Chapter 435 - 307: Shocking the World (Part 2)

Chapter 435: Chapter 307: Shocking the World (Part 2)

As he spoke, a powerful pressure bore down on the outsider. After he finished, he paid the man no mind and turned to enter the city. This was none other than Meng Li, who had just rushed back from the Imperial Capital.

Upon hearing someone speak ill of Ling Xiao, the ever-taciturn Meng Li had originally wanted to teach the man a lesson, but he decided against it. ’The Young Master must have his reasons for acting this way.’ He never expected that his own retort would prove so prophetic, laying out the Zhe Family Sword Emperor’s crimes almost perfectly.

It took a long time for the visiting Adventurer to come to his senses after Meng Li left. He broke out in a cold sweat. ’No wonder they say Penzes City isn’t what it used to be,’ he thought. ’It’s teeming with powerful experts. A Great Sword Master here might not even measure up to a gate guard. I didn’t believe it at first, but some random, ordinary-looking person in the crowd just unleashed a pressure that nearly broke me. Penzes City... It looks like I’d better keep a low profile.’

It was impossible to say how many times such incidents occurred that day.

Whenever someone questioned the Lord’s excessive cruelty, another person would immediately refute them. If anyone tried to resort to violence, a squad of uniformed soldiers would appear out of nowhere. They were all as fierce as wolves and tigers, and what’s more, they all unbelievably possessed the strength of at least a Great Sword Master!

In any case, in the eyes of the common people, Adventurers, and Mercenaries, the Lord of the city might just be a villain. But Penzes City had long become a major metropolis frequented by the hidden family clans and sects. The High-Tier Sword Emperor from the Zhe Family had been recognized on the very first day!

If Ling Xiao’s actions had earned him a ruthless reputation in the hearts of many commoners, then in the eyes of the hidden family clans and sects, it caused a massive uproar!

In an instant, countless messenger hawks shot into the sky from Penzes City!

’What is he planning to do?’

This question echoed in the minds of everyone from the hidden family clans and sects who received the news.

Another thought also occurred to them: Ling Xiao’s nerve... was really, truly, too damn big! So audacious it defied the heavens!

’What kind of power does Ling Xiao truly possess? How dare he so openly challenge a first-rate family clan? Is he absolutely confident of victory?’

These questions left the members of the family clans and sects feeling so uneasy they could neither eat nor sleep.

「Three days later.」 A massive notice was posted on the tall wall of Penzes City’s north gate!

The notice was concise, and its meaning was roughly as follows: "Zhe Family, you once annihilated my Ye and Su Families, slaughtering thousands! Not one soul—not the old, the weak, the women, or the children—was left alive. After the massacre, you set fire to everything, thinking no one would ever know what you did. But Heaven never completely seals one’s path. Of the thousands in the Ye and Su Families, I alone survived, living a wretched existence for nearly twenty years. Today, the time has finally come to collect the debt you owe, with interest. Killing this Tier Four Sword Emperor of yours... is only the beginning!"

The moment the notice appeared, it was like a giant boulder had been dropped into already murky waters, setting off another tidal wave of shock!

The common people who had originally thought Ling Xiao’s methods were too cruel suddenly understood the Lord’s actions. It was obvious he was avenging someone else, as the notice mentioned the Ye Family and the Su Family.

Although they didn’t know why the Ye and Su Families had been annihilated, such an act truly defied the imagination. That was true savagery!

There is a saying about pulling up a weed by its roots, but not just anyone was capable of actually slaughtering an entire clan of several thousand people.

When the news reached the hidden family clans and sects, they all had a sudden realization. The massacre of the Su Family, a hidden family clan, had shocked the other clans and sects for a long time back then, even making them all feel a sense of peril. Now, nearly twenty years later, someone had returned for vengeance. In light of that, killing one member of the Zhe Family was nothing. Even if a hundred of them were killed, no one would think it excessive.

You reap what you sow.

’When you slaughtered their entire clan, did you never think that someone might one day return for revenge?’

「In the western Lanyue Empire, at General Ling Tianxiao’s military encampment by West Lake.」 Ling Su and Ling Tianxiao, along with several hundred of his most trusted personal guards, secretly hurried toward Penzes City, escorted by Tiger.

「To the north, in the Ling Family’s fief of Chakna.」 The big-bearded Lingzhi roared to his formidable subordinates after receiving a letter, "Alright! Starting today, we’re leaving this damn place! Go back and get ready! We begin a forced march tonight!"

「In the Imperial Capital, at the Ling Mansion.」 One late night, after giving the butler some instructions, Lady Ling took Ling Yun’Er and mounted the clown that had come to fetch them, heading south.

「Also in the Imperial Capital.」 Huangpu Yue and Yisha both furrowed their brows as they read a handwritten letter from Ling Xiao. Huangpu Yue gave a somewhat helpless smile and said, "Yisha, why don’t you... go back first? Our business here has just gotten off the ground, and it’s booming. I don’t think we should just give it up like this! Besides, those people are targeting Ling Xiao. Everyone knows you’re his woman, but I’m different. I’m just his business partner. So, I don’t think it’s necessary to make such a big deal and go back too!"

Yisha gave Huangpu Yue a deep look. The two had been partners for over a year and knew each other quite well. Yisha was very clear about Huangpu Yue’s personality. It would be a lie to say she had no feelings for Ling Xiao at all, but Huangpu Yue seemed completely unable to accept the idea of a man having multiple wives and concubines. Therefore, she preferred to keep her distance from Ling Xiao and remain just an ordinary friend.