First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1879 - I Cannot Play Favorites

Chapter 1879 - I Cannot Play Favorites

A ritual ground halfway up Golden Billows Immortal Mountain.

“I gave you face, but you rejected it!”

Whap!

A tall, stalwart man ruthlessly slapped Ning Cui across the face, sending her rolling across the ground. Her cheek swelled, and her eyes filled with terror and fury.

“Ning Cui, you were once Tang Bao’er’s personal attendant, and everyone had to treat you with respect, but now, you’re nothing but a useless servant girl. How dare you argue with me? Do you realize that no one would stand up for you even if I crippled you?”

The tall, stalwart man walked over, a sinister look on his face, and kicked her in the gut. Ning Cui cried out in agony, and her delicate frame curled up. Her pretty face paled, and beads of cold sweat formed on her forehead.

Some of those gathered around the ritual grounds watched with sadistic glee, while others couldn’t bear to watch.

But no one stepped forth to intervene, because that tall, stalwart man was the grand elder’s fourth son, Tang Yungui. He was a tyrannical, violent hooligan.

Ning Cui was Tang Bao’er’s personal attendant, and they were as close as sisters. Her status was naturally extraordinary. Yet technically, she was a servant, and that showed right now. No one would say anything, not even if Tang Yungui beat her to death.

“Kowtow and apologize to me. Hurry!” Tang Yungui said with a hideous grin. “Refuse, and I’ll cripple you and throw you to the Tang Family’s lowliest servants as a plaything to vent their lusts!”

Ning Cui raised her head with great difficulty and gnashed her teeth. “Tang Yungui, you’ll pay for this!”

“You’re courting death!” Tang Yungui’s eyes glinted with ferocity, and he walked up and raised his foot to stomp on her.

Chills coursed through the crowd’s hearts. He was using so much force that when his foot landed, it would crush Ning Cui’s delicate frame into a meaty pulp!

But then, a delicate figure appeared out of nowhere and swung her palm.

Bang!!!

Tang Yungui was sent flying back, and he slammed into the ritual ground’s walls.

The crowd was stunned. Only now did they realize that it was Seventh Elder Tang Yuyan who’d attacked!

Practically simultaneously, they saw that the family head’s daughter, Tang Bao’er, was here too. She immediately rushed to Ning Cui’s side and helped her to her feet.

“Ning Cui, are you alright?” said Tang Bao’er, her face fraught with worry.

Ning Cui looked dazed. “Young Mistress?”

It seemed she found this hard to believe.

When Tang Bao’er saw Ning Cui’s wounds, her face frosted over, and fury burned in her chest. “Don’t be afraid. I’ll get even for you!”

Ning Cui was her attendant, but they’d grown up together, and they were as close as sisters. Seeing her humiliated and trampled like this completely enraged Tang Bao’er.

“Young Mistress, don’t——!” Ning Cui shrieked and grabbed Tang Bao’er’s hand. “Just listen to me. You have to run! Hurry up and run!”

Tang Bao’er was stunned. Tang Yuyan furrowed his brow.

“Run? There’s no way in hell!” Tang Yungui crawled to his feet and swept his gaze across Tang Yuyan and Tang Bao’er. “You’ve sinned against the Tang Family, and you both must pay!”

Sinned against the Tang Family? Tang Bao’er and Tang Yuyan increasingly felt that something wasn’t right here.

Tang Yungui, meanwhile, roared to the onlookers. “Don’t just stand there! Hurry up and call for reinforcements.”

His voice shook the entire area. The crowd instantly scattered and got to work.

Tang Yuyan was about to stop them when a calm voice said, “Let them go. This place is nice and spacious, and the scenery’s pleasant, too. It’s as good a place as any to excise your clan’s festering tumors.”

Tang Yuyan sighed to herself, then nodded.

It was then that Tang Yungui noticed the speaker, a tall, thin young man in blue. He stood at the entrance to the ritual grounds, and he was staring at a peach tree rooted in the mountainside.

The peach blossoms were red as fire, and fiery light emanated from them. They were extraordinarily colorful.

The young man just stood there, hands behind his back. A gourd of wine hung from his waist. He looked leisurely and relaxed.

Tang Yungui furrowed his brow and said gravely, “Who are you? How dare you trespass...”

Before he could finish speaking, Su Yi turned to look at him. A moment later, Tang Yungui’s knees buckled, and his head hit the ground. An invisible suppression overcame his entire body, to the point that he couldn’t even speak. His face paled with horror.

“I’ll have him kneel there for now. We can decide whether he lives or dies once we have more information. That fine with you?” whispered Su Yi.

Tang Yuyan nodded.

Meanwhile, Tang Bao’er had learned some of the truth from Ning Cui!

Three days prior, disaster befell the ancient Tang Family. The Church of the Pure One sent nine of its Immortal Kings, plus two divine emissaries with mysterious origins, to force the Tang Family to lower its head in submission!

Otherwise, they’d kill until the Tang Family was forced to submit!

Over the past month, the Tang Family had received no reinforcements, and they’d been beset by endless trouble. Their situation was dire.

In the face of this threat, many of the clan’s older-generation experts had decided to submit. However, Family Head Tang Duyun, High Elder Tang Jinhong, and Grand Elder Tang Lingqi were staunchly opposed. Family Head Tang Duyun had even announced that it was better to die with dignity than survive in disgrace!

This thoroughly enraged the Church of the Pure One, and it displeased many of the Tang Family’s older-generation experts.

One of the clan’s Great Martial Stage old-timers, Tang Yuejin, was startled out of seclusion. When he learned of the Tang Family’s predicament, he didn’t hesitate to strip Family Head Tang Duyun of his position. Even Tang Jinhong, Tang Lingqi, and the others were suppressed and arrested!

Tang Yuejin then made arrangements for the entire Tang Family to submit to the Church of the Pure One.

Those members of the Tang Family opposed to submitting to the Church of the Pure One, including Family Head Tang Duyun, were now seen as sinners against the clan. They and their immediate families had all been imprisoned.

Tang Yuyan and Tang Bao’er finally understood. However, the truth made them feel as if they’d been struck by lightning, and they found it difficult to respect. No wonder the guards treated them that way upon their return. The family had changed leadership in their absence, and they were now seen as traitors!

After hearing the full story, Su Yi realized that these developments in the Tang Family were likely connected to the two divine emissaries who’d come with the Church of the Pure One’s forces.

But before he could give the matter any further thought, a group whooshed over from afar with fierce momentum. There were over a hundred of them in total.

All were influential members of the Tang Family.

Their leader was a thin old man in purple.

“Yungui, what’s going on?” When the old man saw that Tang Yungui had been forced to his knees, his wrinkled face was instantly incomparably unsightly.

Tang Yungui knelt there, unmoving, unable to even speak. It was as if he’d turned into a statue.

“Your Excellency, that’s High Elder Tang Jinfeng!” Tang Yuyan hurriedly introduced the old man.

“Mm,” said Su Yi distractedly as he picked a branch of peach blossoms. It was about a foot long, and it flashed with crystalline luster.

“Who did this?” The purple-robed Grand Elder Tang Jinfeng’s eyes flashed with sinister light as he swept his gaze across Tang Yuyan and Tang Bao’er. When he saw Su Yi standing beside the peach tree, his brow furrowed. Who is that?

It was no wonder he didn’t recognize Su Yi. When Su Yi visited the Tang Family, he’d been in disguise, and he’d adopted the pseudonym “Shen Mu.”

This time, Su Yi’s true appearance was on display.

“That would be me,” said Su Yi. He gripped the branch and sauntered over, then said to Tang Bao’er and Tang Yuyan, “Leave the rest to me. All you have to do is stand back and watch.”

Tang Yuyan’s heart clenched with fear that Su Yi would launch a massacre. “Your Excellency, no matter what, these are our clansmen. Even if they submitted, they did so under duress, and...”

Before she could finish, Su Yi nodded. “Relax. Submitting or not was their choice. I won’t lose my temper over that.”

“Elder Yuyan, who is this? Did you bring him here?” Grand Elder Tang Jinfeng frowned and said gravely.

“It doesn’t matter who I am,” said Su Yi. He walked over to the ritual grounds, then swept his gaze across the Tang Family higher-ups. “What matters is that if you cooperate, you might well get out of this alive.”

The Tang Family higher-ups were stunned. They almost dared not believe their ears.

“Throwing your weight around in Tang Family territory? How impudent!” A dark-robed man was so angry that he laughed.

“Impudent?” Su Yi laughed too. “I’ll show you impudence.”

He then raised the peach tree branch into the air and tapped.

His movements were so gentle that not one of the petals fell to the ground, but off in the distance, the man in ink-black robes plummeted from the sky and slammed into the dirt, crying out in agony.

The crowd was stunned, and all of them were furious.

“Don’t you think attacking someone so lightly is over the line?” someone roared.

Bang!

Before his voice had even finished echoing through the air, he staggered back and slammed to the ground, hard. Try as he might, he couldn’t get back up.

This time, the crowd finally realized how terrifying their opponent was. All of them circulated their cultivation bases, drew their treasures, and readied themselves for battle. But Su Yi wasn’t just going to let up.

He thought for a moment, then nodded. “You are correct. I attacked one of you, and I naturally cannot show any favoritism. That would be over the line.”

He waved his sleeve through the air, and...

Boom!

The entire stretch of sky shook, and terrifying pressure descended from the heavens. Tang Jinhong and every expert following him fell from the sky like dumplings and slammed to the ground, sprawled out on their stomachs. Cries of pain rose and fell in waves.

It was a wondrous spectacle, and a ridiculous one too. They’d come in with such fierce bluster, only to fall flat on their face in the blink of an eye. They looked completely wretched!

The ordinary Tang clansmen who’d been drawn here by all the commotion were completely dumbstruck.

Just who is this guy? How could he be so terrifying?

Only Tang Yuyan and Tang Bao’er knew that the Sovereign had shown mercy. Otherwise, everyone here would have already died without so much as an intact corpse!

Meanwhile, Su Yi took out his wicker chair and sprawled out, still holding the branch.

“I know you still aren’t willing to admit defeat. Go ahead and call for help. Call Tang Yuejin over too and save me some trouble. It won’t be too late to talk after everyone’s arrived,” said Su Yi.

His tone was casual, and his voice wasn’t at all loud, but it resounded clearly throughout the area, suppressing those agonized cries and muffled grunts.

The atmosphere was instantly stifled and oppressive, to the point that the crowd could barely breathe.

Everyone was overcome with astonishment.