102: Chapter 102 Ambush

The Ning Family Manor was already in dead silence.

Among the broken walls and ruins, the remaining fires were not yet extinguished, and the charred beams occasionally emitted an unbearable cracking sound, splashing a few sparks.

The air was filled with a thick smell of burning and blood, mixed together, so choking that people could barely open their eyes.

A Shou-generation disciple quickly strode through the corpses covering the ground, knelt on one knee in front of Wang Yaozu, with a hoarse yet crisp voice.

"Reporting to Clan Chief, all three hundred and seventeen members of the Ning Family have been fully counted, and there are not any survivors. The soul lamps of all Ning Family members in the Soul Lamp Hall have been extinguished, and the Family's stockpiles have also been completely burned; there should be no fish that slipped through the net."

Wang Yaozu nodded and exchanged a glance with Wang Chongyang.

The figures of the two men rose simultaneously, separating left and right. The Divine Sense of the Foundation Establishment Stage spread out like flowing mercury, scanning every corner of the Ning Family Manor inch by inch.

Collapsed houses, burned storehouses, withered wells in the backyard, and even underground secret rooms and secret passages—wherever the Divine Sense passed, even a mouse hiding under the rubble had nowhere to hide.

Wang Shouren stood in the courtyard, taking this scene into his eyes, and could not help but harbor a few more calculations in his heart.

He had originally thought this battle was over, but he didn't expect that his father and Sixth Grandpa would still personally re-inspect it with Divine Sense.

Cutting weeds and eradicating roots, leaving no future troubles—these eight words sounded simple, but truly achieving such meticulousness and thoroughness was something he had not considered before.

His own actions were already considered cautious, but compared with these two elders, he still lacked a bit of airtight composure.

After a moment, Wang Chongyang flew back from the end of the ruins and nodded slightly.

Wang Yaozu also returned from the other side and said in a deep voice, "No survivors."

At this moment, a transmission jade talisman at Wang Yaozu's waist suddenly lit up with a dazzling red light, beating frantically without stopping.

He pressed the jade talisman to his glabella, and his expression changed drastically.

"The Family is under attack."

Everyone's gazes converged at the same time.

Wang Yaozu put away the jade talisman, his voice as cold and sharp as a knife.

"Shouren, you take a few people to stay behind, pack up all valuable things completely, and do not even allow a single Spirit Stone to be left for outsiders. Everyone else, follow me to reinforce Lotus Pier."

He turned and swept out several zhang, then suddenly turned back, pulled out several Storage Pouches and two Storage Rings from his bosom, stuffed them into Wang Shouren's hands, and lowered his voice to instruct.

"The Ning Family's accumulation of hundreds of years means the things in the storehouse will not be little. Once filled, send someone to deliver them back to Lotus Pier; there is no need to wait for my command."

Without waiting for Wang Shouren to reply after finishing, his figure had already transformed into a cyan escaping light that soared into the sky, following closely behind or ahead of Wang Chongyang's crimson escaping light, disappearing into the horizon in a flash.

Dozens of Wang Family elites followed closely behind, retreating like a tide from this land full of bloodshed.

The Ning Family Manor, which had been clamorous for most of the night, returned to dead silence, leaving only the crackling sound of remaining fires burning and the light sound of broken tiles under Wang Shouren's feet.

Wang Shouren turned around, his gaze sweeping across the dozen or so people left behind him.

They were all direct descendants of the Wang Family, each stained with blood, yet not a single one was injured.

He distributed the Storage Pouches and Storage Rings in his hands one by one, his voice steady and clear.

"Divide into four groups. One person guards the outer perimeter for vigilance, and the rest split up to go to the storehouse, Scripture Pavilion, Pill Refining Room, and the Clan Chief's residence. All valuable things—whether Spirit Stone, Medicinal Pill, Magical Artifact, Cultivation Technique Jade Slip, spiritual materials, or Ore—must not be left behind. Once the Storage Pouch is filled, pile it in the center of the courtyard to be uniformly sent back to Lotus Pier. After returning, rewards will be distributed according to merit; those who exert more effort will have their Spirit Stones doubled."

The crowd took their orders and left, quickly moving out the boxed Spirit Stones from the Ning Family storehouse, the mountain-like piles of Cultivation Technique Jade Slips in the Scripture Pavilion, the unopened Medicinal Pill bottles in the Pill Refining Room, and the hidden secret room treasure boxes in the Clan Chief's residence one by one, sorting and gathering them into Storage Pouches and Storage Rings.

The wealth accumulated by the Ning Family over hundreds of years was completely cleaned out in a short span of one hour.

After the last box of Spirit Stones was loaded into the Storage Ring, Wang Shouren said to the crowd, "You escort the supplies back first. The news of the Ning Family's destruction cannot be hidden for long. If you encounter others on the road, pay no attention to them and try your best to conceal your aura to avoid conflicts with people."

The crowd agreed in unison, successively maneuvering their magical tools and flying toward the direction of Lotus Pier.

Only Wang Qingxin stood in place, motionless, tugging at the corner of Wang Shouren's clothes, looking at him with those hollow eyes, and said only one sentence: "I am staying behind."

Wang Shouren glanced at her without asking much, simply nodding to signify consent.

At the same time, outside the mountain gate of Lotus Pier.

In the night, twenty dark figures silently sneaked out from the mountain forest, lurking at the edge of the Loose Cultivator market at the foot of Wogui Mountain.

The leading person had a stalwart figure, with a full beard covering most of his face, and fierce light bursting from his tiger-like eyes. He was precisely the bandit leader who had run rampant in the Monster Mountain Range for many years—Heisha.

He carried a palm-sized bronze short hammer on his shoulder. The hammer body was only about a foot long, densely engraved with array-breaking runes, emitting a dim and cold light under the moonlight.

"Big Brother, this Ning Family is also foolish to the extreme. They spent fifty thousand Spirit Stones to invite us to kill a newly Foundation Establishment thing. It seems the Ning Family truly has no one left."

The one speaking was a skinny monkey-like man, ranking third, toying with a pair of poisoned Emei piercers in his hands, his triangular eyes full of disdain.

Heisha sneered and patted the short hammer on his shoulder.

"A little thing that has just reached Foundation Establishment, with a single blow from my array-breaking hammer, I will smash both the person and the array together. Killing him won't take much effort, but that little Family fortune of the Ning Family happens to be a bonus."

He licked his chapped lips, a trace of greed flashing in his eyes.

"Third Brother, after finishing this job, let's head back and wipe out the Ning Family as well.

The wealth of two Cultivation families added together will be enough for us to change places and enjoy ourselves carefree for several more decades."

Third Leader's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly flattered him.

"Big Brother is wise! That Ning Family still thinks of us as a knife that takes money to do things, little do they know that this knife of ours has always devoured the employer as well!"

Several bandits nearby also joined in the ruckus, successively flattering Heisha for having cultivation reaching the heavens, having killed more than one Foundation Establishment Cultivator, let alone a mere newly Foundation Establishment Wang Yaozu who wasn't even enough to fill their teeth gaps.

Heisha waved his hand, suppressing the surrounding flattery, and said in a deep voice,

"Alright, all of you perk up. The Wang Family is a Cultivation Family after all, and there is always a mountain-guarding array. Don't capsize in a gutter. Third Brother, you go ahead and capture a tongue back, figure out the details before making a move."

Third Leader took the order and left, and within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he carried back a white-haired old Loose Cultivator like a little chick.

The old Loose Cultivator trembled all over, his crotch wet in a patch. Thrown onto the ground, he scrambled and crawled up to kneel, kowtowing like pounding garlic.

"Senior, spare my life! Senior, spare my life! This old man is just a Loose Cultivator doing some small business here to make a living, and I have no relation whatsoever with the Wang Family!"

Heisha narrowed his eyes, and the coercion of the Foundation Establishment Stage crushed over like a mountain or a ridge, pressing the old Loose Cultivator flat to the ground on the spot, making even breathing difficult.

His voice was not loud, yet it carried a chill that made people's spines turn cold.

"Are you a member of the Wang Family?"