Martial Cultivator

“Grotto Lord, you must kill this man here. The prestige of our Purple Leaf Grotto must not fall!”

Voices rang out across the mountains. The cultivators of Purple Leaf Grotto, even at this moment, were still united on the same front, with no other thoughts.

Aside from shouting encouragement, countless cultivators once again executed daoist techniques, pouring them into the mountain protecting grand array.

Chen Chao took a deep breath and no longer hesitated.

Qi poured into Cloud Mud. This martial artist suddenly delivered a saber strike. Snow-white saber light covered the entire Mt. Tai Xuan.

Countless mountain peaks began to shatter. Under this single strike, countless cultivators also turned into clouds of blood mist.

Heaven and earth began to tremble without end.

Those blood mists were absorbed by the great formation. Many cultivators were even dragged by the terrifying suction of the grand array into the sky curtain.

When Daoist Purple Leaf originally constructed this grand array, its most secret method was that if one day Purple Leaf Grotto reached a moment of life and death, then the entire sect’s cultivators would be sacrificed, perishing together with the invading enemy.

This secret had always been known only to successive grotto lords. They held the most crucial formation diagram of the mountain protecting grand array and knew the key method of its operation.

”Grotto Lord?!”

Screams echoed throughout the mountains.

Daoist Redsky remained unmoved. At this moment, nearly one third of Purple Leaf Grotto’s cultivators had already been drawn into it. The might of the mountain protecting grand array had grown enormous. When all these cultivators were drawn in, they would die. But as the one presiding over the formation, he would retain a chance of survival.

Chen Chao gripped Cloud Mud, his expression calm.

White qi overflowed from Chen Chao’s body, slowly condensing behind him into a gigantic dharma idol. It bore Chen Chao’s face, but stood a thousand feet tall.

The dharma idol appeared. With a sweep of its great hand, it directly pulled countless cultivators out of the massive vortex and threw them down onto the mountain peaks.

At the same time, the dharma idol’s other hand stretched out from afar, condensing a massive straight saber.

The mountain protecting grand array continuously unleashed purple lightning, striking the enormous dharma idol. Quite a bit of white qi scattered here.

But in the next moment, that massive straight saber was swung by the dharma idol, directly shattering large swathes of purple lightning. Even the array formation within the sky curtain began to fluctuate violently.

At this moment, Purple Leaf Grotto was incomparably silent. After realizing that the Grotto Lord intended to sacrifice the cultivators of the entire mountain, no one was willing to act for him any longer.

Daoist Redsky’s expression was grim.

He had not expected that even at this point, Chen Chao could still obstruct the operation of the grand array.

This caused his plan to fail.

“You certainly have resolve, Sage. But in my view, you are somewhat too heartless.”

Chen Chao’s voice surged outward. At the same time, the gigantic dharma idol delivered a saber strike toward the sky.

The massive straight saber plunged into the great formation within the sky curtain and churned wildly. Then rumbling sounds rang out without cease as the great formation collapsed and split apart.

Countless strands of purple qi were severed. Countless flashes of saber light flickered here.

The entire Mt. Tai Xuan trembled without end.

And then it suddenly collapsed!

Daoist Redsky spat out a mouthful of blood and suddenly plummeted downward. Yet in midair, he was scooped up by that enormous dharma idol. In its hand, Redcloud Zhenren was like a small ant.

Chen Chao’s forehead was beaded with sweat.

The dharma idol slowly dissipated, allowing Daoist Redsky to fall onto a mountain peak. But he had only just steadied himself when a saber light descended behind him, piercing straight through his body and forcing this Purple Leaf Grotto Lord to sprawl across the summit.

Chen Chao stepped on his head, looked down at the Purple Leaf Grotto Lord, thought for a moment, and merely asked, “Was it worth it?”

Though he asked, Chen Chao had no intention of hearing Daoist Redsky’s answer.

Cloud Mud swept across Daoist Redsky’s neck, severing it outright. Then Chen Chao kicked and burst that head apart, his eyes filled with disgust.

A man who could show no mercy even to his own people, who could sacrifice them at any moment, Chen Chao definitely would not like someone like that.

The mountain protecting grand array had been shattered. The second-generation ancestor and the Grotto Lord were both dead, along with nearly half the cultivators of Purple Leaf Grotto. The remaining half now hesitated, should they seize the chance to flee, or...?

Some were already itching to move, preparing to transform into rainbows and depart. In front of this young martial artist, they did not wish to remain even a moment longer.

But as soon as someone rose from the ground, a saber light swept past and killed him on the spot.

At once, the remaining cultivators all felt themselves in peril.

“From this day forward, Mt. Tai Xuan shall be taken under the control of Great Liang. The many cultivators of Purple Leaf Grotto are not permitted to leave the mountain for the time being. This official will dispatch officials to investigate what each of you has done. When the time comes, you had best speak without reservation and answer truthfully. You may yet preserve your lives. As for the final punishment, it shall be decided according to the laws of Great Liang.”

Chen Chao’s voice rang out abruptly, echoing among the mountains for a long time.

A bold cultivator called out, “May I ask,Lord Warden Commander, are these words true?!”

When one sect destroys another, it has always meant cutting the grass and uprooting it entirely. Who would care how many good people or evil people there were within that sect?

Chen Chao said calmly, “This official is a man of my word. Those whose crimes do not warrant death will not die. And this official believes that within a Purple Leaf Grotto, there must be at least a few good people.”

“Lord Warden Commander, what of the dao lineage of Purple Leaf Grotto?”

Chen Chao replied evenly, “If you still wish for Purple Leaf Grotto to exist in this world, that is not impossible. But it will no longer be at Mt. Tai Xuan. If you are unwilling to part with this mountain, then bring forth terms that will satisfy this official in exchange.”

After today, whether Purple Leaf Grotto would vanish from the world entirely or continue its dao lineage meant little to Chen Chao. Even if it were to begin anew, it would show no real recovery for at least a century.

And a century from now, Chen Chao believed that Great Liang would be strong enough that even if Purple Leaf Grotto sought revenge, it could be suppressed with ease.

“This official offer you a word of advice: reflect carefully on the right and wrong of today’s events. If you cannot understand it and wish to seek revenge on me, so be it. But let me make this clear, this official will show no mercy when that time comes. Your lives will be your own responsibility.”

After saying this, Chen Chao returned to the mountain summit. This place was already a scene of devastation.

The Purple Qi Pavilion had become ruins, and elsewhere as well, the scene resembled utter wreckage.

Chen Yi had long since been rendered speechless. Where had this Mountains and Rivers Sect cultivator ever seen such a scene before? After the shock passed, fear set in. “That grand array just now was drawing people up into the sky. Luckily it didn’t draw in this lowly daoist. Otherwise, I’d have had a hard time still being alive to speak with you, Lord Warden Commander.”

Chen Chao smiled. “That grand array clearly distinguished people by aura. Only those who cultivated the daoist techniques of Purple Leaf Grotto would be drawn into it. You never cultivated it, so naturally you were spared.”

Only then did Chen Yi belatedly let out an “oh,” but soon he asked curiously, “Lord Warden Commander, are you not afraid of future troubles?”

Chen Chao glanced at him. “You mean that one day Purple Leaf Grotto might produce a genius who sweeps across the world and slaps this official to death with one slap?”

Chen Yi scratched his head awkwardly. It wasn’t quite as blunt as Chen Chao put it, but that was more or less what he meant.

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