The darkness stretched its fingers across the Jiang estate, swallowing the last vestiges of resistance. The once-mighty clan, feared and respected throughout the region, now stood on the precipice of annihilation.
Jiang Tian's breathing was ragged. His pupils shrank as the temperature in the chamber plummeted. The oppressive aura suffocating the air was unlike anything he had ever encountered. He was a powerful cultivator, a man who had crushed countless enemies underfoot—yet at this moment, he felt like nothing more than a cornered beast.
Shao Xian.
That name had been buried. Forgotten. Erased from history.
Yet here he was, standing within the very walls of the Jiang estate, turning everything into a nightmare.
Jiang Tian forced his trembling hands to remain steady. He could not show fear. Not now. Not in front of his elders. He clenched his fists and barked, "Activate the grand array! Seal the estate completely! No one enters, no one leaves!"
The elders snapped into action, channeling their Qi into the formation that had protected the Jiang Clan for centuries. The entire estate pulsed with spiritual energy as barriers of light emerged, encasing the buildings in a protective cocoon.
A desperate move.
And a useless one.
Outside, Shao Xian observed the formation with cold amusement. The protective array of the Jiang Clan was undoubtedly formidable, but to him, it was nothing more than an insignificant obstruction.
He raised a single finger.
The air trembled.
With a mere thought, a wave of invisible force crashed into the array, sending ripples through its structure. The formation resisted, its ancient sigils glowing fiercely, but the effort was meaningless. Shao Xian exerted a fraction more power—
Crack.
A fracture appeared.
Then another.
The barrier shattered like brittle glass.
Inside the estate, Jiang Tian's heart stopped. His elders, once filled with confidence in their defenses, now stared in horror at the crumbling array.
One of them whispered, "Impossible…"
A gust of wind howled through the corridors, carrying with it an overwhelming presence. The torches flickered violently before extinguishing completely, plunging the estate into complete darkness.
And then—
Footsteps.
Slow. Deliberate. Unstoppable.
They echoed through the halls, growing louder with every passing second.
The Jiang Clan's strongest warriors scrambled to form a defensive line outside the main hall. Dozens of cultivators, all trained in lethal arts, stood shoulder to shoulder. Their blades gleamed under the moonlight. Their Qi surged, forming layers of protection around them.
Jiang Tian rushed to the front, his eyes burning with desperation. "Attack together! Do not let him step forward!"
The warriors obeyed.
Blades slashed. Qi surged.
A storm of energy erupted toward the lone figure approaching them.
Shao Xian did not move.
He did not evade.
He did not even lift a finger.
The attacks reached him—
And then vanished.
The warriors gasped as their Qi-based techniques disintegrated before their eyes, like pebbles thrown into an endless abyss. Their swords, infused with lethal energy, stopped mid-air as if an invisible force had seized them.
Shao Xian's voice, cold and unhurried, drifted into their ears.
"You dare raise your weapons against me?"
A single pulse of his energy exploded outward.
The warriors had no time to react. Their bodies were flung backward like ragdolls, crashing into the walls with sickening crunches. Some coughed blood instantly. Others twitched as their meridians were crushed beyond repair.
Jiang Tian barely managed to remain standing. His breathing was uneven, his heart pounding like a war drum.
He knew.
This was not a battle.
This was an execution.
Shao Xian finally stepped into view. The moonlight revealed his figure—a calm, unmoving presence wrapped in an aura that devoured everything around him. His eyes, cold and distant, bore into Jiang Tian's very soul.
Jiang Tian clenched his fists. He could not—would not—bow.
"I do not fear you!" he roared, his voice shaking despite his efforts. "I built this clan from nothing! I have crushed countless enemies! You are nothing but a ghost clinging to the past!"
Shao Xian tilted his head slightly, as if considering the words. Then, he spoke.
"A ghost?"
The space around him trembled.
"A ghost does not command the heavens."
The ground beneath them cracked. The air itself twisted under the weight of Shao Xian's mere presence.
Jiang Tian's knees buckled. He resisted with every ounce of willpower he had, but the pressure was suffocating. His body screamed in agony.
Shao Xian took another step forward.
Jiang Tian roared and summoned every ounce of his Qi, forming a blade of condensed spiritual energy. It burned with a blinding light as he slashed toward his enemy with all his might.
Shao Xian did not dodge.
He merely raised his hand.
Clang.
Jiang Tian's divine blade stopped an inch from Shao Xian's fingertips. The immense force behind it evaporated into nothing.
Shao Xian's fingers closed around the blade.
Crack.
The divine weapon, crafted with the blood and sweat of countless generations, shattered like brittle porcelain.
Jiang Tian's eyes widened in horror.
Shao Xian's voice remained cold. "You are not worthy of a weapon."
With a flick of his wrist, an invisible force slammed into Jiang Tian's chest.
Boom!
The leader of the Jiang Clan crashed through three walls, blood splattering the ground. He coughed violently, his body broken beyond recognition. His once-mighty aura flickered like a dying ember.
The elders of the clan stared in silent terror. Their leader—their invincible patriarch—lay motionless on the ground.
Shao Xian stepped toward Jiang Tian's broken body. His shadow loomed over the fallen man.
"Do you regret it?" he asked softly.
Jiang Tian trembled. He struggled to lift his head, his face contorted in pain.
He knew exactly what Shao Xian meant.
The betrayal.
The lies.
The years of living under the illusion that he had destroyed the one man who could end him.
Tears mixed with blood as they rolled down Jiang Tian's face.
His lips parted—whether to beg, to apologize, or to curse, even he did not know.
But Shao Xian did not care for his words.
With a flick of his finger, he sent a final pulse of energy into Jiang Tian's body.
The man who had once commanded armies, who had shaped the fates of countless lives—
Exploded into a mist of blood.
Silence.
The remaining elders, warriors, and servants fell to their knees. They did not attempt to fight. They did not attempt to flee.
There was no escape.
There was no mercy.
The Jiang Clan, once mighty and proud, was reduced to nothing in a single night.
Shao Xian turned away, stepping through the ruins without a backward glance. His purpose here was finished.
His past had been avenged.
But this was only the beginning.