Chapter 214: An Jingmings Death

Chapter 214: An Jingming's Death

"It's... it's nothing really," An Zheyan stammered, withdrawing his hand awkwardly, a sheepish expression crossing his face as he spoke.

"A few days ago, while you were in seclusion, I sent some members to assist the Li Family on behalf of the Yu Family... I may have indulged in a bit too much wine and spouted some nonsense."

After saying that, he waved his hands hastily and forced a smile on his face, adding, "But rest assured, everyone present at the time was trustworthy and loyal. They won't breathe a word of it!"

"Spouted some nonsense?!" An Jingming interrupted, disregarding his father's attempt to explain further. His expression betrayed his unease as he murmured, "You didn't tell the others about my achievements in cultivation, did you?"

An Zheyan froze for a moment before a crestfallen expression appeared on his aged face. Observing his father's reaction, An Jingming immediately knew that he had hit the nail on the head. He immediately lost his temper and flew into a rage.

"Father, surely, you understand the gravity of this situation?!" he hissed through his clenched teeth. Gét latest novel chapters on nov(e)lbj/n(.)c/om

An Zheyan bowed his head in shame like a child. Before An Jingming could erupt in anger further, they felt the mountain's grand formation shaking.

An Jingming glanced up sourly and noticed a gray-clothed figure floating outside the formation. The figure was looking at the pavilion below calmly with chilling indifference.

"An Jingming, get your ass out here!" Yu Mugao's voice cut through the air, which was tinged with annoyance. His carefully laid plans to strike at the Li Family had been compromised, leaving behind a trail that would inevitably lead back to the An Family. He anticipated that the Li Family would inevitably turn to the An Family for explanations—if not outright accusations.

Yu Mugao had already prepared his pawns and devised a scheme. All they were waiting for was the arrival of the Li Family's representatives. However, to his surprise, Li Xuanfeng had managed to uncover the traces and had even assassinated Master Jiang and Yu Muyuan.

With the Li Family suddenly quiet, Yu Mugao realized he had no choice but to take matters into his own hands. Crafting a pretext, he aimed to shift some of the blame onto the Li Family.

"This person has conspired to murder the young head of the Li Family... The Yu family, entrusted by the Li family, vows to bring this person to justice. There are witnesses to support this," Yu Mugao declared in a deep voice.

Finishing his statement, Yu Mugao muttered to himself, "This won't be enough to take over the An Family... We can only settle this before the Li Family reacts. Eliminate An Zheyan and An Jingming, and pick a puppet leader within the An Family. Their influence will serve to distort the truth and deceive others."

Accustomed to such machinations, Yu Mugao wasted no time in devising his next moves. He glanced down toward the pavilion below where An Zheyan and An Jingming stood, visibly bewildered.

An Zheyan's disbelief boiled over as he exclaimed, "The Li and Yu families?! What is the meaning of this?"

An Jingming, however, wore a resigned expression and let out a sigh.

"Father, if we do not tread carefully, we risk becoming casualties... How loyal do you think the remaining people of our family are? Both families have likely infiltrated our family thoroughly... The seeds you planted long ago may have sprouted into traps for us. By drawing attention like this, I surmise either Li Xuanxuan or Li Xuanfeng is dead."

"T-That's...!" An Zheyan faltered, rendered speechless momentarily. After a moment of silence, tears welled in his eyes.

With a remorseful slap to his own face, he declared through clenched teeth, "This is the doing of Yu Mugao. Leave me be! I will handle this! So long as you survive, the An Family still has hope."

"Yu Mugao of the Yu Family."

The young man before him bore a fierce countenance, wearing a white headband that covered his forehead. He was staring at An Jingming like a ferocious wolf.

An Jingming scrutinized him carefully while Yu Mugao returned the stare with cold indifference. An Jingming did not resort to pleading for mercy or begging for him to spare his family.

Instead, he introduced himself.

"An Jingming of the An Family."

With his jade axe raised, An Jingming charged forward. Yu Mugao simply watched as one of the Yu Family's Qi Cultivators of the eighth heavenly layer came forward from behind him, blocking An Jingming's jade axe with his dharma sword.

A loud metallic clang rang out when the weapons collided against each other. The Qi Cultivator recoiled from the impact, taking a step backward. An Jingming turned the direction of his jade axe, prompting Yu Mugao to raise an eyebrow.

Another figure emerged from behind him, a peak Qi Cultivator, repelling An Jingming's jade axe with his dharma sword.

"Your progress in cultivation is impressive to be able to keep up or maybe even surpass the peak Cultivator by a margin," Yu Mugao remarked with a sigh, his tone laced with amusement.

"Had you not been born into the An Family and were given another hundred years to cultivate, I'm sure you'd make a name for yourself among the three sects and seven gates..." he drawled.

An Jingming offered no reply. Instead, he took a step back and swung his jade axe again, grappling with the two Qi Cultivators from the Yu Family. Despite holding his ground against them, he found himself unable to break the stalemate even after a series of exchanges.

Anxiety began gnawing at him. With Yu Xiaogui's absence, he resolved to push through regardless of mana expenditure and rose into the air.

Before he could make another move, a figure cloaked in gray appeared before him. With his white sideburns and smooth hands akin to jade, the man stood silently with his eyes closed.

"Yu Xiaogui," An Jingming addressed him, calmly tying his jade axe around his waist and then cupping his fist.

He then drew his sharp white dharma sword and positioned the blade against his own neck. The razor-sharp edge sliced through the black hair cascading over his shoulder, and the severed strands fell to the ground.

"A great man will inevitably meet other heroes in the world, just as a river will eventually merge with the sea. Although one may strive to touch the clouds with ambition, he is ultimately dragged down by his clan..."

With a swift motion, blood splattered everywhere as he beheaded himself, leaving his headless body collapsing onto the ground.

Yu Xiaogui's eyelids fluttered briefly as he lifted the corpse with his mana and inspected it carefully.

"Even the most extraordinary beings are not beyond mortality... to think such a genius would meet such an end," he remarked softly.