Chapter 252 - 250: Give Me Back My Son’s Life
The rules of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect have always been pragmatic, with no room for sentimentality.
Within the Sect, young disciples fought and killed each other, and even Elders on the level of Xu Baiwei had to compete for resources.
Thus, the rules of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect could be summarized in a single phrase: the strong reign supreme.
As long as you were strong enough, the Sect would grant you resources and status.
Xu Tianhong was previously ranked twelfth on the Hidden Dragon Rankings and was the number one disciple of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect’s younger generation. He had laid claim to half of all resources allocated to them.
But now that Xu Tianhong was dead, the Ten Thousand Demon Sect naturally had no regard for a corpse. In a very pragmatic move, they transferred all his resources to Chu Hongshang.
Only Xu Baiwei, his mother, clamored for revenge for Xu Tianhong. The other Martial Artists of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect were completely indifferent.
Those on good terms with Shi Xueyan came to offer their congratulations. Even the Sect Leader of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect personally offered Chu Hongshang a few words of encouragement.
They had all completely forgotten about Xu Tianhong, the former number one of the Sect’s younger generation.
***
「Lujiang Prefecture, inside the White Tiger Hall.」
Chen Yuan sat cross-legged in his seclusion chamber, surrounded by an ethereal, misty Dao Essence.
This Dao Essence emanated from Chen Yuan’s body, was then drawn back in, and emanated out once more in a repeating cycle. With each repetition, the Dao Essence Power grew a little stronger, nourishing his physical body.
The *Valley Spirit Scripture* contained the origin of the Dao. But while the Great Dao was deceptively simple and easy to begin, true comprehension was difficult.
Chen Yuan felt that he had made progress in his cultivation of the *Valley Spirit Scripture*, but he still hadn’t truly grasped anything profound.
Of course, Chen Yuan wasn’t discouraged, because the *Valley Spirit Scripture* was astonishingly difficult to begin with.
In the Ancient Era, those in the Valley God Palace who could comprehend the Great Dao from the *Valley Spirit Scripture* were all existences on the level of a Palace Master of a Daoist Palace.
If he could easily comprehend the Great Dao from it, his talent would be absurdly, unreasonably immense.
Chen Yuan rose and walked out of the seclusion chamber, summoning Lu Li.
After all the arrangements for the White Tiger Hall were complete, Chen Yuan had transferred Lu Li to his side to manage the White Tiger Guards at the Main Hall.
"How is the recovery of the damaged cities coming along?"
Lu Li replied, "After receiving their resources, all the Inspectors and Guardian Envoys have been working around the clock to rebuild their Zhenwu Hall Government Offices and repair the city walls. No one is slacking off.
"At this rate, everything should be back to normal within a few months."
Chen Yuan nodded and asked, "I had you investigate the Nine Swords Alliance before. Did you look into it?"
After taking control of the White Tiger Hall, the first move Chen Yuan wanted to make wasn’t against any internal factions, but against Zuo Tianyuan’s Nine Swords Alliance.
He had killed Zuo Feiyu, and this feud over his son’s death meant that things between him and Zuo Tianyuan were now irreconcilable.
The last time in Qin Province, Zuo Tianyuan had even brought in Zhu Xinwu to deal with him. Unfortunately for him, the plan backfired spectacularly. Zuo Tianyuan had happened to transfer Zhu Xinwu away at the critical moment, giving Chen Yuan ample time to set up his plans inside Fire Cloud Cave.
Zuo Tianyuan was a lot like his son, Zuo Feiyu—relentless, always popping up when you least expected it to be a thorn in your side.
Therefore, once he was strong enough, Chen Yuan planned to eliminate Zuo Tianyuan and the Nine Swords Alliance first.
Thinking of this, Chen Yuan suddenly scratched his head.
’Wait, I’ve got that backwards. Zuo Feiyu is like his father, not the other way around.’
But none of that mattered. What was important was that Chen Yuan would absolutely not allow the Nine Swords Alliance to rise as it did in the original story. He was going to stamp it out right now!
Just as Lu Li was about to answer, the doors were suddenly pushed open, and Liu Suifeng unexpectedly walked in.
"Lord Liu, what brings you here?"
Chen Yuan was slightly surprised. It had been a long time since Liu Suifeng had left Taining Prefecture.
Liu Suifeng coughed and said coolly, "That woman, Xu Baiwei, has entered Ning Province. She is undoubtedly here for you."
Zhenwu Hall had many eyes and ears in Ning Province. With Liu Suifeng in charge of the Shadow Guards, his intelligence network was especially well-informed.
The moment Xu Baiwei entered Ning Province, her trail must have been picked up by the Shadow Guards, who then reported it to Liu Suifeng.
Chen Yuan’s eyes narrowed. ’What’s coming has finally come.’
’And Xu Baiwei is fast. It’s only been half a month. Chu Hongshang and the others must have just returned to the Ten Thousand Demon Sect. As soon as she got the news, she came straight for me.’
"Lord Liu, is there anything you need me to do?"
Liu Suifeng shook his head. "Since I said I would protect you, all you need to do is wait."
With that, Liu Suifeng looked around and sighed. "Do you know why the White Tiger Hall was established in Lujiang Prefecture?"
"Because Lujiang Prefecture is a major prefecture in Western Ning Province, and its geographical location is critical?"
Liu Suifeng said, "If we’re talking about size, Yangshan Prefecture is actually larger than Lujiang Prefecture, and its location is just as good.
"Although the Yang Mountain Four Sects were there, what did they amount to in the eyes of the Celestial Martial Alliance at the time?
"The hall was built here for only one reason: the feng shui energy is dense here, and it secretly aligns with the Geng Metal Power of the west.
"In fact, I personally selected and established the locations for all of the Four Martial Halls of Zhenwu.
"And yet, it has been more than ten years since I last came here."
Liu Suifeng sighed and suddenly took a step forward.
𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞
In that instant, the space around them seemed to undergo some strange transformation.
But Chen Yuan had an indescribable feeling; he couldn’t quite put his finger on what had changed.
Just then, an incredibly powerful pressure suddenly descended, followed by an enraged roar.
"Chen Jiutian! Give me back my son’s life!"
Chen Yuan’s expression changed slightly. ’Xu Baiwei is incredibly fast. She must have rushed here without stopping the moment she entered Ning Province.’
"Let’s go out and meet this White-haired Witch."
Liu Suifeng waved his hand and led Chen Yuan out of the room.
He still had a sickly appearance, and even the aura within his body seemed somewhat unstable.
Furthermore, in terms of fame in the Jianghu, Xu Baiwei’s reputation was greater than Liu Suifeng’s.
Not to mention Liu Suifeng had been extremely low-key for years, and even at his peak, he wasn’t known for his raw power.
People in the Jianghu said Liu Suifeng possessed profound wisdom and unparalleled strategic genius. If he were in the Court, he would undoubtedly have the talent of a prime minister.
But there weren’t many descriptions of his strength. It was only said that at his peak, Military Advisor Liu was a Martial Dao Grandmaster who had reached the Eighth Realm Divine Platform Realm.
Outside the White Tiger Hall, boundless Demonic Qi coalesced around Xu Baiwei, forming a hundred-zhang-tall demonic shadow that swirled behind her.
The White Tiger Guards at the gate were unharmed. Chen Yuan had told them in advance that if they saw a woman approaching, they were to immediately flee inside the White Tiger Hall without asking any questions.
The White Tiger Hall rarely had visitors, so any woman who showed up was almost certainly Xu Baiwei.
These ordinary White Tiger Guards were less than ants before Xu Baiwei, and Chen Yuan didn’t want them to die for nothing.
The moment she saw Chen Yuan emerge, Xu Baiwei didn’t say a single word. With a piercing shriek, the demonic shadow behind her twisted and howled, transforming into a spiraling hundred-zhang-long spear that shot through the air, hurtling down toward Chen Yuan!
A Divine Platform Realm Grandmaster could condense a Primordial Spirit and perceive the Power of Heaven and Earth. A casual strike from them carried the might of the world, and its power was terrifying.
Liu Suifeng reached out and tapped the air. In an instant, all the ’qi’ within the White Tiger Hall seemed to gather at his command, forming a curtain of light in front of him.
With a deafening BOOM, turbulent energy erupted and scattered, and the Demonic Qi dissipated.
"Tiansuanzi Liu Suifeng? You’re going to block me? You dare block me!?"
Xu Baiwei stared at Liu Suifeng, her eyes filled with intense killing intent.
"Your Ten Thousand Demon Sect has gone too far."
Liu Suifeng looked calmly at Xu Baiwei. "You use my Zhenwu Hall as a whetstone to test your young disciples, and now you, a Divine Platform Realm Grandmaster, come to my Zhenwu Hall to bully a junior. Is your Ten Thousand Demon Sect truly so lawless? Aren’t you afraid of being ridiculed by the people of the Jianghu?"
"Ridiculed? So what? If being ridiculed could bring my son back, I would gladly let them laugh!"
Xu Baiwei’s face was twisted and ferocious, a mask of intertwined rage and grief.
She had been betrayed in her life, and her only solace was her son.
She also wanted her son to grow stronger and stronger—at least stronger than his heartless father, so she could finally have some measure of vengeance!
But who would have thought that a simple trial for disciples would result in her son’s death? Xu Baiwei was now half-mad, heedless of anything else.
"Liu Suifeng, you sickly weakling, get out of my way! I’m not here for your Zhenwu Hall today. I only want to kill Chen Jiutian!
"Don’t think I care that you’re here. Even if your Zhenwu Hall’s Grand Commandant Chao Hongtu were here with the Divine King’s Array-Breaking Technique, I would still kill Chen Jiutian!"
Xu Baiwei truly didn’t take Liu Suifeng seriously. He was just a sickly weakling famous for his strategies.
She had snuck into Ning Province precisely to kill Chen Yuan without alerting Chao Hongtu.
In the entire Zhenwu Hall, only Chao Hongtu, armed with the Divine King’s Array-Breaking Technique, gave her pause. The others were not worth her concern!
Liu Suifeng gently shook his head. "Chen Jiutian is the number one of my Zhenwu Hall’s younger generation. If we can’t even protect our own disciples within Ning Province, what face would Zhenwu Hall have to remain on the Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings?"
"If that’s how it’s going to be, then you can die with him!"
Evil Qi flared in Xu Baiwei’s eyes. A jet-black Demon Sword appeared in her hand. As she thrust the Long Sword forward, it instantly stirred the Power of Heaven and Earth. The winds howled, Demonic Qi surged to the heavens, and a beam of black sword light seemed to pierce through the very sun and sky as it descended!
Ten Thousand Demon Heaven-Slaying Sword!
Liu Suifeng’s expression was impassive. He formed a Seal Technique with his hands. The surrounding Power of Heaven and Earth gathered in his palms, but then flowed silently and subtly into the hall behind him.
In an instant, Chen Yuan felt as though the White Tiger Hall behind him had ’come alive.’
Feng shui converged, tiger roars and dragon cries echoed as the Power of Heaven and Earth swirled and condensed. A dense Geng Metal Power erupted from within the hall.
The next moment, with the feng shui as its foundation, the world’s Geng Metal Power churned and transformed, coalescing into a hundred-zhang-tall, platinum-colored illusion of a White Tiger.
The illusory White Tiger threw its head back and let out a long roar, then lunged forward and bit down, swallowing Xu Baiwei’s sword strike whole and chewing it into a chaotic cloud of Demonic Qi!