Tide of blood.

The Second Cloud Palace was visible from almost anywhere in the city, so it didn't take Liang Chen to find and reach it. He stopped outside the palace, which was surrounded by a tall wall made of light yellow stone. He walked around the outside of the wall until he found a spot that was well hidden from sight, and then he stood there and observed the palace.

He was hesitating. Liu Daning had reached the Heaven's Gate stage, the same stage as the four Moon Dragon sect disciples that had ambushed him during the previous battle had. He knew that he had the strength to wound and kill Liu Daning if he was given the chance, but he was still hesitating.

Liang Chen wasn't here alone, he was here with Yan Ying and the others, and Yan Ying had repeatedly told them not to stir up any trouble. If he were to make a move against this Liu Daning now, what sort of trouble would it cause for Yan Ying and the others? They had been good to him, so he was rather unwilling to stir up trouble like this for them. While he was hesitating and thinking it over again and again, a voice suddenly rang out from his side.

"Yikes, that's a grim face your making there, I didn't even know you could make a face like that."

Liang Chen quickly turned his body, his vigilance shooting to the sky. Because he had been caught up in his own thoughts and was certain that this was a well-hidden spot, he had forgotten to keep an eye on his surroundings. He only relaxed when he saw who it was that had spoken, tilting his head slightly.

"Yan Ling, what are you doing here?"

The cloaked Yan Ling was the one who was walking over. Their cloaks obscured their faces to others, but not to Liang Chen and the others so they were still able to recognize each other. Yan Ling quickly walked over, a slight hop to her steps, her expression dyed with interest.

"I happened to spot you in the market, doing something shady, so I decided to follow you to see what you were planning. But looking at your expression, you seem to have encountered a problem or something. Come, come, tell this Big Sister about your worries, I will help you!"

Yan Ling had followed Yan Ying to the market, but she split up after they entered the market, so she was the only one who had seen Liang Chen. He thought it over for a bit, but in the end, he decided to simply tell Yan Ling everything that he had heard, as well as his thoughts.

Just like he expected, her expression distorted into one of disgust when she heard what had happened to the girl. But when he explained his thoughts to her, she let out a light laugh, rapping Liang Chen on the head with her knuckles.

"So it was something like that. And here I thought that you were so very mature, but it seems like you are still thinking like a child, overthinking and worrying."

Liang Chen was utterly confused at her sudden action, but before he got to put his confusion into words, Yan Ling spoke up.

"Tell me, do you want to kill this scum, this Liu Daning?"

Liang Chen's blood boiled whenever he thought about the state of the girl, so he didn't hesitate for even a single second before he answered.

"I do."

Yan Ling gave a slight nod, immediately asking another question.

"Do you have the power to kill him?"

Liu Daning was at the Heaven's Gate stage, but Liang Chen had both wounded and killed people like that before, so he once again responded without hesitation.

"I do."

After getting his response, Yan Ling's face lit up with a smile, her knuckles once again rapping Liang Chen on the head.

"Then why bother hesitating!?"

Liang Chen was once again completely dumbfounded, not properly understanding Yan Ling's words. Seeing his dumbfounded expression, Yan Ling felt like she had won a small victory, quickly letting out a laugh filled with pride and arrogance.

"To cultivate is to go against the heavens, to impose your will on them and reign supreme! If you cannot even go and do the things you want to do, how will you ever be able to overcome the heavens? Don't worry about stirring up a bit of trouble, you might not have officially joined yet, but you are a member of my Storm Wolf sect. Kill whoever you want, offend whoever you want! As long as you are following your heart, we will have your back and support you!"

This was the difference between Liang Chen and Yan Ling. He was a normal youth tossed into the cruel cultivation world without fully understanding it. She, on the other hand, had been born in this cruel cultivation world, she was a bit sheltered, but she understood it far better than Liang Chen.

You want something? Then take it! You don't like someone? Then kill them! Go against the heavens, bend them to your will, force them to kneel to you! You don't think the heavens are just? Then crush them and take over for them, impose your sense of justice on everyone else! So what if you are acting selfish, so what if you are stirring up trouble? Follow your heart, and you will never go astray!

Liang Chen was completely stunned. Was it possible to act like that? Was he allowed to act as selfish as he wished, to do as he pleased? The hesitation in his eyes quickly vanished, lightning flashing past them as they grew determined. He locked eyes with Yan Ling, giving her a slight bow.

"... Thank you, Yan Ling."

She had blown away his hesitation and made him feel like an entirely new door had been opened for him. From the very start, his actions had already been selfish, imposing his sense of justice on others. Since it was like that, what did it matter if he was a bit more selfish and followed his heart? Yan Ling let out a slightly mischievous and proud laughter, rapping Liang Chen on the head once again.

"That's Senior Sister Ling to you. So, have you decided what you are going to do?"

The way Yan Ling looked at Liang Chen proved that she knew exactly what he was going to answer to her question. Normally, Liang Chen would find this expression a bit amusing, but now it looked a tiny bit cute. He nodded his head, glancing at the surroundings.

"I have. Can you protect me for a bit?"

Yan Ling's smile grew even brighter, even more filled with interest. She quickly puffed out her chest and put on the airs of a dignified Senior Sister.

"He~eh, the Little Freak needs me to protect him? How could I possibly say no?"

Liang Chen did not waste any more time after getting her agreement, sitting down on the ground and crossing his legs. He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, tapping into all of his Qi. Tiny motes of violet light flew out of his body, constantly splitting up and shrinking in size. They quickly became so small that they were impossible to see, even smaller than dust particles. Unable to understand what Liang Chen was doing, Yan Ling could only tilt her head.

"This...?"

What Liang Chen was doing was fairly simple actually. Since he could use his lightning to scan for living beings in the surroundings, why couldn't he do the same with his poison? Each of those tiny particles of poison would become another eye for him, letting him see everything within a large area. Of course, this wasn't perfect. It required 100% of his concentration, leaving him completely defenseless, and it rapidly tired his mind, threatening to knock him unconscious.

Under his control, the tiny particles of poison quickly swarmed into the palace, spreading to every corner and observing everything. And what he saw only served to enrage him further. Liu Daning, a handsome youth with flowing blonde hair and dazzlingly blue eyes, was lying on a couch, getting fed grapes by his fiancee, a curvaceous girl with exquisite features, light pink hair, and emerald green hair.

But while this picturesque couple was leisurely eating grapes, the rest of the palace could only be called hell. There were men and women clad in various robes spread throughout the rooms of the palace, some of them enjoying themselves with unwilling maids or butlers, some using the maids and butlers as outlets for their torture fantasies. Liang Chen even spotted one person who was casually walking down a hallway, and suddenly struck out at a young butler, crushing his head like a watermelon. Just like they said, birds of a feather flock together. Every single one of Liu Daning's men were just as bad as him.

Liang Chen swallowed his rage, putting most of his focus on Liu Daning and his fiancee. He quickly noticed that they weren't just eating grapes, they were watching a show. A few maids and butlers were chained up in front of them, each one holding a shoddy weapon. Liu Daning occasionally called out two names, the ones that were called out would then proceed to fight each other to the death. The winner would be unshackled and allowed to return to their duties in the mansion.

Liang Chen's entire body now burned with rage, every fiber of his being screaming at him to kill, to drown the entire mansion in blood. Under his rage, even his Ascended Tower and Lightning Seed were trembling slightly, resonating with his fury. But he didn't move yet. He couldn't make his move just yet, he had to wait and prepare.

He didn't move for an entire two days, his poison thoroughly invading not only the palace but even the bodies of the cultivators within it. Everyone but the maids and butlers, as well as Liu Daning, who by far had the highest cultivation, was infected and steeped in Liang Chen's poison. Not even Liu Daning's fiancee was spared, as she joined Liu Daning in his actions. The reason Liu Daning wasn't infested with the poison was simple, his high cultivation made Liang Chen uncertain if it would work, so he had decided on something else for Liu Daning.

The strain on his mind over these two days was massive, and had it not been for Yan Ling guarding him and feeding him pills when he looked like he was about to collapse, he would have already passed out. But after two days passed, he was fully prepared. He opened his eyes, his golden pupils narrowing until they resembled the eyes of a serpent, something that Yan Ling noticed but didn't comment on.

"Scum, you all deserve death."

With a single thought, Liang Chen activated the poison that infiltrated everyone within the mansion. The cultivators that were willing to serve Liu Daning were all far weaker than him, after being invaded by poison for two entire days, it was already too late for them to do anything. The poison activated and attacked every inch of their bodies, their organs, skin, bones, flesh, hair, everything. They could only watch as their bodies melted into a bloody mess, the pure white palace quickly stained red, a tide of blood washing over it.

Liu Daning was enjoying some wine with his fiancee when Liang Chen moved into action, so he got a front side seat as he watched her melt. She stretched her hand toward Liu Daning, hoping for him to save her, but her arm was gone before it managed to reach him. Screams sounded out through the mansion, so he could guess that something similar was happening throughout the mansion.

His rage reached a boiling point as he stormed through the mansion, reaching the large balcony that faced the city. He threw open the doors to the balcony, his furious shout thundering throughout the city.

"Who dares attack the people of me, Liu Daning?!"

This was the chance Liang Chen was waiting for. His head was thundering with pain, but he simply ignored it, numbing his own sense of pain and touch with his Poison Soul technique. He quickly stood up and pulled out his bow, which had started to melt slightly at the side from the repeated lightning that coursed through the arrows that Liang Chen had loaded onto it, and a single arrow, calling out to Yan Ling.

"Now, throw me!"

Yan Ling was still stunned at the sight in front of her. She could see blood pouring out from some of the openings in the castle, some cultivators had been standing by the windows when they started to melt, so she had been able to clearly see their fate. In her stunned state, the meaning of Liang Chen's words didn't instantly register.

"Throw you?"

Liang Chen gave an immediate nod of his head, his eyes firm.

"Throw me!"

Yan Ling quickly regained her senses, wind howling around her as she grabbed onto Liang Chen. She gathered as much force as she could, tossing Liang Chen as high as she could, even using wind to support him and slow his descent.

The moment Yan Ling threw him, he started to call upon the lightning within the Lightning Seed. But this time he dug deeper than he had ever done before, demanding the Lightning Seed to give him as much strength as he could bear.

His call was quickly responded to, three arcs of lightning seeping out from the Lightning Seed. One arc was golden, one was azure, and the last one was crimson. The three arcs danced around each other, moving through Liang Chen's body like molten metal, his body breaking wherever they passed. The strain of these three arcs, that mutually strengthened each other, was far higher than the strain of a simple crimson arc.

But thanks to his Poison Soul technique, he was able to ignore the pain and continue, his body teetering on the brink of collapse, but never crossing that final line. Liu Daning quickly spotted the now skyborne Liang Chen, his now savage face turning toward him.

"Was it yo-!"

Liu Daning was unable to finish his sentence, for Liang Chen had loosed his arrow and sent out his judgment. A single streak split the air apart, three colors lighting up the sky around the streak. Liu Daning didn't even get the time to react. The arrow struck his chest and then exploded, the thundering sound of an explosion rocking the entire city, three bolts of lightning shooting into the sky. But this city was clearly incredibly sturdy. Despite the large explosion that the arrow had created, turning Liu Daning into dust, there was not a single scratch on the palace or the balcony.

But Liang Chen was unable to see the aftermath of the magnificent attack he had launched. The moment he launched the arrow, his vision started to darken his consciousness slipping as he fell to the ground. Before he hit the ground, he felt himself land in a soft embrace, a shocked and excited voice ringing out in his ears.

"You really are Little Freak. That really was a horrifying poison. And wasn't that arrow even stronger than the ones you used against the Moon Dragon Sect? You can use even stronger ones!?"

Liang Chen's consciousness was almost completely gone, he didn't even notice Yan Ling forcing several pills into his mouth. He only knew that they had to leave this area as fast as possible.

"...Go..."

That was the only word he managed to squeeze out before his body gave out on him, his mind rapidly descending into darkness. But before he completely passed out, he was still able to hear the last sentence of Yan Ling.

"Right, right. Don't worry, just leave the aftermath to Big Brother, you just get some sleep."