Chapter 487 - 329: Hatred

Chapter 487: Chapter 329: Hatred

Though the three Sword Emperor powerhouses from the Zhe Family were furious, their faces showed no trace of panic. They sneered at Shangguan Yutong and the others. One of them said, "Since Ling Xiao isn’t here, we’ll use you to christen our blades! When that mutt Ling Xiao gets back, we’ll wipe your Shushan Sword Sect off the map with a single stroke! Hahahaha!"

Thirteenth Master was enraged, cursing, "You dare talk tough with death at your doorstep! We can handle you just fine, even without the Sect Leader here!"

Before Ling Xiao left, he had given Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master a large number of Top-Grade Elixirs. Though they had yet to break through to the next realm, the improvement after taking the Elixirs was particularly obvious. Furthermore, the patriarch of the Sea Domain Song Family, Song Qi, had once said that two Sword Emperor masters would remain in Penzes City.

The two elders were usually playful and carefree, but having lived for so many years, how could they not be shrewd? Their gratitude toward Ling Xiao was beyond question.

Having received such a kindness, how could they remain indifferent? In their hearts, Thirteenth Master and Fourteenth Master already considered themselves members of the Shushan Sword Sect. What’s more, both of them now served as Elders of the Shushan Sword Sect! For reasons both official and personal, they were utterly loyal to Ling Xiao!

The two elders would take on two of the Sword Emperors, while Tiger and Shangguan Yutong would team up against the last one.

The Zhe Family Sword Emperor suddenly gave a strange laugh. "Since we dared to come here, how could we not be prepared!" With that, he let out a long cry!

From the wealthy district in the southeast corner of the vast Penzes New City, an answering cry echoed back! The sound was imposing, its aura incredibly powerful. An immense pressure began to bear down on them, and the expressions of Shangguan Yutong and her group changed drastically!

Even if this person wasn’t a Sword Venerable, their strength was at least greater than Quefeng’s!

For a High-tier Martial Artist, a distance of ten thousand meters could be crossed in an instant.

Tiger suddenly roared, and three bright yellow rings of light rose from beneath his feet. Each of his punches was heavier and more powerful than the last! He actually beat the Zhe Family Sword Emperor—who was a rank higher than him—into complete disarray, leaving the man with no way to retaliate!

Just then, Shangguan Yutong suddenly pulled a Talisman from her robes. Chanting an incantation, she slapped it onto the light screen of the Ice Blue Water Light Array with a loud PAP! The screen of light miraculously vanished in an instant. A pained look crossed Shangguan Yutong’s face. Ling Xiao had only given her three of these Talismans, which were said to be incredibly difficult to make. ’To think I’d have to use one already!’

Shangguan Yutong immediately followed with a sharp cry, "Retreat!"

The four of them already had the upper hand, and with the Inner City at their backs, they all retreated inside in an instant, just before the enemy’s powerful master arrived. That Zhe Family powerhouse unleashed a mighty Sword Qi that streaked across the night sky in a dazzling flash of color. The Sword Qi slammed into the Inner City’s wall, causing a section more than ten meters long to collapse with a thunderous BOOM! Rubble flew and dust filled the air, but no one was injured.

The arriving powerhouse stopped indignantly before the three Zhe Family Sword Emperors and roared, "Fools! You couldn’t even tie them down for a single moment!"

The three Zhe Family Sword Emperors lowered their heads in shame. They were facing Zhezhong Tang, a Tier Six Sword Emperor whose status in the Zhe Family was second only to their ancestor, Zhe Wanqian, and the other Sword Venerable, Zhe Wushuang. They didn’t even dare to talk back. When Zhezhong Tang had been the Patriarch, they were still weak young men. On top of that, Zhezhong Tang was on the verge of breaking through from the Sword Emperor Realm to the Sword Venerable Realm. How could they possibly dare to defy him in the slightest?

If the Zhe Family hadn’t suffered such a great disaster, Zhezhong Tang would never have personally led his men to lie in wait here for months. To their great regret, it seemed Ling Xiao had only just left when they arrived! If they failed to destroy the Shushan Sword Sect this time, the Zhe Family would forever live in Ling Xiao’s shadow, becoming a laughingstock among the other hidden families!

"Former Patriarch, we... we could slaughter all the residents of this city to vent our anger!" one of the Zhe Family Sword Emperors suggested.

"Yes, yes! Former Patriarch, if we do that, let’s see who dares to live here anymore. We can turn this place into a city of the dead!" another Zhe Family Sword Emperor chimed in.

"Absurd! Muddle-headed!" Zhezhong Tang glared furiously at the two Sword Emperors who had made the suggestion. He then glanced at the third, who had swallowed his words, clearly having wanted to agree but not getting the chance.

"Who gave you permission to start slaughtering civilians?" Zhezhong Tang demanded harshly.

"That... that was just collateral damage, wasn’t it? As you know, the Sword Qi of the Sword Emperor Realm is powerful..." one of them explained in a weak, quiet voice.

"Trash!"

Zhezhong Tang finally lost his patience. He said coldly, "It seems you’ve truly been influenced by those other clansmen, always wanting to annihilate entire families at the drop of a hat. If they’re our enemies, then fine, wiping them out is no big deal. Commoners? You can crush them with a flick of your finger. But how many prominent families have you seen slaughtering common folk? Every injustice has a perpetrator, and every debt has a debtor. Does killing a few commoners who are no different from ants make you look powerful?"

The Zhe Family Sword Emperor powerhouses were so thoroughly reprimanded that they became meek and submissive, not daring to utter a single word in rebuttal. This was because when Zhezhong Tang was the Patriarch in his younger days, he was known for being impartial and strictly enforcing the rules. He was the type who preferred not to clash with other families—a complete opposite in personality to the current Patriarch, Zhe Shiwei, and the other Sword Venerable powerhouse, Zhe Wushuang.

If the Zhe Family hadn’t suffered such tragic losses this time, Zhezhong Tang would never have come out of seclusion. But that didn’t mean he approved of wanton slaughter. The original plan had been to find an opportunity to assassinate Ling Xiao. After discovering Ling Xiao was gone, he changed his mind, preparing instead to assassinate the core of Ling Xiao’s followers. If they could wipe the Shushan Sword Sect from the face of the earth, that would count as having avenged their great grievance. As for when to kill Ling Xiao himself, that was a matter for later. Zhezhong Tang’s philosophy was that taking revenge was acceptable, but one should not kill simply for the sake of killing. Doing so offered no benefit to one’s cultivation of the Martial Dao.