Ximen Ding!
Everyone stared at the black-robed Ximen Family head before them in utter disbelief. But after thinking it over, they felt relieved. After all, he was Ximen Qing's father. Blood was thicker than water. No matter how ruthless Ximen Qing was, he could not possibly bring himself to kill his own father.
In that instant, it was as though they had seized their only lifeline...
"Ximen Family Head, do you remember me? It's me, Little Wang. We had dinner together before..."
"And me, Ximen Family Head. Our families have always worked together..."
Such voices rang out without end, yet Ximen Ding seemed to hear none of them. He merely stared at Ximen Qing, bitterness on his face. "Enough. You've already become a God Lord. Can't you spare their lives? They... are people from the same city. We've lived together for so long. Do you really have to kill them all?"
Ximen Qing remained silent and instead asked, "Why did you come out? Are you trying to stop me?"
Ximen Ding looked at Situ Yao behind him and said with difficulty, "She... is only a child..."
Splat...
The sound of flesh being pierced rang in everyone's ears. They all looked at Ximen Qing in disbelief...
Even Ximen Ding was stunned. He slowly lowered his head and saw an icy gleaming sword ruthlessly piercing through his chest. He knew this sword better than anyone. It had accompanied him for years, and he had given it to Ximen Qing on his eighteenth birthday—the Ice Soul Sword!
Splat! The Ice Soul Sword was violently pulled free. Ximen Ding staggered and fell to the ground. The moment the Ice Soul Sword entered his body, terrifying cold energy had surged wildly through him. Had it not been for his God Lord physique, his body would likely have exploded long ago...
"Cough, cough, cough..." Ximen Ding coughed violently, yet what he coughed out were scarlet Ice Crystals!
He raised his eyes and looked at Ximen Qing ahead of him... His eyes glowed red, but there was not a trace of reluctance in his expression. There was only indifference... The Ximen Family head's eyes went vacant. He clearly had never expected this outcome...
"If Mother hadn't told me not to hate you back then, do you think you would still be alive today? Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish!"
"I... I know I wronged Shaohua... wronged both you and your mother... Shaohua passed away... I was heartbroken too... That is why I tried my best to make it up to you all these years... You hate me... Kill me... It doesn't matter... But don't keep going down the wrong path... Haven't you realized it? Your mind is gradually being eroded... The Creation God Sect definitely means you no good... Don't... keep making mistakes..." Ximen Ding spoke with great difficulty. His organs had already frozen solid.
Even speaking now had exhausted all his strength...
"Then... die! You can contribute some strength toward my foundation, and while you're at it, go down and keep my mother company!"
The Ice Soul Sword swung, completely ending Ximen Ding's life. The head of the Ximen Family, one of the four great families of Flowing Wind City, died at his own son's hands.
Witnessing a son murder his father with their own eyes, everyone fell into complete despair. It was over... He would not even spare his biological father, let alone them. Ximen Qing had truly gone mad...
Ximen Ding's body slowly dissipated... Ximen Qing no longer looked at him. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the pale-faced Situ Yao behind Situ Hao.
His figure flashed, and in an instant, he was standing before Situ Hao. Before Situ Hao could react, the Ice Soul Sword swept upward viciously. This strike carried Ximen Qing's full God Lord might!
The moment Situ Hao made contact, before he could react, the protective profound energy around him was instantly shattered by the freezing sword radiance. The sword radiance did not weaken as it rushed toward Situ Hao.
Splat... Situ Hao was struck by the sword radiance. A long gash split open across his body, raining blood through the air as he was flung far away like a punctured sack of blood...
"Waa... Father!" Situ Yao cried out in grief and agony as she looked at Situ Hao sprawled on the ground, covered in blood.
But her crying did not last long. Ximen Qing raised his right hand, and dense profound energy immediately locked around Situ Yao's neck, lifting her into the air by her throat...
Seeing Situ Yao being lifted up, Xiao Feng's pupils shrank sharply. He wanted to rush forward, but his powerless legs had barely taken a step before he stumbled and nearly collapsed again.
Qi Qingyun supported Xiao Feng beside him, worry filling her beautiful eyes...
Yet she did not step forward. The profound energy around her was in chaos, her aura fluctuating, while invisible sword intent gathered around her...
Ximen Qing looked at Xiao Feng, who was so weak he could barely walk straight, and his face filled with delight. He laughed loudly. "Divine Doctor Xiao, why are you in such a hurry? I'm giving you another chance..."
"I want you to kneel before me now and admit in front of everyone that you... are inferior to me!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Feng froze for a moment. He had expected Ximen Qing to humiliate him, but he had never expected it to be like this.
Thud!
The sound of knees hitting the ground rang out! It was Situ Hao!
He knelt on both knees, bracing himself with his hands on the ground. "Divine Doctor Xiao, I... I know this is selfish of me, but I only have this one daughter. She is the flesh of my heart. If there is a next life, I will work like an ox or a horse to repay the grace of this kneeling..."
Thud!
Another pair of knees struck the ground. It was Situ Xiu, Situ Yao's brother...
His voice was earnest. "Divine Doctor Xiao, I know that a man has gold beneath his knees... As for me, I only kneel before Heaven, Earth, and my parents. If I were asked to willingly kneel humbly before another person, even insult myself with my own words, I would rather die!"
"But... my little sister... My little sister has been kind, lively, and adorable since childhood. Yet now... she must suffer such a calamity. As her elder brother, I cannot escape the blame!"
"If... I had become stronger... none of this would have happened today... Other than Heaven, Earth, and my parents, I have never been willing to kneel before anyone... Divine Doctor Xiao... I... I beg you..."
"Uncle Situ... Brother Situ... You... get up quickly..." Xiao Feng said with difficulty, suppressing the blood churning within his body.
"I once made a promise to a girl... If I cannot even keep a promise made to a girl, then what use is the little bit of gold beneath my knees?"
He slowly stood up and was just about to bend his knees when a crying child's voice pierced directly into his soul...
"Waaah... Brother Feng... Don't kneel to the bad man... That bad man won't keep his promise at all... It's all because I held Brother Feng back... If you kneel, I... I'll die right now."
Ximen Qing watched Xiao Feng's expression with great interest. Situ Yao being able to speak was no accident. He had done it deliberately! He wanted to watch Xiao Feng make his choice, to see which humiliating path Xiao Feng would choose!
Would he kneel in humiliation and lose all dignity?
Or would he act as though it had nothing to do with him and refuse to kneel, losing all moral character?
If he could see hesitation and indecision on Xiao Feng's face, that would be even more wonderful...
What an amusing sight that would be.
"Hahahaha... Think quickly, Xiao Feng. You don't want to see another round of 'fireworks,' do you..." Ximen Qing laughed madly.
He knew... Xiao Feng knew... Perhaps even if he knelt, Ximen Qing would not spare her. But... even a one-in-ten-thousand chance... a one-in-a-hundred-million chance... was still better than none...
But before he could kneel, Situ Yao's choked voice reached everyone's ears. "Brother Feng... In this life... I was really so happy to meet you... Brother Feng... We pinky-swore that promise back then, and there was no punishment... Besides, Brother Feng has already kept me company...
"Don't blame yourself... Don't be sad... Otherwise... I'll feel terrible too. I won't be happy either..."
"I... I like Brother Feng... the most... Being able to see Brother Feng at the end of my life, having Brother Feng with me... really... made me the happiest..."
The instant her soft words fell, her eyes turned violet. Bolts of lightning churned within them, while lightning snakes slithered beneath her exposed fair skin...
Her pair of violet eyes shone brilliantly. The crystalline tears in them stood out all the more beneath the violet lightning...
"NO!!!!"
Situ Hao roared.
Boom!
A thunderous explosion erupted from Situ Yao's position... Lightning instantly burst in every direction...
The surging lightning filled everyone's eyes as Situ Yao's choked words echoed endlessly in their minds...
The shock in their hearts could not subside for a long time.
But when the lightning gradually faded and they looked over, it felt as though their hearts had stopped...
They discovered that a massive crater had appeared where Situ Yao had been...
And Situ Yao... she... left behind no bones, no blood... nothing at all. Only a single remaining crystalline droplet drifted down onto Xiao Feng's eye, proving that what had just happened was not a dream...
Lightning-element profound energy was known for its power and tyranny...
Xiao Feng's pupils lost all light. It was as if all strength had been drained from his body, and he collapsed limply to the ground.
Xiao Feng's five fingers dug into the ground, blood seeping from between them, yet he seemed not to feel it. He let out a grief-stricken, despairing cry. "It was me!! I was the one who dragged you down!!!"
His words entered everyone's ears, sending chills down their spines and into their hearts...
"Arrrghhhhhhhhhhh!..."
"Crack! Crack! Crack!!..."
Xiao Feng bit his teeth apart one by one. The sound of shattered teeth came from his mouth as blood flowed down his lips, staining his pale lips red...
"Ximen Qing... You'd better not let me live. If I survive, if I don't butcher you... then I, Xiao Feng..."
"WILL NOT BE HUMAN!!!!!"
Every word Xiao Feng spoke was filled with hatred!
Ximen Qing paid no heed to the vicious oath. Instead, a wanton laugh curled across his lips. "Hahahahaha... You don't have a chance, Xiao Feng!"
Yes... This was exactly what he wanted. He wanted to see Xiao Feng's despairing expression, while Xiao Feng could do absolutely nothing to him!
"Ximen Qing! I'll fight you to the death!" Situ Hao's eyes were bloodshot, his gaze splitting with fury.
He shot forward and charged straight at Ximen Qing. Seeing Situ Hao rushing toward him, Ximen Qing sneered. "You're courting death!"
He raised the Ice Soul Sword and pointed it directly at Situ Hao, cold radiance overflowing from the blade.
But Situ Hao did not evade at all. It was as though lightning snakes were swimming beneath the skin all over his body, and his eyes turned dark violet...
Splat...
The Ice Soul Sword ruthlessly pierced through his body, but Situ Hao acted as though he felt nothing. He wrapped his arms tightly around Ximen Qing and roared, "Let's die together!"
Thunderclap Annihilation!
The first Mystic Skill cultivated by everyone in the Situ Family who practiced the Thunderclap Art was Thunderclap Annihilation... Lightning-element profound energy possessed enormous power, but it was also exceptionally violent and difficult to control...
Thunderclap Annihilation... to destroy thunder, one must first destroy oneself. It was a terrifying Mystic Skill of mutual destruction!
"Damn it, let go of me!" Ximen Qing panicked. That little girl had only been at the Divine Origin Realm, yet using this Mystic Skill had produced such immense power. This time, the one using it was a Peak God Lord!
But before he could react, another figure wrapped their arms around him from behind. It was Situ Xiu!
"You killed my sister! I'll make you go down with me and accompany her in death!" Situ Xiu roared furiously.
Sensing another massive force erupt behind him, Ximen Qing's soul trembled uncontrollably beneath the lightning.
"Get off me!" Ice spikes emerged from his body and ruthlessly stabbed into Situ Hao and Situ Xiu, but neither of them moved. The pain of the flesh could never compare to the sorrow in their hearts...
"Yao'er... Your father... is coming to accompany you..."
"Little Sister... Your brother was useless... I'll use his life as your burial offering!"
Boom!
The might of Thunderclap Annihilation unleashed by God Lords far exceeded everyone's imagination.
Surging lightning continuously erupted from the center of the force. The dense lightning was so thick that no one could see what lay within...
And the lightning continued to rage without dispersing for a long time.
Everyone stared at the surging lightning, their hearts pounding violently. Finally... after a long while, the lightning faded away...
The instant the lightning dissipated, they felt as though they had returned to the world from a daze...
Sweat now covered their foreheads. They looked up and saw only a bottomless crater stretching for hundreds of miles...
Could it be... over...
Before you continue