Chapter 679: White Cloud City
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The devastation of the Ning Clan caused a huge uproar in no time. The eastern region of the Barren State was the first that had caught wind of the news. All top forces were utterly shocked. It was said that the King of Taihang Mountain, that violent king of the Golden Great Apes, brought his forces of demon ape down Taihang Mountain down on the Ning clan. They swiftly destroyed the Clan with the king himself stepping onto Ning Yuan. All of their sages were killed.
The unrest occurred with the Ning Clan soon after people infiltrated their ranks to rob them. The once renowned Ning Clan was reduced to history. The few survivors ran for their lives, with some going to Ning Xian in the Holy Zhi Palace, hoping to have Ning Xian avenge the clan.
There was news saying that the very reason why the forces on Taihang Mountain went to destroy the Ning clan was because the Clan sent sages to assassinate Ye Futian, not because of Yuan Zhan. Ye Futian was apparently on friendly terms with Taihang Mountain, and as such, it was hardly a surprise that Yuan Zhan himself was so close with Ye Futian.
Zhuge Qingfeng of the Zhuge family was hardly surprised when he caught wind of the news. When Ye Futian revealed his secret to Zhuge Qingfeng, he mentioned something about the apes. What was unexpected to Zhuge Qingfeng was that Taihang Mountain reacted to the assassination attempt so drastically. Just how high is his status among the apes?
However, the destruction of the Ning Clan was probably more than enough to have whoever was scheming against Ye Futian after he was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace reconsider their plans and stop pulling off such attempts easily.
The Gongsun Clan was the next one to be terrified. When the news reached the Holy Zhi Palace, many were shocked. No one expected Taihang Mountain forces to be the one to act in Ye Futian’s favor.
In one of the palaces in Tianxing Pavilion, Ning Xian shattered a stone chair near him. His expression was a very, very ugly one. His veins popped and he looked ferocious, losing all the bearing a sage level figure should have had.
He just received the news that Ning Clan was no more. That was his family. Even though the Ning clan had fallen on hard times, it was still his roots. The people of the Ning Clan shared blood ties with him. His heart bled hearing that Ning Clan was crushed by Taihang Mountain.
“Yuan Hong, you have gone too far!” Ning Xian yelled with intense anger. He wanted little more than to invade Taihang Mountain right there and then. However, Yuan Hong was a mighty one ranked 18th on the Law Rank. Despite being an elder of Tianxing Pavilion, Ning Xian was no match for Yuan Hong. He and the Main Palace Lord aside, the only people throughout the entire Holy Zhi Palace capable of fighting Yuan Hong were Liu Chan, the Assistant Palace Lord, and Sage Douzhan, the Lord of Battle Sage Palace.
Sage Douzhan had been Ye Futian’s teacher. There was no way he would have avenged Ning Xian as he was busy finding out who had gone after Ye Futian’s head. Only Liu Chan, the Assistant Palace Lord, would be able to avenge Ning Xian since even the Lord of Tianxing Pavilion would not be able to do so. However, the Holy Zhi Palace never got themselves involved with outside conflicts, and Liu Chan would not have fought on behalf of Ning Clan.
Ning Xian stood up and walked, heading to Holy Sage Pavilion. Liu Chan had, of course, caught wind of the news. When Ning Xian made it to the Holy Sage Pavilion, he found the Lords of Tianxing Pavilion and Battle Sage Palace present as well.
His expression changed for a bit, bowing to everyone there and then turning his eyes at Liu Chan, saying, “Assistant Palace Lord, that demon beast in Taihang Mountain was inhumanely violent. He went on to wage bloody wars when he first came to the Barren State. It was entirely unexpected that his violent nature remained for all these years, slaughtering the entire Ning Clan. Despite being amongst humans for so long, they were still devoid of humaneness. I suggest that you call upon all forces of the Barren State to destroy Taihang Mountain in order to be rid of this menace once and for all.”
Liu Chan looked at him for quite a bit and said, “Ning Xian, were you the one behind what happened outside the Thousand Holy Islands?”
Sage Douzhan glared at him with equally cold eyes. Ning Xian felt immense pressure coming his way all of a sudden. He had not expected Sage Douzhan to have gotten there before him.
“I only knew of what happened and I took part in nothing. Ye Futian was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, and as such, I paid no heed to his affairs.” There was no way Ning Xian would have admitted his role in anything.
“Ning Yuen returned to the Holy Zhi Palace before the assassination attempt and he went to the Gongsun Clan. Don’t tell me that it was something Ning Yuen decided to do himself,” Sage Douzhan said coldly. A tinge of authority was heard from his voice. “Even if Ye Futian was no longer part of the Holy Zhi Palace, he was still my student. You dared plan to assassinate him as soon as he stepped foot outside the Holy Zhi Palace? And worse still, you planned this for a while, haven’t you?”
“Lord Douzhan, please do not accuse me of something I did not do. Furthermore, Ye Futian turned his back on the will of the Holy Zhi Palace and even opposed the stance of the Holy Zhi Palace. That was why he was expelled, and he no longer had anything to do with the Holy Zhi Palace nor the Battle Sage Palace. Is what you said coming from your personal standpoint or that of the Holy Zhi Palace’s? If it is something personal, I would say this much: I’m not your match. If the words were spoken from the standpoint of the Holy Zhi Palace, I do not see myself to be guilty,” Ning Xian said coldly.
He came for two specific goals: to accuse and to save his own skin.
“Tianxing, what do you say?” Sage Douzhan did not bother with Ning Xian and went to ask Sage Tianxing instead. The Lord of Tianxing Pavilion was in charge of the laws, and such matters were within his jurisdiction. However, Ning Xian was an elder of the Tianxing Pavilion.
“Ning Xian did not say anything wrong. Ye Futian was expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace, and as such, he had nothing more to do with the Holy Zhi Palace. It was something personal, and from the Holy Zhi Palace’s standpoint, we have no right to deal with Ning Xian. Of course, the case of Taihang Mountain avenging Ye Futian is something that the Holy Zhi Palace will also not get involved with. However, the demonic beasts in Taihang Mountain have indeed gone too far by slaughtering the entire Ning Clan. If other forces were to imitate their way of doing things, the Barren State will be caught in a bloody storm in no time,” Sage Tianxing elaborated.
Liu Chan looked at the people before him calmly and said, “None of this has anything to do with the Holy Zhi Palace itself. Period. Ning Xian, if you decide to seek vengeance, do it in an open manner and put your life on the line. The Holy Zhi Palace will not get involved with your personal vendetta. You being alive or dead will have nothing to do with the Holy Zhi Palace.”
“Indeed, Assistant Palace Lord.” Ning Xian nodded while cursing under his breath. It had indeed been impossible to convince Liu Chan to move against Taihang Mountain, and he had been lucky to be able to save his own skin.
Sage Douzhan glanced at Ning Xian with cold eyes and said, “Ye Futian and Yu Sheng were expelled from the Holy Zhi Palace. While this had nothing to with the Holy Zhi Palace in principle, they were still marked for death as soon as they left the place. The Holy Zhi Palace is sacred ground in the Barren State. What would that have done to our reputation? If something like this happens again, do not blame me for ignoring my position at the Holy Zhi Palace and take things personally.” Sage Douzhan turned around and left as soon as he was done talking. His stout frame made every single step he took clear, exuding an overbearing air. Ning Xian looked at his back and felt really bad.
“Ning Xian, take care of yourself,” Liu Chan glanced at Ning Xian plainly and said. It was apparent that he found what Ning Xian did to be displeasing, but he did not pursue the matter further.
…
White Cloud City was one of the two cities in the western region of the Barren State with similar renown to Alchemy City. It had always been one of the top forces in all of the Barren State. Mighty ones prowled the streets of that magnificent, grand city and the place was an incredibly prosperous one.
Golden light showered from above right outside the city itself. Many looked up and felt their hearts jumping out of their chests. The lights came from one golden great ape after another. They were huge and they looked as if they were made of gold.
It had not long ago that there was news from the eastern region, saying that the Ning Clan had been slaughtered by a bunch of demonic creatures from Taihang Mountain. The same golden great apes had now made it to White Cloud City, and everyone knew what they came from. However, the Gongsun Clan had submitted to White Cloud City, yet Taihang Mountain forces still dared to come with impunity. It was seen to be an act of utmost insolence.
“Quick, inform the City Lord,” the guards outside the city said. It was a matter of utmost seriousness. Yuan Hong had come all the way from Taihang Mountain, and no one other than Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City, would have been able to stand against Yuan Hong.
A vast, regal, and luxurious estate had just been finished within White Cloud City. The place served as the residence of the Gongsun Clan. However, members of the Gongsun family felt troubled and the reason was an obvious one. The news of the Ning Clan being totally destroyed was simply too shocking. They had thought the assassination attempt was something no one would dare to do or able to interfere with. They never expected Taihang Mountain forces to bring their might to bear on them, crushing the Ning Clan to stand up for Ye Futian. As Taihang Mountain dared move against Ning Clan, it was a given that they dared move against Gongsun Clan.
There were two people playing chess in the vast estate. One of them being Gongsun Jing, the clan leader of the Gongsun Clan, while the other was a top-notch mighty one renowned in White Cloud City, Yun Hao, clan leader of Yun Clan. While White Cloud City was ruled by Bai Clan, in actuality, many of the affairs in the city were taken care of by the Yun Clan. Yun Hao was a force to be reckoned with in White Cloud City. He was a mighty one ranked on the Barren Sky Ranking at 98th place.
“Relax, Brother Gongsun. White Cloud City is not the Ning Clan. Since you are here in White Cloud City, Yuan Hong will not dare to just kill his way into White Cloud City. This place still the turf of the City Lord, after all,” Yun Hao said to Gongsun Jing openly, with a loud brimming voice.
“Right.” Gongsun Jing nodded, but he still could not help but worried about things.
Boom. The earth shook violently for a brief moment. Yun Hao frowned while Gongsun Jing was immediately and extremely distressed.
Boom, boom! There seemed to be something like an earthquake happening as the shaking continued. Both of them spread their spiritual will out far and wide, and both of them went pale soon after. Yun Hao looked distressed and embarrassed while Gongsun Jing stood up and gave an order with a loud voice, “Everyone retreat.”
Yuan Hong had actually come for them.
“Gongsun Ling, go get the City Lord!” he continued to shout. With the precedence of the Ning clan serving as a warning, he knew too well that Yuan Hong was not doing what he did then for amusement. He was there to crush his clan, and there was no way he was able to keep calm.
“Brother Gongsun, there is no need to be fettered,” Yun Hao said as he stood up. His expression was cold as he stepped outside and glared at the demon apes coming from afar. He then yelled at them, “Yuan Hong, this is White Cloud City. What the hell do you think you are doing?”
Bai Gu, the City Lord of White Cloud City, was ranked fourth on the Barren Sky Rank. Of the three ranked before him, one was his teacher, one was his senior, and one was in the Ice Temple. That meant that there was hardly anyone who dared piss off the City Lord of White Cloud City in the entire Barren State. What Yuan Hong did right there, trampling all the way from Taihang Mountain, was seen to be insolence of the highest order.
Boom, boom! The earth continued shaking as one golden great ape after another showed up. There were some among them who split up, intending to surround the Gongsun clan estate.
“Get lost.” Yuan Hong glared at Yun Hao with his huge golden eyes in a condescending manner. The one ranked last on Barren Sky Ranking had no place talking to him!