The Clan Was Wiped Out and Its Members Slain; Such Was Decisiveness
"Quick! Split up and break through! Every person who can escape is a chance!"
Gu Yongshi seemed to understand something, and his previous composure vanished, his voice trembling noticeably.
He grabbed Gu Qingyin and pushed her toward an elderly Purple Mansion Ancestor with white hair behind him.
"Third Grand Uncle, take Qingyin away! Through the secret passage beneath Lake Tai!"
"It's too late."
The divine voice, like the chilling ice of the deepest hell, descended from the sky.
Boom--!
Suddenly, eight streams of the Purple Mansion aura erupted from the surrounding area, like eight pillars supporting the sky, completely sealing off the entire Trouble-Dispelling Immortal Estate and even the surface of Lake Tai within a radius of 100,000 li.
Gu Yongshi looked up and his pupils contracted sharply. He saw a person standing in the center of the void, his hands forming a mudra, and a palm-sized ancient bronze seal hovering above his head, emanating a terrifying aura.
"The Ye Clan... Azure Nether Heaven-Suppressing Seal!"
"Fengyi!!!! It's that killer star!"
Lu Hongyuan gasped in shock, his expression changing instantly.
That was the Law Treasure of the Ye Clan's Golden Core True Lord Monarch, renowned far and wide, and fearsome in its power.
Legend has it that this was personally crafted by a Ye Clan True Lord of unparalleled talent and a penchant for destroying families and clans during the rise of the Cloud Mist Ye Clan. It was that True Lord who enabled the Ye Clan to build its foundation from scratch and achieve great things.
This seal can seal off a region and isolate all spiritual energy fluctuations. It is a first-rate weapon for killing, silencing witnesses, destroying clans, and annihilating realms! With this ancient seal in place, let alone a communication Jade Slip, even a full-force attack from Purple Mansion Peak would not be able to break through this seal in the slightest.
"The Ye Clan has gone mad! They're trying to wipe out Gu Lu!" Gu Yongshi's eyes were bloodshot, and his spiritual power surged wildly around him.
"Elders, let's fight!"
Before he finished speaking, he made the first move.
A jade-green longsword flew out from his sleeve, its blade wrapped in nine intricate spiritual patterns that transformed into nine water dragons, which then lashed out at Fengyi.
This is the [Lake Tai Chant], Purple Mansion Spirit Artifact passed down through the Gu Household for thousands of years. When fully activated, it can draw upon the power of the vast blue waves of Lake Tai, with enough force to cleave the void and cause chaos in the earth's veins and waters.
Its blade is like water, rippling with the vast and misty waves of Lake Tai that have existed for thousands of years.
At the same time, Lu Hongyuan also suddenly sprang up, slashing down with a crimson longsword. The blade's light transformed into a thousand-foot-long crimson tiger, roaring as it pounced towards the Ye Clan's Purple Mansion that appeared from the void.
Where the blade passed, space itself seemed to distort, and spiritual energy surged like a tide.
The three Gu and Lu Purple Mansion patriarchs also made their moves simultaneously.
A gaunt old man produced a bronze mirror, from which a blinding white light shone, freezing the air into ice crystals wherever it passed.
Another old woman waved her whisk, and thousands of silver threads transformed into a rain of arrows across the sky.
The last Purple Mansion, who appeared to be middle-aged, formed hand Hand Seals and activated the underground Spirit Vein. The entire Jiefan Spirit Mountain trembled, and countless boulders rose from the ground, crashing down on the eight Purple Mansion of the Ye Clan.
The combined attack of the Gu and Lu families' Purple Mansion was powerful enough to destroy a small Ruin Realm. The waters of Lake Tai were drawn by spiritual Divine Ability, transforming into towering waves that crashed towards the eight Ye Clan Purple Mansion with earth-shattering momentum.
The trees on Mount Jiefan were uprooted, the rocks collapsed, and the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi within a radius of dozens of miles was drained, forming a spiritual vacuum.
The guests were terrified and scrambled for cover. Some of the more timid ones collapsed to the ground, trembling. Even the slightest aftershock of the battle at the Purple Mansion was enough to annihilate Foundation Establishment cultivator.
However, Fengyi in the sky only glanced at it indifferently.
The Heaven-Suppressing Seal above his head rotated slightly, and circles of bronze-colored light rippled outwards. The nine water dragons collided with the light and instantly disintegrated, turning into a sky full of water mist.
The crimson blade's light was swallowed by the halo without even a splash. The white light of the bronze mirror, the silver threads of the whisk, and even the boulders that had been uprooted from Mount Lingshu, all turned to dust before the bronze halo.
"How is this possible..." Gu Yongshi's pupils dilated sharply.
But Fengyi wouldn't give them a chance to breathe.
He gave the order, "Start!"
The seven Ye Clan members in the surrounding Purple Mansion activated simultaneously.
The two on the left, a man and a woman, are both at the Purple Mansion Middle Stage. The man holds a crimson pill in his palm, burning with a ghostly blue flame, which is the Ye Clan's Pill Fire Secret Technique.
With a flick of his wrist, the elixir fire transformed into a rain of flames, engulfing the two Purple Mansion Ancestors, Gu and Lu.
The gaunt old man hurriedly activated the bronze mirror to defend himself, but the alchemical fire was incredibly strange, actually passing through the mirror's light and burning directly onto his sleeve.
The old man's face changed drastically, and he frantically pounded on the flames, but they only grew stronger and stronger, eventually engulfing his entire arm. "Ah--!" the old man screamed in agony.
Another old woman tried to help, but was stopped by the female cultivator from the Ye Clan. The female cultivator wielded a spirit sword, and her Swordsmanship was exquisite. Each strike was imbued with the immense spiritual power of Purple Mansion Middle Stage cultivator, forcing the old woman to retreat repeatedly.
The three Ye Clan Purple Mansion on the right joined forces to set up a spirit-restricting array.
The three stood in a triangular formation, their spiritual energy intertwining to form a large golden net that enveloped Gu Yongshi, Lu Hongyuan, and the middle-aged man's Purple Mansion.
Before the net even arrived, Gu Yongshi felt a terrifying binding force, causing his spiritual energy to stagnate and making it difficult to even breathe.
"Break!" he shouted, unleashing the full power of Lake Tai Chant to cleave the net, but the Sword-Ray was bounced back the instant it touched the golden net.
Lu Hongyuan also slashed wildly, his crimson longsword transforming into countless blade shadows, but the golden net tightened more and more, like a net from heaven and earth, leaving no way to avoid it.
The last two Ye Clan Purple Mansion hovered on the outer edge of the battle circle, holding Law Artifact and vigilantly watching their surroundings to prevent anyone from the Gu or Lu families from taking advantage of the chaos to break through.
Eight against six, and Fengyi is Purple Mansion Peak from the Ye Clan —this is far beyond what ordinary Rogue Cultivator or Purple Mansion from small clans can compare to.
The Ye Clan is a top-tier power that oversees all the heavens. Its Grand Purple Mansion Great True Person has been guided by the Golden Core True Lord since the Foundation Establishment. The Cultivation Method, elixirs, and Daoist insights they have gained are all among the best in the world.
Among those of the same level, Ye Clan's Purple Mansion cultivator was already capable of fighting two opponents at once, let alone Fengyi, a Purple Mansion Great True Person renowned throughout the world. This battle was unfair from the very beginning.
"Disciples of the Gu Clan, heed my command!" Gu Yongshi shouted sternly, "Form the [Jiefan Heavenly Spirit Formation]! Today, it's a fight to the death! Fight your way out for the Gu Clan!"
Before the words were finished, a desolate horn sounded suddenly from the depths of the Gu Clan mansion, piercing through the spiritual mist, the killing formation, and the void for hundreds of miles, carrying the tragic and resolute legacy of the Gu Clan Lineage.
Seventy-two Foundation Establishment Late Stage elders of the Gu Clan flew out from all directions, each holding a light blue array flag embroidered with ancient runes. This was the [Jiefan Heavenly Spirit Formation], a killing array obtained by the Gu Clan clan's ancestors from the fall of Emperor Wu and the collapse of the dynasty.
Legend has it that the Gu Clan's ancestor was once a general under the King of Wu, and was most skilled at using water formations to trap and kill.
This formation uses seventy-two array flags as a guide, drawing upon the power of the vast blue waves of Lake Tai, transforming gentle water into sharp blades, turning calm into raging torrents, dispelling all worries, and slaying all enemy leaders!
Seventy-two battle flags waved simultaneously.
The waters of Lake Tai rose in response! The vast expanse of blue waves seemed to be seized by an invisible giant hand, and a hundred-foot-high wall of water rose from the ground, crashing down towards the eight Purple Mansion of the Ye Clan.
That water wall contains not only lake water, but also the deadly Divine Ability [Overturn Worries] imprinted within it by generations of the Gu Clan family's Purple Mansion.
Even before the water wall arrived, the feeling of being able to overwhelm and crush all worries was already overwhelming.
Faced with this earth-shattering attack, Fengyi merely raised his eyelids slightly.
"A trivial skill."
He extended his right hand, his five fingers loosely clenched.
A wisp of wind gathers in my palm, initially extremely light and gentle, like a breeze brushing against the willow tips, carrying the unique chill and desolation of autumn's Lesser Yin.
But in an instant, this wisp of wind transformed into a Azure Nether Wind that reached the heavens and the earth, soaring straight into the sky!
[Azure Nether Intent] -- The first Divine Ability of the Ye Clan in the wind category, taking the meaning of the Azure Nether sky to assist the sternness of the autumn wind and cleanse all the troubles of the world.
This Divine Ability has been improved over several generations by the Ye Clan's Golden Core True Lord, and is far superior to the incomplete versions circulating outside.
The Azure Nether and the water wall collided with a deafening roar.
There was no earth-shattering explosion, no deafening roar of spiritual energy dissipation. The hundred-foot-tall water wall was sliced apart by thousands of invisible blades the moment it touched Azure Nether Wind, turning into a sky full of water mist, which was then swept away, dispersed, and evaporated by the autumn wind.
The waters of Lake Tai surged back, shattering dozens of pavilions and towers along the shore.
Gu Yongshi's face turned pale, and his body trembled slightly.
A mournful cry emanated from the Lake Tai Chant in his hand, and the watery luster on the sword dimmed slightly. "As expected of the Great True Person of the Ye Clan..." he murmured to himself, a trace of despair flashing in his eyes.
He was not without the ability to fight against ordinary Purple Mansion Peak cultivators, but behind Fengyi was the foundation of the entire Ye Clan's Golden Core power—the accumulated Cultivation Method, improved Divine Ability, and combat experience from generation to generation, which was simply incomparable to Lineage like Gu Lu's, which only had Purple Mansion cultivators.
But he was, after all, the head of the Gu Clan family, a powerful expert in the Purple Mansion Late Stage.
Despair lasted only a moment before being replaced by madness. "Elders, follow me!" Gu Yongshi bit his tongue, spitting Essence Blood onto Lake Tai Chant.
The sword suddenly shone brightly, and the waters of Lake Tai surged once more—this time not a wall of water, but nine water dragons!
Nine-bend water dragon, nine turns in Lake Tai!
Each water dragon contains the imprint of a Purple Mansion Divine Ability of the Gu Clan. When all nine water dragons are unleashed together, it is a combined attack from nine Purple Mansion!
At the same time, Lu Hongyuan also moved. The crimson longsword in his hand burst forth with dazzling blood light, and lines of ancient runes appeared on the blade.
That was the Lu Clan's millennia-old killing formation—[Tiger Minister's Roar].
Legend has it that the ancestors of the Lu Clan were once valiant generals under the King of Wu, renowned for their bravery.
This formation is based on killing and using bravery to defeat the enemy; once a single strike is unleashed, no one can withstand it!
"Kill!" Lu Hongyuan roared, and the crimson blade light transformed into a hundred-foot-long tiger, covered in blood, which pounced on the eight Purple Mansion cultivators of the Ye Clan.
From the direction of the ancestral tombs of the Gu and Lu families, three ancient auras soared into the sky.
The three patriarchs of the Purple Mansion, who had been in seclusion for many years, finally broke out of their seclusion.
The elderly man at the head of the group had white hair and beard, and a withered face, but his eyes were frighteningly bright. He was Gu Yu, the previous patriarch of the Gu Clan family, Purple Mansion Peak cultivator who had secluded himself for a hundred years in search of a sliver of a chance to break through to the Golden Core stage.
"Who dares to offend the Gu Clan!" Gu Yu's voice was as cold as ice from the deepest hell, filled with fury at being disturbed from his seclusion.
With a single glance, he grasped the situation—eight Ye Clan Purple Mansion experts, led by the renowned Grand True Person Fengyi.
Gu Yu's pupils contracted slightly, but he showed no sign of backing down. "The younger generation is incompetent, allowing others to bully them."
He snorted coldly, and an ancient seal appeared in his hand. It was pitch black and engraved with the words "Relieve Trouble," a treasure left by the founding ancestor of the Gu Clan clan—the [Jiefan Spirit Seal].
When the ancient seal was unleashed, Lake Tai was completely agitated.
The entire Lake Tai was stirred up, transforming into a gigantic hand that blotted out the sky, slamming down fiercely towards the eight Purple Mansion of the Ye Clan.
The giant palm of Lake Tai descended, the Nine-Bend Water Dragon roared, and the Crimson Blood Tiger pounced, unleashing a pressure comparable to the Purple Mansion Peak, like a mountain collapsing!
The world has lost its color!
The rocks on Mount Jiefan were reduced to dust under the impact of spiritual energy, the nine jade pillars of Trouble-Dispelling Immortal Estate were completely shattered, and the light from the exploding spiritual pearl bloomed like fireworks.
Faced with this earth-shattering attack, Fengyi finally became serious. He looked up at the colossal hand of Lake Tai that blotted out the sky.
Looking at the roaring, winding water dragon, the blood-soaked crimson tiger, and the combined attack of numerous Purple Mansion, a faint smile appeared on his lips.
"It's somewhat interesting."
"In the past, Gu Jiefan and Lu Huchen were praised by the Wu ruler for their bravery and relied upon as the Great Wall of the Jianghuai; among the immortals of Jiangnan, none surpassed the four surnames, Sun became the Lord of the Heavenly Palace, and the names of Gu and Lu were renowned throughout the world!"
"Then let me weigh them!"
He took a deep breath and slowly raised his right hand. In that instant, the wind in the world stopped.
It was not disappearance, but submission. All the winds, whether they were the lake breeze on Lake Tai, the mountain breeze, or the gale from the heavens, seemed to sense the arrival of the king, and all stopped, awaiting that command.
The body desires stillness, but the wind never ceases; this is the Azure Nether Intent heavens above!
Then Fengyi's hand fell.
It was his second Divine Ability, and also his newly refined [Autumn Clears the Universe].
The supreme divine Divine Ability bestowed upon Qiu by the True Lord is derived from the clarity of autumn and the purification of the universe.
Where the autumn wind passes, all things wither and decay, and the world becomes clear and bright!
This Divine Ability was created and performed by Ye Zhanqiu himself. Ye Jinyu obtained it from her father, Ye Zhanqiu, for Fengyi, and it contains the supernatural Divine Ability of autumn's destiny.
Only Purple Mansion Great True Person of the Ye Clan can cultivate this!
Its power is terrifying, far surpassing ordinary Purple Mansion Divine Ability.
An invisible autumn wind spread from Fengyi's palm, without color, shape, or even sound.
But everyone felt its presence—it was an atmosphere that encompassed all things in the world within the desolate chill of autumn.
The giant palm of Lake Tai was the first to touch the autumn wind. The thousand-foot-long water palm stopped in the autumn wind, and then began to disintegrate inch by inch from the center of the palm.
It wasn't shattered, but rather its vitality was stripped away by the "desolate" feeling in the autumn wind, turning into a sky full of stagnant water, helplessly falling into Lake Tai.
The Nine-Bend Water Dragon followed closely behind. The nine water dragons roared and rushed into the area of the autumn wind. After struggling for only a moment, they seemed to have their souls taken away, and turned into nine water columns that collapsed with a crash.
The crimson tiger managed to hold on for a little longer.
It burned with the murderous aura of the Lu Clan, and defied the autumn wind to rush up to within ten feet of Fengyi.
But that's all.
Fengyi didn't even glance at it, but simply blew a breath, which turned into a gentle breeze that brushed against the red tiger's head.
The tiger let out a mournful cry and vanished into a cloud of blood mist.
Gu Yu's face turned deathly pale, and the Jiefan Seal a crisp sound as a crack appeared.
"Grand True Person Ye Clan... Is this the Grand True Person who emerged from the forces of the heavens...?"
He murmured.
He secluded himself for a century, boasting that he had reached the Purple Mansion Peak, but only today did he realize that—even among those at the Purple Mansion Peak, the difference between having True Lord overseeing the inheritance is as vast as heaven and earth.
But he was, after all, an ancient monster who had lived for hundreds of years, and his willpower was far beyond that of ordinary people. In just an instant, he rallied and shouted sternly, "Gentlemen, today it is either him or me who dies! I offer up my remaining lifespan as a sacrifice, and beg my ancestors to appear!"
He bit his tongue, spitting out three mouthfuls of Essence Blood, which he then sprinkled onto the Jiefan Seal from Troubles.
The ancient seal emitted a buzzing sound, attracting an even more ancient and terrifying power from the depths of Lake Tai —a wisp of remnant soul imprinted in Lake Tai before the death of the Gu Clan Clan's founding ancestor, a peerless expert who was almost able to comprehend the Golden Core Dao Domain and [Minute Subtlety] realm.
It is called the Great Wall of the Gu Clan, Lake Tai is as blue as water!
Lake Tai is boiling!
A phantom figure rose from the bottom of the lake, clad in ancient Wu armor, wielding a long halberd, its gaze sharp as lightning. Though the figure was ethereal, it exuded an aura powerful enough to suffocate even Purple Mansion Peak.
"Our ancestors have appeared to us!" Gu Yongshi exclaimed, trembling with excitement.
Gu Yu's face was ashen, his lifespan of a hundred years had been burned away, and his aura plummeted from the Purple Mansion Peak.
"Ancestor, kill him!" he roared hoarsely.
The illusory figure opened its eyes and its gaze fell on Fengyi.
"The Ye Clan... Wind Element..." An ancient voice echoed from the void, carrying the vicissitudes of a thousand years.
"Back then, I fought alongside the Ye Clan's ancestors... but today, we must meet on the battlefield."
He raised his halberd.
The waters of Lake Tai surged once more, and this time the entire Lake Tai became his weapon.
The vast expanse of blue waves transformed into a thousand-foot-long halberd, thrusting towards Fengyi.
This strike has already touched the threshold of the True Lord Dao Domain.
Fengyi finally changed.
He formed a hand seal, and his body shone with Azure Nether light, with eight pillars of wind rising from the ground and swirling around him.
Each pillar of wind was a [Azure Nether Intent], and when all eight were unleashed together, it represented the full power of him as Purple Mansion Great True Person the Ye Clan's Purple Mansion.
These eight wind pillars, improved under the guidance of the Ye Clan Golden Core True Lord, resonate with each other and cycle endlessly, far surpassing the eight supernatural Divine Ability pieced together by Rogue Cultivator.
The autumn wind is bleak and the weather is cold; the grass and trees wither and the dew turns to frost.
Fengyi let out a low groan and thrust both hands out forcefully.
The eight wind pillars merged into one, transforming into a sky-piercing Azure Nether hurricane that collided violently with the thousand-foot-long water halberd!
The heavens and earth are clear and still, all things are withered and lifeless!
Boom--!
Heaven and earth fell silent.
The waters of Lake Tai were blasted into the sky, turning into a torrential downpour that covered an area of thousands of miles.
The mountains snapped in half, and the Trouble-Dispelling Immortal Estate was reduced to complete ruins.
The guests huddled in the corner were thrown back by the aftershocks, and some vomited blood and fainted on the spot.
The smoke and dust cleared.
Fengyi stood there, his robes disheveled, a trace of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
But the light in his eyes shone even brighter.
The illusory remnant soul of the Gu Clan ancestor finally dissipated after this collision.
The Jiefan Seal shattered completely. Gu Yu collapsed to the ground, barely breathing, having fallen from the Purple Mansion Peak to the brink of death.
"No... impossible..." His eyes widened. The remnant soul of his ancestor, along with the combined forces Purple Mansion the Gu and Lu families, couldn't even shake the Great True Person of the Ye Clan!
Is this the kind of Grand True Person cultivated by a powerful force like the Ye Clan's myriad realms?!
Gu Yongshi's face was ashen.
Lu Hongyuan's hand holding the knife trembled.
This is not a difference in cultivation level, but a difference in foundation— the Ye Clan has True Lord presiding over them, thousands of years of accumulated Cultivation Method Divine Ability and supernatural abilities, and generations of passed-down combat secrets.
The Gu and Lu families, at their strongest, are only at the Purple Mansion; how could they possibly be a match for them?
Fengyi wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said calmly, "If you have any other tricks up your sleeve, then bring them on."
Behind him, the seven Ye Clan Purple Mansion stepped forward in unison, their spiritual energy surging.
For both the Gu and Lu families, defeat is inevitable.
But at that moment, the crack in the Thunder Nether Grotto-Heaven above the nine heavens suddenly widened!
A terrifying bolt of lightning struck down from the crack, hitting Lake Tai squarely!
A hundred-foot-high wave surged up again, this time not by the Divine Ability the Purple Mansion, but by the might of Heaven!
The celestial abode has collapsed!