Chapter 18

The two figures flew backward at the same time, then slammed heavily into the ground, shattering a massive boulder.

Jia Lie Bi and Yun Xi spat blood, their eyes filled with shock as they stared at the young man from the Xiao Clan.

They had never imagined that this young man of the Xiao Clan would be so powerful. Both of them were peak Nine-Star Grand Fighting Masters, yet even joining forces, they had failed to harm this Xiao Clan youth in the slightest.

"This kid from the Xiao Clan is absurdly strong..."

"Yeah. With such terrifying strength, I'm afraid no one in Wu Tan City can suppress him."

At that moment, seeing that even their side's three Nine-Star Grand Fighting Masters could not defeat Xiao Ming despite attacking together, the allied forces of the two great clans had already begun to stir uneasily.

Seeing this, Xiao Ming decisively raised the Gungnir in his hand above his head.

Then silver light flashed.

Everyone present was blinded by the dazzling radiance emitted by Gungnir.

"Kill! Kill!"

Before anyone had recovered from the blinding light, Seven Baleful Intents, who had long been lying in wait nearby, received the signal from Xiao Ming and immediately led all the men of Black Demon Stockade in a charge from behind the allied forces of the two clans.

Though Seven Baleful Intents did not lead many men, there were still five or six hundred of them. Clad in black armor and wielding long halberds, they exuded a vicious aura like incarnations of slaughter, wildly cutting down the warriors of the two clans. With every strike, an allied cultivator was defeated.

"Damn it... damn it... Where did this fellow come from? We didn't gather even the slightest bit of information about him."

Jia Lie Bi, grievously wounded and unable to rise from the ground, saw this scene and felt his eyes split with fury. Seeing the combat power displayed by the Xiao Clan and Black Demon Stockade, he could not help cursing inwardly.

The Xiao Clan's strength was simply too terrifying.

"It's too late to realize that now."

"Our reinforcements still haven't arrived. We're bound to be buried here today. Those people from Black Demon Stockade are utterly hateful."

"..."

Jia Lie Bi and Yun Xi's expressions shifted uncertainly. They knew how terrifying the Xiao Clan was, but they had already been driven into a corner. Only by fighting to the death might they have a sliver of hope for survival.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Just as Jia Lie Bi and Yun Xi made up their minds to risk their lives, several figures suddenly shot toward them from the distance.

All of them wore black robes and looked rather strange.

The Xiao Clan members' attention was immediately drawn toward them. None of them had expected Jia Lie Bi and the others to still have reinforcements.

"Who are these people?"

Ao Bapa frowned, confusion showing in his eyes.

Yun Xi shook his head, indicating that he did not know.

Yet when the black-robed figures drew near, the terrifying aura around them immediately intimidated everyone. Some could not help but drop to their knees.

The black-robed figures' target was Jia Lie Bi.

Seeing this, Ao Bapa and the others immediately became wary. However, these people made no move, merely standing silently to the side as if waiting quietly.

Jia Lie Bi and Yun Xi exchanged a glance, and a trace of hope rose in their hearts. Could these black-robed people be from the Jia Lie Clan?

But Jia Lie Bi and Yun Xi quickly dismissed the thought.

The moment these people appeared, they directly cleared out every allied cultivator surrounding the three of them.

Then, surrounded by these people, Xiao Ming came before Jia Lie Bi and the other two and slowly crouched down.

Looking at the three men before him, now powerless to fight any further, Xiao Ming's lips gradually curved upward.

In his memories, aside from Yun Xi, whom Jia Lie Bi had somehow found, Jia Lie Bi and Ao Bapa had spent their earlier days throwing their weight around and committing all manner of outrages.

Yet in the span of a single day, these two had been severely wounded by his own hands and reduced to their current state.

For a moment, Xiao Ming was filled with emotion.

Sure enough, sometimes strength was the hard truth that determined how everything unfolded.

"Who exactly are you people?" Even though Jia Lie Bi knew that all hope was lost, he still unwillingly stared at Xiao Ming and asked coldly, "We don't seem to know you. We bear no grudge against each other, so why are you targeting us like this?"

"We bear no grudge against you?" Hearing Jia Lie Bi's words, Xiao Ming immediately laughed, his eyes full of mockery. "Jia Lie Bi, Ao Bapa, do you really think we bear no grudge against you? Back then, you joined forces with other small clans in Wu Tan City and tried to wipe out my Xiao Clan atop the city walls. Afterward, you even wanted to take advantage of the chaos to seize our Xiao Clan's resources. Do you intend to deny that debt as well?"

Hearing Xiao Ming's words, Jia Lie Bi and Ao Bapa's faces turned even paler, but they still forced themselves to remain composed as they retorted, "Xiao Ming, we don't understand what you're talking about. We merely had occasional trade dealings with your Xiao Clan."

"Oh? Is that so?" Xiao Ming cast the two a contemptuous glance and said indifferently, "Our Xiao Clan traded with you, yet you used all kinds of despicable methods to seize Xiao Clan goods. Was that not a violation of the rules of trade?"

"Y-you're talking nonsense." Jia Lie Bi's face flushed red. "That never happened. Don't slander us!"

"Slander?" Xiao Ming could not help laughing loudly at that.

"Heh. Do you think we don't know about all the ugly things you've done?" Xiao Ming said coldly. "Jia Lie Bi, Ao Bapa, do you admit your crimes?"

"Y-you're spouting nonsense! We have no idea what you're talking about. Don't falsely accuse us!" Jia Lie Bi roared through gritted teeth.

"Falsely accuse you?" The corners of Xiao Ming's lips lifted slightly, and a trace of amusement flashed through his eyes. "Fine. Since you refuse to admit it, I won't force you. In any case, from today onward, the two of your great clans will no longer exist in Wu Tan City."

As they spoke, the allied forces of the two clans had long since been completely wiped out by Black Demon Stockade and the Xiao Clan disciples.

Watching the cultivators of the two clans kneel before them and beg for mercy, Jia Lie Bi and Ao Bapa both closed their eyes in pain.

They knew that from this day forward, there would no longer be a place for their two great clans in Wu Tan City.

After the Xiao Clan disciples finished clearing out the enemy, they quickly split into two groups. Led by Seven Baleful Intents, Xiao Zhan, and the others, they headed toward the territories of the two clans. Since the two clans' guard forces had already been utterly annihilated, their internal defenses were now exceedingly weak. This was the best opportunity to uproot both clans completely.