143: Zhou Tianxiong

Several people stood below.

Among them was Zhou Mei (Demon Sound), who had just returned from the mining area with a face still covered in frost.

She had changed out of her moon-white robe and was wearing a well-tailored suit of dark purple martial attire, which outlined her graceful yet dangerous curves.

The veil on her face was gone, revealing a face that could be called peerless, yet it was cold as frost, with meanness and ferocity in her eyes.

Only at this moment, her face was slightly pale and her Aura was somewhat weak, clearly having consumed a lot of energy from her confrontation with Feng Linger and maintaining the large-scale attack of her Demon Sound.

The others were all Zhou Family Elders, their Auras at the very least in the Heaven-Reaching Realm, each with a solemn expression, even carrying a hint of fear.

“Useless!” Zhou Tianxiong's voice exploded in the hall like muffled thunder, making one's eardrums buzz.

He did not look at Zhou Mei, but that terrifying pressure pressed down on everyone below like something physical, especially the Elders responsible for the daily affairs of the mining area. “A mere mine slave riot! You actually let someone destroy the Black Stone Prison Formation Core! And you let the culprit escape?! What use does my Zhou Family have for you?!”

Thud! Thud!

Those Elders could not withstand the pressure; their faces turned deathly pale, cold sweat poured down, and they knelt directly on the ground, trembling like chaff.

“Family Head, please calm your anger! It... it was your subordinates' negligence!”

“That... that kid is very strange! He... he can trigger the Primordial Thunderstorm from deep within the ley lines!”

“Shut up!” Zhou Tianxiong shouted sternly, interrupting the Elder's defense, his crimson eyes like a Vicious Beast choosing someone to devour, “Humph! You couldn't even crush a tiny True Essence Realm insect!”

His gaze was like a knife as it finally turned to Zhou Mei: “Mei'er, you were personally overseeing it, yet you still let him escape?”

Facing her father's violent gaze, Zhou Mei showed no fear, only cold Killing Intent and a hint of unwillingness: “It was my carelessness. I didn't expect a master proficient in music to be hidden among the Mine Slaves, someone who could restrain my ‘Heart-Bewildering Demon Sound’.”

“Even more unexpected was that the boy's Thunder Spirit Body is so strange and overbearing that it could actually trigger the will of the Ancient Kui Bull remains buried deep underground! The Primordial Thunderstorm that erupted at the end was so powerful that I was caught off guard and pinned down, allowing him to escape in the chaos.”

She paused, a flash of greed and wariness in her eyes, “Father, this boy absolutely cannot be left alive! What he awakened is by no means an ordinary Thunder Spirit Body! If we can seize his Origin and refine it into our Zhou Family's ‘Crimson Thunder Tyrant Body’... we might even be able to complete the Family's damaged Saint-Grade Cultivation Technique, the ‘Crimson Thunder Tyrant Body Manual’! Its value far exceeds ten Black Stone Mining Areas!”

“Is the news certain?” Zhou Tianxiong's voice carried a hint of suppressed excitement.

“Absolutely certain!” Zhou Mei said decisively, “I saw it with my own eyes and experienced it myself! That thunderous will that destroys the primordial world cannot be faked! The Thunder Envoy also sent back a secret message, confirming that the boy obtained the Legacy of the Ancient Thunder Beast Kui Bull!”

“Good! Good! Good!” Zhou Tianxiong said ‘good’ three times in a row and suddenly stood up, his burly body rising like a mountain, his violent Aura instantly filling the entire hall! “Issue my ‘Crimson Thunder Blood Order’!”

His voice was like roaring thunder, echoing through the mountain city:

“First: From this moment on, block all external passages of the Black Stone Thunder Prison Mining Area! Entry is permitted, but no exit! Anyone who dares to intrude will be killed without mercy!”

“Second: Issue a ‘Bounty Order’! Spread his portrait to all subordinate forces of the Zhou Family! Anyone who provides the exact whereabouts of that Thunder Spirit Body youth will be rewarded with one hundred thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones and one Mysterious-Grade High Grade Cultivation Technique! Anyone who takes his head or captures him alive will be rewarded with one million Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and one Heaven-Grade Low Grade Cultivation Technique or Divine Weapon!”

“Third: Mobilize the Family's ‘Crimson Thunder Guards’! They will be personally led by Mei'er! Scour every inch of the land for me! If he's alive, I want to see him; if he's dead, I want to see his corpse! Anyone who dares to shield or harbor him will have their entire clan executed! Not even a chicken or dog shall be left!”

Every word carried a bloody Aura of slaughter!

“We obey the Family Head's order!” Everyone in the hall, including Zhou Mei, responded in unison, brimming with Killing Intent!

The corner of Zhou Mei's mouth curled into a cruel and cold arc, her eyes flashing with a light of determination: “Little bastard... and that music Cultivator bitch who ruined my plans... you won't escape Thunder Prison Prefecture! Your Thunder Source is mine!”

The Crimson Thunder Blood Order was like a destructive storm, instantly sweeping through the entire Thunder Prison Prefecture!

The gates of Crimson Thunder Mountain City slammed shut, and streaks of light shot out from the city. These were the Zhou Family's elite “Crimson Thunder Guards,” wearing dark red armor with thunder patterns, their Auras fierce, at the very least in the Divine Mansion Realm!

Like hounds scenting blood, they split into dozens of small teams and radiated toward the mining area, as well as various transportation routes, towns, and the wilderness of Thunder Prison Prefecture!

At the same time, countless message jade slips flew toward all parts of Thunder Prison Prefecture like meteors. Dozens of forces, large and small, attached to the Zhou Family, such as the “Fire Cloud Sect,” “Earth Splitting Gang,” and “Black Fiend Mercenary Group,” boiled over the moment they received the order, like cold water thrown into boiling oil!

“One million Low-Grade Spirit Stones! Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique and Divine Weapon!”

“Catch that kid!”

“Quick! Gather all hands! We must find him even if we have to dig three feet into the ground!”

Greed, madness, and the desire for slaughter were instantly ignited!

Countless Cultivators, mercenaries, and even outlaws, their eyes red with the maddening bounty, emerged from every dark corner of Thunder Prison Prefecture like hyenas smelling carrion, joining this unprecedented pursuit!

On the notice boards of the towns, lifelike portraits printed with special Spells were quickly posted—it was exactly how Di Jingzhe looked when he fought bloodily before fainting, especially highlighting his eyes burning with unyielding fire and the faint purple-gold thunder patterns on his body!

Below the portrait was the eye-catching blood-red bounty text and the Zhou Family's ferocious Crimson Thunder Emblem!

In the wilderness, in the mountains and forests, by the rivers... searching figures were everywhere.

Powerful or sinister Divine Senses were like invisible brooms, plowing through the earth again and again. Any suspicious trace, any fluctuation with a thunder-attribute Aura, would attract frantic investigation and siege!

Thunder Prison Prefecture, this crimson purgatory shrouded in thunder all year round, instantly turned into a massive hunting ground with danger at every step!

And the prey was a heavily injured and unconscious youth, and a music Cultivator woman who was fleeing for her life with him on her back.

Inside the stone cavern deep in the abandoned mine, the atmosphere was suppressed to the extreme.

The entrance was tightly blocked by Old Shi and the others with crushed stones and the remains of decayed mine carts, leaving only a few hidden observation holes.

Outside the cave, the sound of the “Crimson Thunder Horn,” which represented the will of the Zhou Family, had long since ceased, but an invisible, suffocating Aura of slaughter seeped in through the cracks in the rock walls like a rising tide of cold water.

Old Shi lay by an observation hole, his face deathly pale, his body trembling uncontrollably.

He saw a few streaks of dark red light in the distant sky, like ghost fires coming for one's life, rapidly passing by at low altitude, their powerful Divine Senses like invisible searchlights, scanning the mountains and ravines below again and again.

Further away, the faint sound of bustling crowds and the clashing of weapons could be heard; those were the search parties driven mad by the bounty.

“It's... it's the Crimson Thunder Guards! And people from the Fire Cloud Sect and the Black Fiend Group... they're searching the mountains like mad dogs!” Old Shi's voice was dry and hoarse, filled with despair, “It's over... we're blocked in... the Zhou Family's heavens-spanning net...”

The other miners were also pale, clutching their crude weapons tightly, their knuckles white, their eyes full of fear.

The Zhou Family! That was the irresistible, terrifying shadow hanging over the heads of all low-level Cultivators and commoners in Thunder Prison Prefecture!

Feng Linger sat cross-legged beside the unconscious Di Jingzhe, her eyes closed as she adjusted her breathing. Her face was still somewhat pale, but her Aura was much steadier than before.

Hearing Old Shi's report, she slowly opened her eyes; her clear eyes were like a cold pool, bottomless, without the slightest panic, only cold solemnity.

“heavens-spanning net?” The corner of her mouth curled into a mocking arc, “The Zhou Family can indeed cover the sky with one hand in this Thunder Prison Prefecture. But...”

Her gaze turned to the unconscious Di Jingzhe, falling on the charred piece of lightning-struck wood in his hand, “The Karma of the person they are looking for is far beyond their imagination.”