Chapter 166: Great Slaughter Across the Land [Thank You, Patron Bian Li Weishi]

"Since you all so desire me to act, then I shall fulfill your wishes!" At that moment, a solemn voice echoed behind them all.

Without warning, an elderly man in brocade robes, with hair as white as silk, a round face, and a perpetual faint smile, stood hovering in midair behind them.

In his hand he held a banner emitting a golden glow, embroidered with a yellow dragon.

A golden shield floated before him, radiating a faint golden light.

"Lu Lu Jinglong!"

Names cast shadows like trees.

To those Foundation Establishment cultivators, Lu Lu Jinglong was no formidable figure.

But to these people, he was unquestionably a master, long revered and feared in their hearts.

His appearance startled everyone, with some even crying out in shock.

"What are you panicking for? He's just a wounded—" the Dai family patriarch barked loudly.

But his words were cut short.

Lu Lu Jinglong had already swung the Huang Jiao Banner.

Instantly, sand and wind surged wildly as a colossal yellow dragon claw emerged from the storm, lunging toward the Dai patriarch.

The dragon's claw spanned half an acre, radiating terrifying power.

A crushing pressure immediately enveloped the Dai patriarch.

"Foundation Establishment cultivator!" the Dai patriarch turned pale as earth, cried out, frantically forming hand seals, pouring out his spiritual energy to force the jade ruyi-turned-chijiao to spin around and block the giant claw.

The Dai patriarch was a Qi Condensation ninth-layer cultivator with only a mid-tier artifact; Lu Lu Jinglong was a Foundation Establishment cultivator, fully prepared, wielding a top-tier mid-tier artifact nearing high-tier quality.

When the two clashed, there was a loud "Boom!"

Shards of ice flew everywhere.

The chijiao was instantly smashed down by a single claw.

The giant claw continued advancing.

At that moment, a pearl surfaced, glowing brightly and summoning countless ice swords to encircle the Dai patriarch.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The ice swords shattered into fragments beneath the giant claw.

"Everyone, attack together, or we're all dead!" Seeing his ice swords shatter one after another, the Dai patriarch spat blood and screamed hysterically.

At the Dai patriarch's screams, those who had earlier boasted about storming Xianxian Cliff and slaughtering and looting the Lu family hesitated.

Some began secretly turning to flee.

Among them was Chou Dongzhu, who had conspired at Niangxian Tower that day.

He was a lone cultivator, unlike the Dai patriarch or Madame Wu, who had families here.

Many others gritted their teeth, summoning artifacts or casting spells to aid the Dai patriarch.

They all had families here—they couldn't just run away and leave their homes behind!

"Kill!"

At that moment, Lu Lu Sanxia, long pent-up with rage, roared and led the Lu clan youths out of the formation.

Below the mountain, at the valley entrance.

Unnoticed, Lu Lu Suyun had already led the Lu clan youths to seal off the exit.

Those who had been busy harvesting spirit rice and ransacking homes, celebrating their plundering feast, suddenly found the situation reversed—the valley exit was now blocked.

Though low-level Qi Condensation cultivators could levitate, they could only fly low and moved extremely slowly.

The looters in the valley were hardly formidable; now they were almost entirely trapped inside.

Some timid ones had already dropped their loot and begged for mercy.

Others, desperate and ruthless, glared with murderous intent, grabbed their plunder, and tried to break out.

All were swiftly slain.

Among them, a woman as massive as a iron tower was the most ferocious killer.

Though her cultivation was only Qi Condensation sixth-layer, she was fully equipped with offensive and defensive artifacts.

Her offensive weapon was a massive, golden-hued spiked club—a top-tier mid-tier artifact.

Each strike carried immense force, yet she wielded it with effortless grace and agility.

Almost no Qi Condensation cultivator in the valley could withstand her for even a moment.

On either side of her marched a man and a woman.

The woman was equally massive and tall, wielding a thick spiked club that seemed weightless in her hands, moving with astonishing dexterity—when she swung it down, even a Great Martial Master or a low-level Qi Condensation cultivator of first or second layer risked having their skull crushed.

Beside her stood a crippled man.

This crippled man was even more terrifying—he held a spear, and each thrust roared like a dragon, summoning a coiling dragon that surged forth; Qi Condensation beginners had no chance against him.

Lü Ye's mighty aura drew admiring glances from Lu Lu Huiyun, whose eyes shimmered with affection and admiration; even those Lu clan youths who had once looked down on him as a crippled son-in-law now regarded him with newfound respect.

He had become a martial arts master before forty; if he continued progressing, he might one day reach the tenth or even eleventh rank, making even late-stage Qi Condensation cultivators wary.

Lu Lu Huiyun and Lü Ye flanked Lu Lu Ziying, guarding the valley entrance like a single man holding off ten thousand.

Seeing Lu Lu Ziying armed with both offensive and defensive artifacts, protected by Lü Ye and his wife, capable of holding off even Qi Condensation eighth- or ninth-layer cultivators, and knowing no one in the valley could match her, Elder Lu Lu Suyun led several Lu clan youths toward Xianxian Cliff to intercept fleeing late-stage Qi Condensation cultivators in midair.

Beneath the night sky, a bloody and fierce battle raged across Jinguai Peak.

Foundation Establishment cultivators were vastly superior to Qi Condensation cultivators.

The attackers who came to assault the Lu family were at most Qi Condensation ninth-layer—none had reached full Qi Condensation.

Lu Lu Jinglong swung the Huang Jiao Banner, slaughtering all around him, leaving no one able to stand against him.

Madame Wu, who had earlier shouted about avenging her nephew, quickly tried to flee.

But Lu Lu Jinglong chased after her on his flying vessel like lightning, swung the banner, and summoned a storm of sand and wind—Madame Wu, levitating through the air, wobbled as a dragon's claw emerged from the tempest and pierced straight through her chest, killing her instantly.

That night, the Lu clan youths fought with blood in their eyes.

The grief from their last battle and the humiliation they had endured for so long finally erupted in full fury this night.

Blood flowed like rivers across Jinguai Peak; corpses littered the ground.

Some escaped, some surrendered, but most lay dead.

A fiery red sunrise slowly rose behind the western hills.

Sunlight bathed Jinguai Peak and the valley, reflecting a blinding crimson hue.

The stench of blood filled the air.

On Xianxian Cliff, Xia Daoming gazed down at the Lu clan youths cleaning up the battlefield and hauling away corpses; he felt no triumph, only a complex, indescribable emotion swirling within him.

War and slaughter were never his preference.

But he understood: for the Lu family to rise and instill fear across the land, this battle was inevitable.

One general's glory is built on ten thousand dead.

This saying applied equally to the rise of any powerful clan.

The sun climbed higher.

News of the battle on Jinguai Peak, and that Lu Lu Jinglong had not only recovered from his injuries but ascended to Foundation Establishment, spread like kites on the wind, swiftly reaching the entire northern region of Wansuo Xianshan.

In Shi Zhu Lin Market, people greeted each other and spoke only of the bloodbath on Jinguai Peak and Lu Lu Jinglong's ascension and slaughter.

"The Guiyun Mountain Dai family, Qianquan Valley Lou family, Lingxi Valley Wu family, and Jin Guang Cave's Master Chou Songshan—who led this rebellion—are now in deep trouble! Last night's battle was merely the Lu family defending their borders; next, they'll surely launch further actions and won't let those who sought to plunder and exterminate them remain in Wansuo Xianshan," said an elderly low-level cultivator with a white beard, stroking his goatee in the Niangxian Tower's main hall.

"I heard Master Chou Songshan escaped, fleeing overnight with all his family's wealth, vanishing without a trace."

"What about the ten-plus acres of spirit rice fields? Are they just abandoning them? If properly tended, those fields yield over three hundred jin of spirit rice and over a hundred jin of rice bran annually, plus a small spirit herb garden that can also produce harvests."

"You're jealous and want to seize them? If you're tired of life, go claim Jin Guang Cave and see how the Lu family deals with you!"

"Cough, cough—I was just speaking hypothetically, that's all."

"I heard the Dai patriarch and Madame Wu were both killed, and none of their elite escaped. Now the Dai and Wu families are in panic—rumor has it that before dawn, their elder clan members rushed straight to Lingdao Gate, hoping to follow the Yan family's example and become vassals, begging to serve as slaves. Who knows what the outcome will be?"

"Times have changed. When the Yan family submitted to the Xie family, the Lu family was severely weakened and posed no threat; the Xie family could accept them without regard for Lu's opinion, needing only Elder Luo of Lingdao Gate's approval. But now Lu Lu Jinglong is a Foundation Establishment cultivator—if Lingdao Gate wants to shelter the Dai and Wu families, they must consider Lu's stance."

"That's true. Still, the Lou family patriarch was clever. When Lu Lu Jinglong moved to kill him, he voluntarily destroyed his own cultivation, knelt, begged for mercy, and offered to evacuate his entire clan from Wansuo Xianshan, surrendering all their assets, just to beg for a single life."

"Did Lu Lu Jinglong accept? Doesn't that leave a future threat?"

"Lu Lu Jinglong accepted! I heard clan elders urged him to reconsider, but he replied: 'As long as the Lu family endures, we will inevitably make enemies—and we can never kill every enemy. But as long as the Lu family grows strong enough, we need fear nothing.'"

"Well said! With such vision and courage, no wonder he broke through to Foundation Establishment!" Many in the hall applauded.

"Lu Lu Jinglong certainly has vision and courage—but he added a condition: the Lou family must surrender their cultivation manuals and secret scrolls to the Lu family."

"Surrendering all their assets and now their cultivation manuals? Doesn't that cut off the Lou family's descendants' path to immortality?"

"Of course it does. Do you think Lu Lu Jinglong, who's lived over a hundred years, is merely a man of noble ideals?"

——

Lingdao Gate, Qingren Peak, Council Hall.

The atmosphere was heavy.

PS: This chapter is an extra for the patron Bian Li Wei Shi—he's a longtime patron across several novels; thank you sincerely, sir, for your unwavering support.

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(End of Chapter)