As the blade slid through the guards' bodies, more than half of it was torn apart. Most of the sword's edge had been lost, and it looked like someone had taken a large bite out of its midsection.
The sword was now essentially as useless as scrap metal.
Nevertheless, it had performed in a manner much, much greater than Hua Yan could have ever anticipated. It had actually managed to tear apart the defences of 5 Continuous Ballooning Stage experts in a single attack.
To top it off, these experts weren't those that had only recently stepped into the world of cultivation either. They were warriors that were in the upper-middle levels of the Ballooning Stage! There was not a single one amongst those that were killed that was under the 7th level and two of them even happened to be at the 9th level.
This was such a crazy concept.
For Hua Yan to use nothing more than an ordinary sword to eat through the guards' armour like a rat gnawing through cheese, despite having no cultivation base to speak of, was nothing short of a miracle.
The bystanders were unable to make heads or tails of the situation. Why wasn't Hua Yan's head on a pike yet? Why was he still alive and kicking?!
At first, they thought that he would surely die when he rammed into that first guard. Little did they expect that, instead of obtaining injuries on his own body, he had grievously wounded his opponent.
Later, as more guards started to approach him, it looked as if he made a futile attempt to escape, even tossing away his knife in what appeared to be a gesture of surrender.
What they didn't expect though was that his knife wasn't just tossed away in some random direction. It was actually aimed at the other guard that was standing next to the one that had just gotten hit.
This guard was taken by surprise, and ended up losing an ear in an attempt to dodge the blade that was hurling towards his neck.
His screams of pain only enraged his comrades further. They really wanted to skin Hua Yan alive! Being played by a brat like him truly was their life's greatest humiliation!
At this point, the bystanders were sure that Hua Yan would not live any longer.
Surely, with 10 or so Ballooning Stage masters coming for him all at once, he would not be able to escape his fate.
They only realized how wrong they a moment later, however, after Hua Yan picked up a fallen blade and aimed a slash at all those that challenged him.
In a matter of seconds, 5 guards that were once very much alive were sent on a journey to the underworld.
The cause? Hua Yan's ungodly strength!
The bystanders could not believe what they were seeing. In their eyes, Hua Yan had just randomly picked up a fallen sword, turned around, and whipped it in a very spontaneous direction.
The white light that was emitted from the sword was very mysterious, and it blocked the spectators from seeing exactly how the guards were skewered to death. All they knew was that it was indeed Hua Yan that was responsible for the guards' demise.
What they failed to notice though, perhaps because their thoughts were elsewhere, was the blood leaking from Hua Yan's hands.
That last strike that he delivered was simply way too powerful. Even though the guards couldn't even manage to touch him, he had injured himself while hitting them. It was his fault for not controlling his power better, but he never expected that he could move his weapon that fast.
All this time, Hua Yan was not used to using an actual weapon. He had just been using something that seriously belonged in the kitchen, perhaps for cutting animal meat. To take it and expect to battle humans with it was already a joke. But Hua Yan had used it to face a large number of enemies already.
Now that he had gotten his hands on a real weapon, the aftermath was mind-boggling. He didn't think that the results of using it would be so exaggerated.
Clutching his arm, he realized that his fingers weren't in their best state. It seemed as though he might have dislocated them in his last attack. This was of minimal concern, however, since Hua Yan was long used to this happening. He was, after all, someone that spent hours and hours toiling away in the forest, doing his utmost to collect Truewood Essence for very low monetary returns.
Injuries on the job were only to be expected. So Hua Yan was one that was always prepared for anything that could happen. He had to rely heavily on his body to receive a stable income to take care of both himself and his sister, so of course he had to know how to maintain his peak body state.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
As Hua Yan was "fixing" his busted knuckles, the bodies of the 5 severed guards began to fall. In total, ten loud thuds were heard, since all five of the bodies were cut evenly in half.
It was such a perfect stroke!
The comrades of the 5 dead guards were completely flabbergasted at this outcome. Even the two previously injured guards that were screaming miserably in pain not too long ago went absolutely silent.
What… just what in the world was this monster?!
How did someone as young as this youth, who appeared to not have an ounce of strength in him, manage to completely wipe out 5 trained guards with a simple sword swing?
Was this all a dream? If it was, they wanted to be woken up, because it was quickly turning into a nightmare!
"G-Gather some reinforcements!" shouted the patrol captain.
After seeing Hua Yan in action, Hua Chin no longer dared to underestimate him. What a joke! Even he, as an 11th level Ballooning Stage expert, could not wipe out five guards in one strike.
Just thinking about it drenched Hua Chin's back in cold sweat. He was totally unconfident in suppressing Hua Yan. He could no longer think of his pride as he ran away with his men, not daring to stay in the area a second longer.
Just when he thought he was safe, however, he felt the cool texture of metal on his neck.
"That sword of yours looks nice. Mind handing it over?"