"This is too much!" Wang He swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He stared wide-eyed and open-mouthed at the mysterious shadow. It turned out that framing someone could actually be done in such a way!
Xie Rengui laughed bitterly. This was a power play. One could not reason with such absolute power. Before this, Yang Gongcheng had also acted this way. However, this mysterious shadow had given Yang Gongcheng a taste of his own medicine and had turned out to be even more domineering than he was.
Thinking about his previous predicament, Xie Rengui suddenly realized that there would always be retribution and that the heavens had never spared anyone before.
"You..."
Yang Gongcheng stared at the mysterious shadow before him. Even at such a distance, he still could not see its appearance clearly. When questioned by the mysterious person, he nearly fainted. This stranger's actions were completely brazen.
"What's the matter? My silver ingot was on you. Do you not admit it?" The corner of the mysterious shadow's mouth curled into an evil grin. The cold light deep within his eyes made Yang Gongcheng's entire body tremble. He had never seen such a frightening gaze.
"Legitimacy belongs to the victor. I admit that I have fallen into your hands, but it is impossible for me to confess such a crime."
Yang Gongcheng was still stubborn. He was a respected Baili Sect sect leader, and if he admitted that he had stolen this silver ingot due to being threatened by such a power, how would he be able to show his face in the Taihang Mountains in the future?
"Is that so? This dead duck has a stubborn mouth. It seems that I must resort to torture." The mysterious shadow seemed to have long anticipated that Yang Gongcheng would answer in such a manner. He grinned in a sinister way as he threw Yang Gongcheng onto the ground. "Someone whip him for me," he said. "Whip him until he confesses to his crimes."
As he said this, the entire square suddenly became dead silent. This person had actually asked them to whip the Baili Sect sect leader, Yang Gongcheng. No one else would dare to do such a thing!
Whipping Yang Gongcheng would release the resentment of the Five Tigers Sect members, and everyone here most likely had furiously lashed Yang Gongcheng once already in their minds. However, no one had the nerve to actually whip him. No matter what, Yang Gongcheng was still the number one expert in the Taihang Mountains. They could beat him up now to relieve their resentment, but what about the future? Did they still want to be in the Taihang Mountains?
As for the members of the Baili Sect, they would never dare to whip their own sect leader. Right now, the Baili Sect members were all standing completely still. Their faces were pale. They knew that the situation was bad, but they did not dare to make a move.
"What's the matter? No one dares to whip him?" the mysterious shadow asked. He laughed coldly and swept his gaze across the entire square. He was primarily looking at the members of the Five Tigers Sect. Everyone seemed to feel the mocking look contained in that gaze.
When Yang Gongcheng was imposing, they had not dared to resist. Now that he had fallen low, they also did not dare to make a move.
"I'll do it!" a voice cried out from the crowd. Everyone turned towards the voice. No one had expected that the person who had spoken would be the Five Tigers Sect sect leader, Xie Rengui! Prior to this, Xie Rengui had put up with Yang Gongcheng and compromised with him wherever he could. Even when Yang Gongcheng began to bully him, he did not grumble at all. Right now though, he seemed to no longer care about his status as a sect leader and had volunteered to be the person to whip Yang Gongcheng!
"Xie Rengui, do you want to die?" Yang Gongcheng's expression could not have been more unpleasant. He felt as though he had never faced such humiliation in his entire life.
"I've put up with you for long enough." Xie Rengui looked at Yang Gongcheng expressionlessly. Then, he picked up a whip and lashed out. The whip in his hand was not an ordinary whip. It was forged of Cold Iron and was sturdy as could be. Every lash of the whip that landed on Yang Gongcheng's body reached through to the bone. Even a Golden Elixir Realm ancient martial art practitioner would find it hard to endure such pain.
Argh!
Yang Gongcheng's screams did not cease. Xie Rengui had no intention of holding back at all. He gave it his all in every lash of his whip. He was an ancient martial art practitioner at the pinnacle of the Embryonic Breathing Realm. A simple lash of his whip could open up a gully in the ground. Right now, Yang Gongcheng could not resist at all. He could only let Xie Rengui whip him as he pleased.
"Do you admit to your crime?" Xie Rengui shouted sternly. His hands did not stop as he whipped him again and again. It seemed as though he was venting his frustrations.
"Argh… I do not admit… Argh… Xie Rengui… You are… seeking death…" Yang Gongcheng's screams continued.
"You dare not admit that you have stolen something. I will whip you to death."
Argh… Argh...
Right now, the mysterious shadow had already appeared in the center of the square where Wan'er and Wang Qian were tied on crosses. He pointed with his finger and all the chains that bound Wan'er shattered. Without the bondage of the chains, Wan'er's body could not stand properly and she fell to the ground.
The mysterious person reached out and lifted her up. Then, with a wave of his hand, a mass of green light lit up on his palm and enveloped Wan'er's body. The next moment, an astonishing scene played out to the crowd. The injuries on Wan'er's body healed right before their eyes. In just a short amount of time, the wounds on her body were all completely healed. Not a scar could be seen.
A formless mass of gas guided Wan'er's body and delivered her right in front of Mei Yixuan. Mei Yixuan hurriedly held Wan'er in her arms. At the same time, she felt astonished beyond compare. This mysterious person had actually come to save these two little girls. Also, this method of instantly curing Wan'er gave Mei Yixuan a shock.
No wonder this mysterious person had appeared to rescue them when they were ambushed in the forest that day. Their group most likely was blessed by Wan'er's presence. Otherwise, they would have long perished at the hands of the members of the Baili Sect.
Wang He was so shocked that he was covered in cold sweat. Luckily, they had not done anything to the two girls and had not taken their Dragon City Talismans. If they had, the consequences would be unthinkable.
After the mysterious shadow used the same method to rescue Wang Qian, he once again returned to Yang Gongcheng's side. Yang Gongcheng had been so badly whipped that his skin was torn and his flesh was bare. His clothes were in shreds and he had fallen to the ground, crying incessantly.
However, Yang Gongcheng was stubborn as an ox. No matter how many times Xie Rengui whipped him, he would not admit his crime.
The mysterious shadow snorted coldly. He flicked his finger and a few beams of blue light shot out. They instantly buried themselves in Yang Gongcheng's body.
The next moment, shrill screams suddenly sounded, several times more intense than before. Yang Gongcheng's figure was curled up as he kept trembling on the ground. His face was contorted. Almost everyone in the square could feel the sense of agony that he was going through.
"What's the matter? You still don't want to admit it?" the mysterious shadow asked teasingly.
He was getting him to confess under torture. Yang Gongcheng had used this method on Wan'er and Wang Qian. Who would have imagined that it would be used on himself so soon?
"I… I… admit."
The inhumane pain caused Yang Gongcheng to be unable to speak properly. Every word he spoke took considerable effort. Right now, his mind was blank. He only had one thought in his mind, and that was to die. As long as he could die, he was willing to admit to anything. He only wanted to die.
The people in the square all took a sharp intake of breath. Everyone could see that Yang Gongcheng was in such extreme pain that dying was better than living.
"If you had admitted it sooner, you could have spared yourself some pain," the mysterious person stated plainly. At the same time, he waved his hand and Yang Gongcheng's body flew up.
"Since you admitted to stealing my things, you can die."
With a rumble, Yang Gongcheng's body instantly exploded in mid-air. It was as if a watermelon had been crushed under one's feet. Blood rained down and splattered everywhere. The leader of the Baili Sect had ended up dying in such a manner, all because he had been too presumptuous.
The members of the Baili Sect turned pale one by one. They looked at the mysterious shadow in horror. He had killed their dignified sect leader just like that. How would the rest of them walk out of here alive?
"I have already spared your lives once. However, none of you have shown any signs of repentance. It seems that I have been too merciful toward you."
The mysterious shadow slowly looked towards Cheng Zongping as well as the group of Baili Sect sect grand elders. Almost all the members of the Baili Sect that appeared in the forest that day were here.
Cheng Zongping's expression was pale. He was very cruel to others, but he was fearful for his own life. He never imagined that death would be standing so close to him. When the sect leader was killed right before his eyes, he realized that this mysterious person would actually kill people.
"Good sir, please spare us!"
With a plopping sound, a few members of the Baili Sect were so scared that they knelt down on the ground and prostrated themselves non-stop before the mysterious shadow.
Fu Yu was down on the ground. She bawled her eyes out and screamed all sorts of regrets. She claimed that everything she did was at the bidding of Yang Gongcheng and that she was also a victim.
The group of Five Tigers Sect members looked at each other. Who would have thought that the Baili Sect, which had been prestigious for so many years, would end up like this?
"Everyone who took part in the operation to ambush the Five Tigers Sect in the forest that day, cripple your own cultivation or die," the mysterious person said. He did not simply kill people. However, he was not prepared to let these people go.
The expressions of the members who took part in the forest operation changed drastically when they heard him say this. Crippling their own cultivation was a price that they were not willing to pay.
"What's the matter? Do you have any objections?" the mysterious shadow asked plainly.
"Senior, you are kind and merciful. Could you please spare our lives?" a Baili Sect sect grand elder pleaded with an ugly expression. That day, he had taken part in the operation. This was his second encounter with this mysterious person.
Humph!
The mysterious shadow did not say anything but merely snorted coldly. The next moment, a mass of blood mist exploded in the square. The Baili Sect sect grand elder that had spoken instantly exploded, disintegrating into dust on the spot. No one knew how the Baili Sect sect grand elder had died.
"I have already spared your lives. How else do you want to live?"
A terrifying storm swept through the entire square. Everyone suddenly fell silent out of fear. For a moment, the square descended into complete silence.
The eyes of Cheng Zongping, who had not spoken all this while, suddenly shone with a look of viciousness and madness. He grabbed the Baili Sect elder beside him and threw him towards the mysterious shadow. Then, he furiously stomped on the ground and shot up to the sky like an arrow leaving the bow as he flew towards the foot of the mountain with all his might.
Asking Cheng Zongping to cripple his cultivation was the same as killing him. Without his cultivation, he would certainly not live more than three days. It was because he had too many enemies.
The mysterious shadow stood motionless on his original spot. He did not even look at Cheng Zongping, seemingly allowing him to flee.
However, Cheng Zongping had only traveled a short distance when he suddenly came to a stop. He also suddenly exploded and like the Baili Sect sect grand elder before him, disintegrated into dust and became a bloody mist.
The group of Baili Sect members looked at each other, their horror reaching its peak. Their eyes were full of despair, especially those who had participated in the forest ambush operation.
Against such dominance that they could not resist, they had no choice but to cripple their own cultivation and silently leave the Five Tigers Sect. From this day onwards, they would no longer be ancient martial art practitioners. Who would have thought that they would leave in such a fashion after having come in such high spirits?
"Senior, please do not let Fu Yu, this malicious woman, go." Wan'er had suddenly run out and blocked the path of the escaping Fu Yu.