The Eternal Heart

Plop! Plop...

In an instant, all four Connective Meridian experts fell to the floor, spitting out blood. Three died on the scene.

The last youngster remaining had fear across his whole face. With difficulty, he looked up. "Spare my life! Sir, please spare me life—"

In his vision, the dark-faced middle-aged man looked like the shadow of a god of death. He stood proudly in front of him, his incorporeal fiendish qi and coldness quelling any intentions of resisting.

The youngster did not consider his powerful strength to be the reason for his survival.

In contrary, his strength was the weakest out of the four great Connective Meridian experts. He had only recently ascended to the middle Connective Meridian stage.

There was only one possible reason for why he had not died — perhaps the Great Fiend had left him alive because he still had some value for use.

The Great Fiend's Reaper's Hand was more terrifying than what is said in the rumors!"

Chi!

The Great Fiend wore an indifferent expression. The dagger in his hand slashed out like lightning.

"Oh no…"

The youngster panicked and grew pale. Perhaps he had guessed wrong.

Not long after, the dagger struck its target — the woman tied up on the tree stump.

"The Castellan's daughter!" The youngster's mouth opened.

Plop!

A chunk of the woman's bloody finger was cleaved as the youngster's heart twitched all of a sudden.

With the paper seal wrapped around her mouth, the woman on the tree passed out in an instant.

"Take this chunk of her finger to Chu Fengyun. Tell him that if he doesn't hurry here within the time it takes a stick of incense to burn, next time, he will see a chunk of his daughter's thigh.

The Great Fiend spoke in a flat tone and handed the finger chunk to the youngster.

The youngster could sense that he was basically a walking corpse.

He lost all intentions of resistance or disobedience in front of the Great Fiend, acting like his faithful slave.

Taking unsteady steps, the youngster descended the mountain.

"It's Deputy General Xu!"

A figure cried out in alarm in front of a plain tent at the bottom of the mountain.

Very soon, several of the Castellan's guards supported the youngster Xu as he entered the tent.

Inside the tent.

"Deputy General Xu, how are things up on the mountain?" a middle-man, dressed in a government official's clothing while looking slightly overweight, asked him out loud.

"Castellan, this is our young lady's finger… The Great Fiend said he will chop off her legs if you don't ascend the mountain."

The youngster's face was pale while his voice was hoarse.

Seeing the woman's finger, the fat middle-aged Castellan's complexion took a 180-degree turn. "Yi'er!"

There was a mark on the finger, letting him recognize it as his own daughter's.

The fat middle-aged man happened to be the Castellan Chu Fengyun.

"Castellan! That Great Fiend is truly inhumane to actually put his hand on your daughter."

"Let us charge up the mountain and tear him to shreds!"

By the Castellan's side were two armored military officers. They had both reached the late stage of the Connective Meridian stage. Their aura was incredibly forceful.

"You guys, quickly help Deputy General Xu to go and heal up," the Castellan ordered.

Unfortunately, his voice was fading away as a strange rebellion was rising.

Wa!

The youngster spat out a mouthful of blood as his body twitched. Not long after, he fell to the ground, took his last breath, and died.

There was a deathly stillness inside the barracks.

All those present showed shock and graveness on their faces.

"That Great Fiend had cultivated [Reaper's Hand] to the point of perfection and proficiency. The power of his fist had long ago permeated through Deputy General Xu's heart meridian. Moreover, he accurately calculated the time of his death."

An old voice came from behind them.

It was unknown when a white-haired elder had appeared by Castellan Chu Fengyun's side.

"Master Wu."

Joy came over Castellan Chu Fengyun's face.

Everyone couldn't help but stand in respect when they caught sight of the white-haired elder.

"Castellan, don't worry. I will not watch with folded arms as your daughter encounters such perilous circumstances. I will do my best to slaughter that evil thief…" the white-haired elder said in a solemn manner.

Soon afterward, dozens of guards escorted Castellan Chu Fengyun as they travelled up the mountain.

Only two late-stage Connective Meridian experts remained by Chu Fengyun's side, as well as the white-haired elder.

The other guards were only in the Body Tempering stage. They were the elite ones the Castellan had nurtured.

"Castellan, these guards will only die in vain if they face 'Honghu's Three Fiends'."

The white-haired elder let out a sigh.

Chu Fengyun nodded his head and waved to the guards. They were to be stationed here for the moment and wait for his orders.

At the same time, he took out a candle-like object from his sleeve and lit it with fire.

Xiu!

In a split second, a splendid firework flew directly into the sky. Those within a radius of dozens of miles could see this clearly.

...

…

Many miles away.

Chen Yu was sitting cross-legged as he was operating the 'Fiendish Cloud Mental Technique'. He was finding tonight's mental technique particularly easy to operate.

To one side, Protector Uncle Fang and Fifth Uncle Chen had already conditioned themselves back to their peak.

Everyone was preserving and nurturing their spirits, ready to move as they waited for the right time.

Xiu!

At this moment, a bunch of fireworks rose up in the sky far away.

"The Castellan's signal."

Protector Uncle Fang immediately stood up.

"It seems that the Castellan has already found Honghu's Three Fiends," Fifth Uncle Chen spoke pensively.

The former spoke no more and hurried in the direction of the fireworks signal.

Soon, everyone had reached the waist of the mountain and ran into some other experts who had rushed over after receiving the news.

"They're from the Mu Clan and Wang Clan."

Protector Uncle Fang informed Chen Yu in a low voice.

Chen Yu raised his eyebrows. The two remaining Connective Meridian experts belonged to Mu Clan and Wang Clan, but their weakest had already reached mid-Connective Meridian stage.

"Hahaha… Chu Fengyun, I didn't expect you to be someone who valued family, rushing here for your daughter."

A vigorous and icy laugh came from the peak of the mountain.

Those from the Chen Clan, Wang Clan and Mu Clan increased their pace when they heard these words and leapt towards the mountain peak.

At the peak of the mountain, the dark-faced middle-aged man stood with his hands loose. He wore a chilling expression as he looked down at the crowd of heroes.

Behind him at his side stood a youngster dressed in black clothing and a deathly pale woman. They were Second Fiend "Bloody Poison Dart" and Third Fiend "Soul Scattering Fragrance".

Tied up on the tree behind the Three Fiends was a woman, who was wearing a long skirt and had disheveled hair.

Opposite the Honghu's Three Fiends was the Castellan's party.

Chu Fengyun's slightly fat body stood at the top of the icy mountain. He had a calm countenance and wasn't panicked in the slightest.

On his side was the white-haired elder, as well as the two late-stage Connective Meridian military officers.

He himself was also a Connective Meridian expert, whose cultivation was not at all inferior to the Great Fiend's.

On the basis of the lineup of their strengths, the Castellan's side had the advantage.

Besides, some experts were in the middle of hurrying over one after the other.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The first to rush there were Chen Yu and Chen Ying'er.

As disciples of the sect, the two were young and full of vigor. Their martial arts were profound while their strength undoubtedly excelled like-leveled warriors in the secular world.

"Boss, that's the guy who just broke off our younger sister's arm," the Second Fiend said in a low voice.

"Oh?" The dark-faced middle-aged man shot a glance at the two individuals, yet his face froze.

"These two guys are very likely disciples of the sect. Our operation this time will be slightly problematic."

The dark-faced middle-aged man furrowed his brows.

After all, the sects were this continent's dominating party and were as strong as the Great Fiend. He too felt fear in his heart.

"Scared of what?! It's not like we haven't killed disciples of the sect before. We've gained a lot that time…"

The Second Fiend, Bloody Poison Dart, said. He seemed quite excited.

The dark-faced middle-aged man's face was heavy like water. The murderous intent and fiendish qi on his forehead grew stronger as well.

One either does not provoke sect disciples, or once provoked, they should relentlessly eliminate them completely.

"Third Younger Sister."

All of a sudden, the dark-faced middle-aged man opened his mouth. "This time, you should focus on the backline. Don't fight them."

"Okay."

Cruelty flashed across the eyes of the deathly pale woman as she sat cross-legged by the tree near the Castellan's daughter.

Originally, Chen Yu and the others thought that her purpose was to guard the hostage. Unfortunately, they were wrong.

They saw the deathly pale woman take out an unusually purple flute and began blowing into it.

All of a sudden, an intense and austere flute sound transformed into an invisible ripple that surged towards the Castellan's camp, as well as the experts from the three Clans who were rushing over.

"This is…"

Some of the experts present felt dazed and dizzy as their blood and qi churned from the sound.

Those closer to the tree by the Three Fiends were hit with attacks with greater force from the invisible flute sound.

The individuals on the scene were all in the Connective Meridian stage. They could use their Inner Breath to protect their ears, but the attacks were unavoidable, limited to only weakening them.

It seemed that the attacks of the flute were not completely dependent on its soundwaves.

Apart from Chen Yu and Chen Ying'er, who were not affected that much, the other Connective Meridian individuals felt uneasy as their blood and qi became restless.

Chen Yu wasn't greatly affected because, for one, his constitution was surly and unreasoning. Two, the [Fiendish Cloud Mental Technique] he cultivated was a branch of the sect's key technique, making it a big deal.

As a brilliant and experienced disciple, Chen Ying'er's cultivation and martial arts were incredibly refined, so she too was not majorly affected.

"That flute, which we gained back then by killing an inner sect disciple, is proving its worth."

The dark-faced middle-aged man was pleased.

Many years ago, the Three Fiends fled in disarray to the neighboring state of Qi. In a coincidental opportunity, they narrowly killed a sect disciple, who was injured and left out.

That murder gave the Three Fiend's an important opportunity.

At present, the affected experts on the scene were afraid that they could only express less than 70% of their skills.

Chi—whoosh whoosh!

The Second Fiend had already attacked. With his startling methods, he issued out a dozen Three-pronged Darts in one movement.

In short, everyone present was targeted.

Among these, Chen Yu was viewed as a key target for their 'care' and was fed three whole rounds.

The Castellan Chu Fengyun was also being looked after, receiving two rounds.

"Ahah…"

Sounds of misery rose as most of the experts present were influenced by the mysterious soundwave. The blood and qi in their hearts fluctuated, making it hard for them to evade the attacks.

Plop!

On the Castellan's side, a late-stage Connective Meridian military officer was hit and died from the poison in an instant. 

The Mu Clan suffered the most, with two mid-Connective Meridian individuals getting hit.

In the Wang Clan, one of the mid-Connective Meridian experts was struck, while the other one, who was in the late Connective Meridian stage, narrowly escaped the calamity.

The Chen Clan was the luckiest, suffering no damage.

Ding ding ding!

A layer of copper emerged over Chen Yu's whole skin. With a flutter of his hands, he blocked several hidden weapons.

Chen Ying'er was extremely agile in her movements, so not only did she block the hidden weapons targeted at herself, she also helped Fifth Uncle Chen, who was behind her.

"Evil traitors, don't you dare flaunt your power—"

An old voice shouted, shaking up the scene so much that he masked the strange flute sound.

One could see a domineering aura pervading from the white-haired elder in the Castellan's party, with qi circulating around his entire body.

The Second Fiend's Three-Pronged Darts didn't even get close to him before the darts were flicked away by an invisible force.

"A very strong aura."

Everyone on the scene, including Honghu's Three Fiends, all felt their blood and qi being suppressed by this aura.

"Don't tell me…"

An idea flashed across Chen Yu's mind.

Hu!

The next moment, the white-haired elder cast a spoiled shadow as a majestic, boundless palm swatted at the dark-faced middle-aged man.

"Oh no! The Visceral Tempering stage—"

Color faded from the dark-faced middle-aged man's face as he quickly retreated.

Despite increasing the distance between them, the Great Fiend was still not at ease. At the same time, he released all of his Inner Breath, barricading it in front of himself.

In the next instant.

Bang!

An invisible power swirled, creating a stir in the dark-faced middle-aged man through the air, sending him flying.

"The power of the Visceral Tempering stage!"

Chen Yu and Chen Ying'er exchanged glances. They were both stunned.

The white-haired elder's palm did not strike the Great Fiend, but the invisible force of his Inner Breath jolted the Great Fiend, despite him behind dozens of feet away!