Chapter Sixty-Eight: Bloody Battle

“What a joke! You, Yu Xingkun, are the real fiend, the true demon among men!” Jiang Ziyang’s voice was cold as steel. Though, indeed, the martial arts he cultivated radiated with dark energy, carrying an aura of chilling malice, and even the ancient techniques of his clan were tinged with sinister power, before the assembled crowd, he would never admit to practicing forbidden arts.

With a resonant hum, the black light around Jiang Ziyang’s hands surged, swelling to a full meter in size. The air thickened with malignant energy, and the martial artists surrounding them all felt a shudder in body and soul, as though the temperature had dropped by a dozen degrees, forcing them to retreat a step.

Su Ye frowned. Since studying the Flame Sovereign Scripture at the Heaven-Shaking Stele, he’d unconsciously acquired a unique ability: he found that all martial arts seemed, in some inexplicable way, connected to his Flame Sovereign Scripture. Yet now, the technique Jiang Ziyang employed gave him an unfamiliar, unsettling feeling. Was it possible that even Jiang Clan’s arts were encompassed by the Flame Sovereign Scripture? For a time, Su Ye couldn’t discern the reason; he guessed perhaps because he had only learned the first volume, or his own comprehension was still lacking.

Thunder roared—the battle had begun.

Compared to Su Ye’s earlier clash, the duel was even fiercer and more terrifying. With each step, the ground splintered in a web of cracks, and a vortex of energy erupted, encircling the combatants in a field of power.

The shockwaves from their fists blasted outward, stinging the faces of onlookers. Su Ye’s heart pounded with awe. He’d always known Jiang Ziyang as affable and kind, delegating much to the steward and Uncle Zhong, leading him to believe Jiang Ziyang’s cultivation was unremarkable. Now it seemed Jiang Ziyang was the strongest in the entire Jiang family!

Yet within mere minutes, Yu Xingkun had already forced Jiang Ziyang back.

“Hahaha! Old fool, you truly are past your prime! Years ago, your son lost to me. Now you, his father, will suffer the same fate!” Yu Xingkun roared with laughter, the domineering thunderous energy radiating from him pressing Jiang Ziyang down with relentless force.

At these words, grief and anger flashed across Jiang Ziyang’s face. In the past, when his eldest son still lived, he had indeed fought Yu Xingkun. He hadn’t expected Yu Xingkun to bring it up now, clearly to upset his composure.

“Despicable!” Jiang Ziyang cursed, and after exchanging a heavy blow, he was sent hurtling backward with a thud. Several Jiang family martial artists leapt forward to catch him, but Jiang Ziyang twisted in mid-air and landed steadily on his feet.

Yu Xingkun’s laughter echoed, “Jiang Ziyang, you’re finished! From today, your Jiang family will leave Yang City. Don’t even think of taking anything with you!”

Jiang Liuying shouted, “Try it if you dare, and I swear none of you will return alive!”

Yan Tian seized the moment to bellow, “If you lay a hand on anyone from the Jiang family, you make an enemy of the Yan family! Not one of you may touch them. At my command, the Yan family will come at once—shall we see who is ready for mutual destruction?”

“Oh? So the hypocritical Yan family wishes to monopolize the Jiang clan’s martial arts? Aren’t you being a bit greedy?” Yu Xingkun retorted, his words sparking a chorus of agreement from the other families.

Then Yu Xingkun cast a glance at Jiang Liuying, a fervent, mocking grin spreading across his face, his eyes glinting with sinister light. “This Liuying girl is quite fine. I think she’ll be staying at my Yu residence for a year or two. And I’m rather fond of this estate as well. Jiang Ziyang, you don’t object, do you?”

Jiang Ziyang gritted his teeth. “Don’t you think it’s too soon to divide up the spoils of my Jiang family?”

With that, he produced a small iron box from his robes, opened it, and revealed three crimson needles.

At the sight, Yu Xingkun instinctively retreated two steps, wary that Jiang Ziyang might launch a poisonous attack. “Jiang Ziyang, would you draw weapons before the Martial Alliance’s representative? Don’t blame my Yu family for showing no mercy!”

But before Yu Xingkun could finish, Jiang Ziyang drove the blood-red needles into the crown of his own head. He moved so swiftly that all three needles were embedded in an instant.

Jiang Ziyang’s body trembled, his weathered face contorted in pain—he was clearly suffering greatly.

“Yu Xingkun, I have not yet lost—”

In a flash, Jiang Ziyang shot forward, his steps leaving afterimages, his speed now several times what it had been.

In a blur of motion, his strikes landed on Yu Xingkun repeatedly.

The Jiang family erupted in joy, cheering for their master. Only Jiang Liuying’s face turned deathly pale; her wide eyes fixed unblinking on the three needles in Jiang Ziyang’s head, her delicate lips bleeding from how hard she bit them.

“Liuying, what’s wrong?” Su Ye asked anxiously.

Jiang Liuying, tears in her eyes, whispered, “This is our family’s forbidden technique. If—if…” She could not go on, unable to bear watching, and seized Su Ye’s arm in a white-knuckled grip.

Su Ye didn’t understand, but knew Jiang Ziyang must be paying a terrible price.

How frustrating that his own cultivation was still lacking! And after days spent healing Ouyang Yunfeng of the Martial Alliance, his internal reserves of thunder source were nearly spent. If he entered the fray now, it would be to fight Yu Xingkun to the death.

“If only I had more time to recover, I could kill him!” Su Ye gritted his teeth.

On the battlefield, Jiang Ziyang drove Yu Xingkun back again and again. The ever-arrogant Yu Xingkun was now slashed by tendrils of black energy, blood flowing from his wounds. Then he was kicked flying by Jiang Ziyang, crashing heavily into the audience’s chairs, smashing them to pieces.

The Yu family members turned ashen—never had they seen their master in such a state.

Could it be that the Yu family was about to lose?

Even Master Ou, who had watched calmly all along, was now stricken with fear and began to retreat. “Jiang family, how shameless! Those three needles in his head must be weapons. If you’re using weapons, Yu Xingkun, what are you waiting for?”

“My sword!” Yu Xingkun struck the ground with his palm, leapt up, and among the Yu family crowd, someone rushed forward carrying an ancient greatsword and handed it to him.

A strange hum burst from the sword.

Yu Xingkun gripped it, his hand crackling with thunder, and as he flicked the blade, arcs of lightning danced along its length.

This was a thundervein-forged sword!

“Thundervein…” Su Ye’s fury blazed anew.

There could be no doubt—the blade contained a thundervein.

Unbelievable! Of the nine thunderveins stolen so long ago, one was in Yu Zhisha, one in Yu Xingkun, and a third had been forged into this sword.

Few present had ever seen a thunder sword before; now, all gasped in shock.

A divine weapon, radiating lightning, wielded by a master of thundervein—what power would that unleash?

“That sword was forged from a thundervein!”

“No doubt the Ou family crafted it! Who would have thought the Yu family had such a trump card?”

Even Jiang Ziyang’s expression changed abruptly at the sight of the blade.

The Jiang family cried out, “Shameless! The Yu family dares to use weapons!”

Yu Xingkun sneered, “Oh? Only your master may wield needles, but our Yu family cannot use a sword? You want fairness? Fine, let your master remove those needles from his head first.”

Instantly, both sides began to argue heatedly.

But Yu Xingkun cared not a whit, and even the Martial Alliance representative remained silent.

With a resounding hum, Yu Xingkun leveled the thunder sword and shouted, “Old Jiang, if you don’t surrender and hand over Su Ye, this sword will take your arm—”