Chapter 143 - 142: Slaughtering the Xu Family

Chapter 143: Chapter 142: Slaughtering the Xu Family

Lu Zhao stepped into the Liuu Family Marketplace. The air was a mixture of scents: the fresh, herbal fragrance of Spiritual Materials, the medicinal aroma of Pills, and the gamey stench of Low-Tier Demon Beast hides. The medley of smells unexpectedly eased his mind, but he had no time to linger. He pushed through the bustling crowd and walked straight to the Sect’s local post, where he found Qin Feng handling official business.

Qin Feng was processing a new batch of business. Seeing Lu Zhao enter, a smile appeared on his face. "Junior Brother Lu, you’re back? The deadline for your mission is up. Are you planning to return to the Sect with the next Cyan Feathered Eagle?"

Lu Zhao cupped his hands, his voice calm and steady. "Brother Qin, the mission is indeed complete. However, I’d like to travel around Northern Wilderness County for a while longer, so I won’t be returning to the Sect just yet."

Hearing this, Qin Feng’s hands paused. He looked up and studied Lu Zhao carefully. He saw that Lu Zhao’s aura was composed and his gaze profound, a clear sign that his Cultivation had progressed. Understanding dawned on him.

He nodded, his tone tinged with a reminder. "Since you’ve decided, Junior Brother, there’s no issue. Just be aware that the Sect’s trips to and from this place are on a fixed schedule. If you don’t go back this time, the next Cyan Feathered Eagle to pick people up will be in three months. You must calculate your time carefully so you don’t delay any Sect affairs or miss a mandatory mission deadline."

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Qin. I understand." Lu Zhao gave a slight nod, said no more, and turned to leave the General Affairs Hall’s temporary post in Northern Wilderness County.

After leaving the post, Lu Zhao deliberately chose to walk through desolate and deserted alleyways. He was flanked by low, messy shanties, the gurgle of sewage in the hidden drains beside him like a mournful cry.

Lu Zhao walked to the end of a dim alley, one piled high with junk and reeking of mildew.

His Divine Sense spread out silently, instantly encompassing a radius of several dozen yards. After confirming that not even a rat or ant could escape his notice, he activated the Breath Concealment and Shapeshifting Skill within his body.

A dense series of faint CRACKLES sounded as his bones shifted. The muscles all over his body writhed and stretched unnaturally. His facial skin visibly coarsened and darkened. A vicious scar, like a centipede, suddenly tore its way from his left brow bone, slashing diagonally down to his right cheek. In an instant, his handsome and composed demeanor was shattered, replaced by the fierce, malevolent aura of a ruffian who lived on the edge.

He had already shed the black Steward Robe that represented order, trading it for a set of rough, short-fitting hemp clothes, faded from washing and covered in stains. His entire body now exuded a complex odor of beast blood and sour sweat.

The Lu Zhao of this moment was a completely different person; even those who knew him best would not have recognized him.

He navigated the shantytown on the edge of the Marketplace with practiced ease, twisting and turning through the labyrinthine alleys until he finally returned to the Black Market within the Liuu Family Marketplace. Once again, Lu Zhao sought out the old man who dealt in information.

It was the same dim, secret room. Lu Zhao sat down brazenly, his voice now coarse. "I’m buying information. I want everything you have on a Qi Cultivation Clan from Northern Plains County—the Black Cliff Valley Xu Family. The more detailed, the better. I especially need their current foothold in Northern Wilderness County, the Cultivation levels and Cultivation Technique characteristics of their experts, their daily routines, and which factions they’ve been in contact with recently."

The old man’s murky eyes scanned Lu Zhao’s face, as if assessing the value and risk of this transaction. He fell silent for a moment. "The Black Cliff Valley Xu Family? A minor clan from Northern Plains County... Wait a moment, I’ll go check my records."

He rose, his back stooped, and pushed open a secret door at the back of the room—one that was almost perfectly blended with the wall—and vanished through it.

About fifteen minutes later, the old man reappeared, holding a thin, worn-edged scroll of animal hide.

"We have something," the old man said, spreading the hide scroll on the table and pointing to the few lines of text and a crude map. "But the Xu Family only just arrived in Northern Wilderness County, and they’ve been keeping a low profile, so our records are sparse. We only know that their clan is currently holed up in Qingshi Town, about two hundred li northwest of the Marketplace. There’s a Tier One Middle-Grade Spiritual Vein there, and they’ve built a ’Cyan Stone Castle’ on it, which should be protected by a Tier One Middle-Grade Array."

"The one with the highest Cultivation in the clan should be the Patriarch, Xu Cheng, at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer. The specifics of his Cultivation Technique are unknown, but he seemed to have gained some minor fame in Northern Plains County years ago for his Fire Cloud Technique. As for his actual strength, we don’t know."

"As for the other members, they’re mostly at the Mid-stage or early-stage of Qi Cultivation and aren’t much of a threat. More detailed information, like the clan’s internal Array layouts, the location of their Warehouse, or who their close contacts are... we don’t have that."

He lifted his eyelids and looked at Lu Zhao. "This is all I have. Twenty Spirit Stones."

Lu Zhao’s gaze swept over the hide scroll, memorizing the location of Qingshi Town and the outline of the crude map. He gave a quick glance at the key information marking Xu Cheng as "Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer" and his use of the "Fire Cloud Technique." Without hesitation, he took out his Storage Bag, counted out twenty Lower Grade Spirit Stones, and pushed them across the table.

The old man deftly swept up the Spirit Stones and pushed the hide scroll with the information to Lu Zhao. "Payment received, transaction complete. No matter what happens next, I’ll keep my mouth shut."

Leaving the Black Market, Lu Zhao’s figure once again disappeared into the Marketplace crowds. Another fifteen minutes later, he had completely left the Marketplace’s borders and stepped into the boundless wilderness of Northern Wilderness County.

He found a rocky hollow sheltered from the wind and, by the light of the sky, unfurled the crude hide scroll once more.

’Two hundred li to the northwest, Qingshi Town, a Tier One Middle-Grade Spiritual Vein...’ His fingertip traced the map, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.

The intelligence was brief, but the core information was sufficient. For a clan whose strongest combatant was only at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer, it would not be a difficult matter for him to take down every Cultivator in the Xu Family with one Thunderous Strike.

His target clear, Lu Zhao delayed no longer. He pushed the Wind Manipulation Technique to its limit, his body becoming a faint, barely perceptible gray blur as he sped northwest. The wilderness wind whipped past his disguised, scarred face, carrying the unique coarseness and chill of Northern Wilderness County.

After more than two hours of rapid travel, Lu Zhao had stealthily approached the area indicated by the intelligence. He gave his surroundings a quick scan, then climbed a nearby low mountain with a wide field of view. Lu Zhao lay prone behind a jagged, strangely shaped rock and peered down.

At the foot of the mountain, a simple, ancient-looking town built from stone rested against the mountainside. It wasn’t large, but it exuded a stern, imposing air. The town walls were high and thick, and one could faintly see traces of Spiritual Power flowing along them—it was clearly protected by a defensive Restriction.

In the center of the town, a much taller complex of buildings, like a small fortress, sat atop a Spirit Vein node. The Spiritual Qi there was dense, several times richer than in the surrounding area. Above the fortress, a nearly invisible, faint black curtain of light shimmered, emitting the Spiritual Power fluctuations of a Tier One Middle-Grade Array. This was Cyan Stone Castle, the current foundation of the Xu Family.

’So it really is a Tier One Middle-Grade Spiritual Vein and Array...’ Lu Zhao thought with understanding. This level of defense would be an impenetrable fortress to ordinary Wanderers or small bands of robbers, but to him, it was nothing much. ’Still, I need to get a clear picture of the Xu Family’s personnel first. If possible, it’s best to confirm I haven’t misunderstood anything.’

For the next while, Lu Zhao became the most patient of hunters. He lay in wait on the mountain, concealing his aura, while his Divine Sense spread out below like an invisible spiderweb. He meticulously perceived everything: the mortals hurrying in and out of the town gate, the wary expressions of the patrolling guards, the faint wisps of Spiritual Power emanating from different areas within the castle... even the subtle ripples in the array’s barrier as the mountain wind blew past. Everything was under his surveillance.

「He waited like this for three full days.」

On the noon of the third day, the tightly shut gates of Cyan Stone Castle opened with a CREAK. An old man of about sixty, dressed in a brocade robe and with a Cultivation around the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer, walked out slowly, accompanied by a young man at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer. The old man had his hands clasped behind his back, his chin slightly raised, and an air of arrogance about him that came from being a big fish in a small pond. The youth, by contrast, appeared respectful and reserved.

’Second Elder...’ From the snippets of conversation drifting up from below and the old man’s aura, Lu Zhao judged that this must be one of the Xu Family’s key figures. ’Though the intel didn’t go into detail, a Cultivation at the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer makes him the strongest person in the Xu Family after Xu Cheng.’

’The target has finally appeared!’

Lu Zhao’s eyes narrowed. He slid silently down the slope and began to follow them from a distance. Xu Hua seemed to be on a routine inspection of the family’s property, or perhaps just taking a stroll. He ambled with the young man through a sparse patch of woods outside the town, discussing trivial clan matters, completely oblivious to the killing intent that was already upon him.

When they reached a secluded spot where the trees were relatively dense and far from the road, Lu Zhao saw his opportunity and hesitated no longer.

With a flicker of his Divine Sense, two Cyan Wood Giant Ape Puppets slipped silently from his Storage Bag. The instant they touched the ground, they transformed into two ferocious bolts of cyan lightning, pouncing straight at Xu Hua and his companion.

The Giant Apes’ heavy footsteps should have boomed like thunder, but under Lu Zhao’s exquisitely precise Divine Sense Manipulation, they only produced muffled, suppressed THUDS!

"Who’s there?!" Xu Hua was a Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer Cultivator, after all. He was instantly on alert, whirling around. His pupils contracted violently at the sight of the two ferocious Puppets charging at him! As for the youth, he was so frightened he was rooted to the spot, his soul nearly scared from his body.

His expression changed drastically. Reacting with extreme speed, the Spirit Light from a pale-yellow Jade Pendant on his body flared, instantly forming an earthen-yellow shield around him. At the same time, he roared, "Ambush! Send the signal!"

However, the Qi Cultivation Third Layer youth beside him was only just snapping out of his daze. He fumbled frantically to pull a Warning Talisman from his robes, but his movements were a clear beat too slow.

That one beat was all it took!

BAM! BAM!

Two muffled booms, like the beating of war drums, exploded almost simultaneously! The Cyan Wood Giant Apes’ heavy fists smashed viciously into Xu Hua’s protective shield. The earthen-yellow shield shuddered violently. Its Spirit Light flickered wildly and then dispersed as a dense web of cracks spread across its surface with a series of sharp CRACKS!

A terrifying shockwave passed through the nearly shattered shield and into his body. It felt as if a Giant Hammer had slammed into his chest, and a mouthful of blood surged up his throat.

The youth’s fate was even worse. He was struck directly by the other Cyan Wood Giant Ape’s fist. Before he could even scream, he was sent flying backward like a broken sack, slamming into a tree and slumping to the ground, his status unknown.

*Ptoo!* Xu Hua sprayed a mouthful of crimson blood. He could no longer suppress his churning Qi and Blood. At that moment, the shield from his Body-Protecting Spiritual Artifact shattered completely!

He stared in utter horror at the two cold, unnaturally powerful Puppets before him. Then he glimpsed the scarred figure emerging slowly from the shadows in the distance, and his heart sank. He knew he was probably done for this time.