Ruthless and Merciless, Uprooting the Grass and Eradicating the Roots

Thus, facing the attacks of Qi Yuanzong and the others, Zheng Yi showed no fear and instantly struck back.

The Soul Devouring Banner in his hand bloomed with a cold, ghostly radiance. The enormous black funnel formed by the many Netherworld Soldier Vengeful Spirits behind him suddenly expanded, like a gigantic turtle shell that directly enveloped Zheng Yi within.

At that moment, the terrifying attack of Qi Yuanzong's Three Talents Sword Formation had already arrived before him.

A tremendous collision rang out. Sharp sword cries howled amid the wails of ghosts and the shrieks of spirits, while piercing Soul-Capturing Demonic Sound shockwaves spread in every direction.

Then, three enormous Ghost Claws, each four or five meters in diameter, emerged from that massive black barrier.

The Ghost Claws were jagged and pitch-black, their bones covered in sharp spurs and their nails curved like hooks as they viciously seized the three Flying Swords.

Amid piercing, twisted shrieks, the three Flying Swords were caught firmly. Their sword bodies warped beneath the terrifying force, as though they would snap apart the very next instant.

The entire Three Talents Sword Formation was completely broken. Surging black mist, like a roaring tide, swept forth on waves of chilling wind, and Zheng Yi's silhouette gradually emerged.

"Not good! Netherworld Ghost Claw?"

"This is a top-grade Soul Devouring Banner of the Qi Refining Stage!"

"How is this possible?"

"A mere junior at Qi Refining Stage Four..."

Qi Yuanzong's expression changed drastically, as though he had seen something inconceivable. He immediately formed hand seals, trying to retrieve the Flying Swords.

But Zheng Yi had been waiting precisely for them to act. How could he possibly allow them to recall their Flying Swords so easily?

He continued waving the Soul Devouring Banner. An endless stream of Netherworld Soldier Vengeful Spirits poured forth from within, and in an instant, several of them howled as they trapped the Flying Swords.

Their sharp claws continuously tore at the blades. As Sha Qi relentlessly poured into them, crack after crack began to appear across their smooth, sharp surfaces.

"No!"

Amid Qi Yuanzong's miserable roar, the smooth, sharp Flying Sword shattered outright. The Flying Sword linked to his mind was torn apart, and he could not help but spit out a mouthful of blood.

The other Qi Family members behind him fared no better. Their Flying Swords shattered one after another, and their auras rapidly weakened.

"The three Qi brothers have committed acts of grave rebellion, openly violating sect regulations. Today, as an Inner Sect Garrison Envoy, Zheng represents the sect in placing them under compulsory detention."

"Yet the Qi Family has gone utterly mad, intending to murder a superior envoy."

"Not only did they refuse to surrender, they instead escalated matters, attempting to destroy the evidence and perish together."

"Zheng had no choice but to employ ruthless measures, putting an end to both our lives..."

Zheng Yi shouted as he continued waving the Soul Devouring Banner in his hand.

As the Red-Clothed Female Ghost, the banner's main soul and a Yin Soldier, appeared, the Sha Qi in the sky shuddered. Her terrifying presence directly weighed down upon everyone's hearts.

Those frail miners were struck by the dreadful pressure and immediately fainted.

"Ambitions as savage as wolves, a heart as ruthless as a butcher's!"

"My Qi Family has operated the Ba Dong Town Mine for a hundred years, guarding this place for the sect. Even if we have no merit, we have endured hardship!"

"You actually want to wipe us out to the last?"

Watching Zheng Yi's movements, Qi Yuanzong froze. A terrible feeling rose in his heart, and he suddenly shouted.

His voice was loud, but it carried unmistakable panic and unease.

Originally, as the Qi Family head, Qi Yuanzong had not regarded Zheng Yi, who was merely at Qi Refining Stage Four, as a threat at all.

He believed the other party was only throwing his weight around here because he failed to see the situation clearly, using his status as a sect envoy to seek personal gain.

Qi Yuanzong had originally believed dealing with such a greenhorn would be as easy as turning his hand over. He could even directly charge him with a crime, then smooth things over above and below, allowing the Qi Family to safely weather this calamity.

After all, in the Da Yi Immortal Domain, it was common knowledge that those of higher cultivation could suppress those of lower cultivation.

Moreover, Qi Yuanzong was at the peak of the Qi Refining Middle Stage, with cultivation at Qi Refining Stage Six, along with numerous helpers at the fourth and fifth layers. Suppressing Zheng Yi should not have been difficult.

Yet he had never expected that this newly promoted Inner Sect Disciple, whose cultivation was merely Qi Refining Stage Four, possessed a Soul Devouring Banner that was actually a top-grade Qi Refining artifact. The ghosts hidden within had already been refined into Yin Soldiers, and there was even a main soul that had reached the heights of Qi Refining Seventh Layer.

Let alone dealing with him alone, it could easily suppress the entire Qi Family put together.

He could not help regretting why he had not been more cautious when they first met. In his desire to give the other party a show of force, he had acted so aggressively that he had directly handed Zheng Yi an opportunity to strike.

Only now did he realize that the Inner Sect Disciple who had arrived had targeted their lives from the very first move, utterly intent on killing them all.

"You concealed the true state of the mineral vein and set up the Nine Yin Gathering Evil Vein Termination Array. It seems your Qi Family had harbored rebellious intentions decades ago, perhaps even before joining the Soul Devouring Sect..."

"You parasites who disregard sect laws, engage in favoritism and fraud, and harm the sect's interests still dare cry injustice, claiming yourselves to be the sect's loyal pillars?!"

"What a colossal joke."

"Zheng has come bearing the sect's token, and I shall sweep away this demonic miasma, restoring a Bright and Clear World to the sect."

"As for your Qi Family, colluding together in disgrace and harboring divided loyalties, you have already committed crimes deserving death..."

"Even if I eliminate every one of you today, it will be a campaign with just cause."

"Family Head Qi, now that matters have come to this, words are useless. Why not surrender with your hands bound? You may yet keep your corpse intact. Otherwise, do not blame my Soul Devouring Banner for showing no mercy..."

For the sake of the sect's interests, exterminating an affiliated family was not a major matter to Zheng Yi.

Especially since the Qi Family had handed him such a perfect target themselves. The Nine Yin Gathering Evil Vein Termination Array was an evil formation that harmed the Heavenly Dao, directly ruining the feng shui of an area and severing its spiritual vein. Its caster would inevitably suffer backlash.

Within the sect, this was a path to certain death.

No one could save the Qi Family.

He had learned from the Internal Affairs Hall that a disciple stationed in a place like him represented the sect's dignity. If an affiliated family was truly found to be causing harm, he had the authority to make decisions on the spot, so long as he could account for them to the sect afterward.

The Nine Yin Gathering Evil Vein Termination Array alone was enough to nail the entire Qi Family to the wall.

What was more, the Qi Family's record over the years was far from clean.

Pull up a radish, and the mud came with it. Once the Qi Family fell, there would be no fear of failing to uncover their crimes.

Many people might even rush to present him with irrefutable evidence of the Qi Family's wrongdoing.

Doing this would certainly offend the Qi Family's backers within the Soul Devouring Sect, as well as many whose interests were tied to them.

But in Zheng Yi's view, a small family like the Qi Family was already in decline.

There was not even a single Qi Refining Late Stage cultivator in the clan. Even if they had backers in the sect, they were likely no important figures.

With what Zheng Yi was doing today, he intended to eliminate the Qi Family, this black sheep among the flock.

Demonic sect cultivators were sinister and vicious. For the sake of cultivating Demon Arts, there was nothing they would not do. Kill a hundred at random, and there would not be even one who had truly died unjustly.