Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 134 - Cripple

The Xue Clan was deeply rooted in the Imperial City for hundreds of years, and even the royal clan was wary of them. This was because the entire clan had over seven thousand branch descendants. In addition to the direct descendants and higher-ups, the clan was huge, with over ten thousand people.

Xue Baisheng was the Ministry of Revenue’s son, a direct descendant of the Xue Clan. He had developed an arrogant personality because of that from a young age. As a result, even his guards were arrogant, blatantly making a move against Chen Leyao. Since Chen Leyao refused, he could only suppress her forcibly.

This naturally caused an uproar from the surroundings as everyone quickly cleared a spacious area, fearing they might be implicated. After all, the Xue Clan had a high status in the Imperial City, only second to the royal clan.

A clapping sound, which generated a peculiar energy fluctuation that caused the nearby air to solidify, resonated in the area. This caused Xue Baisheng’s guards’ hair to stand on the end as he stepped back.

The clapping sound drew everyone’s attention, including Chen Leyao, to its source.

“I’m surprised that the Xue Clan has become so bold that even a mere guard dares to lay his hand on Princess Leyao,” Liu Wuxie said, taking a step forth with disdain in his eyes. Chen Leyao had helped him thrice during the assessment, and he had made a mental note to return the favor when the opportunity arose.

“Brat, who are you? How dare you interfere in the affairs of our Xue Clan!” The two guards were infuriated. The guard who made a move earlier took a step forward, throwing his punch at Liu Wuxie without asking for the reason. This was the Xue Clan’s style, as death awaited anyone who dared to oppose them.

Song Ling was anxious and wanted to interfere. But Liu Wuxie stopped him because the guard was only in the third-level Spirit Cleansing Realm, and he could slaughter a whole group of them with one slap.

“Get lost!” Before the guard could even get close, he was sent flying away by Liu Wuxie. Liu Wuxie was so fast that the guard couldn’t even see how he made his move.

The guard crashed to the ground with his face landing first, and his mouth was covered with blood. He had a footprint on his abdomen as he coughed up blood mixed with broken teeth. “You crippled my cultivation!”

When the guard came to his senses, his true essence left his dantian as there were cracks on it. It didn’t take long before he lost his entire cultivation, becoming a complete waste, and this scene instantly shocked everyone in the surroundings.

The higher-ups of the pawnshop were present, but they didn’t intervene as Liu Wuxie donned the uniform of the Imperial Academy, Xue Baisheng was the Xue Clan’s descendant, and Chen Leyao was royalty. They would be in a tough spot if they helped anyone. Thus, they might as well not help anyone as long as no lives were endangered, not to mention that it was only a guard who was crippled.

Chen Leyao’s eyes flashed with a hint of gratitude and concern. She was grateful for Liu Wuxie's help but worried that he would offend the Xue Clan. The Xue Clan might be domineering, but they wouldn’t dare to kill her. It was entirely different for Liu Wuxie, who had no background. The Xue Clan killed countless people like Liu Wuxie every year.

“Brat, who are you? How dare you attack a guard of my Xue Clan? You’re dead!” Xue Baisheng’s eyes flashed with ferocity while the other guard unsheathed his weapon and pointed it at Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie had no energy fluctuation as he concealed his cultivation at the fifth level of the Xiantian Realm, the same as when he participated in the assessment.

“You’re the son of Xue Chunyu?” Liu Wuxie disregarded Xue Baisheng’s words and replied with a question instead, wearing a ridiculing smile.

In Azure Billow City, Xue Chunyu had sought to destroy the Xu Clan, and Liu Wuxie naturally carried that grudge in his heart. Today, he was planning to collect some interest from his son.

“How dare you address our master by his name!” Suddenly, the guard swiftly swung his blade down at Liu Wuxie. In everyone’s opinion, Liu Wuxie had only managed to send the other guard flying with one kick because he had caught him by surprise.

Chen Leyao was baffled because, judging from what Liu Wuxie said, he seemed to have some grudge against Xue Baisheng’s father.

“Young Master Liu, watch out!” Chen Leyao warned, but she was already late to stop the attack.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye, and everyone was surprised. Song Ling felt nervous despite knowing that Liu Wuxie was strong and could easily slay someone in the ninth-level Spirit Cleansing Realm, as he had done back in Azure Billow City. Someone merely in the third-level Spirit Cleansing Realm was insignificant to him. However, the Xue Clan was a giant, and they could easily wipe out the entire Azure Billow City by sending out an expert randomly.

“Where did a piece of trash like you come from?” Liu Wuxie deftly executed the Seven Dipper Steps to dodge the incoming blade, reappearing to the guard's right and delivering a swift kick.

Everyone only saw Liu Wuxie becoming a blur, vanishing as though he had teleported.

The seemingly ordinary kick was executed brilliantly at the perfect moment, landing on the remaining guard’s lower abdomen. The guard was sent flying out like the first, drawing an arc in mid-air and falling onto the first guard, suffering the same outcome as the first guard with a crack on his dantian. There was a powerful outflow of true essence coming from the two guards as they screamed in agony.

Xue Baisheng panicked seeing this and retreated by a step. Liu Wuxie had easily crippled the two guards without even giving them a chance to respond.

Chen Leyao was shocked. There were cases of cultivators in the Xiantian Realm killing those in the Spirit Cleansing Realm, but those were extremely rare. Was Liu Wuxie so powerful because of the Nine Stars Illumination?

Chen Leyao had delved deeper into the Nine Stars Illumination to enhance her understanding. She deduced that an individual who activated the Nine Stars Illumination possessed a true essence ten times greater than that of ordinary people. For such individuals, challenging someone with a higher cultivation level was commonplace. However, this also posed a disadvantage as they required ten times more resources than ordinary people.

“Is he insane to cripple the Xue Clan’s guards? Even the other students of the Imperial Academy wouldn’t dare to do something like that!” Outcries of shock echoed from the crowd, stunned by Liu Wuxie’s audacity. After all, it had been years since anyone dared to provoke the Xue Clan in this manner.

“Not to mention that he’s a mere Earth Grade student. He’s in big trouble this time.” Contemptuous voices filled the air, predicting a grim fate for Liu Wuxie.

“Don’t be so sure about that. Chen Leyao might not have the official title of a princess, but she’s still the emperor's daughter. She had been in the Imperial Academy for many years and must have a wide connection. So, it shouldn’t be an issue for her to protect them.” Various discussions and speculations sounded, but no one guessed the right answer. From the beginning, Liu Wuxie had never considered the Xue Clan an opponent.

The day he reached the Spirit Cleansing Realm would become the Xue Clan’s nightmare. He would let them live in fear daily and would begin hunting them, starting from their branch descendants until he wiped out the entire clan.

A smile, tinged with mockery, appeared on Liu Wuxie’s lips as he looked at Xue Baisheng. He found it hard to believe that someone like Xue Chunyu could father a wastrel like Xue Baisheng. Judging by his unsteady gait, it was clear that Xue Baisheng led a life of indulgence in alcohol and pleasure. In Liu Wuxie’s eyes, Xue Baisheng was nothing more than a paper tiger, roaring but posing no real threat.

“Brat, you can wash your neck and wait to die. If you dare to lay your hand on me, my father won’t let you go!” Xue Baisheng was scared. His cultivation might be in the third-level Spirit Cleansing Realm, but his cultivation came entirely from pills, and he couldn’t even be compared to the two guards in terms of strength.

Thus, Xue Baisheng was so afraid that he staggered and stepped back, bringing out his father’s name when facing Liu Wuxie’s sharp gaze.

While the Vice-Minister of Revenue was not a first-grade official, he couldn’t be underestimated. Over the years, the Xue Clan had invested heavily in the imperial court, and their influence could extend to many systems. This same situation mirrored within the Imperial Academy.

Unexpectedly, Liu Wuxie slapped Xue Baisheng, sending him flying away and shocking everyone present.

This left Chen Leyao stumped with her mouth open. While she could handle Liu Wuxie crippling the two guards, his slapping Xue Baisheng was a different matter altogether. This act implied that even the royal clan might be unable to protect Liu Wuxie if they wished to.

“I don’t like being threatened, and you have successfully enraged me,” Liu Wuxie declared, approaching Xue Baisheng. This caused Xue Baisheng to tremble in fear as he lay on the ground.

The slap didn’t just leave Xue Baisheng dumbfounded; it also shocked everyone around. Liu Wuxie had not only incapacitated Xue Baisheng’s two guards, but he had also slapped Xue Baisheng himself. Was Liu Wuxie courting death?

“This kid must be insane!” Over the years, the Xue Clan had perpetrated numerous atrocities, yet no one dared to voice their objections. Therefore, when Liu Wuxie stepped forward and slapped Xue Baisheng, he won the silent approval of many who secretly applauded his audacity.

“Someone from the Xue Clan must be nearby, and this young man is in serious trouble. He should leave quickly!”

Many people secretly transmitted their voices to Liu Wuxie, urging him to leave quickly before it was too late. But Liu Wuxie remained indifferent as he had sworn to do everything possible to annihilate the Xue Clan this year.

“Brat, what are you trying to do?!” Xue Baisheng was petrified as Liu Wuxie approached him, placing his foot on his lower abdomen. This naturally scared him to the point of nearly losing control of his bladder, even before Liu Wuxie applied any pressure.

Chen Leyao nervously clenched her fists. She wanted to intervene and stop Liu Wuxie, but she was unsure how to do so. She was aware that her interference at this moment might upset Liu Wuxie.

“Go back and tell your father that the Xu Clan’s son-in-law has arrived. I will collect some interest today and let your Xue Clan die slowly, one by one.” Liu Wuxie exerted force with his right foot.

Xue Baisheng felt as though his dantian was about to burst apart, and he screamed in pain. He started panicking, as the destruction of his dantian would lead to a fall in his status within the Xue Clan, and even his father wouldn’t be able to protect him. He screamed, “Don’t...don’t cripple my dantian. I promise that I won’t oppose you in the future!”

The Xue Clan was extensive, and power struggles were inevitable among its members. If he lost his cultivation, he would also lose his value to the clan and be abandoned.

In the path of cultivation, it was the survival of the fittest regardless of whether in a sect or clan. Resources were always allocated towards the geniuses, and Xue Baisheng held his current position solely because of his father’s status. An ordinary person in his position would have been beaten to death long ago.

The surrounding crowd grew anxious, wondering if Liu Wuxie would follow through with his threat.

“You won’t oppose me?” Liu Wuxie smiled, “I’m sorry, but I won’t stop until I wipe out the entire Xue Clan.”

When Liu Wuxie was done, he ruthlessly pressed down with his right foot.