If every last life were truly tallied, the souls that had stained Chen Qingxuan's hands over his lifetime were already numerous enough to fill an entire star field, beyond counting.
Qian Renxue gathered in all her thoughts, her gaze settling once more on the bedraggled Ning Fengzhi.
The last trace of compassion in her eyes vanished completely.
"Ning Fengzhi, your half an incense stick of time is up."
Her voice was cool and devoid of emotion as she asked coldly.
"Will you choose or not?"
Holding up his broken body through sheer effort, Ning Fengzhi slowly straightened his hunched back with his clansmen's support.
He slowly raised his dim, aged eyes, sweeping his gaze over every member of the Ning clan before and behind him.
Four generations of clansmen, the direct line and collateral branches, old and young, women and children-one terrified, despairing face after another came into view.
The choice between life and death weighed heavily on his shoulders alone. There was no retreat, no alternative.
After a long while, he raised his withered fingers, trembling, and pointed into the crowd with a shaking fingertip.
Her, her, her, her...
Everyone his finger singled out bore a different surname.
They were either daughters-in-law who had married into the Ning clan or sons-in-law who had married into the sect. Not one carried the blood of the Ning clan's direct line.
By the time he finished pointing, there were fifty-one in all.
All fifty-one instantly went rigid, their pupils contracting sharply as they stared at Ning Fengzhi in disbelief.
The deathly silence shattered in an instant. The next moment, towering fury, despair, and resentment erupted!
"Ning Fengzhi! How could you be so heartless!"
**"We worked diligently for the Ning clan for decades, shouldering every burden without complaint, loyal to the core, and