Chapter 171: Man-Made Beast Tide

The city guards stared at Lu Yang as if he were a ghost. According to the students' accounts, Lu Yang had faced certain death. Could his survival really be explained by mere life-saving measures?

Lu Yang returned to Muxue City, surrounded by students. His relaxed demeanor was a stark contrast to the city's tense atmosphere.

A beast tide was approaching, and Muxue City was on high alert, with all cultivators conscripted.

When Lu Yang arrived back at the martial arts hall, he told the students to return home, declaring today's extracurricular activity a great success.

The hall was empty. Lu Yang asked around and learned that the City Lord had summoned all cultivators in the city to fight the beast tide. Grandmaster Murong and his disciples, being cultivators themselves, had also been called.

Lying on his bed, Lu Yang recalled the remnants of a divine ability similar to beast taming that he had found within the four demon kings, and murmured to himself, "Who exactly triggered this beast tide, I wonder?"

This implied that the beast tide wasn't a natural disaster as many believed, but rather a deliberate act of sabotage.

"Were they trying to overwhelm Muxue City with the beast tide?" To control four demon kings using beast taming techniques, the caster would undoubtedly be a Tribulation Transcending stage cultivator. For a cultivator of that power, destroying Muxue City would be effortless.

"Were they unwilling to act directly, or did they have another motive?" Suddenly, he heard movement from the martial arts hall.

"Did you see Deputy City Lord Ma's expression? It was hilarious. I thought he only ever looked gloomy, but it turns out he has other expressions after all!"

"Alright, alright, quiet down. If Deputy City Lord Ma's people hear us, we're done for."

Lu Yang went out to check and saw that it was Grandmaster Murong and his disciples who had returned.

"Little Lu, you're alright! I heard you took the children outside the city to hunt demons; you scared me half to death!" Grandmaster Murong said with concern.

"I got lucky," Lu Yang replied. "Didn't run into any powerful demon beasts."

"Well, your luck truly isn't an exaggeration—it's genuinely good," Grandmaster Murong chuckled. "A beast tide hit right when you were out. If you'd encountered it, you'd be finished."

"Exactly!" the inner disciples chimed in, talking over each other. "That was a city-destroying beast tide! Even the City Lord was helpless!" They had lived for so long, and this was their first encounter with a legendary beast tide.

Lu Yang merely smiled.

"I heard from neighbors that you were all dispatched by the City Lord to deal with the beast tide?"

"Indeed, I thought I was going to die this time," Grandmaster Murong said, patting his thigh with lingering fear.

"No need to rush," Lu Yang said with a smile, gesturing for them to sit. "Take your time and tell me everything. I happened to catch a few wild rabbits outside the city, so we can roast them and eat together."

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Grandmaster Murong beamed. His disciples were also delighted. The far north was desolate, and barbecuing was one of their few forms of entertainment.

Lu Yang skillfully set up the barbecue grill, listening to Grandmaster Murong's stories as he cooked.

"At first, when Deputy City Lord Ma summoned us, we were terrified," Grandmaster Murong began. "It was a beast tide, after all. What good would cultivators like us — still in the Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, or Golden Core stages — be? We'd just be going to our deaths!"

"That Ma fellow also hypocritically claimed it was all for Muxue City's survival, telling us to hand over our cultivation resources for centralized distribution. He said if he had the courage, he'd be the first to charge into the beast tide, but that's all nonsense. I think he just wanted to embezzle our things. If the city were breached, he'd be the first to grab everything and flee for his life!"

"After half a day of trying to mobilize us, Deputy City Lord Ma became furious when he saw none of us were willing to hand over our cultivation resources. Just then, Deputy City Lord Yao arrived and announced that we didn't need to worry about the beast tide anymore."

"An unparalleled mighty figure had slain four great demon kings with a single sword, killing tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of demon beasts, directly resolving the beast tide at its source."

"That Ma fellow initially dismissed it, saying, 'Deputy City Lord Yao, don't spread false military intelligence and disrupt morale.' But after he took people out of the city for a look, he returned distraught, muttering, 'This is impossible,' and he was seriously injured by residual sword qi."

A young apprentice interjected, his voice filled with longing, "I also heard that the City Lord personally investigated the situation and said that a supreme Sword Dao master, an ultimate grand figure, had intervened."

"A Sword Dao supreme master! If I could just meet this Sword Dao supreme master once, my life would be complete."

Lu Yang served four roasted rabbit legs and joked, "What's so special about a Sword Dao supreme master?"

The young apprentice chuckled and said, "Fellow Daoist Lu, you don't understand! What if this Sword Dao supreme master takes a liking to me and teaches me a sword art or two? Then I could walk around Muxue City with total confidence!"

Grandmaster Murong took a bite of a roasted rabbit leg, his eyes lighting up. "Hey, Little Lu, your cooking skills are amazing! You could open a restaurant! I've eaten barbecue in Muxue City for almost a hundred years, and no one cooks it better than you!"

"You're exaggerating, you're exaggerating," Lu Yang replied.

At the Ma family residence.

Since Deputy City Lord Ma had returned home, he had closed himself off, refusing to see visitors, not even his own family.

Deputy City Lord Ma sat cross-legged on a straw mat, eyes closed, teeth clenched, and hands clasped in a circular gesture. Drops of sweat streamed from his forehead, tracing paths down his chin and cheeks before falling to the ground.

The Sword Venerable's sword qi lingered within his body. He had tried various methods, but he couldn't quickly expel it; he could only wear it down little by little.

But that wasn't his primary concern. He suddenly opened his eyes, muttering to himself, "This is impossible, impossible..."

"What's impossible?" An aged, weathered voice sounded in Deputy City Lord Ma's ear. "Who's there!"

Deputy City Lord Ma tensed up. This was his private cultivation sanctuary, absolutely secure; not even the City Lord could enter directly.

"What, you still have a wisp of my sword qi inside you, yet you don't recognize me?" Deputy City Lord Ma's pupils suddenly constricted, his tone agitated. "It's you—no, it's *Your Excellency*!" It was the peerless Sword Venerable who had slain the four great demon kings with a single strike!

"Deputy City Lord Ma, what exactly do you find impossible?" the Sword Venerable asked. "Do you believe this Venerable prevented the beast tide that was supposed to assault the city?"

Deputy City Lord Ma felt the Sword Venerable's immense pressure and immediately dropped to his knees with a thud. Sweat beads the size of soybeans appeared on his forehead.

"No, I—I didn't mean that," Deputy City Lord Ma stammered.

The Sword Venerable withdrew his pressure. He could tell that Deputy City Lord Ma was also a sword cultivator, and facing sword cultivator pressure far exceeding his own, it would be impossible for him to lie.

"I—I just never imagined a sword cultivator could reach such a level," Deputy City Lord Ma said bitterly. As a sword cultivator himself, he was acutely aware of the immense gap between him and this peerless Sword Venerable.

Yet, he refused to admit it, which was why he had recklessly touched the residual sword qi left within the great demon kings, resulting in his severe injuries.

He realized there was an insurmountable chasm between him and a true sword cultivator. He would never be able to bridge that gap in his lifetime, and despair filled his heart.

The Sword Venerable sneered. "As a sword cultivator, yet harboring impure intentions, you only considered abandoning the city in the face of the beast tide, lacking any spirit or courage. To still aspire to ascend the peak of the Sword Dao is utterly laughable."

"In your life, have you ever swung your sword at someone stronger than yourself?"

Deputy City Lord Ma was struck dumb, as if by lightning.

The Sword Venerable withdrew the sword qi remaining in Deputy City Lord Ma's body and vanished.

Lu Yang appeared outside the Ma family residence, shaking his head and murmuring to himself, "It seems the beast tide incident has nothing to do with him."