Lu Xuan wanted to keep Wu Jiu. The moment those words left his mouth, the illusory soul projection of Wu Sheng, floating in midair, froze.
The unrestrained smile on his face stiffened in an instant, as if suddenly covered by a layer of frost.
Then, Wu Sheng’s frozen expression slowly settled into calm—but beneath that calm, turbulent waves seemed to lurk.
“Fellow Daoist Lu, you know this is impossible.”
“Wu Jiu is a member of the Wu family. He can only be dealt with by our Wu family.”
Wu Sheng’s face turned cold, his eyes utterly devoid of warmth as he stared straight at Lu Xuan. Not a trace of emotion could be heard in his words—like an icy abyss of unfathomable depth.
Wu Jiu was the Wu family’s Supreme Elder. If he were handed over to Lu Xuan for punishment, how could the Wu family ever hold their heads up in the Great Xia Imperial Court again?
Moreover, this was happening right in front of him—the Wu family’s ancestral patriarch—demanding that Wu Jiu be handed over.
This was impossible!
The Eight Great Families cannot be insulted!
Matters concerning the Eight Great Families can only be handled by the Eight Great Families themselves. Outsiders have no right to interfere.
Of course, the one exception was that supreme and exalted Great Xia Emperor in the imperial palace!
Seeing that Lu Xuan remained silent, showing not the slightest intention of backing down, a sharp killing intent flashed through Wu Sheng’s eyes.
However, that killing intent vanished in an instant. Wu Sheng quickly suppressed the fury and ruthlessness in his heart, and spoke again—this time with a hint of helpless compromise in his tone.
“Fellow Daoist Lu, regarding Wu Jiu’s assassination attempt on Mu Yun, it was our Wu family’s failure in discipline. We should bear the consequences.”
Wu Sheng’s gaze locked tightly onto Lu Xuan. “But the mistakes of our Wu family’s people are subject to our Wu family’s rules.”
“Once Wu Jiu returns to the Wu family, I will personally invoke the Wu family’s clan law to deal with him. There will be no leniency. I will give you a satisfactory explanation, Fellow Daoist Lu!”
The Lu Xuan before him seemed young, yet his manner was so forceful, pressing forward step by step with every word.
He had not shown the slightest courtesy to Wu Sheng, the Wu family’s ancestral patriarch.
Wu Sheng was secretly furious, though he still maintained a measure of composure on the surface.
An arrogant, reckless youngster!
Wu Sheng snorted coldly in his heart, feeling that this Lu Xuan was far too ignorant of the world’s ways, completely disregarding the Eight Great Families.
Did he think that just because he had reached the peak of the Divine Mansion Realm, he could do whatever he pleased without consequence?
What he failed to realize was that as long as one was not a Cave Void True Lord, the Eight Great Families would forever remain an invincible myth within the Great Xia Imperial Court.
Seeing that Wu Sheng was unwilling to accept it, the impatience on Lu Xuan’s face flickered away—yet it was so intense he could not hide it.
In the next moment, Lu Xuan could not even be bothered to keep up appearances. He directly berated Wu Sheng in a harsh voice.
“Enough noise!”
Those two words from Lu Xuan seemed wrapped in frost—piercingly cold.
“Irrelevant parties, withdraw immediately!”
“If you continue to linger here, do not blame this Bureau Chief for being ungracious and taking you down as well!”
Lu Xuan’s words were filled with unyielding force, as if he would strike at any moment.
“Fine!” Wu Sheng’s eyes went wide with fury, his voice squeezed out from between clenched teeth.
“Very well!”
Wu Sheng was enraged!
He was truly enraged!
This junior was pushing him too far!
Wu Sheng’s heart was filled with fury suppressed to its absolute limit, like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
“Lu Xuan, today I shall see for myself.”
“Just how capable you really are—whether you can take Wu Jiu from my hands!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Wu Sheng laughed wildly in sheer fury, his laughter shaking the space around them and producing rolling thunder, as if it could shatter heaven and earth.
In an instant, a terrifying vortex storm of air currents erupted madly, centered on Wu Sheng’s illusory soul projection.
The surrounding air was twisted and distorted. Amid the flying sand and stones, Wu Sheng’s boundless divine sense and soul power were mixed in!
At this moment, the happiest person was none other than Wu Jiu.
Wu Jiu’s earlier frustration vanished in an instant, replaced by irrepressible excitement. Even his facial expression radiated a sense of exhilaration.
“This ignorant, reckless bastard Lu Xuan!”
“He’s simply arrogant to the extreme, looking down on everyone, showing no reverence whatsoever for the Wu family of the Eight Great Families.”
Wu Jiu cursed endlessly in his heart.
Thinking of this, a sinister glint flashed through Wu Jiu’s eyes. “Hmph, now there’s a good show to watch. Let Old Ancestor Wu Sheng teach this bastard junior a proper lesson.”
“Let’s see if you dare to be so insolent then. I’ll show you what it means—there’s always a higher mountain, and beyond the heavens there is still heaven!”
Suddenly, a sudden change occurred!
The pitch-black cane in Wu Jiu’s hand shot toward Wu Sheng in the sky above without any warning.
Its speed was like lightning, leaving a blurry afterimage in the air.
In the blink of an eye, the black cane Wu Jiu held had already floated before Wu Sheng.
In the next moment, the heaven-and-earth runes carved upon that deep, dark cane seemed to be awakened by a mysterious force, suddenly bursting forth with dazzling black light.
This black radiance spread in all directions like a surging tide. In the blink of an eye, it seemed to transform into a vast heavenly curtain that blotted out the sky and sun.
The pitch-black heavenly curtain devoured all surrounding light, constantly emitting an aura of utter terror.
Seeing that the Old Ancestor had already acted, Wu Jiu was secretly delighted, knowing his chance to escape had come.
In the instant before that black curtain descended, Wu Jiu’s entire aura abruptly changed. His whole body seemed like a bowstring drawn to its absolute limit, ready to launch.
Immediately after, his figure flickered—fast as a ghost—transforming into a black afterimage as he flew at extreme speed into the distance.
A whistling wind trailed behind him along the way. The surrounding air was thrown into chaos by his passage, which was enough to show just how desperately he wanted to flee.
Seeing Wu Jiu about to bolt, Lu Xuan’s eyes narrowed in an instant, purple light blazing forth.
In that instant, the void above Wu Jiu’s head suddenly twisted and rippled, then eerily collapsed.
Immediately after, a giant hand wreathed in surging purple flames, carrying the crushing force of mountains and seas, slammed down toward Wu Jiu’s body.
“Trying to run?”
Lu Xuan snorted coldly. Those two extremely brief words carried endless deterrence, like a thunderclap exploding on flat ground, rolling and echoing around Wu Jiu.
In an instant, Wu Jiu’s entire body was pinned down by an irresistible force of heaven and earth.
This power of heaven and earth was so heavy it felt as though the entire sky had collapsed upon him, as if it wanted to grind Wu Jiu inch by inch into dust, to scatter his bones and ashes.
Wu Jiu’s legs trembled slightly under the crushing weight. He strained with all his might just to barely stand firm on the ground, every inch of his muscles taut from exertion.
Wu Jiu quickly raised his head. His eyes were already bloodshot, filled with fear and despair.
He stared fixedly at the giant purple-flame hand above him, wreathed in scorching flames.
“No!”
Wu Jiu roared, his voice full of unwillingness and despair. Before this world-destroying power, his resistance seemed so utterly insignificant.
“Old Ancestor, save me!”
Wu Jiu screamed at the top of his lungs, hoarse with effort, pinning his hopes on Old Ancestor Wu Sheng to help him at this critical moment.
No sooner had Wu Jiu’s cry for help sounded than Wu Sheng, as if connected by telepathy, instantly perceived Wu Jiu’s plight.
In the next moment, that pitch-black cane began trembling inexplicably.
Immediately after, the dark, profound cane body surged with eerie, bizarre black light, heaven-and-earth runes flickering in and out of visibility.
Suddenly, a muffled rumbling sound emerged from deep within the cane.
In the very next instant, a black tide that seemed to possess its own consciousness burst forth from the cane with the momentum of overturning mountains and seas.
The tide surged, waves splashing. Every drop of ink-black water gave off a chilling cold, and an aura of terror rapidly filled the air.
This tide was thick as ink, churning and roaring, as if containing endless malice and power.
In an instant, this black tide, carrying the momentum to destroy heaven and earth.
Like an arrow loosed from a bow, it hurtled madly toward Lu Xuan’s giant purple-flame hand, condensed from divine sense and soul power.
Its speed was extreme—almost in the blink of an eye, it crossed the distance between the two.
Wherever the black tide passed, space seemed to be violently rammed, sending out ripples in fierce circles.
The originally stable void space seemed unable to bear the burden, emitting faint “zzz” sounds, as if it might collapse at any moment.
Under the relentless washing of that black tide, pouring forth like a flood, the giant purple-flame hand Lu Xuan had condensed was instantly completely submerged.
That blazing purple flame, under the impact of the black tide, seemed like a candle flickering in the wind—utterly powerless to resist, rapidly extinguished.
And below, Wu Jiu keenly sensed that the terrifying force pressing down on him like Mount Tai had quietly dissipated.
Having narrowly escaped death, Wu Jiu’s face was filled with the relief of surviving a calamity.
How could he dare linger even a moment? He did not even dare look back, fleeing madly forward with all his might, wishing he had been born with a few more legs.
At this moment, Wu Jiu had only one thought in his mind—to get as far away from this terrifying place as possible.
Especially Lu Xuan—this young man with terrifying methods had become a nightmare Wu Jiu could not shake off.
In Wu Jiu’s eyes, this Lu Xuan was extremely dangerous.
If he could choose, Wu Jiu would rather never see Lu Xuan again for the rest of his life.
Even a distant glimpse of Lu Xuan’s figure would make Wu Jiu tremble with fear.
Because Lu Xuan—this unbridled madman—truly dared to kill him!
Just as Wu Jiu was fleeing in panic, desperately dashing into the distance.
An extremely faint wisp of purple qi, almost impossible to detect, quietly flashed past behind him like a ghost.
That purple qi was fast as lightning, gone in a flash. If not for someone with extremely keen perception, it would be impossible to notice this subtle anomaly.
Lu Xuan stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his black brocade robe fluttering in the wind. His expression was calm, his gaze deep as he looked into the distance.
Wu Jiu’s figure was rapidly vanishing toward the horizon. Lu Xuan simply watched him quietly.
For a long while, Lu Xuan ultimately chose not to strike again, seemingly letting Wu Jiu leave.
Lu Xuan’s expression remained unchanged. Within those calm eyes seemed to hide thoughts unknown to others, as if everything was within his control.
The reason Lu Xuan no longer paid attention to Wu Jiu was simply that his attention at this moment had been entirely drawn to Wu Sheng in midair.
“Truly delightful!”
Lu Xuan murmured to himself, a glint of determination flashing through his eyes.
Of course, do not misunderstand—Lu Xuan had no interest whatsoever in Wu Sheng’s illusory soul projection.
What Lu Xuan had his eye on was naturally the black cane before Wu Sheng, emanating a mysterious aura.
A sacrificial artifact!
That was one of the things Lu Xuan most desired to obtain—a heaven-and-earth sacrificial artifact!
In Lu Xuan’s eyes, this black cane was absolutely not inferior to the Seven-Rune Moon Artifact, the Haoran Ruler, belonging to the Wen family’s ancestral patriarch, Wen Fengyuan.
Comparing the two, one could tell from that single exchange just now that the heaven-and-earth origin power contained in this sacrificial artifact was on par with the Haoran Ruler—equal in every respect!
At this thought, Lu Xuan’s hands, which had been clasped behind his back, slowly relaxed.
Lu Xuan’s expression turned stern, his gaze like a torch as he looked toward Wu Sheng. Suddenly, he shouted in fury:
“How dare you!”
“Old fool, you dare obstruct this Bureau Chief from apprehending the criminal who assassinated Deputy Bureau Chief Mu Yun—what crime do you plead?!”
Lu Xuan’s interrogation sent rolling sound waves raging through the air, shaking the surrounding air until it hummed.
“Hmph, Lu Xuan, stop putting on airs before me!”
Wu Sheng snorted coldly, his eyes full of disdain. “Stop trying to pressure me with these high-sounding words.”
The next second, the aura around Wu Sheng’s illusory soul projection suddenly surged. Billowing heaven-and-earth power transformed into a raging storm sweeping all around.
“No need for idle talk. Let’s see the truth under our hands—only after a bout will we know who is superior!”
With that, Wu Sheng stared intently at Lu Xuan, as if wanting to test this Lu Xuan’s true strength.
This Bone-Eroding Cane was a Seven-Rune Moon-Level sacrificial artifact that Wu Sheng had obtained after breaking through to the Divine Mansion Realm back in the day.
With the heaven-and-earth origin power of the Bone-Eroding Cane empowering it, this illusory soul projection of his could come infinitely close to the power of a perfected Divine Mansion Realm.
Today, Wu Sheng wanted to find out—whether this Lu Xuan before him had truly reached the perfected Divine Mansion Realm.
In his view, if Lu Xuan truly had, then he was undoubtedly a massive threat.
Wu Sheng pondered secretly: if Lu Xuan had indeed reached the perfected Divine Mansion Realm, then this child must not be allowed to live.
If left unchecked, in time he would surely become a mortal threat.
At that point, Wu Sheng planned to immediately notify those other families and unite forces from all sides.
While this Lu Xuan’s foundation was still unstable, they would uproot this scourge as quickly as possible.
Lu Xuan could not be bothered to waste more words on Wu Sheng. In an instant, his eyes blazed with purple light, like two purple suns rising.
“Leave this cane behind!”
The moment Lu Xuan’s words fell, a scene that stunned Wu Sheng suddenly appeared.
A giant purple-flame hand capable of shrouding the heavens instantly took form outside the black curtain.
Then, that sky-blotting giant purple-flame hand, with unstoppable momentum, boldly broke through the black curtain.
Next, the giant purple-flame hand, carrying world-destroying force, lunged straight at Wu Sheng’s illusory soul projection.
The vast heaven-and-earth power within that giant purple-flame hand caused the surrounding space to begin twisting and distorting.
Wu Sheng’s divine sense soul projection had just thought to move when he found there was simply no time to react.
The giant purple-flame hand in midair instantly closed its five fingers, clutching Wu Sheng’s divine sense soul projection tightly.
With a series of faint “crackle” sounds, Wu Sheng’s soul projection, wrapped in the giant purple-flame hand, turned into specks of starlight like fragile bubbles, dissolving between heaven and earth in an instant.
The current Lu Xuan was invincible below the Cave Void Realm.
A mere soul projection infinitely approaching the perfected Divine Mansion Realm was nothing more than a casual matter!
