Chapter 160: You Zhu family are indeed interesting

In an instant, endless blood qi surged forth, and a bloody, ferocious armor quickly appeared on Shen Qing.

The killing intent, like a heaven‑topping flood, shocked the Primordial Core cultivators behind him into trembling, as if this armor came from an ancient bloody battlefield, accompanied by the wails of countless dead.

The blood color continued to spread, even the Slay Dragon in his hand was covered with a layer of bloody blade.

This is one of the effects of the Slaughter Armor—even weapons can be strengthened.

In the next instant, Shen Qing shot into the sky, the supreme art Open Heaven running at full power; he swung a blade, a golden blade aura wrapped with endless blood qi slicing toward the sky.

He tore through the endless flying snow, and the clouds filling the sky were ripped open by Shen Qing.

A man in a black robe stood there, golden dragon energy coiling around his whole body, as if he had opened a bloody maw, constantly devouring the dragon energy on Zhu Nantian.

And the target of Open Heaven was him.

Only a bang was heard!

The man was blown backward by the blow, though he didn't suffer major injury.

A flash of shock appeared in his eyes; he knew Shen Qing was a Breaker, but this damage exceeded his expectations.

However, after a moment's thought, he figured Shen Qing probably couldn't unleash such an attack.

He turned his head and looked at Shen Qing with icy eyes.

"Breakers are indeed formidable, but this alone is still not enough."

"Is your qi sea sufficient?"

But in the next instant, his complexion changed, and three golden streaks shot toward his face.

At the same time, Shen Qing's face, shrouded in bloody mist, rapidly enlarged.

"Enough or not, you have to survive to have the right to speak!"

"Sorry, having a vast qi sea means you can do as you please."

Just then, two howls sounded—it was Bai Yun and Black Hawk, who joined the battlefield immediately.

A roar came from beneath the black‑robed man: "Take my spear!"

It was Ma Qing, Deputy Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Several Golden Guard Primordial Core cultivators below exchanged glances: "What do we do? Who is this guy?"

They couldn't see the dragon energy on the black‑robed man.

Xu Ying gritted his teeth: "Never mind him—charge!"

Having said that, he shot straight up, and the other Golden Guards also realized.

At this moment, what it meant to act wasn't important, but not acting would be a big problem.

Shen Qing acted, while they did not; later, when Shen Qing settles accounts, don't blame him for being ruthless.

Twelve Primordial Core fighters surrounded the black‑robed man; no matter how strong he was, he couldn't withstand it.

Black Hawk, as a supporting dual‑wing, flung out a multitude of feathers—vast in number—though not strongly damaging, they still had to be guarded against.

Bai Yun and the Golden Guards were the main auxiliaries, their attacks falling like rain on the man.

The black‑robed man flew into a rage, waving both palms; fierce golden dragon energy surged out, instantly condensing into a huge golden sphere that enveloped him, blocking the attacks of those around.

He growled: "Enough!! Don't blame me for being impolite!"

"You're yelling at your mother."

The dragon‑elephant resonance rang through the heavens, endless sword intent shot straight to the clouds, and his whole body's bloody armor began to erupt with gorgeous blood light.

The Primordial Heaven‑earth Body, Great Dao Blade, and Slaughter Armor—three colored traits—operated at full power.

Shen Qing's whole body was rumbling.

One Open Heaven slash cleaved the sky, the dark clouds were cut in half, and the terrifying, mighty light slammed straight into the man's golden sphere.

In merely an instant, the golden sphere was slit with a hairline crack.

The black‑robed man's face changed instantly.

"How is that possible!"

This crack quickly spread.

Bang!

The golden sphere shattered completely, yet the might of Open Heaven did not wane, precisely blasting into the man's body.

"Ah!!!"

Only a miserable scream was heard; the man was cut straight to the ground by the blade's force.

Bang! The ground was smashed into a huge pit.

The man collapsed helplessly in the center of the pit, his chest torn open into a huge hole, his organs a bloody mess.

Blood kept trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Don't kill me, don't kill me, I am..."

But before he could finish, Shen Qing swiftly descended from the sky, stepping directly on his throat, rendering him unable to speak.

"I know who you are—you're just a remnant of the Peaceful Society, aren't you?"

Having said that, in the man's terrified gaze, Slay Dragon pierced straight through his heavenly gate; Shen Qing gripped the hilt, twisted slightly, and directly scrambled the man's brains, completely ending his life.

As long as he didn't report his own household, this man was sabotaging Shen Qing's investigation; he was a remnant of the Peaceful Society, so Shen Qing killing him was lawful, reasonable, and compliant.

Later, the Shen and Zhu families brought this matter to light; upon careful examination, Shen Qing's killing him was justified—who let him not report his household at the start?

The blood qi all over his body dissipated, the bloody armor gradually faded, the intense battle raised Shen Qing's temperature in a straight line; at this moment, snowflakes hadn't yet landed on him before turning into white vapor and evaporating.

Shen Qing looked at the equally hot Slay Dragon in his hand: "Hey, I feel you've gotten a bit stronger."

The Slay Dragon in his hand trembled slightly; the spirit of the demon blade, the purple python, conveyed a thought to Shen Qing.

"I don't know either; I mysteriously grew stronger when I just killed that prince, and now killing this old thing is the same—I've mysteriously grown stronger again."

Shen Qing thought of the demon blade's name—Slay Dragon.

Does slaying a dragon make you stronger? A white dragon is still a dragon, and a golden dragon is also a dragon.

A python sparrow swallowing a dragon, right?

The snowfall grew steadily, gradually burying Qingzhou.

Amidst the wind and snow.

Dusk Cloud Mountain.

Shen Qing came here carrying two corpses.

Shen Qing had promised to bury Zhu Nantian and Lin Que'er here, and she must keep that promise.

But two women got here before Shen Qing.

One appeared slightly older.

She dug a hole with empty eyes; though she had cultivation, she still scooped out the soil little by little with her palms.

She was Zhu Nantian's mother, Consort Lian, but she had been imprisoned in the palace until Zhu Nantian died, at which point she gained the chance to leave.

Shen Qing gently laid down the two corpses, then turned to look at another woman of indescribable beauty.

She was tall and slender, clad in a white jade-like long robe; her features were flawless as ice-carved jade, and countless pale blue lights shimmered over her.

She is the Empress of Great Wu, Zhu Lingyue.

Shen Qing chuckled: 'I thought our Shen family was already cold-blooded enough.'

'But looking now, compared to your Zhu clan, we fall far short.'

Zhu Lingyue turned; her golden eyes held little emotion.

'Thank you this time for giving Zhu Nantian a dignified departure.'

Shen Qing gazed at Zhu Lingyue with an ambiguous smile.

'From what you say, you seem to have been on good terms with Zhu Nantian, yet you still gave the order to kill him.'

Zhu Lingyue seemed unwilling to answer, and she spoke.

'I heard you also killed an old fogey in the palace this time.'

'They might move against you.'

'But it's no problem; if they make a move.'

'I will help you.'

As Zhu Lingyue spoke, a flicker of resolve appeared in her tranquil, autumn-water-like eyes.

A purple gleam flashed in Shen Qing's pupils as she saw Zhu Lingyue's whole body shimmering with deep blue light, as profound as ten-thousand-year-old ice, aloof and mighty—yet there was not a trace of dragon aura.

Zhu Lingyue had never cultivated the Zhu family's Dragon Qi cultivation method.

Even though Zhu Lingyue is the most talented of the Zhu clan since the founding of Great Wu, she has never cultivated the Zhu family's Dragon Qi method.

Shen Qing slowly rose into the sky, bursting into loud laughter.

'You Zhu clan are certainly interesting!'