Chapter 382

Chapter 382: This Was Just the Beginning

“Strategist!”

The Taixu Emperor, overwhelming even his sister Jin Liuli in presence, stepped forward as she instinctively dropped to her knees, overwhelmed by concern for the Black Cloaked Strategist. He caught the strategist in his arms and immediately attempted to heal him.

However, just as he brought the healing pill close to the strategist’s mouth, his hand froze half a meter away.

His body began to tremble slightly.

His face turned an ominous shade of green.

A terrifying killing intent surged from within him, so cold and overwhelming that it seemed to freeze the entire Zi Tian Pavilion.

He violently turned his head, eyes locked on Zhang Yang. Those abyss-like eyes were now brimming with murderous intent.

Everyone in the Zi Tian Pavilion was stunned. A cold fear spread among them.

Only Zhang Yang remained calm, his voice steady.

“If you want to come after me, that’s fine. Whether you use schemes or send a saint, I won’t complain. But why kill an innocent pregnant woman? Why not even spare the unborn child? That’s two lives for one. It’s beyond cruel, it’s inhuman. I said it before: the murderer must pay with their life. As the mastermind, he was the true culprit who had to face my wrath.”

“I’m a kind person. I only intended to give him a blow.”

Yan Chihuo, Lu Hengkong, and the others were confused, anxious, and shocked.

A pregnant woman? What was this about?

But they stared at Zhang Yang, stunned.

Avenging an unknown pregnant woman? Against the Black Cloaked Strategist? Was it worth it?

If it had been them, they wouldn’t have hesitated to walk away. But Zhang Yang thought it was worth it.

“You’ve destroyed the strategist’s soul!” Jin Shengtian roared.

A deafening silence fell.

Everyone in the Zi Tian Pavilion felt as if a bell had rung inside their heads, leaving them dazed.

The soul had been destroyed?

That meant he was a walking corpse. No soul left to save. He was truly gone, and even death would have been kinder.

Even the Creation Pavilion of the Taixu Dynasty, renowned for fusing beast souls with human bodies, couldn’t help. The strategist’s soul had been annihilated. Anything that came afterward wouldn’t be him.

In other words, the Black Cloaked Strategist was dead.

This was the same Black Cloaked Strategist who, ten years ago, had ruled the Western Desert with absolute power. No one had dared challenge him. For a decade, he had plotted in silence, believing the world was his masterpiece.

He had only intended to step out, stretch his limbs, and treat Zhang Yang as a mere amusement.

Instead, he had become the amusement.

Excitement. Tension. Shock. Disbelief.

A whirlwind of emotion surged within Yan Chihuo, Lu Hengkong, and the others.

If not for Jin Shengtian’s overwhelming killing intent, and the Taixu Dynasty’s members on the verge of snapping, they might have erupted in cheers.

The most terrifying mountain pressing down on the Western Desert was crumbling.

Even so, they clenched their fists tightly, struggling to contain their elation.

“You want to die!” Jin Shengtian bellowed.

Everyone from the Taixu Dynasty moved at once, ready to strike.

Zhang Yang replied lightly, “If it weren’t for Yan Donghuang being here, I would have buried you all.”

As soon as he spoke, a wave of holy might surged through the room.

At that moment, Yan Donghuang’s figure appeared in the Zi Tian Pavilion.

He was a top saint who had suppressed the Western Desert for seven or eight hundred years, one of the most exceptional among the three mightiest saints in the region.

“Will the Crimson Flame Dynasty endorse Zhang Yang in killing the Black Cloaked Strategist?” Jin Shengtian shouted furiously.

Yan Donghuang sighed. He had once participated in the battle where the Buddha Immortal crushed the Taixu Palace with a single slap and had personally witnessed Jin Shengtian, like a main character in an epic, battling over ten saints with borrowed power. He understood that Jin Shengtian truly intended to ignite a holy war, and the Taixu Dynasty might very well follow through.

“I didn’t expect him to use such power either,” he explained.

In truth, he had arrived early. The series of events that day had left him overwhelmed. Though he sensed that Zhang Yang was about to act, he hadn’t anticipated that he would go so far as to destroy a soul. And hearing Zhang Yang mention his name aloud made him suspect that Zhang Yang had known he was present all along, intentionally placing him in a difficult position as a form of revenge for what had happened in Liu Town.

He sighed again. “The conference for the peak of power is hosted by my Crimson Flame Dynasty. I hope everyone can coexist peacefully. This incident was provoked by the Black Cloaked Strategist himself, and no one else can be blamed. I ask for the Taixu Emperor’s understanding.”

Jin Shengtian knew that, in truth, Yan Donghuang was likely delighted. After all, no one aside from the Taixu Dynasty mourned the Black Cloaked Strategist’s demise.

He gently laid the strategist’s body on the ground, his icy gaze fixed on Zhang Yang. In a chilling voice, he said, “All members of the Taixu Dynasty, hear my command! I want Zhang Yang’s head, the Lord of the Sacred Forest, by tomorrow. At that time, I will personally return with it and hold a state funeral for the Black Cloaked Strategist!”

Leaving behind that grim decree, he activated an ancient teleportation array and departed.

Jin Liuli, Ye Wolf, Wind Dragon, Ji Shaolong, and the others responded loudly to his command.

They stared daggers at Zhang Yang, their killing intent radiating without restraint.

“What now?” Zhang Yang approached them calmly. “Are you planning to act? Do you want to end up like the Black Cloaked Strategist?”

Jin Liuli, enraged, leapt up, ready to strike.

But a terrifying holy might descended, suppressing all movement.

Yan Donghuang whispered, “Enough.”

Zhang Yang turned and began walking away. As he passed Yan Donghuang, he said softly, “Are you satisfied, exalted saint, with what happened today?”

Yan Donghuang’s lips twitched. He realized that Zhang Yang’s actions were a deliberate slap in the face.

This is your payback for Liu Town.

Zhang Yang walked away, declaring, “This is just the beginning.”

And he left.

Yan Chihuo immediately followed, fearing that someone might attempt something reckless. If another incident occurred, he would truly be overwhelmed, and the Crimson Flame Dynasty could not afford such chaos.

Yan Donghuang frowned. This is just the beginning? Was Zhang Yang planning to stir up more trouble?

The Four Holy Sons bid farewell to Yan Donghuang and left swiftly. Along the way, they couldn’t help but take out their communication stones to report what had happened to the Lords of their respective holy lands.

The death of the Black Cloaked Strategist, coupled with Jin Shengtian revealing the identity of a key insider, was sure to shake the entire Western Desert, especially the major holy lands and dynasties.

The four raced away.

Jin Liuli clenched her jaw. The four martial arts secret scrolls had been promised as her reward, but now, she had lost them completely, and the Four Holy Sons had taken them. Though she wanted to reclaim them, she knew now was not the time to clash with them. She had no choice but to endure it, which only deepened her hatred for Zhang Yang.

Yan Donghuang sighed again. The Black Cloaked Strategist’s death was only the beginning of a far more terrifying storm. If it wasn’t managed properly, it could spiral into uncontrollable chaos.

He, too, departed.

Yet he continued to observe Zhang Yang from afar, curious about what he would do next. To his surprise, he saw Zhang Yang casually buy a skewer of candied hawthorn and return to the Bi Tian Pavilion, chatting and laughing with Yan Chihuo.

After watching for a while, he realized there was nothing particularly unusual, aside from Zhang Yang seeming confused about the location of the Bi Tian Pavilion and needing Yan Chihuo’s guidance.

He intended to continue his surveillance, but was soon summoned back to the palace to address the aftermath of the Black Cloaked Strategist’s death.

Inside the Bi Tian Pavilion, the Moon-Returning Dragon also arrived with his people.

Among them, Gu Qianmu had already departed.

When Jin Shengtian had spoken the name “Gu Qianhan,” the message had already reached them via communication stone, and Gu Qianmu immediately used the ancient teleportation array to leave.

In his place, an elderly figure of the Great Boundless Perfect Stage appeared.

Introduced by the Moon-Returning Dragon, he was Yue Buqun, the dragon’s uncle, the foremost Great Boundless of the Cold Moon Dynasty, and one of the most renowned figures in the Western Desert. He stood among legends such as Li Xingkuang of the Taixu Dynasty, Xia Shendao, and Hong Daoxuan and Chu Canyang of the Crimson Flame Dynasty.

He had come after the Moon-Returning Dragon informed him that Zhang Yang had successfully resolved the crisis concerning their national treasure, the Mother Bead.

Yue Buqun spoke sincerely. “Our Cold Moon Dynasty’s situation is currently dire. Though the Taixu Dynasty appears inactive, at least ten saints are secretly watching us. Our own saints cannot act, they must remain to protect the dynasty. That’s why I came personally. I hope the Lord of the Sacred Forest can understand.”

“There’s no need to be so courteous, Senior,” Zhang Yang replied with a smile. “Just for Brother Yue’s sake, I wouldn’t fuss over such trivial matters.”

Yue Buqun thanked him repeatedly and then voluntarily offered a heap of valuable items as a token of gratitude for helping retrieve the lost national treasure, the Mother Bead.