Chapter 84: Overbearing
“Such arrogance!” The two cultivators from the Li Family wore ugly expressions. “You… are you trying to provoke a war between sects?”
“A war between sects? Are you even qualified? You’re probably not even worth mentioning.” The knight covered entirely in armor spoke coldly.
“Fine! Fine! Fine! You have guts, but I wonder if you can even leave the Yan Region!” The two Li Family cultivators’ faces darkened, a cold gleam flashing in their eyes. Their minds raced as they prepared to incite the wrath of the elders of the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven.
“Do you think you can keep us here in the Yan Region?” The knight sneered. “With trash like you, even a hundred thousand wouldn’t be enough.”
“You…” The Li Family cultivators felt deeply humiliated, but at the same time, they were shocked. They sensed that these people truly seemed to have an immense background; otherwise, how could they dare speak so arrogantly? But they had no way back. They had to bind the Li Family and the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven together to have any chance of crushing their opponents. Gritting their teeth, they said, “Since you don’t take the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven seriously, we will report this truthfully. The sect elders will naturally make you understand your place!”
“You’re not worthy!” The knight simply took one forceful step forward without even truly attacking. The two Li Family cultivators flew back like scarecrows, crashing heavily against the wall. Their bones cracked and snapped, and blood seeped from their mouths, noses, and ears.
“You…” Most of the bones in their bodies were shattered. They clung to the wall like mud, their eyes filled with terror.
At Jiang Yifei’s signal, the knight didn’t kill them. He still had questions for these two.
“Was it you who killed Tingting’s parents?” Jiang Yifei’s tone remained calm, but to the ears of the two Li Family cultivators, it struck like thunder. The serene white-robed man before them felt as imposing as a mountain, demanding reverence.
“We’ll talk…”
“Who is so arrogant as to not even put my Misty Cloud Cave Heaven in their eyes?” At that moment, a middle-aged man strode into the front courtyard. When he saw the dozen or so exotic beasts, his expression changed. “What do you all intend? Why are you harming my Misty Cloud disciples?”
“We’re just eliminating evil.” A knight stepped forward, blocking his path.
“What do you mean? Are you saying my Misty Cloud Cave Heaven is ‘evil’?” The middle-aged man demanded.
The knight replied coldly, “I don’t know if the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven is a great evil, but these two are indeed murderous villains.”
“That’s just your one-sided story. Before the matter is investigated, how can you act so rashly? Besides, these are my Misty Cloud Cave Heaven’s disciples. If they are at fault, we will handle it ourselves. It’s not for outsiders to interfere.”
Jiang Yifei’s expression was calm, but his words carried a chill. “They have committed evil for years, yet your Misty Cloud Cave Heaven has never dealt with them. Now you try to exonerate and shield them. It seems I truly need to visit your Misty Cloud Cave Heaven and demand an explanation.”
“Such arrogance! Do you take my Misty Cloud Cave Heaven for some common place? Aren’t you afraid you won’t leave the Yan Region?” The middle-aged man stared coldly at those before him.
Jiang Yifei gave a faint, cold smile. “Is the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven so powerful? Unfortunately, I’ve never heard of it. I’ll have to go and experience it for myself soon.”
“You are utterly contemptuous of others.” The middle-aged man said in a frigid tone. “The Misty Cloud Cave Heaven is one of the six major sects of the Yan Region. If you insist on causing trouble, a war between sects will be unavoidable!”
Jiang Yifei shook his head. “The Eastern Wasteland is vast and boundless. How many kingdoms are there? It’s impossible to count. The mere Yan Kingdom is but a tiny speck of land. I’ve indeed never heard of the sects here.”
“So arrogant! Let me test your strength myself.”
The middle-aged man rode a rainbow into the air, soaring to mid-sky. Opening his mouth, he spat out a purple-gold shield and a blood-red spear.
A savage beast’s roar echoed as a knight mounted an exotic beast and charged upward, flashing like a streak of green light.
“Ah…”
The middle-aged cultivator from the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven let out a miserable scream. The purple-gold shield was instantly sliced open, and the blood-red spear snapped in two. His chest and abdomen were nearly completely torn open. He fell to the ground, blood gushing forth.
If he were an ordinary person, he would have died on the spot. But as a cultivator, his physique was exceptionally strong. He quickly stopped the bleeding and stabilized his injuries, his face deathly pale as he retreated to the side.
Ye Fan’s heart was deeply shaken. He felt that each of these dozen or so knights was extraordinary, far stronger than the people from the Ji Family and the Yaoguang Holy Land he had seen at the Demon Emperor’s tomb.
Just then, several immortal masters, hearing the commotion, could no longer hold back and came out from the back courtyard.
“Who are you people?” One of the elders frowned. He had already heard the conversation from the front courtyard. These people showed no regard for the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven, which made him extremely angry and uncomfortable.
“Trouble yourselves to lead the way and take us to the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven.” Jiang Caixuan’s beautiful face carried a cold smile. “Please, everyone.”
The several people from the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven all changed color. One of them said, “So young, yet so arrogant. Didn’t your elders teach you to respect your teachers and the Dao?”
Jiang Caixuan said coldly, “The disciples you taught take lives, bully the orphaned and widowed, and drive a seventy-year-old man to desperation. How dare you speak of the word ‘teacher’? You are not worthy!”
“Do you have any evidence?”
“They have already admitted it themselves.”
The elder in the middle frowned. “Leaving aside whether you forced a confession under torture, even if they did commit evil, it’s not for you to handle. My Misty Cloud Cave Heaven has its own sect rules to deal with them.”
“What a fine ‘handle them yourselves.’ For over two years, the dead have not rested in peace, the murderers have roamed free, continuing to persecute the orphaned and elderly. Is this your sect rule?” Jiang Caixuan sympathized deeply with Little Tingting. As she spoke, her pretty face was covered in frost. “And now, you’re still trying to exonerate and shield them. You truly are worthy of being their masters—birds of a feather flock together.”
“You…” The leading elder’s brows shot up, but he didn’t dare to act out on the spot. Their formation was truly intimidating. Just the golden divine qilin alone made him extremely wary.
At that moment, Jiang Yifei spoke. “Take them all down!” Several knights stepped forward simultaneously upon hearing this.
The elder shouted, “Retreat!” He was the first to shoot into the sky, riding a rainbow to flee. He had already realized that these people had an immense background, far beyond what they could handle. The others also scattered in all directions, streaks of rainbow light shooting toward the horizon.
The savage beasts roared, and the sky trembled. Several exotic beasts carried knights charging in different directions, catching up in an instant.
“Ah…”
Screams rang out one after another. Soon, the knights returned swiftly, dragging everyone back like dead dogs. Including the elder, all of them bore terrible wounds.
Beside them, Ye Fan was deeply shocked. The ancient aristocratic clans were truly behemoths. These knights were terrifyingly powerful.
Jiang Yifei pointed out two knights, instructing them to stay and deal with the Li Family. He also warned them not to kill indiscriminately, only to execute the ringleaders.
“We’re going to the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven!”
Jiang Yifei personally helped Old Man Jiang onto the golden divine qilin, riding with him. Jiang Caixuan lifted Little Tingting onto the divine deer, seating her in front. Ye Fan shared a mount with a knight, and they rose into the air.
“There’s no need to go to the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven. Those two beasts are dead, and the great revenge has been avenged…” Old Man Jiang, upon learning that his son had been murdered, his old eyes grew dim, and he couldn’t help but shed tears.
On the other side, Little Tingting also began to cry.
“We must go. We must go. The people of our Jiang Family are not to be killed by just anyone!” Jiang Yifei’s expression was calm, but his words were very forceful.
Ye Fan sighed inwardly. The path he had to walk was still long. Compared to behemoths like the ancient aristocratic clans, he was far too insignificant.
The townspeople were stunned. It was a long time before they erupted in cheers. The tumor of the town had finally been removed.
The captives from the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven, faced with life and death, had no choice but to submit and lead the way.
A dozen or so exotic beasts rode clouds and mist, galloping through the sky with a rumbling sound, like a thousand troops charging, or a tsunami surging across the heavens.
Just then, Ye Fan felt someone watching him. Turning around, he saw it was the arrogant youth Jiang Yichen.
Seeing him look over, Jiang Yichen averted his gaze, a cold sneer curling at the corner of his mouth.
Ye Fan’s heart stirred. Why would he act like that? Had he discovered something?
Soon, they arrived at the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven. Ahead, peaks were green and valleys lush, with mist drifting and faint rays of light shimmering—truly living up to its name.
“Who dares to trespass on our sect’s sacred ground?” A loud shout came from ahead.
“Bang, bang, bang”
The captured prisoners were all thrown forward, eliciting cries of surprise from ahead.
“A powerful enemy is attacking!” The Misty Cloud Cave Heaven fell into chaos.
In an instant, misty clouds surged into the sky. The Dao patterns carved into the mountains and earth activated, sending up blazing divine radiance, blocking everyone’s path.
“It’s nothing special. I’ll break it.” At this moment, the arrogant youth Jiang Yichen suddenly acted. A purple-gold gourd flew out from within him, shining with purple light. It rapidly enlarged in the sky, like a whale sucking in water, drawing all the misty clouds into its mouth. In the blink of an eye, it suppressed the power of the Dao patterns.
Then, the purple-gold gourd pressed down like a small mountain, emitting a hazy purple mist. Cries of alarm rang out as many figures were sent flying backward, sucked into the purple-gold gourd.
Ye Fan was astonished. He hadn’t expected this purple-gold gourd from the ancient aristocratic clan to be so powerful. It easily broke through the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven’s mountain-protecting Dao patterns and even captured many cultivators. It was truly terrifying.
“The foundation of the ancient aristocratic clans is too strong. This is just a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old youth, yet he’s been given such a terrifying heavy treasure…” Ye Fan muttered to himself.
“There’s no need for this…” Old Man Jiang kept dissuading from the side.
Jiang Yifei shook his head. “Tingting’s parents did no wrong, yet they were persecuted. We must demand an explanation. Our Jiang Family has never been afraid of trouble!”
“Bang”
At that moment, a powerful wave of energy from within the Misty Cloud Cave Heaven shook the surroundings, pushing back the purple-gold gourd. An aged voice rang out: “So it’s someone from an ancient aristocratic clan. I wonder what offense my Misty Cloud Cave Heaven has committed?”