rule 8

Chapter 91 ~ Xia Weiyuan (2)

Xia Yongzhi's face turned red as he stared at her with intense hatred. Despite a hint of fear in his eyes, he didn't back down. A golden aura circled him, and faint tiger roars could be heard. Compared to the ferocious tiger Xia Weiyuan would conjure in the future, Xia Yongzhi's display was mere child's play. Yan Yu didn't expect anything better. After all, while they were in the same realm and stage, she was superior to him.

"Die!" he shouted, leaping toward her with his fist aimed at her face. Seeing this telegraphed move, Yan Yu simply moved to the side. His punch missed, and she noticed Xia Weiyuan, wide-eyed, running into the clan compound. He was probably trying to hide or even use some kind of artifact to protect himself. Though still a child, his arrogant and cowardly nature would remain the same.

"I won't let you harm my remaining child!" Xia Yongzhi yelled, attempting another golden punch from behind.

Yan Yu turned around and stared coldly at the incoming attack, then swung her blade elegantly. Her thin sword slashed across his wrist, making blood surge from the wound and slightly altering the punch's direction so that it hit only air.

She then rotated her. From above, she moved like the hand of a clock, her thin black sword resembling the hour hand. It slashed easily at Xia Yongzhi's waist, creating a long but thin wound. She sent her qi through the blade into his body, and the wound suddenly froze. Several ice flowers bloomed around it.

"Die!" Xia Yongzhi shouted, aiming a kick at her side, but Yan Yu merely watched, knowing the kick wouldn't graze her.

Just before his foot came within centimeters of her cheek, he suddenly stopped. Ice coated his waist and spread toward his feet. His face turned white as a sheet, and his eyes widened in shock.

The Ice Flowers was one of her Earth Grade techniques. These ice flowers worked like poisonous blooms, spreading cold qi through the target's body like venom. They would freeze blood, then flesh, then bone. A mortal would instantly die the moment her flowers bloomed, but a cultivator would not.

Xia Yongzhi would eventually break the ice around his body, but this wouldn't free him from her poisonous cold qi. No, it would make his death worse. First, the ice would mess with his nerves, making him feel cold and hot simultaneously. Later, it would feel as if his whole body was boiling from the inside while also experiencing intense cold on the outside. Many people could counter this technique, but Xia Yongzhi, this weakling, could not.

As she watched the ice begin to spread across his entire body, Yan Yu knew he was already a dead man. She turned and walked toward the clan compound.

Several Xia clan members tried to ambush her as she stepped into the compound. They were mostly male, with one or two females. Each had a golden aura around them, though not as intense as Xia Yongzhi's, and they attacked her simultaneously.

"Trash," she said calmly. She swung her thin black blade, creating many ice needles that rained down around her. Her needles were so strong that they created multiple holes in her opponents. All of the Xia clan members died without successfully touching a hair on her head.

From there, she killed every single person she encountered. Xia clan members, servants, guards—she spared no one. This clan would be a thorn in her side in the future, and she wouldn't let a single member survive. She knew too well the tragedy that could result from misplaced mercy, and she wouldn't make such a naive mistake.

Each step she took left blood staining the walls, floors, vases, and paper doors. She took a detour to ensure all people in the clan died. Some had likely already fled the compound, and she would hunt them down later. But for now, it was time to kill her main target.

A pair of wide double doors stood before her, adorned with golden tiger heads. She could sense many treasures in the room beyond, and while she was confident in her abilities, she knew she needed to be careful.

She swung her thin sword twice, creating a hole in the door, and stepped inside. This room was full of treasure. On one wall gleamed swords, axes, spears, and many other types of weapons. Each of these treasures was somewhat strong, but not exceptionally valuable.

On the other side stood a shelf full of scrolls and books, probably containing the Xia clan's unique techniques. Some people might want to take a peek at these techniques, but Yan Yu would make sure no one could learn them ever again.

She glanced around the room, noting the many spirit stones, valuable gems, pills, and several talismans. Later, she would pocket some of this wealth, but for now, her target was waiting. She walked to a corner of the room where two paintings hung on the wall. The first depicted an old man preparing to unleash an attack against a storm, while the other showed a woman meditating beneath a waterfall. There must have been a reason why these two paintings were inside the treasure room, but she didn't care.

She looked up, and as she did, a child fell toward her from above. He held a long, golden ornate spear, its blade pointed at her scalp. Xia Weiyuan's face was red and furious, snot running from his nose, and he looked like he was about to cry.

Yan Yu knew about this spear. It was the weapon Xia Weiyuan would use as he grew up. It was one of the most valuable treasures in the room and could even kill her or make her hallucinate if she wasn't careful. She took two steps to the side. The spear stabbed the floor while Xia Weiyuan hung from it. As it pierced the floor, his eyes widened, as if he couldn't fathom how she had managed to dodge. But before he could think further, she unleashed a palm strike directly at his chest.

Xia Weiyuan flew through the air and landed painfully head-first. He screamed and began to scramble while holding his bleeding head.

Yan Yu moved, suddenly appearing right in front of him. His eyes widened, fear etched across his face. She decided to kick him in the stomach and Xia Weiyuan flew through the air again, mouth spitting blood before his back hit a wall full of weapons. The weapons fell around him, and he grabbed a simple short sword and tried to stand. But he spat another mouthful of blood and buckled, unable to rise. He sat leaning against the wall, his breath ragged, sword pointed at her as she began to walk toward him.

"D-don't come! I'll kill you!" he shouted, his face red.

Yan Yu ignored his threats. She walked until she stood right in front of him, looking down at her future enemy.

"T-this isn't supposed to happen. This isn't meant to be! Xia Hongyi shouldn't die, and neither should I. I think the world is wrong, broken!" he shouted frantically.

Hearing this, Yan Yu wondered if his bloodline had already awakened. The terrifying thing about Xia Weiyuan's bloodline was its ability to discern fate. It was a frightening power that made ambushes and plans to kill him extremely difficult to execute.

He rambled on about how Liu Xing wasn't supposed to be there, and as a result, Xia Hongyi and Xia Shizi had died. That Liu Xing had indirectly killed them, which wasn't supposed to happen, and then he wouldn't die. He rambled like a madman. Qi started leaking from his body, making his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth bleed. Some of it was probably because of her kick, but most was due to his bloodline trying to make sense of the situation. After all, Yan Yu was an anomaly for his bloodline.

"Xia Weiyuan, you deserve a horrible death," she said calmly.

Xia Weiyuan stood up. Then he ran at her and swung his sword. As the blade came within centimeters of her, she swung her own sword, cutting off the right hand that held the weapon.

Xia Weiyuan's eyes widened, blood gushing from his right stump, and he began to shout and cry hysterically. Yan Yu swung her sword several more times, severing his other arm and both of his legs.

Now he lay on the ground, limbless. His face was covered in tears and snot, blood pooling beneath his body as he cried and begged not to be killed.

Yan Yu stood motionless, then extended her left hand toward him. Ten ice arrows floated around her, each with a blunt tip. She willed one of the arrows to go toward its intended target, and it did so eagerly. It flew through the air and lodged itself right in the center of his abdomen. He screamed as she willed the cold qi from her arrow to spread, making his stomach feel cold and hot simultaneously.

She directed another arrow to pierce his stomach, then his chest, and both his lungs. When nine of her arrows had lodged themselves into Xia Weiyuan, he looked like a pincushion. Only one arrow remained, and she willed it to fly at his throat, which was making pitiful noises. The arrow flew eagerly and landed right in its target, cutting and crushing it. He struggled for several moments before finally going still. His eyes remained wide open, his face frozen in terror, and he died in agonizing pain.

Chapter 92 ~ Watchful Moon

Despite her victory, Yan Yu felt unsatisfied with her enemy's death. Still, she took solace in knowing that one of her most despised foes was finally gone.

Yan Yu turned her attention to plundering the Xia clan's wealth. She gathered thousands of spirit stones, pills that enhanced cultivation, and various talismans for offense and defense. She even found rare talismans capable of regenerating limbs. She left the weapons untouched, deeming them not worth the hassle of selling.

After taking everything of value, Yan Yu destroyed all the Xia clan's techniques and set fire to their compound. She then hunted down every servant, gardener, and fleeing clan member, including mothers with their children. The clan's decision to live on isolated peaks, separate from the "worthless" mortals, made it easy for Yan Yu to track them down. They could only hide among rocks, trees, and in holes, unable to blend into a crowd.

When it was over, Yan Yu descended the stairs slowly. Her purple robes were stained with blood, some even splattered on her pale face. She decided to find a river to wash herself. Though her robes could clean themselves and she knew techniques to cleanse her body, she felt the need to wash manually.

As she walked, Yan Yu pondered her future and the tasks ahead to right the wrongs of the past. She also considered which enemies she could defeat with her current strength.

"If I'm not mistaken, there's a dangerous spirit beast living nearby," she mused.

This spirit beast could use techniques like a human cultivator and harbored a burning desire to destroy the Burning World Sect. In Yan Yu's past life, it had become Xia Weiyuan's pet and killed billions and destroyed many sects and nations. Some of Yan Yu's sisters had died fighting this beast.

With Xia Weiyuan dead, the spirit beast might not be a total enemy and could even be used against the Burning World Sect. However, letting it roam free seemed risky. Plus, Yan Yu wanted to avenge her sisters by killing this strange creature—a green frog that looked like it was made of moss, with fire wings and the ability to control an inverted triangle artifact. Nodding to herself, Yan Yu decided to kill the frog. It shouldn't be too strong right now and was likely nearby.

Her thoughts then drifted to a young man from her sect, Liu Xing. Xia Yongzhi had apparently made contact with him, which was odd. Did Liu Xing have a connection to the Xia clan? Or was it mere coincidence?

Whatever the case, Yan Yu knew this world wouldn't be the same as her past life. She had already made different choices, and she suspected these changes were rippling outward and altering the future. She hoped her actions would lead to a better future for herself and a hellish fate for her enemies.

Suddenly, a face flashed in her mind. That bastard, that scum. She would gut him and tear him to pieces.

"Wait for me, you scum," she snarled.

As she spoke, everything around her—trees, grass, stairs, even a bird perched on a branch—turned to ice and shattered into billions of pieces.

***

High in the sky, among a sea of white clouds, a child with blue hair and blue eyes stood on a black platform thinner than paper. This kid, Hao Yun, looked down and smiled at the sight of the most interesting person he'd seen in a while.

"Yan Yu, huh," Hao Yun muttered.

When that girl first stepped into his sect, Hao Yun knew something was off about her. She felt like an old monster, layered with secrets that only the most brilliant mind could unravel.

By all accounts, she was an ideal cultivator. She had talent, a powerful bloodline, and the ruthless mindset needed to advance in a cultivation world. Yet, many of her actions didn't make sense. The massacre of the Xia clan was one such puzzling move.

Hao Yun looked at the still burning Xia Clan compound as well as a man who died crawling towards his clan. They were a small sect, really small. They only had one cultivator beyond the Lock Opening realm, and even in the Twelve Sun Empire, they were mere ants. Yet, Yan Yu had moved straight from Purple Moon Sect to annihilate this clan. She had stopped briefly when she realized there was treasure nearby, but from the start, she had intended to wipe them out.

From his investigation, Hao Yun knew that Yan Yu came from a small clan in the northern part of the continent. She was a former genius who had been crippled by her uncle and cast aside, only to regain her ability to cultivate.

While her past wasn't smooth, there was no apparent connection between her and the Xia clan. No known animosity existed between them. As far as he knew, this was Yan Yu's first encounter with the Xia clan members. Yet, she had massacred them as if they had killed her parents.

This decision made her even more intriguing to Hao Yun, who loved mysteries. He had methods to instantly learn everything about her, but he decided it would be more fun to solve this puzzle himself. Plus, she was incredibly talented, and Hao Yun was always interested in talented individuals.

As he observed Yan Yu, he wondered about her next move. Then, his gaze drifted to the horizon, and he thought about Liu Xing.

This guy only had mediocre talent, but his luck seemed to be through the roof. He possessed some powerful artifacts and a decent mind for tinkering with the interface, as well as the right disposition to be granted limited access to the hidden library. As far as Hao Yun knew, only he, the Twelve Elders—currently only eleven members—and Liu Xing had access to it. This made Liu Xing interesting. What did Hao Yun's father see in Liu Xing that he couldn't?

Hao Yun grinned, then began to laugh. His laughter was cheerful, like the ringing of a bell. He had thought he could only play with Yan Yu, but now another person had caught his interest. This made him think of the other two: Shen Ye and Yi Yurong. Were they also interesting?

Hao Yun decided to investigate them and suddenly disappeared. If anyone had been able to see Hao Yun up in the sky, they would have thought he was just an illusion that vanished in the blink of an eye, though a lingering shadow remained for a moment after he disappeared.

What remained was only the echo of his laughter among the sea of clouds and an invisible moon that couldn't be seen in daylight, yet was always there, observing everything.

***

Liu Xing lay on a soft futon inside a small but spacious cave he had carved himself. A white blanket covered him, its weight on his chest making him feel warm and secure. Nearby, a bonfire danced, providing light and chasing away the cold air.

After escaping from the terrifying spirit beast with ink-black skin, golden snakes for limbs, and coconuts for ears, he ran as fast as he could. At first, he fled in a random direction, trying to put as much distance as possible between himself and the place where Elder Xia Juetian had died. Then he arrived at a small town without fanfare. Still invisible, he had run inside, found a clothing shop, and taken several outfits, a blanket, a futon, and some large bags. He had then searched for a place to wash and calm himself. After that, he reluctantly dropped his invisibility and asked for directions to the capital.

Now, about twelve hours later, Liu Xing was nearly at the Twelve Sun Empire's capital, the City of Suns. But before he could arrive, a heavy rain had begun to fall so he had carved this small cave and was now resting comfortably.

As the bonfire crackled, the sound of rain pattering outside made the night feel peaceful. The howling wind and creaking branches created a comforting symphony. Liu Xing lay beneath the soft blanket, his eyes tracing the smooth brown roof of the cave. Carved by his lightning blade, it almost shone as if made of polished granite. He could see lines of black and gold intertwining like rivers trying to merge.

As he followed these lines, the sounds of the elements soothing him, his mind returned to the spirit beast. Especially the black one with green coconuts for ears, golden snakes for limbs, and wriggling yellow teeth. This spirit beast had looked almost ridiculous, yet Liu Xing couldn't laugh when he remembered it. After all, that creature had nearly killed him.

Liu Xing inhaled deeply, trying to calm his racing mind, and closed his eyes. As darkness enveloped him, a tempting whisper arose from a corner of his heart. It argued that these spirit beasts weren't his problem. He could simply ignore them and flee to another nation. Wasn't he in the middle of a race to become an inner disciple? What if his pursuit of this matter cost him his chance at that coveted position? Logically, it made sense to walk away.

Chapter 93 ~ Yang Clan (1)

Still, while tempting, and almost half of his brain agreed with it, Liu Xing couldn't just walk away. This was actually the situation he had predicted would happen when he decided to help his friends in other worlds. He had tried to steel his heart for this kind of scenario when he attempted to save Chu Zen from Shen Ye. A problem too big for him, one that made him want to turn around and run away. Something that would bring regret if he chose the easy way out.

Liu Xing opened his eyes and decided to do the best and right thing. While he couldn't defeat those spirit beasts alone, he could still warn others about the danger they posed.

"But still, what are those spirit beasts?" he wondered.

Elder Xia Juetian had said they were abominations created from humans and spirit beasts, which implied these creatures weren't natural, but made by someone. They could also steal and use other people's bloodlines. This made Liu Xing wonder how Wei Yi, if he was really behind all this, would absorb all those bloodlines later. Would he eat all those spirit beasts?

As he reflected and let his mind wander, sleepiness began to overwhelm him. As he drifted off, Liu Xing realized the most important thing about this situation.

It all happened because he was too weak. If he were strong, stronger than Elder Xia Juetian, he could have killed it before it split itself and became a bigger threat. This realization made him acutely aware that what he needed was the same as two years ago when he first realized he had died and transmigrated into this world: strength. Absolute strength.

With unrivaled power, he could nip almost every problem in the bud. He had a cheat item that could propel him to become the strongest being in this world, and his path was clear. He only needed to figure out how to advance faster.

And here lay a temptation so great that if he weren't careful, he would slip and fall. After all, his gun could kill other things besides spirit beasts.

Liu Xing woke to the sound of hurried footsteps. Fearing enemies, his eyes fluttered open, and he quickly jumped to the cave entrance. With his sharp eyes, Liu Xing scanned his surroundings and tried to assess whether the sound posed a danger to him.

It was morning, with the sun just peeking over the horizon. He stood at the mouth of a cave several dozen meters above the ground. This artificial cave he had carved into the cliff gave him a vantage point to see everything around him. In the distance, he could see a sprawling golden city, with several towering spires jutting out and a massive golden castle. He tore his eyes away from the city and focused on his immediate vicinity.

Below the cliff, there were several small green hills. Each hill was covered with colorful flowers: red, yellow, green, purple, orange, and many more. Some of the flowers had already bloomed, while others were still buds. Beads of dew hung from each flower.

On one of the hills, he saw two groups of people. The first group consisted of two women. The younger woman, around his age, carried an older woman on her back. She wore an ornate red and gold robe with a crane pattern and a golden hairpin in her black hair. She wore no makeup, and her cheeks were pink and dotted with sweat. The woman on her back looked elderly, but what caught Liu Xing's attention was the large amount of blood on her back, leaving a trail of red on the trampled flowers.

The group chasing them consisted of three men. One wore shiny armor and held a blood-soaked spear. Another man wore a black robe and carried a bloody sword. The third was bald and wore a green clothes with a yellow sash, his fists covered in blood. The three of them looked as if they were from different groups, but they all shared the same lecherous smile.

These three men were quite strong as a group. The man in the black robe and the one in green and yellow clothes were at the Lock Opening realm seventh stage, while the man with shiny armor was at the Core Splitting realm and probably had only one core. The young woman they chased was at the Lock Opening realm fifth stage, while the woman she carried on her back had no qi and seemed too still.

"Remember, I'm first!" shouted the man with shiny armor. He had a big nose, narrow eyes, and a thin mustache. As he yelled, the lecherous smile didn't leave his face.

"I'm second!" cackled the man in green clothes. He had tan skin and yellow teeth. He looked rough, like a bandit.

"No, I'm second!" the man wearing the black robe shouted. He was young and had pitch-black hair that wriggled like tentacles. He shot an annoyed look at the man in green. "You're third."

"Hehe, all right, as long as you two don't get too rough."

After that, the man in green clothes extended his bloodied arms toward the young woman and jumped as if trying to catch a limping rabbit.

The woman turned her head, eyes wide, then stumbled, falling face-first toward the flowers.

Seeing this, Liu Xing understood their intentions and the gravity of the situation. It was so clear that even a blind man could see it. In a fraction of a second, he summoned his gun, activated Lightning Cloak, and jumped.

In this blurry world, time seemed to slow down, and he flew like an arrow straight toward the jumping man from the side. As he arrived, he slashed his lightning blade toward the bloodied hands. His lightning blade easily cut through the two arms, which flew into the sky with blood trailing behind it, and Liu Xing landed atop trampled flowers between the three men and the falling girl.

When the man with green clothes sees him, he widens his eyes. Seeing this man still barreling toward him, Liu Xing retracted his lightning palm, took a stance, and with a strike as fast as lightning, he unleashed a palm strike toward the man's chin.

His palm strike landed, and the man flew into the sky with a mouthful of blood leaping from his mouth. He landed several meters away, face-up. Coincidentally, that was also where his severed arms landed. The arms hit his face, smearing him with blood, and he blinked several times, still in shock. It took him a second to realize what had happened to his arms, and he began to scream like a pig being slaughtered.

The two remaining men stopped running abruptly, their eyes wide as if they'd seen a ghost suddenly appear.

"Sorry to interrupt you all, but would you like to turn around and leave them be?" Liu Xing said politely.

As he spoke, the man with shiny armor narrowed his eyes and adjusted his stance, pointing his spear at Liu Xing. The man with wriggling hair pointed his sword at him, while the man in green clothes continued rolling in the flowers and screaming.

"Who are you? Do you know who I am?" the man with narrowed eyes shouted.

"This man is dangerous! Don't chit-chat, let's kill him!" the young man in the black robe said.

"Hmph!" the man with the spear snorted. "He's merely a Lock Opening cultivator, while I'm a master Core Splitting cultivator! There's no way an ant like him is dangerous to me."

Hearing this, a ferocious smile appeared on Liu Xing's face. Truthfully, this man with shiny armor was strong. To be able to advance to the Core Splitting realm meant that he was talented. Still, Liu Xing believed he could win this fight. After all, this opponent wasn't as strong as the moss or even the frog he had fought before. Still, to respect his opponent and remain cautious, Liu Xing wouldn't underestimate him.

"Let me ask one more time. Leave her alone, and there's no need for me to shed your blood."

After he said that, a vein popped on the forehead of the man in armor, and even the young man in the black robe narrowed his eyes as if deeply offended.

"Seems like you really don't know who I am. My name is Wei Gang. I'm one of the few masters who achieved the Core Splitting realm, as well as a Field Commander of the Twelve Sun Army. Youngster, when you decided to stand in front of me, you chose death!"

"No one has lived after insulting me, Hei Feng! Even if you have some kind of trick to suddenly appear before us, you won't leave this place intact!"

Liu Xing took a deep breath and steeled his heart. He had experienced many small incidents like this before. Whether it was groups trying to rob him or a caravan. Sometimes he would spare the robbers, like what happened with Pu He, Han Zhong, and Mo Yan, but there were also times when he had to kill them. Now, this wasn't just a robbery—it was something far worse, and he wouldn't hold back.

Chapter 94 ~ Yang Clan (2)

As the Lightning Cloak still surrounded him, Liu Xing aimed his left gun at his two enemies and willed it to become invisible, and the invisibility began to spread through his body.

As he faded from sight, Liu Xing wondered how to fight both opponents. Wei Gang was stronger, but Hei Feng's hair looked like some kind of bloodline ability. Fighting both at once could be dangerous, so he needed to focus on defeating one of them first.

Liu Xing looked behind him. The young woman's eyes were wide, but there was hope in them, as if she was seeing light after being trapped in darkness.

"Hide," Liu Xing told her.

Fully invisible now, Liu Xing saw his opponents look surprised at his sudden disappearance. They immediately stood back-to-back, eyes scanning left and right, searching for him.

"What a cowardly move!" Wei Gang shouted.

"He's weak, but he seems to have a troublesome technique," Hei Feng said. "Since he's invisible, we need to find a way to undo this technique. We need to mark him!"

Liu Xing jumped as gently as possible. In the air, he aimed his gun at the still-rolling man in green and yellow clothes. Liu Xing hadn't forgotten about him and decided to use his qi to kill the other two. As Liu Xing pulled the trigger, a blue bolt shot towards the rolling man. When it hit, it exploded, scattering blood, flesh, bones, and entrails, and staining the surrounding flowers red and yellow.

As the man exploded into a red mist, Wei Gang and Hei Feng's eyes widened in shock. The woman was also terrified, but she seemed to remember Liu Xing's instructions and fled, carrying the old woman on her back.

Still gliding through the air, Liu Xing glanced at his gun and saw six slightly glowing green strips. Seeing this, he aimed his gun at Hei Feng, infused it with Exploding Fist, and pulled the trigger once.

A bright blue bolt shot from his gun. This time, the bolt shone so brightly that both enemies snapped their heads toward him.

"Incoming!" Hei Feng shouted. As he yelled, his writhing black hair suddenly grew longer in a split second, forming a thick black wall in front of them, as if these walls were made from black thorns. When the blue bolt hit the black wall, it exploded brilliantly. The black wall shattered, and Hei Feng and Wei Gang flew into the air in opposite directions.

Liu Xing landed on top of several flowers and observed his opponents. Hei Feng's black hair was gone, and the front of his body, from head to toe, was charred black and bloody red, as if he were a pig roasted only on one side. Hei Feng screamed in agony as he flew through the air, his hands clawing frantically at his face as if trying to tear off the burned skin.

Seeing this, Liu Xing kicked off the ground as hard as possible and swung his lightning blade right at Hei Feng's neck. As the lightning touched his neck, there was no resistance, as if his neck were made of tofu. In the blink of an eye, Hei Feng's neck was severed from his body and blood trailed through the air from the rest of his body.

Still airborne, Liu Xing glanced at Wei Gang. He had already landed on the ground rolling atop the flowers. Since he was behind Hei Feng, he was still intact. It seemed Hei Feng's hair, his bloodline ability, specialized in defense. Liu Xing had to admit that the hair was incredibly resilient.

As Liu Xing landed on several blue and red flowers, Hei Feng's head fell behind him while the rest of his body landed to the side. Some of the blood soaked Liu Xing, marking him and rendering his invisibility useless. Still, he thought that with only one enemy remaining, he maintained an advantage.

Wei Gang rolled and stood up, spear pointed at Liu Xing. His body trembled, his expression exuding fear, and his eyes were like those of a rabbit cornered by large snakes.

"T-trash, do you think your petty trick will save you? That attack was so strong, but I doubt you have any qi left to attack!" Wei Gang stammered.

Liu Xing began to walk toward Wei Gang, his footsteps crushing several blood-stained flowers.

"Do you think so?" Liu Xing said calmly.

"Y-you are! Now prepare to die!"

Wei Gang channeled his qi into his spear. The weapon began to emit a yellow light. He shouted as he lowered his stance, his feet bulging, muscles and veins popping up on his legs.

"Sun Crushing Spear!" He lunged at Liu Xing. The flowers around his feet flew everywhere as he moved like a bullet train with yellow light emitting from the front of his spear and the ground, grass, and flowers were torn up in his wake.

This attack seemed strong, but Liu Xing didn't think it was enough to kill him. Wei Gang was at the Core Splitting realm, but either he had newly advanced to this realm, was weak for his realm, or Liu Xing was now comparable to a Core Splitting cultivator.

As the spear coated with yellow light came at him, Liu Xing decided to test how strong his body had become. After all, he had eaten four and a half Diamond Pills and hadn't died even when struck by a punch from that spirit beast with ink-black skin and coconut-like ears.

Liu Xing lowered his stance, concentrated the Lightning Palm in his right hand, and sent stable qi to his palm. When the tip of the glowing yellow spear was right in front of him, he unleashed a right palm strike at the spear. He could have deflected the spear, but instead he chose to strike the tip directly.

When his palm touched the spear, it did not even pierce his Thunderstrike Gauntlet, and the spear broke in half like a pencil trying to pierce a steel rod. When the spear broke, Liu Xing saw Wei Gang's eyes widen so much that they almost popped out of his skull. In one swift movement, Wei Gang let go of the spear, turned around, and jumped as hard as he could. It seemed like he knew he couldn't win against Liu Xing and decided to escape.

"Don't let him go! He'll come back with more people!" the young woman shouted from the sidelines.

Liu Xing glanced at the young woman. Her face was pale, and she was trembling. Then he turned his attention to Wei Gang, who was already running away, trampling the flowers beneath his feet.

From what Liu Xing knew, Wei Gang was not merely a rapist, but also part of the Twelve Sun Empire's military—a Field Commander. This meant he was someone important. Liu Xing had a gut feeling that the young woman was also not a commoner, and if he let Wei Gang go, there was a high chance he would become trouble later.

"All right," Liu Xing muttered. He aimed his gun, infused it with Lightning Palm Technique, and fired. A blue bolt flew through the air, moving incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, it was right behind Wei Gang. Wei Gang seemed to sense the bullet and tried to dodge to the side. But he was too slow. Before he could successfully evade, the bullet hit his left hand. As it struck, an arc of electricity surrounded him. He shouted and stopped dead in his tracks.

Liu Xing aimed his gun again, infused it with Explosion Bullets, and pulled the trigger. Another blue bolt shot toward Wei Gang. It flew through the air like lightning and in an instant hit its target right in the back of the head. This bullet was powerful, having absorbed qi from the man in green clothes, and Liu Xing had even infused it with Exploding Fist. Combined with his newly forged meridian, this bullet was even stronger than the one he had shot at the moss earlier.

When it hit Wei Gang, it exploded brilliantly, making his head burst and sending the rest of his body flying into the sky as if it were a ball kicked by a child.

Glancing at the six green strips glowing slightly on his gun, Liu Xing nodded. He had successfully defeated all of his enemies.

He felt a tiny bit of remorse in his heart. After all, he could have chosen to cripple them instead. But they were dangerous. Hei Feng was probably from a clan, Wei Gang was a Field Commander of the Twelve Sun Army, and Liu Xing had a gut feeling the man he killed first was from a gang of robbers. Each of them had a strong background, and letting even one of them go could spell disaster. Plus, they had tried to violate a girl and did something irreversible to the old woman she carried. While Liu Xing felt a slight twinge of remorse, he knew they had reaped what they sowed.

Chapter 95 ~ Yang Clan (3)

He disabled his invisibility and glanced down at his clothes. His newly acquired blue robe now had a line of blood on its left side, and he sighed. This robe didn't have an auto-cleaning system, which meant he'd need to wash it later.

He walked slowly toward the girl and observed her from afar. He suspected something significant had happened to her. Was her family part of a merchant group and those three men bandits? Was she a cultivator from a nearby clan? Or perhaps from a nearby sect? A noble?

As he approached, the girl gently laid the old woman on her back and began to speak to her.

"Granny, please wake up. The bad guys are dead."

She shook the woman's body, making several flowers move around her as if they were shaking their heads in pity.

Liu Xing soon arrived behind her, and from this close, he knew about the condition of the old woman. Her eyes were closed, her chest wasn't rising and falling, and if he put his ear to her chest, he wouldn't hear a heartbeat.

Liu Xing looked at the young woman. Tears began to fall from her eyes and trickled down her red cheeks as she shook the old woman and called out to her. He knew that this old woman was already dead, and so did this young woman.

As she cried, Liu Xing decided to sit and turn his body, checking his surroundings and preparing for any potential pursuers.

She cried for about ten minutes before finally stopping.

"Young mister, what is your name?" the woman asked Liu Xing with a hoarse voice. He could hear rustling clothes and imagined her wiping tears from her cheeks or straightening her clothes and hair.

"My name is Liu Xing. I'm a disciple from Purple Moon Sect."

He heard a gasp from behind him but decided not to turn around.

"Truly?" she asked. "More importantly, I'm very grateful to you. If you hadn't come, I don't know what they would have done to me. So thank you, thank you. I just wish you had come sooner. That way, my grandma might not have died."

"There was nothing I could do about it. I was sleeping in a cave on that cliff and woke up when I heard some commotion."

At this point, he decided to turn around. He was now face to face with a woman whose eyes were still red from crying. "Are you all right?"

She nodded. "Yes, physically, but my heart is hurting." She looked at the old woman sleeping peacefully for eternity, blood began to pool on the ground. "She may not have been my real grandma, but she raised me since I was a child. We've been through a lot, and it pains my heart that in the end, she died in my arms."

Liu Xing nodded. He suspected that this young woman had a complicated situation, and while he was curious about what had happened, he decided not to ask about it. 

He glanced at the old woman, then at the young woman. "Do you want to bury her? I can help you."

"That's a good idea. Yes, I want to bury her. But I want to do it myself. Is that all right?"

"If you want to do it yourself, you can."

"Would you stay with me while I bury her?"

Liu Xing thought for a moment, then nodded. "Sure."

If there was no special ritual, burying her shouldn't take too much time. After all, this young woman was a cultivator at Lock Opening realm fifth stage, and for a cultivator, digging a hole was as easy as scooping jelly.

She nodded, then carried her grandma in her arms. She asked where the most beautiful place around was, and he observed his surroundings.

"There," Liu Xing pointed at the highest flower-covered hill nearby.

Liu Xing and the young woman walked up this flowery hill, and soon arrived at the peak. Here, the young woman began to dig into the dirt with her bare hands, and he decided to check his surroundings and let her do what she needed to do.

He realized he had some downtime for a moment and thought about the most productive way to use his time. The first thing that came to mind was to measure how strong he was. Obviously, he was now stronger than an ordinary Lock Opening cultivator, but he didn't know his exact strength. Perhaps he was as strong as a Core Splitting cultivator at the peak of their first core, or even less. Wei Gang was a Core Splitting cultivator, and he could kill him easily, but there was a high chance that Wei Gang had a shaky foundation and couldn't advance further.

As Liu Xing glanced at the golden castle in the distance, he realized he couldn't measure his strength now. There was no one he could spar with. So he ended that train of thought.

Instead, when he heard the rhythmic sound of the young woman's hands digging through the dirt, he thought of the woman statue he had used as bait to escape. He decided to summon her and see if he could still summon her or not.

As he successfully activated the technique, he expected at least something to appear in front of him. Yet, nothing appeared. He tried several times, and when the statue didn't appear, he concluded that he had lost it. It was probably destroyed now, and he felt a pang of guilt in his heart. After all, the one who made this statue had probably poured their heart into creating her, and he had used it as bait.

He sighed. There was nothing he could do, so he just accepted this loss. Now, he only had two statues remaining. One was his trusty shield and the last one was the turtle.

He activated the technique and a turtle the size of a bear appeared right before him. The rhythmic sound of digging behind him suddenly stopped; she must have been curious about his statue, but not long after, the rhythmic sound could be heard again.

Liu Xing then sent some potent qi toward the turtle, wondering what this turtle could do. After all, his shield was a normal shield before he sent it potent qi, and there was a high chance this turtle, as well as that woman statue, also had unique ability. It made him regret not testing them sooner, but he crushed the regret that began to spread in his mind and accepted that he had made a mistake.

After sending the potent qi to the turtle, its green eyes began to glow. He looked down and saw that the turtle still had its feet on the ground, so this turtle couldn't fly. 

"Hmm," Liu Xing pinched his chin and willed the statue to do many things. To walk, to transform, to shoot a laser beam out of its mouth, but nothing works.

He could feel the statue's eagerness to do something, so he ordered it to do what it could do without any instructions. Suddenly, the statue began to shrink. At first slowly, but the rate of its shrinking became faster each second, until it was finally only the size where he could carry it in his palm. Seeing this, he bent down to grab it, but to his surprise, it was actually very heavy. He was super strong now, he could probably shoulder a bus easily, but he needed to exert himself just to lift it from the ground.

Liu Xing decided to let go and nodded. This statue was now small and heavy, and he could think of several things to do with this heavy statue.

Liu Xing willed it to become big again, and it grew slowly at first and then faster and faster. When it was the size of a bear, Liu Xing thought it would stop growing, but to his surprise, the turtle could go bigger. When the turtle was so big that several children could play beneath it, he willed it to stop growing. Then, he ducked down below the turtle and tried to lift the statue with his two hands. As he pushed upward, the four feet of the statue successfully lifted from the ground, but he had to use all his strength until his face turned red, and even then, he could only lift it for a moment.

Coming out from below the turtle, he observed the statue with a grin on his face. This turtle could shrink and grow. When small, it was heavy, and when big, it was super heavy. While this turtle wasn't as versatile as his shield, he could think of several things to do with this statue.

Chapter 96 ~ Yang Clan (4)

As he dismissed the statue, he noticed that the young woman looked troubled, so he asked, "What's wrong?"

In front of her was a wide, deep rectangle hole with a large mound of dirt piled beside it. Her next task was to place her grandmother in the hole and bury her.

"It feels improper," the woman said, biting her lips. "I can't bury her like this. It feels like I'm burying an animal, not a human."

Liu Xing glanced at the hole, the grandmother, and the earth pile beside her, understanding what she meant. "Usually, people are buried in a coffin."

"Yes. A coffin." The woman nodded. "I want a coffin for her." Then she bit her lips again. "But we can't get that, can we? I'm in danger, and burying her in a coffin is a luxury I can't afford."

Liu Xing had experience creating a crude coffin, but even he needed time to make one. Without nails, he'd have to use wood, and while creating a coffin wouldn't take a whole day, it would take several hours. She had said it herself—she was still in danger and couldn't afford to waste more time.

So, Liu Xing came up with an idea inspired by Mamat's funeral.

"While it's not a coffin, I think I can do something."

Liu Xing looked around and saw several trees in the distance. He ran to a nearby tree with his lightning blade, cut it down, and made a dozen wooden planks from it. The planks were not cut with the same exact size, but it would do.

"I'll help you," he said.

Liu Xing entered the grave and asked the young woman to help lower her grandmother's body. He gently received her and carefully placed her on her right side at the bottom of the grave, ensuring that the deceased's left shoulder touched the earth. 

Then, Liu Xing began placing the wooden planks diagonally over the body. He arranged the planks to form a pitched roof-like structure over the deceased. This way, when they buried her, at least no dirt would touch her body directly.

This was how Muslims in Indonesia were buried. How Mamat was buried.

"How about this?" Liu Xing asked.

"Better," the young woman nodded, looking satisfied.

He told her to start filling the hole with earth, and Liu Xing began to tamp down the earth that the young woman threw into the hole. They did this for several minutes until the hole was filled and a small mound of dirt piled up on top.

Liu Xing's robe was now dirty. Yet, he didn't feel upset or angry. After all, he had just helped two people: a grandmother who had already died and her mourning granddaughter.

"Thank you very much," the woman smiled at him. Her cheeks were flushed red, her eyes still wet, and yet she smiled like a sunflower—bright and refreshing.

"You're welcome," Liu Xing nodded. "Now that this matter is over, I must go. I need to meet the emperor. There's important news he needs to hear."

Hearing what Liu Xing said, the young woman's smile suddenly vanished. "You want to go to that golden castle?" The woman glanced to the side, toward the capital, with a sad expression.

Seeing her expression, Liu Xing felt that this woman is probably related to the emperor, and her expression made him wonder about her circumstances.

"My name is Yang Liangyu. The Emperor is my father, and he was murdered today by my younger brother."

Upon hearing this, Liu Xing blinked several times. "What?"

"The emperor is dead. My younger brother usurped the throne by killing him, and my older brother, who was supposed to be the next emperor, is furious and trying to kill him. The capital is now a battleground for them."

Liu Xing's brain worked hard to digest the information. After a moment, he inhaled deeply and turned his body toward the capital. From a distance, the capital looked serene, but he tried to sharpen his senses, attempting to hear, see, or feel something there. For several moments, he didn't catch anything, then he began to hear faint shouts, small rumbles here and there, and a faint sound of explosions. His nose also began to catch the unique smell of blood, but this was probably from the people he had killed earlier.

He inhaled deeply again and turned his head toward Yang Liangyu. "Are you sure?"

Yang Liangyu pressed her lips together, looking down for a moment as if trying to hide her sadness, but then she nodded.

Liu Xing clenched his fist and felt irrational anger. He thought about the sixteen spirit beasts that were probably rampaging around. He wanted them dead, so he had come to this place to seek help. But to think that the emperor had just died and now there was a civil war happening in the capital—it felt like heaven had sent him bad luck to balance out the good luck he'd had.

"Mr. Liu Xing, can you escort me to a safer place? While I'm not a vital target for my younger brother, he could still capture me to consolidate his power. I don't want that to happen. I don't want him to become the true emperor."

Liu Xing thought for a moment. He was still in a hurry; he wanted to do something about those spirit beasts, but now his main destination was gone. Since the emperor was dead and his two sons were fighting for the throne, he could assume that the power of this empire was also split in two.

"Let's talk for a moment," Liu Xing said. He pointed at a cliff where he had slept. "Let's go there. I want to confirm some information from you."

She agreed, and both of them ended up inside his man-made cave. There were the remains of burning wood in the center of the cave, and they both agreed to partially close the cave entrance to prevent someone from seeing them. Closing it wouldn't hide their presence fully, but at least it would obstruct sight and sound. Liu Xing chose to use his turtle to close it.

Now, in a cave that was partially dark, he and Yang Liangyu sat face to face.

"Let's begin with my side," Liu Xing said. "As I said, my name is Liu Xing. I'm an outer disciple of Purple Moon Sect. I'm now in the middle of a race. Do you know about it?"

"Yes," she nodded. "It's a big event, and people in the capital, whether peasants or nobles, can't stop talking about it."

"Good. So, the race is simple. We need to gather as many treasures as possible. The three people who gather the most treasures are the winners. I came to this empire to get several treasures, but I met an old man in Mystic Moon City named Bai Lin, and he said that his grandson was murdered by something."

From here, he told her about the Xia clan, especially Xia Juetian, and the sixteen spirit beasts that were now probably roaming the Twelve Sun Empire, hunting for cultivators with bloodlines, and possibly splitting up right now.

As she listened to his tale, her face grew paler with each passing second. She understood the weight of this situation. If this matter wasn't quickly settled, there was a chance that thousands of spirit beasts would annihilate this empire and possibly other neighboring nations.

"Now, I came here to meet the emperor, to force him to make several teams to subdue those sixteen spirit beasts. Additionally, I also wanted to contact my sect about this, but obviously, my plan was ruined before it began when your brother decided to kill your father."

"What a disaster!" she exclaimed. "We need to do something!"

"That's the crux of the problem. What should I do now? Do you have any suggestions? Do you have a method so I can communicate with my sect?"

He actually didn't know what to do.

"The method to communicate with Purple Moon Sect is only known by my father and his advisors. Unfortunately, my younger brother killed them all."

Liu Xing bit the inside of his cheek. That meant there would be no communication with his sect. For a moment, the thought of leaving this empire came to his mind, and this time, this thought had a logical basis. Since he couldn't gather enough force to subdue those spirit beasts, he needed to go to other neighboring nations. Although doing that would be abandoning this empire and the people inside it.

"What tier is your empire, and how many Sun Refining cultivators and Sun Collapsing cultivators does your empire have?" Liu Xing asked.

Purple Moon Sect has many vassals, each categorized into tiers. There are Base, Earth, and Heaven tiers. Base tier vassals have their strongest cultivators at the Core Splitting realm. Earth tier vassals boast cultivators up to the Sun Collapsing realm, while Heaven tier vassals host the powerful White Sun realm cultivators. Each tier is further divided into three sections: lower, middle, and upper.

Chapter 97 ~ Yang Clan (5)

"The Twelve Sun Empire is an earth-lower tier empire. We have one Sun Collapsing cultivator and around ten Sun Refining cultivators in the entire empire. All of them come from the three prominent clans: the Hei clan, the Wu clan, and the Yang clan. The Yang clan sides with my older brother, while the Hei clan and the Wu clan support my younger brother."

Liu Xing pinched his chin. Earth-lower tier was a good tier. With that many Sun Refining cultivators and one Sun Collapsing cultivator, there was a high chance of killing all those spirit beasts. But the problem was that they were divided into two factions.

He asked Yang Liangyu how many Sun Refining cultivators sided with her older brother. The answer was five, with the other five supporting the younger brother.

"What about the Sun Collapsing cultivator?"

Yang Liangyu bit her lip. "The grand elder has already left. Truth is, he was friends with my grandfather and only loyal to the empire because of him. He promised my grandfather to protect the empire, but after my father death, the elder decided to leave. The last thing he did was send me and my grandmother away from the castle."

Liu Xing rubbed his temple. This empire was terribly unlucky. To think that their only Sun Collapsing Cultivator had left when the empire was on the brink of extinction. He sighed, realizing that the empire's only hope was for the two factions to unite and subdue the spirit beasts. An almost impossible task, considering how recent the conflict had been.

Liu Xing thought the empire's chance of survival was slim and growing slimmer by the minute. The best he could do now was communicate with both factions about the bloodline-stealing spirit beasts and hope for the best.

Yang Liangyu sighed. "In the past, my younger brother was so sweet. He always smiled and played with his wooden sword. Who would have thought greed would one day blind him and make him kill our father? Fate is cruel indeed."

"I'm sorry for your loss," Liu Xing said, suddenly remembering that this woman had lost both her father and the woman she considered her grandmother today.

"It's all right. I'm just happy to be alive," she smiled. "Without you, I would have suffered humiliation before dying a horrible death. So, thank you again."

"Where do you want to go now? I assume since your younger brother sent those three to kill you, you'd side with your older brother?"

"Indeed, I need to go to the Yang clan compound. I don't know if my older brother is still alive. The last time I saw him, they were in the midst of battle. But he's wise. If he lost, he would definitely retreat to the clan compound. In fact, there's a good chance he's already there." She paused. "While my older brother was stronger yesterday, it seems that's no longer the case today."

"All right," Liu Xing nodded. "I'll escort you there."

His goals were twofold: to escort Yang Liangyu and to meet the older brother's faction to tell them about the spirit beasts. Afterward, he'd go to the younger brother's faction. While he was sure he couldn't resolve their conflict, he could at least act as a middleman to facilitate a truce. Hopefully they will listen to him. After all, the Empire was in danger, and if they stayed busy killing each other, their Empire might be in ruins by the time their conflict was over.

"Thank you," Yang Liangyu bowed her head, and Liu Xing nodded.

***

The Yang clan compound was nearby. They only needed two hours to reach it. The compound sat on uneven terrain, as if waves were trapped underground, creating many little hills around.

When they arrived, Yang Liangyu was greeted with smiles and relieved faces. News of the emperor's death had already spread far, and they feared what might happen next.

Upon learning Liu Xing was from the Purple Moon Sect, the clan members bowed deeply to him. They offered him a spacious room and plenty of food, apologizing that the clan patriarch and elders had matters to attend to. Liu Xing made a simple inquiry to a servant bringing him food, who revealed that they had all gone to help Yang Jinyan force, the first prince. As he settled in, Liu Xing sensed a Sun Refining cultivator in the compound. When he asked about this presence, the servant explained that the cultivator was erecting a barrier around the compound and wouldn't leave until ensuring it held.

Now, Liu Xing was sitting in the garden, his eyes fixed on the shimmering barrier in the air. He crossed his arms and felt impatient. The second reason he came here was to talk to Yang Jinyan, but when he learned that he still wasn't here, Liu Xing wondered if he should go to Yang Lihuo--Yang Liangyu's younger brother faction first.

Still, this gave him time to think, to weigh his choices and calm himself. Nearby, a pond full of koi fish caught his attention. Liu Xing grabbed a handful of rice and began tossing it into the pond one grain at a time. As he observed the swimming fish, he tried to sense the qi around him. The Yang clan was large. Many houses filled the compound, and from above, it would look like a small town, with roads connecting everything, several bridges crossing small rivers, and hundreds of houses. Each almost resembled a tiny castle, with shining wood, colorful gardens, and sturdy pillars.

The clan was also full of cultivators. There were several dozen Lock Opening cultivators, as well as some Core Splitting cultivators.

Feeling all this qi, he almost thought that perhaps if this clan cooperated, they could kill at least one spirit beast with snake limbs, but he soon dismissed the thought. The spirit beasts worked in tandem, and most of the Lock Opening cultivators would have no means to wound them. Even Liu Xing had difficulty inflicting damage, and he was quite strong.

As he threw rice to the koi pond, he inhaled and exhaled deeply and rhythmically, trying to diffuse the anxiety slowly eating at his heart. Aside from those spirit beasts, his brain occasionally reminded him that he was in the middle of a race, and he feared falling behind, especially after consuming all the Diamond Pills he had.

Right now, he only had the Flute of Serenity, Red Lotus Staff, Ethereal Pearl, and Thunderstrike Gauntlets.

"Calm down," Liu Xing muttered. "There's no use in being anxious."

There was a moment when he thought he could calm himself by cultivating and absorbing the bullets he got from killing Wei Gang, but he decided against it. While this place looked secure, it didn't feel safe enough, and he decided just to think while observing swimming fish.

After several hours standing in front of the pond to rearrange his thoughts, he finally succeeded in setting his priorities.

The most important thing he needed to do was deal with those sixteen spirit beasts. He felt responsible for it and wanted them to be subjugated. After that, he could go on his merry way to gather more treasures.

But he gave himself a time limit. He had three days to try to unite the two factions—at least in a truce—to subdue the beasts. If the three-day limit expired and he was stuck in a situation where he couldn't do anything, then he would leave. He would travel to a nearby country, contact his sect, and form several subjugation teams there. He would then persuade them to come to this empire and deal with those spirit beasts as fast as they could.

He nodded, feeling better now that he had a backup plan. Now he just had to do everything he could in this empire. After all, while his backup plan was to leave this empire, he didn't want it to be razed to the ground by those spirit beasts.

The sun was directly overhead when he heard a commotion outside. Several people were shouting, "Young master is coming soon!" and some anxious cries were heard, "The enemy has come!".

After hearing the shouts, Liu Xing ran outside. He saw several servants moving around, as well as mothers carrying their children, as if they had spotted a tornado in the distance and needed to hurry home to barricade themselves.

Liu Xing stopped a man wearing maroon clothes, a cultivator at the Lock Opening realm's first stage. His maroon clothes were dirty, his black hair disheveled, and his hands covered in mud. He was a servant, and Liu Xing remembered seeing this man building a pond in a nearby public garden.

"What's happening?" Liu Xing asked.

"An order from Elder Yang Zhaoyan. He said that everyone below the Lock Opening realm's fifth stage needs to evacuate to our shelter. You're our esteemed guest Liu Xing, right? Do you want me to guide you to the shelter?"

Liu Xing assumed that Yang Zhaoyan was the Sun Refining cultivator who remained in this sect. Since he had ordered everyone weak to go to the shelters, there must be a chance of an enemy attack. Had Yang Lihuo decided to eradicate his own sect to prevent retaliation from his brother?

"Esteemed guest?" the servant asked again.

"No, you go ahead. I want to see what this is all about."

He decided to activate his Lightning Cloak and run as fast as possible. Soon, he arrived at the gates of the Yang clan compound. In front of the gate stood several dozen cultivators, arranged neatly in five rows of six people each. The men wore red robes with golden embroidery, most carrying swords on their backs, though some wielded spears, and one even hefted a large double-edged axe. The women donned yellow and red robes, and while some carried swords, most were unarmed.

Chapter 98 ~ Yang Clan (6)

Liu Xing sensed the qi emanating from the group before him. He realized that the first and second rows consisted of people with vast amounts of qi. While not as immense as Xia Juetian's, they were likely at the Core Splitting realm. The rest were at Lock Opening realm, standing quietly like soldiers prepared for war.

Leading them was a cultivator with white hair. He wore red and black robes, with a golden sash at his waist. The qi radiating from him was like staring at the sun with bare eyes—so vast it was almost blinding. His skin is white and youthful, yet he exuded an ancient aura, like a thousand-year-old tree.

As Liu Xing approached, several people turned their heads. Some nodded at him, while those in the front rows snorted, as if they saw mere trash.

Yang Zhaoyan didn't turn his head but beckoned Liu Xing with his arm.

Liu Xing walked between the cultivators of the Yang clan and soon arrived right behind Elder Yang Zhaoyan. From this close, Liu Xing felt the air charged with power around him, as if his power could lash out at any moment.

"My name is Yang Zhaoyan. Thank you for escorting our princess back," he said as he looked at Liu Xing.

Elder Yang Zhaoyan looked like a man in his thirties. A patch of white beard adorned his chin, his eyebrows were sharp as swords, and his eyes were clear. His face was flawless, and Liu Xing would even describe him as handsome.

"You're welcome," Liu Xing said, bowing slightly.

"I heard you came here to warn us and this empire about frightening spirit beasts."

On the way from the flower hills, Liu Xing had told Yang Liangyu great details about the spirit beast that killed Xia Juetian. He described their ability to steal bloodlines and use them, along with everything he knew about them, except for information about Wei Yi, because once again, he still had no proof that Wei Yi was behind those spirit beasts. He wanted Yang Liangyu to spread information about these spirit beasts within his clan, and it seemed that his plan had worked.

"Yes, they're dangerous. If allowed to roam too long, I'm afraid they would raze this empire to the ground."

Yang Zhaoyan nodded. "Spirit beasts like that need to be killed as soon as possible. Unfortunately, they came at a bad time. Or from their perspective, the perfect time."

"Would you help me subdue them later?"

He nodded. "I would help, but only if I can survive this whole ordeal."

After he said that, Liu Xing heard a rumbling sound from afar. He snapped his head to the front. He thought this terrain of many little rolling hills, like green waves, would be used to maneuver in a fight. But it would only stand for several seconds before a high-realm cultivator used a large-scale attack and flattened it all.

Soon, he saw a group of people flying and running as if their lives depended on it. This group consisted of three people: two flying and one running. The two flying were women, they are using swords to propel themselves at full power. Their faces were covered in sweat, their red and yellow robes disheveled. One woman was drenched in so much blood that she looked as if she'd been dipped in a well of it.

The running man wore a red robe with a golden crane on it. His black hair was short, and a red line crossed his face diagonally. Whether it was a line of blood or a scar, Liu Xing couldn't tell. But he knew that this man, probably Yang Jinyan, was terrified, his face pale and beads of sweat falling from his chin, and Liu Xing understood why.

Behind them came an abomination. It stood almost five meters tall, with long gray fur that swayed wildly as it ran. Its face was that of a dog, but its ears were so long they looked like ribbons. Its red eyes stared wildly at the fleeing cultivators, as if furious about what had happened. Yellow fangs jutted from its mouth, and on its large forehead, several heads protruded with eyes either so wide they looked ready to pop out or smiling so widely they resembled those of madmen. There were five heads, and seeing the red at the base of their necks, they had probably been beheaded before being glued to its forehead. This abomination had four feet: its two front feet were too long, like human hands, while its rear feet looked like a dog's. As it ran, it slapped the ground and making the earth surge like water. Its gait looked unbalanced, yet it was still fast and dangerous.

From the qi he felt, Liu Xing knew this thing was at the very least as strong as Xia Juetian. Its qi felt like a dark, ancient ocean threatening to devour him. While the amount of qi it had wasn't as much as Xia Juetian's, it still felt dangerous.

"Prepare!" Yang Zhaoyun shouted.

The clansmen behind Liu Xing began to unsheathe their weapons.

The three fleeing cultivators soon came closer, and Elder Yang Zhaoyun extended his hands. Suddenly, the barrier around the clan revealed itself. It looked like a white, milky wall, as if mist had solidified to protect the clan. Three holes suddenly appeared in the wall, and soon, the two women and the man passed through. The elder swung his hand, and the holes closed.

The two women landed abruptly on the ground in front of him and the elder, while the man stumbled and fell before getting up and walking toward the elder.

The three of them looked disheveled and panicked. The man was at the Core Splitting realm; Liu Xing didn't know how many cores he had, but he didn't have a terrifying aura like Xia Juetian, but he was still stronger than Wei Gang. The woman who was drenched in blood from head to toe was stronger than the man, while the last woman was also a Core Splitting cultivator, but she only felt slightly stronger than Wei Gang. All in all, Liu Xing thought that the strongest of them, the woman drenched in blood, was at least at Core Splitting realm and had three cores.

"Elder Yang Zhaoyun, it's bad, really, really bad!" the woman that was slightly stronger than Wei Gang shouted.

After she said it, the spirit beast arrived at the wall, banging its two long hands against it and roaring. Its roar was a mix of goat, cow, and a growling human.

"Where are the rest? When will they come back?" Elder Yang Zhaoyan asked.

"Elder, I'm sorry," Yang Jinyan's red eyes began to glisten, as if holding back tears. "Only the three of us survived. The rest are dead. Elder Yang Meiyue, Elder Yang Fengrui, Elder Yang Tianlei, Elder Yang Yanrong, and all the people who came to me—they died!"

After he said that, Elder Yang Zhoayan and the rest of the clansmen's eyes widened. Some even jumped from their positions, as if they'd heard the sky had turned black and the ocean purple.

"What are you talking about? Three Sun Refining cultivators, dozens of Core Splitting cultivators. You say all died? Only you three survived? Is this some kind of joke?"

"No, elder," the woman drenched in blood said. "We underestimated Yang Lihuo's force. That bastard not only usurped the throne and betrayed the clan, but he also colluded with a demonic cultivator. His force is growing steadily as we speak with the help of this demonic cultivator. That demonic cultivator is also formidable, at the peak of the Sun Refining realm. Only half a step before he fully becomes Sun Collapsing realm."

The spirit beast slammed its body against the barrier. The sound was as loud as a thunderclap, and Liu Xing worried it would break through.

The other woman said: "Not only that, they also betrayed their allies. The Hei Clan, Wu Clan, and the entire army are now turning into that." She pointed at the giant ghost beast that had begun to pound the barrier with its two hands while standing on its hind legs. Its howling and growling made the air tremble.

Hearing all of this, Liu Xing's heart began to race. The Yang clan members behind him started murmuring, and even Elder Yang Zhaoyan's eyes widened. This news was big, too big! When he arrived at the clan compound, he had assumed that there were two factions, but now the other faction was gone, transformed into some kind of spirit beast and human hybrid. They have all become abominations!

"Only Yang Lihuo and that demonic cultivator Wei Yi remain. It seems they intend to transform us into some kind of spirit beasts and control us to conquer the world," the blood-drenched woman added.

Hearing this, Liu Xing's already wide eyes grew even wider.

"What? Did you say Wei Yi?" Liu Xing asked the drenched woman.

As he spoke, Elder Yang Zhaoyan, Prince Yang Jinyan, and the two women suddenly turned their heads toward him. Their expressions were surprised, as if they had forgotten about his presence.

Chapter 99 ~ Yang Clan (7)

"Is the name of that demonic cultivator really Wei Yi?" Liu Xing asked again.

"Who are you?" Prince Yang Jinyan countered.

Elder Yang Zhaoyan stepped in. "This is Liu Xing, a disciple of the Purple Moon Sect. He's the one who saved your sister and escorted her here safely."

"Yang Liangyu is safe? Thank the heavens!" The prince sighed in relief, then smiled at Liu Xing and bowed his head slightly. "Thank you. I, Yang Jinyan, owe you a debt. Ask anything, and I will give it to you." His smile quickly faded. "At least, that's what I'd do if I still had power. The Twelve Sun Empire now teeters on the brink of destruction, so I can't compensate you right now."

"It's all right," Liu Xing said. "More importantly, is the demonic cultivator helping Yang Lihuo really Wei Yi?"

He needed to confirm the most crucial piece of information they had mentioned.

"Yes, he declared his name as Wei Yi. Do you know him?" the blood-drenched woman asked.

Liu Xing nodded. " In fact, the reason I came here to the City of Suns was to warn you about the spirit beasts I encountered that have a connection to Wei Yi."

Before Liu Xing could say more, the abomination relentlessly pounding the barrier suddenly struck it with such force that it sounded like a gong. Everyone snapped their heads toward the point of impact. When they saw the crack in the barrier, their eyes widened in shock.

The barrier was strong—so strong that even Liu Xing doubted he could destroy it. This abomination was clearly stronger than him, but considering an elder of the Sun Refining realm maintained the barrier, it shouldn't have been able to break through.

The monster punched the barrier again, spreading the crack further. On the third blow, its fist successfully breached the barrier.

"It seems this abomination is stronger than I thought," Elder Yang Zhaoyan said. "We'll have to continue our conversation later."

The creature punched the barrier with its other hand, then, like a man parting curtains, spread the opening wider. Its massive, dog-like head peered inside. When it spotted the group of cultivators, it let out an ear-splitting roar. Liu Xing, at the front of the group, felt a spray of saliva rain down on him.

Liu Xing adjusted his stance, preparing to jump. He observed the people around him. The prince and the two women looked panicked as they ran toward the clan compound.

The prince shouted, "Anyone below the third core of the Core Splitting realm, get inside! We're too weak to hurt it, and if we die, it'll only grow stronger!"

"Let the elder handle this!" the blood-drenched woman yelled. The other woman nodded in agreement.

"Go, all of you," Elder Yang Zhaoyan commanded.

Hearing this, the group behind began retreating into the clan compound. Liu Xing glanced at the spirit beast, which had successfully torn through the barrier and was now trying to squeeze itself inside. He then looked at the elder's expression. While there was a hint of anxiety in his eyes—understandable given what they'd just heard from the prince—he still appeared calm overall. Liu Xing believed the elder could handle the abomination. He decided to follow other cultivators, but before he could move, the elder grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Not you. You stay with me."

"What? Why?" Liu Xing asked, surprised.

"Because I want to talk with you and gauge your power," the elder explained. "The news from the prince's mouth is dire. He's in shock and has yet to grasp the full implications. But right now, I'm the strongest person in the entire empire."

Liu Xing's mind raced to process the elder's words. When he said he was the strongest person in the empire, a sense of doom filled Liu Xing's heart. While the elder was undoubtedly powerful, there was no way for him to fix this mess alone. The growing army of Yang Lihuo and Wei Yi, along with the spirit beasts now hunting for bloodlines, was too much for Elder Yang Zhaoyan to handle by himself.

"How can I help?" Liu Xing asked. The abomination had now fully entered the barrier, its mouth wide open, revealing hundreds of white fangs and a black, hand-shaped tongue. It was terrifying, but Liu Xing kept his focus on the elder.

"We'll discuss specifics later in a meeting after we deal with this abomination," the elder replied. "The thing is, our forces are weak. Aside from me, there are only nine Core Splitting cultivators remaining, including the prince. I've heard disciples from great sects are always stronger than others at the same realm, so I want to know how strong you are." He glance at the abomination.

Liu Xing understood the meaning behind the elder's words. He wanted to know if Liu Xing could be counted as an ally or not. After all, Liu Xing wasn't a resident of this empire, let alone this clan. He had no obligation to stay in this doomed empire. If he refused to fight, it would mean Liu Xing wasn't an ally. He wouldn't help this empire, and he wouldn't fight alongside the Yang clan. He was still a Purple Moon Sect disciple, so they would remain polite, but they would give him the cold shoulder until he decided to leave.

Liu Xing turned to face the powerful abomination. He had a choice to refuse and go, but he had already steeled his heart. While it might have been irrational, he felt that this whole mess was partly due to his own weakness. If he had been stronger when he arrived at Mystic Moon City and confronted Wei Yi there, perhaps this empire would still be intact. It was irrational, and he knew it, but he couldn't shake the feeling.

He would channel this emotion into doing the best he could right now, which meant proving himself as an ally of the Yang clan in this conflict. He would help. He wouldn't back down.

"I'll fight," Liu Xing declared.

The elder nodded, his expression calm with a hint of approval in his eyes. He then took several steps back, giving Liu Xing the battlefield to himself.

Liu Xing decided he would win. The elder probably thought Liu Xing couldn't emerge victorious and was ready to jump in at any moment. Liu Xing shared this sentiment, but he also wanted to win this fight—to gauge how strong he had become.

"Elder, how strong is this abomination?" Liu Xing asked.

"I can't pinpoint its exact strength, but at the very least, it's as strong as a cultivator at the Core Splitting realm with five cores," the elder replied. "Why? Are you afraid?"

"Of course I'm afraid. I could die if I'm careless for even a split second," Liu Xing admitted. "But I'll still fight, and I think I want some reward for what I'm about to do."

Sweat began to drench his back as his heart pumped blood and adrenaline through his body and sharpened his senses. The decision to ask the elder for a reward was spontaneous, but he didn't regret it. If the elder agreed, it would give him more motivation not just to fight, but to win.

The elder cracked a smile, but his eyes narrowed. "Heh, do you think you can win?"

"I don't know, but at the very least, I can impress you."

The abomination in front of them rose to its full height on its hind legs, making its already imposing stature even more intimidating. It looked down at Liu Xing and the elder, saliva dripping from its mouth. Liu Xing had to crane his neck to meet its gaze.

"I'll give you one thing if you can impress me," the elder offered. "But only if you can hold out for at least an hour. How about it?"

"Deal," Liu Xing said. He popped the Ethereal Pearl into his mouth, flexed his fingers inside the black gauntlets, and summoned his gun in his left hand. He then channeled all of the potent qi from his bullets to the Ethereal Pearl. This potent qi, which belonged to Wei Gang, could be used to advance his cultivation, but he had decided to hold onto it. Now, it would be used to fight this abomination.

Liu Xing willed the gun to absorb some of his qi, creating six bullets, then directed the potent qi to activate his necklace and make him surrounded by stable qi.

With his preparations complete, Liu Xing waited for the creature to attack first. This fight would be challenging, but he was determined to endure.

"Good luck," the elder said. As if those words were a starting gun, the abomination howled and whipped its long arm toward Liu Xing like a lash.

Seeing this, Liu Xing activated his Lightning Cloak and jumped with all his might. The ground beneath him caved in as he shot upward like a rocket. He clenched his right hand, channeling stable qi into it until a yellow spiraling line covered his knuckles. Then, with all his strength, he aimed a punch at the abomination's jaw.

When his fist connected, it felt like striking a steel wall rather than flesh and blood. Even so, the blow packed enough force to snap the creature's jaw shut and make its head jerk backward. A high-pitched squeal, like someone stepping on a dog's tail, pierced the air as the abomination stumbled back a step.

The battle had begun, and Liu Xing knew he had to give it everything he had if he wanted to survive, let alone impress the elder.