Chapter 132: Six Paths Palace, Discipline Hall

The hotel entrance is at a crossroads where two major streets intersect, a square of several mu in size.

More than ten disciples of the Six Paths Palace stood in a line, each holding various weapons, facing off against an old man with white hair and silver-white skin.

The ground was soaked in fresh blood, and two pale arms, clearly belonging to a woman, lay spread in the blood pool.

Behind that row of Six Paths Palace disciples, several flamboyantly dressed women and two pretty-faced youths screamed hoarsely, uttering meaningless howls as if they had seen a ghost.

Among those women, two had each lost an arm—one left, one right—and their stumps now faced the two arms lying in the blood pool.

The white-haired old man's face was streaked with tears, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the Six Paths Palace disciples responsible for maintaining order in Great Dragon City.

"We are all from the same sect, you are my juniors…… I won't bully you…… step aside." The old man gripped a specially made two‑handed heavy sword as thick as a door panel, and he pointed the tip fiercely at the Six Paths Palace disciples.

"I only need to kill these…… these…… vain, ungrateful wretches." Tears streamed down the old man's face, dripping from his chin to the ground as he said in a low voice: "I will kill them; if you dare to block me again……"

Among the more than ten Six Paths Palace disciples, several had their hands visibly trembling, veins bulging on the backs of their hands, obviously shaken by tremendous force, their fingers spasming.

Their skin was a deep bronze; according to Wu Tie's speculation on the Six Paths Palace cultivation method, these disciples were roughly at the Half‑Step Chonglou Realm level, while these old men, with their silver‑white, exceptionally clear complexion, had clearly reached the peak of the Chonglou Realm.

The peak of the Chonglou Realm?

Very likely; just look at his build—this old man stands nearly three meters tall, far taller than those Six Paths Palace disciples.

"Uncle Master…… they are your relatives…… how could you strike them down?" A Six Paths Palace disciple stepped forward, his voice hoarse as he told the old man: "Besides, killing is forbidden inside Great Dragon City. Even if you are an elder of the Six Paths Palace, it's not allowed."

"Hand them over to me; I'll take them outside the city to kill." The old man said in a deep tone: "If I don't kill them, I'll never be able to face my old brothers again… I'd have no face to live as a person."

A group of Six Paths Palace disciples still tried to persuade him, but the old man had exhausted his patience; he let out a fierce roar and swung the specially made heavy sword—almost as tall as he is, a foot wide and half a foot thick—creating a howling gust of evil wind.

More than ten Six Paths Palace disciples shouted in unison, simultaneously assuming a defensive stance and swinging their weapons to meet the old man's heavy sword.

With a tremendous crash, a dozen or so bowl‑thick iron rods forged of refined steel were cleaved in half by the sword, and more than ten Six Paths Palace disciples rolled like gourds across the ground, hurled dozens of meters away by the immense force.

The flamboyantly dressed women and the two pretty‑faced youths were now exposed before the old man.

The old man's gaze turned icy as he stared at them, then he raised the heavy sword and bellowed, bringing it down in a mighty chop.

The heavy sword folded the air, turning it into layers of black gusts that piled up before the blade; the gusts tore the air with a piercing roar, and a black arc of light shot straight from the blade's edge toward the men and women.

"Senior Brother!" a familiar voice called from afar.

"Boom," a massive cleaver blocked the heavy sword in front of it; the black arc shattered, and the cleaver and heavy sword collided violently, producing a terrifying roar.

Wave after wave of gusts spread outward; fortunately, many Six Paths Palace disciples had rushed to the scene, forming a defensive formation, raising their specially made heavy tower shields, and creating a solid defensive line beside the central square.

The gusts slammed into the shield wall, emitting a thunderous boom that shook the nearby onlookers lacking sufficient strength, causing blood to spurt from all seven orifices at once.

At least two cultivators of high Chonglou Realm were clashing; even if they weren't using their full strength, those without adequate power had no right to watch.

Had the Six Paths Palace disciples not responded appropriately, everyone within roughly a kilometer whose strength was lesser would have been shaken to death.

"Senior Brother, you've gone mad—fighting inside the city and injuring so many merchants…… can you afford to pay for it?" Blade‑wielding Wang Wu gripped his great cleaver with both hands, shouting hoarsely at the old man: "What madness is this? Look, look—so many people are hurt in this instant; how much will you have to compensate?"

Around the crossroads square, at least a thousand curious merchants and onlookers gathered, and every shopkeeper and assistant fell to the ground wailing.

They bled from all seven orifices; many suffered severe internal injuries, spitting blood mouthful after mouthful, their wounds obviously grave.

"If you hadn't stopped me, I would have killed them—how could I have harmed them?" The old man laughed furiously, tears streaming as he gave a grim smile: "Wang Wu, you damned thing, you, you, you've brought me to ruin."

"What? Isn't it that I should pay half?" Wang Wu stared blankly at the old man, then suddenly looked up and burst into a tirade: "You bunch of beast‑grass scum, who's in charge of patrolling Great Dragon City today? Why didn't you intervene? Why am I the unlucky one?"

Several silver‑white figures fell from the sky; Wu Tie saw that they had long been clinging to the stone pillars and stalactites hanging upside down from the dome above Great Dragon City, watching the old man swing his sword at those men and women without intervening.

Only after Wang Wu unleashed his tirade did they hoist their heavy weapons and leap straight down from the heights.

These Six Paths Palace experts had sturdy, heavy bodies, and their weapons were even heavier; when they landed, it was as if several ten‑thousand‑jin boulders had smashed down, shaking the surrounding houses.

Wu Tie suddenly understood why the hotels in Great Dragon City were built of massive stones and had iron water poured over them.

Otherwise, just look at how these Six Paths Palace masters toss things around—could an ordinary house withstand their treatment even a few times?

"They're just a few beasts; killing them is killing them—what's the point of stopping Senior Brother?" A bald brute said coldly: "A few heartless wretches—slaughter them, slaughter them…… Even if it happened on our watch and they were cut down in the street, we'll accept the punishment."

"Wang Wu, you idiot, why are you blocking Senior Brother?" Another big man, with a fist‑thick tuft of hair on the crown of his head braided into a little whip that hung down to his heel, lashed out at Wang Wu: "You're shielding Senior Brother and protecting these few beasts—what's the result? You've implicated so many people; how are we supposed to wrap this up?"

All around were wails and cries of pain, plus the leaders of several large caravans—mainly the senior members of those caravans staying at the hotel where Wu Tie lodged—who had also been shaken injured, the strong among them shouting for a complaint to the high echelons of the Six Paths Palace.

Unlike the chaotic territory of the Changsheng Sect, the Six Paths Palace enforces strict precepts and discipline; any disciple who errs must receive a heavy punishment.

Two Six Paths Palace disciples drew their weapons in the street, inadvertently injuring so many innocent merchants and Great Dragon City residents; at least a thousand suffered serious collateral wounds—this guilt……

"How awful." Lao Bai whispered beside Wu Tie: "Wu Tie, from what I learned a couple of days ago about the Six Paths Palace's rules, this old man and Wang Wu either have to pay compensation, or if they can't pay, they must sell themselves into servitude…… the Six Paths Palace doesn't indulge its own disciples."

Heavy footsteps sounded from afar; a group of men with silver‑white skin, wearing strange brown robes that wrapped diagonally around their bodies, baring the right chest, and whose heads bore various round burn scars, strode over.

These sturdy men bore uniform discipline blades on their backs and held copper rods in their hands; their steps were orderly, their bearing imposing, their faces martial, their eyes as hard as iron—over a dozen of them marched forth with the immovable aura of a mountain and the might of ten thousand troops.

"These are men of the Six Paths Palace Discipline Hall. That old man and Wang Wu are done for." Lao Bai shook his head and swayed: "Those few responsible for today's patrol in Great Dragon City are also done for…… alas, alas, flesh and blood flying everywhere!"

Before Wu Tie could even grasp what "flesh and blood flying" meant, he saw the old man, Wang Wu, and the four men who had leapt from the sky to take today's watch in Great Dragon City—six people in total—drop their weapons, strip off their clothes, and clutch their heads as they fell to the ground.

A group of Discipline Hall stalwarts strode over, without a word, pairing off to stand beside Wang Wu and his companions, they lifted their bowl‑thick copper rods and brought them down on the men's silver‑white, bulging‑buttocked backsides.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom," like thunderclaps, the sound shook all of Great Dragon City; the surrounding ground trembled, and Wu Tie felt himself repeatedly lifted off the earth by more than an inch. One can imagine how mighty the blows of these men were, and how terribly Wang Wu and the others were beaten.

No matter how sturdy Wang Wu and his companions' bodies were, a faint glow flickered on the copper rods—clearly they had been imbued with a special prohibition.

After three strikes, their buttocks turned bright red; after six, the skin split and flesh tore, with blood spraying outward each time the rods fell.

After twelve blows, they gritted their teeth and let out low howls; their buttock muscles were pulverized, each strike sending chunks of flesh flying far away.

After barely twenty strikes, the white‑haired old man had fainted, and the four men being beaten at the same time howled hoarsely at Wang Wu: "Wang Wu, I‑enter‑your‑old‑mother…… you've screwed us over!"

A gaunt old man whose skin was basically silver but with faint large patches of pale gold spots shimmering within, his eyes deep with swirling golden light, and his whole aura stern and severe, walked over step by step.

The old man likewise bore a discipline blade on his back and held in his hand a short rod much thinner and shorter than the men's copper rods, engraved with various patterns; standing in the square, he bowed deeply to all sides.

"Everyone, this is the fault of my Six Paths Palace disciples. Where there is fault, punishment must follow."

"For your medical expenses, please go directly to the Six Paths Palace garrison in Great Dragon City to collect them; the Six Paths Palace will also provide a special compensation to cover all your treatment costs and any delays in your caravan operations."

"The Six Paths Palace, the Great Dragon Realm, and Great Dragon City are all places with rules. Rules cannot be abolished. Today's incident stems from the Six Paths Palace failing to restrain its disciples; I ask that you continue to come and go in the Great Dragon Realm, and please do not develop any other misunderstandings about my Six Paths Palace."

Merchants and residents alike all around bowed to the old man in return.

The old man slowly walked to the four men who had been bound and beaten alongside him, stared at them coldly for a long time, then nodded slowly: "You failed in your duty; you deserve a heavy penalty…… but you protected your fellow brother, and Six Paths Palace disciples sheltering one another is commendable, so you shall be rewarded……"

"Today's beating is the punishment. Once your wounds heal, go to the Six Paths Meditation Cave to contemplate for three days—that is the reward. All right, you're dismissed—get out."

Four burly men trembled violently all over, struggling to rise, they grabbed their own clothes to cover their bloody, mangled buttocks and staggered to one side. They didn't "roll away", but stood to the side, anxiously watching Wang Wu and the white-haired old man.

The old man walked up to Wang Wu, lowered his head and stared at him for a while.

Wang Wu put on a roguish air, glaring at the old man and snarling: "Speak, want to fight or punish? I'm your only son—if you've got the guts, beat me to death, you old undying thing, you'll cut off your lineage!"

The old man struck Wang Wu's head with his staff, a loud "thud" rang out, and he knocked Wang Wu unconscious.

"An idiot is an idiot…… reasoning with you is useless." The old man said coldly: "Wang Wu blocking Tie Da Jian's killing was good…… but fighting in the city is foolish. Therefore, all compensation costs, Wang Wu will bear half."

The old man snorted coldly: "I have failed in teaching my son, raising such an idiot; I must also bear some responsibility. Afterwards, I will naturally go to the Palace Lord to apologize on my own, but under everyone's eyes, I should also accept punishment."

The old man extended his left hand and struck fiercely with his right-hand short staff.

With a "crack", the old man's left arm bone was broken in one blow, the bone twisting oddly.

Wu Tie and the others stared dumbfounded, a surge of Cold Qi rose in their hearts…… these Six Dao Palace people…… the old man called Wang Wu an idiot, and Wu Tie felt the old man's brains weren't much better either.

The disciples of the Six Dao Palace…… no wonder they have what it takes to be the mortal enemies of those demons in the Changsheng Sect.

A madman is the perfect match against demons.

The old man slowly approached the old man known as Tie Da Jian, looked down at the unconscious Tie Da Jian, and murmured in a low voice: "We are about the same age; your master is my senior elder brother, I am your junior uncle, yet I failed to look after you…… I still must go to the Palace Lord to apologize; for today's affair, I and several of your close uncles cannot escape responsibility."

"That may be so, but your crime is also grave. You must pay that half of the compensation, especially since you committed manslaughter on the street—though you didn't kill anyone—you still violated the palace's rules…… there's no room for negotiation; from today on, you are no longer a disciple of the Six Dao Palace."

The old man sighed, turned his gaze to the several men and women curled up on the ground, trembling in a ball, and his two withered eyebrows furrowed sharply.

"You lot, you are not my Six Dao Palace disciples, and the Six Dao Palace has no authority over you…… you have been harmed by the Six Dao Palace's disciples, and the Six Dao Palace will compensate you with a sum of money; this matter is then settled."

"Then, you have offended the Six Dao Palace's disciples…… from today on, you are not allowed to reside within the Six Dao Palace's territory."

"Within one day, get out of the Six Dao Palace's territory, or else…… you will be killed without pardon."

Golden light flickered in the old man's eyes, a sharp killing intent surged, causing a group of men and women to cry out hoarsely.