Chapter 738 - 738: 738
Shen Qingyi's uncle was not wrong—the situation inside Shen Family Manor was indeed very dire.
Although the people of the Shen Family and the Killing Gate had been cured of their poison by Ye Qing using his own blood, the toxicity of the Bone-Piercing Tendon-Softening Powder was not so easily eradicated. Their inner strength was still somewhat depleted, which greatly reduced their capabilities. Meanwhile, the attackers from the Western Province were inherently strong and far outnumbered them. As a result, in this battle of attrition, the Shen Family and Killing Gate members, though they all took their stand, quickly found themselves at a disadvantage. They could only defend and had no means to defeat the Western Province forces.
"Hmph, I told you, even if you hadn't been poisoned by my smoke, the outcome would be the same!" Wang Tian'an said with a disdainful laugh as he sent Shen Shi flying with a palm strike: "What crap Martial Arts Holy Land of the Southern Six Provinces, not even worth mentioning. Even if you were all fully recovered, killing you would only take a bit more effort, what else can you do? Tonight, you are sure to die!"
The Shen Family members and those from the Killing Gate had grim expressions; the strength of the Western Province people far exceeded their expectations, making the battle very difficult. However, upon reflection, they could understand why their enemies were so powerful. After all, to have planned for twenty years and then dare to challenge the Shen Family, how could they not be backed by a formidable force?
In truth, they were not aware of the true purpose of these people from the Western Province. After eliminating the Shen Family, their plan was to consolidate the forces of the Southern Six Provinces and confront General Helian. To dare challenge the reigning titan of the Northwest without substantial strength would be impossible. Thus, taking on the Shen Family was, for them, hardly a difficult task.
However, Ye Qing's arrival disrupted the plans of the people from the Western Province. They had originally intended to use the Killing Gate to exhaust a significant portion of the Shen Family's strength, but Ye Qing's interference held that at bay. Then they resorted to the Bone-Piercing Tendon-Softening Powder, hoping for an easy victory without battle, only for Ye Qing to neutralize it, forcing them to take matters into their own hands and preventing a quick and effortless victory.
Seeing that none of the Shen Family could match Wang Tian'an, Shen Da had no choice but to take up a longsword and confront Wang Tian'an himself. However, other members of the Shen Family and those from the Killing Gate were fighting while retreating, clearly outmatched.
"Ghost-faced Judge, Netherworld Scholar!" Suddenly, the Netherworld Taoist turned and yelled: "Come and help quickly!"
The Killing Gate Seven Hidden were now fighting desperately against the people from the Western Province. The Ghost-faced Judge Cui Yu was taking care of Ye Qing, and the Netherworld Scholar had been hiding to the side and not participating, so the Seven Hidden of the Killing Gate couldn't assemble, and their Seven Kills Formation couldn't be formed. The Netherworld Taoist's call for Cui Yu and the Netherworld Scholar was an attempt to assemble the Seven Kills Formation to face the enemy.
Hearing this, Wang Tian'an's face changed immediately, and he urged anxiously: "Be careful, everyone, make sure not to get caught in the Killing Gate Seven Hidden's Seven Kills Formation!"
The Western Province people who were near the Killing Gate Seven Hidden immediately backed off slightly, fearful of being trapped within the formation.
On this side, Cui Yu looked at the unconscious Ye Qing, his face grim. Clenching his teeth, he laid Ye Qing down on the ground, grabbed a nearby weapon, and ran towards the other members of the Killing Gate.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry!" The Black Asura shouted excitedly: "******, we should have set up the Seven Kills Formation long ago, and dealt with this pack of bastards once and for all!"
Cui Yu rushed over, taking his position, and the others took theirs too. All turned to look at the Netherworld Scholar, who was still watching from a distance, evidently hesitating and uncertain.
"Netherworld Scholar, what are you thinking? Come over and help!" The Black Asura yelled loudly: "Hurry, we can hardly hold on any longer!"
"Yes, come and help quickly!" The Ghost King Li Ruoyuan bellowed: "Even if you don't take action at this time, these people will definitely not spare you. Only with the Seven Kills Formation do we have a chance of fighting our way out!"
All members of the Killing Gate were hoping for the Netherworld Scholar to come and assist, and so were the Shen Family members—they had witnessed the power of the Seven Kills Formation before and naturally understood that if it were set up, there was a chance of winning this battle.
However, the Netherworld Scholar did not come at all. After looking at the group for a while, he suddenly turned and ran away, jumping through a window and leaving the Shen Family's great hall.
The actions of the Netherworld Scholar completely took everyone by surprise, and the members of the Killing Gate were essentially dumbfounded. It was only once the Netherworld Scholar had completely vanished that everyone reacted.
"What's going on? What's going on?" The Black Asura asked in astonishment.
"That bastard, running away at a time like this, he must be trying to deliberately get us killed!" The Ghost King Li Ruoyuan shouted angrily.
"Aren't you aware of the Netherworld Scholar's temperament?" The Demon Queen He Qinghua said with a cold gleam in her eyes: "Don't expect this man to help at the critical moment. That he hasn't stabbed you in the back is already fortunate enough!"
"Bastard! How dare he do such a thing, if I ever see him again, I swear I'll kill him!" Black Asura cursed furiously. With Netherworld Scholar on the run, the Seven Kills Formation couldn't be set up. Without the Seven Kills Formation, there was no hope of victory in this battle.
Seeing the situation, Wang Tian'an couldn't help but burst into laughter and shouted loudly, "Listen up, men outside, let Netherworld Scholar go, don't stop him. Hahaha, Sha Men without the Seven Kills Formation, what else have you got to show off? Brothers, don't be polite to them, charge and kill them all!"
The people from the Western Province charged immediately, leaving Sha Men's few people no time even to curse in anger; they could only turn around and engage in a melee with the people from the Western Province again. Even with Cui Yu joining the fray, it was to no avail; their strength was far too inferior to that of the people from the Western Province. The defeat in this battle was inevitable; the only question was how long they could barely hold on.
The people from the Western Province had the hall completely surrounded, leaving no hope of escape for Sha Men and the Shen Family. Everyone could only fight desperately. Most were injured, and several members of the Shen Family lay in pools of blood, their fates unknown. This battle could be said to be the most tragic encounter the Shen Family had faced in many years.
While a melee raged inside and outside Shen Family Manor, an elder walked slowly along the small path in the forest outside the manor. Following the elder was a girl who looked like a Heavenly Immortal, none other than the blind girl.
"Grandfather, I faintly hear the sounds of fighting. Have we come back too late?" the girl asked with concern.
The elder sighed softly and said, "What's meant to be a blessing is not a disaster, and what's meant to be a disaster can't be avoided. If fate has decreed the Shen Family must pay a heavy price, then there's nothing I can do to change it."
Hearing this, the girl also couldn't help but sigh. They had been ready to go directly to Shen Family Manor last night. However, on their way, they met Ye Qing. To save Ye Qing, the elder used a lot of his Inner Strength and simply couldn't continue to Shen Family Manor; they had to find a place to recuperate. It wasn't until now that his Inner Strength had fully recovered, and they hurried back. If they could have arrived at the Shen Family Manor last night, this battle might not have happened at all. But if they had returned earlier, he wouldn't have been able to save Ye Qing. It seemed everything had been arranged somehow, and between saving Ye Qing and helping the Shen Family, he had to make a choice. And the elder chose the former, intent on repaying all he owed Li Changqing!
The result of choosing the former was that the Shen Family had to endure this calamity. The elder hastened here hoping to minimize the losses as much as possible.
As the two walked on, the elder suddenly frowned because he could already see the melee happening in the small forest. Despite the distance, he saw the situation at a glance.
"People from the Hua Family?" The elder was slightly surprised, but he quickly figured out what happened and looked directly at the carriage.
In the carriage, two girls were sitting together. The one with the more indifferent expression was Shen Qingyi, and the other, shivering in terror, was Lili, Shen Qingyi's personal maid.
Seeing Shen Qingyi, the elder froze for a long moment, guilt and affection filling his eyes as he pondered.
"Grandfather, there's fighting over there too. Are those people from the Shen Family?" the girl whispered, "Grandfather, should you go and help?"
The elder nodded slightly and was about to speak when he heard a faint sound of footsteps in the distance. He turned to look and saw a red figure sprinting towards them through the trees at high speed. Seeing this red figure, the elder was first taken aback but then wore a smile full of delight on his face.
"It seems we're not needed after all," the elder said with a light smile. "Let's go to Shen Family Manor first. This side, we'll leave to her!"
"Who is she?" the girl wondered aloud.
The elder replied with a smile, "She's the sister who held you when you were just born."
"The sister who held me?" The girl paused, then quickly said, "You mean Ms. Huangfu? She… she's here too?"
The elder smiled, looking at the red figure dashing over, a face full of reflection. He sighed softly and said, "It's been twenty years, and she's transformed from that innocent little girl to a notorious figure in the Eastern Province. Life is indeed complicated!"
As he spoke, the elder casually broke off a branch from a nearby tree and nonchalantly tossed it. That dry branch, in the elder's hand, soared through the air like a flying knife, directly piercing into the fray, striking the knee of the leader from the Western Province.
With an agonized scream, the man collapsed to the ground, clutching his knee and howling in pain. The branch, undiminished in force, ricocheted off his knee and swept on, toppling two more men from the Western Province before embedding halfway into the trunk of a nearby tree. The mere branch, demonstrating such force in the elder's casual throw, was truly extraordinary.