Chapter 161

Wan Honghai lay on the ground like a puddle of mud, his body convulsing violently, a hoarse 'heh heh' like a broken bellows issuing from his throat. His eyes stared wide and round, blood seeping from the corners, his face showed an interweaving of extreme pain and incredulous shock.

"Beast... Beast Soul Backlash..." He squeezed out a few words from between his teeth, each word carrying the excruciating pain of his viscera being torn apart, "The Beast Taming Sect's... forbidden... how could you..."

Inside his body, the Spiritual Power he had cultivated for over a hundred years from the Ten Thousand Beast Method had completely turned into a wild horse breaking free of its reins. No, it was hundreds of ferocious beasts imprisoned for a hundred years, simultaneously breaking free of their cages, frantically colliding, tearing, and roaring within his meridians and qi sea!

This is completely different from the Spiritual Power backlash he understood. It felt more like a betrayal originating from his bloodline, from the root of his cultivation method! Wang Shan's palm strike seemed not to hit his body, but to strike the vital point of his cultivation method, detonating the resentment of all the mixed demon beast power within him.

How is that possible?

He is a Late Foundation Great Perfection cultivator! Among the Man Yun Mountain Range, he is one of the few strongers below Golden Core! How could he be crippled in a single move by an old fool who just reached Foundation Establishment? This is unreasonable! This is not cultivation!

On the other side, the Black-clad Leader clutched his chest, retreating seven or eight steps before barely stabilizing his stance; his breathing beneath the cloak was rapid and disordered. He lowered his head to look at his slightly numb arms, then lifted his gaze toward the old man standing still like a mountain.

That strike just now was not merely the force of the fist.

At the moment Wang Shan stamped his foot, he felt the "qi" of the entire cavern change. The earth seemed to become Wang Shan's ally; the energy flowing in the Earth Vein instantly turned viscous and twisted, greatly interfering with the potency of his secret technique and weakening his defense.

This is the power to control a realm of heaven and earth!

Why does the Earth Vein of Ghost Sorrow Cliff obey his command?

This Wang Shan is no longer human; he has become a monster of this mountain cliff!

The two exchanged a glance, seeing the same emotion in each other's eyes—fear. They fully realized that Wang Shan was not merely a successful Foundation Establishment cultivator; the inheritance he had received was a complete legacy specifically designed to counter cultivators like them! What they kicked today was not an iron plate, but a live volcano that could erupt at any moment!

Wang Shan, however, did not glance at them again.

He turned and stepped forward. His target was the Wan Family Cultivators and Black-clothed Persons still standing frozen in place.

Those people had just been arrogant and ready to rush in to grab a share, but now they were like a flock of sheep eyed by the lead wolf, having lost even the courage to flee.

"Kill."

Wang Shan uttered a single word.

The sound was silent, yet it resembled a life‑taking talisman.

He moved.

There were no flashy arts, no astonishing phenomena—just the simplest charge, the most direct punch, the most plain palm blade. Yet all of this, bolstered by golden Foundation Establishment Spiritual Power, became the most efficient instruments of slaughter.

A Wan Family Cultivator reacted the fastest, brandishing an animal‑bone shield in front of himself while hurriedly chanting a spell.

Wang Shan didn't even look, and threw a punch.

"Crack!"

That shield, capable of blocking a full‑force strike from an Early Foundation Establishment Cultivator, was like paper mache—it began to crack at the center and instantly exploded into countless fragments. The punch's momentum did not wane, it blasted through the shield's remnants and landed on the cultivator's chest.

"Pfft—"

The cultivator's chest caved in entirely, his body flying up like a broken‑kite, his life already extinguished in mid‑air.

"Run! Run fast!"

"This old thing is a devil!"

The crowd finally collapsed; the remaining dozen or so people shouted strangely, jostling each other as they turned and squeezed toward the cavern exit.

But could they outrun?

"Hahaha! Want to run? Have you asked me, Li Hu?"

A burst of wild laughter rang out. Li Hu leaned on a great blade, swaying as he rose to his feet. He had just taken Wang Shan's medicinal pill; though his injuries were severe, a surge of qi propped him up, allowing him to fight again. He blocked the vicinity of the cave mouth, and with a horizontal sweep of his blade, he drove back the two Black‑clothed Persons trying to slip past him.

"And me."

Zhang Mei's voice remained icy. She leaned against the cavern wall, drew her longbow. Without arrows, only Spiritual Power condensed at her fingertips into a pale cyan light‑arrow.

"Whoosh!"

The light‑arrow left the string, and a Wan Family Cultivator running in the lead fell dead on the spot, a fist‑sized hole appearing on the back of his head.

With Li Hu and Zhang Mei's restraint, Wang Shan's mopping‑up became much easier.

He was like a true tiger charging into a chaotic flock of sheep. His figure flickered within the narrow cavern; each appearance was accompanied by the sound of shattering bones and shrill screams.

The Body Refining stage Splitting Stone Hand, in his hands, had turned decay into marvel. A palm strike sent out a wind that could shatter an enemy's Protective Body Light; a fist landing meant that no matter what defensive garb the opponent wore, broken tendons and fractured bones were inevitable.

The bloody smell quickly spread through the cavern, thick enough to make one nauseous. Blood and severed limbs splattered everywhere on the walls and floor. This place was no longer a cultivator's abode; it had become a hellish battlefield.

"Go!"

The Black‑clad Leader made a snap decision, shouting low at Wan Honghai on the ground. He crushed a black jade talisman, and a mass of black mist instantly enveloped him.

Wan Honghai, also risking his life, forcibly suppressed the surging qi and blood in his body, fished out an earth‑yellow talisman from his storage bag, and slapped it onto himself.

"Wang Shan! The Wan Family will be at odds with you unto death!"

He let out a resentful howl, his whole body turning into a yellow light that shot straight through the mountain wall and vanished.

The Black‑clad Leader's black mist also dissipated, leaving the spot empty of anyone.

The two Foundation Establishment experts fled just like that, looking as disheveled as two stray dogs.

Wang Shan halted his hand.

He watched the direction in which the two disappeared, without giving chase.

He could feel that, having forcibly activated the Ten Thousand Beasts Reversal and the Earth Vein sigils, it had also imposed a considerable burden on his own body. Although the Spiritual Power within his dantian was abundant, its circulation carried a barely perceptible sense of sluggishness.

This is a sign of an unsteady foundation, and also a precursor to the backlash from forcibly using the Forbidden Secret Art.

Do not pursue a desperate foe.

Moreover, he still had more important matters to attend to.

Inside the cavern, the last Wan Family Cultivator was beheaded by Li Hu with a single blade, and the battle ended completely.

"Huff… huff…" Li Hu gasped heavily, plopping down onto the ground with a grin, "Damn… that was exhilarating!"

Zhang Mei also put away her bow, slowly sliding down to sit against the wall, looking at Wang Shan; her eyes were complex, but more so a sense of heartfelt relief.

Wang Shan surveyed his surroundings; the ground was littered in disarray.

He walked up to his two grandsons and crouched down.

Wang Zhitao burst into tears, throwing his arms around him: "Grandfather… I'm so scared…"

Wang Shan patted his head, his voice gentle: "It's okay, it's all over."

He looked again at Wang Zhize, the child still clutching the black jade slip, his big eyes staring at him without blinking, his gaze filled with fear, admiration, and an indescribable attachment.

"Xiao Ze, give the jade slip to Grandfather to look at."

Wang Zhize obediently handed over the jade slip.

Wang Shan took the jade slip, then glanced at the faintly visible ancient Altar, and then looked at the corpses covering the ground.

He knew, this was only the beginning.

"Foundation Establishment Fierce Elder?"

From today on, this title will probably be firmly established. Moreover, it will be a hundred times louder than before.