Yuan Tian and Yuan Di were filled with astonishment and tension. They never expected that, despite their exceptional lightness skills, they would still be discovered.
However, they soon calmed down. Upon recognizing the person before them as the Ye family’s notorious drunkard, they breathed a slight sigh of relief.
“Hah, so it’s you.”
“Who would have thought this drunkard would actually dare to stand in our way.”
Yuan Tian glanced at Yuan Di and said calmly, “Brother, you handle this.”
“No need to kill him. Just cripple his limbs and turn him into a true waste.”
“Alright!”
A flash of ruthlessness gleamed in Yuan Di’s eyes. He drew a curved blade from his waist and darted forward like a ghostly shadow, charging fiercely toward Ye Qing.
As a Nascent Soul Realm expert renowned for his martial prowess, Yuan Di possessed extraordinary lightness skills, his movements as elusive as phantoms.
He intended to sever Ye Qing’s tendons in both hands and feet instantly with his curved blade.
Yet, in the next moment, a crimson glow of blood erupted, accompanied by a sharp clang.
Yuan Di’s curved blade was cleanly snapped in two.
“What?!”
Yuan Tian, standing nearby, was caught off guard, his face etched with shock.
In the next instant, Ye Qing exhaled a turbid breath and leisurely sheathed his sword.
Beside him, Yuan Di, who had been whole just a moment ago, was now utterly pulverized, reduced to dust and scattered ashes.
“Wha… what?!”
Yuan Tian’s face paled with terror. His legs trembled, nearly buckling beneath him.
Ye Qing said indifferently, “Qin Ru wants to seize the Xuanyuan Sword, so he sends two useless pawns like you?”
“Isn’t that too dismissive of my Ye family?”
“Who would have thought this drunkard has been deliberately concealing his strength all along…”
Yuan Tian gritted his teeth, suppressing his fear as he roared furiously, “But you killed my brother! No matter what, I will make you pay with your life!”
“Qianyuan Slash!”
Yuan Tian drew his curved blade, channeling all his Spiritual Power. The blade’s edge extended dozens of times, transforming into a hundred-meter-long giant sword. With a furious roar, he swung it with all his might toward Ye Qing.
Facing this ferocious attack, Ye Qing remained unhurried. With a casual swing of his sword, the gleaming white hundred-meter blade was extinguished in an instant, shattering with a thunderous explosion.
“How is this possible…”
Despair washed over Yuan Tian’s face as he stumbled backward two steps.
Ye Qing’s figure flashed past Yuan Tian in an instant, and he leisurely sheathed his sword once more.
Yuan Tian’s pupils contracted sharply, his eyes widening in disbelief.
To his horror, he realized his perspective had flipped upside down.
Only after a moment did Yuan Tian comprehend.
His head had already been severed by Ye Qing.
It was simply because Ye Qing’s sword was too swift.
So swift that even his nervous system failed to react in time.
Thus, his severed head could still witness the headless corpse spurting blood.
Amidst overwhelming shock and terror, Yuan Tian breathed his last. His body exploded with a bang, dissolving into a bloody mist.
After slaying Yuan Tian and Yuan Di, Ye Qing let out a soft sigh and murmured to himself, “These two were death warriors trained by Qin Ru.”
“And Qin Ru is nothing but a dog raised by Qu Qingyan.”
“It seems the Great Qi is in for turbulent times.”
The facts proved his speculation correct.
The Empress had already set her sights on the Ye family, intending to forcibly seize the Xuanyuan Sword.
Today, these two were merely the vanguard sent by the Empress to test the waters.
Ye Qing shook his head with a self-mocking, dry laugh.
It is laughable that the Ye family, with its generations of loyalty and a century of meritorious service, has ultimately fallen to such a state.
Since the other side has already made their move, it seems it is time for me to draw my sword and show them that the Ye family is not without successors.
For Ye Qing, there is nothing left in this Great Qi Dynasty worth clinging to.
The only attachment he cannot bear to sever is Ling’er’s mother.
If one day she wishes to return to his side, she will surely come to the Ye residence.
What if, by then, he has already moved away? Would they miss each other once again?
“Forget it, forget it.”
Ye Qing smiled faintly, casting these worries aside.
“Though I do not know where you are now,”
“If heaven shows mercy and our fate is not yet exhausted, we will meet again sooner or later.”
…
In the stillness of the deep night, Ye Qing left home alone and headed straight for the rear mountain of the Ye residence.
At the foot of the mountain stood a solemn and dignified temple.
This was the ancestral hall of the Ye family.
It enshrined Ye Qing’s father, grandfather, and the successive generations of Ye family ancestors.
Pushing open the door of the ancestral hall, rows upon rows of neatly arranged spirit tablets came into view.
Beneath each spirit tablet, a bright candle flame flickered.
Each tablet was inscribed with the name of a Ye family ancestor and the glorious battles they had fought in their lifetime.
Ye Qing picked up one of the spirit tablets, wiped away the dust, and carefully examined the golden characters engraved upon it.
“Ye Shengtian, First Patriarch of the Ye Family.”
“Once fought alone against three Ascension Realm Demon Kings in the Primordial Demon Domain, slaying all three before exhausting his Spiritual Power and falling in battle.”
“Ye Zichuan, Third Patriarch of the Ye Family.”
“Once defended against the Demon Tribe coalition at Myriad Demon Ridge, buying time for the evacuation of the capital’s citizens, and died surrounded by a horde of demons.”
“Ye Ming, Seventh Patriarch of the Ye Family.”
“During the invasion of the Great Chu Dynasty, fought fiercely against the Great Chu’s Guardian War God, unleashed Life-Burning Exhaustion, and perished together with the enemy.”
“Ye Zhanjiu, Eleventh Patriarch of the Ye Family…”
Ye Qing wiped the dust from each spirit tablet and could not help but sigh softly.
The successive generations of Ye family ancestors had once been his pride and faith.
But now, that former faith seemed to have crumbled.
At this moment, Ye Qing felt only that his ancestors had not been treated as they deserved.
They had shed blood and sacrificed themselves, one after another, only to be repaid with such heartless treatment from the Great Qi Dynasty.
Reaching the very back, Ye Qing saw the tablet of his grandfather.
“Ye Tai, Thirty-First Patriarch of the Ye Family.”
“Led the Ye family disciples in retreat during the Demon Tribe invasion and was ambushed and killed by the Heavenly Dragon Clan.”
Ye Qing sighed and smiled bitterly. “Grandfather, such a kind-hearted old man like you should have enjoyed a peaceful retirement and the joys of family life.”
“Your grandson truly feels you were not treated as you deserved.”
In this world, the conflict between humans and the Demon Tribe has persisted for over ten thousand years.
With the Ancient Great Wall as humanity’s barrier and the main battlefield, countless historic battles have erupted.
Ye Qing had met his grandfather, Ye Tai, once.
But shortly after Ye Qing’s transmigration, at the age of eighteen, his grandfather died on the battlefield.
Ye Qing set down the tablet and walked to the very entrance of the ancestral hall.
Taking a deep breath, he declared in a clear voice, “Esteemed ancestors, your descendant Ye Qing has a matter of great importance to discuss with you today.”
“The Great Qi Dynasty has shown ingratitude, disregarding the Ye family’s loyalty and service, withholding the family’s stipend, and repeatedly causing difficulties for our family.”
“Now, their ambitions are even more blatant, intending to forcibly seize my Ye family’s ancestral Xuanyuan Sword.”
“Enough is enough!”