Chapter 186
Chapter 186: The Great Fire
In the pitch-black night above Sheng Province Prefecture City, the Yuan Clan mansion had become a vast sea of flames, fiery tongues leaping high into the dark sky. Murong Xiao Ya slowly walked out of the burning Yuan residence, never once looking back. At this point, not a single person remained alive within the entire Yuan Clan; all were swallowed by the flames, leaving behind no trace.
With a swift movement, Murong Xiao Ya vanished from the long street before the Yuan residence. Nearby townspeople and martial world figures had been stirred awake by the sudden disaster at the Yuan Clan. Many quietly hid in the shadows, watching in stunned disbelief as flames engulfed the once-proud mansion. Everyone was confused, unable to understand how the Yuan Clan, which had just triumphantly destroyed the Murong Family, now faced such sudden calamity.
But Murong Xiao Ya’s revenge had not yet ended. Within less than half an hour, the Zhu and Cen families, two of the four great martial families of Prefecture City, were utterly annihilated. Their patriarchs, ancestors, and every descendant perished, with no one able to withstand even a single move from Murong Xiao Ya. Wherever she walked, mountains of corpses and seas of fire followed. With every martial expert’s vital blood she absorbed, Murong Xiao Ya’s power grew to unimaginable levels.
……
At the mansion of the Baili Clan.
A figure rushed swiftly into the mansion, stopping abruptly in front of the grand hall and urgently shouting: “Ancestor, terrible news! Something has happened to the Yuan, Zhu, and Cen families!”
Inside the hall sat four people. One was elderly, with hair as white as snow and clearly frail. This was the last surviving ancestor of the Baili Clan. Another was Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother, whom the family was now considering for the position of patriarch after Baili Chang Feng’s death.
At the head of the hall sat a middle-aged man, wearing a Cloud Peak Dark Robe and sturdy mountain boots. His face was stern and cold, radiating an indifferent presence. The final person was Mei Yan Yu, who had realized after the Murong Family’s destruction that tonight would alter the power structure of Sheng Province Prefecture City forever. Thus, he had planned overnight visits to the four great martial families to form new alliances, choosing the Baili Clan as his first destination.
Hearing the messenger’s report, all four in the hall frowned deeply. The ancestor of the Baili Clan raised his eyes sharply, scolding in a deep voice: “We have honored guests from Fallen God Peak here; do not be so rude!”
Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother stood quickly, approached the messenger, and whispered urgently: “Why are you so panicked? Exactly what happened to the other three families?”
The messenger’s face remained pale and shaken as he replied anxiously: “All three families’ mansions have burned down. Yet our spies saw no one escape. It’s as if…” He paused, trembling. “It’s as if everyone from the three families is already dead.”
These words caused Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother to frown even more deeply, while the other three men clearly overheard everything.
The ancestor immediately shouted sharply: “Are you absolutely sure you haven’t made a mistake?”
The messenger shook his head earnestly. He was one of the spies sent to secretly monitor the Cen Clan, particularly after Baili Chang Feng’s death, to watch for any suspicious moves. But when he returned and discussed with the other spies, he was shocked to discover all three family residences had been reduced to flames, prompting his hurried report.
“Could it be the three families all suffered accidental fires?” the middle-aged man sitting at the head questioned aloud, drawing peculiar glances from the Baili Clan ancestor and Mei Yan Yu, who clearly doubted such a coincidence.
“Perhaps the remnants of the Murong Family are causing trouble,” Baili Chang Feng’s brother pondered briefly, instructing the messenger: “Tell the servants to prepare water in case fire spreads to our mansion.”
Confused, the messenger hesitated, feeling misunderstood, and hurriedly clarified: “It wasn’t just some small fire. The residences of those three families are completely burned down! More importantly… no one from those families even came out to put out the flames…”
Just as the messenger raised his voice emphatically, he suddenly stopped mid-sentence. At that instant, Mei Yan Yu and the others sprang abruptly to their feet, turning their gazes sharply towards the hall’s entrance.
A black-robed woman stood silently there. She had arrived without a sound. If not for the messenger’s heart abruptly exploding, causing his immediate death, they might not have noticed her presence at all.
“Who are you?”
“Murong Xiao Ya?”
The Baili Clan ancestor and Mei Yan Yu spoke almost simultaneously, though a hint of uncertainty flickered in the ancestor’s aged eyes. Quickly, Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother explained quietly: “Ancestor, she is Murong Hong’s youngest daughter.”
Upon hearing this, the ancestor’s eyes narrowed dangerously, his gaze filling with killing intent: “The Murong Family’s last wretch dares to come here, truly unafraid of death.”
Meanwhile, Murong Xiao Ya observed the four people inside the hall quietly. Besides the two members of the Baili Clan, she recognized the others: one she had seen earlier today, and the other was the Fallen God Peak representative stationed in Prefecture City.
“The other three great families were all destroyed by me,” Murong Xiao Ya calmly stated, looking directly at the Baili Clan ancestor. “What does your Baili Clan think about this?”
Instantly, the faces of the four men changed dramatically. Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother glanced at the clan messenger lying dead with his heart exploded, and coldly asked: “Did you set those fires?”
Murong Xiao Ya did not respond with words but simply lifted her hand gently through the air. Immediately, Baili Chang Feng’s younger brother felt a searing heat wrap around his body, lifting him slowly into the air. In horror, he desperately tried to mobilize his martial Qi to break free, but no matter how hard he struggled, he remained completely helpless.
“You…” His expression filled with terror.
At that moment, the Baili Clan ancestor growled fiercely: “You dare!” He raised his hand, preparing to strike at Murong Xiao Ya from afar. Yet as soon as he moved, he was shocked to find all the surrounding heaven-and-earth Qi consumed by a suddenly emerging fiery golden light. Even as a Heavenly Union Expert, he found himself utterly unable to mobilize any Qi.
Fear flooded the ancestor’s eyes. He quickly tried again to summon his vast martial Qi, but immediately, he too was trapped by that burning force, unable to move at all, helplessly rising slowly into midair.
“How… is this… possible…? Who… are you truly?” Both the Baili Clan ancestor and Baili Chang Feng’s brother cried out in disbelief, unable to accept that Murong Hong’s youngest daughter possessed such terrifying power.