Chapter 179: Blockade

Lady Murong Xiaoya's slender figure stood silently before the open gate of the ancestral hall.

Lady Murong Zhen lay on his side on the high stone steps before the gate, a broken sword pierced through his chest, and around him lay a host of Lady Murong family members who had long been dead.

Blood slowly flowed from beneath these bodies, forming a cascade down the steps below, dyeing the ground scarlet.

On the left side of the inner courtyard, a remaining spirit screen was studded with broken blades like a tornado on all four walls; five elders wearing robes of the Four Great Families were all pinned dead by broken weapons.

"Little sister..."

As if sensing Lady Murong Xiaoya's arrival, Lady Murong Zhen struggled to open his eyes, blurred by blood, but no matter how he tried, he could not open them.

The next moment, Lady Murong Xiaoya, tears streaming down her face, suddenly threw herself to his side; her Bai Xi hands gripped the broken sword, her whole body trembling, unable to speak a word, she only sobbed:

"Second brother, why... why did this happen..."

Lady Murong Zhen slowly raised his scarred arm, and only by following the wound on his abdomen and the broken sword could he grasp Lady Murong Xiaoya's hand.

"Do not fear... the Lady Murong family is no more... but you must live on well..."

Lady Murong Zhen spoke weakly, his voice faint and inaudible, his entire body already on the verge of death.

Lady Murong Xiaoya wailed in despair; even though she poured true qi into Lady Murong Zhen with all her might, whatever she poured in dissipated immediately, utterly useless.

"Go... find... your Third brother..."

In his final moment of life, Lady Murong Zhen finally opened his eyes; he looked once at his little sister before him, then slowly drew his last breath.

"No..."

Lady Murong Xiaoya tightly embraced Lady Murong Zhen's corpse, her whole body weeping uncontrollably in the twilight.

In the ruin-like courtyard behind them, Hu Rui and others stood watching this scene, all silent and speechless.

Shen Anran's face showed reluctance; she wanted to step forward to comfort her, but just then, Lady Murong Xiaoya gently laid down Lady Murong Zhen's corpse, suddenly turned, and rushed into the ancestral hall, vanishing in an instant.

Shen Anran hurriedly tried to follow, but was stopped by Hu Rui reaching out to grab her, saying:

"The ancestral shrine is not a place for outsiders to enter. Although the Lady Murong family is gone, we should not enter without permission from the Lady Murong family."

Then, as if fearing Shen Anran would not be reassured, he spoke again:

"No one is inside the ancestral hall; Miss Lady Murong will be fine."

Hearing this, Shen Anran stopped her steps, and not long after, Lady Murong Xiaoya leaped out from a damaged eave, left from behind the ancestral hall, and then headed toward some place within the already ruined Lady Murong Fu.

Perceiving this, Hu Rui turned to look at Li Musheng; seeing the other person nod lightly, he moved his body, vanished from the spot, and followed in the direction of Lady Murong Xiaoya.

Within the study, half collapsed and destroyed, yellowed pages fluttered like butterflies amidst the wind of blood, fire, and dust.

On the single remaining vermilion-painted wooden pillar, a broken spear was thrust into Lady Murong Feng's skull, and twelve bronze nails pinned his limbs fast.

Lady Murong Xiaoya's figure stopped quickly; looking at the body before her, its face unrecognizable and scorched by fire, she wept while pulling out the bronze nails one by one, then reached out to yank the broken spear from the other's skull.

Only then did she place Lady Murong Feng's corpse on the flat ground of the ruins before the study.

She gazed for a long time at her brother's corpse before her, and finally darted into the study, which was still slowly burning.

Just then, several figures leaped continuously among the broken walls and ruins, rushing swiftly from not far away.

"It is Lady Murong Hong's youngest daughter!"

Someone saw Lady Murong Xiaoya, recognized her identity immediately, and at once charged toward this spot together.

But the next moment, a figure appeared in an instant, abruptly blocking the path of the four people:

"If you do not wish to die, leave quickly."

The four felt the terrifying martial arts aura from Hu Rui and immediately stopped their bodies in fear.

However, at this time, an old figure followed from behind the several people, arriving not far from Hu Rui in almost the blink of an eye.

"The Lady Murong family has been erased from the Jianghu as of today; you seem not to be of the Lady Murong family, so why wade into such muddy waters?"

The elder in the brocade robe squinted, staring at Hu Rui as he spoke.

Hu Rui looked at the other person once, then slowly shook his head:

"I am a man of the court; I have no intention of participating in the disputes of your Jianghu factions, but this girl has old ties with us, and I cannot stand by and do nothing."

Hearing this, the elder in the brocade robe's expression shifted slightly; after sizing up Hu Rui for a while, he suddenly asked:

"I heard that yesterday a group escorted Lady Murong Hong's daughter back to the provincial capital; could it be you and yours?"

Hu Rui did not conceal it; he simply nodded.

Seeing this, the elder in the brocade robe's entire face changed drastically; he immediately clasped his hands, bowed his head, and said:

"Just now, I was rash. Since you wish to protect this girl, naturally there is no problem."

Having said this, the elder in the brocade robe turned and angrily scolded the four people before Hu Rui, then immediately, without the slightest hesitation, took his leave and turned to depart.

Seeing this scene, how dared those four remain any longer; they also hurriedly followed the elder to leave.

After moving a distance away from Hu Rui, the four turned back to glance once, then asked the elder in the brocade robe ahead in confusion:

"Senior, just now that was Lady Murong Hong's daughter, the target the family heads ordered us to root out completely; why did you suddenly not act?"

Hearing this, the elder in the brocade robe turned back and glared coldly at them, saying:

"A bunch of fools; do you know how Bai Li Changfeng died? He was killed by a single finger-point from the expert behind the person just now."

"My strength is not even equal to Bai Li Changfeng's; do you want me to be point-killed too?"

At these words, the four were all stunned; immediately, each one's soul nearly fled in terror.

The death of Bai Li Changfeng had by now gradually spread; they had naturally heard of this matter.

Especially regarding the person who killed Bai Li Changfeng, everyone unanimously believed that the opponent must be a terrifying martial arts expert on the same level as the Laozu Sect of each family.

Hearing the elder in brocade say that the four of them had actually provoked that person's group, they were immediately filled with post-fear, as if they had walked a circle around the Gate of Hell.

"Enough; Lady Murong Hong's daughter's martial arts talent is average; she poses no threat to our Four Great Families, so there is no need to worry. We can fully find another opportunity later to root her out completely."

The elder in the brocade robe waved his hand, but his gaze turned to glance at the ruins of Lady Murong Fu before them; for a moment he sighed somewhat:

"Who could have thought that the number one martial arts family of the entire Shengzhou would be wiped out in a single day? Although we Four Great Families also paid an extremely heavy price for this, everything was worth it."

Hearing this, the four beside him immediately nodded in agreement together.

With the Lady Murong Fu destroyed, the Lady Murong family's assets accumulated over hundreds of years across Shengzhou will fall to the Four Great Families; this time, the Four Great Families will suffer no loss whatsoever.

At this moment, the old man in the brocade robe shook his head gently and said:

"We merely underestimated that Lady Murong Hong; to fight two members of the Weilaozu Sect alone, even in death, she died with honor!"

(End of this chapter)