Thump!
The headless body of the Qingyi Daoist fell onto the broken stones, his blood spattering the ground. The Soul Burning Banner that had hovered above him also fell, as the ghostly Qi around it dissipated.
Shivering, Zhou Xue looked at the corpse of the Qingyi Daoist, then turned to gaze at the Treasured Sword floating in front of Fang Wang and couldn't help but ask, "You... was that just now...?"
With his left hand supporting her and his right hand still in the posture of controlling the sword, Fang Wang's expression was calm. "As you saw," he said, "it was the Sword Control Technique, just like the one you taught."
No sooner had he spoken than a huge cheer erupted from the people of the Fang Residence nearby.
"The evil Daoist is dead!"
"What was that just now? The sword... it was flying!"
"Even the strongest swordsmen in the jianghu couldn't display such swordsmanship!"
"Young Master Fang Wang is so powerful!"
The people of the Fang Residence were extremely excited. The Qingyi Daoist had been so powerful; now that he had been slain, the other assassins seemed much less frightening.
Yet there were also those worried that the Qingyi Daoist might come back from the dead, after all, he was an evil Daoist, and one could not reason about them using common sense.
When Zhou Xue heard Fang Wang's reply, her face dramatically changed. Overwhelmed with emotion, she started coughing up blood, scaring Fang Wang into interrupting his pose and hastily supporting her.
Clang!
The Treasured Sword dropped to the ground, the blade stained with the Qingyi Daoist's fresh blood, chilling and horrific.
"I'm fine... not going to die... I only used a secret technique to give this body a certain fighting strength for a short time. Though I'm severely injured, I should recover within a month..."
Zhou Xue said, looking up. Her face was deathly pale, but her eyes were filled with vigor, as if she could devour Fang Wang whole.
Fang Wang was startled by her gaze, after all, she had claimed to be a Demonic Cultivator before her rebirth...
"Fang Wang, have you really never delved into the ways of Cultivation before?" Zhou Xue stared at him, took a deep breath, and asked seriously.
Fang Wang hesitated for a moment, then decided to trust her and replied, "Indeed I have not, but when you mentioned the Sword Control Technique, I felt that it wasn't made up and was indeed feasible. So I cultivated for seven days and when I used the Sword Control Technique, what I used was True Qi. You should be able to sense it."
He was also relying on Zhou Xue to set foot on the path of Cultivation, so there was no need to pretend to be a pig to eat a tiger. By showing his worth, he could earn more respect from others.
"How could True Qi be used to perform the Sword Control Technique? And your sword isn't even a magic artifact, to control it from a distance..."
"I'm not sure how, but it worked."
Fang Wang shook his head, quite proud of himself internally.
Do you think this is just an ordinary Sword Control Technique?
Sorry, this is the Sword Control Technique of the Great Perfection!
Even high-level Cultivators might not take the time to study the Sword Control Technique.
At these words, Zhou Xue became even more agitated, her chest heaving. Enduring the severe pain, she said in a deep voice, "Fang Wang, you're definitely a Cultivation genius, a rare find in a millennium. Your life-bound magical artifact must be an Earth Origin Spirit Treasure! Once I've recovered, come with me to practice Cultivation!"
With the Qingyi Daoist slain, this catastrophe of extermination was considered past. Therefore, Zhou Xue directly brought up the future.
Here it comes!
That's exactly what Fang Wang had been waiting for. He nodded and said, "Alright, wait for me. I'll go and kill the rest of those guys. After that, you can tell me what an Earth Origin Spirit Treasure is."
Zhou Xue nodded.
Fang Wang beckoned the clan members to come and take care of Zhou Xue while he took his sword and left.
Fang Zhe arrived with the clan and house servants. He assigned two women to take care of Zhou Xue, then cautiously approached the corpse of the Qingyi Daoist.
"Don't come near, he's got ghostly creatures on him; leave it to me and Fang Wang to deal with!"
Zhou Xue called out to stop Fang Zhe. Hearing this, he hesitated, but remembering the dreadful sight of the Soul Burning Banner earlier, he shivered and quickly signaled for the others to step back and not get close.
Using the Sword Control Technique had exhausted seventy percent of Fang Wang's True Qi, but to kill the remaining black-clothed persons, he didn't need True Qi at all.
An hour later.
The Fang Residence had completely returned to calm, yet the atmosphere was still heavy, for the death toll that night had exceeded a thousand.
In the Manor's Main Courtyard, the great hall.
Fang Wang stood beside his father, Fang Yin, surrounded by clan members, each with a grim look upon their faces, all eyes on Fang Meng.
Resting on his walking stick, Fang Meng took a deep breath and said, "We cannot keep tonight's events hidden; we must spread the word. Tomorrow we will hold a funeral, the bigger the commotion, the better. We want the world to know of the Fang Family's tragedy, so that no one dares to move against us again."
Unable to contain himself, Fang Wang's uncle Fang Jin burst out, "Father, to mobilize so many experts must involve the Imperial Palace. We are the Duke's Mansion, after all. We surrendered military power and still ended up like this..."
"Silence!"
Fang Meng shouted, frightening Fang Jin into stopping, though his face still showed resentment and discontent.
It wasn't just house servants who had died that night; two of Fang Wang's cousins had also perished.
Fang Meng continued gravely, "Remember, we live within Grand Qi; we cannot recklessly contend with heaven."
In the hall, the expressions and emotions of most people matched those of Fang Jin. If Fang Wang hadn't taken action that night, the Fang Residence might truly have been exterminated. Every time they thought of this, they shuddered with fear.
"Let's all disperse. Fang Wang, you stay behind."
Fang Meng went on, and at these words, everyone looked at Fang Wang, their eyes filled with gratitude, admiration, and disbelief.
That night, Fang Wang had slain sixty-three assassins, including the evil Daoist. News of his achievements had already spread throughout the Fang Residence. But since they were mired in grief, it wasn't appropriate to ask him how he had managed to become so powerful.
One by one, the people bowed and left. Fang Wang's uncles patted his shoulder as they left, their gaze full of praise for him.