25: Temporary safety

Looking at the four Family Elders with missing limbs, Shi Gandang’s Face was ashen, filled with uncontrollable rage, and a deep sense of dread.

Five strange killing Formations were suddenly laid out.

Within the killing Formations, in less than ten breaths, the Shi Family directly lost one Soul Emergence Family Guardian and six Nascent Soul Realm Family Elders.

Among those who managed to survive, all Soul Emergence Cultivators were injured, and all Nascent Soul Realm Cultivators had missing limbs.

How can one describe such a tragedy?

The opponent not only killed his beloved son but also intended to kill him, slaughtering Nascent Soul Realm Cultivators as easily as dogs, and even a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Cultivator could fall if not careful.

What kind of terrifying existence was this opponent?

They hadn't even appeared yet, but had already put them in such a sorry state.

Was the opponent truly a Nascent Soul Realm Late Stage Cultivator, as Wang An claimed?

Or was that kid Wang An setting them up?

Thinking of this, if Wang An were here now, Shi Gandang would definitely slap him to death.

At this moment, he didn't care if he had successively offended two Cultivation Families of Thunder Dragon Royal City; the Shi Family losing a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardian was Wang An's capital crime!

It was also fortunate that Wang An and Wang Sisong, the Clan Chief of the Wang Family, ran fast, otherwise they would surely have died unjustly.

In a world where martial arts are revered and strength reigns supreme, sometimes it's just that unreasonable; whoever has the harder fist can control the power of life and death over others.

This is also why Long Aotian wanted to stay hidden in Long Village first; going out to flaunt oneself without absolute strength to protect one's life and property is simply seeking death.

Having lost a Family Guardian, who would dare say anything if Shi Gandang, in a fit of rage, slapped Wang An to death?

The Wang Family wouldn't even dare to fart.

Either shut up, or be annihilated.

Few Cultivation Families are as united as the Long Family, always seeking revenge, treating life and death lightly, and fighting when provoked.

When a person dies, their Dao vanishes; when a person leaves, the tea grows cold. A Family must consider its survival and interests.

If Shi Gandang truly killed Wang An, for the sake of the Wang Family's survival, Wang Sisong, the Clan Chief of the Wang Family, could only silently collect Wang An's body.

This is the sorrow of the weak!

As for approaching Wang An's Sect and asking the Sect to forcefully stand up for Wang An?

The Sea Cloud Sect is also a collective entity driven by interests and must consider the interests of their Sect.

The dead cannot be revived, and starting a war with the not-weak Shi Family over the life or death of a minor character is not worth it in the eyes of the Sect's high-ranking officials.

The Fire Cloud Sect, Thunder Cloud Sect, and other Cultivation Families of the Imperial City would certainly be very happy to see them fight, even instigating them to fight, cheering them on and encouraging them to clash, but behind their backs, they might stab them in the back at the most crucial moment.

Asking the Sect to go to war with them?

That was clearly wishful thinking.

It's already quite good if they can provide some protection while alive.

Wang An, being clever and cautious, must have also thought of this point.

He escaped the murder and silencing attempts by Lei Ao and Shi Jing.

He escaped the Formation kill set by Long Aotian to eliminate hidden dangers for the Long Family.

He escaped being buried alongside the foolish arrogance of The Lei and Shi families.

He escaped the enraged killing by Shi Gandang after suffering such a great loss.

Having made his escape, he certainly wouldn't stay long with his Family upon returning; only by returning to the Sea Cloud Sect would the Five Great Cultivation Families of the Imperial City not dare to act so presumptuously.

Just like last time, when he worried that Lei Ao and Shi Jing would silence him and even the entire Wang Family, he directly fled back to the Sect and didn't return.

Perhaps this is the ignoble existence of a small character?!

Of course, not all small characters are as shrewd as Wang An... With Wang An absent, Shi Gandang, having nowhere to vent his anger, became annoyed at his own son again, wondering what kind of terrifying killing god he had provoked for the Shi Family.

“What a misfortune, a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardian has fallen just like that.

I, this Clan Chief, am very curious, Family Head Shi, are your Shi Family's Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage powerhouses made of paper?

Why are they so vulnerable!”

Just as Shi Gandang was in a mental storm, after tallying the losses of both sides and finding the Shi Family's losses far more severe than the Lei Family's, Lei Yunshan, who had previously lost Face to the smug Shi Gandang, finally seized an opportunity for revenge.

Salt, he was going to vigorously rub it into Shi Gandang's wound.

Whatever brought him satisfaction, he would do!

Previously, the Shi Family had three Soul Emergence Cultivators, while their Lei Family only had two. Now, he wanted to see if Shi Gandang would still be arrogant in front of him.

“Hmph!”

Shi Gandang, whose mood was already at its lowest, was about to explode upon hearing Lei Yunshan's words.

But he knew that starting a war with the Shi Family now was extremely unwise. Lei Yunshan was a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Cultivator, Lei Fengchen was a Soul Emergence Late Stage Cultivator, and both were not seriously injured.

And what about his side?

One of the two Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardians had directly fallen, and the other Family Guardian seemed to have been affected by the fallen Family Guardian, getting distracted in the killing Formation and suffering serious injuries. Fortunately, there was no sixth killing Formation afterward, otherwise, he might have also met a tragic end.

He himself was only at the Soul Emergence Early Stage cultivation, and his injuries were no lighter than those of the two Soul Emergence powerhouses of the Lei Family.

To go to war with this old fellow Lei Yunshan?

If it hadn't been for the surprise attack by the killing Formation, he truly would have dared.

But now, not to mention being unable to defeat them, even if he wanted to start a war, he was completely not in a state to do so.

With just a cold snort, Shi Gandang ignored Lei Yunshan.

There would be plenty of time in the future; he would let this old fellow Lei Yunshan gloat for now, as he would have many opportunities to get his revenge.

“Let's go!”

Having suffered such a great hidden loss in Immortal Severing Mountain, Shi Gandang was somewhat afraid to linger around Immortal Severing Mountain. Even though they were now a hundred miles away from Immortal Severing Mountain, he still dared not be careless.

Who knew if there would be those strange killing Formations in the area they were currently in?

His unfamiliarity with this area, with the enemy, and with the strange Formations all made him deeply apprehensive.

The matter of avenging his son would likely have to be a long-term plan, impossible to achieve in the short term.

“Hmph, you dog who bullies others with power. This time, the Shi Family lost a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardian; the Shi Family will probably be heartbroken for a while.”

Watching the Shi Family members' retreating figures, Lei Yunshan sneered with a look of disgust.

Each major Realm has nine minor Realms: the first three revolutions are Early Stage, the middle three are Middle Stage, and the last three are Late Stage.

The Five Great Cultivation Families of the Imperial City all have over a dozen Soul Emergence Family Guardians, but there are also differences in strength.

Most of the Shi Family's dozen-plus Family Guardians are at the Soul Emergence Middle Stage to Late Stage cultivation, while most of the Lei Family's dozen-plus Family Guardians are at the Soul Emergence Early Stage to Middle Stage cultivation.

This was also one of the reasons why Shi Gandang, as the Family Head of the Shi Family, dared to disregard him, the Clan Chief of the Lei Family.

In a world where martial arts are revered.

Strength is dignity!

Strength is everything!

The Shi Family had an advantage over the Lei Family in terms of core strength, and even Lei Yunshan had to consider the consequences of going to war with the Shi Family.

They couldn't win!

Although the Shi Family's loss was like killing a thousand enemies but losing eight hundred of their own.

Their Lei Family simply couldn't defeat the Shi Family.

As the Clan Chief of the Lei Family, he had to clearly recognize this point.

The Lei Family truly lacked the courage to go to war with an opponent they knew they couldn't defeat.

At least, Lei Yunshan was not Long Wudi.

Lei Yunshan prioritized Family interests before protecting his own.

Long Wudi, on the other hand, was the exact opposite.

Now, the Shi Family had lost a Soul Emergence Family Guardian, and a Ninth Revolution Peak Stage one at that. Although the Lei Family had also lost a few Nascent Soul Realm Family Elders, Lei Yunshan couldn't help but feel happy about the Shi Family losing a Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardian.

Although the Shi Family had over a dozen Soul Emergence Family Guardians, the number of Soul Emergence Ninth Revolution Peak Stage Family Guardians certainly did not exceed the fingers of one hand.

These were powerhouses just a step away from the Spirit Division Realm, the core of the core strength, almost an ace in the hole. Losing one would definitely make the Shi Family's heart ache for a while.

At the same time, their arrogant demeanor would also be tempered significantly... “Clan Chief, this place is not suitable for long stays; let's head back too!”

Lei Fengchen said with lingering fear, not wanting to stay there any longer.

“...Good, we'll go too. This place is a bit strange, hmph, but if you think I'll give up avenging Ao'er because of this, that's absolutely impossible.

If the Five Great Cultivation Families of the Imperial City can't handle it, I don't believe the Cloud Palace and the Imperial Family can't either. I'll report this to the Imperial Family when we get back.

I, this Clan Chief, want to see who is playing tricks here.”

“...”

Lei Fengchen opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, said nothing at all.