92: basement

“This mist is poisonous! Quickly get out of the white mist!”

The Zhang Family Clan Chief, who was at Purple Mansion Stage Perfection, reacted first, immediately shouting out.

Hearing this, the Elders quickly deployed their Spiritual Qi and flew into the air, trying to escape the range of the white mist.

But the next second, a golden Sword Qi flew out from the white mist with an unstoppable might, instantly slicing two Early Purple Mansion Stage Elders in half.

At the same time, a golden pillar of thunder descended from the sky, instantly blasting a Middle Purple Mansion Stage Elder back down.

“Enemy attack! Be careful!”

Seeing this, the surrounding Elders quickly warned them.

In an instant, another golden Sword Qi flew out from the white mist, immediately striking a Late Purple Mansion Stage Elder.

This Elder tried to take out a Magical Artifact shield to block, but under the Geng Metal Sword Intent, his shield was like paper, instantly being cut in two.

The remaining golden Sword Qi left a bloody gash on his chest that was deep enough to see bone.

Seeing this, the surrounding Zhang Family members and other Elders quickly launched attacks toward the direction from which the golden Sword Qi had flown.

However, all their attacks landed on empty ground, as Lin Luoxue had already moved positions.

“Damn it! Who exactly is this!?”

“Come out!”

“If you have the guts, fight us face-to-face!”

Looking at the white mist below, the Zhang Family Clan Chief and the Elders roared furiously, unable to contain their anger.

At the same time, an ominous premonition arose in their hearts, because the Zhang Family Compound, which was enveloped by the white mist, was now completely silent.

When they had just been inside the white mist, they had felt how potent its poison was.

Since they didn't dare inhale the white mist too much, what about the remaining clan members?

At this moment, the Zhang Family Clan Chief and the Elders trembled as they looked at the clan territory shrouded in white mist.

“Kong'er, Xiao Wei!”

“My precious grandchild!”

“No!!!”

After realizing the truth, the Zhang Family Clan Chief and the Elders wailed, their eyes bloodshot.

Although their Cultivation methods were evil, as a Family-based power, they were the ones who valued familial affection the most.

The reason they risked the danger of clan annihilation to Cultivate evil techniques was, first, to Break through to higher Realms, and second, to strengthen the Family.

But now, everything was over. Their clan members and descendants were all dead, and the Zhang Family existed only in name.

Wait! The enemy hasn't left yet!

The next second, two more golden Sword Qi flew out from the white mist, and at the same time, a large amount of golden lightning descended from the sky.

Strangely enough, this golden lightning didn't look very powerful, yet when it struck them, the pain was intense.

Evil-Warding Golden Thunder, dispelling evil and breaking demons!

Since they Cultivated using evil techniques, their bodies and Spiritual Qi carried a trace of evil energy, so they were naturally restrained by the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder.

“Clan Chief! Quickly activate the Clan Protecting Formation! Trap them!”

An Elder suddenly remembered something and quickly shouted a reminder.

The Zhang Family Clan Chief instantly reacted upon hearing this, quickly taking out a Formation Plate, intending to activate the Clan Protecting Formation.

But before he could inject Spiritual Qi, a black shadow flashed past him from behind.

Before the other Elders could react, the black shadow flashed past them as well.

Accompanied by the sound of several heavy objects hitting the ground, the Zhang Family Compound returned once more to a deathly silence.

A moment later, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue arrived at the underground entrance of the rock garden.

“Are you sure you want to go down and see?” Zhang Daobai turned and asked Lin Luoxue.

Although Zhang Daobai had never been down to look, based on the name of that evil technique, he could already roughly imagine what the situation below would be like.

He could guarantee that the scene would be hundreds or thousands of times more brutal than what he saw on Black Tiger Ridge.

“I'm sure.”

Lin Luoxue pursed her lips and nodded firmly.

Only by facing the wickedness of the world head-on could she truly comprehend the meaning of the Evil-Warding Golden Thunder.

Seeing Lin Luoxue's firm attitude, Zhang Daobai stopped trying to persuade her and waved his hand towards the Ghost Shadow beside him.

Following the stairs down, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue quickly arrived at a long corridor.

As soon as they descended, four people rushed out from the shadows and attacked Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue.

But before they could take two steps, their bodies were instantly cut in half at the waist.

Zhang Daobai merely glanced at the scene before continuing forward with Lin Luoxue.

On both sides of the corridor were doors resembling prison cells.

Arriving at the first door, Zhang Daobai kicked it directly, forcing it open.

Behind the door was a small room of over twenty square meters, fully equipped with a bed, a table, and a cabinet.

Lying on the bed was a naked woman who showed no reaction whatsoever. If she weren't still breathing, one would think she was dead.

Upon reaching the bedside, Zhang Daobai checked the woman's condition and found that she was mentally confused, her consciousness in a hazy state.

She was either drugged or had a Secret Technique used on her to control her mind.

Seeing this, Zhang Daobai did not rush to awaken her consciousness but walked directly to the next room.

Since they had just started their Cultivation for the day, almost every room contained a woman.

And all these women were in the same condition: mentally confused and unconscious, acting like walking corpses.

Lin Luoxue followed behind Zhang Daobai, and as she saw these scenes, the hand gripping her Spirit Sword tightened repeatedly.

She dared not imagine that if she hadn't desperately fled the Cloud Sword Sect back then, would she also have ended up like these people, becoming a toy like a walking corpse.

Reaching the end of the corridor, there was another downward passage. Before Zhang Daobai could step in, a black dagger stabbed out from the darkness, aiming for Zhang Daobai's heart.

“Pfft!”

Before the black dagger could pierce Zhang Daobai, Lin Luoxue's Spirit Sword had already penetrated the attacker's chest.

Seeing this, Zhang Daobai kicked the body away and continued walking down.

The downward passage was completely dark; someone must have removed the illumination gems beforehand.

After only a couple of steps, two more people rushed out from the darkness, attacking Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue.

But just like the previous attackers, they died before they could even get close to the two of them, right in front of Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue.

Zhang Daobai merely glanced casually at the scene before continuing his descent without stopping.

The further down they went, the more assassins Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue encountered. These people seemed to be the Zhang Family's Death Warriors, with only one goal: to stop them from going down further.

However, the highest cultivation base among these people was only Foundation Establishment Stage, so they couldn't stop Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue at all.

After slaying all the way down, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue quickly arrived at the next level.

The next level also consisted of rows of prison cells, but these cells were extremely crude, having neither beds nor blankets, only dry grass covering the floor.

Many women were locked in these cells, ranging from white-haired old women to young maidens barely sixteen years old.

Looking at the wrinkled old woman, Zhang Daobai's eye twitched slightly, thinking to himself that these people were truly ruthless to be able to lay hands on someone like that.

Fortunately, the Zhang Family's targets were generally women possessing cultivation, so most of the women here were adults.

Although these women also looked sluggish, they were much better off than those on the floor above.

When they saw Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue enter, they first looked at Zhang Daobai with hatred,

and then looked at Lin Luoxue with pity. But Zhang Daobai noticed that many of the women's eyes also held a hint of a smile?

It seemed that the tragic and painful experiences had already begun to twist the minds of many of them.

Zhang Daobai quickly understood the reason upon seeing this.

Thinking of this, Zhang Daobai's gaze turned cold, and the conscience in his heart was completely suppressed.

After confirming that there were no other Zhang Family members in this basement, Zhang Daobai immediately raised his sword and sliced open all the cell doors.

He then led Lin Luoxue away without looking back.

For these people whose minds might have been twisted, it was already quite good that Zhang Daobai gave them freedom.

But as for how they would live on afterward, that was none of his concern.

Returning to the upper level, Zhang Daobai took out a section of green vine.

This section of vine was called the Clear Wind Vine. Its sap had a similar effect to Medicated Oil, and its efficacy was far stronger than Medicated Oil.

Zhang Daobai used Spiritual Qi to extract the sap of the Clear Wind Vine, then flicked his finger, sending a drop of the Clear Wind Vine sap onto a woman's glabella.

Immediately, a cool sensation surged into the woman's brain, awakening her hazy consciousness.

Zhang Daobai then repeated the process, flicking the remaining Clear Wind Vine sap onto the heads of the women in the other rooms.

After confirming that all their consciousnesses had recovered, he left the basement with Lin Luoxue.

After exiting the tunnel, the white mist outside had dispersed, though it hadn't completely vanished; instead, it hovered over the Zhang Family Compound.

Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue quickly looted the bodies around them, then rapidly began plundering the Zhang Family Compound extensively.

It must be said that the Zhang Family was, after all, a Purple Mansion Family, and their clan assets were quite substantial.

After looting the entire Zhang Family Compound, they had filled more than twenty storage rings alone.

With such immense wealth, Lin Luoxue, who had just been feeling somewhat depressed, couldn't help but smile.

Sure enough, the ancients did not deceive me; confiscating property truly leads to prosperity and wealth.

While Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue were looting the Zhang Family, the women in the basement also started coming out.

Upon seeing the corpses of the Zhang Family members on the ground, they each picked up various objects and vented their emotions wildly against the bodies.

Even the strong Physical Bodies of Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators were turned into a pile of minced flesh under their furious venting.

Zhang Daobai glanced at them, ignored them, and instead instructed the Ghost Shadow to check if there were any other survivors in the Zhang Family Compound before taking out the void realm suppressing pagoda.

Beneath the Zhang Family Compound lay a Third-Tier Spiritual Vein. This was a rare treasure, and Zhang Daobai had no intention of giving it up.

Zhang Daobai then had the Ghost Shadow take him, using the Void Realm to escape directly to the location of the underground Spiritual Vein.

“Dragon Lapis!”

After pressing the void realm suppressing pagoda onto the Spiritual Vein, Zhang Daobai commanded.

The void realm suppressing pagoda flashed, and in an instant, the Spiritual Vein in front of Zhang Daobai vanished entirely.

At the same time, the Spiritual Qi within the Zhang Family Compound immediately began to dissipate in all directions, like duckweed without roots.

The Zhang Family's ancestral land, which had been full of spiritual charm, instantly became ordinary and lost the aura nurtured by Spiritual Qi.

After retrieving the Spiritual Vein, Zhang Daobai had thoroughly plundered the Zhang Family's ancestral land.

After coming up from underground, Zhang Daobai glanced at the Zhang Family Ancestral Hall, then raised his sword, summoned a pillar of thunder, and smashed the hall into pieces.

"What kind of thing is this! How dare they share my surname?"

Zhang Daobai muttered a curse filled with ill-will, then waved his hand and tossed a fire onto the ruins of the Zhang Family Ancestral Hall.

After dealing with the clansmen in the Zhang Family's ancestral land, Zhang Daobai took Lin Luoxue back to the spirit boat floating in the sky.

And White Moon, after absorbing the Spirit Concealing Mist back, flew back with its group.

"Next, it's time to root them out completely."

As Zhang Daobai spoke, he controlled the spirit boat and flew toward the Qingmu City.

When the spirit boat flew above the Qingmu City, Zhang Daobai turned his head to look at White Moon.

Seeing this, White Moon immediately sent out a group of Mist Concealing Worms to rush downward.

Since these Mist Concealing Worms were covered by the Spirit Concealing Mist, they did not trigger the market city's warning Formation.

Following the markers left during the day, the Mist Concealing Worms quickly found the location of the Zhang Family clansmen.

Among the Zhang Family clansmen stationed at the Qingmu City, the strongest was only at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, so no one could resist the Mist Concealing Worms' poisonous mist.

Zhang Daobai had no intention of harming the innocent, so he restricted the Spirit Concealing Mist to the residential area of the Zhang Family clansmen and did not let it spread.

This night was as quiet as ever. Under a veil of tranquility, the Zhang Family clansmen stationed at the market city silently died inside the city.

Even with only a wall separating them, the neighbors did not notice anything unusual.

After eliminating the Zhang Family clansmen, Lin Luoxue took the Surveillance Token to record the evidence.

Meanwhile, Zhang Daobai began his pleasant journey of confiscating property, plundering every shop under the Zhang Family's banner.

After plundering the shops, Zhang Daobai also collected the Spiritual Vein beneath the market city and stored it in his Small World.

When he emerged from the market city, the smile never left Zhang Daobai's face.

"Hmm? They escaped?"

Just then, Zhang Daobai suddenly received a message from White Moon.

The Zhang Family clansmen in other areas, having somehow received news, began fleeing their posts one after another.

Zhang Daobai looked at the directions they were fleeing; overall, they seemed to have split into two groups.

A small portion fled south, while the majority fled north, likely intending to attract attention.

After considering it, Zhang Daobai decided to pursue the group heading north first.

He was worried that they might split up again later, wasting his time unnecessarily.

After returning to the spirit boat, Zhang Daobai immediately activated the spirit boat's highest speed and chased north.

Among the fleeing people, the highest cultivation base was only Late Foundation Establishment Stage, so how could their speed compare to a Magic Treasure-level spirit boat?

Before long, the spirit boat caught up to the fleeing Zhang Family clansmen.

All of them were riding flying Magical Artifacts, flying quickly with their entire families in tow.

"I found you!"

Zhang Daobai sneered upon seeing them, then nodded toward Lin Luoxue.

The next second, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue flew out of the spirit boat, splitting left and right to encircle and exterminate the Zhang Family clansmen.

"Slay!"

With a low shout, a golden Sword Qi over thirty meters long suddenly appeared in the air, illuminating the night sky.

The Zhang Family clansmen who were rushing away heard the sound and subconsciously looked back.

When they saw the golden Sword Qi, carrying majestic power, rushing toward them, their faces were filled with despair.

Because from that Sword Qi, they sensed an aura surpassing the Purple Mansion Stage, and the strongest among them was only at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage.

But then something even more despairing happened: in front of them, a golden Sword Qi nearly a hundred meters long suddenly appeared.

The aura emanating from this Sword Qi was even stronger than the aura of their Zhang Family Old Ancestor!

"Retribution! This is all retribution!"

"We deserved to die anyway; now the retribution has arrived."

On one of the flying Magical Artifacts, an old man knelt on the ground and cried out in despair.

But no one paid attention to him at that moment, because before they could even react, the pincer attack of the two golden Sword Qi had sliced them into pieces.

A few lucky individuals who were not affected by the two golden Sword Qi quickly fled in other directions.

But how could their speed match Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue? They hadn't fled far before the two caught up to them.

Among these people were the elderly and children, but neither Zhang Daobai nor Lin Luoxue held back.

The saying, 'Calamity does not extend to the Family,' is only true if 'Benefits do not extend to the Family.'

Since they were born into the Zhang Family and enjoyed the benefits brought by the Zhang Family's wickedness, they were not innocent.

After collecting the bodies and wealth, Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue immediately chased southward.

If Zhang Daobai was not mistaken, the Zhang Family clansmen heading south should be the Zhang Family's seed of revival.

No! They should be called evil spawn!

"The south..."

While traveling at full speed, Zhang Daobai suddenly remembered something and quickly took out a map.

He quickly discovered that south of Green Wood Stream was the territory of the Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain.

The Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain was the Zhang Family's in-law Family. Since the rise of the Zhang Family, the two families had maintained marital ties.

"Are they trying to seek the Chen Family's protection?"

Zhang Daobai looked at the map and speculated thoughtfully.

Thinking of this, Zhang Daobai once again opened the detailed intelligence report on the Zhang Family.

As the Zhang Family's in-law Family, information regarding the Chen Family's status was also mentioned in the detailed report, though not extensively.

The Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain was also a Purple Mansion Family, with five Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators openly known within the clan.

Among them, there was one at Peak Purple Mansion Stage, three at the Late Purple Mansion Stage, and one at the Early Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator.

On Ten Thousand Peach Mountain, where the Chen Family resided, there was a Tier 4 Formation called the Ten Thousand Peach Immortal Wood Formation, a Formation set that combined offense and defense, capable of resisting Late Golden Core Stage Cultivators.

Ostensibly, the Chen Family and the Zhang Family maintained very friendly relations, frequently exchanging benefits.

If the remnants of the Zhang Family went to seek refuge with them, they would very likely receive protection.

"I hope you know better than to be foolish."

Zhang Daobai put away the Jade Slip, his gaze slightly cold, and murmured softly.

Their mission was to exterminate the Zhang Family. If the Chen Family chose to shelter the Zhang Family remnants, they would be obstructing his mission.

If this mission could not be perfectly completed, a certain amount of points would be deducted to fund the continued mission of eliminating the Zhang Family remnants.

Therefore, if the Chen Family insisted on obstructing him, they would be making an enemy of Zhang Daobai!

While chasing the Zhang Family remnants, the spirit boat passed the ancestral land of the Zhang Family's Mortal clansmen.

Zhang Daobai stopped briefly and personally slaughtered all three generations of direct blood relatives of the Zhang Family main lineage.

As for everyone else, Zhang Daobai spared none whose eyes held hatred.

These Mortals did not delay Zhang Daobai much, as they had no ability to resist whatsoever.

However, in the ancestral hall of the Mortal Zhang Family, Zhang Daobai discovered a copy of the Zhang Family's Cultivation Technique Legacy, which included the wicked technique, Yin-Yang Spirit-Plundering Art.

Clearly, the Zhang Family had anticipated their own demise and left a Legacy here in advance.

They hoped that the person who destroyed the Zhang Family would spare these Mortals, and that someone among the Mortal Zhang Family could revive the clan.

"Yin-Yang Spirit-Plundering Art?"

Zhang Daobai curiously examined the wicked technique, but quickly shook his head in disdain.

This wicked technique was like the Star Absorbing Great Art in Wuxia novels, allowing rapid advancement by seizing the cultivation of others.

However, everyone's cultivation attributes are different. Although forced Fusion is possible, it gradually locks down one's potential ceiling.

This was one reason why the Zhang Family had failed to produce a single Golden Core Stage Cultivator despite possessing this wicked technique for so long.

"Trash!"

After reading it, Zhang Daobai immediately burned it to ashes with a single flame.

When Zhang Daobai and Lin Luoxue arrived at the Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain, the Zhang Family remnants had indeed hidden inside the Chen Family's ancestral land.

The sky was about to brighten. After giving a cold glance at Ten Thousand Peach Mountain, which was covered in Spiritual Peach trees, Zhang Daobai chose to rest first.

An hour later, the sky had fully brightened, and people began emerging to work in the Spiritual Fields below.

Zhang Daobai waved his hand, first instructing White Moon to take its group and fly toward Ten Thousand Peach Mountain to lie in wait.

If the Chen Family insisted on sheltering the Zhang Family remnants, Zhang Daobai would not mind giving them a Family extermination package as well.

Sheltering the remnants of Evil Cultivators is treated as the same crime—the Demon Slaying Alliance had already anticipated this.

Therefore, if the Chen Family chooses to shelter the Zhang Family remnants, the Demon Slaying Alliance will not interfere, even if Zhang Daobai exterminates the Chen Family.

Zhang Daobai was currently quite hopeful that the Chen Family would choose to confront him head-on for the sake of the Zhang Family remnants.

If they did, he would be able to make another fortune!

Thinking of this, Zhang Daobai immediately piloted the spirit boat and flew toward Ten Thousand Peach Mountain.

Furthermore, he dispersed the surrounding Spirit Concealing Mist, openly revealing his whereabouts.

As the spirit boat approached Ten Thousand Peach Mountain, several streams of Divine Sense immediately emerged from within the mountain, scanning toward the spirit boat.

"Hmph!"

Seeing this, Zhang Daobai immediately used his Divine Sense to block theirs and send it back.

Soon, three people flew out from Ten Thousand Peach Mountain and arrived before the spirit boat.

"May I ask who Your Excellency is? What business do you have with our Chen Family of Ten Thousand Peach Mountain?"

The middle-aged man leading the group asked, his tone neither arrogant nor humble.

"I am here to eliminate the remnants of the Evil Cultivator Family, the Zhang Family!" Zhang Daobai stated bluntly, his tone icy cold.

The Evil Cultivator Family, the Zhang Family? Remnants?

Hearing this, the three men were stunned and took a moment to process the information.

Suddenly, one of the Elders remembered the Zhang Family clansmen who had sought refuge with the Chen Family last night, and a sense of foreboding immediately arose in his heart.

With this thought, the Elder quickly used a sound transmission to inform the other two of his discovery.

Upon hearing his sound transmission, the expressions of the other two men instantly changed.