Hei Ying Strikes

For a moment, there was no reaction from the group; they simply stared wide-eyed at the girl who appeared before them without their notice. 

"Who are you?" One among them asked. He was one of the two Mid-Stage Soul Forging Realm cultivators in the group. 

"The last face you'll ever see" Hei Ying replied. She had no interest in involving these people in conversation. This world bored her, and the only thing that bored her more than the world was the people outside the Yu Clan. 

As they saw Hei Ying swing her sword in a circle and charge at them, the lead Soul Forging Realm cultivators shouted at all the others. 

"Attack together; there's no room for honor. We are already here!" 

His words wiped away the hesitation among them. No one wanted to test her strength but attacking together would also be shameless. 

With his reminder, they quickly realized they were here to exterminate a clan. They were already way past saving face. 

Hei Ying teleported right in front of the leader of the group, her sword swinging to meet his without any martial techniques. 

"Flaming sword" the gruff voice of the Soul Forging Realm Cultivator resounded as he swung his sword upwards, his expression hardened and his eyes firm. 

But the expected connection never occurred. Instead, he heard screams resounding behind him. Refusing to be distracted, he focused on Hei Ying's form which disappeared immediately after with a wink. 

Turning around in alarm, his eyes widened at the sight of his comrades dissolving into dust leaving only four figures standing. 

"Quite the setup, four Soul Forging Realm cultivators, Elder Feng," Hei Ying commented, her sword still brilliant as the fight had yet to start. 

Elder Feng was shocked at being recognized, but even more shocking was how the forest around them remained serene and quiet as if there wasn't a battle just now. 

What happened couldn't even be called a battle; in one move, Hei Ying just eliminated everyone below the Soul Forging Realm! 

"What are you?" Elder Feng asked, his voice trembling. He ignored the surprised looks of his comrades around him and focused all his attention on Hei Ying. 

"You all seem surprised. The small Chu Clan has connections with a Bloodline clan, so getting some pills to help Cultivation shouldn't be a problem," Hei Ying continued, unbothered. 

"You must be the Imperial Censor, you, I think, the Ninth Prince's Guard, and then there's you, I don't know you." Hei Ying tilted her head at the last hooded figure, making them shift their feet in discomfort. 

"Let's see" she tapped playful on her chin and continued. 

"A woman, has some of the Yu Clan bloodline, but you broke through Soul Forging and the curse remains so you have something to do with the person who cursed them" 

The woman suddenly roared and waved her whip, striking towards Hei Ying. 

"Attack! She's buying time to call recover energy"

There was no basis for her claim, but it made the others feel the urgency and also provided an explanation for Hei Ying's previous display of power. 

Elder Feng, being one of the two in the Mid Soul Forging realm, was the first to move. After Hei Ying avoided the whip, he pierced his sword towards her right shoulder while the second Soul Forging Cultivator wielded a spear aiming at her thigh from the left. 

Hei Ying sunk her left shoulder down as she swung her sword, swiping away the spear aimed at her. In a follow-up attack, she grabbed the whip, retreating towards the woman with her bare hands, and yanked. 

Spinning around uncontrollably, the storage woman reached Hei Ying just as Elder Feng's sword swiped for her neck. Taking a step back, Hei Ying kicked at the woman's abdomen sending her straight for Elder Feng's sword. 

Elder Feng was about to pull his sword back when a deflected spear struck the blade sending it right into and through the woman's neck. 

He froze in shock, only to be hit in the shoulder the next moment by the spear body. Groaning from the pain, he looked at his comrade with furious eyes that turned solemn when he saw him impaled by an arrow. Turning around, he saw the last of their group trembling in shock and horror. 

"Have you all never been in a fight before? You keep attacking yourselves." Hei Ying was standing just out of Elder Feng's sword reach and shook her head slowly like one would when watching children play fight. 

Applying power on his legs, Elder Feng executed a movement technique, jumping backward, aiming to leave the place immediately. He realized now that while their cultivation was probably equal, his opponent had more battle experience than him, and that changed everything. 

But Hei Ying was not about to leave anyone alive. She reached her hand out in a grabbing motion and Elder Feng felt a force hold his elbow and snap it with so much force that the sword in his hand raced towards his face. 

"Oh no. . . " Was his last thought before his face sliced open. 

"Nasty," Hei Ying winced innocently, taking another step back to avoid the bodies like she had no involvement in their deaths. 

"Come on out," she called aloud, her gaze fixed on a tree within the transparent formation. 

After waiting for a few minutes without getting any response, she called gently.

"Yu Hao"

There was still no reaction for a few breaths, but eventually, a figure stepped out from behind the tree with a sword in hand. 

"What are you doing here?" Hei Ying asked curiously baffled by his presence. 

"I was training by the mountain when they arrived" Yu Hao replied sincerely. He was a simple-minded person with no luxury or mind space for schemes. His Dao was an expression of his personality. 

"Why didn't you run?" Hei Ying asked. He could sneakily leave the formation through another route, there was no point alerting the clan as he would never be fast enough. 

"My sword is straight" Yu Hao replied without pausing to think. 

For his sword, there was no return. 

Hei Ying nodded to herself impressed at how attuned Yu Hao was to his straight sword Dao. 

"Well, it's over now." She shrugged and was about to leave when Yu Hao called out loudly. 

"Can I accept you as my Master?" Yu Hao asked loudly, his eyes full of anticipation and determination. 

"Tomorrow, Eternal Courtyard," Hei Ying was gone, but her voice still sounded like she was right there. 

The night remained peaceful, insects still chirped, and occasionally, one could still hear the roars and groans from the forest across the river. 

Yu Hao stood there for a while, his eyes replaying the scene of the right earlier over and over again. He looked down at his sword and sighed to himself.

"A straight sword doesn't only move forward" he muttered and started to move. His body mimicked Hei Ying's slick movements when she avoided attacks, but each of his limbs had intense sword intent along with them, making their movements appear straight in whichever direction he pointed. 

Slowly, the night passed, and it was morning. Time for the selection of fresh blood into the Black Robes and Red Maidens. 

At the entrance to the Mountain, many young people gathered together with some older ones who had come to spectate the event.

The news of the Yu Clan becoming a secluded clan made this event all the more viral as to many, it would be the last time they would see the small Yu Clan in the limelight. 

Compared with the attending commoners, aside from a few spies and the Second Prince Tian ZiCheng, the dignitaries and Clan representatives that attended the Patriarch selection were all missing. 

Whether it was because this event had less significance than the Patriarch's selection or for some other reason. No one could tell.