Traitor

After hearing everything, everyone present fell silent for a second. These cultivators from the clan had only average cultivation talent. Wunu's father had favored them greatly during these past years.

Although everyone knew that Wunu's awakened power and the QI coming from the bones and Lian were not equal. The advisors were all supporting Wunu's father. They couldn't defend Lian; they had to just follow the story that was created and act accordingly.

"Hahahaha," Lian laughed fervently as his blood spread all around. "Your words make even a saint seem like a demon. You have talent," he said sarcastically. Then, he withdrew a sword from his spatial ring, and bright inscriptions adorned its blade, which he plunged into the ground.

All present felt their souls tremble in the face of Lian's oppressive and icy Qi. Their chests were pressed by this overwhelming force.

"The Albedo clan, along with its new patriarch, has joined forces with assassins. Out of greed and power, you used all means to become greater. You are all just pawns manipulated by the advisors. Those who come near, I will be relentless in my thirst for killing," proclaimed Lian, making his intent to eliminate any threat clear.

Lian's eyes gleamed with a demonic expression, revealing his satisfaction in anticipation of the imminent bloodshed. It was frightening to see such eyes in a fifteen-year-old youth, and everyone felt a shiver run down their spines.

Riria approached Lian, giving him a worried look. Lian, in turn, sent her a mental message: 'I have already given everyone here the opportunity to save themselves, as you asked me to. The decision is now in their hands.'

Wunu's father had no more patience to wait; his anger grew with each passing moment. Lian seemed to have valuable information, and he knew that if he allowed him to escape and spread the news to other clans, it could result in an investigation and a search for revenge against the clan. Without hesitation, he withdrew another spear, his Qi once again exploding with overwhelming power.

"Those who don't attack will be considered traitors as well. Eliminate him!" Wunu's father gave the order and pointed his spear in Lian's direction. Almost everyone present moved, ready to attack. However, some older cultivators and young women remained motionless.

The aura emanating from Lian's soul was enough to instill fear in most people, but for these women, it was like the presence of a powerful and mysterious youth. His demonstrated strength in battle was frightening, and his wild and deadly beauty exerted a fascination over them.

Despite the fear they felt towards the advisors, these few older cultivators and maidens could not accept the injustice being committed against this prodigy of the clan. The elders promptly protected their present descendants and stood firm in their position, refusing to participate in the attack.

Quickly, hundreds of cultivators surrounded Lian and Riria in the center of the arena. Tears streamed down Riria's eyes, and she closed her eyes. A Wood Qi was felt by everyone, spreading rapidly in all directions.

A sense of strangeness took hold of the place. The breaths of those present became heavier, and sweat started to trickle down their skins. The most powerful cultivators circulated Qi in their bodies, but the energy that once flowed like a river current now moved sluggishly like mud.

The weaker cultivators looked at Riria and felt a strong pressure in their minds. Intense pain overwhelmed them, and many placed their hands on their heads and screamed in agony. Riria opened her eyes, gathering all her Qi and using the second stage of the Forest of No Return Divine Arts. The Qi of everyone there was diverted and affected by the natural energy of the world around them.

Riria raised her sword towards the sky, and suddenly, thousands of scarlet roots sprouted from the feet of those surrounding them. A bloodbath began, with the roots mercilessly piercing their chests and heads.

Desperate, they tried to flee, but found themselves unable to use their Qi. They ran with all their might, but the roots quickly caught up to them.

Everything happened at an overwhelming speed. The advisors could never have imagined such an abnormal power that would stun and kill hundreds of the clan's best cultivators.

When they finally realized what was happening, it was already too late. Everyone was dead, resulting in an irreparable loss of resources. The cost of this tragedy was incalculable, and the advisors were responsible for sending them all to their deaths.

From that moment on, the Albedo clan would be relegated to a small clan on the continent. Desperation is reflected in the eyes of the survivors of this terrible massacre.

A seventeen-year-old half-elf girl carried an expression of profound pain and sadness. Lian looked at her and nodded, understanding perfectly what she was feeling. He himself had gone through similar experiences, having to kill to survive in both the mortal world and the cultivator's world.

Lian knew that to move forward as a cultivator, one had to tread a path filled with challenges and sacrifices. He remembered the first time he had to take so many lives and how it shook him for a long time.

Now, Riria would also have to rethink her life and decide whether she wanted to continue moving forward, facing more trials, or seek a peaceful life in the future. The journey of a cultivator demanded overcoming obstacles and facing the mountains of bones that presented themselves along the way.

Lian, with a gentle touch on Riria's shoulder, made an inscription on his other hand glow intensely. Suddenly, a circular formation several meters in diameter materialized around her. In an instant, another glow appeared beside Riria, revealing the presence of Lemir, who had been forcefully transported by the inscription given by Lian.

"You'll be safe inside the formation. I'll take care of this quickly," said Lian tenderly, looking at Riria, who had passed out from the exhaustion of her Qi after unleashing her final strike.

All eight remaining advisors emerged in the arena, emanating an oppressive and furious aura as they directly attacked Lian, even from a great distance.

The clan patriarch calmly observed the situation, relying on the advisors to resolve the problem. Well, he was lucky to not have gotten involved in that moment. That's because before he could react, they were all killed, leaving him stunned. He realized he would never be able to repair the damage done to the clan with the loss of hundreds of their best members.

Almost two-thirds of the clan's power was lost, and the dream of becoming the greatest clan on the continent and dominating the capital was destroyed in minutes. The patriarch felt his Qi overflowing like an angry volcano. The remaining advisors were extremely frightened, looking at each other and preparing for a final attack. They needed to resolve the situation quickly.

A sinister smile appeared on Lian's face as the advisors approached closer. At that moment, the sword plunged into the ground, held by him, and began to glow intensely.

Black inscriptions appeared, and moans of pain and suffering echoed among the advisors. A shiver ran down their spines as they looked at those runes.

The sword changed color, turning blood red, as they observed the scattered corpses around and realized something disturbing: not a drop of blood was in sight.

Lian raised the sword high, and the moans and screams intensified. In the black symbols, they identified something demonic. The souls and blood essence of all the dead were sucked into the blade. That demonic sword emanated a Qi of unimaginable power, obtained from the suffering and soul energy of the members of his own clan.

Lian laughed at the look of understanding on the advisors' faces. He had witnessed that look before. Using a demonic formation he had learned in the realm of the gods, he imbued the sword with the power of those cultivators who dared to raise their weapons to kill him and his own. They acted knowing they were being manipulated, deserving no mercy from him.

He planned to use the power of their souls and blood as vengeance but eventually would release them so they could reincarnate. He was ruthless, but he took no pleasure in meaningless torture after he got what he wanted. For now, revenge, then they would be even. Now, the moans and screams of pain would serve as a fitting punishment, assisting, at least, in his quest for revenge.

Lemir watched in astonishment from inside the formation, unable to escape the barrier that imprisoned him. He had fought with all his might to assist Lian during the battle, but now he realized that from the beginning, this young man had everything under control. He understood, despite everything, Lian's brutal actions.

He knew the clan would not survive much longer after causing so much harm to others. Lemir had already suspected the actions of the patriarch and the advisors, and Lian's previous statements only reinforced his suspicions. He understood that for the Albedo clan to prosper in the future, a complete process of purification was necessary.

The advisors felt horror at the cruelty displayed by the fifteen-year-old young man. Anger burned within them, but fear was even more overwhelming. They all longed for Lian's death as quickly as possible.

With their weapons in hand, they unleashed all their power, utilizing every ounce of strength they possessed. Eight elders in the final stage of the Bone Forging Realm joined forces in an attack against the fifteen-year-old young man. The Qi in the air felt like a raging storm. In a frenzied onslaught, they attacked from all directions.

That was all for nothing, though. Lian focused all his Qi in the Muscle Transformation Realm. The screams of suffering increased, echoing as if the victims were being tortured in hell itself.