Four men stood before him. One was Bai Lin, the Eighth Elder of the Bai Family, whose cultivation had reached the Profound Realm Third Layer.
The other three were Stewards of the Bai Family, all with cultivation at the Yellow Realm Ninth Layer.
The Bai Family had sent these four to kill Xiao Hao, primarily to ensure nothing went wrong.
"Trash, your adoptive father has already left Celestial Water City. No one can protect you now. Hand over the Secret Treasure, or I’ll make your life a living hell."
Bai Lin’s face was devoid of expression, as if he were looking at an ant he could crush at will.
"You can ask the King of the Underworld for it!"
Xiao Hao’s body blurred, leaving an afterimage as he appeared before Bai Lin in a flash, thrusting his sword toward the man’s chest.
"This is bad!"
The hairs on Bai Lin’s body stood on end, and he instinctively unleashed all the True Qi within him.
SCHLICK!
The next instant, the Treasure Sword in Xiao Hao’s hand easily pierced through the True Qi, running through Bai Lin’s chest and pulverizing his heart.
"You... how could you...!"
Bai Lin’s eyes bulged wide, unable to close in death.
’He couldn’t understand how Xiao Hao’s power had become so immense!’
"No! Eighth Elder!"
"How could he possibly have killed the Eighth Elder?!"
The three Bai Family Stewards were utterly horrified, unable to believe their eyes.
Flaming Meteor.
But Xiao Hao gave them no chance to react, directly unleashing the second form of his Flame Emperor Sword Skill.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
The next instant, three fireballs pierced through the bodies of the Bai Family Stewards, killing them instantly.
Even in their final moments, they couldn’t believe they were being killed by a piece of trash who had awakened a One-Star Bronze Martial Soul.
"Damn you, Bai Family," Xiao Hao growled, gritting his teeth. "If anything happens to my adoptive father, I’ll make your entire family pay with their lives!"
Without even bothering to deal with the bodies of Bai Lin and his men, he sped away from Celestial Water City.
...
Near Celestial Water City, in addition to the Demon Beast Mountain Range, there were also several Spirit Stone Ore Veins controlled by the city’s major families.
Five of these Spirit Stone Ore Veins belonged to the Xiao Family.
Every year, the Xiao Family could extract over ten thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones from these veins.
This was the Xiao Family’s primary source of income.
To prevent other factions from seizing these veins, the Xiao Family stationed numerous experts to guard them.
Recently, one of these ore veins had been under the watch of the Fifth Elder, Xiao Ming.
Not long ago, however, this particular vein was attacked by a group of mysterious experts, and even Xiao Ming was captured.
The ones who captured Xiao Ming were, in fact, experts from the Bai Family.
They intended to use Xiao Ming as bait to lure Xiao Chen out of Celestial Water City and kill him.
"Who are you people? Why did you capture me? Aren’t you afraid of angering our Xiao Family?"
Xiao Ming demanded furiously. He was tied to a large tree in a deserted valley outside Celestial Water City.
"Hah! Xiao Ming, you’re Xiao Chen’s trusted subordinate. Even if you die, the Xiao Family certainly won’t stand up for you!"
A masked old man sneered.
They had dared to move against Xiao Ming precisely because he was Xiao Chen’s man and wasn’t well-regarded within the Xiao Family.
Especially now that Xiao Chen had been expelled from the Xiao Family, Xiao Ming’s standing was even more insignificant.
Even if he really died, the Xiao Family would surely not raise a fuss on his behalf.
"You’re... Bai Shan!"
Xiao Ming trembled, instantly recognizing the masked old man’s identity.
"That’s right! You’re a dead man anyway, so it doesn’t matter if you know."
The masked old man tore off his mask, his expression brazen and fearless.
Immediately after, the other four experts beside Bai Shan also removed their masks.
"Bai Shan, what is the Bai Family planning, sending so many Elders to capture me?"
Xiao Ming’s face was grim as he spoke.
He never would have imagined that the five people who had captured him were all Bai Family Elders, every one of them having reached the Profound Realm.
This was especially true for Bai Shan, the Bai Family’s Third Elder, whose cultivation had reached the Profound Realm Sixth Layer.
Few in the entire Xiao Family were a match for him.
"Hmph! We captured you to lure Xiao Chen out and kill him, of course! He should be arriving any moment now."
Bai Shan sneered.
"You animals!"
Xiao Ming looked as if he’d been struck by lightning, spitting the words through gritted teeth.
WHOOSH!
Just then, a figure suddenly appeared in the valley. It was Xiao Chen.
"Bai Shan, I’m here! Xiao Ming is innocent, let him go now!"
Xiao Chen’s expression was incredibly grave.
’If he were at his peak, he naturally wouldn’t fear Bai Shan.’
’But now, with less than half his peak strength, how could he possibly be a match for Bai Shan?’
’Yet, to save Xiao Ming, he had to come.’
"Patriarch, don’t worry about me! Run!"
Xiao Ming cried out, his heart burning with anxiety.
"Hmph! Xiao Chen, since you’ve come, don’t even think about leaving here alive! And don’t you worry, Bai Lin has already gone to kill that worthless adopted son of yours. You won’t be lonely on the Path to the Underworld."
Bai Shan scoffed, a mocking sneer playing on his lips.
"What? You sent men to kill Hao’Er? He’s innocent! Why would you do that?"
A roar filled Xiao Chen’s mind as he bellowed at Bai Shan in fury.
"An innocent man is made guilty by the treasure he holds. If you must blame someone, blame that piece of trash for possessing a Secret Treasure!"
Bai Shan said with cold indifference.
"I won’t spare a single one of you!"
Xiao Chen’s eyes turned bloodshot, and he was completely overcome with rage.
VMMMM!
The next moment, completely disregarding the injury to his Dantian, he unleashed all the True Qi in his body and charged at Bai Shan.
Unfortunately, his Dantian was too severely damaged. Even with all his might, the power he unleashed was only equivalent to that of an expert at the Profound Realm Fourth Layer.
"Haha! The Patriarch was right! He really didn’t destroy Evil Wolf Stronghold!"
"With strength like that, how could he possibly be a match for Ma Hong?"
"He’s a dead man today!"
The group of Bai Family Elders jeered.
If Xiao Chen were at his peak, they wouldn’t be confident in their ability to kill him even if they all worked together.
But now, Bai Shan alone was enough to crush him.
"Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. Die!"
Just then, Bai Shan’s figure flickered, and he instantly appeared before Xiao Chen, striking out with his palm at his chest.
The very air around them crackled with a piercing shriek!
"Lightning Sword Skill!"
Xiao Chen’s expression changed drastically as he instinctively unleashed the strongest Martial Arts he knew.
BANG!
Bai Shan’s True Qi was simply too immense. The palm strike sent Xiao Chen flying.
PTHOO.
Xiao Chen was thrown back several dozen feet, spitting a mouthful of blood as the Treasure Sword clattered from his hand to the ground.
He was badly injured from that single blow.
"Patriarch, you’re no match for Bai Shan! Run!"
Xiao Ming cried out anxiously.
"Escape? You must be dreaming. Go and join your worthless adopted son!"
Bai Shan sneered viciously. His figure flickered, and he charged at Xiao Chen once more.
WHOOSH!
Just then, a figure shot out from the Ancient Forest, instantly landing in front of Xiao Chen.
The newcomer was none other than Xiao Hao.