"Wuwuwu..."
Sun Heyu struggled wildly, tears of regret streaming down his face.
"Ping'an, you did the right thing. If you don't pull out the weeds by the roots, they'll grow again when the spring breeze blows! If you repay kindness with enmity, what will you repay kindness with? Before we go, let me tell you about the other powerful members of the Sun Family..."
After a moment's thought, Zheng Hetong continued:
"Hmm... Besides the five Innate Martial Masters who appeared before us, and the one you killed earlier, the Sun Family should have five more Innate Martial Masters. The strongest among them is the Sun Family Supreme Elder, Sun Hongxi—a Half-step Grandmaster Realm expert."
"We only need to wipe out those four, and the rest won't be worth worrying about! But apart from Sun Hongxi, the other four Innate Martial Masters aren't at the Sun Family ancestral compound right now. They're stationed at the family's various properties."
"So we need to send people to keep an eye on these wings first, then clean them all out. Otherwise..."
Zheng Hetong clearly knew the number of powerful Sun Family members like the back of his hand. He explained it to Zhao Ping'an in a complicated tone.
"Master, you're right. A thief can only guard against thieves for a thousand days—there's no way to guard against them every day forever!"
Zhao Ping'an nodded and answered in an even tone.
He would never let anyone who might threaten the safety of his family and friends remain alive in this world. So after dealing with the Sun Family members in the city, he had one more thing to do, to make sure the Sun Family would never rise again.
The two of them brought Sun Heyu along and quickly reached the Sun Family ancestral compound in the western part of South Ridge City, using their Lightness Skill.
As one of the city's three great clans, the Sun Family's ancestral compound was more than twice the size of Zhao Mansion. At the tightly shut entrance, four guards stood bolt upright with sabers in hand. All of them were at the Houtian Martial Artist Realm Sixth Level, just one step away from becoming Blazing Blade Sect Deacons.
Zhao Ping'an didn't pause for a moment. His figure streaked past the four guards like a rainbow.
"Crack, crack..."
Four faint sounds of breaking bones rang out. Zhao Ping'an slapped the gate of the Sun Family ancestral compound.
"Boom!!!"
With a deafening crash, the Sun Family's gate shattered into pieces.
"Who's there?"
"We're under attack!!!"
The whole Sun Family was soon thrown into chaos. Cries, shouts, and screams rang out without end.
Holding Sun Heyu, the Sun Family Head, Zhao Ping'an led the way toward the deepest part of the Sun Family compound, with his Master Zheng Hetong close behind.
Every guard who blocked their path was sent flying with a casual strike from Zhao Ping'an. Sometimes he used a fist, sometimes a palm, but he didn't use any Qi at all—just the strength of his Body Cultivation.
Wherever he went, sabers snapped, swords broke, and bones shattered as people died.
The terrifying strength made Zheng Hetong's eyelids twitch behind him.
He had never seen anyone with strength so terrifying, and who never seemed to tire. Zhao Ping'an was like a primeval beast that had barged into civilized society, unstoppable by anyone.
"Who dares to run wild in my Sun Family?!!"
Suddenly, an aged figure in a blue robe, holding a black saber, rushed out of a secluded courtyard in the Sun Family compound and leaped onto the roof of a three-story pavilion. Looking down at them, he roared.
"A Grandmaster?"
Feeling the old man's aura, Zhao Ping'an murmured softly.
"What? A Grandmaster? Sun Hongxi actually broke through to the Grandmaster Realm!"
Zheng Hetong, following behind Zhao Ping'an, turned pale and cried out in shock.
A glimmer of hope appeared on Sun Heyu's terrified, despairing face as he dangled from Zhao Ping'an's hand. But Zhao Ping'an's next words plunged him right back into the abyss.
"Master, there's no need to worry. He's just a Grandmaster Realm First Level expert who only recently broke through. I can kill him with a casual strike!"
Zhao Ping'an dropped Sun Heyu, activated the Golden Eagle Soaring Technique, and shot into the air like a golden eagle, hurtling straight toward Sun Hongxi!
Having only recently broken through, Sun Hongxi was at the height of his confidence. Seeing Zhao Ping'an charging toward him, he drew his saber at once. A Saber Aura more than a foot long appeared along its blade, solid as a real object, and slashed down at Zhao Ping'an's head.
"Overestimating yourself!"
Zhao Ping'an barked. He turned his right hand into a blade, and a massive Saber Aura a zhang long appeared before Sun Hongxi's astonished eyes, slashing straight down at him as well.
The first style of the Eight Heavenly Gang Styles—Crescent Slash!
"No! Grandmaster Peak!!!"
"Clang!"
"Boom!!!"
After the clash of metal, the entire pavilion was cleaved into pieces, letting out a tremendous crash.
Then a figure burst through the billowing dust and appeared in front of Zheng Hetong in the blink of an eye. It was Zhao Ping'an, holding Sun Hongxi, who was barely breathing.
A massive wound stretched across Sun Hongxi's chest, from his left shoulder all the way to the outside of his right thigh. His innards were a mangled mess.
If not for the protective Qi of the Grandmaster Realm, his tenacious vitality, and the fine black saber in his hand, Sun Hongxi would have been split in two by Zhao Ping'an's casual strike.
Of course, in his current state, he'd have been better off dying outright.
"Master, send the signal and have the Blazing Blade Sect come clean up the mess. I'm sorry to trouble you, but take me to the places where the Sun Family's other four Innate Martial Masters are stationed."
"Alright!"
Without hesitation, Zheng Hetong pulled a Signal Flare from his robes and quickly lit the fuse.
"Whoosh!!! Boom!!!"
A huge red firework suddenly burst in the pitch-black night sky, lasting a full minute before slowly fading away.
The various factions around the city all looked up at the red firework and began talking among themselves.
"What's that? An emergency distress signal from the Blazing Blade Sect? I haven't heard of anything major happening to them lately. Protector Liu, go investigate!"
"Yes, Gang Lord!"
Frowning, Poison Wolf King Zheng Sandao issued his order in front of the Blood Snake Gang's assembly hall.
(The Poison Wolf Gang was one of the five great powers of South Ridge City, alongside the Blazing Blade Sect and the Zhao Family. The other two were the Wang Family, known for making weapons, and the Qingyuan Escort Agency.)
This wasn't happening only at the Poison Wolf Gang. The Wang Family, Zhao Family, Qingyuan Escort Agency, and second-tier factions like the Blood Snake Gang and Iron Fist Sect all sent people to investigate.
The fastest to act, without a doubt, was the Blazing Blade Sect. No matter how much they quarreled within the sect, whenever trouble struck, they would unite and work together. That was the way to survive.
Soon, a team of fifteen swift horses came galloping from afar, entering Zhao Ping'an's field of vision.
Leading them was another Blazing Blade Sect elder who had been stationed in South Ridge City for a long time—the Second Elder, Song Feichen!
"Brother Zheng! What hap—holy crap, have you gone mad?!"
From a distance, Song Feichen saw Zheng Hetong and Zhao Ping'an standing in front of the Sun Family's gate and immediately called out to them. But he'd only gotten halfway through his question when he spotted the shattered gate and the Sun Family guards' corpses strewn across the ground. His face changed at once, and his voice twisted with shock.
A dozen or so seconds later, Song Feichen arrived at the Sun Family's gate with all the Blazing Blade Sect's elite fighters in the city.
They looked at Sun Heyu and Sun Hongxi lying at Zhao Ping'an's feet, at a loss for words.
Before you continue