387: Go and come back

At this moment, a cloud of sorrow seemed to hang over the heads of the Xiao family members. With the death of their Family Head, they suddenly lost their backbone and didn't know what to do.

Xu Sanyan landed in the center of the stockade. There were still some bloodstains remaining around the stockade, and the bodies had already been collected.

"Someone who can make decisions come forward." Xu Sanyan looked at the surrounding crowd, frowning slightly, feeling a bit displeased.

What was wrong with the Xiao family? Only a Family Head had died, yet it seemed as if their Family was about to be wiped out.

Someone quickly turned and left, and soon returned with a middle-aged man walking quickly. The middle-aged man had a fawning smile on his face, and he cupped his fists in salute from a distance.

"I am Xiao Ran. Greetings, Immortal Masters."

A light flashed in Xu Sanyan's eyes. He saw that this person was only at the Mid-stage of the Midao realm cultivation. It seemed that after the Xiao family's Family Head died, all matters would be decided by this person.

Wang Ying introduced, "This is Young Master Lin. From now on, all matters concerning Wave Breaking Mountain will be managed by Young Master."

Xiao Ran was startled, exclaiming, "Oh, Young Master Lin is so young..."

Xu Sanyan waved his hand, interrupting his flattery, and pointed at the surrounding ruins, saying, "Tell me what happened here."

"Alas..."

Hearing this, Xiao Ran sighed, "This is a disaster for the Xiao family. The evening before last, a massive Ghost Beast broke into our Xiao family. The Family Head resisted with all his might, but ultimately he was no match..."

Xiao Ran shook his head with a sorrowful expression, "Fortunately, that Ghost Beast did not stay long, otherwise our Xiao family would likely have no survivors."

Xu Sanyan turned to look at Wang Ying, who instantly understood and took over, saying,

"Now your Xiao family has two choices. First, your entire Family can merge into Qianqiu City, in which case you can pack your things and leave with us. Second, you can continue to stay here, and if a Ghost Beast attacks, you can seek help from Qianqiu City."

Xu Sanyan raised his eyebrows slightly. If a Ghost Beast attacked, by the time reinforcements arrived, there probably wouldn't even be bone fragments left. The second option was purely a joke.

Xiao Ran silently lowered his head, his gaze flickering. Although Wang Ying seemed to give them two choices, in reality, there was only one choice.

However, the first choice was not good either. Merging into Qianqiu City was easy, but it would be difficult to get out again.

Wang Ying's words were only half-said. Merging into Qianqiu City required surrendering more than half of their Family property, and from then on, they would have to obey the Wang Family's arrangements, losing their autonomy.

The Xiao family would completely become the Wang Family's dogs, and it was feared they would never have a chance to rise again.

But Xiao Ran's situation might be better. After all, his cultivation was high.

A Mi Dao Realm cultivation was enough to become a small manager anywhere, just like Wang Ying.

In short, the Xiao family had no choice: either stay and wait for death, or prolong their miserable existence.

Xiao Ran ultimately made the correct decision.

"My Xiao family is willing to merge into Qianqiu City, and from now on, we will follow the Wang Family's lead."

As soon as he said this, the Xiao family disciples' expressions became even more pained, but they had no choice but to do so to survive.

This was how it was for small Families like theirs; there was no room for error. A small risk was enough to wipe them out.

"A correct choice." Xu Sanyan smiled slightly, having already anticipated this.

"Pack up and prepare to return."

Although the Xiao family was wiped out, the Wang Family did not suffer any losses. This outcome was considered relatively good.

No one cared whether the Xiao family lived or died, as long as the Wang Family didn't suffer any losses.

A moment later,

Xu Sanyan watched as the Wang Family members brought out a group of young men and women. A rough count showed about a hundred people.

The women wore various colored clothes; some were dignified and graceful, some were small and adorable, and there were also those like Jianghu heroines, poised and natural.

Xu Sanyan took a few extra glances at the young woman dressed as a heroine, and Xiao Ran noted it down.

The group of men was the same; some had sword-like eyebrows and rugged faces, others had rounded features and calm demeanors. They had different styles, but there was one thing they all had in common:

Regardless of gender, their expressions were blank, like corpses, devoid of any Life Qi.

These were Human Slaves.

Xiao Ran said with a fawning smile, "This batch of goods hasn't been properly trained yet. It would be a shame to discard them, so why not take them along and offer them to the main Family?"

As he spoke, he pointed specifically at the young woman in the green long gown with a precious sword at her waist. "This is a good one, and she even has some cultivation. Once she's properly trained, this humble one will personally send her to Young Master Lin."

The green-gowned young woman's eyes twitched slightly, and she looked up at him, only then showing a hint of human vitality. It was unknown how the Xiao family had trained them to be so ravaged.

Xu Sanyan curled his lips, patted his shoulder, and said nothing.

Xiao Ran understood in his heart; no refusal meant agreement.

"Let's go."

Xu Sanyan turned and walked towards Qianqiu City, followed by over two hundred people, most of whom were Xiao family disciples.

Their cultivation was low, so they couldn't fly. Xu Sanyan could only lead them back on foot.

The increasingly dense fog obscured their vision, and coupled with the darkness of night, everything visible was shrouded in mist. Xu Sanyan dared not walk too fast.

Wave Breaking Mountain was about several hundred miles from Qianqiu City. If they flew, it would only take a few hours, but walking was much slower, probably taking ten days to half a month.

The main reason was that the Human Slaves were too slow. Most of them were Mortals, only able to move slowly, one step at a time.

Xu Sanyan couldn't stand such a slow pace, so he instructed the Xiao family disciples to carry the Human Slaves on their backs, which immediately increased their speed.

The group walked in the thick fog, and from a distance, the roars of Ghost Beasts occasionally came. Xu Sanyan curiously asked Wang Ying, who was beside him, "Where do these Ghost Beasts come from?"

Wang Ying said, "Brother Lin, have you noticed that after the Ghost Beasts appeared, the Yao Beasts in the mountain forest disappeared?"

"Hmm... you mean these Ghost Beasts are all transformed Yao Beasts?"

"That's right. This fog is quite strange. When Yao Beasts inhale it, they undergo a transformation, their appearance becomes terrifying, and their temperament becomes more violent and murderous. When the fog recedes, those Yao Beasts will revert to their original forms."

Xu Sanyan pursed his lips slightly, pondering inwardly, then asked again, "Then why are we fine?"

Wang Ying shook his head, "I don't know either."

As soon as his voice fell, Xu Sanyan suddenly looked up as if he sensed something, hearing a frantic beast roar coming from the front left.

"Roar~"

"Oh no, there's a Ghost Beast!"

"Run!"

The team instantly fell into chaos. The Xiao family disciples were like a group of scattered soldiers, knowing only to flee when danger struck, utterly lacking courage. No wonder the Xiao family was the first to be wiped out.

Swish—

Xu Sanyan frowned slightly, then waved his large sleeve. A stone from beneath his feet shot through the air and directly smashed a person's head.

"Whoever dares to run, this will be their fate!"

The cold voice was like a gust of cold wind, instantly freezing everyone in place. No one dared to move a step.

"You all wait here. I'll be back soon."

Xu Sanyan made a grasping motion with his right hand, and a pitch-black great halberd condensed in his hand. His figure flickered and disappeared from the spot.

"Roar~ !"

They only heard the Ghost Beast's roar in the thick fog become even more shrill, but after just one sound, it returned to silence.

The Xiao family members looked at each other, unsure whether to run or stay put.

"Step~ step~"

Clear footsteps came from deep within the fog. A tall figure slowly walked out, the great halberd in his hand had disappeared, replaced by the head of a Ghost Beast.