Chapter 031: Sorry, You’ve Fallen into the Trap

The entire city of Nanyang was plunged into chaos in an instant.

Seeing the spirit boat descending from above, some civilians scrambled desperately toward their homes, while others fell to their knees, bowing repeatedly and crying out to the "immortals." On the city walls, soldiers clutching their spears trembled, yet they still aimed their tips toward the vessel.

Fear spread throughout Nanyang. Everyone knew full well that these visitors had come for revenge. A disciple of the Yangsheng Sect had died within the city, and the commoners did not even know if the sect’s wrath would be visited upon them. Even if they were reluctant to admit it, the populace understood that once one stepped into the world of cultivation, a chasm was formed. If a cultivator harmed a commoner, authorities would often turn a blind eye, provided it was not too egregious.

"I didn't expect them to arrive so soon!" On the ramparts, a disciple wearing the robes of the White Sword Sect felt his pupils tremble, yet he gritted his teeth and issued an order: "Send someone back to report this to the sect!"

They had been prepared for death from the moment they were stationed here.

"Senior Brother, you go back. I’ll stay here; that will be enough!" another disciple said, his voice trembling despite his immense fear. There were only three Qi Refining stage disciples stationed at this post. They knew all too well that whoever stayed behind was walking into a dead end.

"Fellow daoists, why don't we just surrender?" The city lord, forced to remain with the three disciples, turned deathly pale. He had no desire to be buried alongside the White Sword Sect. Had these three disciples not pressured him, he never would have organized the soldiers to resist.

"If you say that one more time, the three of us will cut you down right now!" the lead disciple replied coldly. Since death was inevitable, they might as well not die in such a pathetic manner.

Meanwhile, the spirit boat had descended to the level of the city walls. Looking at the trembling soldiers in the distance, the disciples of the Yangsheng Sect burst into raucous laughter.

"Are you kidding me? They’re actually resisting with these pathetic excuses for men? Are they trying to laugh us to death with those toys?"

"Four Qi Refining stage weaklings combined. As expected, that’s all such a minor sect is capable of!"

"Look at them—their legs are shaking. Not that it matters; your surrender won't save you now. Not after our disciple died here!"

In their eyes, the resistance was nothing more than a joke. The fact that they had even organized commoners to fight was, to them, the height of absurdity. They were so weak that any one of them could easily resolve this nuisance.

"They could have begged for mercy and kept their lives, yet they choose to struggle. How ridiculous," Shi Rongxuan said, his gaze icy as he rested his hands on the railing of the spirit boat. "Since you want to die, I will grant your wish. Someone, go down there and finish off these eyesores."

No sooner had he finished speaking than one of the Foundation Establishment disciples stepped forward, cupping his hands. "Senior Brother Shi, leave this to me!"

With Shi Rongxuan’s nod, the disciple leaped from the spirit boat onto the city wall, looking down at the others with a sneer. "Come, let’s all die together!"

Though he was only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, it was more than enough to deal with these Qi Refining cultivators.

"Junior Brothers, let's attack together!" The three drew their swords and charged at the Foundation Establishment disciple. There was no chance of running now; they had to fight to the death, in hopes of leaving even a scratch on their opponent.

However, every swing and strike appeared agonizingly slow in the eyes of the Foundation Establishment disciple. He dodged their attacks with elegant, effortless grace.

The city lord’s eyes darted around; he truly did not want to die here. But the White Sword Sect disciple, having guessed his intentions, struck out with his sword before turning to roar at him, "Do you think you’ll live just because he kills us? If you don't fight for your life, you might as well wait here to die!"

Those words shocked the city lord into reality. It was true—even if he hadn't lifted a finger, and it was Liang Chuan who had done the killing, he had stood by and watched the entire time. The Yangsheng Sect had already declared that they would spare no one involved in the incident.

"Damn it all! If I’m going to die, I’m going to die!" The city lord cursed, drew his sword, and lunged into the fray. With the city lord’s intervention, they were at least able to hold their ground for a short time, though they still could not harm their opponent.

Shi Rongxuan sat on a chair that Lu Kang had brought over, watching the skirmish with impatience. "Useless! You can't even handle four Qi Refining nobodies!"

He could have ended it with a single move, but he didn't want to do everything himself. Lu Kang hurried forward with a fawning smile. "Senior Brother Shi, he has only just entered the Foundation Establishment stage. Let him use this fight to consolidate his cultivation."

"Fine, I’ll grant him that opportunity." Shi Rongxuan leaned back, frowning as he watched the battle on the walls.

"Senior Brother Shi, what about those commoners?" Lu Kang asked, gesturing toward the soldiers on the walls.

Shi Rongxuan decided their fate casually. "Kill them all. We can just find someone else to serve as city lord later!"

Lu Kang nodded and glanced at the other disciples behind him. The Yangsheng Sect disciples understood instantly, and a few stepped forward.

"Yang Flame Art!"

As they invoked the technique, the air became searingly hot. Several fireballs materialized out of thin air before them.

The city lord’s face turned ghastly. "Seniors, these civilians are innocent!" Though he was a cunning man who lusted after wealth, that did not mean he could watch his own men be slaughtered.

Shi Rongxuan cast a fleeting glance at him and scoffed, "They are merely insects. Why does it matter?"

Just as he was about to wave his hand to strike, a sound like popping firecrackers erupted from all around.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Shi Rongxuan sensed an impending danger and instinctively ducked. A second later, the Foundation Establishment disciples standing at the edge of the spirit boat suddenly erupted into fountains of blood and plummeted toward the ground below. The fireballs dissipated into nothingness.

What was happening?!

Everyone was stunned. They didn't even know what had occurred, yet those disciples were already devoid of life. The city lord was frozen in shock—what on earth was going on?

"Who is it! Who dares to strike against our Yangsheng Sect!" Shi Rongxuan bellowed in a blind rage. Someone dared to attack his men right under his nose! And with his level of cultivation, he couldn't even tell where the attack had come from!

Just as he scanned his surroundings, a figure walked slowly out from the city gate.

It was Liang Chuan.

Liang Chuan looked up at the sky with cold eyes.

"It is I. And I am not just going to strike at you—I am going to bury you all here."