Huge Pressure, Soul Hall of Middle Continent!

Chapter Thirty-Eight

What happened at the Misty Cloud Sect spread through every corner of the Jia Ma Empire in just a few days.

The entire empire was immediately thrown into an uproar.

Everyone knew just how powerful and terrifying the Misty Cloud Sect was within the Jia Ma Empire. Yet now, shocking news had spread that the entire sect had been wiped out.

For the people of the Jia Ma Empire, this was undoubtedly an earth-shattering event.

As the matter spread like wildfire, Dou Zong Xiao Lin, the young Xiao Yan, the Three-Year Pact, and the mysterious Xiao Family, the central figures in the incident, became known throughout the Jia Ma Empire.

While the entire empire was shaken by this event, Jia Xing Tian received news that put him greatly at ease. He immediately dispatched a large army to Misty Cloud Mountain, seized all the Misty Cloud Sect's possessions, and completely sealed off the force that had made the ruler of the Jia Ma Empire unable to rest easy.

Of the Misty Cloud Sect's thousand-plus disciples, only those who escaped within three breaths managed to preserve their lives. Yet the hundreds who died all had families, and many of them came from various clans.

One could imagine what a tremendous blow this was to the clans that had lost their young talents. Some were unwilling to swallow such a loss.

This was because the surviving Misty Cloud Sect disciples truthfully explained everything. As long as they had been willing to leave, they could have lived.

Those people had been willing to follow the Misty Cloud Sect to the very end. Whether it was fate or self-inflicted ruin, no one could say.

However, some clans went to extremes and attempted to take revenge on the Xiao Family. Yet before the Xiao Family even needed to act, the Jia Ma Royal Family handled everything for them.

This included, but was not limited to, clans founded by former Misty Cloud Sect disciples, outer sect stewards of the Misty Cloud Sect, those who tried to secretly attack the Xiao Family, and those who had once had unclear ties with the Misty Cloud Sect.

With the Jia Ma Imperial Family taking action and the Mite'er Family lending assistance, the entire Jia Ma Empire became a scene of rolling heads and rivers of blood.

As everything connected to the former Misty Cloud Sect was erased and destroyed,

Misty Cloud Mountain began to change from its former strict and imposing state into a deserted, empty place. This mountain, once regarded by the people of the Jia Ma Empire as a Sacred Land for cultivation, would become an ordinary mountain range in the future.

Perhaps as time passed, even the name Misty Cloud Sect would gradually be forgotten in the river of time.

The ancient sect that had flourished in the Jia Ma Empire for hundreds of years quietly declined just like that.

With the extinction of the Misty Cloud Sect, countless sighs and laments rose throughout the empire. They had all witnessed the decline of a colossal force.

As they witnessed such a dramatic upheaval, the Xiao Family's name also spread throughout the Jia Ma Empire. Anyone with half a brain knew that the Xiao Family would likely become the next great power on the level of the Misty Cloud Sect!

Thus, the Jia Ma Empire's structure completely changed. The Xiao Family stood supreme.

The Jia Ma Royal Family ranked second, followed closely by the Mite'er Family and the Alchemist Association.

As for the other two great families, the Mu Family and the Nalan Family, they had now faded into obscurity.

The Mu Family was still fortunate, as its ties with the Misty Cloud Sect had not been especially deep. But the entire Nalan Family, including Nalan Yanran, had been directly imprisoned by the Jia Ma Royal Family, awaiting the decision of that member of the Xiao Family after he emerged from seclusion.

Wutan City. Everything in the Jia Ma Empire had begun here, so naturally, it would also end here.

When the Xiao Family returned to the Jia Ma Empire, not only had they suffered no casualties, but under Old Ancestor's orders, everyone could only cultivate.

Many could not endure the dull cultivation process. After cultivating all day, their minds nearly went numb from boredom. To relieve their troubles, they could only make babies for fun at night.

Therefore, when the Xiao Family returned this time, not only was no one missing, but quite a few more clan members were pregnant.

Deep within the Xiao Family estate, inside Xiao Lin's Study Room.

At this moment, Xiao Lin, Xiao Zhan, the Three Elders, and Xiao Yan were seated there.

Xiao Lin did not speak at first. Instead, he glanced at the expressions of these clan members. His son, Xiao Zhan, looked somewhat uneasy. The impact of everything was still rather great on him.

The Three Elders, meanwhile, were brimming with excitement, their eyes seeming to sparkle with golden stars. Ever since Xiao Yan made the Three-Year Pact and Xiao Lin injured people from the Misty Cloud Sect,

the three of them had lived in constant fear, afraid that one morning they would wake up to find the Misty Cloud Sect's army surrounding the Xiao Family.

And that their heads would be chopped off and sent to the Misty Cloud Sect Leader to be used as chamber pots.

But now, the Misty Cloud Sect had been destroyed, and the Xiao Family had risen. Their good days had finally arrived!

Finally, Xiao Lin looked toward Xiao Yan. There was neither joy nor sorrow on his face. Perhaps the goal of three years of cultivation had been achieved.

The spirit that had once been taut was suddenly released. Xiao Yan was completely lost and at a loss for what to do.

"Ahem!"

After coughing lightly twice and drawing everyone's attention, Xiao Lin began to speak. Yet his very first sentence left everyone baffled.

"Do you know the structure of the Dou Qi Continent?"

No one replied. Xiao Lin continued, "The Dou Qi Continent can roughly be divided according to location."

"Our Jia Ma Empire lies in the northwest of the continent. Besides us, there are also the Chuyun Empire, Luoyan Empire, Mulan Empire, Heavenly Snake Empire, Snake People Clan settlements, the Black Corner Region, and so on."

"It sounds immensely vast, doesn't it? Ordinary people would find it difficult to travel through all these countries and regions even in their entire lives."

"But I must tell you that the Dou Qi Continent regards its center as supreme. The farther one goes toward the edges, the weaker the natural environment, culture, and forces become."

"The central region of the Dou Qi Continent is immensely vast. It contains countless intricate forces and strange races that cannot be seen anywhere else. It is the most splendid region of the Dou Qi Continent, and also where most of the continent's peak experts gather."

"That place is called Middle Continent!"

After speaking, Xiao Lin paused briefly to give everyone time to think it over before continuing.

"On the surface, Middle Continent is said to have One Hall, One Tower, Two Sects, Three Valleys, and Four Pavilions. They are the Soul Hall, Alchemy Tower, Flower Sect, Tian Ming Sect, Fentian Valley, Binghe Valley, Yin Valley, Xingyun Pavilion, Fenglei Pavilion, Wan Jian Pavilion, and Huangquan Pavilion!"

After saying that, he glanced at Xiao Yan. One of the masters of Xingyun Pavilion was that Venerable Yao, Yao Chen!

"To those great powers, our Xiao Family is merely an ant that can be destroyed with a wave of the hand. If those great powers moved against our Xiao Family, then perhaps I would be the only one in the entire Xiao Family able to escape alive..."

Before Xiao Lin could even finish, the First Elder asked in confusion, "Uncle, don't joke around. We're far away in the northwest of the continent, separated from Middle Continent by hundreds of thousands of miles. How could we possibly become entangled with those superpowers?"

After he spoke, the other two elders also nodded. It was simply too unrealistic.

Xiao Lin smiled faintly. "When I went to Misty Cloud Mountain to destroy the Misty Cloud Sect some time ago, that old fellow Yun Shan summoned a Lu Protector in an attempt to save his life. Yet after that day, the Misty Cloud Sect was exterminated, and that old fellow Yun Shan died with his soul scattered..."

Hearing this, the Three Elders and Xiao Zhan all felt a sense of familiarity.

Why did this resemble the Misty Cloud Sect, which had brought them such immense pressure three years ago...

The First Elder tremblingly set down the teacup in his hand. His voice rose sharply as he asked, "Uncle, surely you aren't saying that Lu Protector..."

Xiao Lin glanced at the First Elder and gave his nephew an approving look, speaking word by word.

"That Lu Protector came from the One Hall among Middle Continent's One Hall, One Tower, Two Sects, Three Valleys, and Four Pavilions—the Soul Hall!"

"Smack!"

The Three Elders failed to sit steady and fell directly to the ground. Their legs trembled slightly as they struggled to support themselves.

"Old Master, Misty Cloud Sect Leader Yun Yun and Honorary Elder Gu He have already been captured..."

Suddenly, a message came to Xiao Lin from outside, causing his gaze to narrow slightly.