Chapter 7: Returning the Treasure, Punishing the Wicked Servants

The battle in the sky raged on with unabated fury.

Relying on the might of a high-grade magic treasure and the support of a defensive formation, Ye Tong was barely holding his ground against the mid-stage Golden Core cultivator.

His face was a mask of frenzy as he led his subordinates in a continuous counterattack, struggling desperately to maintain the stalemate.

Seeing that he couldn’t quickly subdue his opponent, the masked man frowned.

He had intended for this ambush to be a swift decapitation strike to prevent reinforcements from the Shen Family from arriving. However, he had misjudged the power of the high-grade treasure his opponent possessed.

If this dragged on any longer, the entire plan would fail.

With that thought, the masked man finally ceased holding back. With a wave of his hand, he summoned a small black cauldron.

It was a palm-sized, three-legged black cauldron. Its body was entwined with dragon-shaped reliefs, and the rim of its mouth bore dark red patterns resembling blood.

The moment it appeared, it erupted with an aura that made one’s heart palpitate with dread.

Seeing this, Ye Tong’s expression changed drastically. “The Lin Family’s Black Abyss Divine Cauldron!” he roared.

Among the ten Eternal Families of the Azure Province, the Shen Family stood supreme, with the Lin Family a close second.

The two families had been enemies for generations, locked in open and covert strife for thousands of years. Each had drawn other Eternal Families into their conflict, creating a vast web of alliances and vendettas.

To complete his mission quickly and prevent the opposing experts from reacting, the masked man in the sky no longer bothered to conceal his identity. He summoned the Lin Family’s famous Black Abyss Divine Cauldron.

This cauldron was a top-tier magic treasure capable of devouring all things and manifesting a black dragon phantom for combat, among other terrifying abilities.

For this interception, the Lin Family had prepared extremely thoroughly.

“This ends now.”

The masked man erupted with spiritual light. He pushed the small cauldron forward, and it suddenly unleashed overwhelming power.

Roar!

In the sky, a black dragon slowly took form. Its visage was ferocious as it roared and charged toward the two spirit boats. A hurricane howled into existence; terrifying force swept over them like a tidal wave.

“Hold!” Ye Tong bellowed. Burning his very vital essence to fuel the high-grade treasure, he desperately tried to hold the front line.

All the Ye Family guards unleashed their strongest power and followed suit…

But under the dual pressure of a top-tier treasure and a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, they stood no chance of resistance.

The defensive formation instantly became riddled with cracks, teetering on the verge of collapse at any moment.

The situation was critical. The hurricane-force winds scoured Shen Xian’s face painfully; he couldn’t even open his eyes. Seeing that the cooldown time had elapsed, he didn’t hesitate. He retrieved the Profound Astral Life-Protecting Talisman and pressed it into Ye Qingxian’s hand.

“Take this.”

Ye Qingxian, who had maintained an aloof expression throughout the chaos, blinked her beautiful eyes. She stared at the dark golden talisman paper that had suddenly appeared in her hand.

She gently rubbed it, sensing the formidable power contained within. She hadn’t expected him to hand such a precious life-preserving item to her.

At that moment, a prompt immediately appeared in Shen Xian’s vision.

【Host has gifted Dao Companion one third-grade high-rank Profound Astral Life-Protecting Talisman. Received tenfold blessing return. Reward: One fourth-grade high-rank Mystic Universal Talisman. Claim?】

Before he could claim it, an immense and majestic power suddenly descended from above.

“Does the Lin Family truly believe my Ye Family has no one?”

From deep within the clouds, a golden river surged forth with violent majesty. In an instant, it scattered the massive black dragon phantom.

Immediately after, a middle-aged man in luxurious brocade robes stepped out with his hands clasped behind his back. He looked down upon the attacking Lin Family member from on high; his aura as a Nascent Soul True Venerable was unmistakable!

With the arrival of a Nascent Soul True Venerable, the Lin Family cultivators paled in terror. Without a moment’s hesitation, they began to flee backward.

But before such a powerful expert, how could they possibly escape?

The middle-aged man merely released his pressure aura, directly suppressing all enemies in place.

Knowing escape was impossible now, the masked man roared in fury. “What clever scheming by the Ye Family!”

He hadn’t expected a Nascent Soul True Venerable to be secretly following the convoy—this was completely different from the intelligence he had received.

The middle-aged man curled his lips into a faint smile. “We knew your Lin Family wouldn’t behave. Today, you all stay.”

This return visit involved direct-line descendants of the family; how could the Ye Family not have a Nascent Soul True Venerable present?

However, due to the earlier marriage incident, they had deliberately hidden this True Venerable to express their displeasure.

With a wave of his hand, the middle-aged man seized the top-grade magic treasure into his possession. Then, with ruthless efficiency, he killed all remaining Lin Family members except for the sole masked man, whom he intended to take back to his family for interrogation.

“Lord Ye Yu!”

With matters resolved and recognizing him now, Ye Tong and the others cupped their hands in salute.

“Return to the city quickly!” Ye Yu waved dismissively and vanished into thin air.

Before leaving completely, he held up the Lin Family’s small cauldron and cast a provocative glance deep into the clouds…

Where another Nascent Soul cultivator from the Shen Family was still hiding…

After all, Shen Xian was a direct-line son; the Shen Family couldn’t truly abandon him entirely.

For this return visit ceremony, although both families harbored dissatisfaction internally, when faced with major principles, they still understood propriety and restraint.

Only… since that fellow refused to show himself… This divine cauldron of the Lin Family would belong to Ye Yu now!

With a smug expression on his face, Ye Yu grabbed the Golden Core Realm expert from the Lin Family and flew away directly.

…

With the Nascent Soul True Venerable gone, the crisis was lifted. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Ye Tong took out a pill, swallowed it, and began recuperating, but the atmosphere aboard the spirit boat did not ease.

Shen Xian swept a cold gaze over the group. The Shen Family guards huddled in the corner. Seeing that the danger had passed, they had resumed their fawning, ingratiating expressions, as if their earlier cowardly retreat had never happened.

His expression darkened slightly, anger burning in his heart.

Not just because of these disloyal servants, but also because he had just glanced at that fourth-grade mid-rank spirit talisman.

Although the talisman possessed powerful functions—it could simulate any spell or divine ability, briefly replicate an opponent’s techniques for a counterattack, tear through space to travel ten thousand li in an instant, or use divine calculation to foresee fortune and misfortune…

However…

The System introduction specifically emphasized one sentence.

Because this talisman originated from ancient times, due to changes in the laws of heaven and earth, its power is greatly reduced. It can only be used once.

Damn it!

At such a critical moment, it gives me such a restricted item. If not for the Ye Family’s Nascent Soul True Venerable, and if Ye Qingxian hadn’t lent a hand, relying on this unreliable System, I probably would have kicked the bucket directly.

So infuriating!

At that moment, the leading Foundation Establishment cultivator stepped forward, his face full of smiles. He cupped his hands and said, “Third Young Master is truly blessed by heaven! Just now, those Lin Family scoundrels came fiercely. We originally intended to act, but the Ye Family fellow daoists’ strength was extraordinary. Plus, with the Nascent Soul True Venerable presiding, our rash intervention would have seemed superfluous.”

Another guard chimed in agreement, “Yes, Third Young Master, see? Isn’t everything fine? Our Shen Family guards are always steady; we never make unnecessary sacrifices.”

Shen Xian, currently full of pent-up anger with nowhere to vent, heard these grating excuses and his eyes turned icy cold.

“Oh? So you were ‘assessing the situation’ just now?” he retorted.

The lead guard, still not sensing the shift in mood, grew bolder and laughed. “Exactly! Third Young Master is wise. Our duty is to protect your safety, not engage in reckless bravery. Besides…”

He paused, glancing over Shen Xian, his tone carrying slight contempt. “You are, after all, only in the Qi Refining Realm. If a real fight broke out, we’d have to prioritize protecting you, which would only hinder us.”

This was blatant mockery!

These people had Shen Li backing them. Even if they offended this direct-line son, given the other party’s low cultivation realm, he couldn’t do anything to them. He might even need to rely on them later.

Thus, they spoke even more brazenly.

However… they didn’t notice Shen Xian’s expression growing colder and colder.

Previously, he had long been accustomed to being looked down upon within the Shen Family and usually ignored such sarcastic remarks.

But the current him was different from his past self. Moreover, during a life-and-death crisis, these servants not only fled the battlefield but now dared to publicly insinuate mockery toward him, a direct-line son.

Even a clay figurine has three parts temper. I may be a direct-line son lying low, but that doesn’t mean I have no temper!

Shen Xian slowly lifted his eyelids, his gaze sweeping over the crowd like a sharp blade. “My Shen Family is the foremost great clan of the Azure Province, yet you only think of fleeing the battlefield and found such a lame excuse.”

His voice was neither hurried nor slow, yet it made everyone present feel a sudden chill.

“Do you truly think Shen Xian is easy to bully?!”

He suddenly raised his volume, a cold light flashing in his eyes.

The Shen Family guards’ eyes widened, completely not expecting this “waste direct-line son” to utter such words.

The person in front wanted to explain something, but Shen Xian looked toward Ye Tong. “Uncle, do you remember the words I told you before our departure? Now I ask you, these servants who don’t protect their master—what use are they?”

Before departure, guessing Shen Li would stir up trouble, Shen Xian had specifically and privately told Ye Tong to reassure him: if these guards caused trouble, he could handle them fully and wouldn’t need to worry about the Shen Family holding him accountable afterward.

A sharp glint flashed in Ye Tong’s eyes as he regulated his breathing.

This direct descendant of the Shen Family seemed somewhat different. Then, in a low, heavy voice, he uttered, “A servant who cannot protect his master is better off dead!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the power within him erupted.

Under the imposing aura of a Golden Core Realm expert, the group of Shen Family guards had no power to resist whatsoever; they trembled like leaves in a storm.

“What are you doing?!” The leader’s face changed drastically. “We are members of the Shen Family!”

“Third Young Master! Third Young Master, spare us!”

“Third Young Master, we were wrong! Have mercy! Have mercy!”

……

Shen Xian watched coldly.

He knew these men weren’t admitting fault; they were admitting they were about to die!

To the side, Ye Tong had been watching him all along, awaiting the final command.

Only when Shen Xian gave a decisive, unhesitating nod did Ye Tong immediately activate his jade pendant. A terrifying inferno erupted, incinerating the entire group of vile servants…

Ye Qingxian stood to the side, a flicker of surprise passing through her cool, clear eyes.

She had thought her “good-for-nothing” husband would continue to play deaf and dumb. She hadn’t expected him to show such resolve.

“This little fellow… is indeed somewhat different,” she mused inwardly. Storing the dark-gold talisman paper into her storage space, she looked at Shen Xian directly for the first time.