Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

”All troops, heed my command, Yun Xiao of the Jade Pot Sect has murdered innocents and disguised himself to sneak into our Xuanyue Royal Family, intending to assassinate the former King. Whoever captures or kills him will be appointed as the Imperial State Preceptor by me, with a status equal to that of a Half Emperor!”

When countless people surrounded the great hall, a voice full of vigor thunderously emanated—it was from the new King, Xuan Jiuding. The promise in his words ignited a fervor in everyone’s blood.

Although Yun Xiao had a notorious reputation, having wiped out three major families in the Imperial City, he was alone in the Xuanyue Palace at this moment. Killing him wasn’t entirely impossible.

The promise from Xuan Jiuding was simply too tempting. To be appointed a nation’s preceptor, with the honor of a Half Emperor—was this not equivalent to the position of the Crown Prince like Xuan Jiuding himself once held? Who wouldn’t wish to soar to great heights, to become the supreme being beneath only one and above millions?

There’s an old saying, ”One man’s strength can’t match that of many”; even if Yun Xiao’s physical strength was great, facing a human wave attack, his Meridian Qi would deplete quickly. True, many would die before that, but would Xuan Jiuding still care about the lives of these Xuantie Army soldiers at such a time?

Even if it meant piling up bodies, today Xuan Jiuding was determined to kill Yun Xiao right there, for it wasn’t just about whether he could remain on the throne, but it was a matter of his life and wealth.

At that moment, Yun Xiao stood alone at the entrance of the great hall. Before him was the dense crowd of Xuantie Army soldiers. Although many of them were only at the Meridian Introduction Realm or Meridian Gathering Realm, the collective aura of so many seemed to pierce the heavens.

”Charge!” bellowed the Xuantie Army Commander Yan Chun, but he himself did not step forward immediately. Looking at the other commanders, none took the lead. It seemed they were still wary of Yun Xiao.

First, let the lower-ranked Xuantie Army soldiers carry out the human wave tactic. Even if many would die by Yun Xiao’s hand, wouldn’t that deplete his Meridian Qi?

For Yan Chun’s orders, these Xuantie Army soldiers had no choice but to comply, even if it meant charging into a sea of fire with their heads held high.

Even though Yun Xiao was notorious, they did not believe that so many Xuantie Army soldiers couldn’t overcome this one person, as they were the Xuanyue Empire’s most elite force after all.

”Attack!” A loud voice rose from the ranks, and a wave of soldiers surged towards the entrance of the hall. But in the next moment, the young man known as Yun Xiao suddenly stepped back, standing within the doors of the great hall.

Bang!

These Xuantie Army soldiers did not care where Yun Xiao stood, but the first to reach the entrance of the hall met a tragic fate.

A loud crash echoed, and the soldier, as if riding through clouds, was sent flying dozens of feet and crashed heavily to the ground, limp like a broken doll, obviously dead.

With Yun Xiao’s physical strength, how could these soldiers of the Meridian Introduction or Meridian Gathering Realm possibly contend with him? His step back meant he wanted to hold the gate alone, unwilling to allow these people to disturb Xuan Haoran’s recovery.

Thud thud thud...

Several more Xuantie Army soldiers charged to the front of the door, only to suddenly burst into blood-red flames, then in the next moment, under the horrified gazes of the crowd, they turned to ashes.

Crack crack crack...

And other soldiers who reached the side of the door began to emit wisps of ice flowers from under their feet. In just a moment, they became ice sculptures, lifelike in form.

Splash! Splash! Splash!

The soldiers, frozen into ice sculptures by Yun Xiao’s Ancestor Vein Power, were toppled by those behind them in the next moment, crashing to the ground and shattering into a spread of icy fragments, with no blood shed, making the scene seem less gruesome.

Crunch crunch crunch...

Another sound emerged, and then the heads of several Xuantie Army soldiers leading the charge exploded with blood. It appears that, at some point, Yun Xiao had unsheathed an inconspicuous wooden sword.

But for Yan Chun and Yan Yong, this unremarkable wooden sword was terrifying in Yun Xiao’s hands. Almost every touch resulted in either death or injury; no one could withstand even the slightest contact.

”Everybody, put in more effort, Yun Xiao’s Meridian Qi will be depleted soon!” Watching Yun Xiao display his might at the entrance of the great hall, with the corpses of dozens of Xuantie Army soldiers sprawling on the ground, Yan Chun still shouted loudly from behind.

It seems this commander truly had keen insight. Every move Yun Xiao made required the support of Meridian Qi, whether it was the Ancestral Vein Fire, the chilling aura, or even swinging that wooden sword. Each would surely consume a significant amount of Meridian Qi.

Xuan Jiuding and the others desired precisely this effect; even if it took hundreds or thousands of lives, they must ensure Yun Xiao remains here forever. With a tiger let back into the mountains, there would be none who could bear Yun Xiao’s revengeful flame.

”This can’t go on like this!”

Yan Chun was right. Although Yun Xiao had killed dozens of the Xuantie Army soldiers with ease, the consumption of his Meridian Qi was indeed enormously great, especially considering he had been previously injured by a palm strike from Ran Xing and still had some internal damage.

”My esteemed Haoran King, can you recover any faster?”

Yun Xiao turned his head to glance at Xuan Haoran, whose eyes were tightly shut, and realized he might have been expecting too much. Even with his own Rejuvenation Pills, Xuan Haoran, who had suffered the erosion of the Spirit Corrosive Binding Fragrance for so many days, was not going to recover in an instant.

Moments later, Yun Xiao displayed his divine might, unleashing the power of four Ancestor Veins. As the Dragon Taming Sword danced, dozens more Xuantie Army soldiers fell, almost blocking the entrance to the great hall.

Of course, blocking the entrance was not a bad strategy. However, the Xuantie Army soldiers outside kept coming in an unending stream. For every one he killed, two more rushed to take their place, creating a seemingly endless battle.

These Xuantie Army soldiers were rigorously trained. Although Xuan Jiuding’s character might not be the best, he indeed had some talent in managing military and state affairs. His contributions were fundamental in making the Xuantie Army the most capable force in the empire.

This forged the fearless nature of the Xuantie Army soldiers. After a period of fierce combat, Yun Xiao began to feel his strength waning.

”Brat, I’d like to see where you can run to this time!”

Just as Yun Xiao tensed up, a familiar voice came from outside the door, immediately followed by a black shadow pouncing towards him. It was that Earth-rank Pulse Refining Master, Ran Xing, who had lost his right arm.

In the current situation, aside from Xuan Jiuding, perhaps no one hated Yun Xiao to the bone more than Ran Xing. Seeing Yun Xiao’s Meridian Qi nearly exhausted, Ran Xing finally could not wait any longer to make his move, swearing to kill the young man on the spot.

Whoosh...

Just as Ran Xing thought he could land the fatal blow, a huge black shadow suddenly swooped down from the sky. Blood-red wings sliced through the Xuantie Army soldiers blocking its path, cleaving them in two.

”Not good!”

Sensing this terrifying yet somewhat familiar presence, Ran Xing couldn’t advance further to kill Yun Xiao. Instead, he swiftly dodged to the side, narrowly escaping the powerful strike.

”It’s that damned beast again!”

Having dodged the attack, Ran Xing then saw clearly the enormous figure. It was the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion, which had foiled his plans several times before.

Although the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion could not enter the Imperial Palace with Yun Xiao, one should not forget that it was a Flying Beast Pulse Demon. Sensing Yun Xiao’s presence, it had been circling the sky above the grand hall at a great distance.

The signal fireworks launched by Yun Xiao were not only for notifying Yu Shu and Xuan Jing, but they were also spotted by the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion from high above, making it the first to arrive.

This was a genuine Seventh Rank Pulse Demon, equivalent to the level of a Qi Seeking human powerhouse. Seeing it immediately kill a dozen Xuantie Army soldiers upon arrival and forcing the Earth Rank powerhouse Ran Xing to retreat, everyone paused and did not continue their assault on the hall.

”Roar!”

Confronting its old foe Ran Xing once again, the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion was uncontrollably enraged. Under Yun Xiao’s helpless gaze, it surprisingly did not guard the entrance, but instead lunged directly towards Ran Xing.

”This guy, really thick-headed!”

Seeing the actions of the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion, Yun Xiao couldn’t help but bitterly smile. If this big creature could guard the gate, it would truly be an impregnable defense. Instead, it was provoked by Ran Xing and gave chase directly.

However, with the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion holding off the strongest opponent, the pressure on Yun Xiao was significantly reduced. After all, at his current state, enemies below the Earth Rank Third Realm couldn’t pose too much of a threat to him.

Meanwhile, Ran Xing was once again engaged in battle with the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion. It’s worth mentioning that the one-armed Ran Xing was now completely outmatched by the Blood Winged Fire-Eyed Lion, only managing to barely hold his ground.

”Continue the attack!”

Xuan Jiuding was grinding his teeth in frustration. He knew this was his last chance. If he allowed Yun Xiao to recover, killing him would become an impossibility.

Moreover, Xuan Jiuding had already witnessed the signal fireworks from Yun Xiao and knew that the Jade Pot Sect was within the Imperial City, not far from the Imperial Palace. This battle had to be swift and decisive.

Fortunately, it seemed that Yun Xiao was now at the end of his strength. Sacrificing a few more Xuantie Army soldiers might just be enough to drain his life. And once Yun Xiao died, perhaps the Jade Pot Sect would no longer be able to cause any more trouble, right?

But sometimes, plans never keep up with changes. Just when Yun Xiao was about to be overwhelmed after killing dozens more Xuantie Army soldiers, a fiery red figure suddenly appeared at the entrance of the hall.

Swish, swish, swish!

With a few flashes of red light, several Xuantie Army soldiers were already clutching their necks and faces in agony. Streams of crimson blood could not be contained as it seeped through their fingers, creating a particularly gruesome scene.