Soul Emperor Awakening

Qingcheng Mansion.

More than a month had passed. Qingcheng Mansion had already gathered the forces of many families and even launched several sieges along the way, all for the sake of taking complete revenge on the Royal Family.

The Royal Family’s actions had been exposed, shocking the entire nation. No one had expected the Royal Family to do such a thing, though no one knew if the rumors were true or false. At the very least, Qingcheng Mansion’s declaration of war on the Royal Family was real. The two powers had always coexisted peacefully, so a sudden declaration of war would never have happened unless their hatred had reached an absolute peak.

Because of this, Qingcheng Mansion’s declaration of war led most people to believe that the Royal Family truly intended to annex them. Otherwise, why would Qingcheng Mansion resist so fiercely?

The great war between the two sides was now at a fever pitch. The Royal Family had joined forces with the Divine Seal Sect to resist, supported by numerous smaller families. Overall, the Royal Family’s side completely outmatched Qingcheng Mansion in terms of strength.

Qingcheng Mansion was far outnumbered by the Royal Family’s side, both in Spirit Pill Stage experts and Core Formation Stage experts. The Divine Seal Sect’s strength was also extremely formidable, comparable to the Royal Family itself. Combined with the other families, the Royal Family’s overall power was incredibly potent!

As the war dragged on, Qingcheng Mansion found itself increasingly suppressed. If not for the two experts from the Golden Dragon Race that Lin Xuan had left behind, things would have been truly dire. Although the situation improved slightly with the arrival of two more Core Formation Stage experts as reinforcements, their overall position remained grim.

Both the Royal Family and the Divine Seal Sect had Core Formation Stage experts, so the two reinforcements only slightly improved the situation for Qingcheng Mansion; it didn’t give them a major advantage.

"Mansion Master, the Royal Family and the Divine Seal Sect are attacking together! They’ve sent five Core Formation Stage experts and ten Spirit Pill Stage experts this time. They’re trying to wipe us out in one fell swoop!" Qing Piaoxue rushed in to report, the situation dire.

Five Core Formation Stage experts and ten Spirit Pill Stage experts—this was an overwhelming force, enough to crush any faction. Qingcheng Mansion had only four Core Formation Stage experts in total: two from the Tu Family and two of their own. If not for the two experts from the Tu Family, they would have fallen long ago.

Ten Spirit Pill Stage experts was also a significant number. Of course, experts from different factions varied in strength, and those from the Divine Seal Sect were known to be particularly powerful. Of the five attacking Core Formation Stage experts, three were from the Divine Seal Sect.

It seemed the rumors that the Divine Seal Sect was secretly part of the Royal Family weren’t false after all. It was impossible to believe they weren’t connected, given how much effort they were putting in.

"They want to wipe us out? Let’s see if they have what it takes!" Qing Deyun snorted coldly. He stood up and said to the Tu Family Elders who were discussing matters nearby, "I’m afraid we’ll have to trouble you shortly. If we can’t hold them back, you should retreat..."

Qing Deyun didn’t force them to stay. If the situation turned south, the two of them could flee, and Qingcheng Mansion wouldn’t blame them. They were reinforcements, after all, not bound to live or die with Qingcheng Mansion. It was good enough that they were willing to help.

The two Elders exchanged glances and could only nod. "We wouldn’t do so unless it’s the most critical moment. We can only say that we’ll do our best! Elder Lin has helped our Tu Family a great deal; we won’t abandon you unless we face a true crisis."

It was the only answer they could give. If death was certain, it would be impossible for them not to flee. Reality was just that cruel.

Without any more needless words, they quickly rushed outside. The moment they emerged, they saw figures flying toward them from the distance, exactly as the intelligence report had described.

Such a powerful lineup made the very air feel heavy and oppressive. The five Core Formation Stage experts led the way, flying over with palpable Killing Intent. To save time, each of the Core Formation Stage experts was carrying two Spirit Pill Stage experts—exactly ten in total!

As soon as they arrived, they released the Spirit Pill Stage Level experts, who flew to the forefront. One of them looked at the defenders and sneered, "Mansion Master, long time no see. I trust you’ve been well! I never expected you to hold out for so long. It’s truly been a surprise."

"Oh, so it’s the Vice Sect Leader of the Divine Seal Sect, Old Dog Hai! I thought you’d died long ago. It seems your wretched ghost still lingers. I wonder, is your Sect Leader, that Sea Pig Head, dead yet? He’s so old, it’s about time he kicked the bucket!" Qing Deyun immediately fired back with insults, clearly very familiar with the Core Formation Stage expert before him.

The Divine Seal Sect and Qingcheng Mansion had a history of conflict, and they certainly held grudges. The one leading the charge was Hai Qingdong, the Vice Sect Leader of the Divine Seal Sect. He had the highest Cultivation among them, at the Seventh Layer of the Core Formation Stage.

As for the other four Core Formation Stage experts, the lowest was at the First Layer, and the highest was around the Fourth Layer. Their Cultivation was neither too high nor too low.

Qingcheng Mansion’s side, however, was in a much weaker state. They had already fought several major battles, and their Core Formation Stage experts were all wounded. The Spirit Pill Stage Level experts were even worse off; some were so severely injured that they were lying in Qingcheng Mansion to recuperate, completely unable to fight.

The enemy was now putting immense pressure on Qingcheng Mansion. They could probably handle the five Core Formation Stage experts—the two experts from the Golden Dragon Race could hold off one of them. The real problem was the remaining ten Spirit Pill Stage experts. Qingcheng Mansion could muster five at most, only half the enemy’s number.

"Rest assured, the Sect Leader is in excellent health! But today is the day you die. No matter what happens to us, you will die first!" Hai Qingdong sneered. With a light wave of his hand, all his forces charged forward.

Qing Deyun snorted and met them without fear, forcefully intercepting the five Core Formation Stage experts. For a moment, a continuous series of explosions echoed as the entire sky filled with terrifying blasts of Energy.

The Spirit Pill Stage experts also surged forward in a wave. Due to their superior numbers, they immediately forced the defenders back, who were completely unable to resist.

"Get back!"

Lin Feng roared, swinging his long staff with all his might and knocking an opponent away. His face was pale; he had fought in many battles and was still forcing himself to fight this time. The injuries inside his body were anything but light.

The others weren’t faring any better. They didn’t have many Spirit Pill Stage experts to begin with, and it was always the same few people fighting over and over. Only they knew the true extent of their hardship.

Soon, they were being pushed back again and again. With a loud THUD, Qing Piaoxue was sent flying by a palm strike. She collapsed to the ground, her slender body trembling slightly, her face as white as a sheet. Her complexion had been pale to begin with, but now it was a ghastly, terrifying white.

"Third Elder!" Qing Piaoyun knocked back his opponent and rushed to Qing Piaoxue’s side, gathering her into his arms.

"Brother... I don’t think I’m going to make it... The injuries inside my body are too severe..." As Qing Piaoxue spoke, blood quickly trickled from the corner of her mouth. Blood flowed ceaselessly from her abdomen, as if her internal organs had suffered grievous damage.

"This... this is from your last injury!" Qing Piaoyun was utterly devastated. He never imagined it was this severe—that Qing Piaoxue had been fighting while already injured!

"The weak should look like the weak, and the weak deserve to be eliminated! Die!" The man who rushed forward showed no mercy, thrusting his longsword toward Qing Piaoxue, intending to run them both through at once.

"AHHH, YOU BASTARD, DIE!" Qing Piaoyun roared, raising his palm to counterattack. Just then, a streak of red light shot toward them at extreme speed. No one had time to react.

With a loud BANG, the Spirit Pill Stage expert was sent flying, a gaping hole now torn through his chest.

"Who dares touch my master!" Lin Xuan’s familiar figure appeared before them, his eyes glinting with a cold light!