Chapter 846: For Tian, Continuing the Red Clouds

The slave master negotiating with the First Prince was also a native cultivator of the Yanmoon Profound Heavens clan. Dressed in luxurious robes, he possessed considerable cultivation, and a hint of disdain marred his face as he glanced at Xu Qing, who had stopped not far away, before looking back at the First Prince.

"It's not that I can't sell to you," he stated. "But there's a distinction between being human and being from the Yanmoon Profound Heavens clan. Humans are not qualified to purchase slave cultivators. If you were one of my Yanmoon clan, then I could certainly sell you some."

The slave master spoke indifferently, casually prying open the mouth of a human prisoner of war beside him.

"Look," he said, "his teeth are quite good; he's worth buying."

The human prisoner's numb expression shifted, humiliation welled in his eyes, and he finally closed them. But as the slave master twitched his hand, the prisoner's eyes were forced open again.

The slave master smiled, his gaze once again falling on Xu Qing, this time with a hint of provocation.

To be able to operate a slave market in the Holy City and possess the means to transport human prisoners of war from the distant Black Sky Domain, it was clear that astonishing power lay behind this establishment.

Thus, he paid no mind to the human First Prince, as it was widely known that the Prince had been abandoned by his mother's clan. What he cared about was Xu Qing, the human who had achieved first place in the initial stage.

The First Prince's expression was grim, his eyes burning with anger. But this was the Yanmoon Profound Heavens territory, so he took a deep breath, suppressing his fury. He took out a jade slip to send a message, preparing to buy back the human prisoners of war in his own way.

The situation unfolded without much surprise. The First Prince still had some friends within the Yanmoon Profound Heavens clan. While they couldn't help with major issues, assisting him in buying some human prisoners of war was a minor request they could fulfill.

Soon after, several native Yanmoon Profound Heavens cultivators arrived. After negotiating, they purchased the human prisoners of war.

Xu Qing watched the entire process. Once it concluded, he silently turned and walked towards his residence, under the slave master's contemptuous gaze.

He walked slowly. In the distance, the setting sun painted the sky with red clouds.

The light from the horizon spilled onto his path, coloring the sky and staining the road as if with blood.

As he gazed at the red clouds, two voices gradually emerged within Xu Qing.

One voice told him that he had no deep emotional connection to humanity as a whole. His childhood experiences of cannibalism and the world's evils mostly originated from his own kind. The imperial capital was not his home; his home was in Feng Hai County. Family and friends were the softest parts of life. In this era, in this world, the most important thing was for him and his loved ones to simply survive and live well.

The other voice was faint, and Xu Qing couldn't quite make out what it was saying. He could only hear the names of the Old Palace Master and the Sword-Wielding Emperor in the pauses between the two voices.

Xu Qing walked on, accompanied by the red glow of the sunset.

After a long while, just as the sky's glow was about to fade, he arrived at his residence.

At the entrance were dozens of jade slips.

These were challenge letters, from native Yanmoon Profound Heavens cultivators and those from affiliated clans.

For the past half month, because Xu Qing had consistently refused to accept challenges, challengers were not only encountered on the streets, but people also came daily to his residence to throw down challenge jade slips.

Today's number was relatively small.

Looking at the jade slips, Xu Qing paused. Scenes from his time in the Yanmoon Holy City flashed through his mind: the disgusted stares, the feeling of being repelled even in his breathing. These stirred ripples in Xu Qing's heart.

There was also Qiu Quezi's dejection and the slave master's provocation.

And the numb expressions of the human prisoners of war, and the humiliated eyes of the human whose mouth was forced open.

Xu Qing closed his eyes.

His killings, from childhood, had always been a response to perceiving killing intent. He would eliminate anything that threatened his life.

The main reason he had ignored things in the Holy City was that Xu Qing didn't want to create unnecessary trouble. Before achieving first place in the initial stage, his objective was clear, allowing him to kill his way through. But after arriving here, his goal was to pass this month peacefully, waiting for the second stage to begin. During this period, he wanted no unexpected incidents.

He believed some of these challenges were spontaneous, but he was also well aware that others were certainly orchestrated by hidden forces. Their purpose was to make him leave the city. After all, within the Holy City, no one was allowed to fight. And accepting a challenge meant going outside the city...

"It's nothing, just endure it," Xu Qing muttered to himself. His gaze retreated from the challenge jade slips, and he walked towards the residence door, his steps slower and heavier.

Inside the residence, the Captain noticed and looked up in surprise, about to get up and go out to see.

Just then, footsteps sounded behind Xu Qing. Five or six young native Yanmoon Profound Heavens cultivators appeared. A few days prior, they had challenged Xu Qing on the road, seeking fame, but had been ignored by him.

These individuals all had Spirit Repository cultivation. Their repeated challenges had earned them some renown among the younger generation of the Yanmoon Profound Heavens clan, so they had come together today, intending to continue throwing down challenge jade slips.

From a distance, upon seeing Xu Qing, one of them sneered, raised his hand, and threw a jade slip that landed on the ground in front of the house, just as he was about to speak.

But in the next instant, Xu Qing's steps faltered. He looked at the jade slip beside him, then turned around to face the young man who had thrown it.

The young man's body trembled. The words he was about to utter were swallowed whole after his gaze met Xu Qing's.

A sensation of intense coldness seemed to spread from Xu Qing's gaze, instantly engulfing the young man's entire body. At that moment, an overwhelming sense of life-or-death crisis erupted within him. The feeling that all his flesh and blood had become individual entities, each transmitting a shivering sense of danger, made the young man instinctively recoil a few steps, his breathing rapid.

His companions, one by one, had also thrown out their challenge jade slips. But upon witnessing this scene, and after being swept by Xu Qing's gaze, they each shuddered, a sudden sense of unease rising in their hearts.

At this moment, the world seemed to turn to deep winter. Faintly, blood-red snowflakes intertwined between illusion and reality, drifting in all directions, picking up the jade slips and bringing them before Xu Qing.

Looking at the jade slips, Xu Qing raised his hand.

Just then, the residence door opened, and the Captain stood there. He looked at Xu Qing's back, wanting to say something, but in the end, he changed what he was going to say.

"Little Junior Brother," the Captain's voice called out, "do what you want to do. Having a clear mind is what matters."

Xu Qing's hand landed on the jade slips. With a slight squeeze, all of them shattered. The challenge contracts were established!

Accompanied by Xu Qing's hoarse voice, the surrounding temperature dropped even further.

"I accept," he said.

The instant he finished speaking, Xu Qing's figure blurred. Blurring with him were the five or six Yanmoon cultivators who had come, and all cultivators who had left challenge jade slips there today. As long as they were still within the Holy City, no matter their location, their bodies would blur and they would be teleported out the moment the challenge contract was established.

So, in an instant, Xu Qing's figure vanished from outside his residence, reappearing outside the city.

Appearing with him were the dozens of Yanmoon cultivators who had challenged him that day.

Each of them breathed rapidly; some were stunned, some horrified, some panicked, and some tried to retreat.

They had only wanted to gain some reputation.

Xu Qing's acceptance was illogical and unexpected by them, as he had ignored all challenges for the past half month. But today… he had actually agreed.

Their hearts churned, and one of them was about to speak.

But in the next instant, the coldness in Xu Qing's eyes erupted. He took a step forward, instantly appearing before the young man who had thrown the last jade slip.

The vast chasm in their combat strength meant the young man didn't even react. In the blink of an eye, Xu Qing's left hand was clamped around his neck. His physical body rapidly withered, absorbed by Xu Qing. His soul continuously dimmed, devoured by Xu Qing. The young man, like a deflating balloon, lived his entire life in the span of a single breath.

At the same time, a terrifying and utterly miserable wail echoed through the heavens and earth.

This scene sent a roar through the hearts of the cultivators around. In their eyes, Xu Qing was no longer merely a human who could be challenged at will, but had become a fierce demon.

In their terror, they instinctively wanted to flee, but it was too late.

Xu Qing's figure vanished instantly, reappearing behind another cultivator. A dagger slashed across this person's neck.

A chilling sensation emerged, a sense of suspension pervaded the air, and a head flew alongside gushing blood. The world spun. A booming sound echoed, the sound of flesh and blood disintegrating and the shattering of the head that could not fall to the ground.

The accumulated malevolence in Xu Qing's heart surged. He took another step, arriving beside a third Yanmoon cultivator. Without even looking, as he passed, this cultivator let out a horrific wail, and all the blood in their body exploded outwards.

It was blood control. It formed a blood-red flower, blooming in mid-air, then rushing towards Xu Qing, circling around him.

From a distance, it appeared eerie yet exquisitely beautiful.

At this moment, Xu Qing stopped trying to consider anything. The two voices within him merged into a single word.

In an instant, blood-red flowers bloomed outside the city. Accompanied by tragic wails, large quantities of blood gushed from the cultivators' bodies and converged towards Xu Qing.

His figure did not pause; wherever he passed, there was death.

Bodies disintegrated one after another, and heads flew. The meaning of life, at this moment, seemed to be solely to be sacrificed to the blade.

The shroud on the dagger was already stained red, exuding a bloodthirsty aura, and the blade's edge became the only light all lives saw in their final moments.

Dozens of cultivators died in less than ten breaths!

Xu Qing's slaughter seemed to possess an artistic fastidiousness; thus, no bodies remained in the world outside the city. Only blood swirled around him, reflecting the fading red clouds in the sky and seemingly extending their presence.

Amidst the blood-red glow, Xu Qing raised his head and gazed at the Holy City, silent.

But his actions, his gaze, and his aura had already formed a message: To all challengers, I await you… come fight!