307: A sudden attack!

That old rival, who had fought him for a hundred years, had perished just like that, silently and without a sound.

And the Hu Family, which was once strong enough to stand on equal footing with the Teng Family, was now prostrate at his feet, offering up their Legacy and dignity with both hands.

"Old Ghost Hu, oh Old Ghost Hu..." A sense of gratification flickered through Teng Qianjue's heart.

"No matter how much you schemed, you never could have calculated that your Hu Family's century-old foundation would end up in my hands in such a manner, could you?"

However, that was no longer important now.

The pleasure in Teng Qianjue's eyes quickly transformed into a burning ambition for the future.

Although the Hu Family had been significantly depleted by internal strife, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.

The Earth Fire Spiritual Eye they controlled was an excellent place for refining Magic Treasures and Medicinal Pills.

Several high-quality mineral veins held rich reserves, and the accumulation of Cultivation Techniques, secret arts, Pill Formulas, and formation diagrams over hundreds of years was a precious foundation.

Once these resources were thoroughly digested and integrated into the Teng Family system, the Teng Family's overall strength would skyrocket in a short period!

The number of Foundation Establishment Cultivators in the Family was expected to double, and the cultivation of the younger generation would receive a qualitative boost.

As for himself, with the help of this momentum, he might even take this opportunity to catch a glimpse of the Mid-stage Golden Core!

When that time came, facing the Liu Family... Teng Qianjue's gaze seemed to pierce through layers of gray mist, casting toward the direction of the Liu Family's lands.

Liu Wusheng could be said to be the youngest Golden Core True Person in the Black Sha Marsh.

Although being young meant a lack of foundation, it also proved his infinite future potential.

In just a few short decades, his cultivation had already caught up to an old Senior like himself; over these years, he hadn't hesitated to rely on his strength to cause trouble for the Teng and Hu families.

But this time was different. If he waited until the Teng Family finished integrating the Hu Family's resources and their strength greatly increased, and if he could then break through to the Mid-stage Golden Core... "Heh!"

The corners of Teng Qianjue's mouth couldn't help but curl upward slightly.

He could almost imagine what kind of expression would be on Liu Wusheng's face when he found out.

Presumably, it would be quite spectacular!

Teng Qianjue composed himself, hiding those emotions deep in his eyes.

He spoke slowly, his voice not loud, yet it clearly reached the ears of every member of the Hu Family below, carrying the unique majesty and unquestionable authority of a Golden Core True Person.

"Since you recognize the mandate of heaven and are willing to return to the orthodox line, this seat grants it!"

"From this day forward, the Hu Family is a vassal of my Teng Family!"

"Rise!"

The last word was like a divine decree.

"Thank you, Immortal Master!"

Led by Hu Li, the dense crowd below bowed in unison to express their thanks, and then slowly stood up.

However, at the very moment this submission ceremony was about to be completed.

"Teng Qianjue! You despicable and shameless old thief! I, Hu Hai, would rather die standing than live on my knees!"

A shrill roar, filled with endless venomous hatred, suddenly exploded from the back of the crowd like a thunderclap on level ground!

A blood-red figure suddenly lunged out from the kneeling crowd!

The speed was so fast that it actually pulled a dazzling blood-line through the air!

The figure was indeed Hu Hai, but now his eyes were as red as blood, the spiritual energy around him was rioting frantically, and the blood vessels under his skin were bulging, as if they would burst at any moment; he had clearly activated some kind of forbidden technique that burned essence blood!

He completely ignored everyone around him, his target aimed directly at Teng Qianjue, who was a hundred feet high in the air!

This sudden turn of events stunned everyone present except for the Hu Family!

Especially Shadow; under his mask, his face, which had been slightly relaxed because the mission was successfully completed, instantly turned green!

At the thought of how he had previously mentioned with no small amount of self-satisfaction in his debriefing report that "everyone in the Hu Family is under control," he felt his face burning as if he had been slapped.

Who could have imagined that this Hu Hai would be so insidious and enduring!

He knew that although this person was arrogant, hadn't he already recognized the situation and chosen to bow his head in the face of absolute strength and the reality of the Family's survival?

The result was that he had accepted his fate on the surface, but secretly harbored such malicious intent, and even chose to strike suddenly at the critical moment when the Old Ancestor had arrived in person and thought the overall situation was settled!

Wasn't this a slap in the face to him, Shadow!!

No, to be precise, it was a slap in the face to the Immortal Master and the entire Teng Family!

"Bastard!!"

Killing intent boiled in Shadow's heart, and the ferocity in his eyes was almost ready to erupt.

Immediately, Shadow intended to strike and kill this person under his palm!

As long as he acted fast enough to resolve this menace before the Old Ancestor personally took action, he might still be able to make up for his mistake; that way, it would at most be considered "ineffective supervision" and wouldn't lead to a severe punishment.

"Soul Lock!"

Shadow let out a low growl, his hands forming seals with lightning speed. His magic power surged out, transforming into over a dozen pitch-black, thorn-covered chains of power. Like venomous snakes choosing their prey, they let out sharp whistling sounds as they swirled from all directions toward the charging blood-red figure!

This "Soul-Locking Chain Technique" was his famous ultimate skill, specializing in attacking the Divine Soul. Once entangled, not only would the Physical Body be restrained, but the Divine Soul would also suffer tearing pain, instantly losing the ability to resist.

However, Hu Hai's speed was even faster than he had anticipated!

"Blood Escape!"

Hu Hai let out a shrill hiss, the blood-light on his body surging again. His speed suddenly increased several times, leaving afterimages in the air as he forced his way through the gaps between several chains with an almost brute-force posture!

Although some of the chains still entangled him, and the thorns even scraped across his body, tearing away large chunks of flesh, he seemed completely oblivious, his eyes appearing to hold only Teng Qianjue!

"Stop him!"

At this time, several Foundation Establishment Elders of the Teng Family also reacted, and the lights of various Spiritual Artifacts lit up one after another in an attempt to block him.

But at this moment, Hu Hai seemed to have transformed into a wild bull; what he was burning was not just essence blood, but his very life's Origin!

After successively shattering three spiritual power shields and enduring two more sword lights, he actually broke through the layers of interception and closed in to within ten feet of Teng Qianjue!

"It's over..."

Shadow watched this scene with his own eyes, his heart turning cold.

He wasn't worried about the Old Ancestor's safety; a mere Foundation Establishment self-detonation, even at close range, was nothing more than a breeze to a Golden Core True Person.

What made his heart cold was that the trouble caused by his "perfect operation" meant the punishment would likely not be so light.

Sure enough, facing Hu Hai, who looked crazed and whose aura was as violent as an about-to-erupt volcano, Teng Qianjue only frowned slightly, a flash of displeasure in his eyes.

He didn't even raise his hand, merely shifting his thoughts.

"Suppress!"

A light shout, like a command from the law itself.

The Golden Core pressure, as vast as a deep sea, erupted with a boom. It was no longer the general deterrence from before, but was condensed into a visible pale-green wave of magic power, like a solid wall, ruthlessly crushing toward the charging Hu Hai!

This strike was enough to grind an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator's Physical Body along with their Divine Soul into powder!

However, to everyone's surprise, facing this lethal blow, Hu Hai did not dodge or avoid it. He even let out a maniacal laugh, his forward momentum increasing rather than decreasing as he actively slammed head-first into that pale-green wave of magic power!