The middle-aged man was reduced to ash, and every last clansman outside the barrier was consumed by the lightning tribulation.
No one knew how long it took before the final rumble of thunder faded, when silence fell, it was the suffocating stillness of a grave.
Corpses lay strewn across the ground, the air thick with the sickly stench of blood.
Jared withdrew the golden shield. His face had gone paper-white, his breathing unsteady, saving those few dozen survivors had drained nearly all of his strength, and had possessed nowhere near the power required to rescue the rest.
“Why? Why didn’t you save our clan leader? You could have!” the white-robed youth snarled, fixing Jared with a gaze that burned with accusation.
Flaxseed and the others rushed over, without a word, Flaxseed swung his palm across the youth‘s cheek.
“Remember this, if can save you, can Just as easily kill you!” Flaxseed growled, then turned to steady Jared. “You all right?”
“I’ll live,” Jared replied, though a sudden crease etched itself between his brows.
His eyes sharpened, fixed on the far horizon. “They’re coming…”
“Move!” Flaxseed sensed it too. He seized Jared’s arm, and in a blink, the two of them were gone, the rest of their party vanishing close behind.
The surviving cultivators of the Worryfree Clan hurried after them in desperate silence.
No sooner had they fled than three black-robed figures appeared amid the field of corpses. Taking in the carnage, each of them broke into a satisfied smile before setting to work, methodically harvesting the lingering souls from the dead.
Jared’s group did not stop until they had put several thousand miles between themselves and the scene of death.
Jared doubled over, panting; had not even had a chance to replenish the power had spent, and now the punishing flight had wrung his body nearly dry.
“Clearly, my physical body still needs serious work,” muttered between ragged breaths. “Otherwise I’ll never be able to withstand such a scarlet lightning tribulation long enough to reach the Fourth Heaven…”
Deciding then and there, resolved to seize the remaining fragments of the Barbarian Body-Refinement Manual and forge a sturdier physique.
His cultivation had advanced too quickly of late, and his body-tempering had lagged behind, repeated possessions by Vermilion Demon Lord had left battered inside and out. He had to reinforce his physical body, soon.
The young woman approached, voice gentle yet earnest. “Thank you. You saved our lives…”
The white-robed man scoffed. “Thank him? He took every resource we owned before lifted a finger. It was a transaction, nothing more, no gratitude required. Besides, could have saved the clan leader, yet chose to stand by. Compassion? He’s never heard of it.”
“Shut your mouth,” the young woman roared, fury spilling over.
Jared’s eyes turned frosty as regarded the youth. With a casual flick of his wrist, emptied a cluster of item pouches onto the ground.
“Which one of these belongs to you?” asked, his tone cold as winter steel.
Jared turned toward the slender young man dressed from head to toe in immaculate white and asked in a level voice, “Well? Speak up…”
“I…” The white-robed youth’s lips parted, yet no sound beyond that single syllable emerged, whatever words had meant to say died in his throat.
Seeing the tension spike, the young woman hurried forward and bowed to Jared, blurting an apology, “Sir, please don’t be offended. He can’t seem to control his mouth.”
Jared paid the woman no attention whatsoever. His gaze remained locked on the young man as demanded, “Which of these is your item pouch? Point it out, and take it back this instant.”
The youth swallowed. With a tentative wave of his palm, an item pouch streaked through the air and landed neatly in his grasp.
Clutching the pouch to his chest, declared, “This one belongs to me!”
“Good…” Jared answered, his tone turning glacial. “You have your property, so I owe you nothing. Remember, I saved your life, now I’m taking it back.”
The youth froze, then shouted in panic, “What are you trying to do?!”
“Sir, knows was wrong. Please…” The woman tried again to intercede, voice quavering as stepped between them.
Jared’s arm swept sideways. The Dragonslayer Sword coalesced out of thin air, and a blinding arc of steel-white light burst forward.
The white-clad youth had no chance to dodge. In the blink of an eye, his head was severed, it tumbled to the ground while a dark fountain of blood sprayed the dirt.
