If I, a death row inmate, am not to become a demon, am I to become a member of the Imperial Guard?

A broadsword came crashing down.

The sword's shadow obscured the light, like a toppled hill. The immense pressure arrived prematurely, causing the bluestone slab beneath Zhou Yang's feet to sink inch by inch, cracking open like a spiderweb.

Zhou Yang advanced instead of retreating.

A low growl escaped his throat, like a lone wolf driven to the brink of despair. The torrent of life force within him ignited instantly, transforming into a raging inferno. Wisps of extremely faint blue smoke rose from the surface of his skin, carrying a scorching heat. It was the manifestation of life burning.

The ten years of lifespan transformed into an invisible command, rushing into the mind.

The myriad variations of "Overlord Blade" came to a standstill at this moment; all branches and all possibilities collapsed, ultimately converging into a dazzling light. Perfection.

This wasn't enlightenment, but rather a kind of cramming. All the flaws in the moves, the flow of all the power, and the coordination of all the movements became crystal clear in that instant, as if he was born to wield the knife this way.

The rusty knife in his hand seemed to sense this power as well, emitting a clear, resonant hum. The rust on the blade did not come off; instead, it seemed to have merged into the blade, making the cold light even more restrained and profound.

He moved.

There were no complicated moves, just a simple straight slash. The arm muscles were bulging, and the power was transmitted from the waist and abdomen to the shoulder, and then into the blade. The whole person and the sword seemed to become one.

A flash of light.

It didn't have the overwhelming power of a broadsword, but it was incredibly fast. The solid blade energy detached from the blade, no longer an ethereal stream of air, but like a real small mountain, heavy and domineering, crashing into the giant sword.

"clang!"

A loud bang, not like metal clashing, but more like the collision of two mountain peaks.

The ear-piercing scraping sound was painful to the eardrums. Zhou Yang felt an overwhelming force coming from the blade, which made his tiger's mouth numb and his entire right arm feel sore and weak.

He plowed two deep furrows into the ground with his feet, managing to withstand the force.

Opposite them, the towering stone general wielding a broadsword was forced back three large steps by the impact, each step leaving a deep footprint in the hard ground. A clear crack appeared on the stone armor on its chest.

Zhou Yang took a breath, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Is this the perfect power of "Overlord Blade"?

Before he could think further, the other three stone generals had already moved.

On the left, a stone general wielded a long spear, its thrust as swift as a dragon, aiming straight for his heart. On the right, another stone general brandished a chain hammer, its heavy iron head whistling through the air as it swept across his waist and abdomen. And the last one, seemingly out of nowhere, circled behind him, its stone fists clenched tightly, and with immense force, pounded towards the back of his head.

The four sides surrounded them, coordinating perfectly.

The shadow of death loomed over them instantly.

Zhou Yang felt a chill run down his spine. Before he could even think, his body reacted instinctively. His lifespan began to burn at an accelerated pace, year after year.

He ducked to avoid the stone fist behind him. His rusted blade swung upwards, precisely parrying the thrusting spear. Sparks flew as the spear shaft scraped against the blade. Simultaneously, he pushed off the ground with his left foot, rolling to his right, the chain hammer grazing his back.

"boom!"

The hammer hit the ground, creating a large crater.

Zhou Yang flipped to his feet, but before he could even regain his footing, the three stone generals had already surrounded him again. Broadswords pressed down from the front, spears and chain hammers harassed him from the flanks, and the stone fists behind him were even more vicious and ruthless. They were like a precisely operating killing machine, leaving no gaps.

Zhou Yang was forced to retreat repeatedly, and the pressure on him grew heavier and heavier.

He noticed an invisible connection between the four stone generals. When one attacked, the other three would subtly change their movements, either restraining or covering for the attacker, as if linked by an invisible formation. The power of their attacks was far more than simply the sum of its parts.

This can't go on.

His lifespan is being consumed at an alarming rate. Even with a lifespan of nearly a thousand years, he cannot withstand such waste.

A surge of madness rose from the depths of his heart, mixed with a hint of excitement.

"Ha ha!"

Zhou Yang suddenly burst into laughter, the sound echoing through the empty palace.

"Interesting! So interesting!"

His eyes gleamed with an almost manic light, and he exuded a dangerous aura. Facing weapons attacking from all directions, he did not retreat but instead, like an enraged tiger, took the initiative to meet them head-on.

"You think you can wear me down like this?"

He roared, and the burning of his lifespan entered a state of near-out-of-control.

"You're wrong! To me, lifespan is the best weapon!"

Burn! Burn some more!

Five years! Ten years! Twenty years!

A large amount of lifespan was instantly incinerated, turning into the purest energy to maintain the perfect state of the "Overlord Blade" technique, and even forcibly stimulating his physical body, raising his speed and power to a whole new level.

Zhou Yang's figure blurred into a streak of light, the rusty knife dancing in his hand like an impenetrable curtain of blades. He no longer dodged, but chose the most direct confrontation.

"when!"

He used the blade to clash with the spear, the immense force causing the stone general's arm to tremble.

"Ding!"

He swung his sword backhand and slashed at the iron chain of the chain hammer, sparks flying everywhere, bending and deforming the fine iron chain.

"Bang!"

He didn't even flinch, letting the stone fist strike his back. His powerful, half-zombie-like body worked its magic, only causing him to stagger forward a step, a trickle of blood escaping his mouth. Using the momentum, he retaliated with a slash, striking the broadsword-wielding stone general in the shoulder.

"Snap!"

Stone chips flew everywhere as he severed the stone general's entire right shoulder and arm with a single stroke!

However, Zhou Yang's smile froze on his face.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the stone general whose arm he had severed was not bleeding from the wound. Wisps of gray energy seeped from the cracks in the palace floor, like tiny snakes, and burrowed into the stone general's body. At the site of the severed arm, the stone was visibly writhing and reforming.

The small cracks on the other three stone generals, which had been caused by the sword energy, were slowly healing under the nourishment of this gray energy flow.

Zhou Yang's heart sank.

The energy of these stone golems originates from the earth's veins in this palace! They can self-repair almost infinitely!

This is a war of attrition that is destined to be lost. He trades his lifespan for power, while his enemy uses the power of the earth's veins to repair his body. His lifespan will eventually run out, but the power of the earth's veins seems inexhaustible.

"Damn it!"

Zhou Yang cursed under his breath, his mind racing.

A direct confrontation is not the solution. His advantage lies in the burst of power granted by his longevity, not in sustained power.

Since we can't destroy it, let's paralyze it!

His gaze instantly fell on the joints of the stone statues: knees, elbows, necks. These were the weakest points in the structure, and also the key nodes for energy transmission.

The strategy changed completely at that moment.

Zhou Yang no longer confronted their power head-on. With a flick of his body, like a leaf swept up by a gale, he weaved through the killing formation formed by the four stone generals.

As the greatsword of the Broadsword Stone General swept across, he no longer blocked it head-on. Instead, he lightly touched the ground with his toes and slid back several feet, narrowly avoiding the attack.

The spearhead of the long spear was like a venomous snake flicking its tongue. Instead of meeting the spearhead head-on with his knife, he flipped his wrist, and the rusted knife slid down the shaft at an odd angle, its tip precisely stabbing towards the opponent's knee joint.

"Ding!"

A crisp sound.

The blade pierced the joint of the kneecap, sending sparks flying. The stone general's movements froze instantly, and the rotation of his left leg became momentarily sluggish.

efficient!

Zhou Yang was greatly encouraged.

His fighting style has completely changed. He has transformed from a powerful, sweeping swordsman into an elusive assassin who specializes in exploiting weaknesses.

His figure moved swiftly between the four stone generals, each flash accompanied by a precise attack. The rusted blade was no longer a powerful slash, but had transformed into the deadliest scalpel, repeatedly cutting and striking the joints of the stone statues.

"Click!"

He slashed at the elbow of the chain-hammered stone general, and the stone general's right arm immediately drooped down, unable to swing the heavy iron hammer anymore.

"puff!"

He swung his sword backhand, the hilt striking the fist fighter who had ambushed him from behind in the neck. A noticeable crack appeared on the fist fighter's head, and his movements became extremely sluggish.

In an instant, the previously impenetrable encirclement was torn open one gap after another by him in the most life-saving way. The formation of the four stone generals began to stagnate and was no longer so smooth.

Zhou Yang seized an opening and retreated rapidly, creating distance between himself and them.

His chest rose and fell slightly, his breathing was a little rapid, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

He looked at the four stone generals whose movements were beginning to stiffen, grinned, and revealed his gleaming white teeth.

"So you guys aren't invincible after all."

He raised the rusty knife, its tip pointing towards the broadsword stone's remaining left arm joint.

"Now, it's my turn to settle the interest."