Chapter 67: Barlowe Family’s Backer
Chapter 67: Barlowe Family’s Backer
Several miles away, an atmosphere of doom had completely enveloped the lavish compound of the Barlowe family.
The news of the catastrophic events in the Hollow realm had already reached their ears.
Dorian and Lowen were dead. The Ironpeak Sect was currently being brutally annihilated by the combined forces of the Azure Cloud Sect and the Graves family.
Within the grand main hall of the Barlowe estate, the remaining people huddled together, their faces deathly pale, shivering like leaves in a winter storm.
Standing before them, as their final shield, was an old man gripping a heavy golden cane.
Marvin Barlowe.
The previous head of the Barlowe family, and an expert at the fifth level of the Spirit Manifestation Realm.
Despite his formidable cultivation, Marvin’s face was ashen.
His son, Lowen, was dead. The foundation his family had built over decades was on the verge of total collapse.
Yet, surprisingly, Marvin’s anxious gaze was not fixed on the sect gates, but rather on a middle-aged man standing directly beside him.
This man wore luxurious crimson robes, but the aura he emitted was only at the fifth level of the Essence Condensation Realm.
To a Spirit Manifestation cultivator like Marvin, such a person should have been nothing more than an ant.
However, Marvin’s attitude toward this Essence Condensation man was incredibly respectful.
"Elder Soren," Marvin spoke, his voice trembling slightly. "The Azure Cloud Sect and the Graves family are lunatics. They have already massacred the Ironpeak Sect. They will undoubtedly come for us next! You... you must save our Barlowe family!"
Soren let out a cold, dismissive snort.
"Calm yourself, Marvin," Soren said with a snort, his chin raised high in arrogance. "With me standing here, the Azure Cloud Sect and the Graves family won’t dare to touch even a single blade of grass in this compound. I will not let the Barlowe family be destroyed."
Hearing Soren’s confident words, Marvin let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.
Before he could offer his gratitude, the earth trembled.
BOOM!
The towering gates of the Barlowe family estate were blasted off their hinges, shattering into thousands of splinters that rained down upon the courtyard.
"They are here!" Marvin’s heart plummeted into his stomach.
How could they be so fast?
They had only attacked the Ironpeak Sect an hour ago!
Gritting his teeth, Marvin and Soren rushed out of the grand hall
The moment they stepped into the outer courtyard, the sight that greeted them caused Marvin’s scalp to go completely numb.
Standing perfectly aligned in front of the ruined gates were Harmon, Dorris, Kory, Silas, and Amos.
Five Spirit Manifestation Realm experts.
And stepping unhurriedly to the absolute forefront of this monstrous coalition was a youth draped in dark robes.
Seeing the force arrayed against him, Marvin gripped his golden cane so tightly his knuckles turned white.
"Harmon! Dorris!" Marvin stepped forward, trying hard to sound calm in this immense pressure, "I already know what happened! I know my son Lowen is dead, and I know you have completely ruined the Ironpeak Sect, and now you have marched here now with the intent to completely destroy my Barlowe family!"
Harmon’s eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
His blue sword buzzed with lethal intent.
"Since you know, then surrender and make your death quick."
"Wait!" Marvin shouted hastily, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, "You may have the power to destroy us today, but you can not afford the consequences! Do you know who Elder Soren is?"
Harmon and Dorris frowned, their gazes shifting to the Level 5 Condensation elder.
Soren stepped forward, his chin raised high, looking down his nose at the five Spirit Manifestation experts.
"My daughter," Soren proclaimed loudly, his voice echoing with unbounded arrogance, "is married to the Young Master of the Ashvele Family in Mirravele City!"
The moment the words Mirravele City and Ashvele Clan dropped, Harmon, Dorris, and other Spirit Manifestation Realm experts instantly stiffened.
Their mocking expressions froze on their faces, completely replaced by shock and dread.
Mirravele City!
The sprawling, dominant metropolis of the southern Outer Frontier.
The factions there were completely out of the league of anything in Greymist Town.
Marvin saw their hesitation, and a flicker of hope ignited in his desperate heart.
He
"That’s right!" Marvin, spoke as he leaned forward, grasping onto this lifeline. "If you turn around and let my family go right now, I swear on my life that the Barlowe family will drop all grudges! We will not seek revenge for Lowen’s death, and we will not harm the Azure Cloud Sect or the Graves family in the future. But if you dare to attack us, the Ashvele Clan will flatten your entire sects into dust!"
Harmon and Dorris exchanged a deeply troubled glance.
If Barlowe were truly connected to a major clan in Mirravele City, then it was horrible.
But before their minds could even fully process the threat, a cold, mocking sneer echoed through the silent courtyard.
"How funny."
Rhain casually took a step forward. His dark grey eyes locked onto Marvin, filled with absolute, piercing disdain.
"You want us to believe," Rhain sneered, his voice dripping with absolute, bone-chilling disdain, "that we murdered your son, slaughtered your family’s elites, and came at your door to destroy your entire lineage... and you will simply walk away without seeking revenge?"
Marvin’s face twitched. "I—I swear it! I will not—"
"What kind of father are you?" Rhain cut him off, his voice flat and completely devoid of fluctuation. "If you truly wouldn’t avenge your own son, then you are nothing but a spineless, pathetic dog in my eyes."
Marvin’s face violently spasmed. His face revealed an extremely ugly expression as if he had eaten poop.
For a second, a flash of malevolent rage and maddened rage surfaced that he had been desperately trying to conceal.
It was all the confirmation Rhain needed.
"Kill everyone," Rhain ordered.
Soren’s face contorted with fury. He lunged forward, thrusting a finger at Rhain.
"You insolent fool! Do you have any idea what you are doing? The Ashveil family’s head is a Core Formation Realm cultivator at the sixth level! He commands an army of Spirit Manifestation experts! If you touch a single hair on the Barlowe family, the Ashveil family will personally come to Greymist Town and reduce your pathetic sect to ashes!"
Core Formation Realm. Level 6.
Several Azure Cloud elders felt their blood run cold.
"Wait! Rhain, hold on!"
Harmon stepped forward, his forehead beaded with cold sweat.
"Rhain," Harmon placed a hand on Rhain’s shoulder. "The Ashveil family is no small matter. In Mirravele City, they are one of the ruling powers. A Core Formation Level cultivator is a being that could annihilate the entirety of Greymist Town with a wave of his hand. We are strong enough to crush the Barlowe family today, but if the Ashveil family retaliates..."
Kory and Dorris also looked hesitant.
Rhain looked at Harmon, then at Kory.
"Do you really think sparing them today will save you?" Rhain asked coldly.
Harmon and Kory froze.
They had lived for years, how could they not know this truth.
The enmity has already been forged in blood.
It is absolutely impossible to reconcile.
Even if they spare the Barlowe family, the moment the Ashvele family experts arrive, they will use them to slaughter every last one of Azure Cloud Sect and Graves family members.
But what could they do in this situation?
Rhain swept his dark gaze back toward the trembling Marvin.
"If the people from Mirravele City come..." Rhain’s voice turned bone-chillingly cold. "...I will deal with them."
The words hit Harmon and Kory like a thunderclap.
Deal with a Core Formation Level expert?
It was a statement so completely absurd it defied all logic.
But as Harmon and Kory looked at Rhain’s calm, fearless face, their minds flashed back to the impossible miracles he had already performed today.
They did not know what earth shattering methods Rhain possessed, but looking at his unbothered expression, their worry miraculously lessened.
"You are right," Harmon said sternly. "There is no retreat!"
"Dorris! Kory! Silas! Amos!" Harmon roared, his Level 5 Spirit Manifestation aura burst like a volcano. "Together!"
"KILL THEM ALL!" Dorris bellowed.
"Curse you!" Marvin roared in despair.
But nobody listened to his nonsense anymore.
""NO! You are insane! You are bringing apocalyptic disaster upon yourselves! You demonic bastard! The Ashvele family will—"
Smack!
Before Soren could even finish his sentence, Rhain casually raised his hand and swatted him like a noisy fly.
Soren’s body spun midair. Blood and shattered teeth sprayed across the stone pavement as he crashed heavily into the dirt.
"You... you’re dead!" Soren’s face twisted in venomous hatred. "The Ashvele family will avenge me! They will tear your limbs off and kill—"
Thud.
A heavy boot casually stepped down, pressing directly against Soren’s windpipe.
The curses were instantly choked off.
Soren’s eyes bulged, his face turning entirely purple as he let out pathetic, gagging wheezes, unable to squeeze out another syllable.
Rhain looked down at him, his expression completely devoid of fluctuation.
"I see you have so much confidence in this Ashvele family..."
He pressed his boot down just a fraction harder, before withdrawing it.
"Fine, I won’t kill you today."
"I’ll keep you alive. Just long enough for you to watch with your own eyes when your Ashvele experts arrive..."
Rhain’s lips curled into a malicious smile.
"...and die by my hand."