Chapter 15: The Token

The Yu Family Mansion.

The once splendid courtyard had been reduced to rubble and ruins. As far as the eye could see, corpses lay everywhere, blood flowed across the ground, and the air was thick with a nauseating stench of blood.

Now, most of the Yu family survivors had gathered here, only about twenty people, young and old. Among them were the Seventh Miss Yu and the Second Young Master Yu.

All wore expressions of terror; several elegant women trembled uncontrollably. Only a few, like the Seventh Miss, managed to maintain some composure.

There were especially many black-clad men here, nearly thirty in number, surrounding the Yu family in a three-sided encirclement within the courtyard. These men formed several small groups of three to five, most holding various magical instruments—all were cultivators.

Fortunately, the other Yu family retainers had finally arrived and protected the Yu family members.

After all, the Yu family was the residence of the Prime Minister of Feng State, and the cultivator retainers they supported were formidable. In particular, a middle-aged cultivator in a red robe stood before the Yu family. His face was covered in pockmarks, and he was short and stout, seemingly unremarkable, but his entire body was wreathed in red light, emitting the immense spiritual pressure of the Core Formation stage.

Above his head floated a crimson fire pearl magical treasure, with several red fireballs dancing and circling nearby, an awe-inspiring sight.

The other three Yu family retainers—two men and a woman—though not as powerful as the first, also appeared extraordinary. Among them was a black-clad young woman with delicate features but a scar on her face, and a tall, gaunt middle-aged man with sunken eyes, who stood on either side of the red-robed cultivator.

The last was a lean old man with rough hands and dark skin, resembling a rustic farmer, standing slightly behind.

Although there was a Core Formation cultivator present, they were only four in number and had to protect the Yu family, so they were locked in a stalemate with the surrounding black-clad cultivators.

"This won't do. Protect the Seventh Miss and the others, and charge out when the time is right!" The red-robed middle-aged man, as a Core Formation cultivator, shouted several times but received no response from the surrounding black-clad men. Finally enraged, he instructed the other three retainers, then formed hand seals and spat a beam of red light into the crimson fire pearl above his head.

The crimson fire pearl immediately spun faster, becoming a blur.

With a series of "whoosh" sounds, a dozen huge fireballs spun out from it and quickly merged into a thick fire dragon over ten zhang long.

"Roar!"

The fire dragon, its scales clearly defined, roared and lunged into the crowd of black-clad men ahead, claws bared.

Boom! Boom!

The first squad of black-clad men, caught off guard, was directly knocked flying by the fire dragon, and two were instantly reduced to ashes.

Then the thick fire dragon's tail whipped fiercely, raising a wave of flames, causing the surrounding crowd to retreat hastily.

After a moment of chaos, the black-clad cultivators reacted, and various magical instruments and spells rained down on the fire dragon like raindrops.

The fire dragon's massive body swayed left and right under the barrage, flames rolling, but it was not critically damaged. It continued to charge and kill, and within a few breaths, nearly half of the black-clad men were dead or wounded.

"Go!"

The red-robed cultivator shouted to the black-clad young woman and the others.

But at that moment, with a "whoosh," a blurry black light shot over with incredible speed, like a black lightning bolt, striking the fire dragon's belly as it rampaged.

Puchi!

The black light pierced deep into the fire dragon's body—it was a black arrow, its shaft faintly engraved with black runes.

"Boom!"

The runes on the arrow suddenly flared with black light and exploded violently, like a thunderclap, producing a huge red-black mushroom cloud that shook the ground nearby.

A large hole was blasted in the fire dragon's belly, and flames flickered wildly around its body.

Seeing this, the red-robed cultivator and the other three retainers were greatly shocked!

Not far away at the main entrance, a black-clad man had appeared, holding a large pitch-black bow, surrounded by black light—he was at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage.

The darkness behind him stirred, and four more black-clad men emerged, all at the peak of Foundation Establishment, also holding black bows. They drew their bows, nocked arrows, and shot.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!

Four black rune arrows flew like meteors, tracing cold, eerie arcs through the night sky, swift as thunder and wind.

The red-robed cultivator rapidly changed his hand seals, trying to maneuver the fire dragon to dodge, but its body was too large, and the archers were skilled. Only one arrow was evaded; the other three rune arrows all struck home.

Rumble!

The three rune arrows exploded simultaneously!

The fire dragon's body was blasted with three more large holes, and it could no longer maintain its form. It collapsed with a roar, scattering into countless red embers that vanished without a trace.

The red-robed cultivator grunted, his body swaying.

At that moment, another piercing shriek like a wailing ghost sounded, and a pale white light shot out from the darkness, several times faster than the rune arrows, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

Terrified, the red-robed cultivator immediately sent the crimson fire pearl above his head flying to meet the white light, while he himself flew backward. At the same time, he waved his hand, and a blue light and a red light flew out—a small blue sword and a red flying fork—also striking the white light.

The white light flashed, revealing its true form: a three-foot-long bone knife surrounded by streams of yin wind.

The bone knife hummed, and suddenly a mass of faint black threads emerged, entangling the crimson fire pearl, the small blue sword, and the red flying fork.

The spiritual light on the three treasures dimmed, and they became sluggish, wobbling as if about to fall.

The bone knife flickered, passed through the gap between the three treasures, and then appeared near the red-robed cultivator's head, twisting like lightning.

"Ah..."

The red-robed cultivator let out a scream, which abruptly cut off. His head tilted and fell from his neck.

A fountain of blood spurted several zhang high. The headless corpse swayed and collapsed to the ground.

"Senior Red Robe!"

The Yu family members cried out in alarm.

The three retainers, including the black-clad young woman, were also horrified. They retreated a few steps, at a loss.

Then, a young man with a lecherous expression walked slowly out from the crowd. It was the same one who had been secretly watching in Mingyuan City earlier, but the gray-clad man was not beside him.

As soon as the lecherous young man appeared, the surrounding black-clad men immediately stopped their actions and stood bowing.

The lecherous young man waved his hand, and the white bone knife flew back, bringing with it the three treasures of the red-robed cultivator.

He glanced at the three treasures, a hint of disdain in his eyes, but still waved his hand to put them away. Then he looked at the Yu family and said coldly:

"Kill them all. Leave no one alive."

"Yes!" The black-clad men promptly responded and stepped forward.

The three Yu family retainers looked grim but did not move to stop them.

Seeing this, the women and children of the Yu family began to cry loudly, some collapsed on the ground, and some even lost control of their bladders.

"Wait!"

A pleasant voice rang out, and someone stepped forward—it was the Seventh Miss.

She had changed back into men's clothing, but it still couldn't hide the hint of soft charm between her brows.

"You!"

The lecherous young man's eyes lit up, and he leered at the Seventh Miss, his gaze roaming over her.

The Seventh Miss's face was pale, but she managed to maintain her composure, suppressing the urge to gouge out his eyes. She took out a purple-gold token from her bosom and held it up.

The token was engraved with a lifelike purple-gold flame pattern.

"Who exactly are you, daring to massacre my Yu mansion? Do you have no regard for the Cold Flame Sect?"