Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 271: 156, Sacrifice and Refinement of Ten Thousand Demons, Surging Blood Wave_2

Maiden Hong posed two rhetorical questions in succession, her voice thick with disdain and mockery as she mentioned Tian Linong and his son, yet the anger on her face seemed all too real; the second question sounded almost like she was asking herself, and as she spoke, she gazed at Hou Yuduan with a beautiful smile curling up the corners of her mouth.

Upon hearing her own rhetorical question, Hou Yuduan felt a sliver of hope rise in his heart. Gazing at the thick smoke billowing within the city, he quickly stepped forward and whispered softly, "Indeed, spare these common folk, Hong'er. If you persist in this confusion, killing all the people of Tongling will only bring more formidable enemies. If a powerhouse from the Holy Land comes, then not only will you fail to kill Tian Linong and his son, but your own life will be in danger too!"

When Maiden Hong heard Hou Yuduan's words, a trace of softness flickered across her face.

She was well aware that, given Hou Yuduan's kind nature, their relationship could never return to what it once was after learning what she had done tonight. She had been prepared for the words Hou Yuduan had just spoken.

Yet, hearing him still express concern for her safety now, Maiden Hong's heart was unavoidably touched, and the softness on her face gradually turned into affection for Hou Yuduan.

However, just at the moment when she softened, her true body—that is, the ancient tree in the city—the blood light that had been coursing through its bark suddenly stalled.

This brief halt seemed to have a significant impact, leaving the face of Maiden Hong, who stood face to face with Hou Yuduan, almost imperceptibly paler. Then, from the area above where six experts were fighting, came a disturbance.

Maiden Hong, sensing this series of changes, immediately lost the softness in her expression, her eyes becoming sharp as her voice grew low, "What I've been waiting for are the powerhouses of the Holy Land!"

A look of confusion appeared on Hou Yuduan's face, but Maiden Hong gave him no chance to speak further. Her body gradually became ethereal, slowly dissolving and transforming back into the blood-colored vines she had been before, leaving behind a sentence before vanishing from his sight.

"I will no longer strike at the creatures in the city, nor will the demons!"

Hearing this from Maiden Hong, Hou Yuduan felt joy for the lives still spared within the city, but watching the blood-colored vines continue to fly elsewhere, he realized that things were far from over, and his heart grew increasingly heavy.

"A powerhouse from the Holy Land is going to come, but who could it be?"

Hou Yuduan muttered to himself, unable to come up with an answer. Looking around, he saw the blood-colored vines that covered the ground of the Prefectural City and hesitation filled his eyes.

The vines, far from being retracted by Maiden Hong, emitted waves of blood light, acting like conduits, seemingly absorbing the lifeblood of the beings on the ground.

"Lord Hou, the target of these vines isn't us!"

"It seems to be... demons?"

"It's really the demons, look at that Wolf Demon, the vine is stuck on its head!"

"I see it too, it's true, these vines are attacking demons; no mistake."

"Aren't these vines demons themselves, why would they attack their own kind?"

"Could it be, infighting among demons?"

...

Hearing the voices of the common people below, Hou Yuduan hurriedly flew towards the indicated area, and seeing the scene before him, his expression froze.

The blood-colored vines extending from the crown of the tree were indeed not connected to any human; they were, without exception, all coiled around demons—demons that had just been rampaging and slaughtering within the city. And there weren't just one or two; all of them...

Hou Yuduan flew out for five or six li and within the range of his sight, every demon was now entangled by the vines, their lifeblood being drained as their bodies rapidly withered. The weaker ones were even starting to vaporize, turning into puffs of black smoke that dissipated between heaven and earth.

"I will no longer strike at the creatures in the city, nor will the demons!"

It was only then that Hou Yuduan understood what Maiden Hong had meant by her words.

"Everyone, take this chance to flee the city while the demons are preoccupied!"

Upon hearing Hou Yuduan's shout, all those below realized that this was their best chance to escape. They all bowed to Hou Yuduan and then raced towards the closest gate to the west.

Lu Wenzhao, Yang Jisheng, Cheng Yunye, Cheng Yundie, and a group of martial artists exchanged glances but did not leave. Instead, they remained by Hou Yuduan's side.

Hou Yuduan ignored the martial artists. After seeing the people leave, he turned his gaze back towards above, his expression becoming extremely grave.

He didn't believe for a second that the slaughter of these demons by Maiden Hong was a result of his earlier persuasion. He could sense Maiden Hong's love for him but also understood that he wasn't that important to her; otherwise, she wouldn't have initiated this massacre in the city.

The scene before him only proved that the demon army that had invaded the city was just a pawn for Maiden Hong. The essence of lifeblood of these thousands of demons had been part of her plan all along. After absorbing the lifeblood of so many demons, how much stronger would her power become? With the six experts possessing only Full Completion of Yuandan cultivation, Maiden Hong had never needed to be so thoroughly prepared.

Hou Yuduan sorted out the thoughts in his mind one by one, and finally turned his gaze eastward, towards Wanyang County or rather the direction of Xuzhou, slowly forming a guess in his eyes.

"Is it someone from Wanjian Holy Sect, or from Bailu Academy?"

...

Atop the Blood Tree, the battle between the six experts and the Blood Demon was raging.