Chapter 574 278: A River of Blood
"Father, what's happened?"
Just then, a cry came from outside the forbidden grounds.
Chen Cheng's eyes narrowed. With a few quick leaps, he was on top of the courtyard wall.
He saw twenty or thirty men, all clad in black and masked, wielding an assortment of weapons as they surrounded the forbidden grounds in a fan-shaped formation.
Their Qi Blood Power was all considerably potent. The man in the lead was shockingly at Great Success in the Marrow Cleansing Realm. The rest were mostly Perfect Martial Artists of the Bone Forging Realm, with the weakest among them at Small Success in the Bone Forging Realm.
"Damn it, it's Chen Cheng!"
Someone cried out in alarm upon seeing Chen Cheng's sudden appearance.
"Form the array! Kill him!"
The men in black were decisive. They all unleashed their Qi Blood Power, their weapons condensing various forms of Saber Momentum and Sword Momentum, or gathering different Realms.
Ripples vibrated violently as Heaven and Earth Origin Qi converged, condensing in an instant into a fan-shaped Battle Array Realm several zhang wide.
The aura of the Battle Array Realm was ferocious and domineering. Its power was actually slightly more formidable than the Realm Combined Skill of the four Xuanshuo Peak Border Guards from before!
If measured numerically, it would have a value of at least eight or nine hundred, approaching the power of a Second Layer Realm.
"Strike!"
With a great shout from the leader, the Battle Array Realm suddenly unleashed a ferocious, domineering arc of power that slashed violently toward Chen Cheng.
The void trembled. Its power was monstrous, threatening to annihilate everything in its path with overwhelming force!
But Chen Cheng was faster. His body moved like a bolt of lightning, shooting several zhang straight into the air.
A dragon's roar echoed as wind and thunder erupted!
BOOM!
The Battle Array Realm's aura, carrying a ferocious and domineering power, shattered the very air. The forbidden grounds' heavy gate, the sturdy stone courtyard walls, and the houses were all blasted to pieces, erupting in a violent ROAR!
Chen Cheng's figure was like a dragon soaring through the sky, or a serpent diving into the sea. In an instant, he was above their heads, his Dragon Roar Realm smashing down!
BOOM!
The aura of the Dragon Roar Realm slammed into the aura of the Battle Array Realm, erupting in a violent ROAR!
The men in black had used most of the power of their condensed Battle Array Realm for the attack, leaving less than thirty percent for defense.
Struck by the Dragon Roar Realm's aura, it immediately began to tremble violently, twisting and contorting, on the verge of shattering at any moment!
The men in black never expected Chen Cheng's Body Technique to be so swift, allowing him to easily dodge the attack from their Battle Array Realm's aura and launch such a rapid counterattack!
They all paled in shock, hastily unleashing their Qi Blood Power with all their might in an attempt to replenish the power of their Battle Array Realm!
But they were clearly no match for Chen Cheng's speed!
Chen Cheng formed a blade with his fingers, and the aura of his Infinite Realm blasted forth!
The Battle Array Realm's aura shook violently, on the verge of complete collapse!
SHING!
Chen Cheng drew his Long Saber. Wrapped in a fierce Saber Intent, he slashed out, and the Battle Array Realm finally shattered.
The men in black were sent flying in all directions by the rebounding force!
Chen Cheng moved like a winding dragon, his Long Saber a traceless blur. Wherever his Qingfeng Saber Intent passed, a head would roll!
THWACK! THWACK! THWACK...
In little more than ten breaths, all twenty-odd men in black had been decapitated!
Only the Marrow Cleansing Realm expert in black managed to hastily conjure a shield wall from his Five Elements Earth Realm, blocking the Qingfeng Saber Intent's attack.
Chen Cheng's figure was as swift as the wind. He unleashed wave after wave of his Qingfeng Saber Intent, and the Five Elements Earth Realm shield wall shattered after holding for only a few breaths!
The Marrow Cleansing Realm expert was terrified. He frantically unleashed what little Qi Blood Power he had left, trying to condense the aura of his Earth Element Realm once more.
But Chen Cheng gave him no such chance. He shot forward, formed a blade with his fingers, and struck with his Infinite Realm, hitting the man square in the chest!
BANG!
The strike seemed to land on Soft Armor, producing a loud, muffled thud!
SPURT!
Like a kite with its string cut, the man in black was sent flying several zhang, spitting a mouthful of blood. He was already gravely injured and could no longer fight.
Chen Cheng moved like the wind, instantly appearing before him. With a flick of his Long Saber, he knocked the man's mask away, revealing a face with a salt-and-pepper beard and hair.
Noticing the man's features bore a slight resemblance to Wang Xuanjiu and Wang Tingxuan, Chen Cheng said in a low voice,
"Who are you in the Wang Family?"
"Hmph!" Wang Tinghuan snorted coldly and said angrily, "I am Wang Tinghuan, the seventh son of the Wang Family's Ancestor.
"If you dare kill me, my father will not let you get away with it!"
Aside from the Wang Family Patriarch, Wang Tingxuan, who was at Marrow Cleansing Realm Perfection, the second generation of the Wang Family had three other Marrow Cleansing Realm Martial Artists. Wang Tinghuan was one of them.
Earlier, when Chen Cheng had pursued Ghostly Wound into the Wang ancestral residence and all the way to the family's forbidden grounds, he hadn't detected the auras of Wang Tinghuan or the others.
Evidently, they had been stationed elsewhere on standby, only rushing over to investigate after hearing the commotion.
'Judging by his tone, he still doesn't know his old man was killed long ago. He thinks he still has someone to back him up!'
Chen Cheng said flatly, "Wang Xuanjiu colluded with the fiends of the Black Lotus Sect and has already been executed by my hand. If you wish to live, you'd best answer my questions obediently."
Hearing this, Wang Tinghuan's expression changed drastically. "You... you killed my father?" he exclaimed in shock.
Chen Cheng couldn't be bothered to explain. He reached out, grabbed the man as if plucking a chicken, and with a few leaps, was back inside the forbidden grounds.
He then casually tossed him down beside Wang Xuanjiu's corpse.
"Do you believe me now?"
Seeing the demonized, dismembered limbs scattered everywhere, Wang Tinghuan's face drained of color once more.
When he saw the massive, hideous head of the Demon Fiend, which bore a faint resemblance to Wang Xuanjiu, he finally believed Chen Cheng's words.
As one of the Wang Family Elders, Wang Tinghuan had been with the family for decades and naturally knew many of its secrets; he simply never dared to speak of them out of fear of Wang Xuanjiu.
"Alas... the Wang Family has brought this calamity upon itself!" Wang Tinghuan's face filled with sorrow as he let out a long sigh.
Then, as if liberated, he gave Chen Cheng a cold look, slowly closed his eyes, and said: