Chapter 7

"Masked Baron." Bai Cangdong did not dare to reveal that he was an ordinary person without a title, for if he did, even though his combat strength was not inferior to any baron, the barons could still use their three major privileges to threaten Bai Cangdong, forcing him to submit.

Everyone with a title has three major privileges: immunity, trial, and punishment. These three privileges can only be used against those with a lower title, and can only be used once within twelve hours. Even so, no one dared to ignore these three privileges.

Immunity: Exempt from all damage caused by those with a lower title.

Trial: Restrict the movement of those with a lower title, preventing them from using any martial techniques or longevity arts.

Punishment: Divine punishment, significantly reducing the strength, speed, and physical abilities of enemies with a lower title.

The greater the difference in titles, the stronger the three privileges, making those with a lower title have to obey those with a higher title. This is the foundation of the title system.

No one doubted Bai Cangdong's words. After all, how could someone with such skills not be a baron? Therefore, no baron dared to use the three privileges on him.

"Sir, you are not from our Daolun City, are you?" Du Changlong asked again.

"I just happened to pass by here and didn't expect to encounter the Immortal Altar appearing," Bai Cangdong replied.

"That's really unfortunate. However, since we've come this far, I hope you will join us in a united effort to break through to the Immortal Altar, shatter the Eternal Crystal, and save everyone."

"That's what I should do."

Bai Cangdong found a place to sit down. The crowd was in heated discussion. Some suggested that everyone attack the altar together to see if they could break through the head-splitting ghosts and reach the altar. Others proposed dividing into several small teams to attack the altar from different directions, dispersing the head-splitting ghosts and making it easier to reach the altar.

After listening for a while, Bai Cangdong learned that nearly a thousand head-splitting ghosts had already gathered at the altar. With only about a hundred people here, and only a small portion of them having the strength of a baron, they couldn't even get past the head-splitting ghosts, let alone reach the altar to shatter the Eternal Crystal.

"That won't work. Our strength is far from enough to face the head-splitting ghosts head-on. The final outcome would be that we are all killed," Du Changlong said loudly.

"What do you suggest, then? Sit here and wait to die?" someone said coldly.

"I have a plan. I have a set of armor that is extremely sturdy. Even a mutated head-splitting ghost can't leave a mark on it with a full-strength attack. As long as someone wears this armor, they can ignore the head-splitting ghosts and directly charge to the altar to face the head-splitting demon."

"If you have such a good thing, why didn't you say so earlier?" the crowd rejoiced.

Du Changlong shook his head and smiled bitterly. "Unfortunately, this is only a half-armor, protecting only the upper body and arms. The head and lower body are not protected. I can contribute this armor, and if anyone has other comparable equipment, they can also contribute it. If we put it all on one person, they might have a chance to reach the altar and shatter the Eternal Crystal."

"Brother Du makes a good point. I have a bull horn helmet. Although it's not as good as your armor, the head-splitting ghosts' axes can't do much to it. I'll contribute it," someone said.

"I have a...," another person added.

The crowd each contributed their equipment, and before long, they had assembled a very luxurious set of baron-level armor, with as many as six weapons.

When it came to choosing who would wear the armor and charge to the altar, the crowd began to argue.

With this set of armor, many people were confident they could reach the altar, kill the head-splitting demon, and shatter the Eternal Crystal. The problem was that the person who shattered the Eternal Crystal would receive a special title, which had privileges that ordinary titles did not. Even if you reached the rank of count or duke, if you hadn't shattered the Eternal Crystal, you wouldn't have this title or its privileges. Therefore, many barons who considered themselves strong wanted to be the one to shatter the Eternal Crystal.

Bai Cangdong watched coldly from the side, seeing the confident barons vying to wear the armor and charge to the altar. He sneered inwardly, not believing in the armor's effectiveness or the ease of dealing with the head-splitting demon.

However, since someone was willing to be the test subject, he was happy to observe the true strength of the head-splitting demon.

After much debate, most agreed to let a man titled "Shield and Sword Baron" wear the armor and charge to the altar to shatter the Eternal Crystal.

The Shield and Sword Baron also promised to return all the equipment to their original owners after shattering the Eternal Crystal.

"Although the armor can withstand the head-splitting ghosts' attacks, to save the Shield and Sword Baron's strength and time, the rest of us will still divide into eight small teams and attack the altar from eight directions to distract the head-splitting ghosts, allowing the Shield and Sword Baron to reach the altar faster," Du Changlong said. "Of course, our main task is to distract the head-splitting ghosts. Everyone must pay attention to their own safety and retreat immediately if the situation is unfavorable. Safety first."

The crowd agreed, and under Du Changlong's arrangement, they divided into eight small teams. Bai Cangdong was assigned to the northeast team. After a long detour, they killed many isolated head-splitting ghosts and finally reached their position on time.

"So many head-splitting ghosts!" Bai Cangdong looked far away and couldn't even see the altar clearly. The area around the altar was filled with head-splitting ghosts, their numbers astonishing.

"Can the Shield and Sword Baron really make it through?" a commoner in the team asked in shock.

"It should be fine. No matter how many head-splitting ghosts there are, with that insane armor, they can't hurt the Shield and Sword Baron," another person reassured.

"The time has come, let's go." The temporary team leader, Stone Fist Baron, gave the order, and the group had no choice but to charge towards the altar.

The eight teams attacked the altar from different directions, causing chaos among the head-splitting ghosts. The Shield and Sword Baron, wearing the luxurious armor, took advantage of the chaos to charge towards the altar. Along the way, he easily killed over a dozen head-splitting ghosts with his powerful equipment, while the head-splitting ghosts couldn't hurt him at all, greatly boosting the morale of the crowd.

Seeing the Shield and Sword Baron charging towards the altar like a fierce tiger, his shield knocking head-splitting ghosts away and his sword cutting off their heads, no one could stop him. The crowd cheered, fighting even harder against the head-splitting ghosts.

The Shield and Sword Baron bravely broke through the head-splitting ghosts' blockade and actually made it to the altar.

On the black and red altar covered in runes, a light column shot up from the center, and head-splitting ghosts were resurrecting from the stone pillars at the edge of the altar. The three-meter-tall, blood-red head-splitting demon, wielding a giant axe like a demon, stared at the Shield and Sword Baron with blood-red eyes.

"Go to hell!" The Shield and Sword Baron swallowed hard and charged at the head-splitting demon.

The head-splitting demon's large body was not clumsy at all, moving as fast as lightning. The Shield and Sword Baron saw the demon raise its giant axe, and the axe was already in front of him, smashing down.

Unable to dodge, the Shield and Sword Baron could only use his shield to block the axe.

"Boom!"

After a deafening sound, the Shield and Sword Baron was pushed back dozens of meters. The shield, considered a top-tier item among barons, now had a crack running through it, almost splitting it in half.

Everyone who saw this was shocked, and the Shield and Sword Baron's face turned pale. Such a high-quality shield was destroyed by the head-splitting demon's single axe strike, showing the demon's strength far exceeded expectations.

The Shield and Sword Baron had no choice but to discard the shield and charge forward with his sword.

The outcome was brutal. The armor that everyone had pinned their hopes on could not withstand the head-splitting demon, and it was cut to pieces like tofu.

The Shield and Sword Baron managed to throw his sword, leaving a minor wound on the head-splitting demon's arm, but was then chopped to pieces, blood splattering the altar.

Everyone felt their scalps tingle and their legs go weak. The head-splitting demon's strength was overwhelming, and the Shield and Sword Baron, already one of the strongest among them, was killed in a few strikes, plunging everyone into despair.

"It's over, everything is over. We will all die here!"

"No matter how strong the armor is, it's useless. This is not a match. The head-splitting demon is definitely a viscount-level terror."

The crowd lost their will, even forgetting to flee. Even if they escaped now, what good would it do? They would still be killed in the end, and failing to reach the altar would be in vain.

Bai Cangdong stared at the head-splitting demon roaring on the altar, focusing on the wound left by the Shield and Sword Baron's thrown sword.

"Baron-level armor can injure the head-splitting demon, indicating that its physical toughness is not high. The Lingluo Sword should be able to kill it, but the head-splitting demon's speed is too fast. Even with my current speed and using the Blade Step, I might not be able to avoid its attacks. Facing it head-on would be certain death."

The crowd was retreating, but Bai Cangdong moved towards the altar.

"There's still a glimmer of hope if I go now, but if I don't, it's certain death." Bai Cangdong understood that the head-splitting ghosts were now distracted by the crowd, giving him a chance to reach the altar. If he didn't go now, these people would never have the courage to try again, and the head-splitting ghosts would gather at the altar, leaving him no chance to reach it.

"What are you doing? Why aren't you running?" someone from Bai Cangdong's team shouted.

"Are you deaf? Are you crazy?" someone else yelled when they saw Bai Cangdong still moving towards the altar.

"Leave him alone, let's run for our lives."

Ignoring the others, Bai Cangdong focused all his attention on the altar. Each step was calculated precisely in his mind. He had to reach the altar as quickly as possible, conserving enough energy to face the head-splitting demon, but without the luxurious armor, he had to rely on the Blade Step, Painful Blade Technique, and Lingluo Sword.

In the crowd of head-splitting ghosts, Bai Cangdong moved like a ghost, slipping through the gaps at impossible angles, often squeezing past the ghosts' bodies.

To the others, Bai Cangdong seemed to have become a ghost, passing through the solid wall of head-splitting ghosts, and every time he passed, a few ghosts would convulse as if possessed.

Bai Cangdong had no time to waste on the head-splitting ghosts, only stabbing them once to cause pain and prevent them from pursuing, without the time to finish them off.