Chapter 158: Chapter 19 Super Expert
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The formal Fate Master of the Heaven Mandate Hall from the Han Yuan Dynasty, the direct disciple of Mo Baiye of the Mo Dao from the Zhou Yi Dynasty—either identity was enough to deter all within their vicinity, and yet now, he had quietly perished within their Liu Clan.
He died right under his watch.
“It’s over, the Liu Clan is utterly doomed…”
His complexion turned pale, and Liu Tianzheng’s vision darkened.
Just to curry favor with this Lord Ling, they had exhausted their family wealth, squandering the efforts of several generations—and now the man was dead…
The most critical point was, they had also completely offended that Zhang Xuan.
After all the trouble, it wasn’t a case of not heeding the elderly and suffering before one’s eyes, but rather not listening to a child and facing the annihilation of the clan!
Quaking, he hurriedly turned towards Xu Xin not far away: “Lord Xu, should we quickly inform the Heaven Mandate Hall… to avenge Lord Ling!”
If a Fate Master died, the Heaven Mandate Hall would certainly not rest until there was retribution. As long as the message was relayed, Zhang Xuan probably wouldn’t have the time to bother with him anymore…
Slap!
Before he even finished speaking, Liu Tianzheng felt a burning pain on his face as Xu Xin slapped him.
At this moment, Xu Xin’s face was pale, his forehead veins were bulging, and he seemed almost crazed: “Shut up, if you dare to reveal even half a word about Lord Ling’s death, I’ll ensure that every member of your Liu Clan is exterminated, not a single one spared!”
“Why?”
Clutching his face, Liu Tianzheng was utterly baffled.
“I am a Life Guardian… My primary role is to protect the Fate Master from harm. Now that he has died before me, once the news leaks—even if other Fate Masters would avenge him, what about me?”
Xu Xin said.
“This…”
Liu Tianzheng’s pupils constricted.
It was as if he were the imperial guards whose duty was to protect the emperor, and yet if the emperor was killed right in front of them, as a guard who had failed his duty, the best outcome would be to be buried with the emperor, and the worst might be to be killed on the spot…
In other words, if they really passed the message back, whether or not they would avenge Ling Buyang, that was a matter for later, but this Xu Xin would definitely die!
And moreover… Ling Buyang, having served as a Fate Master from the Zhou Yi Dynasty, would certainly have offended many people over the years with his status. Even if he didn’t die, going back would surely mean no good end…
“No… that’s not right…”
Realizing this, Liu Tianzheng thought of something, his pupils suddenly shrinking as his body swayed, and he rushed outwards. Before he even left the room, he felt a severe pain strike his heart from behind, as if his soul were being shattered on the spot.
Struggling to turn his head, he immediately saw a dagger that had been thrust into his back.
“You…”
Liu Tianzheng reached towards Xu Xin, only to find his strength draining away like a receding tide.
“A dead man cannot leak any news!”
Xu Xin’s eyes were full of indifference.
Although there were only the two of them in the room, to completely prevent the news from getting out, there was only one way—this Liu Clan head had to be killed! With his death, no one would know for a short time, allowing Xu Xin time to escape!
With the thirty million Origin Currency that Ling Buyang had just plundered from Liu Tianzheng, Xu Xin could live well in any city under a concealed identity as long as he left Baiyan City.
After rummaging through both Liu Tianzheng and Ling Buyang’s possessions and taking all valuables, Xu Xin only then walked out of the room. Surveying his surroundings, he spoke with an unchallengeable authority, “Lord Ling is going to cultivate in seclusion to provide guidance to Patriarch Liu. The doors will be closed to visitors for a short time, no visitors will be seen, and no one is allowed to approach. Anyone who disturbs the cultivation will be executed without mercy!”
“Yes!”
The members of the Liu Clan were unsuspecting.
Xu Xin swaggered out.
This command would at least buy two or three days before the discovery of the truth. By that time, he would already be long gone without a trace, untraceable by anyone…
…
Zhang Xuan walked out of the room with an exhausted expression.
Returning to the Suspended Realm, he reinforced the Source Pools of Zhao Ya and the others, using up a full seventy thousand strands of Heavenly Mandate Vitality. Though the consumption was huge, it made their talents even more formidable, and their cultivation speed increased, making it worth the expenditure.
Just as he stepped out of the room, he saw Sun Qiang standing before him, looking eager to test his skills.
“Young Master, after a night of cultivation, I’ve gained some insights. May I spar with you?”
Zhang Xuan was surprised at the man’s newfound audacity and responded with a slight smile, “Sure!”
“Then I’ll make my move!”
With a chuckle, Sun Qiang’s hefty fist was raised, and with a loud shout, he struck towards his young master. His robust strength, like a breached river, surged forward tumultuously.
“Indeed, there’s quite an improvement!”
Zhang Xuan hadn’t expected such significant progress from the other party and was slightly taken aback, yet he met the punch with his own.
Bam!
The fists collided, and Sun Qiang’s face twisted immediately. The next moment, he was sent flying backward, crashing into the courtyard.
“Not bad, you’ve made quite some progress…”
Zhang Xuan nodded in approval but then became puzzled, “Since when did you break through to the Divine Soul Realm?”
He was genuinely shocked.
He knew very well what kind of talent Sun Qiang possessed. Zhang Xuan himself hadn’t broken through, and yet this man had successfully advanced several major levels overnight… Could that even be real?
Struggling to his feet, Sun Qiang looked dejected.
“`
I thought that breaking through to the Divine Soul Realm, I would be much stronger than Young Master, and wanted to show off a bit, but in the end, I still got knocked out by one punch… It’s really quite miserable.
“Here’s what happened…”
Sun Qiang recounted the events of the previous night in detail.
“You mean to say… that Ling Buyang’s soul left his body to come kill you, but he was stunned by the Source Pool, and then his soul energy was consumed by Heaven’s Path zhenqi, allowing you to break through in one fell swoop?”
Zhang Xuan’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Is that even possible?
Luck can’t be this good, can it?
After all the hard work I’ve put in, spending a whole five or six days to cultivate to the peak of Jade Bone Realm, and this guy, in just one night, becomes stronger than me…
However, because the improvement was too rapid, although he had the strength of the Divine Soul Realm, his power was extremely unstable, not even reaching 99 horsepower!
Of course, for this guy, strength doesn’t matter. As long as he has the realm, it can deter others from taking rash actions, and he can do a lot of things.
“No, that’s not right… Ling Buyang is dead, and it seems like things have escalated!”
After his reflection, Zhang Xuan furrowed his brow.
This was a formal Fate Master of the Heaven Mandate Hall; scaring him was one thing, but if he died at the hands of my housekeeper, once the news spreads, no matter how well I disguise it, I’ll certainly be captured as a Mandate Chaos Master!
“After you absorbed Ling Buyang, has no one come looking for you?”
With this thought, he couldn’t help but ask.
“Nope!” Sun Qiang shook his head.
The night was very peaceful; there was no news at all.
Zhang Xuan was puzzled.
This was a Fate Master, and furthermore, a high-ranking Dharma Form Realm expert; one of the very top in Baiyan City. For such a person to be killed and for him to still have a tranquil night seemed off, very off.
“I’ll step out for a moment…”
Feeling that something was strange, he was just about to go out to gather some information when he heard the sound of urgent knocking from outside.
“Is Elder Zhang here? School Head Lu Mingrong and Yu Longqing request an audience…”
The voice of Lu Mingrong was heard.
“School Head Lu, please come in!”
Zhang Xuan waved his hand, and Sun Qiang quickly opened the door, soon ushering in Yu Longqing and Lu Mingrong with grave expressions on their faces.
“Elder Zhang, something big has happened…”
Upon entering the courtyard, Yu Longqing lowered his voice.
“Oh?” Zhang Xuan looked over.
Yu Longqing said, “Haven’t our City Lord Residence been following Lord Ling’s orders the past two days, locking down the city gates and thoroughly checking the travelers coming in and out? When we opened the city gates this morning, we found a traveler who deliberately disguised his true appearance, which seemed suspicious. So, the guards at the gate delayed him and quietly notified the City Lord Residence. I happened to be free, so I took the Cangbai Eagle with me to take a look. At first glance, I was startled… The traveler who disguised himself to mix out of the city turned out to be… Xu Xin!”
“With his high status, a single word would suffice if he wanted to leave, so why disguise himself?” Zhang Xuan wondered.
Setting aside Xu Xin’s peak Jade Bone Realm cultivation, his status as a Life Guardian meant even the city lord dared not offend him lightly, yet now he wanted to sneak out in secret…
“I had the same doubt, so I went to greet him, but then…”
Yu Longqing continued, “Seeing that I recognized him, he struck immediately, trying to forcefully break through the checkpoint. Although his strength is not bad, it is still far less than mine, so… I captured him. After questioning him, I found out… it seems, it seems like Lord Ling, is already dead!”
As he said this, the city lord looked cautiously at the young man in front of him, wondering if he was the one responsible.
“Yes, I am already aware of that. Last night his soul left his body and he tried to sneak attack me, but he was killed by Sun Qiang…” Zhang Xuan nodded.
Exchanging glances, both Yu Longqing and Lu Mingrong’s eyes bulged in disbelief.
Soul detachment, sneak attack, easily killed…
Such niche vocabulary, every word is understandable, but why do they seem incomprehensible when strung together?
Wait a minute… Sun Qiang?
The two experts turned their heads to look at the chubby man nearby, their fists unconsciously tightened.
This ordinary housekeeper, wasn’t he only in the Accumulative Phase? Could he really kill a Dharma Form Realm Fate Master?
Could it be… that he had been hiding his true strength all along?
“*Burp*~~”
Feeling the intense gaze from the two men, Sun Qiang felt a bit shy and inadvertently let out a burp as he lowered his head.
This inadvertent action let his internal power leak out.
“Spirit Soul Realm, Eightfold Realm of Source Pool?”
City Lord Yu and School Head Lu simultaneously felt their vision darken, once again too stunned for words.
Just yesterday, he was merely in the Accumulative Phase, but today he was already in the Divine Soul Realm; even a fool could understand one thing… he was disguising himself!
Otherwise, there’s no way that the simple progress could be this drastic!
If they guessed correctly, this Divine Soul Realm was not his true cultivation; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to quietly, easily eliminate a high-ranking Dharma Form Realm expert without even disturbing the next courtyard.!
The fact that their housekeeper was a super expert beyond the Divine Soul Realm, and their own talents were incredibly powerful… In an instant, the young man before them became even more mysterious.
Without a doubt, he must be the son of some great clan; there’s no escaping it!