Chapter Thirty-Three: Three Heroes Battle the Overlord (Part One)

Ren Xingtian took a deep breath, stepped forward, and looked solemnly at Xiang Yu. “Respected Overlord, my name is Ren Xingtian. I hail from Mount Jietian, the last disciple of Master Jietian.”

After hearing his introduction, the Overlord merely laughed with indifference. “A disciple of Jietian? And what brings you here? Are you planning to stop me?”

Ren Xingtian shook his head and continued, “Not at all. The might of the Overlord is not something we could possibly oppose. I merely wish to inform Your Majesty what lies beneath this Beacon Monument.”

The Overlord’s interest was piqued. “Go on, then. I truly have no idea what’s buried underneath.”

“Beneath this monument is sealed a monstrous beast that once brought calamity to the land a thousand years ago. Back then, the Venerable Sovereign suppressed it with the Grand Void Five Elements Array, hoping to reduce its sins and ensure peace and prosperity for this region. If you shatter the monument and release this demon, it will bring disaster upon the world—Chu will be no exception.” Having said all this in one breath, Ren Xingtian fell silent, watching the Overlord.

“You’re an amusing one. Even if your so-called Venerable Sovereign stood before me, I, Xiang Yu, would not fear him—much less some beast he sealed away. Do you think I would be afraid?”

Ren Xingtian spoke earnestly, “Of course the Overlord has no fear. But what of the common people? Would you so casually deliver them into the jaws of a demon? Besides, what benefit does this bring to you?”

Xiang Yu laughed. “And if I don’t know? What if I insist on destroying the monument?”

“Then I have overestimated you. I thought, as king, you would consider your people. It seems you are just a ruthless warrior, unworthy of the title ‘king.’” Ren Xingtian’s demeanor suddenly shifted from cautious to resolute.

Yet the Overlord was not angered; instead, he kept smiling. “Whether I am worthy to be king is decided by me, not you, nor the masses. Still, since you have some courage, I’ll give you a chance.”

“What sort of chance?”

“The three behind you are warriors, aren’t they? Let all three come at me together. If you can break through my martial energy, I’ll withdraw my army to Chu. How about it?” As he spoke, Xiang Yu swung off his horse, his towering form rivaling that of Deng Zhanxuan.

“Agreed. Are you certain? We’re not weak,” Li Qiutong said confidently.

But Yang Ruiyun remained calm and asked, “And if we lose?”

Xiang Yu looked at the three. “If you lose, you’ll join my army and fight for Chu. What do you say?”

“Don’t worry, brother. We won’t lose,” Li Qiutong clapped Yang Ruiyun on the shoulder.

“Do you know what kind of strength the Overlord possesses?” Yang Ruiyun asked helplessly.

“I’m already a Saint-level warrior, and with the three of us together, unless he’s that so-called Martial Pinnacle, we can’t lose.”

“You’re exactly right,” Ren Xingtian said, equally helpless.

Li Qiutong, oblivious, just laughed. “I told you—we’ll win.”

“Brother, Xiang Yu is recognized as the Martial Pinnacle in the world today—the strongest on the continent,” Yang Ruiyun explained.

At this, Li Qiutong was finally shocked. “Uh, then… can we win?”

“It’s impossible to win. The best we can do is see if the three of you can break his martial defense,” Ren Xingtian said, sounding rather defeated.

Looking at the grim-faced Yang Ruiyun and the still-confused Deng Zhanxuan, it was clear how intimidating the Overlord was in their hearts. Since childhood, their fathers had recounted stories of him, and now the legend stood before them, ready to fight.

Fortunately, Li Qiutong was unaware of these details. “Brothers, pull yourselves together! Who cares who he is? We’ll fight him with everything we’ve got. It’s not every day we get a chance like this, and we won’t die.”

Hearing this, Yang Ruiyun realized he was overthinking. The more one dwells, the more one is shackled. Understanding at last, he smiled. “You’re right. Warriors should always challenge themselves—Martial Pinnacle or not, let’s fight first and talk later.”

“With you two, I’m not afraid of any Martial Pinnacle,” Deng Zhanxuan said, emboldened by his brothers’ courage.

Seeing the two fired up, Li Qiutong turned to the Overlord, who had been waiting, and smiled. “Come, Overlord. The three brothers are ready.”

“Good. I wasn’t wrong about you. Let me test your strength,” the Overlord replied with equal confidence. In an instant, an overwhelming aura enveloped the trio, while a black-and-crimson martial energy began to coil around his armor.

The surrounding soldiers wisely retreated, clearing space for the four.

“Third Brother, you focus on defense. Second Brother, you’re on offense. I’ll distract him,” Li Qiutong quickly assigned roles, then charged toward the Overlord.

The Windbird, carrying the graceful martial energy of Xun, followed alongside Li Qiutong. With a sweep of his staff, countless afterimages lashed out at the Overlord.

“Bagua Wind Dance!”

A flurry of blows descended, but the Overlord neither dodged nor defended, as though he hadn’t noticed. When the assault ended, Li Qiutong was stunned to see the Overlord unharmed, standing calmly. Only now did he realize just how formidable the Overlord’s defense truly was.

“Your attacks are feeble. Now, it’s my turn.” With a casual comment, the Overlord hefted his massive halberd and swung it upward, sending a cloud of dust into the air.

Realizing something was wrong, Li Qiutong tried to dodge, but the halberd was faster than he anticipated. Still airborne, Li Qiutong had no chance to evade. Fortunately, Deng Zhanxuan charged in at that moment, his huge axe meeting the Overlord’s strike head-on.

A resounding crash followed. Deng Zhanxuan was jolted back by the force, colliding with Li Qiutong behind him. The Overlord remained unscathed. But then, Yang Ruiyun, the main attacker, seized his chance. Soul and spear as one, he appeared before the Overlord in a flash, thrusting directly at his vital point with the third form—Chasing Light.

Just as he anticipated, the Overlord was in the moment between exhaling old strength and gathering new, unable to block the sudden onslaught. The two spears merged, but even this rapid attack didn’t faze the Overlord. As the spear approached, the Overlord didn’t move.

With a clang, Yang Ruiyun’s spear was deflected. Before he could react, a cold wind swept in from the side. He raised his spear to block, but unlike Deng Zhanxuan, he couldn’t withstand the force. The heavy halberd smashed down on his silver spear, and in the next instant, Yang Ruiyun was sent flying like a broken kite, crashing into the Beacon Monument.

Looking down at the three fallen challengers, the Overlord sneered, “Is this all you’re capable of? One is agile but weak, his attacks no different from mosquito bites. Another is strong but clueless, knocked away with a single blow. The last, quick and fierce on the assault, but distracted after one strike—if I hadn’t held back, you’d be dead. If this is the extent of your strength, get lost. The army of Chu has no need for such useless men.”

“Whether we’re useless remains to be seen,” Li Qiutong said as he helped Deng Zhanxuan to his feet.

“Third Brother, you focus on blocking his halberd. Leave the rest to me.” With a quiet word, Li Qiutong hefted his staff and charged again.

This time, the Yin-Yang Dragon Staff shone with verdant martial energy—not the Xun Fist, but the even more powerful Azure Dragon Fist. Endlessly regenerating, growing stronger with each clash, the staff swept up from below toward the Overlord.

The Overlord raised his halberd to block, sending the staff flying. But Li Qiutong had anticipated this; swinging the staff in a circle, he attacked again, stronger than before. At last, the Overlord’s interest was piqued, and with a light flick of his halberd, he parried the blow.

But the Azure Dragon Fist was just beginning; each strike grew more forceful. After several exchanges, the Overlord sensed his opponent growing in strength—at first unable to oppose him, now just barely holding his own, and still the power increased. Curious to see how much further the strength could grow, the Overlord abandoned restraint—his next blow leapt from thirty percent to eighty percent of his power. In that instant, Li Qiutong felt a titanic force bearing down, the air itself crackling under the pressure.

Fortunately, he was prepared. With a slight shift, a massive figure moved in to intercept—the huge axe met the halberd precisely.

This time, Deng Zhanxuan stood his ground. Even the Overlord was a bit surprised, but this was Deng Zhanxuan’s true strength. Against the Green Forest Army, he’d withstood a full-force strike alone—had their attacks not been so quick, he wouldn’t have been wounded in the leg. Five hundred soldiers couldn’t bring him down immediately.

“What’s that technique called?” the Overlord asked.

“The True Martial Defense, one of the Eight Forms of Black Tortoise.”

No sooner had Deng Zhanxuan replied than Li Qiutong’s attack arrived—a staff glowing with platinum martial energy hammered down on the Overlord’s unarmored head. This time, the Overlord’s halberd couldn’t return in time.

Yet the Overlord remained unflustered, even praising them, “Not bad this time. I must get serious as well.” In the next moment, an intangible aura erupted from him, the forceful wave halting Li Qiutong’s attack mid-motion and sending both Li Qiutong and Deng Zhanxuan flying several meters back.

“What is that? Martial energy?” Li Qiutong asked in shock.

“That’s the Overlord’s Dominance—a solidified aura. Be careful!” Ren Xingtian shouted from afar.

Now the Overlord’s body was not merely swathed in black and red martial energy, but enveloped in an invisible, oppressive aura. Though unseen, it made the heart tremble. Perhaps this was the true form of the Martial Pinnacle.

Dominance—a key reason why the Overlord reigned supreme. It was well known that Chu’s martial tradition placed great importance on aura: the stronger the aura, the more formidable the presence in battle. But aura had always been an auxiliary factor; in the face of true strength, it could not change the outcome. The Overlord was an exception. Disdaining to learn others’ martial arts, he forged his own path, step by step, ultimately creating the most domineering martial art—The Way of Dominance. This style solidified aura itself, turning it into something distinct from martial energy. With this overwhelming force, the Overlord ascended to the Martial Pinnacle, founding a discipline that fused martial energy and aura—a way that belonged to him alone.

Today, three are recognized as the Martial Pinnacle: Master Jietian of Mount Jietian, Master Withered Leaf of Pure Land Monastery, and the Overlord, Xiang Yu of Chu. Once, Master Jietian commented on the Overlord’s martial path:

“Xiang Yu, the Overlord, is a genius of his age. His martial strength may even surpass mine. Yet behind the might of his Dominance lies a great limitation: it is a martial path unique to him, born of his innate, domineering spirit. None but he can walk this path, and so it cannot be passed down.”