"E-Elder Zheng, did you do all this?"
Song Feichen asked carefully as he dismounted.
As the Blazing Blade Sect's Second Elder, he had weathered countless storms, big and small. Yet never had anything left him so shocked and cautious.
The Sun Family was one of South Ridge City's three great clans—a colossal force the Blazing Blade Sect couldn't afford to provoke. Its patriarch and Grand Elder were both Ninth Level Innate experts, and even the remaining nine Innate Martial Masters were more than enough to wipe out the entire Blazing Blade Sect.
But now, look at the Sun Family's two strongest fighters. They were sprawled on the ground like a pair of dead dogs, while the entire Sun Family Estate was in chaos.
"It wasn't me. It was my junior disciple, Zhao Ping'an—a Grandmaster Peak!"
Zheng Hetong explained. He spoke the last few words with a clarity and volume he'd never shown before.
He was afraid the Blazing Blade Sect members before him might say or do something wrong and offend Zhao Ping'an.
He was growing more and more unfamiliar with this junior disciple of his. Not just his terrifying cultivation, but also his ruthless attitude toward enemies—never sparing a single life, without the slightest hesitation—sent chills through the body of this old man who had spent decades in the martial world.
"What? Grandmaster Peak? Elder Zheng, you're not joking, are you?"
Hearing Zheng Hetong, Second Elder Song Feichen cried out in disbelief. The Blazing Blade Sect disciples behind him looked just as astonished.
"Hmm? Are you questioning my Master's words?"
Zhao Ping'an had no time to stand around chatting with them. His brows knitted, and a terrifying aura instantly pressed down on everyone.
"Uh..."
"All right, Ping'an. They're just shocked by your strength. They didn't mean any disrespect. We still have business to attend to."
"Hmph! Elder Song, send someone back to Feather Mountain to deliver word to Song Lieyang. Have him send people into South Ridge City at once and seize all the Sun Family's properties. It must be done before daybreak tomorrow. You're in charge of the Sun Family Estate and those two. I want a full accounting by tomorrow morning. Understood?"
At his Master's words, Zhao Ping'an snorted and withdrew his aura, then ordered Song Feichen.
"Yes, yes! I'll see to it right away!"
Song Feichen bowed, drenched in cold sweat.
By the time he raised his head, Zhao Ping'an and Zheng Hetong had already vanished into the night, their whereabouts unknown.
"What terrifying pressure. Grandmaster Peak! Unbelievable. Truly unbelievable..."
Song Feichen stared at the dark alley and the brightly lit Sun Family Estate, muttering to himself.
Soon, he came back to his senses and arranged for a trusted subordinate to ride out of the city at once, carrying word of everything to Song Lieyang, the Blazing Blade Sect's leader who was stationed at Feather Mountain. Song Lieyang was also his cousin.
Only then did Song Feichen lead his men into the Sun Family Estate to begin the bloody slaughter.
After Zhao Ping'an's purge, few Houtian Martial Artists remained in the Sun Family. They were utterly incapable of resisting.
In an instant, the entire Sun Family went from a place of commotion to a living hell. Apart from the servants who knew no martial arts, everyone else—men and women, young and old—faced certain death.
By daybreak, hundreds of Sun Family members lay on the cold ground. Only a handful had escaped by leaping over the walls.
News of the massacre had already spread through every faction, great and small, in the city, but they all stood aside and watched.
Whether they had been enemies of the Sun Family or close associates, not a single faction stepped in to interfere with the Blazing Blade Sect. They were all waiting for the situation to become clear.
Zhao Ping'an had been busy that night, too. First, he and his Master, Zheng Hetong, rushed to the Sun Family's two most important businesses in the city. The first was a huge pill workshop; the second was an auction house.
After killing the Innate Martial Masters stationed at both locations and gathering their valuable treasures in a safe place, the two left the city in the dead of night and raced more than a hundred miles to find the Sun Family's two important businesses outside the city.
One was a small Black Iron Mine; the other was a Medicine Mountain.
The Medicine Mountain in particular was the Sun Family's cash cow. Every year, it brought the family more than a hundred thousand taels of silver. Converted into the paper currency of his previous life, that was well over a hundred million in pure income.
What made Zhao Ping'an happy was that the Medicine Mountain could provide him with a steady stream of Deduction Points, and all he had to do was keep cultivating.
After clearing out the Sun Family's Innate Martial Masters and guards stationed at both sites, Zhao Ping'an and Zheng Hetong returned to South Ridge City at dawn.
He told his Master, Zheng Hetong, to return to the Zhao Residence first, to reassure Mistress and get some rest.
Zhao Ping'an straightened his clothes and strode toward the tallest and largest building in the city—the City Lord's Mansion.
The South Ridge City Lord's surname was Zhou. His name was Zhou Ruiming, and rumor had it he was the son-in-law of the Tiannan Prefecture Governor.
The Fourth Level Grandmaster at his residence had also been recruited through his father-in-law's connections. His name was Ouyang Yun.
"Who goes there? The City Lord's Mansion is an important place. Unaffiliated persons, keep your distance!"
It was just after daybreak. The side gate of the City Lord's Mansion stood open, and servants were coming and going, busy with their duties. The four guards at the entrance had just changed shifts and were at their most alert.
Seeing Zhao Ping'an stride toward them and head straight for the City Lord's Mansion, they immediately stepped forward and shouted at him.
"Hmm? Zhou Ruiming must have been up all night. Go tell him the person he's waiting for has arrived."
Zhao Ping'an let his Grandmaster Peak aura flash for an instant. It pressed the four guards into stumbling back before he spoke softly.
(He wasn't planning to reveal his Great Grandmaster cultivation for now. Grandmaster Peak was enough.)
"Please wait, sir. I'll go at once!"
The guard who had spoken bowed respectfully, hurriedly opened the gate, and rushed into the mansion.
The City Lord wasn't the only one who had stayed up all night. The guards had done the same. With one of the city's three great clans wiped out, no one with any standing had been able to sleep—only ordinary folk were exempt.
Before long, the City Lord's Mansion's main gate swung fully open.
A middle-aged man in a blue-black brocade robe hurried out. He had a square face, a pair of thin mustaches, and stood around five-foot-nine. He looked to be in his thirties or forties. He headed straight for Zhao Ping'an outside the gate.
Judging from his imposing stride, Zhao Ping'an guessed that this was Zhou Ruiming, the nominal ruler of South Ridge City.
Not far behind him followed a man who looked like a middle-aged scholar. It was Ouyang Yun, the strongest person in the City Lord's Mansion, a Fourth Level Grandmaster. He stared at Zhao Ping'an with a grave expression, his body tense.
"May I ask your name, young hero? I am Zhou Ruiming, City Lord of South Ridge City."
"I'm Zhao Ping'an, a direct disciple of the Blazing Blade Sect."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhou Ruiming ushered Zhao Ping'an into the City Lord's Mansion's reception hall.
At Zhao Ping'an's request, they dismissed the maids and guards, leaving only the City Lord and Ouyang Yun.
Zhao Ping'an then got straight to the point, explaining why he had come. In front of Ouyang Yun, he also revealed his Grandmaster Peak aura.
Before you continue