Chapter 31: The Shura Field at the Crossroads, the Zheng Family's Fear

*** Warning! Violent content ahead! There might be gore! ***

An hour had passed since Lin Ziang's first confrontation. Now, no less than thirty corpses lay scattered around him. The once fresh forest air had turned thick with the overwhelming stench of blood, the scent so pungent that it clung to the inside of his throat.

Lin Ziang surveyed the bodies, forcing down the nausea that threatened to rise. Though he had taken their lives using his spiritual pressure, the faces of the dead still held expressions of terror—moments frozen just before their hearts had burst. It wasn't a particularly gory scene, but the sheer number of dead made it difficult to stomach.

He clenched his fists, struggling with the unease that still bubbled within. "So this is what it feels like..." Lin Ziang muttered under his breath. "The first time taking human lives."

Though the experience was unpleasant, Lin Ziang knew that this was something every cultivator must face. In the world of cultivation, where strength dictated everything, killing was a necessary path to survival. He had not only faced this trial but also overcome it with startling ease. After all, these people were no match for him.

Among the dead, the highest cultivation he had encountered was a fourth-level Qi Training cultivator. Lin Ziang had spared him the fate of dying under spiritual pressure, only to strike him down with a palm strike instead. The man's blood had splattered across Lin Ziang's pristine white robes, a few droplets staining his collar like red blossoms blooming in the snow.

Lin Ziang frowned, annoyed at the mess. "I could've killed him from a distance," he murmured. "If I had been just a bit slower in dodging, I might have gotten blood on my face."

Glancing down at the bodies once more, Lin Ziang spoke softly, as if offering a final reflection. "The greed for more leads only to death. This is the reality of our world."

With one last look at the silent battlefield he had created, Lin Ziang turned and left the intersection, heading deeper into Stone Mountain.

...

It didn't take long before the Shura Field—what the intersection had become—was discovered by other cultivators. The smell of blood drew them in, and soon, a crowd gathered at the scene. Shock and horror etched their faces as they took in the grisly sight.

"What... what happened here?!" one cultivator gasped, his voice trembling.

"The corpses are all intact… no sign of beasts from Stone Mountain," another pointed out. "That means they were killed by someone!"

"All of them... slain by a single person?" a third voice chimed in, disbelief heavy in his tone.

The group fell silent, eyes darting between the bodies as the realization sank in. Someone powerful had passed through here, and the consequences were devastating.

"Look, it's the three Wang brothers!" someone exclaimed. "How could they have been killed here?!"

"That's Luo Xiao over there!" another voice called. "How did he end up dead?!"

The murmurs of fear and confusion spread like wildfire as cultivators tried to make sense of the massacre. Meanwhile, standing toward the back of the crowd, the Zheng family members who had followed the same path finally arrived.

The young lady of the Zheng family, standing beside Shi Shi, grew pale under her mask as her eyes swept over the scene of carnage. Her breath caught in her throat, and a shiver ran down her spine. "Eld… Elder Shi ," she stammered, her voice trembling with fear. "How could so many people have died here?"

Shi Shi, too, was taken aback, though he tried to remain composed. As a cultivator in the Spiritual Accumulation Realm, he was not easily rattled, but the scene before him unsettled him deeply. The sheer number of bodies and the lingering spiritual energy in the air told a story of overwhelming power—power beyond what these unfortunate souls could have defended against.

After a long pause, Shi Shi finally spoke, his voice grim. "Miss, whoever did this is not someone we can afford to offend."

The masked young lady turned to him, her eyes wide. "Do you know who it was, Elder Shi?"

Shi Shi shook his head. "I don't know for sure. But the aura in the air… it's powerful. This person's cultivation may have reached the Spirit Sea Realm."

The words struck like a thunderbolt. The Zheng family guards exchanged fearful glances. In Stone City, there were fewer than ten cultivators who had reached the Spirit Sea Realm. They were revered figures, and to encounter one so casually in Stone Mountain was unheard of.

The young lady swallowed hard, her thoughts racing. "A Spirit Sea Realm cultivator? So someone of that level was behind this massacre?"

Shi Shi nodded slowly. "I believe so. Whoever it was, they killed these people in an instant. They didn't even have a chance to resist."

The gravity of Shi Shi's words hung in the air. Stone Mountain was indeed a place of danger, but no one had expected to come across a massacre like this so close to the entrance.

"Old Shi!" one of the guards suddenly called out, breaking the heavy silence.

Shi Shi turned toward the voice. "What is it?"

The guard's face was pale, his eyes wide with realization. "The monks who were killed... they were following that boy from earlier!"

A collective gasp spread through the Zheng family. The young lady's thoughts immediately went to Lin Ziang. Could it have been him? Her eyes flickered with uncertainty.

"Could he have been the one responsible?" she asked in disbelief.

Shi Shi's expression tightened. "It's unlikely. He was far too young to have reached the Spirit Sea Realm. But…"

"But what?" the young lady pressed.

"I suspect someone is protecting him," Shi Shi concluded. "A Spirit Sea Realm powerhouse, perhaps. That would explain why he rejected our invitation so confidently."

The young lady's eyes narrowed, and she nodded in understanding. "I see. No wonder he refused us. If he has a protector of that level, he wouldn't need our help."

The guards murmured among themselves, voices filled with awe and fear. "A Spirit Sea Realm cultivator as his bodyguard? Who is this kid, really?"

"Whoever he is, we better be careful. I was badmouthing him earlier—what if his protector heard me?"

"You'd be dead already if they cared," one of the older guards muttered darkly.

Shi Shi wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. "Perhaps it was that Spirit Sea Realm expert who blocked my perception earlier. No wonder I couldn't see through the boy's cultivation..."

As the reality of the situation dawned on them, the Zheng family members grew silent. Their earlier dismissive attitudes had vanished, replaced with a newfound respect—and fear—for the mysterious young man who had crossed their path