ALL NOVEL Chapter 191 – Annihilation
The Southern Ridge Mountains.
A mere few peaks away from the Azure Cloud Sect, the stench of blood was thick enough to choke the air. The mountain gate lay in ruins, the grand hall reduced to rubble. Shattered walls and broken tiles littered the ground, amidst a gruesome scene of scattered corpses. Each body was intact, bearing no visible wounds. Yet, blood trickled from their seven orifices. It appeared that devastating internal injuries had claimed their lives.
A woman stood amidst the carnage, barefoot, cradling a guqin in her arms. She resembled a courtesan, the most sought-after flower of the pleasure barges, a captivating blend of beauty and allure. A seductive smile graced her lips, but her eyes burned with an unyielding rage.
“You would rather die than submit?”
Her jade-like feet were exquisite, tempting one to touch, to caress. Yet, those seemingly delicate appendages pressed down on the chest of a muscular man with brutal force.
“…My ancestors’ remains… have not been recovered… The Dark Heaven Sect… will never yield.”
CRACK!
The woman’s foot slammed down with a terrifying power that belied her graceful exterior. The man beneath her, an elder of the Dark Heaven Sect, was a cultivator at the fifth rank of the Divine Transformation realm. At full strength, he could utilize the sect’s secret assassination techniques to kill opponents even at the first rank of the Unity realm.
Yet, a single stomp from the woman caved in his chest and pulverize his internal organs and shattered his bones. Death was instantaneous.
The sheer agony contorted his face into a grotesque mask. The impact ripped away his skin, leaving only a mangled skull.
“The Substitution Technique?” Sage Ruler Miaoyin’s fury intensified. She had assumed the man beneath her was Jing Wudi, the leader of the Dark Heaven Sect, a direct descendant of Jing Ke, history’s most renowned assassin. But he was a mere substitute?
“Where is Jing Wudi?!”
Her question was met with silence. Not a single soul remained alive within the Dark Heaven Sect.
Sage Ruler Miaoyin surveyed the corpses, counting each one. Seven hundred and eleven bodies. Yet, according to the intel gathered by the Pure Land, the Dark Heaven Sect should have seven hundred and twelve members.
Jing Wudi had escaped.
Facing the vast expanse of the Southern Ridge Mountains, searching for a single individual was akin to finding a needle in a haystack.
“Damn it!”
“The Azure Cloud Sect yielded nothing, and the Dark Heaven Sect would rather die than submit!”
“What are these fools clinging to?!”
Sage Ruler Miaoyin’s mood had never plummeted to such depths. She, a Sage Ruler, had personally extended invitations, only to be rebuffed twice in a single day?
During her journey to the Southern Ridge Mountains, she had boasted to Supreme Sage Ruler Yao Guang that she would recruit exceptional individuals to the Pure Land, bolstering their image as a newly founded nation.
Now, she was returning empty-handed?
Her frustration was palpable, yet there was nothing she could do. The sight of the Dark Heaven Sect’s countless corpses only fueled her rage. She no longer wished to remain in this cursed place.
She turned to leave.
RIP!
The sound of silk tearing pierced the air. She looked down upon her Heavenly-grade, first-rank silk robe. A section of the hem had been torn.
How was this possible?
The Dark Heaven Sect’s leader and elders were merely Divine Transformation realm cultivators. How could they possibly damage a Heavenly-grade, first-rank treasure?
“Damn you all to hell!”
Damage to a Heavenly-grade treasure was incredibly difficult to repair. Even if successfully mended, the garment would never be as beautiful as before. Would she, a Sage Ruler of the Pure Land, be forced to wear patched clothing?
“I will have you all buried without a proper burial!”
Her eyes bulged with fury as she frantically strummed her zither. The Heavenly Demon Zither erupted with a maddened symphony. The chaotic notes shook the very foundations of the mountain.
BOOM!
A deafening roar echoed through the air as the mountain crumbled. The earth trembled violently as if on the verge of collapse. When the dust settled, the entire mountain range where the Dark Heaven Sect had stood was no more. The valleys and ravines were buried beneath a cascade of rubble. All members of the Dark Heaven Sect, save for Jing Wudi, were entombed within the earth.
Hovering above, Sage Ruler Miaoyin surveyed her “handiwork.” Even this act of utter destruction failed to appease her rage. She even contemplated razing the Azure Cloud Sect as well. But the memory of the mysterious sound cultivator, the one who had bested her in their musical duel, gave her pause.
“When we meet again. I will have Elder Sister personally eliminate him and avenge my humiliation!”
…
Azure Cloud Sect, halfway up the mountain.
Fan Li and Lu Fubao were packing their belongings – simple necessities for daily life. After the incident with Sage Ruler Miaoyin, Fan Li had become a great benefactor of the Azure Cloud Sect. The thatched hut they resided in, leaky during the rainy season and drafty during the winter, was hardly a suitable dwelling for their esteemed guest. Yu Shenzi insisted that Fan Li and his “wife” relocate to a more comfortable side hall within the sect.
“My husband, did an earthquake just occur?” Lu Fubao asked.
Fan Li glanced at her, then at Ling Xiao, who stood waiting outside the hut.
“Ahem… It seems so,” he replied.
She was attentive, remembering to maintain their facade as a married couple even in front of outsiders.
“You two. The earthquake seemed to originate from the direction of the Dark Heaven Sect.”
Ling Xiao’s demeanor was significantly more respectful than before. He had witnessed Fan Li “triumph” over Sage Ruler Miaoyin and had come to believe Lu Fubao’s earlier claims: Fan Li, before his injuries, was incredibly powerful.
Strength commanded respect. Coupled with the debt they owed Fan Li, Ling Xiao no longer dared to underestimate him, and his fleeting infatuation with Lu Fubao had completely vanished.
“Are earthquakes frequent around here?” Fan Li asked curiously.
“Absolutely not!” Ling Xiao shook his head emphatically. “Our sect has stood for over a thousand years, and there are no records of any earthquakes occurring here. The Dark Heaven Sect is merely a few miles away, and we've never heard of any earthquakes happening there either.”
Fan Li frowned. This wasn’t good news. If it wasn't a natural disaster, then it had to be caused by someone.
After gathering their belongings, the three of them prepared to ascend the mountain. Suddenly, Lu Fubao gasped.
“Look! There's a dead man over there!”
She was right.
Lying in the dirt by the mountain path, his body bruised and his clothes torn to shreds, was a man. As they approached, Ling Xiao exclaimed, “Jing Wudi, the leader of the Dark Heaven Sect?!”
This was an individual on par with Yu Shenzi himself!
They had just seen him a few days prior, how had he been reduced to such a state?
“My husband, what should we do?” Lu Fubao whispered.
Fan Li felt a flicker of amusement. He noticed how effortlessly the words "my husband" rolled off her tongue.
“Daoist Priest Ling Xiao, do you think he can be saved?” he asked.
“This…” Ling Xiao hesitated.
The Azure Cloud Sect and the Dark Heaven Sect might have been neighbors for a thousand years, but their relationship was marked by constant conflict, their interactions almost nonexistent. Still, as a healer, Ling Xiao hadn't forgotten the tenets of his sect.
He examined Jing Wudi and discovered that he still clung to life.
“He can be saved!” Ling Xiao nodded, but then added, “However, his injuries are grave. Only my master can save him.”
And so, Jing Wudi was carried up the mountain.
…
Azure Cloud Sect, the grand hall.
Jing Wudi lay on a bamboo bed, cleansed of blood and grime. Yu Shenzi stood beside him solemn as he retrieved one hundred and eight silver needles that he inserted into Jing Wudi’s acupuncture points with practiced precision.
“His injuries were inflicted by Sage Ruler Miaoyin’s zither,” he explained.
Fan Li was surprised. This was undeniably bad news.
Sage Ruler Miaoyin had attacked the Dark Heaven Sect?
Judging by the severity of Jing Wudi's injuries, the other elders and disciples were likely doomed.
This woman was deliberately sabotaging his missions.
“I can save him,” Yu Shenzi continued, but his expression was pained, as if he were experiencing a great personal loss.
“Senior, is there a problem?” Fan Li was puzzled.
They could save Jing Wudi. This was good news.
Yu Shenzi sighed heavily.
“Where am I supposed to find the funds for the treatment and medicine? Those Dark Heaven Sect paupers, even if I sold them all, they wouldn't be worth as much as the medicine in my treasury…”
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