Chapter 438: Move Aside!

The moment Peng Yulan left, Shounian remained where he was atop the roof. His eyes gradually widened. It seemed he had realized something.

His expression slowly turned grave...

Atop the western city gate, Bai Yao stood with his back to the city, facing the vast land beyond the walls while a group of fellow disciples kept watch on either side. The western gate had been shut as well. This side remained vigilant, but there was no sign of anything unusual outside the city. Bai Yao still had some doubts about Peng Yulan's behavior. But when he thought about the elder token in her possession, he felt that Feng Entai would not have handed it over recklessly.

Besides, people had remained behind at the residence. Nothing serious should happen.

"Look over there. Isn't that where we were stationed?"

A doubtful voice came from beside him. Bai Yao slowly turned and looked back. The moment he saw the smoke, his usually expressionless brows jumped violently. The doubts he had set aside exploded in his heart. He pointed at several people beside him.

"You, you, and you—come with me. Everyone else remains here and continues guarding the gate."

One disciple reminded him kindly, "Senior Brother, the elder token ordered us to remain here. If we leave without authorization, it could be considered abandoning our post."

"If anything happens, I'll bear the responsibility."

Bai Yao barked, "Move!"

He was the first to leap from the wall. Several others immediately followed him through the air... On the northern city wall, Feng Entai frowned as he looked toward the smoke rising inside the city. He muttered to himself and watched it in silence for a while. In the end, he still could not put his mind at ease. He ordered everyone else to remain where they were and signal immediately if anything unusual occurred. Then he took several men and hurried back toward the residence to investigate...

Atop the southern city gate, Fei Changliu, Xia Hua, and Zheng Jiuxiao had already been allowed onto the wall. Chen Tingxiu had ordered the three sect leaders to come up alone and meet him. He wanted an explanation. What exactly did they think they were doing? The three sect leaders naturally muddled through the matter. They merely said they wanted to see Shang Chaozong. Since Tianyu Sect would not allow the meeting, the three would respectfully comply. They would not force the issue.

"Elder, there seems to be a fire inside the city, in the direction where Bai Yao was stationed."

A disciple came over and reported the matter. Chen Tingxiu immediately abandoned the three sect leaders and went to the battlement facing inward. He looked into the distance. The location did indeed seem to be where Bai Yao had been stationed. Still, he did not take it too seriously. Large numbers of troops were stationed in that district. Bai Yao had men guarding the residence there, and Feng Entai had another group of Tianyu Sect disciples nearby. Nothing serious should be able to happen.

He only turned and instructed, "Send two people over and see what's going on."

Peng Yulan skimmed across the rooftops at great speed. As she approached the target district, she saw large numbers of troops converging through the streets and alleys. Her heart grew heavier. Seeing this much movement, could they truly still not have succeeded? She landed atop a pavilion in a courtyard crowded with troops. Below, her eldest son Feng Ruoyi was directing soldiers. Some swung axes at the pillars supporting the main hall. Others threw grappling hooks and ropes over the structure and hauled, trying to pull the building down.

Still others smashed at the walls with heavy objects and edged weapons. Whatever method they used, the purpose was obvious. One glance was enough for Peng Yulan to understand. Her son intended to demolish the entire main hall. Arrows occasionally flew outward from within. Heaps of corpses lay beneath the eaves. Blood had pooled and was running across the ground. The air reeked of it. Around the main hall, a full ring of heavy crossbows had already been positioned and aimed.

They were waiting only for the structure to collapse before launching the killing strike. Farther away, even stone-throwing engines were being pushed through the alleys. The lanes were too narrow, however. Moving such large machines into position was extremely difficult. Peng Yulan flew down and landed directly beside her son. She glanced at the damaged shoulder armor hanging from Feng Ruoyi and the bloodstains from the wound beneath it. Her voice sank.

"Ruoyi, what happened?"

At the sight of his mother, Feng Ruoyi's emotions surged.

"Mother, Second Brother... Second Brother, he..."

He did not know how to say it. Peng Yulan sensed disaster at once. She swept her gaze around. Her younger son was nowhere to be seen.

"Where is your second brother?"

Nong Changguang answered for him with regret.

"Madam, please restrain your grief."

"Niu Youdao's subordinate Yuan Gang led a small force in a surprise attack."

"Second General was careless and unfortunately died at that little thief Yuan Gang's hands."

Ruojie was dead?

Peng Yulan felt as though lightning had struck her. Her face went white. Her breathing quickened. For a moment, she seemed unable to think.

Nong Changguang hurriedly said, "Madam, now is not the time for maternal grief. Shang Chaozong is still resisting inside. We cannot afford any further delay. Madam came at exactly the right moment. This is the time to avenge Second General!"

His final cry was practically a shout. He knew Peng Yulan was herself a cultivator of considerable strength. Her arrival was precisely what they needed. He urged her to act. Peng Yulan abruptly came back to herself. Grief over the loss of her son twisted across her face.

Shing!

Her sword left its sheath. She shot upward and first swept toward the pavilion, avoiding the direct line of fire from the hall. Her foot touched the pavilion. She changed direction again and dove from above, descending straight toward the roof of the main hall. Seeing this, Nong Changguang clenched both fists in excitement. His eyes lit up. The anxiety he had felt earlier vanished completely. Inside the main hall, Shang Chaozong and the others saw what was happening through the shattered doorway. They saw Peng Yulan arrive.

"This is bad. Peng Yulan may have become a cornered dog and leaped the wall too!"

Lan Ruoting shouted the warning.

"I've heard this woman's cultivation is no weaker than Bai Yao's!"

At a time like this, his words held none of the respect normally due Shang Chaozong's mother-in-law. Who still had room to care about that now? He had barely finished speaking when Peng Yulan rose high into the air. Through the broken roof tiles, they could follow the path of her approach.

"Move aside!"

Yuan Gang slowly rolled the Three-Roars Saber in his hand as he prepared. He held the blade horizontally and kept his eyes fixed upward, following Peng Yulan's trajectory. His face was cold and murderous. A different kind of pressure was gathering around him.

"I'll advance and retreat with Master Yuan!"

Shang Chaozong shifted the Saber in his hands. He gestured for Lan Ruoting and the others to withdraw. His eyes were filled with fury.

The Feng family had acted with such ruthless ingratitude that Shang Chaozong wished he could grind every one of their bones to powder and scatter the ashes. This time, his hatred for the Feng family had truly sunk to the marrow.

And who could blame him?

Anyone who endured what he had endured would find every trace of family affection between the two sides gone. Since ancient times, struggles for power had often been like this. This was no isolated case. Even blood relatives killing one another was hardly rare. But Shang Chaozong had barely spoken before Yuan Gang thrust out one arm and shoved him away. Shang Chaozong stumbled several steps and nearly lost his footing.

"Protect His Highness!"

Yuan Gang issued the order without looking away from the roof. Yuan Feng immediately waved more than ten men over. Peng Yulan descended from above and chopped downward with one palm.

Boom!

A blast of palm force shattered the roof from a distance. Tiles and broken wood exploded through the hall. Roof beams collapsed. Dust flooded the air and stung everyone's eyes, throwing the room into chaos. Only Yuan Gang remained standing in place. He raised one arm. His palm caught a massive beam dropping from above.

Crack!

The stone floor beneath his feet fractured and sank. In the same instant, Yuan Gang lowered his arm, straightened his body, and hurled the beam upward.

Whoosh!

The great timber flew toward the descending figure above. Peng Yulan slashed with her sword in midair. A blade of sword qi flashed.

Bang!

The beam hurtling toward her was cut cleanly into two pieces. Using that opening, Yuan Gang sprang upward. He shot straight through the ruined roof and brought the Three-Roars Saber down in a savage overhead strike. Every blood-covered muscle across his body bulged with power.

"ROAR!"

A violent tiger's bellow suddenly exploded through the air. The sound shook the heart. Everyone inside and outside the hall jolted. Where had that tiger's roar come from? At first, Peng Yulan had not regarded Yuan Gang as much of a threat. That remained true even though he had killed her son.

Only when the power of that saber erupted directly before her did the ferocious force of the blow and its lightning-fast speed make her expression change in shock. Caught off guard, she raised her sword to block.

Clang!

The collision rang violently through the air. The force of the impact exploded outward. With the dust swirling around them, the released pressure became almost visible. A ring of force rippled through the air like a wave, made even more striking beneath the blazing sunlight. Everyone inside the ruined hall looked upward at the enormous sound. The sight seemed almost unreal. The two figures that had collided were flung apart together with the expanding ring of force.

Shang Chaozong, Shang Shuqing, Meng Shanming, Lan Ruoting, and the others all stared in astonishment. They had not expected Yuan Gang to leap that high. Even more astonishing was that he could meet Peng Yulan head-on. The violent air currents blasted the remaining dust completely out of the hall. The last roof tiles were stripped away as well. From outside, everyone could clearly see the battered main hall erupt in a great cloud of dust. Above the roof, within the spreading ripple of debris, the two figures sprang apart.

Yuan Gang landed on the broken roof framework. The Three-Roars Saber remained across his body as his feet stumbled several steps backward. Peng Yulan, who had blocked in haste, landed on the shattered roof as well and retreated several steps. Both had been forced back. Both stopped almost at the same time. Peng Yulan held her sword crosswise. Her eyes were filled with shock and uncertainty as she stared at the blood-covered Yuan Gang. This man had actually met her cultivation-backed strike with brute physical force alone.

Could someone in this world truly possess strength like this? For an instant she almost suspected she had imagined it. But she had felt the impact clearly. There had been no trace whatsoever of spiritual power strengthening his attack. Yuan Gang shifted his feet slightly wider. Standing on the slanted roof beam, he lowered into a half crouch. The Three-Roars Saber remained horizontal in his hands. His cold eyes fixed on Peng Yulan. He looked like a leopard ready to spring at any moment.

Feng Ruoyi swallowed hard as he watched. He had never imagined Yuan Gang could meet his mother evenly in a direct clash. No wonder his second brother had died from a single blow. Thinking back to when he himself had charged Yuan Gang earlier made cold sweat crawl down his spine. Only now did he realize he had picked his life back up from beneath Yuan Gang's hand. Inside and outside the hall, everyone had fallen silent. All stared blankly at the two figures facing one another atop the roof.

"Stop!"

An angry shout suddenly rang out. Both Yuan Gang and Peng Yulan tilted their heads slightly and glanced sideways. Bai Yao was flying toward them with several Tianyu Sect disciples.

Shing!

Peng Yulan abruptly swept out a blade of sword qi at Yuan Gang.

At the same time, she stamped one foot down.

Crash!

Her body plunged straight through the ruined roof and into the hall below. Bai Yao had arrived with reinforcements. She could no longer afford to waste time fighting Yuan Gang. She could not even concern herself with avenging her son. The most important thing was to kill Shang Chaozong first. Otherwise her son would have died for nothing. So long as the green mountains remained, there would be no fear of running out of firewood.

As long as Shang Chaozong died, as long as the Feng family retained secular authority over Nanzhou, there would be no shortage of chances to take revenge later. Yuan Gang was alert by nature and calm in battle. He was not deceived by the sword qi. He tilted his body and suddenly dropped sideways, smashing one arm through a broken roof strut as he fell into the hall. The blade of sword qi passed so close it nearly grazed him.

"Loose!"

There was another man inside the hall who remained calm under fire. Seeing the situation turn dangerous, Meng Shanming suddenly shouted. Yuan Feng and the others had formed a fan-shaped line with bows drawn, shielding Shang Chaozong and the others. The instant Peng Yulan crashed through the roof, they loosed together. Arrows screamed through the air. Protective qi surged around Peng Yulan's body. The incoming arrows immediately slowed in midair. Their sharp points stopped three feet from her and could advance no farther.

She swept one arm out and blasted the arrows away. At that same instant, Yuan Gang dropped from above. His foot planted against a slanted roof beam and launched him forward. He landed in a crouch. Then he rose steadily to his feet directly before Shang Chaozong and the others, the Three-Roars Saber once more held crosswise as a shield.

[End of Chapter 438]