Chapter 35: Committing Every Evil Under the Sun

Upon seeing this group of people, the soldiers on the drill ground broke into an instant commotion. Every heart leaped into every throat. It was true! It was exactly as Wang Ba had said! This madman was truly going to make them kill!

"Quiet!" Xiao Zhan let out a low shout, suppressing the uproar. He pointed to the group of about a hundred death-row prisoners who had been marched to the center of the drill ground and said in a booming voice, "See these people?"

"They are bandits, murderers, scum who have committed every crime from rape to pillage! According to the Great Ming Code, every one of them deserves to be hacked into a thousand pieces!"

"However, today, I am giving them a chance to live, and I am giving you a chance as well!"

Xiao Zhan’s gaze swept across the faces of all the "Ghost" soldiers. "From now on, pair up and pick your opponents! You have no weapons in your hands. Neither do they. All you have to do is use the combat techniques I taught you yesterday to kill them!"

"The first pair to successfully kill their opponent will be rewarded with one hundred taels of silver! The second, fifty taels! The third, thirty taels! There are heavy rewards for the top ten!"

"And as for those prisoners," Xiao Zhan turned his eyes to the death-row inmates, whose expressions were beginning to shift, "if you can manage to kill these two soldiers instead, you will not only be spared, but I will let you go free and reward you with one hundred taels of silver so you can flee far away!"

"Boom!"

As soon as these words were spoken, not only the soldiers but even the prisoners exploded with intensity!

"Is that true?!" a scarred prisoner roared with a hoarse voice.

"I, Xiao Zhan, keep my word!"

"Good!" A beast-like, ferocious glint erupted in the scarred prisoner's eyes. "My life is worthless anyway; taking two with me is worth it!"

"Hahaha! Killing one is breaking even, killing two is a profit!"

"Come on! You pretty boys! Let grandpa see what you're made of!"

The prisoners, once lifeless, were instantly ignited by the desire to survive and the lure of gold! They struggled and roared like caged beasts about to break their chains!

On the other side, the soldiers’ faces turned pale. This was completely different from what they had imagined! They thought it would be a one-sided slaughter, but now it had turned into a life-or-death struggle! Those prisoners were all ruthless characters who had licked blood from the edges of blades, while they had only learned a few rudimentary tricks yesterday! This wasn't training; it was gambling with their lives!

"What? Afraid?" Xiao Zhan looked at the hesitant soldiers, a cruel arc playing on his lips. "Where is that ferocity from yesterday? Forgot what I said? With me, there is only obedience!"

"Whoever hesitates again, I will execute them right now!"

He slowly drew the Desert Eagle from his waist.

The silver muzzle, exuding an aura of death, was aimed at the soldiers in the front row. The threat of death, the temptation of money, the instinct to survive—everything was frantically tearing at the soldiers' nerves.

Finally, one person moved. It was Wang Ba! Dragging his injured arm, he used his remaining hand to grab a trembling soldier beside him and roared, "Damn it! What are you afraid of? Follow me!"

Like a wild bull, he was the first to charge toward the prisoners! He chose the scarred man who had been shouting the loudest.

Once there was a first, there was a second. The instinct to survive ultimately overcame fear. With bloodshot eyes, the soldiers paired up, roaring as they charged at the equally crazed prisoners!

In an instant, the entire drill ground turned into a massive, bloody Roman coliseum! There were no weapons, only the most primitive fists, teeth, and fingernails!

"Ah!"

A soldier rushed forward only to be kicked to the ground by a tall prisoner. The prisoner mounted him, opened his blood-red mouth, and bit down on his throat! The soldier's partner, seeing this, was so terrified that he turned and fled!

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out! The back of the fleeing soldier's head exploded in a spray of blood, and he collapsed to the ground. It was Xiao Zhan who had fired.

"Remember! You are brothers-in-arms! Those who abandon their comrades die!"

The cold voice echoed across the field. Everyone was stunned by the shot! The soldier pinned underneath, seeing his throat about to be ripped out, suddenly remembered the move he had practiced thousands of times yesterday! He gave up on his futile struggle and slammed his head into the prisoner's chin!

"Thud!"

The prisoner was dazed by the impact, and his assault faltered. Now was the time! A fierce glint flashed in the soldier’s eyes; his hands transformed into claws, and with all his might, he plunged his fingers into the prisoner's eyes!

"Ah—!!!"

A shrill, miserable scream pierced the sky! The prisoner clutched his bleeding eyes, roaring in agony.

The soldier, seeing his chance, flipped over, mounted the prisoner, and locked his arms tightly around the man's neck! He used every technique he had learned yesterday, driving his knee into the prisoner's spine and pressing down with the weight of his entire body!

"Crack..."

A slight, crisp sound. The prisoner's body suddenly stiffened, then went limp.

The soldier panted heavily. He looked at the prisoner beneath him who had already breathed his last, then looked at his own hands stained with blood and brain matter; his stomach churned violently.

"Ugh—"

He collapsed to the ground, retching uncontrollably. This was the first time in his life he had killed a man with his own hands.

"Very good." Xiao Zhan’s voice sounded by his ear. "What is your name?"

The soldier raised his head, his face covered in vomit and tears, and trembled as he replied, "Re... reporting, sir... this humble one... this humble one is called... Li Ergou..."

"Li Ergou." Xiao Zhan nodded. "You are the first. The reward: one hundred taels of silver!"

He signaled to Zhao Tieniu. Zhao Tieniu immediately walked over to Li Ergou, holding a tray piled high with silver ingots. The bright, white silver and the warm corpse on the ground formed an incredibly stark and eerie contrast. Li Ergou looked at the silver, then at his own hands, and something began to change in his eyes.

Li Ergou's success acted as the most potent catalyst, completely detonating the entire drill ground. One hundred taels of silver! That mountain of silver ingots was no longer an unreachable dream, but a tangible reality! All it took was killing the person in front of them!

"Kill!!"

"Roar!!"

The last trace of hesitation and fear in the soldiers' eyes was replaced by naked greed and the desire to live. They were no longer human. They were wolves! A pack of beasts driven mad by hunger and blood!

"Bang!"

Wang Ba roared, delivering a fierce elbow strike that landed heavily on the scarred man's temple! The scarred man was a tough one, too; in his final moments, he bit into Wang Ba's shoulder, tearing off a chunk of flesh!