, you old fool who's asking for death!"

Yujiro Takeshita snorted inwardly, his sword strikes increasing rather than decreasing, even adding a wisp of sword energy as he tried to get rid of this eyesore.

"Die to me!!"

However, faced with this powerful blow that could split mountains and shatter rocks, the disheveled old man showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he slowly raised his head and revealed a strange, cold smile.

The Fiery Cloud Evil God stared coldly at him, a chilling madness flashing in his eyes. In truth, he too had just wanted to rush out and slaughter his way out, just like the Landlord and Landlady.

But Zhang Zhiwei specially assigned him an even more important task: goalkeeping.

Seeing the blade flashing so close at hand, the Fire Cloud Evil God's smile grew wider and more ferocious.

"Hehehe... Hahahaha!"

He suddenly burst into wild laughter, the laughter sharp and piercing. As the laughter erupted, his face began to undergo astonishing changes!

His once gaunt cheeks quickly became plump, and dense white hairs grew on his skin at a visible speed.

His features began to distort and elongate, and a ferocious monkey face suddenly appeared on his face, which continued to expand and change!
An ancient, violent, and terrifying pressure filled with destructive energy erupted from his thin body in an instant, like a volcano that had been dormant for thousands of years suddenly erupting!

“This is…” Takeshita Yujiro’s pupils suddenly contracted, and alarm bells rang in his mind.

This is the arrival of the "Vice Leader"!

This was Zhang Zhiwei's last contingency plan, and the final line of defense protecting the Tiantong Cathedral! (End of Chapter)