Chapter 1375: Xiao Tianxuan

Birds scattered in fright through the forest. A large, chaotic group of people surged into the woods, the air thick with the smell of blood, mingled with cries of pain, sobs, and screams of terror. All these sounds intertwined, creating an exceptionally tragic scene.

Xiao Tianluo, with greying temples and bloodstains on his chest, trembled as he surveyed the desperate and horrific scene around him, his eyes filled with regret and fury. He had never imagined that Saint Remains City, which he had painstakingly built over many years, would one day be destroyed in his hands.

"Old Yan, how is Tianxuan? Has he caught up?!" Xiao Tianluo asked one of his trusted aides, his voice trembling slightly.

"City Lord..." Old Yan, the aide, looked grim. He gritted his teeth and said, "Young City Lord led a rearguard action. Although he is now a master of the initial Heaven Sun Stage, there are four late Heaven Sun Stage experts among the Sacred Palace forces..."

"No, my son will be fine!" Xiao Tianluo's eyes immediately turned red, and he spun around, about to rush out. His son, Xiao Tianxuan, had joined the Cangxuan Sect after the Saint Remains trial years ago. Over the years, Xiao Tianxuan had diligently cultivated, eventually surpassing his father with his talent, advancing to the Heaven Sun Stage, and becoming an elder of the Cangxuan Sect. Xiao Tianxuan was, in essence, his pride. For years, his son had been his bragging right among his old friends.

However, he never expected things to change so rapidly. A few years ago, he had accidentally found a strange fragment in the Saint Remains. At that time, news of the Cangxuan Saint Seal fragments had already spread throughout Cangxuan Heaven, so Xiao Tianluo recognized it and carefully hid it. He knew this might be a stroke of luck. At his age, he wasn't interested in personal opportunities, but he wanted to leave it to Xiao Tianxuan, hoping it might give his son a chance to advance further. But in the end, instead of fortune, it brought destruction.

The forces claiming to be from the Sacred Palace arrived at Saint Remains City, demanding he hand over the fragment by a deadline. Xiao Tianluo naturally refused and secretly sent a message for Xiao Tianxuan to return from the Cangxuan Sect, as he believed the Cangxuan Sect, being one of the Six Sacred Sects, should command some respect even from the Sacred Palace. What he hadn't anticipated was that just as Xiao Tianxuan arrived at Saint Remains City, the Sacred Palace forces launched a brutal attack, massacring Saint Remains City's defenders like straw under their terrifying display of power. Terrified, he ultimately had no choice but to flee the city with some of its elderly and young. Xiao Tianxuan, to buy them more time, led Saint Remains City's elite in a rearguard action to hold back the enemy. But everyone knew what the outcome of that would be.

"City Lord, you can't go! You'd only be sacrificing yourself in vain!" Seeing this, the surrounding guards quickly restrained Xiao Tianluo. "Don't let the Young City Lord's sacrifice be for nothing!" Under the pleading of those around him, tears streamed down Xiao Tianluo's face. At that moment, he was filled with immense regret. If he had known this would happen, he wouldn't have coveted the Saint Seal fragment, and his son wouldn't have been pushed into such a desperate situation. At this point, he was utterly despondent.

"Let's go. I will lead you to a safe place," Xiao Tianluo said hoarsely, shaking off those who held him. Everyone fell silent. They could hear the resolve to die in Xiao Tianluo's voice. However, Xiao Tianluo was beyond caring about these things now. He was about to lead the group forward, dragging his heavy, exhausted body, when a devilish laugh echoed through the forest.

"Do you really think an initial Heaven Sun Stage expert can hold us back for long? A bunch of bumpkins."

Panic immediately erupted among the fleeing masses. Everyone looked up in terror, only to see figures clad in sacred white robes appearing in mid-air, their faces sneering as they looked down upon them from above. The middle-aged man leading them exuded overwhelming Genesis Qi fluctuations; he was clearly a powerhouse who had reached the late Heaven Sun Stage.

"Are you waiting for your son?" He tilted his head, looking down at Xiao Tianluo, then grinned and waved his hand. Immediately, someone behind him threw an object that landed directly in front of Xiao Tianluo. Xiao Tianluo looked, and his eyes instantly turned bloodshot. He saw Xiao Tianxuan, covered in blood, with ghastly wounds deep enough to expose bone. He was as weak as a fish out of water, his life force rapidly fading.

"Tianxuan!" Xiao Tianluo lunged forward and embraced his son. Xiao Tianxuan weakly opened his eyes. Looking at his father, whose face was streaked with tears, he said hoarsely, "Father, be careful. They are the Sacred Devil Army of the Sacred Palace. The Sacred Palace has already begun war with the Five Great Sacred Sects."

"It's father who harmed you!" Tears of despair streamed down Xiao Tianluo's face. He then looked up at the figures in sacred white robes in the air, who emanated a chilling killing intent, and pleaded, "I'll give you the fragment, please let my son go!"

In mid-air, the late Heaven Sun Stage expert indifferently extended his hand and said, "Hand it over." Xiao Tianluo dared not disobey. Trembling, he took out a jade box from his robes. As the box opened, a fragment shimmered with strange light, causing the Genesis Qi of heaven and earth to gather as it slowly rose. The Sacred Palace expert beckoned, and the fragment swiftly flew towards him. He then took out a crystal ball, which resembled liquid and began to emit a bright light as the fragment approached.

"Indeed, it's a Saint Seal fragment." The Sacred Palace expert smiled, placing the fragment into the crystal ball. Then, he gazed down at the large, fleeing group, a cruel glint in his eyes, and sneered, "Kill them all."

"You!" Seeing their treachery, Xiao Tianluo's eyes nearly burst with rage. Xiao Tianxuan struggled, staggering to his feet, a long sword dripping with blood in his hand. He knew that in their current situation, only he could slightly obstruct the enemy for a moment; everyone else would be slaughtered like grass. Although he understood that in his current condition, he would collapse at the slightest touch, he couldn't just stand there and watch his father be killed before his eyes.

"Old man, it seems we father and son will die together this time," he said with a weak smile.

"It's all my fault," Xiao Tianluo blamed himself, tears flowing.

Xiao Tianxuan shook his head. Holding his long sword, he looked defiantly at the slowly approaching Sacred Palace experts and smiled, "Don't get too smug, Sacred Palace. You're acting recklessly now, and no one in Cangxuan Heaven can stop you, but your good days won't last much longer. Someone will come back to deal with you!"

"Oh?" The leading late Heaven Sun Stage expert sneered mockingly, "Of the Six Great Sacred Sects, the Heavenly Ghost Sect has already been destroyed. Do you truly believe anyone in Cangxuan Heaven can contend with my Sacred Palace? Tell me, who has that qualification? Say it, and I'll leave your corpse intact."

Xiao Tianxuan did not reply, his eyes merely resolute as he slowly raised the long sword in his hand. That arrogant young city lord, who once had a feud with Zhou Yuan in the Saint Remains years ago, was no longer the same after more than a decade.

"Idiot." Seeing this, the late Heaven Sun Stage expert shook his head, ceased his banter, and was about to move to kill him directly.

CRUNCH!

However, just as his Genesis Qi was about to surge forth, a subtle yet grating sound suddenly echoed through the forest. The sound was so abrupt that it dispersed the pervasive killing intent in the area. The Sacred Palace expert's expression darkened. He slowly turned his head and saw a young man leaning against a large tree nearby, holding a sour apricot and taking a bite. The sound had come from him. The young man's gaze swept past the Sacred Palace experts and went directly to Xiao Tianxuan, who stood with his sword. A smile appeared on his refined face.

"Xiao Tianxuan, the person you mentioned... you're not talking about me, are you?"