The flying ship sped forward at the fastest speed Lilian could muster. John's nerves were as taught as could be, as the destruction only seemed to increase the closer and closer they got to his clan.
Eventually, John spotted the familiar terrain of the land surrounding his clan, and his expression darkened considerably. What once used to be a place of forest and farmland was now just charred ruins.
In the distance against the mountainside, the smoke rising from the ground thickened to an incredible level, while flashes of light from exploding battle arts could be seen. A translucent barrier appeared occasionally as the attacks landed against it.
Shatter!
The barrier shattered just as the flying ship arrived above the Fenix Clan. Lilian brought the ship to an immediate halt, and John immediately jumped out of one of the exits.
""Fuck it, if we die, we die taking out as many as we can!"
John heard the impassioned cry from his father boom out right as he left the ship, along with his death charge.. John sighed a small sigh of relief for the briefest of moments when he saw his father was still alive, before it immediately darkened as he took in the rest of the scene.
The land outside the barrier was completely shattered, and thousands of corpses could be seen laying about. Just inside the clan grounds, he spotted his grandfather, who was holding a man he had never seen before.
However, John could clearly tell the relationship between the two, and immediately guessed it was the Patriarch of his clan. Blood soaked the Patriarch's robes, and his life force seemed to be on the very edge of fading away.
Deeper within the sect, John could see more bodies piled up, clearly having died in the battles earlier. His rage and fury instantly reached levels beyond compare as he took in everything before him. His master put away the ship and floated beside him, taking in the scene of carnage as well.
The mysterious robed Elder below suddenly unleashed an attack towards his father, raising John's level of anger even further.
"They're mine," John said to Lilian without looking back as his body sped down to the ground below.
He arrived before the crimson attack from the elder, and punched out with his fist.
Boom!
The attack exploded upon contact, unable to withstand the might of John's bare handed attack.
"John!"
John heard his name called out by a trembling voice behind him. He turned to look over his shoulder, and saw a battle worn face that he had not seen in a year.
"Father!" John replied, his voice soft but filled with barely contained rage. "You can rest now. Leave the rest to me."
A shocked look appeared on Barden's weary face as he heard John's words. He quickly inspected John's cultivation, and his shock only increased further as he realized his son was the exact same cultivation as his own.
In less than a year, John had gone from having no cultivation at all, to equaling himself. Barden could not be more proud at what he saw at the moment, but he set that feeling of pride aside as he called out to John.
"It's the young master of the clan!" a surprised shout from the Fenix Clan below sounded out.
"What? Didn't he die a year ago? How is he alive? And how is he so powerful?" another Fenix Clan warrior cried out.
The leaders and Elder's of the clan had kept John's status a secret, and so the clan had assumed that he was dead.
"John, this man has a cultivation at the Late Meridian Forging Realm. You cannot help us here. Run!"
Although he was shocked by John's arrival, Barden could not be any happier to see his son. However, his son showing up here with an Early Meridian Forging cultivation would only get him killed alongside the rest of the clan.
"I'll burn my blood essence and put my life on the line to let you escape. Use that moment to escape!" Barden said to John as he flew towards him.
John smiled a sad smile as he watched his father say such a thing. Clearly his father had been through an immense battle, and had lost all hope until John had arrived. Even then, he saw no room for victory, and instead only cared about John's safety.
"Too late!"
A wicked voice sounded out behind John as the mysterious Elder appeared next to him without warning. His sword, which was glowing with an incredible crimson might, slashed down on John with all his might. While still looking over his shoulder at his father, John raised his hand and pointed a single finger at the Bloodfiend Elder.
Bang!
The surrounding sky turned bright as the sound of thunder suddenly sounded out. A thin beam of lightning exploded out of John's outstretched finger, instantly slamming against the Elder before he could even react.
The lightning beam pierced directly through the Elder's chest, who had held nothing back for defense while he attacked John, as he looked down on John's lower cultivation.
A stunned expression appeared on the man's face as he staggered back slightly, his head drooping down to look at his chest. A charred hole of flesh, six inches wide, carved straight through his body.
The Elder looked back up at John for a moment, as he saw John suddenly slash out at him with a scythe
Che!
The scythe carved straight through the Elder's neck, severing it from the rest of his body. The headless corpse fell down to the ground below, while the head suddenly disappeared from sight.
Barden and the remaining Fenix Clan members stared at John with absolute shock, while the Crimson Valley Sect members stared at him with horrified expressions.
John turned to look back at the Crimson Valley Sect members, and quickly spotted their Patriarch, as well as the Sect Leader, Warren Gildar. Both felt a chill crawl up their spine as John's cold, rage filled eyes stared directly at them.
Suddenly, an attack slammed down on John from above, as John slashed out his scythe towards it.
Bang!
The attacks collided, causing the nearby area to quake from its power. John narrowed his eyes as he watched a man float down from above, looking at John with sinister eyes. The red robed man radiated a powerful Heaven Tribulation aura, much stronger than the previous Bloodfiend Elder.