Just like that, a Transformation Realm expert was killed by having his head smashed apart. Fear rippled through the crowd at his death.
"Damn it. I don't care who you are. But since you dare kill members of our Wen Clan, you should be ready to face the wrath of the Wen Clan as well," Wen Jinrui cried out fearfully. Even as he shouted, he retreated and no longer dared to keep attacking Xiang Shaoyun. As for the two groups in battle, they all separated from one another as well. A large number of them had been killed, and the survivors looked extremely miserable.
"Young master, shall I…," Elder Zhen Peng asked as he made a throat-slitting gesture.
That frightened Wen Jinrui even more, nearly causing him to fall off his mount from fear. He quickly urged his mount to flee, "Go, run!"
He then fled with his mount, leaving all his underlings behind. When the others saw Wen Jinrui fleeing, they started scattering in all directions. None of them was unafraid of death. The Mad Lion Hunting Group members were also fleeing madly.
"Young master, do I...," Elder Zhen Peng asked.
"Forget those people. As for the other group, leave one alive and kill the rest," said Xiang Shaoyun as he pointed at the Mad Lion Hunting Group members. Elder Zhen Peng obeyed and chased after them. Soon, all but one of them were killed, and Elder Zhen Peng captured the sole survivor, a Transformation Realm hunter.
"Don't kill me. Please don't kill me! I am only following orders!" the Transformation Realm hunter begged, completely losing all his courage upon knowing that Elder Zhen Peng was a King Realm cultivator.
"Mad Lion Hunting Group, how did your people find me?" Xiang Shaoyun asked. When he encountered them at the Hundred Beast Mountain Range, he had been able to escape without even revealing his identity to them. Thus, it did not make sense for them to come after him. And since they were really coming for him, something he was unaware of might have happened. He had to figure out what was going on.
"It was the people from your Martial Hall Palace who told us!" The hunter did not dare to hide anything.
"What?" Xiang Shaoyun cried out in astonishment. That was the worst answer he could get. The moment he heard that, he already had a rough idea who the traitor was. Who could it be apart from Mei Lianhua?
"Why are you chasing after me so relentlessly?" Xiang Shaoyun asked with an unsightly expression.
"Because they said that apart from getting the Earth Star Spring, you had also gotten a large number of spiritual treasures. That was how you have been growing so fast. That was why we came after you. Please spare me. I won't ever attempt to do anything against you anymore," the hunter begged.
"Don't worry, I won't do anything to you," Xiang Shaoyun said and gestured at Elder Zhen Peng before he turned and started leaving. Just as the Transformation Realm hunter thought he had been spared, Elder Zhen Peng's palm struck his forehead.
Bang!
Just like that, the Transformation Realm hunter was killed. His last thought before his death was, I thought he said he wasn’t going to do anything to me?
Xiang Shaoyun muttered to himself, "I didn't do anything to you, but that does not apply to the people around me."
Xiang Shaoyun had decided that he would never spare anyone who had ever tried to kill him.
"Old Peng, do you know about the Mad Lion Hunting Group?" Xiang Shaoyun asked.
"Of course. It is a very powerful demon hunting group," Elder Zhen Peng answered. He proceeded to give Xiang Shaoyun a rough explanation about the Mad Lion Hunting Group. After listening to Elder Zhen Peng, Xiang Shaoyun finally understood that the Mad Lion Hunting Group was no ordinary demon hunting group.
The Mad Lion Hunting Group was a group formed by a large number of experts in the surrounding regions. Their commander was a ninth-stage Transformation Realm expert, and they had four deputy commanders who were all late-stage Transformation Realm experts as well. Additionally, their members were filled with numerous experts in both the Transformation and Astral Realms. One could say that it was definitely an incredibly powerful organization.
They mainly operated in the Hundred Beast Mountain Range, and they even involved themselves in banditry. More importantly, it was rumored that they were also connected with a certain organization at the Cloud Margin City. The Cloud Margin City was the largest city in the region, surrounded by over a hundred towns. Wu Town was one of those towns.
Xiang Shaoyun was very clear on the difference between a city and a town. A proper city was a place where experts converged, and any random organization of a decent size could very well be much more powerful than the Martial Hall Palace. A town was incomparable to a city. Because of that, although the Mad Lion Hunting Group had many enemies, many of their enemies were helpless to do anything.
"Looks like the Mad Lion Hunting Group is no pushover," Xiang Shaoyun muttered to himself with his eyes narrowed.
"If the young master wants them dead, I can go do it right now," Elder Zhen Peng said as a show of loyalty.
Xiang Shaoyun shook his head. "No. They are all going to be my stepping stones."
Although Xiang Shaoyun was only 15 years old, he had a deep ambition and ideas in his mind that many people couldn't understand. Back then, he was a frivolous young man. After that incident, he had quickly matured. He might usually behave like an undisciplined child, but his thoughts were something very few people could actually understand.
"Let's return to the Martial Hall Palace. I hate traitors the most," Xiang Shaoyun said with loathing. After returning to the Martial Hall Palace, he first went to meet Xia Liuhui.
"Boss, are you fine?" Xia Liuhui asked anxiously.
His concern filled Xiang Shaoyun's heart with warmth. "I'm fine, brother."
No matter how many people betrayed him, he still had a brother loyal to him.
"Boss, what's going on? You seem off," Xia Liuhui asked as he could sense that Xiang Shaoyun was acting differently today. In the past, Xiang Shaoyun would usually call him Xia Liu, but today, Xiang Shaoyun was actually calling him brother. The change was too sudden. One could say that some people really did enjoy wallowing in degeneracy.
"I have something I need your help with," Xiang Shaoyun said seriously.
"Just say it boss. I will do whatever I can," Xia Liuhui slapped his chest and promised.
"I want you to challenge Mo Buhui and trample him," Xiang Shaoyun said.
"Challenging Mo Buhui? Sure, I'll do it!" Xia Liuhui agreed after a short astonishment. He knew his boss had his reasons for this. So he did not question it.
"If you want a woman, you must first become strong yourself. You can do it," Xiang Shaoyun patted Xia Liuhui's shoulder before heading off to look for Lu Xiaoqing. Lu Xiaoqing had been cultivating in seclusion all this while, but the moment Xiang Shaoyun arrived, she left seclusion to meet him.
"You're here!" Lu Xiaoqing was overjoyed. An enchanting smile bloomed on her flawless face.
"I need you to challenge Mei Lianhua to a duel," Xiang Shaoyun went straight to the point.
Lu Xiaoqing blanked out slightly, but immediately after, pure confidence surfaced on her face. She said, "Ok. I'll defeat her."
After getting the Earth Star Spring from Xiang Shaoyun, her strength had skyrocketed. She had now reached the third stage of the Astral Realm, and coupled with her bitter cultivation in recent days, defeating Mei Lianhua wouldn't be a problem. More importantly, this was Xiang Shaoyun's request of her. Thus, she would complete it no matter what.