Chapter 160: Thunderous Wrath, Clans at War
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In the Lan Clan's council hall…
All nine elders, eighteen protectors, and thirty-six deacons were present.
Their faces were grim, none daring to breathe loudly, covertly observing the clan leader seated at the center.
Lan Po Lei held the Image Recording Stone, watching the Lan Hero Faction's clash with the Niang Zi Faction and Lan An's defiant attitude.
Lightning crackled in his eyes, an icy aura freezing the space around him.
"Go tell Lan Po Lei that I don't care for your trash Young Master seat or clan leader position. Even if you offered me his head to sit on, I'd spit on it!"
At that moment, Lan An's brazen voice echoed from the Image Recording Stone.
Silence… absolute silence.
The atmosphere grew heavier than ever, only Lan Po Lei's labored breathing betraying his suppressed rage.
"Who can tell me? On what basis does he dare speak like this? What gives him such arrogance? Who backs him?" Lan Po Lei's low voice growled, each question gritted through clenched teeth, making the Lan Clan's upper echelon shudder.
They exchanged silent glances until Great Elder Lan Qing Lie stood, saying, "In this old man's view, for him to achieve such heights in just two years, he must have a master guiding him!"
"A master? How powerful? Daring to offend our entire Lan Clan?" Lan Po Lei demanded coldly.
Lan Qing Lie fell silent, unsure how to respond. If this master was so formidable, why not attack the Lan Clan directly? Yet, if not, how could they nurture Lan An into such a terror in two years?
A goateed middle-aged man rose calmly, drawing all eyes, including Lan Po Lei's.
This was Lan Liang, the Fourth Elder, a Mid Void Refinement cultivator.
His strength wasn't what earned the Lan Clan's trust it was his intellect.
Lan Liang had devised countless strategies for the clan's growth, earning Lan Po Lei's deep confidence.
"Everyone, I have some thoughts. Tell me if they hold water…" Lan Liang said leisurely.
"Speak, Fourth Elder!" the crowd urged, ears perked.
"Surely none here have forgotten two years ago, when the Heavenly Dao Eye appeared, bringing a terrifying Thunder Tribulation that crippled our clan, forcing us to seal ourselves off, still unable to operate openly!" Lan Liang said.
The room fell deathly silent. None could forget that catastrophic event.
"Continue!" Lan Po Lei prompted.
"In that Thunder Tribulation, the clan leader, to preserve our core strength, sacrificed servants and lesser members—a wise decision I deeply admire!" Lan Liang bowed respectfully, then continued, "But we overlooked one thing: among those sacrificed was Lan An…"
Gasps echoed. They weren't fools; they grasped Lan Liang's implication.
A question arose in everyone's minds.
"How did Lan An escape that Thunder Tribulation?" Lan Qing Lie voiced their shared doubt.
"Exactly, and the answer is clear…" Lan Liang's eyes gleamed with cunning intellect. "Lan An was a blind cripple then, weaker than a mortal. To escape that Thunder Tribulation, someone must have helped him!"
"And to take Lan An away from the Lan Clan silently, they could only tear through the void, meaning their cultivation is at least Void Refinement…" Lan Liang analyzed meticulously, leaving no gaps.
"Well said!" Lan Po Lei and the others praised.
But Lan Liang wasn't done. Bowing, he continued gravely, "I boldly speculate that the calamity two years ago, when the Heavenly Dao Eye brought the Thunder Tribulation against us, was orchestrated by that mysterious figure to rescue Lan An…"
Lan Po Lei raised an eyebrow. The Lan Clan's leaders exchanged glances, exclaiming, "It must be so!"
The Lan Clan had been peaceful, committing no crimes, yet the Heavenly Dao Eye struck them with Thunder Tribulation, leaving them aggrieved.
Over the years, despite nursing their wounds, they'd secretly investigated the mastermind, finding nothing.
Now, realizing this coincided with Lan An's disappearance—once thought a mere casualty—they shuddered, suspecting his involvement with the culprit.
Though two years had passed, some elders still bore unhealed wounds from that event, their hatred for the orchestrator burning, yearning to tear them apart.
"Clan Leader, this schemer is cunning, nearly destroying our clan. They cannot be spared…" The Lan Clan's leaders stood, their hatred overwhelming.
In an instant, killing intent flooded the space, the enmity between Lan An and the Lan Clan erupting irreconcilably.
"If this little beast is tied to the Heavenly Dao Eye incident, he must die, no matter who backs him…" Lan Po Lei rose, lightning in his eyes solidifying.
His power stemmed from his clan leader seat; anyone threatening it or the Lan Clan had to die.
"Clan Leader, wise—"
"Heavenly Fire Thunder Hand!"
BOOM BOOM BOOM…
Before they could finish, the world spun violently. A terrifying attack, wreathed in endless flames and lightning, crashed toward the Lan Clan's council hall, where all its leaders gathered.
A high-grade formation protected the hall, shattering under the earth-shaking strike but successfully blocking it.
Yan Yue Qi's eyes blazed with boundless rage. After parting with Lan An, she'd secretly followed him to the Niang Zi Faction, observing her daughters.
Hearing Lan An's dialogue with his women and learning his tragic past, her heart ached unbearably, her fury urging her to annihilate the Lan Clan.
Despite the Lan Clan's tight defenses, her cultivation made her undetectable.
Now, tearing through the void, she stood above the clan, unleashing another ferocious attack.
"Heavenly Fire Hand, Five Thunder Bombardment!"
With her cold shout, the Lan Clan's sky darkened. Clan members looked up in terror at the peerless beauty radiating fury above.
BOOM BOOM…
Heavenly Fire Hand descended like a mountain, while Five Thunder Bombardment unleashed five horrific lightning bolts.
"Who dares provoke the Lan Clan's tiger whiskers?" Lan Po Lei roared, appearing in the sky with Lan Qing Lie.
Seeing the terrifying attacks, their faces grew grave.
"Ice Moon Palm!"
Exchanging a glance, they unleashed two Heaven-Grade techniques.
Endless ice enveloped their hands, their power capable of plucking stars. Two palm imprints soared, intercepting the incoming attacks.
Heavenly Fire Hand and Five Thunder Bombardment clashed with Ice Moon Palm, exploding repeatedly in the sky, shattering space.
Lan Po Lei and Lan Qing Lie looked up in shock, finally observing the woman.
Clad in a White Horse Battle Robe, her figure enchanting, hair flowing in the wind, phoenix eyes haughty with rage, lips curled in disdain, her killing intent earth-shattering.
Peerlessly magnificent.
"How can it be? Yan Yue Qi?" Lan Po Lei's eyes widened, exclaiming.
"The Twin Moon Fairy? Damn, why her?" Lan Liang, watching below, cursed, soaring into the sky.
Twin Moon Fairy—unrivaled under heaven, Yue as in Yan Yue Qi.
Top 10 of the Golden Earth Ranking, known to all.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh…
With gusts of wind, the nine Lan Clan elders appeared, glaring at the intruder.
Yan Yue Qi wasted no words, condensing another attack. A Golden Crow Phantom materialized in the sky, her presence like a war goddess descending on the Lan Clan.
"Yan Yue Qi, what is this? Do you want war between the Lan Clan and Yan Clan?" Lan Po Lei shouted coldly, hoping to restore her reason.
"Beast!" Yan Yue Qi spat two words.
"You…" Lan Po Lei trembled with rage, his purple robe billowing, lightning enveloping him, his aura barely below Yan Yue Qi's.
Below, weaker Lan Clan members collapsed, trembling under the two powerhouses' pressure, unable to breathe.
"Clan Leader, Lan An is with her two daughters!" Lan Liang recalled the Image Recording Stone, transmitting to Lan Po Lei.
Lan Po Lei's face shifted, realizing she sought justice for her son-in-law, shouting angrily, "Yan Yue Qi, is it worth turning against the Lan Clan for that beast?"
The Lan Clan leaders watched warily, some activating protective artifacts, not daring to underestimate her.
"Which beast? In my eyes, you're the only beast!" Yan Yue Qi declared boldly, her voice resounding through the heavens.
Lan Po Lei's face purpled with fury. When had anyone dared act so arrogantly before him?
"You'll regret today's actions!" Lan Po Lei ordered sternly, "Attack together! I want her to never leave!"
"Understood!" The nine elders roared.
"Haha, this is your courage? Too scared to face me alone?" Yan Yue Qi laughed haughtily, like an empress.
"Hmph, you seek death… Thunder Sky Strike!" Lan Po Lei snorted, unleashing his powerful attack.
Lightning intertwined, covering the sky, converging on Lan Po Lei's hand, cracking space.
The nine elders, equally grave, summoned Mysterious Ice, casting Ice Moon Palm in unison.
Yan Yue Qi's expression was resolute. Under the crowd's shocked gazes, two Strange Flames fused with lightning.
"How? Thunder Fire Mysterious Art? Two Strange Flames?" Lan Po Lei's hair stood on end.
"Blazing Thunder Golden Crow Strike!"
A colossal Golden Crow spread its majestic wings, roaring with world-destroying might, charging at Lan Po Lei and the nine elders.
"Full power!" Lan Qing Lie bellowed, thrusting Ice Moon Palm forward.
"Ice Moon Palm!" The other eight elders shouted in unison.
Nine massive palm imprints filled the sky, freezing it for thousands of miles, a grandiose spectacle.
One side burned like a volcano, the other chilled like an iceberg. Lan Clan members struggled, using all their spiritual energy to protect themselves.
"Thunder Sky Strike!" Lan Po Lei roared, unwilling to be outdone, as endless lightning erupted from his arm, shattering space.
ROAR…
Blazing Thunder Golden Crow Strike fearlessly collided with the ten terrifying attacks.
BOOM BOOM BOOM…
Like a clash of stars, the Lan Clan's sky turned white, spiritual shockwaves leveling structures and claiming lives.
Ten figures were blasted back, crashing into ice mountains Lan Po Lei and the nine elders.
"I've vented his anger for now. Your heads, he'll take himself!"
Yan Yue Qi's figure had vanished, her voice lingering in the air.
"Pfft…"
Some elders, overcome with rage, spat black blood.
Lan Po Lei rose from the rubble, ignoring his disheveled state, roaring to the heavens, "Yan Yue Qi, I, Lan Po Lei, swear the Lan Clan and Yan Clan will fight to the death!"
His furious voice echoed across the continent, chilling countless powerhouses.
A feud between two Eighth-Rank forces was born, with continent-wide implications.
"Everyone, calm down. Send envoys to contact the Ice Mysterious Empire's Second Prince!" Lan Liang wiped blood from his mouth, calmly suggesting.
That was a strategist's duty.
"Indeed, her Thunder Fire Mysterious Art makes her an enemy of the Second Prince…" Lan Qing Lie said eagerly.
"Right, the Second Prince wields great power in the Ice Mysterious Empire, with the Lin Clan's support!" Lan Liang nodded.
"Do as the Fourth Elder says!" Lan Po Lei took a deep breath, commanding gravely.
"Also, contact two more forces!" Lan Liang continued.
"Which ones?" the crowd asked.
Lan Liang's eyes narrowed, a sinister smile forming, "Mortal Hidden Temple and Blood Spirit Sect…"