"Master Jiang, spare my life! I have an elderly father who is eighty years old, and I have an infant still in swaddling clothes. I beg you, spare my life. I deserve to die. I'm a bastard."
Seeing that more than twenty of his subordinates had fallen under Jiang Yun's sword in an instant, the captain immediately assessed the situation. He knelt down on both knees, continuously slapping himself in the face while begging.
The onlookers jeered at the captain. Wasn't he the same imposing captain from before? How did he now look like a begging dog wagging its tail?
"Aren't you here to question my crimes?" Jiang Yun looked down at the captain from a higher position, wiping the blood stained on his sword with his sleeve.
"I admit my mistakes. Master Jiang, you are magnanimous. Please, don't hold grudges against someone as insignificant as me."
The captain sniffed his runny nose, tears streaming down his face as he kowtowed repeatedly. After a while, his forehead became swollen and red. It must be said that he was really putting in a lot of effort.
"Sever your own hands. This is the punishment for your past deeds of aiding the wicked."
When the onlookers heard Jiang Yun's words, they all applauded. After all, this captain had been too arrogant in the past and had lost the support of the people.
"This..."
"What 'this'? If you feel incapable of doing it yourself, I don't mind doing it for you." Jiang Yun put down his sleeve, which he had used to wipe the Qingping Sword, and coldly stared at the captain.
"I'll do it myself!"
The captain drew his precious sword from his waist, raising it above his head in an attempt to hide the cruelty in his eyes. Unfortunately, he also obstructed his own vision and didn't see the mocking smile at the corner of Jiang Yun's mouth.
The captain's sword came down violently, as if he was about to sever his left hand. But halfway through, he changed the direction and swiftly aimed at Jiang Yun's lower body.
Jiang Yun sneered, "You brought this upon yourself. You don't deserve to live."
The Qingping Sword angled upward, and the captain's sword was broken, leading to his demise.
After beheading the captain, Jiang Yun encountered no further obstacles along the way and smoothly arrived at the Xiao Residence. The main gate of the Xiao Residence was wide open, and there was no one outside.
"An ambush?"
Jiang Yun sensed the hidden killing intent within the courtyard and smirked. When it came to sensing aura, there was nothing more sensitive than sword intent in this world.
Though thousands of enemies lie ahead, I shall advance!
Jiang Yun's Qingping Sword drew a sword light, and the plaque above the Xiao Residence gate fell as the sword passed through it. He strode into the Xiao Residence.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
Just as Jiang Yun stepped into the range of the Xiao Residence, he saw a dense barrage of arrows flying towards him. The Qingping Sword danced, forming a web of swords, and the arrows fell one after another.
Xiao Wanshan never expected to kill Jiang Yun with just archers. After all, even Xiao Wanshui, an eighth-level Elementalist, had died at Jiang Yun's hands. These archers were merely part of his delaying tactics.
As long as he held on for an hour, Elder Qin would come to his rescue. Xiao Wanshan believed that when Elder Qin arrived, it would be the moment when Jiang Yun bowed his head.
Jiang Yun charged into the Xiao Residence, sweeping his gaze across the courtyard. Three layers of martial artists blocked his path, numbering at least a hundred people, with Xiao Wanshan standing behind them.
"Xiao Wanshan, if you have even the slightest intention of preserving the Xiao family's foundation, roll out here and die on your own. Otherwise, no one here will walk out alive."
Jiang Yun's voice was not loud, but it resonated in the ears of everyone like a resounding bell.
"Jiang Yun, do you think I'm as foolish as your dead old man to fall for your tricks?" Xiao Wanshan happily bantered with Jiang Yun, as every minute of delay meant an extra minute of opportunity.
"If that's the case, then from today onwards, the Xiao family will cease to exist in Yanjing City."
Having said that, Jiang Yun no longer wasted words. His gaze swept across the entire scene, and his mind sank into the realm of sword intent. Suddenly, he flashed forward and arrived at the front of the first layer of defenders, his sword light dancing.
At this time, the onlookers outside the Xiao Residence had no idea about the situation inside. They only heard the clash of weapons, mingled with shouts and cries of killing.
After half an hour, among the heavy gasps, there were occasional screams and wails. Another half an hour passed, and within the courtyard, there were only cries for mercy, begging voices, and no other sounds.
Among the crowd, some brave individuals approached the gate of the Xiao Residence, peeked inside, and immediately withdrew, vomiting uncontrollably. This action further piqued the curiosity of the onlookers.
More people peeked inside, but few could endure for more than a minute before coming back out. Lin Feier, who had been standing at the back of the crowd, managed to squeeze out a little space. She gritted her teeth and summoned the courage to peek into the Xiao Residence.
What met her eyes was a scene of carnage. Severed limbs were strewn everywhere in the courtyard, and some individuals, still clinging to their last breaths, writhed in pain on the ground. Jiang Yun stood in the center of the courtyard, drenched in blood, his cold eyes scanning the surroundings, while Xiao Wanshan trembled against the wall.
Lin Feier had never imagined that her kind and gentle Cloud Brother would transform into a terrifying figure reminiscent of a god of slaughter emerging from hell. It was unfamiliar and terrifying.
Jiang Yun slowly walked toward Xiao Wanshan, taking each step with an unusual slowness despite the twenty-odd paces of distance. Xiao Wanshan's fear deepened as Jiang Yun approached.
Just then, a figure stood in front of Xiao Wanshan. Xiao Dong fearlessly confronted Jiang Yun and said, "Jiang Yun, do you have to annihilate everyone without exception?"
Since the Yanjing Martial Meet, Xiao Dong had been recovering from his injuries at home. Before Jiang Yun came to the Xiao Residence, Xiao Wanshan had instructed him not to come out under any circumstances, but he had still run out at this moment.
"No one can stop me, and you are no exception," Jiang Yun's tone was icy, and his gaze was chillingly ominous. Xiao Dong's appearance couldn't prevent his intention to kill Xiao Wanshan.
"I can't stop you, but until I am defeated, no one is allowed to harm my father," Xiao Dong turned his head and glanced at Xiao Wanshan cowering in the corner. Despite his current wretched appearance resembling a stray dog, he was still his father.
Xiao Dong suddenly laughed, and a dazzling sword aura appeared as he swung his long sword towards Jiang Yun. This strike was more powerful than any of Xiao Dong's previous attacks, although he knew it wasn't enough.
"Didn't expect you to comprehend the rudimentary Sword Intent at a time like this, but unfortunately, it's too late," Xiao Dong said.
Jiang Yun also didn't expect Xiao Dong to comprehend Sword Intent at the last moment. But so what? He had already comprehended such a rudimentary form of Sword Intent back on Earth.
With a swing of his Qingping Sword, Jiang Yun shattered Xiao Dong's sword aura. Xiao Dong watched as Jiang Yun's sword passed through his chest, piercing his heart. At that moment, he felt the true essence of Sword Intent. Jiang Yun's Sword Intent, filled with brutal killing intent, instantly cleaved his body into two.
"Hahaha, Jiang Yun, you've entered the path of darkness. I'll be waiting for you in hell," Xiao Dong laughed, even in death. That smile on Xiao Dong's face stirred a strange emotion in Jiang Yun's heart, but it was quickly consumed by his own killing intent. His gaze turned cold once again as he approached Xiao Wanshan.
"Dong'er, I arrived too late," a sorrowful middle-aged voice suddenly resounded behind Jiang Yun. He turned around and saw Elder Qin standing at the gate of the Xiao Residence. Elder Qin's eyes were filled with tears as he looked at Xiao Dong's severed body.
As Jiang Yun turned his head, Lin Feier, who stood outside the gate, caught sight of his eyes filled with killing intent, and her pupils dilated in fear.