Playing Pigs and Eating Tigers

Bai Ci twisted sharply—

a flash of cold steel grazed his neck.

The attacker, lightning-fast, missed and immediately bolted for the door.

“Trying to run?”

Bai Ci locked onto the fleeing figure,
no hesitation—he lunged in pursuit.

Under moonlight, two shadows raced through the streets in a deadly chase.

But Bai Ci quickly realized—the fugitive knew the terrain too well.

He slipped through narrow alleys like a rat through its maze, vanishing into every shadow.

Can’t catch him?

Bai Ci hadn’t expected this opponent to be so fast.

Fine.

He took a deep breath,
channeling magic to his fingertips.

Then—

he activated the Annihilation power he hadn’t used in a while.

As long as he didn’t fuse completely, he could maintain control.

“Cage.”

Two or three black tendrils erupted from a rift behind him,
like vines from the abyss—ripping through air,
snatching the fleeing figure mid-sprint, lifting him upside down into the air.

!!!

“The cat-and-mouse game is over.”

Bai Ci approached, yanked off the hood—

What?!

Bai Ci froze.

This man wasn’t human.

Sharp fangs glinted in his mouth. His pupils—oval, vertical slits—like a predator’s.

Seeing the man gasping, face turning red, Bai Ci didn’t hesitate.

One tendril plunged into the man’s mouth, burrowing into his body.

Seconds later, the man’s consciousness shattered—destroyed by annihilation energy.

Now, empty-eyed, he was nothing but Bai Ci’s puppet.

Bai Ci’s gaze turned icy as he stared at the hollow creature before him:
“One question. One answer.”

“Who are you?”

“I am a Sky Demon Clan member—one of the Protectorate Duke’s secret envoys.”

“Protectorate Duke? Who is that?”

“The one currently ruling the Yundu Empire.”

“What’s your mission here?”

“To assist the Protectorate Duke’s plan—deliver experimental subjects to the Temple of Life.”

“Is Sin City the target?”

“Yes.”

“What does the Protectorate Duke want?”

“I don’t know.”

Bai Ci felt it—the truth was close.

“Take me to the Temple of Life.”

Led by the controlled Sky Demon, Bai Ci arrived at the Temple of Life’s bunker.

“Who are you?”

Before he could enter, dozens of figures surrounded him from all sides.

“Get lost.”

Bai Ci said coldly, stepping forward without pause.

“Oh? We just sent a group of fools inside—now you’re here to collect their corpses?”
“Too bad. The Lord let them in on purpose. You won’t get that privilege.”

Hearing this, recalling Luo Yu’s expression earlier, Bai Ci sensed danger.

“Move.”

He had no time to waste on grunts.

“If HQ didn’t authorize entry—get out!”

Seeing Bai Ci ignore them, the cultists shouted.

Bai Ci didn’t speak. He grabbed one by the collar,
hurled him thirty meters back—

BOOM!

The man crashed into a wall, unconscious instantly.

“What?! What are you doing?!”

Seeing their comrade defeated so easily, the others panicked.
They slammed an alarm—shrill screams echoed, summoning waves of cultists from every direction.

Bai Ci narrowed his eyes.

These Temple members—
a few had combat skill, but most only knew basic martial arts.

To him, even the aura of a Sorcerer would make them surrender.

Yet Bai Ci chose not to reveal his true power.

He wanted to lure the big fish.

If he showed his real strength,
the mastermind watching from the shadows would flee.

So—to give that mastermind enough confidence to confront him—
Bai Ci decided to fight using only Earth-style hand-to-hand combat.

Come on.

“Bang!”

He kicked one attacker aside, snatched a dagger from his grip,
and casually slit another’s throat.

“Step aside. I don’t want to kill you.”

Bai Ci said flatly.

Still, they refused to yield.

Are these people… completely brainwashed?

Maybe still dreaming of divine protection.

In that case…

For these pitiful, foolish beings,
the only mercy left was to end their suffering early.

………………………..

Boom!

Bai Ci surged forward—a white lightning bolt cutting through the line.

Every clash ended with a cultist crushed to the ground.

The combat techniques he’d mastered on Earth were light-years beyond theirs.

Screams filled the corridors.

In that moment, Bai Ci—using only physical prowess—was death incarnate.

“What?!”

His fighting style… it’s terrifying!

The cultists froze in horror.

This scene defied logic.

In one glance,
the frontline fighters collapsed—lifeless bodies dropping like puppets cut from strings.

Bai Ci’s eyes were colder than ice.

That look—bloodthirsty, brutal, evil, full of hate—
as if every negative emotion in existence was reflected in his pupils.

No one dared block his path now.

Surveying the trembling crowd,
Bai Ci stopped—expressionless—and continued deeper into the Temple.

****

Meanwhile,

in the deepest chamber, Castel watched through a scrying crystal ball,
furious at the collapse of his forces—ready to slaughter Bai Ci himself.

Who is this guy…

Shiyu Church?
Impossible. Their strongest—Luo Yu—had just been dealt with.

Holy Heaven Army?
Even less likely. He’d made a deal with that person, hadn’t he?

“Lord, the specimens are ready. Awaiting your command.”

A cultist approached, whispering.

Hearing this, Castel finally relaxed.

“Release them—now!”

At his order,
monsters poured from every direction—flooding the corridor like a tide, charging Bai Ci.

One opened its maw, lunging to bite.

Bai Ci sneered—secretly gathering a sliver of magic in his palm, then struck.

With a flicker of lightning, the monster’s head exploded—
green blood and brains arcing through the air.

The rest roared in fury, swarming toward him.

But to Bai Ci, numbers meant nothing.

On Earth, he was the ultimate vanguard—designed to crush endless waves of enemies.

“These trash! Still incomplete, failed mutations…”

Castel watched the monsters fall, his expression darkening.
“Let me handle him myself.”

From the fight, he’d deduced Bai Ci was just a knight—no magic.
As a Fourth-Tier Knight with peerless martial skill,
he believed he could obliterate Bai Ci in close combat.

A cruel smile spread across Castel’s lips.
His eyes locked onto Bai Ci in the crystal ball—like a beast claiming prey.

What Castel didn’t know—
Bai Ci’s displayed combat skills were merely the basic training for piloting an armored mech on Earth.

Elsewhere, Bai Ci’s ears twitched slightly.

His instincts were never wrong.
A lethal killing intent was rushing toward him at blinding speed.

The big fish has finally taken the bait…

Bai Ci’s lips curled into a cold, ruthless smile.