189: Encirclement and Slaughter

News was delivered into the county seat early the next morning.

By the afternoon, several Spirit Rank Contract Masters from the Eighth-Grade Magnate Families in the county seat left their homes one after another, headed Beyond the Border, and disappeared.

In Qixia Town at the foot of Qixia Mountain, figures moved to and fro as villagers excitedly dragged their luggage back and forth.

At this moment, six figures hidden under wide hoods slowly rose from different directions around Qixia Mountain, with various Source Beasts appearing beside them.

There was a double-headed giant bird with long feathers, an elemental spirit body wrapped in flames, a three-meter-tall giant with flowing magma all over its body, and a wolf-dog shrouded in black Qi.

The six people stood at six different positions atop Qixia Mountain, their powerful Mental Energy spreading out to lock onto everyone within the residence on the mountain peak.

Then, they coldly uttered a single word at the same time: "Kill."

As the command was given, the six Spirit Rank Source Beasts instantly unleashed their signature skills from different ranges, attacking the residence on the mountain peak.

Streaming fire and starlight, storming feather thorns, magma stone flows, and the wolf-dog carrying a massive impact force instantly rushed into the courtyard of the Chu Family Residence.

Before these attacks could arrive, a golden figure rushed out from the location of the ancestral hall.

The ground around the mountain peak instantly collapsed and then condensed into sheets of golden sand, rising to meet the attacks falling from different directions.

At the same time, a colossal eagle spread its wings above the courtyard. A storm of mysterious black feather blades collided with the feather blades condensed by the avian Source Beast above.

A river of ice flowed out from the residence, covering the streaming magma stone flow and freezing the magma in just a few moments.

With the first wave of attacks fully blocked, Chu Jingyu's figure floated above the residence, his gaze heavy as he looked at the six people wearing wide cloaks.

"I do not know how my Chu Family has offended Your Excellencies that you would mobilize so many Spirit Rank Contract Masters to besiege us. If there is a grievance, my Chu Family is willing to exhaust our Family wealth to make reparations."

A clearly disguised voice came out, "Today, not a single soul of the Chu Family shall remain."

After those words, a second Spirit Rank Source Beast appeared beside each of the six people, and another wave of Source Beast attacks crashed down again.

Chu Jingyu glanced back into the residence. The Upper Tier of the Extraordinary Rank Azure Ridge Cloud Eagle turned and dove down, while the Golden Armored Jade Pupil Beast slammed the ground hard.

The entire Chu Family Residence seemed to light up with a golden glow. In the ancestral hall, the floor tiles in front of the offering table slid away, revealing a spiral staircase leading downward.

The Chu Family members—Chu Qinhui, Jiang Nian, Chu Shenghan, Chu Shengyuan, and Xu Yinyue—all appeared in the ancestral hall.

Chu Qinhui looked at his wife and children and pushed them toward the entrance of the underground passage in front of the offering table. Ignoring etiquette, he directly took the stone book from the table and placed it in Jiang Nian's arms.

For some reason, Ancestor Chu seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep two days ago. Even now, while the Chu Family was under attack, he showed no reaction whatsoever.

However, through a certain Bloodline connection, they knew that Ancestor Chu's current state was fine, so they didn't feel excessive worry.

"Take good care of the Origin Artifact; it is as important as our children. Go, quickly!"

As he urged them, he walked to the door of the ancestral hall, intending to close the hall doors that were usually kept open.

Realizing what he intended to do, Jiang Nian let out a sorrowful cry, "Let's go together!"

Chu Qinhui had already closed one side of the hall door. Standing outside the hall, half of his face was hidden behind the door; against the light, his emotions were unreadable.

Only his voice was incredibly firm. "No. Father alone certainly cannot withstand so many Contract Masters of the same rank. I can heal them and stall for time.

Once you reach the town, contact the Treasure Pavilion immediately to go to Qianling Prefecture City and find Xiao Fan."

After saying this, the other half of the hall door was slowly closed by the push of the Cangyi Wolf Lord. As the doors shut, a faint halo appeared over the entire building.

This was a protective barrier with defensive power. Its range was limited to the location of the ancestral hall, consisting of two layers: one covering the courtyard and another restricted only to the main hall.

Walking out of the ancestral hall, he saw the servants looking somewhat panicked because of the battle in the sky. He saw Head Steward Zhang Heng approaching from a distance and commanded in a deep voice:

"Gather all the servants in the front courtyard of the ancestral hall. There is a barrier here that can withstand the aftershocks of the battle."

With Chu Qinhui stepping forward, the Head Steward seemed to have found his backbone, and his expression instantly calmed down.

He immediately called out to the other servants and quickly spread the news.

Chu Qinhui watched them get to work. The Ginseng Doll (Embracing Ginseng Child) appeared at his feet. Patting its head, Chu Qinhui looked toward the sky and said, "Go, help my father."

The Ginseng Doll (Embracing Ginseng Child) nodded with a serious little expression and leaped agilely onto the ridge of the roof, reaching the position closest to the battlefield.

At this time, Chu Jingyu was indeed struggling to hold on. In just these two minutes, the Golden Jade armor on him and the Golden Armored Jade Pupil Beast had been smashed to pieces, and wounds deep enough to see bone had appeared on their bodies.

Only six petals remained on the Ultimate Ice Lotus in Chu Jingyu's hand; the other eighteen had long been condensed to protect them from above. Otherwise, the man and his two Source Beasts would likely have been killed instantly.

Under the circumstances where twelve Source Beasts were attacking simultaneously, it was already a miracle that the three of them could hold out for so long without falling.

A flash of anxiety appeared in the Ginseng Doll's eyes. It folded its hands, and emerald light spots emerged in front of it, turning into slender streams of water that poured into the bodies of the man and the two beasts.

In an instant, the withered Aura of the three regained its strength, and the petals on the body of the Ultimate Ice Lotus were instantly regenerated.

"Eh?"

The Ginseng Doll's performance caused a surprised sound to come from among the six attackers.

Clearly, a Source Beast that was merely of the Uncommon Rank being able to achieve such a feat was something even these Spirit Rank Contract Masters had never seen before.

"Keep that little doll Source Beast alive. Whether kept for research or sold on the black market, it is of immense value."

The others had no objections to this decision, though one of them urged:

"Finish this quickly. If the news reaches the county seat, it will be hard for us to escape."

Once those words were spoken, the twelve Source Beasts beside the six people launched an even more violent offensive.

The aftershocks of the skills smashed into the Chu Family Residence below. The residence, though protected by golden light, could not bear the burden; it either collapsed into fragments, was burned to ashes, or even formed a massive crater.

As the primary target of the attacks, Chu Jingyu fared even worse. The barrier newly condensed by the Ultimate Ice Lotus lasted only ten breaths under such continuous bombardment before shattering with a bang.

The Azure Ridge Cloud Eagle brought the Illusion Light Cloud Mothers from the back mountain to the battlefield at the peak. As Uncommon Rank Source Beasts, they did not participate in the direct combat.

Instead, they released a faint mist that completely enveloped the mountaintop. By creating various illusions through complex light and shadows, they caused significant interference to the attacks of the Spirit Rank Source Beasts.

Chu Jingyu clutched a new wound on his waist and managed to land on the ground to catch his breath.

Seeing Chu Qinhui quietly arrive by his side, Chu Jingyu's face was heavy. "Have Xiao Yuan and the others all left?"

Upon seeing Chu Qinhui nod, Chu Jingyu's expression relaxed slightly. He smiled helplessly and said,

"My Chu Family's development was smooth, yet I never expected to suffer such a calamity. Perhaps even the heavens could no longer stand it. It is fate, it is destiny."