Chapter 280: Chapter 226: Ancient Ruins 2
Song Mingyue spoke with an air of great righteousness, but she dared not meet Ling Su’s eyes, afraid she would see the hints of affection for Ling Xiao within them.
But such things were impossible to hide. Ling Su smiled sweetly and said, "You’re so warm-hearted, Ming Yue. I can’t thank you enough!"
Song Mingyue blushed slightly and said, "Sister, you’re being too kind! Brother Ling did a great service for my Song Family. I’m just... just returning the favor."
It was a rather flimsy explanation, and Ling Su clearly didn’t believe it was that simple. However, she didn’t press the matter or tease her about it.
Even so, in Ling Xiao’s eyes, his "Brother Song" and his sister were having some kind of passionate, illicit affair. ’They’re exchanging flirtatious glances right in front of me! This is too much!’
By now, both Song Mingyue and Ling Su had rested enough. Ling Su said, "Third Brother, we should get going. Now that Zhe Jianye’s son is dead, he’ll never let this matter drop. He’s bound to send a large number of people to find us. It’s not safe to stay here any longer!"
Ling Xiao, however, asked, "Does the Zhe Family know the location of the Ancient Ruins?"
Ling Su shook her head. "We can’t go there. That Demon Sword Master we captured probably spilled everything. Why wouldn’t he have mentioned the location of the ruins?"
"In that case, are you the only one who can open it, Sister?" Ling Xiao asked again.
Ling Su smiled. "More or less. The ruins are filled with mechanisms and traps. I have a strong suspicion there are treasures inside, but if we go, we’ll surely be ambushed by the Zhe Family when we come out!"
"Not necessarily," Song Mingyue said. "Anyone would think that the most sensible thing for us to do right now is hurry back to Lanyue. They wouldn’t expect us to have the guts to run off to the Ancient Ruins. Besides, those ruins have been there for many years; they’re not going to disappear anytime soon. We could always come back later. So, I think we should go take a look. We might just find something valuable!"
Ling Su was tempted. She had a passion for archaeology. Before, her focus had been on helping her brother unblock his Celestial Vein. Now that that was resolved, her love for ancient history flared up. She glanced over at Tiger, who was sitting there gnawing on a piece of dried meat, and felt a surge of security. ’At least we have a Sword Emperor on our side!’
She nodded. "Alright then, let’s go now! We should ride this big bird. It’ll be much faster!"
The majestic clown, squatting nearby, seemed to take offense at the two words "big bird" and let out a squawk of protest. Ling Su exclaimed in surprise, "Oh my, it can actually understand me!"
clown disdainfully turned its head away, as if wondering how this woman, who was so close to its master, could be so dense.
Ling Xiao chuckled and stroked clown’s head a few times. The group climbed onto its back. Tiger leaped into the air, following behind clown, and they quickly vanished into the vast darkness of the night.
...
Meanwhile, the Zhe Family had suffered a catastrophe overnight. A single sliver of Zhe Jianye’s greed had led to a devastating blow.
Wails of grief filled the Zhe Family estate. The Demon Sword Masters who had tried to flee the night before were now all bound with specially treated Tier Five Magic Beast Tendons, forced to kneel before Zhe Xiaoxing’s coffin.
Zhe Shixun sat before his grandson’s coffin, one hand resting on the lid. His tears had long run dry, and his silver hair fluttered in the wind. He showed none of the majesty of a Sword Emperor Powerhouse, looking more like a common old man in his twilight years.
Zhe Jianye stood before his son’s coffin, his gaze chilling. He looked at the kneeling Demon Sword Masters and ground out through clenched teeth, "You... all deserve to die!"
"My lord, have mercy! Spare our lives, my lord!"
These Demon Sword Masters, High-tier Martial Artists who were so arrogant before the world, were now like dogs wagging their tails and begging for scraps, pleading with Zhe Jianye.
"Mercy? Heh, heh, heh... If I spare you, who will spare my son’s life?!" Zhe Jianye’s face was savage, and his cold laughter sent a chill down the spine. "You have some nerve! What did I tell you yesterday?! Who let you take him out?! HUH?!" Zhe Jianye’s voice suddenly rose to a roar. He furiously grabbed one of the Demon Sword Masters by the hair, hauling him to his feet. Drawing a dagger from his waist, he viciously plunged it into the man’s chest. He ripped the blade out and snarled, "Speak! Who let you take him out!"
Seated nearby, Zhe Shixun coldly watched his son’s frenzied actions but did not say a word.
’Zhe Jianye is killing his subordinates as a roundabout way of venting his anger at me!’ Zhe Shixun thought. ’If I hadn’t spoiled Zhe Xiaoxing so much, would those Demon Sword Masters have dared to go out with him so casually? And if they hadn’t gone with him, would Zhe Xiaoxing, a Sixth Rank Mad Sword Master, have dared to pick a fight with Ling Xiao?’
So, in the end, Zhe Xiaoxing’s death was caused by the indulgence of Zhe Shixun and the boy’s own mother.
To spoil a child is to kill them.
There was not an ounce of falsehood in that saying.
After slaying one Demon Sword Master, Zhe Jianye looked at the others and said grimly, "And you? Tell me... do you even have the right to keep living?"
One of the Demon Sword Masters dared to plead, "My lord, we can atone for our failure! We... we request to be sent to hunt down tha— Ah..."
Before he could finish, Zhe Jianye ran him through. A spray of hot blood erupted from his chest. Just as it was about to splatter the coffin, it seemed to hit an invisible barrier and dripped harmlessly to the ground.
The Demon Sword Master’s eyes were wide open, unable to rest in peace.
Seeing it through to the end, Zhe Jianye killed all the Demon Sword Masters who had tried to flee. Then, he said in a grief-stricken voice, "Son, Dad has killed these men to accompany you in death! They all deserved it! They tried to run away last night, so how could they possibly have the guts to hunt down your killers? Don’t you worry... Daddy will avenge you! Even if I have to use the full might of the Zhe Family, even if I have to dispatch an army of a million men, I will slaughter every last member of the Ling Family to get revenge for you!"
"You can’t do that," Zhe Shixun said, glancing impassively at his son. "This is a personal feud. You cannot provoke a war between two nations over it. The consequences... are more than our Zhe Family can bear!"
"Our Zhe Family? Consequences?" Zhe Jianye sneered. "Father... does our Zhe Family even have a future anymore? Our line has been cut off! Why should I care about consequences? What does it matter to me if anyone else lives or dies!"
"Nonsense! If you break through to the Sword Sect realm, you’ll easily add another fifty or sixty years to your life! When that happens, I’ll find you a hundred women, and you can have as many children as you want! Get a grip!" Zhe Shixun roared at his son. Then, his voice softened. "You don’t need to worry about revenge for Xiaoxing. I will handle it. Your task is to break through to the Sword Sect realm as quickly as possible! I will return to the main family clan and get you some supportive Elixirs. Sigh... those Elixirs are incredibly precious. I’ll have to swallow my pride, but I’ll do it for the sake of revenge, and for the continuation of the Zhe Family’s main lineage..."
"It’s useless, Dad." Zhe Jianye, looking impossibly old, shook his head. "I don’t blame you. I feel much better after that outburst. No one wanted Xiaoxing to die. None of us. Don’t go to the clan. In their eyes, we’re no different from the branch families! We’re not a single bit more noble! Whether we’re a branch family or the main family, it’s all Zhe Family blood. As for who is a branch and who is the direct line... to them, it’s not important at all!"
Zhe Shixun glanced at his son and clapped him on the shoulder. "You don’t understand. My grandfather is still alive. He won’t just sit by and do nothing!" He looked at Zhe Jianye and continued, "First, send men to the Ancient Ruins and secure the area! That will be an important bargaining chip for me to get those Elixirs for you, and to find people to help me with my revenge!"
...
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