"Ugh!"
A few men clenched their legs tight together as their eyes almost popped out of their sockets. The cruelty and arrogance they had originally shown was completely nowhere to be seen.
"Iâve killed more people than the number of rice grains youâve eaten. You think you can mess with me?"
Their fighting spirit couldnât compare at all to Tianmingâs, after the countless battles heâd experienced in the Theocracy and the Grand-Orient Realm. His will had been honed through deathly battles time and again, something the disciples of Archaion Sect had no luxury of experiencing. Not to mention, he was killing fervently crazy fighters of the Nineshades Clan, to say nothing of the weak disciples of the Human Branch he was beating up now.
The Nine Yang Sword was exceedingly sharp. Each time it swept past, lifebound beast and beastmaster alike would kneel and shiver with fear.
"Buzz off!" Tianming looked around and saw that Xuanyuan Xixiâs men had all collapsed and were groaning nonstop. Now, she was the only one remaining. The girl in the leopard coat watched him blankly. "What level are you at?"
"The second level of the Empyrean Saint Stage!" she snapped. Though she was surprised, she wasnât frozen with shock.
"The same level as Autarch Qian, huh.... Youâre a little too dumb compared to him, though. I guess the heavens are fair after all," Tianming said.
"Are you insulting me? An errand boy like you? You think youâre a hotshot just because you defeated them?"
"Do I still resemble an errand boy?"
"Lin Feng, are you faking it or do you really not know who I am? Do you know what the consequences of offending me are? Iâve killed tens of disciples just like you! Nobody dares to even ask about what happened to them! Iâm going to teach you a lesson. Do you dare to resist?" she proudly said. It seemed that she was really confident about her family background. In fact, most people took it for granted that members of the Archaic House of Xuanyuan could do as they pleased without consequence, not to mention her elder brother was a deacon of the Dragonmight Faction.
"Youâve killed tens of them?" Tianming chuckled and pointed his sword at her. "Itâs not a matter of whether I dare touch you. Iâll rough you up today. Youâre only so rambunctious because nobodyâs taught you a lesson, right? Usually, I donât mess with people that donât cause trouble for me, but you obviously tried to mess with me. So, Iâll give you a lesson. Tuition is free."
"Insolence!" Xuanyuan Xixi got the rest around her to buzz off, then charged into the fray with her lifebound beast, a Pentamount Purgatory Dragon. It was a legendary dragon with ninety-seven stars, ten more than Ying Huo. It seemed that empyrean manna was rather common in Archaion. In fact, there was enough for many lifebound beasts to have hundreds of stars.
The Archaic House of Xuanyuan was the most famous clan on the Flameyellow Continent with a dragon lifebound beast. Around two hundred thousand years ago in the ancient past, dragons were the absolute rulers of the Flameyellow Continent. However, the Nine Divine Realms eventually formed a new world order.
The first god beastmaster had a dragon lifebound beast, and the House of Xuanyuan had descended from this mythical figure. That was why those with the Xuanyuan surname formed a house that was granted the âArchaicâ appellation, for it was a name that had been passed down since antiquity. Apart from the first god, the other nine gods had also ascended during antiquity, the last one to do so being Xuanyuan Xi from a hundred thousand years ago. Ever since her time, no new gods had ascended.
By now, Tianming no longer felt the same pressure and impetus when fighting a second-level empyrean saint. It used to look like an insurmountable peak, but now it only seemed like a small mound he could skip over when he traveled closer to it. Thatâs the meaning of strength! Only the powerful are able to influence othersâ lives, live with dignity, and protect their loved ones! It was with these thoughts that Tianming clashed with her.
Xuanyuan Xixi used a long spear and boasted a rather impressive combat capability with her mid-grade empyrean-ranked art. However, Tianmingâs Myriad-Demise Sword came blasting out of the Nine Yang Sword, sending her spear flying. The sword ki swallowed her whole and tore her armor away, piercing into her.
"Aaaagh!" she yelped in pain before collapsing, her face purple and grim. She was enduring the same kind of pain Tianming did when he had trained in the sword ki pool.
"Yiyi, save me!" she said as she struggled to get up. Turning to look, she found that her dragon had been pressed into the water by Tianmingâs three beasts and was crying out for help.
"Tortoise Bro, Iâm pressing it down for you to mount it, quick! You sure are lucky that thereâs so many dragons around here!"
Lan Huang roared and slashed with Annihilation Godsword, sending blood flying all over the place.
"Hey, thatâs the wrong sword!" Ying Huo said.
"Chicken Bro, Tortoise Bro is still young. Arenât you a little too corrupt of an influence for him? Not to mention, I think this dragonâs a male..." Meow Meow said.
"What?!" Ying Huo immediately darted into the air when it recalled some unpleasant memories from the past. "I donât swing that way! Beat him up!"
Xuanyuan Xixi knelt on the ground when she witnessed the sight.
"Hey, still think Iâm just an errand boy?" Tianming raised her up by the mouth. All the while, Invincible Sword Ki still coursed through her body, causing her to struggle in pain.
"Lin Feng, youâre going to die. How dare you bully me! Youâre going to die horribly!"
"Those same lines again? Come on, stand up for yourself! Donât keep relying on others to avenge you, wimp! Well, Iâm already used to it. I donât care who you are. My name is Lin Feng! Well, at least many people call me that."
"You scoundrel! Your father must be a damnable crook as well! I bet your motherâs a whore that slept with thousands to beget an abomination like you!"
"Dang, thatâs low class even for you," Tianming said.
"Hah! I bet I got it right!"
Tianming figured that she was probably spoiled so bad that she always got her way. That was why she still dared to snap back. Just as she was about to say something else, Tianming gave her face a slap. It reddened immediately and she spat a few teeth out.
"Feeling better?" Tianming asked, lifting her up again.
"You!"
One slap later, Tianming dropped her to the ground. "Tell me if you need more. Otherwise, shut up."
Xuanyuan Xixi spat out some front teeth this time. Her mouth tasted like blood.
"Even though you look quite cute, you have a venomous soul. It really doesnât suit your body." Tianming smashed her down to the ground again. "Whatever. Iâll spare you, since only your mouthâs foul. If you dare mess with me again, Iâll send you to the heavens."
"Waaaaaah!" She hugged her head and cried as she knelt. Moments ago, she was threatening to beat the teeth out of others, but now she was the toothless one.
Tianming felt that she deserved it, though. She was so used to throwing her weight around that she didnât recognize a wall even as she rammed into it. He wasnât someone that liked to cause trouble, but that didnât mean he was afraid of it. Having survived the battle at the Divine Capital, there was no way he would kneel to her and beg for forgiveness.
"Lin Feng!" someone cried loudly. "Cripple yourself or Iâll kill her!"
Tianming turned back and saw that it was Fu Bo. He had defeated Lin Xiaoxiao and had his sword against her throat. Tianming didnât see her lifebound beast, implying that it hadnât come out when Fu Bo attacked her.
"Are you sure?" Tianming headed his way with a cold gaze.
"Of course! Destroy your saint palace now! Otherwise, Iâll kill her and youâll regret it for life!" Fu Bo laughed like a maniac, letting the rush go to his head. Lin Xiaoxiao had her hands bound behind her as she looked at Tianming.
"Do you know that I hate other people threatening me with the lives of my friends the most?"
Lin Xiaoxiaoâs eyes shook when he said âfriendâ.
"Your girlfriendâs about to die. Still putting up a front?" Right as Fu Bo finished, a rainbow-colored sword ki beam shot towards his eyes. "So quick!"
In an instant, it pierced through his head. The only thing he saw next was the ground. All that remained was an unmoving corpse.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Xuanyuan Xixi and her minions stared at Tianming blankly.
"Letâs go," he called out to Lin Xiaoxiao, who was still staring blankly at him. "Go!"
Tianming pulled her along.
"Hold on," she said, almost tripping.
"No way. Running away while pretending to be chased is more exciting."
......
A group of people had gathered outside Tianmingâs residence. Among them was a burly and fierce man filled with killing intent, behind whom Xuanyuan Xixi followed. "Is this the place?"
"Itâs this one! After he killed Fu Bo, I got people to watch him. He hasnât left the whole time. Uncle Fu, you have to avenge him!" she said with swollen cheeks. She couldnât even enunciate her words properly, which was super embarrassing for someone like her who valued her reputation so much.
"Whatâs he called?"
"Lin Feng."
"Does he have accomplices? Iâll kill them too."
"Thereâs one more. Sheâs his neighbor, Lin Xiaoxiao."
"Anyone else? Whatâs his background?"
"I donât know. Fu Bo tried to look into it but didnât find anything. We donât know how he joined the Human Branch. Perhaps he doesnât have anyone backing him," Xuanyuan Xixi said deviously.
"Alright." The man nodded and flew into the courtyard.
Hmph, you dared to mess with me? Letâs see how you deal with Uncle Fu! Xuanyuan Xixi thought with glee.