Chapter 5: Devil's Path

  Inside the city, fires suddenly broke out everywhere, with black smoke and flames shooting straight up into the sky. Cries of killing came from all directions, mixed with countless civilians' desperate screams.

  A gloomy voice covered the entire city of Guihua: "Young men, indulge yourselves to your heart's content. Today is a day for you to have fun!"

  Thunderous cheers came from all directions, and upon hearing the sound, it turned out that the four city gates of Guihua City in the southeast, northwest, and north had been breached at the same time, and bandits had poured in from all sides.

  Hua Wuniang's body shook violently, and she screamed: "Lin Shan~~~~ No, husband~~~~ No, master! You, you can't leave! Yaoyao, you have to save Yaoyao!" She grabbed Lin Yao, who was pale with fear, and chased after Lin Shan in a flash.

  Inside the grand hall, the Huajia people and many masters and pharmacists were in a state of panic. Wei Xiansheng, however, still had some composure, hastily ordering several guards to gather everyone in the backyard, preparing to rely on the sturdy walls and houses to resist. But even Wei Xiansheng was uncertain how long they could hold out - the process of Guīhuà City being breached was simply too bizarre. How could it be that just a few thunderclaps had broken through the city?

  If such a strong city wall was breached, how long could the three-foot-thick rear courtyard wall of Hui Chun Tang withstand?

  Lin Shan's face was gloomy as he dragged Lin Xiao to the backyard, rushing into the storage room where Lin Xiao lived. He grabbed a piece of wrapping leather and tied up the Lin family genealogy, some scattered gold, silver, and copper coins into a small bundle, which he tightly secured at Lin Xiao's waist. Before Lin Xiao could react, Lin Shan dragged him towards the most remote corner of the backyard.

  In the backyard of Hui Chun Tang, there was a patch of black soil where not even an inch of grass grew. It was said that some kind of strange poisonous weed had been planted here before, and after it died, its toxicity remained in the soil, causing nothing to grow here, and anyone who touched it would die instantly. Therefore, no one dared to approach this piece of land. Over time, due to lack of cleaning, the place became a mess, with rotten leaves and unknown garbage scattered all over the black soil, emitting a foul smell that wafted from afar.

  "Dad, where is this?" Lin Xiao saw Lin Shan quickly rushing into the Hui Chun Tang, a place notorious for its deadly traps, and his face also changed color.

  "Don't be afraid, my child! With Danling by your side, the toxic soil can't harm you." Lin Shan hummed softly and suddenly stepped on a small, inconspicuous round stone in the black mud. The ground trembled slightly, and a narrow fissure, no more than two feet wide, suddenly opened up in the black earth. Lin Shan carried Lin Xiao and took one step into the fissure. The ground shook again, and the fissure disappeared without a trace. By the time Hua Wenyang rushed to the backyard with Lin Yao, there was no sign of Lin Shan or Lin Xiao anywhere.

  "Father, father, how can you be so heartless and abandon us mother and son like this? Wuuu... Yao'er is also your son!"

  Lin Yao heard the shouting and killing sounds coming from all directions getting closer and closer, and she couldn't help but scream: "Dad, save me, save me! I was wrong, I won't dare to do it again!"

  What Lin Yao dared not do again afterwards was something nobody else knew about.

  A man with a smudge of soot on his face, only a pair of white pupils and black irises visible as he rolled his big eyes, had somehow already jumped onto the wall of the back courtyard of Hui Chun Tang. The big man held a specially-made strong bow that was six feet long, and seeing Lin Yao shouting loudly there, couldn't help but let out a 'hei hei' laugh, drew his bow and shot an arrow, a black shadow shooting towards Lin Yao's heart like a venomous snake.

  Hua Wuniang reacted extremely quickly, she counter-grabbed with one hand and grabbed the long arrow with incredible precision.

  The force contained in the long arrow was not strong, and with Hua Wenyang's cultivation, she could completely shake off the arrow and bounce it back to kill the big man.

  But just as Huā Wú Niáng's true energy was about to burst out of her body, she suddenly let out a muffled groan and two streams of blood shot out from her nostrils. Her entire body's true energy had vanished completely. Cháng Jiàn's arrow whizzed past her palm, creating a streak of blood several feet long that pierced Lín Yáo's heart, passing through his back.

  Lin Yao hung his head, staring blankly at the transparent hole the size of a teacup on his chest. He struggled to lift his head, and fresh blood slowly dripped from the corner of his mouth. He looked incredulously at Hua Wenyu, who had a stiff expression, and asked dryly: "Mother... why don't you save your child? Your child doesn't want to die, your child doesn't want to die..."

  "Thud", Lin Yao fell to the ground with his head thrown back, but he was already completely out of breath.

  Hua Wuniang's eyes suddenly widened, and her eyeballs seemed to be bulging out of their sockets. A low, guttural "gag" sound came from her throat as her body shook violently, slowly turning around to face the big man.

  Several more big men with blackened faces and wearing black shorts jumped onto the wall, looking at Lin Yao who was lying on the ground and Hua Wenyang whose nostrils were dripping with blood. They couldn't help but burst out laughing "heh heh ha ha". One of the later arrivals patted the archer's shoulder and laughed: "Old Five, look what you've done! You've killed someone's mistress or something! This old lady was going to swallow you whole!"

  The old man with the bow laughed a few times and said carelessly, "Swallow me? She must have a big enough appetite! Heh heh, Old Immortal set up the 'Four Phase Lock Soul Array', no matter how many experts there are in Guihua City, they all become like little chicks now. Who can swallow me?"

  Another big man was lightly stroking his chin whiskers, and with a discerning eye, he pointed at Hua Yu Nang and said: "She's old but still has some charm. Isn't this the kind of style that Er Tou likes?"

  All the men burst out laughing and jumped down from the wall, "Hehe" approaching Huayang.

  Hua Wuniang's eyes were closed, and her eyeballs were already filled with bloodshot. She repeatedly mobilized the Longqing Jue true energy in her body, but every time the true energy just entered the meridians, it inexplicably dissipated into nothingness. Every strand of true energy that dissipated was as if a part of her flesh and blood had been swallowed up, and her internal injuries were getting heavier and heavier. Two streams of blood flowed out from her nostrils like small creeks, and her nostrils and mouth corners gradually oozed out blood threads. However, Hua Wuniang seemed to be unaware of the pain in her body, and there was only one thought in her mind.

  "They killed Yoh! Yoh is dead, died under their arrows!"

  "Whoever killed Yaoyao will have to pay with their own life!"

  Hua Wuniang's face suddenly revealed a hint of ferocious and crazy smile. The corners of her mouth opened, and a layer of eerie blue light suddenly covered her face. Since it was impossible to mobilize the true energy inside her body, each time she breathed in and out would only make her injuries worse, so she might as well self-destruct her dantian. In Hua Wuniang's dantian, a ball of eerie blue energy suddenly exploded, and the originally gentle and warm longqing true energy, like spring breeze and rain, nourishing all things silently, had turned into raging dragons, surging into Hua Wuniang's meridians.

  Power once again returned to Huajunniang's body.

  Hua Wuniang's eyes flashed a green light, and she burst into maniacal laughter: "You thief, pay with your life for my son! My son~~~~"

  A shrill cry of despair, Hua Wenyin transformed into a flurry of residual shadows, flying towards those few burly men who were smiling and closing in on her.

  Her palms were like iron plates, slapping out one after another. Each palm contained the pure and true energy of Hua Wu Niang's thirty years of bitter practice. Every palm had a power of over a thousand catties; every palm could smash those big men into broken bones and torn tendons, and even several palms pierced through their chests from front to back.

  Bang, bang, the dull thud shook the backyard of Hui Chun Tang into a series of tremors. Hua Gui Niang held her breath and swung out nearly a hundred palms in the blink of an eye, brutally beating those sturdy men into a mess of minced meat. Especially that old five who was holding the bow, on the ground it was impossible to tell that he was once a human being, only leaving behind a messy puddle of blood.

  "Yao'er, Yao'er~~~~~" Hua Wuniang's true energy gushed out of her body, and blood poured out from all seven orifices as she threw her head back and wailed: "My dear child~~~~~~"

  "Hmph!" A cold, knife-like laugh suddenly came. A middle-aged man, dressed in a Taoist robe but with a shaved head, wearing a hemp monk's boot on his left foot and a brocade cloud boot on his right foot, appeared abruptly in front of Hua Wenyin. His face was gaunt, his skin dark, and his appearance was not eye-catching at all, except for a huge eagle-like nose that gave him an air of sinister gloom. He looked at Hua Wenyin with a sinister gaze and coldly laughed: "Little girl, did you kill these people?"

  Hua Wuniang coughed, her true energy rapidly melting away like snow in sunlight, and with it, her life. She gazed coldly at the strange man, nodding: "Yes, what of it?"

  The strange man narrowed his eyes and said faintly: "Very good!"

  He clasped his hands together in front of his chest, and the strange man coldly smiled: "The heavens have a good life-giving virtue, so every time before I massacre a city, I always find an excuse for myself. This time, I've found one!"

  Butchering the city, such a frightening phrase, yet it seemed as natural as eating and drinking to this strange man. A deep and sinister tone flowed naturally from his words, forcing Hua Wenyang to change color and retreat several steps. At this moment, this strange man gave Hua Wenyang the feeling of being like the highly toxic "Three-headed Golden Flower Snake" that Huichuntang had once collected, having lost all human flavor, with only the most cruel killing intent and the most brutal killing heart. When had Hua Wenyang ever seen such a terrifying person?

  The strange man smiled faintly and stretched out his right palm, pressing it against Hua Wenyin's chest.

  Outside the city of Guihua, at a distance of ninety-nine zhang from the four city gates in the southeast, northwest, and other directions, a large banner about ten zhang high was erected. On the black banner, the four spiritual beasts of Qinglong, Baihu, Zhuque, and Xuanwu were embroidered with red silk thread. However, the four divine beasts that should have been majestic and awe-inspiring on this banner were instead filled with a sinister and murderous aura. Threads of black smoke continuously seeped out from the banner, slowly drifting into the city of Guihua.

  Under each of the large streamers, there were over a dozen strange men who were neither monks nor Taoists sitting cross-legged, lazily muttering some sort of scripture.

  Suddenly, these strange men simultaneously revealed a joyful expression and stood up straight. They shouted in unison: "The lord has found an excuse! Black Blade, issue the order to massacre the city!"

  At the east gate of Guihua City, a burly man riding on the back of a single-horned wild bull, wearing thick black and red armor, holding an eight-foot-long giant machete, heard these strange people's roar, and couldn't help but look up to the sky and cheer: "Young men! Slaughter the city! Don't plunder! Damn it, slaughter the city! Haha, kill!"

  The big knife chopped down heavily on the buttocks of the sitting wild cow, and the big man cheered as he led nearly a thousand bandits into the city of Guihua.

  In the backyard of Hui Chun Tang, beneath a patch of black toxic soil, lies a small stone chamber no more than ten feet in length and width. Inside the chamber are two celadon long tables, each with a white jade tray on top. On one tray is a three-finger-wide azure bracelet, while on the other is an exquisitely crafted ring resembling a woven rattan strip.

  On the north-facing wall of the stone chamber, a small horizontal inscribed banner was hung, with a "Dan" character about one foot square. The font was ancient and thick, but between the strokes, there seemed to be a kind of ethereal elegance that seemed to fly away with the wind. Lin Xiao looked at the "Dan" character and suddenly felt a little dazed. He took a deep look at a point in the "Dan" character and felt that the true energy inside his body was suddenly stirring, as if it wanted to burst out of his body.

  Lin Xiao jumped in fright, what kind of ghostly character is this, how can it have such a strange power. Just by glancing at it, he was able to draw out the true energy within his body. The person who wrote this character must be an extraordinary figure.

  Lin Xiao was deep in thought, but before he knew it, Lin Shan had already kicked him to the ground with a rough kick and pressed his head against the small banner, knocking nine times. Afterwards, Lin Shan also knelt on the ground, paying respects to the banner: "The Great Luo Dan Dao Patriarch is above, today the world is in chaos, internally there are demonic people stirring up trouble, externally the 107th generation disciple of the outer sect Lin Shan is incompetent and unable to take control of this enterprise. Today, I temporarily hand over the position of Outer Sect Executor of the Great Luo Dan Dao to my younger brother's son Lin Xiao. Please, Patriarch, bless and protect Lin Xiao from this calamity."

  Before Lin Xiao could even ask, Lin Shan had already grabbed the bangles and rings on the tray and put them on Lin Xiao's hands. With a swift movement of his finger, Lin Shan pricked Lin Xiao's brow, causing a drop of hot blood to fall onto the bangles and rings. The originally radiant blue bangles and the emerald green vine ring instantly lost their luster, becoming ordinary-looking, resembling a crude bronze bangle and a carelessly woven vine toy made by a child.

  "Jiuyuan ring, Hui Ling ring, these are the treasures of our sect, you must remember to protect them well." Lin Shan patted Lin Xiao's head and said urgently: "This secret library seems hidden, but in fact there is also a great hidden danger. The poisonous soil above is really too eye-catching. But your father didn't have a better place to hide you, so just wait quietly here for a few days."

  "This time, if you can escape the great danger, there will naturally be a place for you in the future."

  He tightly hugged Lin Xiao, and with a loud voice, he kissed Lin Xiao's forehead and shouted: "Good son, remember! If you see someone with the Danling Command in their hand, you cry and beg them to take you as their apprentice. Your qualifications are sufficient! Outer door disciple, outer door disciple... Haha... The 'Daluodan Dao' outer door lineage will be cut off today!"

  Lin Xiao shouted: "Dad!" He heard some ominous signs from Lin Shan's words.

  Lin Shan sealed Lin Xiao's mute acupoint and several other key acupoints, rendering him temporarily immobile and speechless. He could only stare at Lin Shan with wide eyes, his gaze fixed intently on him.

  Lin Shan looked at Lin Xiao with a loving gaze, smiling and saying: "Good son, remember to live well. You must remember that my Lin family's ancestors cannot be without descendants to offer incense!"

  He gently patted Lin Xiao's head, and Lin Shan turned around and left. As he walked away, he said in a cold voice: "This secret library can only be entered by the Outer Gate Master. Therefore, Father passing on the position of Outer Gate Master to you does not violate the sect's rules. Now, Father is going to fulfill his promise to your Shifu from back then. With Father around, Huichuntang will exist. When Father dies, Huichuntang can perish!"

  Lin Xiao's eyes widened, he stared blankly at the slender figure that had walked out of the secret chamber with such elegance, heading towards the unknown danger.

  For a very long time afterwards, Lin Xiao couldn't understand why Lin Shan didn't hide with him in the secret chamber but instead insisted on going out to die.

  It wasn't until later that Lin Xiao discovered that compared to life, there were some things in the world that were more important to a man.

  Lin Shan, this warm and gentle old man, who seemed to have been oppressed by Hua Guiniang for a lifetime, couldn't even protect his own beloved woman, let alone take revenge for her. But in reality, he was a real man through and through. So, his death was already sealed when the Black Knife Gang appeared.

  Lin Xiao spent many years before he understood this point.

  But when he realized all this, his heart had already become like Lin Shan's today, as if it was soaked in the bitter water of Huanglian, and he was mentally exhausted.

  "Ancestors, please bless and preserve the Lin family's incense." Lin Shan walked out of the secret chamber, still praying silently. His heart was filled with worry. He had other sources of information, and he knew that apart from the Black Knife bandits, there was another, even more terrifying bandit army lurking within a thousand miles. Therefore, he didn't dare to let Lin Xiao leave the city of Guihua. Now, he could only hide Lin Xiao in the secret chamber. However, although the secret chamber seemed hidden and secret, it was only so for the people of Hui Chun Tang - no one from Hui Chun Tang dared to approach this poisonous land.

  But what about those Black Knife bandits? What will they do when they discover that the backyard of Hui Chun Tang has such a piece of deadly poisonous land?

  Secret storage, could it be discovered by them?

  As soon as Lin Shan walked out of the secret passage, all his worries were gone. At this point, there was nothing to worry about. Now, Lin Shan could only live and die with Huichuntang. This was a promise he made to his mentor, the previous master of Huichuntang, 'Daluodan Dao', the previous generation's outer door executive disciple. Lin Shan was a man who kept his promises.

  Standing on the black poisonous land, Lin Xiang happened to see that bald-headed monster slap Huajie Nang out with a palm. Under this monster's palm, Huajie Nang didn't even have the ability to dodge.

  "Ah", Huajie Nang suddenly spat out a stream of blood in mid-air, the blood mixed with countless fragments of internal organs.

  Lin Shanshen's slender figure flashed, and in two steps, he caught up with Hua Wuniang. He gently wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to his chest. Hua Wuniang coughed up blood, staining Lin Shanshen's blue robe crimson.

  The bald-headed man was taken aback, he actually didn't know when Lin Shan had appeared! To him, this was an impossible thing to happen. Ordinary warriors, even if they had cultivated to the so-called "Pre-Heavenly Realm", were not able to evade his ears. Lin Shan had actually sneaked out from behind him without being detected! This could only prove one thing: Lin Shan and his identity were no ordinary ones. The strange man tilted his head, his eagle-like nose twitched, and a pleased smile appeared on his ugly face: "Good, very good!"

  Hua Wuniang lay in Lin Shan's arms, spitting out blood while staring blankly at him. With her last bit of strength, she stammered and shouted: "Yao'er... he... is dead! Master... you really are so heartless!"

  "I have always loved you, and also Rou'er!" Lin Shan's clear and gentle gaze poured onto Hua Wuyi's face, with a continuous flow of soft and serene true energy infusing into her body, calming down the anger that was about to erupt. "Wuyi, in my heart, you have always been that naive and innocent little girl from back then, without any schemes or intentions. So I have always tolerated you, given in to you, loved you, and protected you! Even when you poisoned Ruo'er's mother for Rou'er's sake, I knew it was your doing, but what did I do?"

  The bald-headed stranger had originally intended to take advantage of the opportunity to launch a sneak attack on Lin Shanyi with one palm, but as soon as he heard Lin Shanyi and Hua Wuniang's conversation, a hint of warmth flashed across his eyes. The stranger lowered his head in contemplation for a moment, then quietly retreated several steps, indicating that he could wait for Lin Shanyi and Hua Wuniang to finish their conversation.

  Lin Shan glanced lightly at the bald-headed stranger, stretched out his right hand and gave him a standard Taoist salute.

  The bald man's eyes condensed, his hands in front of his chest formed a seal like a fierce flame, and he silently returned a courtesy to Lin Shan.

  "If you still love me, why do you have to go outside and find another woman? And even brought back a bastard?" Hua Wenyang suddenly regained her senses, she took a deep breath and asked Lin Shan the question she had wanted to ask but never dared to.

  Lin Shan looked at Hua Wuniang with a gentle gaze, his right hand lightly stroking her face that had been wiped clean of too much powder. The white powder slowly slid down from the tip of his finger, revealing Hua Wuniang's still delicate features.

  Gently stroking Huajun's cheek, Lin Shan smiled warmly and said: "You've learned about the secret library from Master, but how could you forget that every ten generations, our Huachun Hall has the qualification to recommend one disciple to practice with the inner sect? This is a privilege we've earned after thousands of years of hard work for the inner sect. How could you not know?"

  "Hua Yu Nang stared blankly at Lin Shan."

  Lin Shan shook his head gently and sighed, "Can Yang'er's temperament be at peace with cultivation? Can you bear to let him go for a hundred years and never see him again? In my generation, it's just right to let one of the disciples enter the inner door. Considering the foundation of Hui Chun Tang, how can I not plan carefully? Xiao Er's personality is stable, his character is excellent, if he succeeds in the future, he will definitely not mistreat Yang'er." Lin Shan had another sentence that he didn't say out loud, if it wasn't for Huajie Niang practicing too hastily and damaging her vital energy source, how would he have met Lin Xiao's mother?

  "Old master...husband...me!" Hua Wuniang was stunned. Suddenly, she started coughing violently: "Then, in your heart, between me and that woman, which one..."

  Lin Shan looked at Hua Wuniang with a gentle gaze, just wanting to say that his feelings for the two of them were no different. However, seeing the light in Hua Wuniang's eyes growing weaker and weaker, as if she could stop breathing at any moment, Lin Shan's heart softened, and he involuntarily sighed: "Wuniang, in my heart, you have always been my little junior sister, the one I love most in this lifetime."

  Lin Shan's heart ached as he thought of Lin Xiao's mother, the gentle woman who had treated him like her own heaven, earth and everything. In his conscience, he swore that in his heart, the two women were equally loved without any difference. However, the woman in his arms had done something that almost made Lin Shan collapse.

  "Ah~~~~~" On Hua Wuniang's face, a bright smile suddenly bloomed, and for a moment, she seemed to have returned to a long, long time ago, in a season filled with vibrant spring flowers.

  "Lord, it's Wu Nang, I was wrong all these years!" Wu Nang's head slightly tilted to the side, and with that, she swallowed her last breath.

  "You're not wrong, I'm not wrong, nobody's wrong." Lin Shan gently patted Hua Guiniang's face, just like he did when he first joined his master's school and patted the then ten-year-old Hua Guiniang's face. "The one who was wrong is fate. We are all not wrong. Even if I knew it was you who poisoned her, I would still say that actually, we are all not wrong."

  For Hua Wuniang, Lin Shan is truly unable to muster up a single thread of resentment. Hua Wuniang did those things for Lin Yao, and he can very much understand Hua Wuniang's feelings.

  If it's necessary for someone to take responsibility for the crime, then the person most at fault is him - Lin Shan!

  Gently placing Hua Wuniang's corpse to the side, Lin Shan stood up straight, his eyes fixed on that strange person with two faint, eerie green glows.

  "It was you, who killed Yu Nang." Glancing at Lin Yao's chest, which had a large hole blown open, and then looking at the sharp arrow stuck in the ground behind him, Lin Shan smiled faintly and said: "Your man, killed my son."

  The strange man replied faintly: "Yes!"

  Lin Shan nodded slightly and said in a gloomy tone, "Wu Niang has a bad temper, and Yao Er is even more unfilial. However, they are after all my wife and child."

  The strange man nodded vigorously and laughed strangely: "So what?"

  "So, I'm going to kill you!"

  "Kill me?" The strange man laughed strangely: "Are you joking? Do you know that the city of Guihua has been surrounded by my four-phase soul-locking array, even if you are a pre-heavenly boundary expert... No, even if you are a master who is about to form a golden elixir, your strength can only be exerted to less than one-tenth! Can you kill me?"

  Lin Shandian's hands parted, and he somehow produced a small, two-foot-long medicinal hoe from somewhere, grasping it tightly in his hand. He stared intently at the strange man, saying calmly: "Outer Gatekeeper Lin Shandian of the Dadao Sect, I'd like to learn about your sect's profound skills!"

  "Big Luo Dan Dao!" The strange person's eyes twitched slightly, and he suddenly burst out laughing: "Indeed, it should be the Big Luo Dan Dao people. Hmm, Hui Chun Tang is in the business of selling medicinal materials, if you say that Big Luo Dan Dao, which specializes in alchemy for people, has nothing to do with you, that would be truly strange."

  He let out a sigh, and the strange man said in a sinister tone: "However, although Dayuan Country is the territory of Daludan Dao, their reputation can't intimidate us. Lin Shan, you can prepare to die!"

  The strange man's hand reached behind his back and slowly pulled out a three-foot-long beast bone, with a white skull on top. The eye sockets of the skull flashed two bright red phosphorescent lights, looking as scary as possible. The strange man sneered: "Jiemo Gate's Wutian Lord, I'd like to learn from you, fellow Taoist! Hehe, you're an outer sect executive, your cultivation shouldn't be high; this seat is also an outer affairs lord, and my cultivation has just barely broken through the Xiantian realm. We are a perfect match!"

  "Hah!" Lin Shan let out a loud shout, his right hand's cyan-purple small medicine chopper brought out a faint purple smoke, chopping down towards Wu Tianling's master with a powerful slash.

  Wu Tianling's face changed, he coldly laughed and pointed his right hand bone stick towards the sky, shouting in a low voice: "Four-phase lock soul, heavenly demon exterminate spirit, kill!"

  Outside the four city gates of Guihua City, a large banner suddenly shook violently, and four black lights burst out from within the banner. In mid-air, they condensed into the illusory images of four square-shaped sacred beasts shrouded in faint black smoke. Like lightning, they flashed towards the upper air above Hui Chun Hall.

  The four sacred beasts looked up at the sky and let out a silent roar, transforming into four black lights that shot straight towards Lin Shan.

  Lin Shan let out a low hum and casually tossed the medicine shovel out of his hand.

  Four dark lights hit Lin Shan's body, and his thin figure suddenly swelled up and exploded into countless fragments in a burst of black light.

  Lin Shantou's small medicine spade flew out of his hand, carrying a trail of purple smoke that hit the shoulder of Wutian Lingzhu, striking his left shoulder into a bloody mess, causing Wutian Lingzhu to curse loudly in pain.

  The blood-soaked Wang Laojia master wielded a golden sword in his hand, with an old woman with yellow hair on his back, and rushed into the backyard like a mad tiger. He swung his sword to block the dozens of black knife bandits who were chasing and killing from behind, while shouting loudly: "Lin Laoxian, you and I join forces, break out! I can no longer take care of my family, I can only escape with my old mother on my back! These damned black knife bandits, I'm not done with them yet!"

  Mr. Wang turned around and saw Lin Shan's body disappear in the dark light, his eyes widened in horror. He stuttered and screamed: "Wh-what's going on?! Mr. Lin! Mr. Lin! Ahhh~~~~"

  Hei Dao's leader, Hei Dao, rode a unicorn wild bull, splitting the bandits and charging forward. His giant knife swung through the air, emitting a black light, and with a single slash, he split Wang Lao's master and his wife on his back into four pieces.

  Hei Dao spat a mouthful of thick phlegm onto the ground, and let out a strange laugh: "Lord, the master of the Gui Hua City Wang family, is indeed a formidable opponent! Being trapped by the Four Phase Locking Soul Array, you still managed to kill 78 of my sons and escape all the way here! Hmm, this Four Phase Locking Soul Array seems to not be very powerful after all!"

  "Shut up! The Four Phase Locking Soul Formation is our Silent Demon Gate's signature formation, with boundless power. It's just... " The black-faced old man's face turned red as he muttered under his breath, "It's just that our strength isn't enough, we can't bring out its full potential. Hmph! If the Four Phase Locking Soul Formation could be fully activated, one strike would turn the entire city of Guihua to dust, why would we need to bother with capturing and killing them one by one?"

  Inside the city of Guihua, it had already become a bloody hell on earth. Tens of thousands of civilians were being slaughtered one by one by the rampaging Black Blade bandits. The spirits of all those killed were being absorbed into the four large banners. The black aura emanating from the banners grew even thicker and more dense.

  The city of Guihua has been destroyed!