In the evening, Bing Xuan returned home utterly exhausted. He wiped the sweat from his brow as he slumped in his room after a day of unexpected chaos.
It was a shock to him. Just as he was celebrating Morse's presumed death with his friends, an alarm had blared throughout the estate. The earth shook, and the sky turned a bruised black, crackling with intense green lightning. The energy descending from the heavens was enough to terrify any onlooker—as if a Divine Punishment had been summoned to cleanse the world of its sins.
The warriors had ventured out to investigate, and suddenly, a high-level alert mobilized every fighter in the family. Bing was forced to lead troops against the "intruder" his father claimed had breached the main manor.
It was then he discovered the truth: Morse was still alive.
But that red-haired woman... she had become the warriors' nightmare. Even the experts of the Golden Core and Soul Palace stages were repelled by her. Though she appeared to be at the peak of the Soul Palace stage, she managed to hold her own against their greatest masters, inflicting grievous wounds upon them.
"That despicable Xing Xi... that bastard dares to defy me!"
The old man, Xing Xi, had sent word that the mission was complete and Morse was dead, demanding the release of his granddaughter. Bing had told him to wait, claiming he was "too busy."
Despite his fury, Bing was unsettled. He couldn't fathom the intentions of Morse or that masked, red-haired woman. How could they summon such overwhelming spiritual power? If they possessed such terrifying strength, why hadn't they killed him yet?
"I must be more cautious. That son of a bitch is planning something..."
He needed to fortify his home and call upon all his guards. He couldn't risk being assassinated.
"Great Young Master Bing... Master Xing Xi has arrived. Shall I let him in?"
Bing Xuan smirked, glancing at his assistant, Zhong Mu. "It seems this old fool is eager to end his life. He came to the right person, didn't he, Zhong Mu?"
Zhong Mu nodded, returning the grin. "Coincidentally, Master, I have brought the old man's granddaughter for your 'entertainment' tonight. What do you think about shackling the old man and making him watch as his granddaughter is humiliated, begging for more?"
Bing Xuan delighted in his assistant's depravity. "I like your way of thinking. Call the others. Tell them there's a party."
As Zhong Mu exited through a side door, Bing Xuan turned his gaze toward the maid standing before him. He remembered something. "You may leave now."
The beautiful maid bowed deeply, trembling. Just as she was about to exit, he stopped her. "Wait. Before I went out, there was a girl walking beside you... Who is she? It's the first time I've seen her."
The maid's voice shook with terror. "Master, please... did my sister offend you in any way? Please do not hurt her!" She bowed even lower, too afraid to even look at Bing as his eyes roamed over her kneeling form.
"Actually, I was surprised to find a Golden Core expert like her in the family without a proper welcome. Don't worry."
"Master... my sister's name is... Shen Li Xuan. She is a Saintess from a small sect in Jian Province."
Bing was stunned. A Saintess in his own household, and he knew nothing of it? "Truly? I would very much like to meet such an expert. Don't worry about a thing."
But as Bing spoke to the kneeling maid, a short shadow of an old man entered through the grand doors.
"Oh? Are you still accustomed to deceiving people this way? Do not be fooled, girl; this man never returns what belongs to others."
Bing Xuan glared at Xing Xi, who walked into the hall with his hands behind his back, nonchalant. He was entering the lion's den without a hint of fear—and he was entirely alone.
"Xing Xi... what a surprise. I was just about to summon you. Why are you in such a hurry?"
Xing Xi flashed a predatory smile.
"You mean, once your men arrive? Don't worry... they won't be coming anytime soon."
Outside, in the courtyard before the Great Hall, dozens of masked men emerged from the shadows, striking down Bing's guards before they could even draw their breath.
"Call for backup! There are intruders attacking!"
The guards desperately tried to signal for help, but the fierce, relentless pressure from the masked assailants left them unable to do anything but struggle to stay alive.
Inside the hall, Bing Xuan stared at the old man before him, his heart pounding with terror as the sounds of slaughter echoed from outside.
Xing Xi drew closer, unsheathing a dagger that radiated an aura so oppressive it made the knees tremble. Step by step, he advanced, the cold steel gleaming with a deadly light.
"What do you want?! Get away from me! Stay back!"
The assassin didn't stop.
"My granddaughter... Give her back to me, and I will leave this place without harming you."
Bing Xuan didn't believe a word. How could he trust him? No one could predict the old man's reaction once he saw the miserable, broken state of his granddaughter. There was no doubt—once she was found, Bing would be slaughtered without mercy.
"Wait, Master Xing Xi! You know I am a man of my word... Your granddaughter isn't here, I swear! I promise I will bring her to you as soon as possible... right now... I swear to you right now!"
Xing Xi let out a calm, chilling smile.
"Heh... Hehehe... Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted from his throat as he raised his hand to his side. Bing flinched, certain that an attack was coming.
Instead, the assassin let the dagger fall. The sound of the blade hitting the floor echoed through the hall. Bing let out a ragged gasp, feeling a sudden, misplaced sense of relief.
"Young Master Bing truly is a virtuous man... I was certain of your 'virtue'."
The dagger lay on the cold floor, seemingly radiating a sense of fury—as if the blade itself felt betrayed by its master. As if the ancient weapon, a companion of a thousand battles, could not believe its owner no longer trusted its edge.
Xing Xi looked at Bing, his smile carrying the combined cruelty of both Heaven and Earth.
"It is not I who am virtuous, Master Bing. This dagger has never stained its blade with anything but the blood of the wicked. You... you do not even deserve to be called wicked. You are nothing but a cockroach. In the twilight of my life, the Monma Dagger shall not be defiled by the filth of vermin."
"What do you mean by that?! What do you mean?!"
With supernatural speed, Xing Xi closed the distance so fast he seemed to teleport right in front of Bing.
"You are of no use to me anymore."
Pshhh!
Xing Xi struck Bing Xuan with a fury-fueled fist. The lightning-fast punch sent Bing flying across the room, crashing violently into the wall.
Smash!
Bing desperately tried to circulate his Foundation Establishment stage energy to defend himself, but before he could react, a crushing blow buried itself into his stomach. The sheer force made him cough up a mouthful of blood.
"You won't die yet... we've only just begun. We've only just begun!"
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Xing Xi unleashed a barrage of dozens of strikes directly into Bing Xuan's abdomen.
Bing's cultivation was useless. For a split second, a defensive soul artifact activated to protect his body, but it shattered instantly under the old man's wrath. Bing tried to reach for every hidden spiritual tool in his possession, struggling to mount any defense.
Ultimately, he was thrown like a ragdoll onto the floor, landing right beside the maid—who watched this brutal spectacle for the first time in frozen horror.
Bing Xuan's cultivation was utterly useless. In a split second, a protective soul artifact activated to shield his body, but it shattered instantly under the pressure. Bing desperately tried to activate every hidden spiritual tool in his possession, struggling to defend himself.
In the end, he was hurled across the floor, landing right beside the maid, who watched the brutal spectacle in frozen horror. Terrified, she scrambled backward, dragging her body away from the violence.
Xing Xi approached once more, his fists clenched white.
Suddenly, Bing released a cloud of obscuring gas that veiled the entire room in thick mist. He attempted to seize the moment, sprinting toward the door with every ounce of strength he had left, desperate to reach the exit.
But to his horror, a hand lunged through the smoke, seizing him and yanking him back inside. He let out a sharp gasp as he was thrown once again into the center of the hall. He looked up at the looming shadow that was raising a final, lethal fist to end him.
"Wait!"
A roar echoed as the grand doors burst open, and the smoke was sucked out of the room.
Xing Xi spun around, his eyes widening. There stood Zhong Mu, gripping his granddaughter, Tian Er MingXi, with a jagged knife pressed firmly against her throat.