"Bang!"
The moment the car door slammed shut, Chu Tianhe whipped around, a terrifying and chilling murderous intent flashing in his eyes as they locked directly onto Lü Liang!
"You must be Lü Liang?!"
Chu Tianhe spoke in an icy voice, every word laden with intense killing intent as he slowly raised the God-Slaying Saber in his hand!
"That's right, I am Lü Liang! And who might you be?" Lü Liang's expression turned gloomy. Narrowing his eyes, he fixed a sinister, piercing gaze on Chu Tianhe!
Although the sheer power of the blade strike Chu Tianhe had just unleashed had chilled Lü Liang to the bone, he still believed he had the strength to fight!
After all, behind Chu Tianhe stood a mere twelve men! Yet under his own command, Lü Liang still had over a thousand killers, backed by the Rakshasa Group. As long as they could stall Chu Tianhe temporarily, reinforcements could be dispatched from other cities. No matter how formidable Chu Tianhe was, facing a human-wave tactic meant he wouldn't necessarily come out on top!
After all, a single person's stamina had its limits. Thus, even sensing Chu Tianhe's overwhelming strength, Lü Liang felt not the slightest urge to cower!
"Whoosh!"
Yet the instant Lü Liang's voice fell, a cold flash sliced through the air!
Having confirmed his target, Chu Tianhe didn't hesitate for a fraction of a second. He brought his long blade down in a vertical chop, the razor-sharp ancient martial qi transforming into a freezing blade-beam that streaked forward like a ray of light, spanning over ten meters to strike straight at the space between Lü Liang's eyebrows!
Chapter 18
"Puff!"
As the blade-beam flashed past, Lü Liang's body gave a slight shudder. His eyes widened, his gaze freezing on the weapon in Chu Tianhe's hand!
The next second, an extremely faint, hairline fracture appeared at the very top of Lü Liang's head, ran down through the center of his brow, and split all the way down between his legs!
"I am the one who's sending you to hell!"
Only after the single strike was complete did Chu Tianhe speak!
"You..."
Lü Liang barely opened his mouth when his expression suddenly stiffened. The next moment, his body split cleanly down the middle, sliced entirely in two by Chu Tianhe's blade!
"Hiss!"
Such a bizarre and grisly sight caused everyone present to draw a sharp breath. An atmosphere of terror began to spread frantically through every single heart!
An expert of Lü Liang's caliber couldn't even withstand a single blow from Chu Tianhe—he hadn't even had the ability to parry!
The gulf in their strength was as vast as a natural chasm!
"T-Too terrifying! W-Who on earth is he?!"
"Run! Run!"
After a brief moment of shock, the killers of the Rakshasa Group finally snapped back to their senses. Yet none of these men had any stomach left for a fight; although Chu Tianhe had only thrown two strikes since appearing, the might of those two strikes was enough to terrify all present!
Right now, the Rakshasa Group killers pulled out every desperate trick in the book, pushing their movement techniques to the absolute limit. They had only one goal: to flee this fatal ground with all possible speed!
"Twelve Heavenly Fiends, hear my order!" After killing Lü Liang with a single stroke, Chu Tianhe let out another thunderous roar!
"Subordinates are here!"
The Twelve Heavenly Fiends answered in unison, their voices deafening and soaring straight up to the heavens!
"Kill them until not a single one remains in sight!"
At Chu Tianhe's command, twelve executioner blades leapt from their scabbards simultaneously. Like demons rising from the netherworld, they charged madly at the Rakshasa Group killers. Wherever the blades swept, not a single one of the three thousand elite Rakshasa fighters could offer any resistance!
Before long, blood stained the earth crimson!
By this time, looking out over the corpses covering the ground and the rivers of blood, the Qin family members were thoroughly terrified out of their wits!
"Ugh..."
The Qin family had never set foot on a battlefield; where had they ever witnessed such a bloody spectacle? Many of them began retching violently. Elder Qin was so frightened he collapsed backward onto the ground, his legs turning to jelly as a warm, foul-smelling stream soaked his trousers!
For all his advanced age and the many turbulent storms he had weathered through the years, he could never have imagined that one day he would be frightened to the point of losing control of his bladder!
"Master, the men of the Rakshasa Group have been utterly slaughtered. Should the members of the Qin family live or die?!"
The speaker was Tianyi, who knelt on one knee before Chu Tianhe, cupping his fists in salute.
Unlike Tianjiu, Tianyi was among the earliest to follow Chu Tianhe and served as the leader of the Twelve Heavenly Fiends. He was cold, bloodthirsty, and fond of killing; inside his mind, there were only orders, nothing else!
As for who the Qin family might be, he cared not a whit. In his eyes, they were mere ants, leaving only two options: kill or spare.
And at that moment, Chu Tianhe's gaze slowly drifted toward Elder Qin!
Chapter 19
"C-Chu Tianhe, w-what... what do you want?"
"I... I... I am Qin Xiaorou's grandfather, y-your daughter's great-grandfather!"
"D-Don't... don't come any closer!"
Qin Wanxiong panicked. Looking at the imposing Chu Tianhe, who stood there like a sovereign looking down upon the world, Qin Wanxiong trembled violently, curling up on the ground like a stray dog!
Chu Tianhe cast an icy gaze down at Qin Wanxiong, his eyes sharp and brimming with murderous intent. He said not a single word, merely clenching his fists tight!
The Twelve Heavenly Fiends could all see that Chu Tianhe was trying his utmost to suppress the surging murderous qi raging within his body!
Had it not been for the blood tie binding Qin Wanxiong to Qin Xiaorou, making him Yaoyao's great-grandfather, Chu Tianhe would have wiped out the entire Qin family clan today!
In the end, Chu Tianhe forced the biting murderous intent down and spoke in a stern voice: "Tianyi!"
"Subordinate is here!"
"Go to the cemetery and tell Zhang Zhenhu to send men to clear the corpses!" Chu Tianhe's voice was utterly freezing. Glancing once more at Qin Wanxiong, he said coldly, "Also, tell Zhang Zhenhu that for my daughter's sake, Chu does not wish to add to his blood debts today. From this day forward, all assets of the Qin family shall be confiscated. Aside from Xiaomeng and her daughter, the entire Qin clan is banished to the bitter frostlands, never to be granted pardon for generations eternal!"
"Understood!"
"Affairs concluded, Heavenly Fiends, fall back!"
With those words finished, Chu Tianhe waved a hand. Acknowledging the command, the Twelve Heavenly Fiends vanished in a flash, disappearing in the span of a breath, leaving only Tianjiu behind him!
With the Heavenly Fiends returning to their respective posts and duties, Tianjiu—who was Chu Tianhe's personal bodyguard by nature—naturally remained by his side. However, a sharp gleam suddenly flashed in Chu Tianhe's eyes; his formidable sensory perception had detected a peculiar presence concealed in the shadows!
"Tianjiu, go back to the hotel first. I have matters to attend to!"
With that, Chu Tianhe waved a hand at Tianjiu, signaling him to leave ahead.
"Understood!"
After Tianjiu departed, Chu Tianhe also moved in a blur, leaving the Qin family villa. Before long, his figure appeared within a secluded alleyway.
"Come out!"
Stopping in his tracks, Chu Tianhe stood with his hands behind his back and spoke abruptly.
"Your subordinate Liu Hongyue greets the Master!"
In an instant, a woman clad in a red qipao materialized behind Chu Tianhe, dropping to one knee with an attitude of utmost respect!
"Since you've already come to Jiangzhou, I suppose the people in the other Six Halls must know what's happening here by now, right?"
Due to the rise of ancient martial arts, the current global landscape had shifted dramatically, giving rise to seven major halls across the world. Each occupied its own territory, keeping one another in check and forming a tripartite balance—and the Pantheon was one of these Seven Halls!
Liu Hongyue belonged to the Xinghe Hall, one of the Seven Halls. Her surface identity was that of one of the ten great combat generals under Master Xinghe, but her true identity was that of an undercover agent planted by Chu Tianhe right inside Xinghe Hall!
"Yes!" Liu Hongyue hurriedly replied, "The Six Halls have already made their moves. My coming here this time was also due to an arrangement by the Six Halls to execute a special mission. The target of this mission... the target is you, Master!"
Chapter 20
"What mission did they give you?" Chu Tianhe's expression darkened. He turned around, his gaze falling slowly upon Liu Hongyue.
Liu Hongyue knelt on one knee, the tight qipao outlining her perfect figure to absolute perfection. Damp strands of raven-hued hair fell casually across her shoulders, and her long, slender, jade-white calves were half-visible. Lowering her head slightly, she wore a look of mild hesitation upon her exquisite face.
"Hongyue, you needn't hold back. Whatever the matter is, speak your mind. Chu will not vent his anger upon you."
Seemingly noticing Liu Hongyue's hesitation, Chu Tianhe added another sentence.
"Master, they ordered me to come and warn you—they said not to forget about the War of the Seven Kings."
Liu Hongyue spoke with extreme caution. Although she knew Chu Tianhe wouldn't punish her for her words, uttering those four words—the War of the Seven Kings—still filled her with immense tension, for those four words were the ultimate taboo in Chu Tianhe's heart!
"Hah!"
Sure enough, the moment Liu Hongyue spoke the words "War of the Seven Kings," the murderous qi within Chu Tianhe's body violently burst forth of its own accord!
The War of the Seven Kings had taken place twenty years ago!
At that time, the Master of the Pantheon was Chu Tianhe's father, Chu Yunlong, known as the Hegemon Chu. Back then, the Pantheon stood as the head of the Seven Halls, wielding the greatest strength. Had it been allowed to continue growing, it would inevitably have shattered the delicate balance of mutual restraint among the Seven Halls!
Consequently, the Pantheon became a thorn in the side and a bone in the throat for the other Six Halls. The six halls united in an attempt to force Chu Yunlong to disband the Pantheon!
As a generation's supreme overlord, Chu Yunlong naturally wouldn't sit and wait for death. Without a moment's hesitation or a shred of compromise, he went straight to war. Joining forces with his beloved wife, Long Ruoxue, he led the Pantheon's forces and, with the might of a single hall, fought fiercely against the Six Halls. They slaughtered for a full three months; over a hundred elite masters of the Seven Halls died, rivers of blood flowed for dozens of miles, corpses littered the wilderness, and ten thousand miles of mountains and rivers were draped in crimson!
In the end, Chu Yunlong died in battle, and Long Ruoxue's whereabouts became unknown, her life or death a mystery. Five of the hall masters died at Chu Yunlong's hands, with only the master of Xinghe Hall retreating heavily wounded!
The War of the Seven Kings had cost the Chu family a devastating price. Such a deep, blood-stained vendetta was etched into Chu Tianhe's mind every second of the day—it was the most untouchable taboo in his heart!
"Go on!" Forcing down the murderous qi in his heart, Chu Tianhe spoke in an icy tone, "Since the Six Halls dare to bring up past events before Chu once more, I assume things aren't that simple, right?!"
"Aren't they afraid that Chu will stir up another tempest and replay the War of the Seven Kings?"
"They are afraid!" Kneeling on one knee, Liu Hongyue hurriedly answered, "That's why they didn't dare to make a rash move against you directly, Master!"
At this point, a complex look flashed across Liu Hongyue's eyes. Her beautiful eyes shifting, she looked up at Chu Tianhe and asked, "Master, please forgive your subordinate's impudence, but I must ask you a question."
"Ask!" Chu Tianhe knew this wasn't Liu Hongyue asking of her own accord, but rather the masters of the Six Halls wishing to inquire.
"May I ask, Master, have you truly decided to conceal your identity, live in seclusion in Jiangzhou, and raise the little mistress?" After hesitating repeatedly, Liu Hongyue finally managed to voice the question.
"And if I have?" Chu Tianhe furrowed his brow, asking in a deep voice.
Liu Hongyue's expression shifted drastically, and her delicate frame gave a slight shiver as she spoke, "Master, you know as well as that for all these years, the Six Halls have kept a close eye on your movements. Now that you've suddenly returned to Jiangzhou without a trace, slipping away from their surveillance, they are naturally panicked and bound to take action!"
"What kind of action?"
"Please look, Master." With that, Liu Hongyue pulled out a photograph of a little girl, handed it to Chu Tianhe, and said, "This is the task they assigned to your subordinate!"
"They want to touch Chu's daughter?!"
At the sight of his daughter's photograph, Chu Tianhe's pupils suddenly constricted violently. A monstrous wave of murderous intent surged straight up into the heavens, stunning even Liu Hongyue, who knelt before him. A chill shot straight up her spine, and cold sweat instantly beaded across her forehead!
Chapter 21
Sensing the overwhelming killing intent radiating from Chu Tianhe, Liu Hongyue wore a grim expression as she spoke, "A person, no matter how formidable their strength, once they have a weakness, can be kept in check through leverage. That was true for Chu Yunlong back then, and it is true for Chu Tianhe today. This little girl is Chu Tianhe's weakness!"
"Are those the exact words of the Six Hall Masters?" Chu Tianhe demanded sternly.
"Yes!" Liu Hongyue nodded hurriedly, continuing, "The Six Halls deliberated together: if the Master insists on going his own way, breaking away from their surveillance and living in seclusion here in Jiangzhou, it is not entirely impossible!"
"Only... you must wear this item. At the same time... I am to remain in Jiangzhou City as the eyes and ears of the Six Halls, monitoring your every move, Master, and reporting back in real time."
As she spoke, Liu Hongyue handed a wooden box to Chu Tianhe. Inside lay an ancient martial restriction cuff forged from titanium alloy—its effects far stronger than ordinary martial cuffs, and extremely difficult to destroy!
This was the method the Six Halls intended to use to keep Chu Tianhe on a leash!
"If Chu refuses, are they planning to make a move against Chu's daughter?"
Gazing at the titanium-alloy ancient martial restriction cuff resting in the wooden box, Chu Tianhe furrowed his brow, his expression sinking into gloom!
"If the Master refuses, please summon all the Pantheon combat generals immediately to protect the little mistress while preparing for war against the Six Halls to restart the War of the Seven Kings. As for me, Hongyue will return to Xinghe Hall to assassinate the Xinghe Hall Master and lend the Master a helping hand!"
Seemingly anticipating Chu Tianhe's decision, Liu Hongyue wore a resolute expression, having long since prepared herself to die, her eyes filled with a fierce intent to kill!
If Chu Tianhe refused to wear this cuff, Liu Hongyue would have no choice but to carry out the Xinghe Hall Master's order and kill Chu Tianhe's daughter to report back on her mission. Otherwise, with no way to account for her actions, her identity would inevitably be exposed and discovered by the Xinghe Hall Master!
Yet Liu Hongyue would never betray Chu Tianhe, let alone harm his daughter!
"Xinghe Hall's defenses are heavily fortified, and the Hall Master's combat prowess is immense—perhaps even surpassing my own. Your chances of success in an assassination are virtually zero. Even if by some miracle you succeeded, you would never make it out alive. Death would be certain!"
Looking down at Liu Hongyue kneeling before him, a complex look flickered in Chu Tianhe's eyes. Liu Hongyue was an undercover operative he had planted in Xinghe Hall; how could he not know the perils of her position?
Perhaps the moment Liu Hongyue accepted this mission, she had already resolved herself to die. Choosing to assassinate the Xinghe Hall Master was simply her way of making her death more meaningful—she wanted to trade her own life for a preemptive strike in the war!
"From the very moment Hongyue chose to follow the Master, this life belonged to the Master. To be able to serve the Master is Hongyue's greatest wish. What does death matter? Hongyue has no regrets!"
Liu Hongyue had made up her mind long ago. Even if the assassination failed, if she could inflict even a few injuries on the Xinghe Hall Master and lighten Chu Tianhe's burden, it would be worth it!
"Hongyue, how many years have you followed Chu?"
"Reporting to the Master, more than four years!"
"Then have you ever seen me disregard the lives of my brothers and let my men die for my own affairs?" Chu Tianhe let out a soft sigh and asked in return.
"Never!" Liu Hongyue's delicate frame trembled, her eye sockets flushing slightly.
Liu Hongyue knew very well what kind of person Chu Tianhe was. This man stood tall and proud as heaven, always putting loyalty and righteousness above all else. Forcing his brothers to throw away their lives for him was something Chu Tianhe would never do!
"If I rule the world, I shall share its glory with you all! If I am damned to eternal destruction, I shall walk the path to the netherworld with you all!" Looking at Liu Hongyue, Chu Tianhe said, "This was the oath I swore when I founded the Pantheon. Liu Hongyue, engrave those words deep in your heart!"
"In the Pantheon, there are no ranks of high and low. Your life is no different from mine, Chu Tianhe—we live as one, and we die as one!"
Chapter 22
"Hongyue will remember it always!" Her eyes reddening, Liu Hongyue nodded silently.
"Click!"
Just as Liu Hongyue hung her head in silence, a crisp click suddenly rang out. Startled, Liu Hongyue jerked her head up to look at Chu Tianhe, only to discover in shock that he had already fastened the ancient martial restriction cuff around his wrist!
"Beep, beep, beep..." Instantly, a red light flashed on the martial cuff as it took effect. Ninety percent of the ancient martial qi within Chu Tianhe's body was suppressed in a single breath!
"Master, you..."
Liu Hongyue froze. She had already resolved herself to die, yet she never imagined Chu Tianhe would actually put on the cuff!
"Now is not yet the time to go to war with the Six Halls!" Chu Tianhe patted Liu Hongyue's shoulder, signaling her to stand, and said, "All these years, you've remained undercover in Xinghe Hall. One wrong step means eternal damnation, surrounded by peril on all sides—it hasn't been easy for you. Chu will never let you lose your life over this matter!"
"Master..." Liu Hongyue finally couldn't hold it back any longer as tears silently tracked down her cheeks. So all her sacrifices were known to Chu Tianhe after all; the Master had always been mindful of her perilous situation!
"It is Hongyue's incompetence that I cannot share the Master's burdens."
"You've done all you could; there's no need to blame yourself!" Chu Tianhe offered a faint smile, shaking his head as he asked, "That matter I asked you to investigate—have you found out the truth?"
When the War of the Seven Kings came to a close, the Pantheon collapsed, and all the Seven Halls suffered heavy losses, plunging into a decline from which they struggled to recover—all except Xinghe Hall, whose strength surged explosively, catapulting it to the head of the Seven Halls!
There had to be something fishy about that!
"Master, it has been verified. Just as you deduced, the mastermind who provoked the War of the Seven Kings back then was none other than the Master of Xinghe Hall!"
Liu Hongyue quickly replied. Then, a chilling gleam flashed in her eyes, laden with intense hatred as she continued, "Not only that, but twelve years ago, when Elder Ye was ambushed, his legs crippled, and his eyes blinded—that, too, was the work of the Xinghe Hall Master's men!"
"It's just that they carried it out with such extreme secrecy that your subordinate only managed to verify it yesterday!"
"It really was him!" The murderous qi within Chu Tianhe surged violently, his eyes bloodshot as intense killing intent and supreme fury flooded his mind instantly: "Chu has long suspected him, but I never imagined that even Elder Ye's affair was their doing!"
After the War of the Seven Kings, the old steward of the Chu family took on the heavy burden during that crisis. On one hand, he had safely spirited away Chu Tianhe—who was still swaddled in infancy—thus preserving the Chu family's bloodline; on the other hand, he had secretly contacted the remnants of the Pantheon, plotting a resurgence!
And this old steward, who had given his all for the Chu family, was none other than Ye Qingxuan, the Daoist Master of Shadow—one of the twin gods of Shadow and Moon, who stood alongside Yue Linglong under Chu Tianhe's command!
"Master, what should Hongyue do next? Please give your instructions!"
"Since they want to play games of cunning with Chu, then Chu shall teach them what it means to wage war through devious unorthodoxies!"
A chilling, wintry light flashed in Chu Tianhe's eyes as he spoke coldly: "Return to report your success, and tell the people of the Six Halls that Chu has put on the cuff. For the coming period, I shall remain by my daughter's side living the life of an ordinary person!"
"Also, notify Elder Ye and tell him he may initiate the Death God Project!"
"Within three years, Chu shall slaughter the Six Halls down to the last soul!"