"This...there's really nothing..."
An Zhiyan shook his head awkwardly, feeling sowhat guilty as he withdrew his hand, and answered:
"While you were in seclusion so days ago, I helped arrange for so people from the Yu Family to be planted in the Li Family, and I drank a bit too much, said so nonsense."
Having said that, An Zhiyan quickly waved his hand, putting on a smile, and assured earnestly:
"But rest assured, all those present were confidants, loyal and true, and will absolutely not let a word slip!"
"Nonsense?!"
An Jingming didn't wait for his explanation, but asked back, sensing an ominous sign, murmuring:
"Let it not be known that I've reached 'Fetal Breathing'."
An Zhiyan suddenly stopped in his tracks, his old face falling, and An Jingming, seeing his expression, knew all too well what An Zhiyan's nonsense was all about. An Jingming imdiately lost his composure, his expression greatly shaken, gritting his teeth and said:
"Father! Do you realize the seriousness of this matter!"
An Zhiyan, a grown man, hung his head like a child, and An Jingming's anger erupted as he was about to speak, only to feel the Mountain Protection Array shaking. Looking up with an ugly expression, a figure clad in grey appeared outside the Formation, his gaze coldly sweeping down towards the hall below.
"An Jingming! Co out!"
Yu Mugao stood in the air, his heart filled with irritation. According to his plan, he was to assassinate mbers of the Li family and had prepared all the evidence accordingly; naturally, the Li Family would have to hold the An Family accountable, at the very least question them.
Yu Mugao had already prepared his people and thods, ready to wait for the Li Family to send soone. But to his surprise, Li Xuanfeng discovered the traces and killed Jiang the Guest Elder and Yu Muxuan. The Li Family instantly fell silent, and Yu Mugao had to act personally, making up an excuse to force the Li Family to share so of the impact.
"This man has used deceit and trickery to kill the young master of the Li Family. Entrusted by the Li Family, my Yu Clan has eliminated him to set things right and make clear the truth of heaven and earth, evidence and testant are all here..."
After stating this with a heavy voice, Yu Mugao inwardly thought:
"Just like this, it won't be possible to swallow the An Family whole, but we must seize the chance before the Li Family can react, confirm the matter, kill An Zhiyan and An Jingming, and support a proxy leader from the An Family to take over. Have the vassaled An Family speak for us and turn right into wrong."
Yu Mugao was accustod to such sches, knowing that the so-called good and evil, right and wrong were nothing but a matter of spoken word. In a few monts, he had arranged his subsequent moves, looking down towards the great hall below.
Both An Zhiyan and An Jingming inside the hall were greatly shocked, with An Zhiyan still finding it hard to believe as he wide-eyedly shouted:
"Li Family? Yu Family? What's going on?"
An Jingming sighed and said quietly:
"Father...acting carelessly only leads to harm. Did you think our household still has many loyal people? Both families' spies have already infiltrated like a sieve... The person you sent over must have already pinned whatever it is on us, and such a commotion ans either Li Xuanxuan or Li Xuanfeng has died."
"This, this...!"
An Zhiyan stuttered, unable to speak coherently. After a few monts, his eyes turned bloodshot, and tears began to fall from the corners of his eyes. He regretfully slapped himself and exclaid angrily:
"This is...Yu Mugao's doing...You run! I'll hold them off! As long as you survive, nothing that befalls the An Family will matter."
An Zhiyan grabbed An Jingming's hand, hurriedly giving orders, shouting:
"Didn't you create a secret passage that leads directly outside the mountain? You run! Leave the people outside to your father...you run..."
His forehead was drenched in sweat, his expression desperate, clearly not valuing his own life, only focused on An Jingming's safety.
An Jingming, however, shook his head dejectedly, and replied:
"Father...it's too late. Don't think it's only Yu Mugao coming for us. I'm afraid Yu Xiaogui is out there watching silently too. With Foundation Establishnt Cultivators guarding, we can't escape. The Yu Family won't rest until they've killed ."
The Mountain Protection Array was already making a thunderous noise, cries of panic rang out everywhere, and footsteps were fast approaching. An Jingming stomped his foot, and the doors to the great hall automatically closed together, emitting bursts of golden light.
"Family Head! The Yu Family is attacking! Family Head!"
"Family Head...save us!"
An Jingming had quietly etched a Formation into the great hall while his father An Zhiyan was building it, never imagining it would one day be used to block out his own kin. Outside the hall, people were crying and pounding on the door, leaving handprint after handprint on its surface.
However, most of the mbers of the An family were of no significant ability, rely Fetal Breathing Cultivators, with no Yujing Wheel Cultivators among them except for An Zhiyan and An Jingming. How could they break the Formation? They could do nothing but shout and wail from outside, with curses faintly heard amidst the clamor.
An Zhiyan let out a sob as he fell to the ground, angrily slapping himself with such force that blood stread from his mouth and two teeth were spat out. He wept,
"It's all my fault! All my fault! My selfish greed, love for wine and beauty, ambition beyond my abilities... I've led you to this, led you to this..."
An Jingming, with tears streaming down his face, knelt on the ground, cradling An Zhiyan's plump and smooth cheek, and counseled like a father,
"I'll fight my way out... You escape through the secret passage. Yu Mugao is on guard against , Father still has a chance to escape..."
An Zhiyan's legs trembled as he tried to utter so tough words but instead choked out a sentence from his throat,
"Where... where would I go?"
"To the Li Family."
Tears rolled down An Jingming's face, yet his eyes grew brighter as he whispered,
"I've co to understand... There's no ti to explain."
Gripping An Zhiyan's hand, An Jingming said with tears in his voice,
"Father, you must give up drinking, give up your lust, be cautious and retrain your discipline. Preserve yourself wisely and don't dream of revenge... Have more children."
"Boom!"
The An family's Great Formation had been shattered. An Zhiyan shuddered and, wiping away his tears, ran towards the back of the hall.
Watching An Zhiyan enter the secret passage, An Jingming then turned away, smiling and crying as he removed his jade crown, his black hair cascading down, resting on his shoulders, his deanor no longer as calm as before but more untad.
He took down a Dharma Sword from the wall and fastened it at his waist, gripped the jade axe tightly, and the golden bangles on his wrist jingled. An Jingming slowly descended the stairs, kicking open the courtyard door to a vista of bloodshed, with severed heads rolling and bouncing down the steps.
"Yu Mugao of the Yu Family."
The young man before him had a fierce look, a white band across his forehead, staring at him like a wolf. An Jingming scrutinized him carefully. Yu Mugao coldly locked eyes with him. An Jingming didn't beg for rcy with phrases like "Spare my family and only kill ". Instead, he softly said,
"An Jingming of the An Family."
With the jade axe raised, An Jingming lunged forward. Yu Mugao stood still, watching as a Qi Cultivating Eighth Layer clansperson of Yu stepped forward, reaching out with a Dharma Sword to block An Jingming's jade axe.
With a light clink, the Qi Cultivating Eighth Layer Yu Family Cultivator took a step back. An Jingming flipped his jade axe, and Yu Mugao raised an eyebrow as another mber, a cultivator at the Qi Cultivating Peak, stepped forth, extending a Dharma Sword to parry An Jingming's jade axe.
"Your Cultivation Level progresses swiftly. Your power has managed to keep up and even slightly exceed the rest."
Yu Mugao sighed and laughed,
"Had you not been born above this lake, and if you devoted a hundred years to diligent cultivation, the Three Sects and Seven Doors would all co to know your na."
An Jingming didn't respond to him, but took a step back and swung his jade axe forward. Caught up in a fight with two Yu Family mbers, he could barely fend off both, unable to advance or retreat.
Feeling a slight urgency within, An Jingming, still not seeing Yu Xiaogui, forcefully pushed the two aside regardless of the drain on his Mana and launched himself upward.
Before he had taken but a step, a figure in a grey robe had appeared before him - his hair grizzled, his hands like jade, he stood silently, hands behind his back, eyes closed and silent.
"Yu Xiaogui."
An Jingming looked at Yu Xiaogui in front of him, impassive, as he tied the jade axe back to his waist, saluted Yu Xiaogui, and drew out a sharp white Dharma Sword, pressing it backward against his own neck, black hair gently laid upon the sword's edge. An Jingming whispered low,
"A true man should be like rivers flowing into the sea, eting heroes from all over the world. Though I yearn to soar above the clouds, I am encumbered by my clan..."
With those words, his left hand moved slightly and blood sprayed forth, as his head was severed from his body, which slumped down powerlessly. Yu Xiaogui opened his eyes, levitated the corpse with his Mana, and carefully examined it before he softly said,
"He really was no immortal god... indeed he is dead... Such a talent."
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