Chapter 642

Chapter 642: Successful Capture

If there were only a few of Fang Lie’s clones, Ximen Qingsheng wouldn’t have worried. His Qiuyun town had Thunder Tribulation Immortals guarding it, and with the Formation’s support, they could handle a dozen or twenty experts of the same level.

But thirty or forty clones had just slipped past under his nose, and more might come. Could a mere Qiuyun town hold against such numbers?

Panicking, Ximen Qingsheng abandoned all other concerns and raced toward Qiuyun town.

As Fang Lie predicted, higher-ups in great family clans often prioritized personal matters over duty. The Mo Sect operated this way, and so did the Ximen family clan—a common flaw where private affairs overshadowed public responsibilities.

Yet who could blame them? Failing to act meant letting their own flesh and blood perish. Blood ties mattered most!

The Spirit Jade mines belonged to the clan anyway—losing them wouldn’t harm him personally.

Besides, two Thunder Tribulation Immortals with Ninth-Rank Treasures had already broken Fang Lie’s blockade. His presence might not even be needed. Ximen Qingsheng clung to these excuses.

A seasoned man like him surely noticed flaws in Fang Lie’s scheme. But with his own interests at stake, he chose willful ignorance.

Admitting he prioritized family over the clan would mean severe punishment for dereliction. But claiming oversight? A minor lapse, easily forgiven given his status.

Thus, Ximen Qingsheng’s selfishness allowed Fang Lie’s seemingly crude plan to succeed. The victory owed less to Fang Lie’s cunning and more to the Ximen experts’ personal greed.

With Ximen Qingsheng’s unwitting help, Fang Lie trapped him in Qiuyun town, severing communications. Over a hundred clones then appeared outside, convincing Ximen Qingsheng he’d drawn Fang Lie’s full focus.

This neutralized the Ximen clan’s three Ninth-Rank Treasures.

Their protective array waited in vain for reinforcements. Ximen Qingdong, desperate, sent Flying Swords sending messages again—but received no reply.

Even a fool would realize disaster loomed. Yet Ximen Qingdong stood powerless.

Outside, Fang Lie’s clones roamed freely, likely armed with Mo Qianxun’s Semi-Immortal Sword Energy. Without Ninth-Rank Treasures, any Thunder Tribulation Immortal venturing out would die.

The two Semi-Immortal Ancestors remained trapped refining Fang Lie’s treasure ship, unable to halt without suffering heavy injuries—a lose-lose scenario.

Even with seven orifices of wisdom, Ximen Qingdong could only watch as the Mo Sect’s old bird wrested control of the Small Thousand World.

Backed by the Mo Sect’s limitless resources, the old bird seized the small thousand Secret Realm’s Formation in four and a half hours.

Without pause, it activated countless Formation core eyes, linking them to the Mo Sect’s main Formation. The two merged in the void, completing the bond in fifteen minutes.

The Mo Sect then Void Shifted the entire small thousand Secret Realm to their territory. The colossal spatial disturbance rippled across billions of miles, felt even at the Ximen clan’s headquarters.

Ximen Qingdong’s face turned ashen. He stamped his foot and roared, "Damn them!"

Whether cursing Fang Lie or his own failed experts remained unclear.

Mission accomplished, Fang Lie’s clones scattered to loot, abandoning the siege.

The retreat alerted Ximen Qingsheng’s group. Sensing the spatial upheaval, they realized—too late—the Spirit Jade mines were lost. How? They’d pinned down all clones!

Rushing back, they reached the Ximen headquarters in half an hour, finding Ximen Qingdong in the great hall.

"Qingdong, what happened with the spatial disturbance? Did we lose the Spirit Jade mines?" the hot-tempered Ximen Qingzhong roared in fury.

"Yes," Ximen Qingdong replied bitterly. "Gone. Our family’s Small Thousand World was stolen right under our noses by Fang Lie and the Mo Sect! The Ximen family clan has become the world’s biggest joke!"

"Damnation! How could this happen?" Ximen Qingzhong bellowed. "Ximen Qinghe! Why didn’t you reinforce them?"

"I should ask you that!" Ximen Qinghe shot back. "I was pinned down by over a hundred of Fang Lie’s clones! Where were you?"

"Wait—that can’t be!" Ximen Qinghe paled. "I was holding off a hundred clones myself! I thought you’d be free to respond!"

"Impossible!" Ximen Qingsheng cut in. "I found a hundred clones attacking my town—I assumed that was all he had!"

The truth dawned on them—Fang Lie possessed three hundred clones, not just a hundred.

Though lower in rank, Ximen Qingdong couldn’t contain himself. "Brothers, who claimed Fang Lie only had a hundred clones?"

"Fang Lie did!" they chorused.

"Foolish!" Ximen Qingdong exploded. "Are you infants? You believed our enemy?"

The trio fell silent, shamefaced.

Ximen Qingzhong grimaced. "At the Celestial Platform Competition, he only showed a hundred clones…"

"Such numbers already defied the heavens!" Ximen Qingsheng groaned. "Who imagined he’d triple them?"

Ximen Qinghe growled, "We’ve been thoroughly duped."

Three millennia-old experts outwitted by a youth—the humiliation burned.

Ximen Qingdong pressed, "Even against a hundred clones, breaking through shouldn’t have been impossible!"

"That whelp played dirty!" Ximen Qingzhong spat. "He threatened to slaughter my entire household! A hundred clones surrounded my town—I had to protect them!"

"Same here," Ximen Qingsheng admitted. "He held my descendants hostage."

"And me!" Ximen Qinghe added. "He’d have massacred my thousand-strong lineage had I left!"

Understanding struck Ximen Qingdong. All three had chosen family over duty.

Strategically, their failure was catastrophic. Three captured towns meant little, but losing the Spirit Jade mines changed everything. The annual Eighth-Rank Spirit Jade output could empower ten warships’ core energy pools a hundredfold—extending combat endurance from half an hour to three days. Within a decade, the Mo Sect’s enhanced fleet could cripple the Ximen clan.

Yet how blame them? What patriarch would abandon kin to slaughter?

Ximen Qingdong sighed. "What’s done is done. Brothers, we must act now. The mines were just the start—Fang Lie’s three hundred clones still ravage our lands. Stop them, or our clan faces ruin!"