Chapter 290 The City Burns in Flames

A deathly silence hung over the city walls. Everyone watched the scene: that gentle and elegant middle-aged man, and Chen Mu's consistently expressionless face.

Ling Xiaoning opened his mouth, wanting to say something but unable to make a sound. Lu Dachuan's hand holding the blade was trembling, and Shen Suning bit her lip, her eyes rimmed with red.

Cheng Xiaoqing was held back by Huo Chao and the others, unable to struggle. He could only stare fixedly at Chen Mu, his eyes filled with complexity.

He hated Jiang Xiong, hated him to the core, but he also knew Chen Mu had no reason to refuse.

Chen Mu was only seventeen or eighteen years old, with startling talent and peerless combat strength. As long as he was given time, he would sooner or later reach heights others couldn't attain in a lifetime.

But that was only 'sooner or later'.

Now, Jiang Xiong had placed longevity before him. With just a nod, he could immediately gain three hundred years of Lifespan. Three hundred years was enough for him to Breakthrough to a higher Realm, obtain even longer life, go further, and fly higher.

Faced with this, perhaps no one would refuse.

Cheng Xiaoqing closed his eyes, unwilling to look any longer.

But at that moment, a voice broke the silence.

"Jiang Xiong."

The voice was raspy and laced with bloody froth, yet exceptionally clear.

Everyone looked toward the sound and saw Jiang Yuheng had somehow crawled up from the ruins. He was covered in blood, his face deathly pale, yet he stood tall, staring fixedly at the black-clad figure below the city.

Jiang Xiong's brow furrowed slightly as his gaze fell upon him, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes.

Jiang Yuheng grinned, a tragic smile. Blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto his lapel.

"Jiang Family of the North... What a 'Jiang Family of the North'."

"Jiang Xiong, you make it sound so pleasant—sharing longevity, ruling the world together, creating a golden age..."

He smiled and shook his head.

"Your excuses are so clumsy they're laughable."

Jiang Xiong's brow furrowed slightly and he didn't speak. Jiang Yuheng continued.

"Why did you ally with Fentian? For the common people? To create a golden age? Don't make me laugh. You did it for yourself, so that you, Jiang Xiong, could ascend the throne as master of this world, and so the Jiang Family could enjoy wealth and status for generations."

He coughed up a mouthful of blood but was still smiling.

"I've been in the Jiang Family for over a decade, yet I never received much favor. Those direct descendants were born into luxury, picking whatever Cultivation Technique or Secret Manual they wanted, with Medicinal Pills and Magical Artifacts available at their whim. And me? I could only rely on my own desperate efforts, my own bitter training, and the merits I carved out with my own blade and sword."

"But I didn't resent it. I always thought this was just how the Jiang Family was—strict rules, no favoritism, where the capable rise. I envied the direct line, but I didn't hate them, because I felt this was how a great clan should be."

He paused, looking at Jiang Xiong, the disdain in his eyes deepening.

"But you? Tell me, what kind of thing is the Jiang Family exactly? Upright on the surface, but behind the scenes committing acts that devastate all living things. Using plagues to kill, using Yao Seeds to control the people, allying with a Yao King, and slaughtering your own kin..."

He shook his head and gave a tragic laugh.

"Fortunately, I, Jiang Yuheng, never received much preferential treatment from the Family. Otherwise, these hands of mine would also be stained with the blood of those villagers."

He raised his blood-stained hands, looked at them, and then lowered them.

"So filthy."

Jiang Xiong's expression finally changed. The gentleness that had been permanently fixed on his face vanished, replaced by a dark gloom. He looked at Jiang Yuheng, his gaze cold enough to freeze a person to death.

"Jiang Yuheng, do you know what you're saying?"

Jiang Yuheng looked at him, no fear in his eyes, only a sense of relief.

"I know. I'm saying that the Jiang Family of the North is truly filthy."

Jiang Xiong took a deep breath, killing intent laid bare in his eyes.

"Since you no longer wish to live, I will grant your wish."

Before his voice had even faded, he raised a hand and waved it, sending a sharp Protective Aura straight toward Jiang Yuheng.

Jiang Yuheng didn't dodge, nor could he. But at the moment the Protective Aura was about to hit him, he suddenly moved.

Not to dodge, but to pounce.

Exerting every last ounce of strength, he leaped from the city wall and lunged at Jiang Xiong, the broken sword in his hand pointing straight at Jiang Xiong's heart.

That strike came too suddenly. Jiang Xiong hadn't expected this dying man to be capable of a counterattack. Caught off guard, he could only twist his body to evade, yet his left arm was still sliced by the sword tip, blood gushing out instantly.

"Courting death!"

Jiang Xiong roared in anger and slammed a palm into Jiang Yuheng's chest. Jiang Yuheng was sent flying, crashing heavily onto the ground. Blood sprayed from his mouth, his chest was caved in, and his breathing had become shallow and ragged.

But he was still smiling.

He lay on the ground, gazing up at the night sky with a relieved smile on his face, his voice so weak it was almost inaudible.

"So filthy... truly filthy..."

And then, there was no more movement.

Chen Mu's eyes flickered slightly.

He couldn't be said to have a friendship with Jiang Yuheng; they even had a history of conflict. That arrogant Jiang Family scion had kicked Zhuifeng and beaten Ling Xiaoning, and had been suppressed by him on the training grounds until he couldn't lift his head. In the end, however, he had used his own life to make a final break.

Chen Mu withdrew his gaze and looked at the black-clad figure below the city.

Jiang Xiong looked down at the wound on his arm. It wasn't deep, just a cut from a broken sword, but this wound had completely shattered the mask of gentleness on his face. He looked up at the city wall, his eyes boiling with killing intent, his elegant face now distorted like a malevolent ghost.

"Refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit. Kill!"

His voice was low, carrying a bone-chilling coldness. He only wanted to take his revenge quickly and put everything behind him.

The Black-flamed Yao General let out a heaven-shaking roar. Yao fire swept out from his body, instantly enveloping the entire city wall in flames. Wherever it passed, the city bricks rapidly cracked and peeled away. Those Yao Race members who couldn't dodge in time fell to the ground screaming, their bodies twitching, losing their lives in moments.

Chaos erupted atop the city wall.

Chen Mu stood on the wall, watching the Yao General approach step by step, and took a deep breath.

He knew he was no match, the gap was far too great, but he had no way to retreat.

Hardening his heart, he bit the tip of his tongue. Blood spread in his mouth with a metallic sweetness. He closed his eyes, staking everything on one throw.

"Infuse 'Hunyuan Wuji Calamity Body'."

He roared in his heart. The System panel surfaced before his eyes, the string of numbers stinging his eyes.

But he had no way back.

The System notification tones suddenly rang out, one after another, almost merging into one. When he opened his eyes again, in an instant, it felt as if five thousand years had passed.

He was covered in blood and his clothes were soaked with sweat, but he didn't care. He looked down at his hands and clenched his fists.

It was different now. Heart-Awakening Realm Peak.

He was only one step away from breaking through the Heart-Awakening Realm, but how much more Lifespan would that step require?

Chen Mu had no time to think. The Yao General had already charged in front of him.

"Courting death!"

The Yao General spoke in human tongue, a giant claw wrapped in Yao fire slamming down toward his head.

This claw was enough to shatter gold and crack stone. Let alone a body of flesh and blood, even city bricks cast from refined iron would be turned to dust under this claw.

The Yao General's eyes were full of mockery, as if he could already see the image of this reckless human being smashed into meat paste. But in the next instant, his smile froze.

Chen Mu raised a hand and blocked the giant claw with a single palm.

"What?!"

The Yao General's shock turned to fury. Yao fire swept out from the claw, instantly enveloping Chen Mu. However, the Yao fire that was capable of incinerating the Divine Soul fell upon Chen Mu like a stone dropped into the ocean, failing to stir even the slightest ripple.

Hunyuan Calamity Astral Qi condensed into a vortex in Chen Mu's palm, spinning rapidly. The Yao General's powerful claw was caught in the vortex, its Yao power being continuously sucked in, crushed, and refined.

"Myriad Transformations Returning to Void."

The true ultimate move of the third level of the 'Hunyuan Wuji Calamity Body' was not just defense, but swallowing and utilizing all external power for oneself. Any attack that fell upon him would be sucked into this vortex and ultimately become nourishment for his cultivation.

The Yao General clearly hadn't expected such a thing. He desperately tried to pull back his giant claw, but the vortex's suction was too strong. No matter how he struggled, the claw was as if nailed in place, unmoving.

The Yao General roared, and Yao fire erupted from every single hair on his body, turning into a torrent of flames that hooded down toward Chen Mu.

Chen Mu didn't retreat but instead advanced, his internal Hunyuan Calamity Power operating to the limit.

The torrent of flames instantly swallowed him. The crowd on the city wall cried out in alarm, and Ling Xiaoning closed his eyes in fear. But as the flames fell on Chen Mu, they were entirely sucked into his body. They circulated once inside him, surged through his Meridians toward his arm, and were finally slashed back out from the blade's edge.

The Yao General's eyes nearly popped out in shock, but he couldn't dodge in time. The blade light slashed across his chest, and Yao fire instantly swept over his entire body, making him howl in agony.

Chen Mu wasn't about to give him a chance to breathe, and slashed down again with the soul-slaying blade carrying the power of Myriad Transformations Returning to Void.

This strike landed on its neck.

The blade edge passed through, and blood splattered. The Yao General let out a shrill scream, and his three-meter-tall body crashed to the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.

[Black-flamed Yao General slain. Martial Dao Lifespan plundered: 4,200 years.]

Chen Mu received the notification and panted heavily.

His whole body was in pain, and every inch of his Meridians was wailing. The battle just now had seemed easy, but in reality, he had exerted his full strength.

While Myriad Transformations Returning to Void could devour external power, the burden on the body was also immense. In particular, that Yao fire had nearly burnt his Meridians to charcoal.

But he had no time to regulate his breath.

Because that aura had already arrived.