Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 241: 145. Qinglong Association (14)

"Hurry and open the gate, or everyone will be dead!"

"Great Luo Sect, what are you trying to do? Hurry up and open the gate..."

"Ding Peng, I've dug up the graves of your ancestors for eighteen generations."

"How dare the Great Luo Sect take such a huge risk? Aren't you afraid the Holy Church will blame you, leading to the destruction of your sect and the deaths of its people?"

"Ding Peng, you Iron-hearted traitor! Brothers, together we attack, kill those Great Luo Sect members outside!"

...

Outside the East City Gate, over thirty thousand people who hadn't yet entered the city gathered, their messy cries of curse still continuing—some hoped Ding Peng would open the gate, some cursed his ancestors, while others threatened the Great Luo Sect with the power of the Holy Church.

The more frenzied ones directly gathered people around them and started slaughtering the few hundred Great Luo Sect members who hadn't made it into the city.

Only the thirty thousand Mansion Army soldiers, under the command of Fan Longhe and Peng Ling, both in the Dan Embracing Phase, continued to resist the demons pressing in from behind. Although their losses grew heavier as time passed, they barely managed to stabilize the front lines, staunchly blocking the demons more than five hundred meters outside the East Gate.

Meanwhile, on the East City Gate, two strands of sword qi, one red and one silver, clashed fiercely. The wielder of the silver sword qi was Gui Yutang, clad in armor and wearing a look of impatience, while the one who had swung the red sword qi was Ding Peng, who had just ordered the city gates closed.

"Ding Peng, how dare you block me? If Tongling falls, with the Holy Church enraged, every single one of your ten thousand-plus Great Luo Sect members will die!"

Gui Yutang's expression was nearly frantic—his cultivation was comparable to Ding Peng's, and their martial arts were not much different, making them evenly matched. Furthermore, since Ding Peng was only aiming to prevent him from opening the gate and did not engage directly, it was even harder for him.

The two had been fighting for almost a quarter of an hour. Every now and then, he glanced back towards the eastern wall, seeing the continuous increase in the casualty count of the Mansion Army, how could he not be driven to madness?

Yet, the usually friendly Ding Peng was now completely impervious to reason, no matter what Gui Yutang said. Even when he mentioned the Holy Church to threaten him, Ding Peng remained unmoved, as if he had made up his mind not to let him open the gate and was determined to let the people outside die.

In contrast to Gui Yutang's hysterical state, Ding Peng was much calmer. Watching the continuous fall of the Mansion Army outside the city, his face remained expressionless. After a long time, he fixed his gaze on Gui Yutang and slowly said, "The Rakshasa Demon Religion is now recognized by the world as one of the ten lesser Holy Lands. With Sikong Sect Leader in seclusion, internal crises rise as Left Protector Duanmu Zhong colludes with the Blood Spirit Holy Sect on the Shangyuan Path to stir trouble within. With external threats from Great Jin, South Border, and Xuzhou, the Sect is in constant peril, on the brink of obliteration. Commander Gui is a wise man; why not switch allegiances early and seek a way out for yourself?"

Hearing Ding Peng's words, Gui Yutang's body trembled. He was not surprised; since the moment Ding Peng had barred the city gates with his Great Luo Sect members, Gui Yutang had known there was definitely something amiss with the Great Luo Sect.

What shocked him was how Ding Peng knew these things about the Holy Church; he was a member of the Holy Church, and he had just heard these secrets from Fan Longhe, who had learned them from the newly arrived Master Fanyin in Tongling County.

Seeing the shock on Gui Yutang's face, Ding Peng showed a rather smug expression, chuckling lightly, "The Blood Spirit Holy Sect has chosen a Saint Heir in Jiuling Prefecture, and the Holy Maiden went to suppress it, only unexpectedly, it was a trap set by Left Protector Duanmu Zhong. Now, with the Holy Maiden trapped and the Sect Leader nowhere to be seen, Great Jin has already marched south from Yuzhou under the guise of rescuing their Commandery Princess, openly entering Yongzhou. Within a year, Jiuling Prefecture and even the entire Shangyuan Path might change hands! Once today's disruption by the Blood Demon is over, and Tongling changes hands, don't you think South Border and Xuzhou will just stand by? Soon, the entire Xiayuan Path might fall, and the Demon Sect will not be able to protect itself, losing two paths out of the three in the Yongzhou region. If so, the name of Rakshasa Demon Religion as a Holy Land will exist in name only. Commander Gui, won't you consider Mr. Ding's suggestion?"

...

Gui Yutang lowered his head and pondered for a while, a flicker of interest crossing his face as he looked at Ding Peng and asked in a low voice, "Then may I know, which family from The Righteous Path stands behind the Great Luo Sect?"

Ding Peng's eyes lit up—the significance of Gui Yutang was not simply that of a Dan Embracing Phase martial artist. Technically, the command of Tongling's thirty thousand Mansion Army should follow Fan Longhe, but it was Gui Yutang who truly led them in person. If he could be persuaded to switch his allegiance, it would be a significant boon for the Great Luo Sect.

"There's no harm in telling Commander Gui; our Great Luo Sect, now..."

Before Ding Peng could finish speaking, a flash of azure sword qi caught the corner of his eye, and his complexion drastically changed. He maximized his Core Essence Qi, retreating backward with the blood-colored sword qi in his hand.

Seeing the powerful True Qi contained in that sword qi, Ding Peng cried out in alarm.

"True Qi, Grandmaster, spare my life!"

However, the power of that sword qi far exceeded his expectations, and his high-quality longsword couldn't withstand the force, getting cleaved in two.

The other Great Luo Sect Elders nearby had no time to react, or rather, by the time they did react, Ding Peng was already being held by the neck like a little chick in someone's hand.

"Master of the Hou Family, thank you!"

Gui Yutang, looking at Hou Yuxiao dressed in azure, showed a trace of gratitude.

He was deeply loyal to the Rakshasa Holy Sect; how could Ding Peng's few words sway him? He had merely heard Hou Yuxiao's message transmission, pretended to be influenced, and let Ding Peng lower his guard to facilitate Hou Yuxiao's capture of him.