The atmosphere was thick with unease.
At this moment, the Ye family compound was deathly silent; every eye fixed on that mysterious old man.
His gaze was cloudy, his arm slightly raised. With just two fingers, he effortlessly pinched the wooden sword engulfed in black sword qi.
Ye Qiubai's expression grew grave as well, his wooden sword pressed forward once more, releasing waves of demonic qi!
Nine Heavenly Demon Sword.
The third move!
Ye Qiubai had now broken through to the Purple Mansion Realm; his power was now nothing like before.
And yet, those fingers of the old man trapped him, utterly unyielding!
The old man sighed: "Stop trying. You're not my match."
With that, he lightly flicked his palm—and to Ye Qiubai, it was like a bolt from the blue. He was sent hurtling backward!
Ye Qing's face was grave; he stepped in front of Ye Qiubai and looked toward the old man, his voice low and steady: "Ancestor."
Great Elder Ye Ling, Ye Yan, and the other Ye family elders also straightened, faces respectful, and bowed: "Greetings, Ancestor."
Indeed, this old man was the Ye family's Ancestor, and the strongest among them to this day.
Ye Qiubai was taken aback by these words. While he'd heard tales of the Ancestor, he had never seen him before.
The stories always said the Ancestor remained in seclusion, striving to break his limits!
The Ye family's Ancestor looked at Ye Qiubai, speaking slowly: "You've killed an elder, vented your anger enough—let it end here."
His tone was detached, yet it did not allow for debate!
Ye Qing's face tightened.
He realized the Ancestor was favoring Ye Ling's faction!
Ye Qiubai's expression did not change. He answered coldly: "Oh? So, it's fine for him to kill me, but not for me to kill him?"
The Ancestor's tone deepened, a hidden implication in his words: "You're of the Ye family; the bigger picture must always come first."
"Oh? Ye Yan's talent can't compare, his strength comes up short…"
He glanced at Ye Yan, who had shrunk back with terror written all over his face, and couldn't help but sneer: "Even his courage is lacking.
So, why preserve him at my expense for the sake of the Ye family's grand cause?"
The Ancestor spared a glance at Ye Yan and sighed: "On that point I agree; whether it's talent, strength, or character, you are flawless as successor…
But, your feud with the Sunset Dynasty can't be ignored. Thus, we have to accept something less."
"Moreover, your sense of belonging to the Ye family is weak."
Ye Qiubai's gaze was icy.
Before, he would've died for the Ye family.
But now, after all that he had endured,
whether the Ye family thrived or perished, flourished or withered—
it meant nothing to Ye Qiubai anymore.
"So, for the Ye family's sake, I'm forced to wrong you."
"What if I insist on killing him today?"
The Ancestor's clouded eyes snapped open.
An overwhelming pressure crashed toward Ye Qiubai—resistance was impossible!
To the Ancestor, Ye Qiubai was merely an unripe genius.
If he obeyed, he might be allowed to stay alive.
But, should he defy—then the Ancestor would strike him down without mercy!
Ye Qing's expression shifted; in a flash, he planted himself in front of Ye Qiubai, hands thrust out to intercept the crushing force.
But with Ye Qing's current cultivation, just fending off that aura took everything he had.
"Qiubai, go! Return to the Hidden Dao Academy."
Before Ye Qiubai could reply, the Ancestor's voice rang cold: "You've already made your move—how can I let the tiger escape back to the mountain?"
If Ye Qiubai made it back to the Hidden Dao Academy—
not even the Ancestor could guarantee killing him inside those walls!
After all, the Academy's Headmaster Qin Tiannan, ranked twenty-sixth on the Ranking Of The Four Regions,
while he himself couldn't even make it onto the list.
He was certainly no match for Qin Tiannan.
And one day, once Ye Qiubai's strength exceeded even his own—
then truly, the Ye family would face ruin!
The Ancestor saw this clearly. Without hesitation, his body flickered and he charged straight toward Ye Qiubai!
Ye Qing clenched his jaw and met him head-on!
Ye Qiubai, however, had no thought of retreating. His expression hardened as he drew out a venerable longsword.
The blade remained sheathed in its scabbard.
Yet already, strands of sword intent began to rise from within!
The Green Cloud Sword!
This was the sword Lu Chang'sheng once gifted Ye Qiubai—though, at the time, Ye Qiubai couldn't hope to control it.
But now, grasping the sword intent and with his cultivation advanced—could he finally draw it and strike?
The Ancestor's strength was overwhelming, and his danger sense keen as ever.
Watching Ye Qiubai reveal this sword, the old man instantly sensed a terror that pierced him to the very soul!
"What sword is that?!"
The Ancestor recoiled, voice sharp: "How can this sword possess sword intent?!"
Sword intent had always been a swordsman's own domain.
To find a sword itself radiating sword intent—this was unheard of, even for the Ye family's Ancestor!
Even if a master of weapon refinement from the Southern Region personally forged it, creating sword intent was impossible!
Ye Qiubai gave no reply. He stepped forward, Green Cloud Sword in hand, and prepared to draw it!
Waves of sword intent surged into the air!
Even Ye Qiubai himself found the sword intent radiating from his body, filling the entire Ye family estate!
"Sword intent! You've comprehended sword intent!"
Murder filled the Ancestor's eyes!
Such a young swordsman, grasping sword intent already.
If he was not killed now, the Ye family would be destroyed in the future!
Yet in his heart, he also felt a pang of regret. If one so young, who'd mastered sword intent, remained, how high might the Ye family soar?
No—impossible.
The Sunset Dynasty would never let Ye Qiubai rise!
With that realization, the Ancestor steeled his resolve and thrust a palm out at Ye Qiubai!
The air itself trembled!
The attack carried boundless, suffocating dominance, consuming Ye Qiubai!
It was as though he meant to crush him on the spot!
In the face of this crushing palm, Ye Qiubai neither flinched nor dodged.
One hand gripped the sword's hilt, the other the scabbard, preparing to draw!
With just a sliver of blade revealed, sword intent exploded skyward!
All of Tianyuan City could feel its force!
The edge was so keen, it seemed ready to cleave the world asunder!
Yet even with only a hint of the blade drawn, Ye Qiubai felt that sword intent surging through his body, scouring him from within with unstoppable might.
If he drew it fully, it might shatter him on the spot!
But just the sword intent he'd released now was already enough.
Sword intent swept forth, transforming into arcs of energy that split heaven and earth, slashing directly at the advancing palm imprint!
BOOM!
An explosive sound reverberated through the entire Ye family compound!
The surrounding houses crumbled to dust!
The weaker servants couldn't withstand the shockwave and were flung away like rag dolls!
Meanwhile, that massive palm imprint cracked with a thousand fractures!
At any moment, it could shatter entirely!
The Ancestor's expression twisted; this had been his strongest attack—yet all he could do was barely hold back the sword intent!
The palm print shattered with a roar!
Sword intent, unstoppable, slashed straight at the Ancestor!
The old man shouted, bracing with both hands, blocking the torrent of sword intent.
Yet in that very instant, Ye Qiubai appeared like a wraith by Ye Yan's side, his finger flashing forth!
As Ye Yan's terrified eyes widened, his brow was pierced clean through!
In that moment,
Ye Yan was slain, his very soul dissipated into nothingness!