Chapter 217: Tang Family Extinction

Shu Kingdom, Hanzhong Commandery.

It was the hour of Zi, deep into a quiet night.

In a secret chamber, Lu Aotian lay prostrate on the ground. The stone room was filled with a large expanse of black poisonous mist, and his belly was swollen to more than double its normal size. His face was also puffed up, making him resemble a giant sphere.

He practiced the Hundred Poisons Toad Art, a cultivation method that uses poisonous mist and miasma to temper the body. He had already reached the fifth level, making him impervious to blades and spears, and invulnerable to water and fire.

"Croak, croak!" Two low croaking sounds rang out. Lu Aotian opened his mouth and inhaled, and the poisonous mist in the secret chamber surged towards his mouth. His face became distorted, as if he were enduring immense pain.

He roared twice, and his body emitted a great black light. Bumps appeared all over him, making his entire being resemble a giant toad.

After a series of "croaking" sounds, Lu Aotian's swollen belly deflated and slowly returned to normal. A look of enjoyment spread across his face.

"As long as I have enough Ink Cloud Miasma, I can advance to the seventh level of Foundation Establishment in less than five years," Lu Aotian muttered to himself, a triumphant expression spreading across his face.

No sooner had he spoken than the stone chamber began to shake violently.

"No, an enemy attack!" Lu Aotian's expression changed. He quickly opened the secret chamber's door and rushed out.

He quickly appeared in a secluded courtyard.

Fifteen second-tier flying puppet beasts hovered high in the sky, periodically spitting out azure light swords that struck the buildings below. Explosions echoed continuously, flames rolled, and faint screams were interspersed.

"Damn it, how was the clan's protective formation broken so quickly by the enemy? There wasn't even a chance to warn anyone!"

"This is bad, Senior Brother Lu, the protective formation has been breached!" A disciple of the Poison Gu Sect quickly entered, speaking in a panicked voice.

"Quickly, have Fellow Daoist Tang activate the second set of formations. As long as there are formations, the enemy won't be able to conquer the Tang family," Lu Aotian hastily instructed. Two sets of second-tier formations had been deployed on Mount Huayang, forming two defensive perimeters.

"It's too late. The formation was just broken, and Fellow Daoist Tang was killed by the invaders in a single encounter. Senior Brother Lu, what do we do now?"

Before Lu Aotian could answer, a giant golden sphere covered in spikes smashed down from a distance.

"No, get out of the way!" Lu Aotian's expression changed. He shouted and was about to rush out of the courtyard.

Just then, a low flute sound rang out. Upon hearing it, Lu Aotian's mind became hazy. By the time he recovered his senses, the giant golden sphere was already above the courtyard, plummeting rapidly.

"Boom!" With a loud crash, the ground shook violently.

A huge white cloud floated high in the sky, with Wang Changsheng and fourteen others seated upon it.

Of the fifteen low-grade second-tier flying puppet beasts, Wang Changsheng controlled seven by himself, Wang Mingjiang controlled three, and the five others, including Wang Mingzhan, each controlled one.

The fifteen second-tier puppet beasts simultaneously unleashed intermediate-level spells, which were astonishingly powerful. Combined with the coordination of Wang Changsheng and the three other Foundation Establishment cultivators, they killed two Foundation Establishment cultivators and multiple Qi Refining cultivators in a single encounter. Of course, if not for Wang Shuyuan using the formation-breaking pearl to breach the Tang family's protective formation, Wang Changsheng and the others wouldn't have succeeded so easily.

The Tang family cultivators were caught off guard. Wang Ruyan and Wang Shuyuan unleashed their magical artifacts, successively slaying over a dozen Qi Refining cultivators.

To prevent any hidden countermeasures from the enemy, Wang Changsheng and the three others did not rashly descend to the ground. Instead, they planned to eliminate all cultivators before landing.

"Died so easily?" A flicker of surprise crossed Wang Changsheng's eyes. With a flick of his wrist, the giant golden sphere flew up. The courtyard was utterly demolished. Lu Aotian's body had swelled into a giant ball, his limbs splayed on the ground, his skin covered in blood. Amidst the scattered ruins, a mangled corpse could be seen.

No matter how arrogant Lu Aotian was, he knew he was no match for fifteen second-tier puppet beasts combined with four Foundation Establishment cultivators. Fear flashed in his eyes, and he hastily pulled out a golden talisman, about to activate it on himself.

He suddenly saw Wang Changsheng pull out an azure mirror, and his heart sank with a bad feeling; he tried to dodge.

A low flute sound rang out, and Lu Aotian felt his mind become hazy. By the time he reacted, a thick azure light beam enveloped him. He felt his body tighten, instantly unable to move.

The fifteen second-tier flying puppet beasts simultaneously spat out dozens of azure light swords, striking Lu Aotian's body.

Though Lu Aotian couldn't move, he could still make sounds. As hundreds of azure light swords struck him, he couldn't help but let out agonizing screams. His body was a bloody mess, with bones faintly visible.

Wang Changsheng raised his hand, and the Mysterious Ice Banner shot out. It spun rapidly, its size dramatically increasing, and in a flash, it appeared above Lu Aotian.

"Freeze!" Wang Changsheng made a hand seal, and the Mysterious Ice Banner gently swayed. A large expanse of white cold air flew from its surface, striking Lu Aotian's body. His body rapidly froze, turning him into a giant ice sculpture.

A giant golden sphere smashed down from high in the sky, precisely hitting the ice sculpture.

The ground trembled and mountains swayed. No matter how strong Lu Aotian's physical body was, it was still smashed into a bloody pulp.

If it had been on level ground, Lu Aotian wouldn't have feared facing three opponents. However, he happened to encounter Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan. Wang Ruyan's flute magical artifact could interfere with Lu Aotian's mind and affect his reactions, which is why he ultimately perished.

As soon as Lu Aotian died, the other two Poison Gu Sect disciples each slapped a Golden Light Talisman onto themselves, transforming into two streaks of golden light that flew in different directions.

Wang Changsheng flicked his wrist, and the giant golden hammer hovered, then smashed towards one of the streaks of golden light.

The golden light enveloped a youth in yellow robes who was flying rapidly. Sensing something flying towards him, his expression changed. He hurriedly slapped a second-tier Wood Shield Talisman onto himself, and with a flash of azure light, a thick azure light shield materialized, encasing him.

The giant golden hammer smashed onto the azure light shield, emitting a muffled "thud." The azure light shield's glow dimmed, and three faint whistling sounds of arrows rang out. With two "thudding" sounds, the azure light shield blocked two arrows, and its light dimmed further. The third arrow struck the azure light shield, and it immediately shattered.

The arrow pierced the youth in yellow robes' head. His body rapidly plummeted towards the ground, but before it even landed, two flying puppet beasts flew over, grabbed the corpse, and flew towards Mount Huayang.

On the other side, Wang Shuyuan raised her hand, unleashing a three-foot-long azure scroll. She struck it with a hand seal, and the scroll unfurled in mid-air. The painting depicted a lush, verdant mountain with hundreds of flying swords of various shapes and sizes embedded in it.

"Hundred Swords Diagram, rise!" Wang Shuyuan changed her hand seal, striking the azure scroll with another incantation. The azure scroll glowed brightly, a crisp sword hum rang out, and hundreds of flying swords of various shapes and sizes flew out from the scroll, striking the other streak of golden light.

Wang Ruyan placed the blue jade flute she held to her lips, and a melodious flute sound rang out.

The golden light's escape speed suddenly slowed, and it was caught by hundreds of flying swords, followed by a scream.

Meanwhile, Wang Mingzhan and Wang Mingjiang controlled the puppet beasts, eliminating the Qi Refining cultivators on Mount Huayang.

Wang Changsheng activated his full spiritual sense, swiftly sweeping over Mount Huayang. Once he confirmed there were no Foundation Establishment cultivators remaining, he landed with peace of mind.

According to their agreement, the wealth of a slain Foundation Establishment cultivator would belong to their killer. Of the six Foundation Establishment cultivators, Wang Changsheng's group, including Wang Mingjiang, had slain five. Of course, Wang Ruyan had also contributed significantly; if not for her interfering with her flute magical artifact, Wang Changsheng and his group wouldn't have eliminated the five Foundation Establishment cultivators so easily.

With the Foundation Establishment cultivators dead, the Tang family cultivators either fled or perished.

Strangely, Wang Changsheng did not see any elderly cultivators. Could it be that the Tang family had taken precautions and moved their women, children, and elderly to a safe location?

Soon after, Wang Ruyan and the others descended one by one.

Of the five Foundation Establishment cultivators' storage bags, Wang Changsheng gave one to Wang Ruyan and kept four.

Wang Mingzhan captured two prisoners. According to their confessions, the Tang family had already moved their women, children, and elderly to another location even before Lu Aotian and the other Poison Gu Sect disciples took residence in the Tang family estate. As for where they went, the prisoners did not know.

Wang Changsheng instructed Wang Mingzhan and the others to search around for valuable items, especially in the Scripture Pavilion.

The Tang family had been established for over a thousand years, possessing deep foundations. They must have collected many valuable items, especially cultivation techniques. A good cultivation technique was worth far more than spirit stones or spirit medicines; the "True Scripture of Kui Water" was one such example.

To Wang Changsheng's disappointment, the Scripture Pavilion was empty. Aside from items found on the dead, there were no other valuable possessions, and the spirit fields were also barren. Clearly, the Tang family had anticipated this day.

Not only did they fail to find anything valuable, but when two Wang family members pushed open the doors of the Scripture Pavilion, a cloud of poisonous mist sprayed out, causing both clan members to bleed from all seven orifices and die. Furthermore, when two Wang family members entered a patch of black land, several gigantic black scorpions suddenly emerged. Caught off guard, the two Wang family members died at the hands of the black scorpions.