"Whether Young Master Chiyan Gu Qingfeng is a fraud or not, this old man does not know. Whether he is a demonic fiend or not, this old man does not know either. He killed people, so you should go find him."
Ziyang swept his gaze over the crowd, then looked at Xiao Jin'er and said solemnly, "As for the Soul-Link Bracelet on Little Jin'er's hand, since Young Master Chiyan gave it to her, it belongs to her. If she is willing to hand it over, fine. If she is not willing, no one can force her."
"Grandpa Ziyang, they are all bad people who want to harm Big Brother. Jin'er will never hand over the Soul-Link Bracelet."
Xiao Jin'er nestled in Lan Feier's embrace, pouting as she said, "Big Brother is not a demonic fiend at all. You are all slandering Big Brother. And as for those Heir Apparent Disciples of yours, when Big Brother was on the Taixuan Platform, he showed them extra mercy for the sake of old acquaintances, allowing them to join forces and surround him. My Big Brother didn't even fight back. It was they themselves who didn't know their own limits, who didn't heed Big Brother's warning. When they heard Big Brother had failed in forming his Golden Core, they wanted to kill him...
Those who kill shall be killed in turn. They all deserved to die!"
"How dare you!"
"You little brat, seeking death!"
"You ignorant little wretch!"
Xiao Jin'er's words immediately provoked public outrage. The leaders of the various major sects were furious, their expressions changing on the spot. Brilliant light flickered around each of them as surging spiritual power erupted, as if they were itching to make a move.
"This old man would like to see who dares to act!"
Whoosh!
Ziyang and the other eleven Chixiao People roared in anger. A dark crimson radiance instantly ignited around their bodies, blazing like bloody flames. A majestic aura spread out, and everyone could clearly sense the baleful energy contained within.
This was the Blood-Slaughter Aura!
The leaders of the major sects were also seething with killing intent, yet none of them made a move. It seemed they were all very wary and somewhat hesitant.
Just then.
A thunderous shout rang out.
"What impressive authority you have!"
Everyone looked over. A group of several hundred people arrived majestically, riding the wind. Among them were elders from the Dianyuan Branch Hall and elders from the Leiyun Branch Hall. At the forefront were two men: one was Xu Jintong's father, also the hall master of the Dianyuan Branch Hall, Xu Changfeng. The other was the current hall master of the Leiyun Branch Hall, Ma Qian, who was also Ma Zhengtian's father and the direct disciple of Elder Xiang, the venerable expert overseeing the Leiyun Branch Hall.
Seeing the arrival of people from the Dianyuan and Leiyun Branch Halls, the hearts of the major sect leaders rejoiced. They were all afraid of bearing the consequences of provoking the Chixiao People, but if the Dianyuan and Leiyun people took action, that would be a different matter.
Xu Changfeng, hall master of the Dianyuan Branch Hall, shouted angrily, "Ziyang! Hand over that little girl!"
Almost every Chixiao Branch Hall had several Chixiao People overseeing it, and the Dianyuan Branch Hall was no exception. One of the Chixiao People overseeing the Dianyuan Branch Hall was precisely Xu Changfeng's master, Dao Sovereign Yunhe.
Now, Ziyang and the others were, after all, Chixiao People of the same generation as his master. By seniority, Ziyang and the others were Xu Changfeng's martial uncles. Yet Xu Changfeng did not offer any formal greeting. Not only that, he directly called Ziyang by name. Clearly, he did not hold Ziyang in any regard.
"Xu Changfeng! You little bastard!"
Ziyang flared up, berating him, "Even your master Yunhe would have to call me 'elder brother' when he sees me! How dare you shout and yell in front of this old man? Get down from there!"
Roar!
Ziyang's furious roar was accompanied by an earth-shaking dragon's roar and elephant's fury, as domineering as a dragon's cry piercing the clouds and an angry elephant's roar shaking the earth.
Xu Changfeng in mid-air immediately paled, his mind shaken by the force. He plummeted downward, not daring to be negligent. Spiritual power erupted from his body, and Primordial Spirit power surged forth. However, facing Ziyang, he did not dare to attack. As a disciple of the Chixiao People, he knew better than anyone how powerful and terrifying the Chixiao People were.
Compared to Xu Changfeng, Ma Qian, the hall master of the Leiyun Branch Hall, appeared much more proper. Upon seeing Ziyang, he said with an expressionless face, "Honored Martial Uncles, I do not wish to waste words. I hope you will hand over the little girl."
"Ma Qian, what business is this of yours?" Ziyang said. "As far as this old man knows, your son didn't die, did he?"
"My son Zhengtian indeed did not die, but he might as well be dead."
"How so?"
Ma Qian waved his hand. From behind him, two people carried out a young man on a stretcher. The young man lay on the stretcher as if he had lost his soul, his consciousness dull and vacant. The young man was none other than Ma Zhengtian.
"How did he become like this?"
Ziyang could see that Ma Zhengtian was not injured but had suffered a fright, his mind completely shattered. What puzzled him, however, was that Ma Zhengtian possessed Dragon-Elephant guardianship, and it was the Chixiao Dragon-Elephant inherited from his grandfather. Even if he couldn't fuse with it, at the very least, the Dragon-Elephant should have been able to protect his mind and spirit. How could he have been scared witless?
Suddenly.
Ziyang noticed something serious: there was no trace of Dragon-Elephant aura on Ma Zhengtian.
Puzzled, Ziyang sent out his divine sense to investigate. To his great shock, he found no Dragon-Elephant within Ma Zhengtian's body.
"Where is his Chixiao Dragon-Elephant?"
"My son's Chixiao Dragon-Elephant was... was erased by that demonic fiend surnamed Gu using some unknown method!"
As Ma Qian's voice came, the twelve Chixiao People were all astounded. Ziyang immediately denied it, "Impossible! Gu Qingfeng's strength may be bizarre and formidable, but he absolutely does not possess the ability to erase a Chixiao Dragon-Elephant."
Ziyang and the other eleven Chixiao People all possessed genuine Chixiao Dragon-Elephants. They were well aware of the Dragon-Elephant's power. Of course, this wasn't to say the Chixiao Dragon-Elephant possessed an indestructible body, nor that others were incapable of erasing it. Rather, they knew that the power of cultivators simply could not kill a Dragon-Elephant. Moreover, to erase a Chixiao Dragon-Elephant required an immensely powerful conviction and will; otherwise, one wouldn't even have the courage to attempt it!
Suppressing the fury in his heart, Ma Qian said through gritted teeth, "If it wasn't erased by that demonic fiend surnamed Gu, could my son's Chixiao Dragon-Elephant have just vanished into thin air? All of you are Chixiao People. You should know very well: where the Dragon-Elephant is, there is Chixiao! My son may not be a true Chixiao Person, and the Dragon-Elephant may not have fused with his blood and soul, but it absolutely would not just vanish for no reason!"
Yes!
Where the Dragon-Elephant is, there is Chixiao.
As long as the Dragon-Elephant does not die, the Chixiao Person will not die either.
But now, the Chixiao Dragon-Elephant had vanished, yet Ma Zhengtian was still alive.
Such a thing had never been heard of by Ziyang and the other eleven Chixiao People. In their understanding, such an event simply could not happen.
The Dragon-Elephant and Chixiao were inseparable; neither could survive alone.
Just as Ma Qian said, his son might not be a true Chixiao Person, and the Dragon-Elephant might not have fused with his blood and soul, but it absolutely would not just vanish into thin air!
What in the world was going on?
"Grandpa Ziyang, Ma Zhengtian's Chixiao Dragon-Elephant was not killed by Gu Qingfeng!"
At this moment, Lan Feier, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke up. "His Chixiao Dragon-Elephant was... was... it dispersed and vanished on its own..."