Only I am Venerable

The rain grew heavier, its drops drumming against the ground with a sound that merged into a continuous roar.

Gradually, a curtain of rain seemed to connect heaven and earth. A faint layer of mist began to rise from the ground, suffusing the downpour.

The Qin Family’s gatekeeper had been promoted for his bravery, but he still stood watch at the gatehouse. After all, guarding the main gate of the Qin Family was a post not just anyone could hold.

The gatekeeper saw the three companies of Knights standing outside, letting the rain soak them, and froze for a moment. He was just wondering whether he should report this when he noticed something shocking. The three hundred-plus men and their warhorses began to advance in perfect unison. The sound of their steps cut through the downpour, creating a staggering impact.

They were assuming a charge formation, aimed straight at the Qin Family’s gate!

Then, the front rank of twenty or thirty men raised their arms. They viciously unleashed a powerful, heavy attack straight at the Qin Family gate.

A tidal wave of power surged forth!

They offered no words, no threats—only a perfectly synchronized attack and a strength that made one tremble!

This was the true elite of the three great families. This was their true depth!

The Qin Family gatekeeper’s face turned pale, but he didn’t shrink back. He was sworn to live and die with the Qin Family’s gatehouse!

’The Qin Family had given him everything, so he was ready to give his own life back to them at any time. This was the vow of a loyal servant!’

BOOM!

An earth-shattering bang was followed by the long, panicked neighs of warhorses and the muffled grunts of men.

The Qin Family gatekeeper’s pupils, which had constricted in terror, slowly relaxed. He watched, wide-eyed, as the charging group and their unstoppable force were repelled, like an ocean wave crashing against a cliff and being thrown violently back.

The attackers were thrown into chaos, men and horses tumbling everywhere!

A figure in black hovered in the air above the Qin Family. Her eyes, as clear as autumn pools, shot out a chilling light. She looked down at the crowd of attackers. They had abandoned their horses and suffered seven or eight casualties, yet they showed not the slightest hint of panic.

Qin Li then appeared at She She’s side. He glanced in surprise at the men who had been blasted back by a single one of She She’s magical techniques.

These people didn’t seem to have a leader. Their faces were expressionless, like Death Warriors. They were Martial Artists of outstanding strength, yet they allowed the downpour to soak them to the bone, all to conserve the Primordial Power within their bodies.

"The three great families certainly have an unusual way of apologizing!" Qin Li’s face wore a gentle smile, but inwardly he was shaken. ’Relying on my powerful Innate Purple Qi, I can already sense what these people are planning.’

Among these three hundred men, the weakest was at the Celestial Embracing Realm, while the strongest was at least a Human Venerable. There might even be an Earth Venerable hidden among them!

Without a doubt, this had to be the most elite force of the three great families. They had come here ready to die, with the clear objective of eliminating Qin Li and the woman in black, and leveling the Qin Family in one fell swoop!

This was enough to show that the three great families were thoroughly enraged. They had flown into a true fury and would not rest until Qin Li was dead.

They had brought out their elites to fight Qin Li to the death, using the suicidal method of self-detonation.

Qin Li sent a mental message to She She, "Be careful. They plan to use self-detonation to annihilate us!"

She She nodded and sent a mental message back to Qin Li, "With two Top-Grade Spirit Stones, I can probably use the Suppression Technique for the space of a single count."

Qin Li’s eyes lit up. ’She She is a Martial Artist at the Shattered Void realm! If she uses the Suppression Technique, the effect will be phenomenal!’

Just then, ten men from each of the three companies flew into the air! Their formidable aura and expressions of grim resolve told Qin Li instantly what these thirty men intended to do. At the same moment, the remaining two hundred and seventy-plus men began to retreat rapidly!

"Zhen!" Qin Li barked. An unparalleled, immense pressure erupted from She She. The thirty Martial Artists, who had already begun compressing their Pill Cores to prepare for a suicidal charge, suddenly felt the air become impossibly thick. Never mind moving their bodies—even moving a single thought felt like an extravagant wish!

SWISH!

A brilliant flash of purple light cut stunningly through the downpour.

The thirty men who had charged forward began to fall from the sky like the pouring rain itself.

In the blink of an eye, the purple light flashed again. More than twenty Martial Artists had their throats slit and fell dead to the ground!

She She remained hovering in the sky, motionless, but her face had grown somewhat pale. She too let the rain soak her, droplets sliding continuously down her beautiful long hair.

A glint of excitement flashed in She She’s eyes. ’The Suppression Technique is truly formidable!’

Two Spirit Stones, now transparent as crystal, slipped from She She’s grasp. Two more Top-Grade Spirit Stones appeared in her hand. Her figure flashed, and in the next instant, she reappeared above the remaining crowd of Martial Artists.

Once again, the Suppression Technique immobilized them!

That stunning, brilliant purple light flashed again and again in an instant. In the eyes of the three great families’ Martial Artists, who had come here prepared to die, irrepressible panic and fear finally appeared!

Being unafraid of death did not mean they were immune to fear.

They were utterly shocked by this terrifying method of slaughter. Their opponent didn’t even give them the chance to self-detonate. In just a brief moment, more than half of their three hundred-plus men were already dead!

And the slaughter was still ongoing!

CRACK! A clap of thunder echoed through the sky, as if even the heavens could no longer bear the immense pressure and had finally erupted in anger.

A torrential downpour cascaded from the gloomy, heavy sky!

One hundred sixty-eight... one hundred seventy-five... two hundred twenty-three... two hundred fifty-six!

By the time She She’s sea-deep reserves of Primordial Power were finally exhausted, Qin Li had killed a total of two hundred and fifty-six people!

Qin Li was not a savage, bloodthirsty berserker, but at this moment, he was far more terrifying than any berserker could ever be!

He was like a Godslayer from Asura Hell, wielding the Death God’s scythe and reaping a frantic harvest of living souls.

Fewer than sixty men remained on the plaza!

"AHH!" Someone, it was impossible to tell who, let out an inhuman, terrified scream, then turned and fled!

BANG!

Beside the fleeing man, someone finally buckled under the pressure and abruptly self-detonated. He didn’t even try to charge into the sky toward Qin Li. He just blew himself up right in the midst of his comrades!

Another thirty-odd men were caught in the blast, sent flying in all directions by the surging, violent force. They were all either killed or grievously wounded!

The Blood-Drinking Sword in Qin Li’s hand let out an excited hum, its sharp blade trembling as it radiated a thirst for blood. It followed him as he charged into the remaining Martial Artists. The purple Sword Qi was brilliant and mysterious. It carried no scent of death, yet it sowed death with every flash.

BANG!

With another massive explosion, Qin Li’s body was thrown backward. The last Martial Artist to have reached the Earth Venerable realm had finally lost control and self-detonated!

Qin Li coughed up several mouthfuls of blood in mid-air before a black figure caught him.

It was Xiaohai!

A resentful light flickered in Xiaohai’s eyes. Qin Li had given it strict orders not to interfere, to wait until both he and She She were spent. That way, it could serve as a trump card.

And now, in less time than it takes for an incense stick to burn, all three hundred of their opponents had been annihilated!

A dozen or so heavily injured Martial Artists remained, too wounded to even move. They lay on the Qin Family’s ruined plaza, staring blankly at the gloomy sky, letting the downpour wash over them without reaction.

The three great families’ all-out attack had been defeated so utterly, so cleanly. It was like a pebble tossed into the Great Sea, creating a splash so small it was almost negligible.

Qin Li was injured by the Earth Venerable Martial Artist’s dying self-detonation, and his wounds were not light. Fortunately, he possessed countless types of Spiritual Medicine. Fortunately, his body had been reforged by the Magical Vermilion Fruit and the Nine-Turned White Jade Lotus. And fortunately, he cultivated the "Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, Only I am Venerable" combat technique and possessed pure Innate Purple Qi.

However, from that day forward, Qin Li vanished. Some said he had gone into seclusion. Others claimed he had been so grievously wounded that he had died. The rumors were many and varied.

One thing was certain, however: throughout all of Profound Island, no one dared to provoke the Qin Family now!

Though there were almost no eyewitnesses to the world-shaking battle that took place in the rain, word of it still spread, striking fear and terror into the hearts of countless people.

This was especially true for the members of the families who had come to apologize. Those among them who had originally disapproved of their families suffering such a great loss of face were now drenched in cold sweat, a chill running down their spines after hearing how the three great families had been crushed!

So, even though Qin Li hadn’t been seen since the battle, no one dared to provoke the Qin Family ever again.

As for the three great families, while they weren’t completely crippled by this devastating blow, the Qian Family, the Thousand Mechanism Sect, the Sword Concealment Manor, and Ice Edge all seized the opportunity.

Along with the Qin Family, they began to chip away at the businesses and influence of the three great families. Gradually, the three great families began to show signs of decline.

The Thousand Mechanism Sect, Sword Concealment Manor, and Ice Edge, in turn, became the new three great superpowers on Profound Island! The Qian Family and the Qin Family also showed faint signs of ascending to that rank.

The Qin Family, in particular, became a family with a transcendent status. Even the three newly-formed superpowers—the Thousand Mechanism Sect, the Sword Concealment Manor, and Ice Edge—all declared their wish to remain on good terms with the Qin Family forever!

「Two years passed in the blink of an eye.」

On another fine day, under a clear, cloudless sky, the plaza in front of the Qin Family’s main gate stood completely refurbished. Its smooth marble slabs were polished to a mirror shine.

A group of young Qin Family disciples trained on the plaza, sweating profusely as they cultivated with all their might.

The occasional shouts that rang out filled the air with a sense of boundless vitality.

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