Chapter 335: Soldiers at the City Walls

Silver robe, silver mask—four simple words plunged the small courtyard into dead silence.

The manservant who came to report was startled by this bizarre scene. He didn't know what was happening.

Amidst the silence, Yun Tianyang was the first to react and dismissed the servant with a wave of his hand.

When only the "Northwestern Seven Tigers" were left in the courtyard, Mo Wentian couldn't contain himself any longer and whispered, "Is the person outside the one that your master warned you of?"

"It's possible." Yun Tianyang said heavily, "I think it's better to have someone test the waters first. We can—"

"Old Yun, watch out!" Before he could finish, he saw Mo Wentian throw himself right behind Yun Tianyang, vigilantly watching someone.

Yun Tianyang suddenly turned his head and saw a silver figure already standing at the doorway.

This person was dressed in a silver robe and wore a silver mask, making it impossible to see his appearance, yet Yun Tianyang couldn't help feeling chills up his spine.

"Where's Ah Xiu?" The silver-robed person's gaze swept through the small courtyard, completely disregarding these Northwestern Seven Tigers and inquiring about Ah Xiu's whereabouts straightaway.

No trace of power could be seen from this silver-robed intruder. He looked like a normal person who'd never practiced martial arts before, but Yun Tianyang didn't dare underestimate him in the slightest.

A normal person didn't have the ability to soundlessly appear in front of him without anyone noticing.

"My master is in secluded cultivation, attempting to break through to the realm capable of shattering space!" Yun Tianyang answered in an icy voice, hoping that his master's realm would be able to deter the intruder before him.

But unexpectedly, the silver-robed man just burst into loud laughter. "If your master only entered secluded cultivation just now, she'll never be able to take that last step for the rest of her life. I'd better help her out."

Before others could say anything, Yun Tianyang was already frowning heavily as rage surged in his heart. He gave a cold snort and replied, "My master's cultivation is none of your business!"

"That's right!" On the side, Mo Wentian also rubbed his bald head and stepped forward. "Old Yun's master has already honed her martial arts to the peak. What does someone like you know—"

He didn't get to finish before a silver figure flashed across the space in front of him. Mo Wentian only felt a pain in his abdomen before his entire line of sight floated high up.

'Am… Am I flying right now?'

This was Mo Wentian's last thought, and then everything went blank.

But in the eyes of Yun Tianyang and the others, the figure of the silver-robed enemy simply flickered slightly. Next thing they knew, Mo Wentian had already been kicked in the stomach and was sent flying across the courtyard.

He only flew for a few seconds when a cloud of bloody mist exploded from his stomach—his internal organs had been completely pulverized by the monstrous strength and he was no longer alive.

Everyone in the courtyard froze in stunned silence for a second, followed by Yun Tianyang's angry roar, "You're courting death!"

He instantly unsheathed his longsword and thrust it out without thinking, aiming straight at the silver-robed enemy's back.

Not only did this strike contain the essence of everything he learned in his entire life, it also harmonized with his current mental state and intent, so it could be said to be the strongest attack Yun Tianyang had ever made.

As his sword stabbed out, Yun Tianyang couldn't help having this thought: 'Faced with this sword, even Master will have to respond carefully…'

Clang!

The sound of metal hitting metal rang out. That silver-robed man was too lazy to even dodge and simply allowed the longsword to hit his back, but Yun Tianyang couldn't even sink his sword in by half a centimeter.

'Just what kind of monster is this!?'

Yun Tianyang's heart shivered slightly. He finally understood why Master always admonished him to run as far away as possible if he ever encountered this person.

Before that thought fell, Yun Tianyang felt his vision darken, as if a fist had imprinted itself on his face…

...

Yun Tianyang slowly regained consciousness after a long time and immediately felt a wave of piercing pain travel over from his face.

He subconsciously raised his hand to feel his face but found that his entire nose had already caved inwards. His originally handsome face was probably completely ruined.

But the disfigurement was just a minor matter. What he found the hardest to accept was the fact that blood was already flowing like a river in the courtyard. The corpses of his six brothers and sisters were lying neatly in front of him.

The six of them were either pierced through the stomach, or their heads were blown out, or their limbs were torn apart. There wasn't a single intact corpse here.

"Old Mo! Little Feng! Everyone… Everyone…" Yun Tianyang shot to his feet and called out for his companions one by one, but he would never receive a response.

"Ahhh!" Yun Tianyang howled madly, torn with rage and grief.

Three days later, the disfigured Yun Tianyang raised the banner of rebellion alone and led a group of martial artists who'd just gathered together, slaughtering their way towards the middle of the continent, with his blade pointing straight at Martial Alliance City.

After experiencing this catastrophe, Yun Tianyang's temperament changed greatly, becoming more reticent. Yun Tianyang—who was originally described as being as gentle as jade—suddenly became violent and ruthless, often beating and cursing the soldiers under him.

But at the same time, his own martial arts skills also skyrocketed fiercely.

In just one month, the rebels had captured sixteen cities belonging to the Martial Arts Alliance. Seven Transcendent Realm experts died by Yun Tianyang's hands.

What was even more surprising was that these seven Transcendent Realm martial artists almost seemed to be lining themselves up for Yun Tianyang to kill—only one person showed up each time to fight Yun Tianyang.

Every time he attacked, Yun Tianyang's strength grew. Now, the former head of the "Northwestern Seven Tigers" already had the reputation of the world's strongest expert.

In many people's eyes, only Qin Yuezhi, the Alliance Leader of the Martial Arts Alliance, was qualified to fight Yun Tianyang.

...

Right when the world was in chaos, a figure slowly emerged from deep in the mountains in the Western Region.

This person was dressed in bright yellow gauze and stood amidst the wind and snow just like this, but not a single snowflake landed on her. This was the one people called the "Zhongli Goddess"—Ah Xiu.

"I'm still a step short," she gazed up at the snowy sky and murmured softly under her breath. The longsword on her back seemed like it would never be drawn, yet it contained a boundless sword intent.

She entered secluded cultivation this time because her disciple was implicated by her and nearly had his family destroyed. She wanted to use the pent-up frustrations in her heart to break through that final hurdle.

But things turned out contrary to her wishes. In the end, she still couldn't take that last step and was stuck right in front of that door.

This wasn't the first time Ah Xiu had encountered such an experience in the last twenty years, so she didn't dwell on it and walked down the mountain step by step.

Only after she reached the foot of the mountain and inquired about her disciple's current situation did Ah Xiu receive a shock. 'It turns out that so many things actually happened in the world while I was in closed-door cultivation.'

"The six people who were called the Northwestern Seven Tigers along with Tianyang were killed by a silver-robed person…"

"Tianyang went crazy and ordered all his troops to head straight for Martial Alliance City…"

"In one month, he conquered sixteen consecutive cities and killed seven Transcendent Realm grandmasters…"

One by one, Ah Xiu verified the authenticity of each piece of information and put the puzzle together, making her feel almost overwhelmed for a while. It wasn't until the end that she realized something wasn't right.

Because the last piece of news was that the rebel army led by Yun Tianyang was already at the gates of Martial Alliance City!

"It must be that person's plot!" Ah Xiu hardly needed to think too deeply. After learning that a silver-robed man had appeared, she was immediately positive of this.

'With that person's power, he could easily kill a Transcendent Realm martial artist even 20 years ago, let alone now?'

'That means he deliberately sent out his subordinates for my disciple to kill. What in the world is his goal… No, I must rush over and get to the bottom of this!'