"Song Changsheng! How dare you treat this Young Master like this? I swear I'll tear you into ten thousand pieces!!" Chang Tianhua let out a piercing howl.
But in the next instant, Song Changsheng slapped him twice more, and Chang Tianhua's furious roar came to an abrupt stop.
"Shut your stinking mouth. Say one more word and I'll cut out your tongue." Song Changsheng's voice was as cold as the winter wind.
Boundless killing intent filled his eyes. Chang Tianhua's heart trembled, and in the end, he still yielded beneath Song Changsheng's tyrannical pressure.
Everyone stared at Song Changsheng as though they had seen a ghost. He still dared to act so recklessly before a Foundation Establishment Cultivator?
The Earth Fire Sect elder's expression darkened as well, and a terrifying pressure radiated from his body. Yet Song Changsheng remained unmoved, standing straight-backed and meeting his gaze without fear.
For a moment, the atmosphere sank into an eerie silence.
In the end, Song Changsheng spoke first. "How should I address you, sir?"
"Hmph, this old man is Qu Jinsheng. Boy, my patience is limited. Release Tianhua, or every so often, I'll kill one member of your Song Clan!"
Qu Jinsheng looked at Song Changxiu and the others, issuing the threat without the slightest attempt to conceal it.
"Touch a single hair on their heads, and I'll immediately send your Young Master down to the Yellow Springs." Song Changsheng tightened his grip, refusing to yield an inch.
For a moment, Qu Jinsheng felt as though he were riding a tiger and unable to dismount. He could not help regretting it. He had only gone away briefly to drive off Demon Beasts, yet Chang Tianhua had somehow been captured alive.
"Why don't you just die?" Qu Jinsheng looked at Chang Tianhua with utter disappointment. If he had simply died, today's matter would have been much easier to handle.
Yet not only had he not died—he had become a prisoner instead!
"Boy, name your terms. What will it take for you to release him?" Qu Jinsheng ultimately compromised.
Song Changsheng loosened his grip slightly. "Your Earth Fire Sect trespassed into Song Clan territory and injured Song Clan Members. You must offer sufficient compensation!"
Qu Jinsheng endured his fury. "One hundred Spirit Stones."
Song Changsheng sneered and looked at Chang Tianhua in his hand. "I thought you were worth something, but it turns out you're only worth one hundred Spirit Stones. For one hundred, I'll return at most one of his hands."
As he spoke, he moved to wrench off Chang Tianhua's arm. Terror appeared in Chang Tianhua's eyes, and he immediately screamed, "Elder Qu, save me! Elder Qu, give him whatever he wants! Father won't treat you unfairly!"
Qu Jinsheng barked, "Enough! One thousand Spirit Stones. If you keep being so insatiably greedy, this old man would rather return to be punished than let you live!"
Song Changsheng stopped while he was ahead and nodded. "Let me inspect the goods first. If there's no problem, I'll release him."
"Hmph, aren't you afraid you'll choke to death?" Qu Jinsheng restrained the urge to slap Song Changsheng to death, took out a Universe Bag from his robes, and tossed it over.
Song Changsheng drew the Universe Bag over with Spiritual Power. Just as he was about to inspect it, having barely caught sight of the Spirit Stones, Qu Jinsheng—who had long been poised to strike—flicked out a strand of Spiritual Force straight at Song Changsheng's head.
"Shameless!" Song Changhu and the others were horrified. Just as they thought Song Changsheng was about to fall, a figure appeared before him. With a wave of a slender hand, she blocked the Spiritual Force.
"It's the Fifth Elder." Upon seeing the newcomer, the Song Clan Members were overjoyed. Now the two sides were equally matched.
When his Spiritual Force was blocked, Qu Jinsheng immediately understood that today's matter had become troublesome.
Song Changsheng saw the figure standing in front of him and smiled faintly. He had long guessed that the Earth Fire Sect might have a Foundation Establishment Cultivator traveling with them, so he had called Xia Yunxue for help on the way here.
Xia Yunxue had actually arrived a while ago. But since it had only been the younger generation fighting at the time, she had concealed herself nearby and guarded him.
Song Changsheng had received her signal and known that his powerful backing was nearby. Otherwise, he would not have made such a low-level mistake as getting distracted.
"You old bastard, you're shameless enough to attack a junior. Is this the sort of conduct your Earth Fire Sect is known for?" Baleful Intent filled Xia Yunxue's beautiful eyes as she furiously lashed out at Qu Jinsheng.
Qu Jinsheng's expression was ugly. He said coldly, "Elder Xia, watch your words."
Who would have thought that Xia Yunxue would grow even angrier at that? Pointing at his nose, she rebuked, "You old bastard, you dare do it but won't let me say it? Get over here and let me take your dog life!"
Everyone present suddenly sensed a familiar feeling. Right in that moment, it seemed someone had said something very similar not long ago.
"Could it be you truly think this old man fears you? Come up and fight!" Qu Jinsheng was a figure of some standing in Ling Province. After being cursed at like that, he could no longer save face.
"Get up here!" Xia Yunxue transformed into a rainbow light and flew into the air on her sword. Qu Jinsheng, his heart brimming with rage, chased after her.
Soon after, rumbling battle waves spread through the air. The people below looked skyward and could only see one blue and one red rainbow light constantly colliding in the sky. They could see nothing else clearly.
Song Changhu, who had recovered somewhat, nudged Song Changxiu beside him with his elbow and whispered, "Didn't they say the Fifth Elder was the gentlest among the family elders? Why does she seem even more hot-tempered than the Second Elder?"
Song Changxiu rolled her eyes at him. "Changsheng is the Fifth Elder's Reverse Scale. Whoever dares touch Changsheng, the Fifth Elder definitely won't let him off."
Song Changhu understood, once again sighing inwardly, Having a good mother really is different.
The same words carried an entirely different meaning this time than before.
Song Changsheng watched the battle situation in the sky anxiously. Both combatants were at the Foundation Establishment Early Stage, so it was truly hard to say who would win and who would lose.
But he had greatly underestimated the power unleashed when a mother erupted with all her strength. After they had fought for half an hour, a powerful flash of light flashed and disappeared in the sky.
A figure fell freely and smashed heavily into the ground. Everyone's gazes immediately converged on it, and after seeing who it was, the Song Clan side erupted into a burst of cheers.
On the other side, every Earth Fire Sect member wore an expression as ugly as if their own father had died.
Xia Yunxue returned to the ground on her sword. Her breathing was slightly rushed, but there were no obvious wounds on her body. It seemed she had won this battle completely.
"Cough, cough, cough." Supported by Earth Fire Sect Disciples, Qu Jinsheng struggled to his feet and said bitterly, "They all say the Song Clan's Fifth Elder is a pretty vase, pleasing to the eye but useless in a fight. Now it seems the rumors were wildly wrong."
"Hmph, you old bastard, you'd better give me an explanation today. Otherwise, I'll bury every last one of you here as fertilizer!" Xia Yunxue declared domineeringly.
"I already gave you one thousand Spirit Stones!" Qu Jinsheng snapped.
"That was to ransom that brat. You still need to ransom your own lives."
In the end, beneath Xia Yunxue's tiger-like might, Qu Jinsheng and the others scraped together more than a thousand Spirit Stones and used most of their belongings as collateral. Only then did they manage to preserve their dog lives and leave in disgrace, not even daring to utter a threat.
Xia Yunxue took out part of the valuables and distributed them among everyone. She kept the larger share for herself, while the thousand Spirit Stones in Song Changsheng's possession naturally belonged to him.
While Song Changxiu and the others treated Song Changhu's group's injuries, Song Changsheng said with some dissatisfaction, "Mother, why did you let them go just now? If Qu Jinsheng had died here, it would have dealt the Earth Fire Sect a serious blow—far more important than these paltry possessions."
Xia Yunxue reached out with a finger as tender as a scallion shoot and poked Song Changsheng's forehead. Rolling her eyes, she said, "Now you're lecturing your mother? Killing Qu Jinsheng would have been easy, but have you considered the consequences? The Lineage needs to develop steadily right now; it is not suitable to stir up great conflict.
"Besides, that fellow has had his vitality damaged by me this time and will be hard-pressed to amount to much in the future. And that Earth Fire Sect Young Master—didn't you also secretly tamper with him?
"Today, we've already taken every advantage. Let's spare their dog lives."
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