The next day, at the Xiang family.
Like the Xing family, the Xiang family headquarters was occupied solely by its clansmen.
When Yutian Zhou arrived at the Xiang family headquarters, Lin Xiao immediately noticed something unusual.
There were hardly any onlookers around the Xiang family, only a few tens of thousands, far fewer than the crowds at the previous two families.
On the walls of the Xiang family, countless figures stood densely packed, each one openly radiating their aura.
Yet, there was not a trace of a Martial Monarch’s aura.
In other words, there wasn’t a single Martial Monarch on those walls.
“Lin Xiao, our Xiang family surrenders. All Martial Monarchs have dispersed. Please leave,” an elder on the wall, radiating the aura of a Ninth-Level Martial Venerable, shouted loudly the moment he saw Lin Xiao and his group.
This made Lin Xiao frown immediately.
Had the Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs already fled?
The members of Gunlong Sect, Jiuxiao Sect, Lingjian Sect, and Juedao Sect were all stunned.
The Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs fleeing without a fight was completely unexpected.
After recovering from the shock, Fu Yan was furious. This time, in the challenge against Lin Xiao, one of the three great families had fled after a single clash, another avoided battle, and now one had escaped without fighting at all.
“Hmph, a life-and-death challenge, and you think surrendering makes it all go away?”
Anger surged in Lin Xiao’s heart. His expression darkened as he threw out the Blue Corpse Puppet and hundreds or thousands of skeletons, then shouted coldly, “Since you’ve fled without fighting, you’ll pay the price. Take this strike in place of the Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs.”
With that, Lin Xiao launched his attack.
When they had the upper hand, they wanted to kill him. When they were at a disadvantage, they thought surrendering and fleeing would settle it. How could it be that easy?
“Swoosh!” “Swoosh!” “Swoosh!”
Terrifying forces shot out, overwhelming evil auras filling the sky, waves of horrifyingly malevolent energy surging forth, accompanied by five eerie beams of light, flooding toward the Xiang family.
The rolling forces were like mighty rivers, vast and unstoppable, covering the heavens and earth.
“What?”
In that instant, countless Duan family members on the Xiang family’s walls were dumbfounded.
Lin Xiao was actually attacking them?
Hundreds or thousands of Martial Monarch-level forces attacking together?
“No!!!”
“Lin Xiao, you demon!”
“You’ll pay for this!!!”
Roars of anger and terror echoed one after another.
But the next moment, the terrifying forces engulfed the city where the Xiang family stood. Dazzling, radiant lights flared up, accompanied by a series of booming explosions.
Overwhelming shockwaves burst forth, unparalleled fluctuations rolling out in all directions, causing the ground to tremble.
The voices of the Xiang family members vanished amidst the deafening blasts.
In that moment, the tens of thousands of onlookers outside were stunned.
Even in wars between great families, those below Martial Monarch level were rarely targeted. The focus was usually on eliminating Martial Monarch forces.
Even when Lin Xiao destroyed the Luo family last time, it had been the same.
This was because they feared Martial Emperors would intervene and target the younger generation if provoked.
But now, Lin Xiao had directly attacked the Xiang family, targeting everyone within their city, regardless of their cultivation.
Among the onlookers, a few hidden Xiang family powerhouses, rarely seen in public, trembled at the sight, their eyes bloodshot, barely restraining themselves from roaring in rage.
“As expected of the Rebellious Emperor genius, he didn’t disappoint us,” members of the Qu family among the crowd whispered with glee.
The Qu family, being close to the Xiang family, were natural rivals. Seeing the Xiang family headquarters destroyed and most of their clansmen killed filled them with excitement.
In the future, the Qu family would face much less pressure.
Though the Xiang family’s main forces had fled, losing so many Martial Venerables and clansmen was akin to a catastrophic collapse.
Fu Yan and the other five Martial Emperors frowned deeply. They hadn’t expected Lin Xiao to act so decisively.
However, they didn’t intervene.
The Xiang family’s fate meant little to them. They had hoped the Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs would fight Lin Xiao to the death, but they had all fled.
They even felt an urge to crush those Martial Monarchs themselves.
The Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs had lost much of their value, and protecting their people held no meaning.
On the contrary, they almost wished for the Xiang family to suffer.
Firstly, it would give them a reason to settle scores with Lin Xiao later.
Secondly, offending the Xiang family further would mean greater trouble for Lin Xiao when Xiang Emperor emerged from the Sacred Emperor Ruins.
So, they were content to watch Lin Xiao attack the Xiang family.
The hundred or so members of Juedao Sect and Lingjian Sect were dumbfounded, shocked by Lin Xiao’s audacity and ruthlessness.
Yun Jing and the other five Martial Emperors from Jiuxiao Sect and Gunlong Sect also frowned, preparing for the other five Martial Emperors to make a move.
Lin Xiao acted decisively. After attacking, he immediately flew toward Yun Jing and the others, not even retrieving his skeletons or Blue Corpse Puppet.
The members of Jiuxiao Sect and Gunlong Sect were astonished, except for Ziling and Linghu, who showed little surprise.
When the dust and shockwaves settled, everyone saw that the Xiang family’s headquarters, spanning hundreds of miles, had been reduced to ruins, with not a single figure left.
The sight made countless onlookers gasp in horror. It was too terrifying. Thousands or tens of thousands of Xiang family members were gone, just like that.
“Lin Xiao, you dare slaughter innocent Xiang family members!” Fu Yan glared at Lin Xiao, his eyes filled with cold light, preparing to attack.
The hundred or so members of Lingjian Sect and Juedao Sect also radiated killing intent.
“If you want to fight, go ahead and try. See if you can take anyone from us,” Yun Jing retorted sharply, exuding a powerful aura, his stance unyielding.
Now that they had recovered from their injuries, they wouldn’t bow to their opponents.
With five Martial Emperors of equal strength and their sects’ elite Martial Monarchs present, along with Lin Xiao’s Blue Corpse Puppet and hundreds or thousands of skeletons, their opponents had no advantage.
Fu Yan and the others frowned. If the Xiang family’s forces were still here, they might have had a chance to take down Lin Xiao together.
After all, they had brought over a hundred men, enough to hold off the five opposing Martial Emperors.
But now, the Xiang family’s Martial Monarchs had fled.
Fu Yan didn’t act immediately. Instead, he glanced at the Juedao Sect leader and others, who exchanged hesitant looks, clearly wavering.
At that moment, the surrounding crowd fell silent, sensing that a bigger battle might be brewing.
Though they didn’t see Lin Xiao fight the Xiang family, witnessing a clash between the four great sects would make their wait worthwhile.
And a battle of that level would surely be spectacular.
But just then, a heaven-shaking roar echoed from afar, “Who dares destroy my Xiang family!!!”
The voice thundered, causing countless ears to ring, a terrifying Martial Emperor aura sweeping over like a tidal wave.
In the blink of an eye, an old man appeared in everyone’s sight.
Dressed in a grey-white robe, his face grim, he charged forward with eyes that seemed ready to burst, radiating overwhelming fury.
“Xiang Emperor?” Lin Xiao’s expression changed drastically at the sight of the enraged figure.
Xiang Emperor had appeared?
Did that mean the Martial Emperors from the Sacred Emperor Ruins had all emerged?
This was a seismic event for the Southeast Region.
He had killed Jian Wudi, destroyed the main forces of the Yin, Wen, and Duan families, wiped out all the Luo family’s Martial Monarchs, and left a massive crater before the Xing family. Now that the Martial Emperors in the Sacred Emperor Ruins had emerged, one could imagine their reaction to the news.
He was in deep trouble.
And now, he had destroyed the Xiang family headquarters, caught red-handed by Xiang Emperor.
The first big trouble had arrived.
