Great Scenery Plains, Wu Clan.
Inside the main hall, Wu Hecun lay prostrate on the floor, cold sweat dripping from his forehead. He had already reached Foundation Establishment, yet he could not muster the slightest thought of resistance. He did not even dare lift his head to look at the man in the seat of honor.
Across the bluestone tiles, five-colored venomous creatures crawled slowly. Centipedes, eaves snakes, scale vipers, jade toads, and scorpions surrounded Wu Hecun, gnawing at his flesh and even trying to burrow into his organs. Yet he dared not move or make the faintest sound.
Wu Shanchan, the former head of the Wu Clan, sat to one side. He looked pleadingly at the man in the seat of honor and said softly:
"Heyong, this..."
The man in the seat of honor wore an ink-blue robe. He had a dignified appearance and a pair of phoenix eyes. He raised his hand slightly, revealing beneath his broad sleeve a wrist covered in black curse script resembling bird-and-insect seal characters.
At his command, the five-colored venomous creatures below devoured Wu Hecun in an instant, leaving only a skeleton. Just before his death, he cried out once:
"Elder brother!"
"Enough, Heyong! How many people have you killed since your return? You..."
Furious, Wu Shanchan rose to rebuke him. But when those phoenix eyes turned his way, the five-colored venomous creatures below slowly fixed their attention on the old man. He dared say no more and could only sit back down.
"How has the Hollow Sword Gate been faring?"
Wu Heyong's voice was eerie, like a cold wind blowing through a valley, making the attendants below tremble.
"Reporting to the clan head, there have been rumors that Zuo Hemo succumbed to his grave injuries and passed away. Protector Xiang successfully broke