64 – Slaying Two Men

“Fire-striped Demon Tiger, where’s your wife?”

After picking the Fire Spirit Flower, Wang Ping sat on the back of the Fire-striped Demon Tiger, patted his tiger head, and asked curiously.

“What wife?”

The Fire-striped Demon Tiger looked at Wang Ping with a face full of confusion, not understanding why Wang Ping would say such a thing.

“Isn’t that two-tailed snake tiger your wife?”

Wang Ping asked rather unexpectedly.

Could it be that at this point in time, the two still didn’t have a thing going?
Well, it makes sense. Now, there are still many years before the Sword Spirit Sect’s Grand Elder gang up on the Fire-striped Demon Tiger.

“She’s just an ordinary seventh-level demon beast. How could she be worthy of me?” The Fire-striped Demon Tiger snorted with disdain.

Who was he?
He was a demon beast with the bloodline of a transcendent demon beast, far above the average demon beast.

An ordinary seventh-level demon beast couldn’t catch his eye.

“Uh…”

Wang Ping was speechless.

It seemed that either the two demons would only become something later, or the two-tailed snake tiger in the life simulation was just an infatuated demon beast that rushed to save the Fire-striped Demon Tiger, disregarding its own life when seeing it besieged.

“Forget it, no matter which case it is, it’s not worth paying attention to. What I need to do next won’t change.

Wang Ping looked into the distance, feeling an aura of a seventh-level demon beast quickly approaching, and couldn’t help but smile.

“It’s the two-tailed snake tiger. What’s she doing here?”

Wang Ping could sense the seventh-level aura, and the Fire-striped Demon Tiger could naturally sense it too. He frowned and said.

“What else could she be doing? She’s here to help you.”

Wang Ping said playfully.

“With her meager strength, she wants to help me? She’s more likely to cause trouble.”

The Fire-striped Demon Tiger said disdainfully.

“However, since I’ve already been subdued by Master, her coming here wouldn’t really be causing trouble. Master, are you going to make a move against her?”

After a pause, the Fire-striped Demon Tiger spoke again.

“I want to subdue her to protect a village.”

Wang Ping nodded and said.

“Oh, to be subdued by Master would be her honor.”

The Fire-striped Demon Tiger flattered.

“By the way, Master, how old are you?”

“Twenty-five years old, why do you ask?” Wang Ping answered.

“!!!”

The Fire-striped Demon Tiger’s face froze.

Heavens, he had thought Wang Ping should be around sixty or seventy years old.

A sixty or seventy-year-old Spirit Origin Realm grand perfection… Wouldn’t that be terrifying? That was also why he believed Wang Ping had a great chance of achieving transcendence.

But he never expected Wang Ping to be only twenty-five.

A twenty-five-year-old Spirit Origin Realm grand perfection wasn’t just terrifying; it almost guaranteed transcendence.

Subduing to Wang Ping was indeed the right choice.

Hmm, as a demon beast who had always been sequestered in the Black Wind Forest, the Fire-striped Demon Tiger clearly had no idea how deteriorated the current cultivation world was. Without resources, no matter how high the talent, breaking through to the Transcendent Realm was impossible.

Of course, the devil’s path was another matter.

“Roar!”

At this moment, the two-tailed snake tiger had arrived. Seeing Wang Ping riding on the injured Fire-striped Demon Tiger, she roared angrily and unleashed a powerful demonic aura, preparing to attack Wang Ping.

“What are you roaring for? It’s my honor to serve the Master. You stupid tiger, hurry up and apologize to the Master, then submit voluntarily.”

The Fire-striped Demon Tiger glared at the two-tailed snake tiger and scolded.

Upon hearing this, the two-tailed snake tiger was utterly confused and couldn’t believe that the Fire-striped Demon Tiger had surrendered to a human. She felt aggrieved.

She came to help the Fire-striped Demon Tiger, only to be scolded. What an outrageous male demon!

However, since he was the demon she liked, she could only hide her grievances, approach Wang Ping, and choose to submit.

Since the demon she liked had submitted, it wasn’t a big deal for her to submit as well. As long as she could be with the Fire-striped Demon Tiger, it was all good.

“How loyal!”

Wang Ping’s eyes held a subtle look as he observed the two-tailed snake tiger’s change in demeanor.

It seemed that whether human or demon, there was no shortage of the loyal.

“Fire-striped Demon Tiger, since you are both now under my subjugation, you should get along better in the future. Also, Fire-striped Demon Tiger, she is a female after all. Don’t always scold her, understand?”

Wang Ping addressed the two demons.

“…” The Fire-striped Demon Tiger’s face was full of black lines, and he protested, “Why shouldn’t I scold her?”
Compared to the dissatisfaction of the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger, the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger looked at Wang Ping with gratitude.

She was originally quite displeased with this human and had submitted only because of the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger. Now, it seemed that submitting wasn’t such a bad thing.

After all, this master was clearly speaking up for her and even intended to match her with the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger.

“Being too ‘fire-patterned’ in nature isn’t good… You’re wasting your fine fur.”

Wang Ping rolled his eyes at the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger’s direct personality and couldn’t help but mutter.

This made the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger even more speechless. What did his fur have to do with anything…

Wang Ping didn’t say much more. He led the two beasts out of the depths of the Black Wind Forest and headed to Chi Village.

“Brother Wang, you’re back.”

When the people of Chi Village saw Wang Ping descending from the sky with two demonic beasts, they were stunned.

Although they couldn’t determine the strength of the two beasts before them, they knew that they were definitely seventh-grade demonic beasts.

Wang Ping had gone out for a while and returned having subdued two seventh-grade demonic beasts. This truly shocked them.

“Yes, I’m back.”

Wang Ping nodded to Chi Feng, then looked at the Village Chief and others with a smile, saying, “These two demonic beasts were just subdued by me. One is the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger, and the other is the Fire-Patterned Demonic Tiger. Their battle strength is equivalent to the sixth level and the peak of the Spirit Origin Realm respectively.”

Upon hearing this, everyone was even more astonished, their expressions dazed and unbelieving.

After all, when Wang Ping left the village, he was only at the first level of the Spirit Origin Realm. After being away for just over a month, he had come back able to subdue beasts with battle power equal to the peak of the Spirit Origin Realm. This was terrifying.

Doesn’t this mean Wang Ping’s cultivation is now at least at the peak of the Spirit Origin Realm, and perhaps even higher?

The growth speed was simply absurd.

For a moment, the Village Chief and others could all guess that Wang Ping’s physique was far from ordinary.

However, they did not delve deeper into this.

“Village Chief, I will leave the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger in the village to protect you. Whether you use her to take revenge on the Li family or continue to stay secluded, it’s up to you.”

Wang Ping looked at the Village Chief and others and spoke slowly.

The Chi people would disappear sooner or later. This was the last thing he could do for the Chi people.

He couldn’t stop the disappearance of the Chi people, nor did he want to investigate the root cause.

After all, someone powerful enough to wipe out the Chi people and cause their current gradual disappearance was too dangerous, and he didn’t want to risk his own life.

The stronger one becomes, the more clearly they understand what kind of power such a person represents.

Therefore, having received many benefits from Chi Village, Wang Ping now offered them revenge and protection through the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger, also settling any debts owed.

Hearing Wang Ping’s words, the Village Chief and all the adults were both shocked and overjoyed, but also a bit embarrassed.

After all, Wang Ping had done so much for them, and they owed him greatly.

But even with their embarrassment, they couldn’t refuse his offer.

Because they had been waiting for this day for a long time.

Facing their enemy, the Li family, they had thought they would have to hide for the rest of their lives, unable to avenge themselves.

Unexpectedly, Wang Ping appeared in Chi Village and rose rapidly, even subduing powerful seventh-grade demonic beasts, giving them the power to seek revenge.

“Child, thank you.”

“Only through revenge can some of the Chi people rest in peace.”

The Village Chief was in tears, unable to control his emotions.

Seeing the Village Chief and the others like this, Wang Ping sighed.

It had been a difficult fifty years for Chi Village, always thinking of revenge but powerless to do anything.

Now that they had the ability to take revenge, their emotions were naturally overwhelming.

Afterwards, the teary-eyed Village Chief and the others pulled Wang Ping into conversation, while the women of the village prepared a sumptuous feast.

The next day, the Village Chief was eager to ride the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger to White Moon City to seek revenge on the Li family.

Soon, news spread that someone had ridden a powerful seventh-grade demonic beast to the Li family and annihilated them.

Even the Li family’s ancestor, who had a two-tier Spirit Origin Realm cultivation, was no match for the powerful seventh-grade demonic beast.

Even more shockingly, Zhang Yuan, the Sect Master of Sword Spirit Sect, and his wife, the daughter of the Li family ancestor, were also present at the Li family on that day, attempting to stop the invader.

As a result, Zhang Yuan, the Sect Master of Sword Spirit Sect, was also killed by the raging seventh-grade demonic beast, unable to be stopped even by the elder riding it.

The world was shaken. A storm was brewing, and the Sword Spirit Sect was furious.

After all, the Sect Master represented an organization’s prestige. His killing was a tremendous humiliation.

“Wang Ping, I’m sorry… I’ve caused you great trouble.”

The Village Chief returned to the village and confessed the incident with a face full of shame.

The Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger was a beast subdued by Wang Ping. Now that he had ridden it out and inadvertently killed the Sect Master of Sword Spirit Sect, he had undoubtedly caused a huge problem for Wang Ping.

If something happened to the Two-Tailed Serpent Tiger, it would bring great trouble to Wang Ping.

“Did Zhang Yuan die?”

Wang Ping’s eyes were strange.

He had been thinking about how to deal with Zhang Yuan, who was malicious and colluded with other races. He didn’t expect Zhang Yuan to meet his end so easily.

“It’s my fault.” The Village Chief was full of shame and took a deep breath: “I, the elder, will commit suicide in front of the gates of Sword Spirit Sect to try not to implicate you.”
“Master, I’m truly sorry. That guy threatened me and launched a sneak attack that injured me. He almost killed the Village Chief, which is why I was so furious and struck back.”

The Twin-tailed Snake Tiger spoke anxiously, knowing it had made a grave mistake.

“No need.”

Wang Ping shook his head.

“A mere Zhang Yuan, if he’s dead, he’s dead.”

“From now on, you should hide in the territory of the Fire-marked Demon Tiger. I believe that even the Sword Spirit Sect wouldn’t dare intrude into its territory.”

Pausing, Wang Ping continued.

“Master, you’re not taking me out of Black Wind Forest?”

The Fire-marked Demon Tiger grasped Wang Ping’s meaning and asked.

“Taking you out would be useless.” Wang Ping nodded and said, “So, you should stay in your own lair.”

“…Then why did you subdue me?” The Fire-marked Demon Tiger’s face twitched.

“I don’t like killing indiscriminately,” Wang Ping said with utmost seriousness.

The Fire-marked Demon Tiger looked suspicious, thinking, ‘I don’t believe you.’

“Actually, I just wanted to give it a try.” Wang Ping laughed but didn’t explain further.

Having read many fantasy novels, he naturally wanted to experience taming a beast as a mount. After all, the strong usually have several impressive mounts.

In stories like Journey to the West, even the gods and Buddhas have mighty demons as their mounts.

Initially, Wang Ping just wanted to try it out, see if making empty promises to beasts would work. Unexpectedly, it did work, which was a pleasant surprise.

“Try it out…” The Fire-marked Demon Tiger’s face twitched again.

It turned out Wang Ping didn’t sincerely want to subdue it as a mount; it was just out of interest.

For a moment, the Fire-marked Demon Tiger doubted the credibility of Wang Ping’s promises. If it knew the concept of empty promises, it might have cursed him directly.

Soon after, the Chi Clan relocated to the cave of the Fire-marked Demon Tiger for survival.

Wang Ping left Chi Village and returned to the Sword Spirit Sect.

Upon his return, Wang Ping sensed a stifling atmosphere at the Sword Spirit Sect. Both the elders and disciples were extremely furious.

“Elder Wang, report to the Sect Master’s Hall immediately.”

Upon seeing Wang Ping’s return, a Supreme Elder sent a voice transmission.

Wang Ping’s eyes flickered, and he quickly headed to the Sect Master’s Hall.

At this moment, in the Sect Master’s Hall, all the Supreme Elders were gathered, their expressions solemn.

“Elder Wang, Sect Master Zhang was killed. Someone saw that Twin-tailed Snake Tiger entering Black Wind Forest. We are discussing whether to mobilize the entire sect to enter Black Wind Forest, find that Twin-tailed Snake Tiger and the old man who controlled it, and kill them. Do you have any opinions?”

As soon as Wang Ping entered, the Chief Supreme Elder asked seriously.

Although it wasn’t someone from their faction who died this time, Zhang Yuan was still the Sect Master of Sword Spirit Sect, representing the sect. They couldn’t sit by idly.

Internal conflicts are acceptable, but when facing external enemies, unity is required.

Thus, the Sword Spirit Sect called all the Supreme Elders back to discuss countermeasures.

“I heard that an old man controlled the Twin-tailed Snake Tiger to attack the Li Clan. Has the identity of that old man been investigated?”

Wang Ping asked, his expression unchanged.

The Supreme Elders were all taken aback by this question.

One of the Supreme Elders spoke in a deep voice, “That old man is likely a former elder of the Chi Clan.”

“The Chi Clan…” Wang Ping pretended to ponder and said, “I heard that the Chi Clan and the Li Clan used to be the two major families in White Moon City. However, after the Li Clan’s patriarch broke through to the Spirit Origin Realm, he exterminated the Chi Clan. Could it be that this time, the Chi Clan came for revenge?”

“Indeed.”

A Supreme Elder nodded.

“He exterminated the Li Clan; we don’t care. But he killed our Sect Master; that’s intolerable.”

The Second Supreme Elder said, his face grim.

“But I heard that it was the Sect Master who attacked first, almost killing the old man, and stopping him from taking revenge. Our Sword Spirit Sect maintains a neutral stance, with rules prohibiting interference in other forces’ conflicts. The Sect Master violated those sect rules, didn’t he?”

Wang Ping shook his head and said.

“Elder Wang, what do you mean? Are you speaking in favor of the Chi Clan?”

The Second Supreme Elder reprimanded him.

“I’m just stating the truth.”

Wang Ping said calmly.

“Elder Wang, does this mean you do not support mobilizing the entire sect to attack Black Wind Forest?”

The Chief Supreme Elder’s eyes flickered as he asked.

“Setting aside the issue of right and wrong, attacking Black Wind Forest with the entire sect is unwise. Black Wind Forest harbors many powerful beasts. Attacking it and targeting the Twin-tailed Snake Tiger could provoke high-level beasts’ wrath, causing severe casualties to our sect. This would weaken the Sword Spirit Sect’s position in Great Xia. Moreover, many strong cultivators entering Black Wind Forest might trigger a beast tide, affecting millions.”

Wang Ping surveyed everyone and slowly spoke.

“Wang Ping makes a very valid point.”
The Supreme Elder nodded.

Including the newly joined Wang Ping, the Sword Spirit Sect had only twelve Spirit Origin Realm experts.

With Zhang Yuan’s death, only eleven remained.

Among them, aside from Wang Ping, the fourth-ranked alchemist had been absent from the sect for years, leaving his fate unknown.

If they attacked Black Wind Forest and lost more Spirit Origin Realm experts, it would truly drain their vitality.

After all, Black Wind Forest was not a place where human experts could roam freely.

As a demonic beast forest spanning three nations, the deepest part of Black Wind Forest contained more than one beast with peak Spirit Origin Realm power.

In addition to other powerful seventh and eighth-level demonic beasts, venturing deep into Black Wind Forest was extremely dangerous.

Although, with his ninth level of Spirit Origin Realm cultivation and the Green Spirit Sword, he could rival and even kill a peak Spirit Origin Realm expert, that was only in a one-on-one situation. If other terrifying beasts were provoked, it would be equally dangerous.

Not to mention, all factions were watching. If they acted rashly and took the spirit weapons, some factions might get nefarious ideas.

By then, the Sword Spirit Sect would be in danger.

Of course, all of this was based on the assumption that the twin-tailed snake tiger was hiding in the deepest part of Black Wind Forest.

If it was in the deeper regions, they could still manage.

“Elder, are you suggesting we let this go for now?”

The Second Supreme Elder was livid.

“The Sect Master of Sword Spirit Sect was assassinated. If we let this go, how will the world view us? By then, even nobodies would trample on us!”

After the Second Supreme Elder spoke, four other Supreme Elders agreed.

Three of them were from the faction of the Second Supreme Elder.

“I will enter Black Wind Forest and kill some seventh-level demonic beasts. We don’t necessarily need to kill the twin-tailed snake tiger, but we must make a show of it.”

The Supreme Elder glanced at the Second Supreme Elder and the others, speaking calmly.

“For true revenge, we need to wait until we are stronger.”

“In the end, Zhang Yuan broke sect rules, putting us in this dilemma. Over the years, your faction’s close ties with external forces have made it difficult for the Sword Spirit Sect to maintain neutrality. Remember, I do not wish to see this happen again, or I won’t hesitate to clean house first.”

The Supreme Elder paused, his gaze cold as he looked at the Second Supreme Elder and the others.

The Sword Spirit Sect used to stand high, with an extraordinary status and many powerful members, becoming a millennium-old sect not only due to its foundation but also because of its neutral stance.

But the current Sword Spirit Sect had become somewhat decayed. The faction of the Second Supreme Elder was now adept at infighting and factional disputes and had deep ties with external forces, which tainted the sect’s atmosphere.

This was why the Sword Spirit Sect had fallen to the dire situation of having only about ten Spirit Origin Realm experts.

Two hundred years ago, the Sword Spirit Sect would never have been this desolate.

Though not as powerful as in ancient times, it still had over twenty Spirit Origin Realm experts.

“You!” The Second Supreme Elder was enraged by the Supreme Elder’s warning but, feeling his superior aura, could only snort coldly and leave with a flick of his sleeve. “Since you refuse to seek revenge in the deepest part of Black Wind Forest, I will go myself.”

Seeing the Second Supreme Elder leave, the other three Supreme Elders from his faction followed with gloomy expressions, exiting the main hall.

“Sigh.” Watching their departing figures, the Supreme Elder sighed deeply.

In the past, he had not suppressed the faction of the Second Supreme Elder.

After all, the Sword Spirit Sect now had too few Spirit Origin Realm experts.

If he suppressed them, the entire sect would be thrown into chaos, possibly facing annihilation.

But now, it seemed time to address internal issues.

Otherwise, even if nothing happened while he was alive, it might after he passed.

His disciple Bai Tianhong, though gifted, was wholeheartedly dedicated to sword training and unsuitable to lead the sect.

“Elder Wang, do you think I made the right choice?”

The Supreme Elder asked Wang Ping, full of melancholy.

“Absolutely.” Wang Ping nodded.

The Supreme Elder’s actions aligned with Wang Ping’s interests.

Moreover, the Sword Spirit Sect did have some internal problems.

From his previous life, Wang Ping knew the faction of the Second Supreme Elder had deep ties with external forces.

Of course, except for Zhang Yuan, the Second Supreme Elder and his faction were not truly bad.

At least during the invasion of foreign races, they fought tirelessly to protect the citizens of Great Shu.

But if left unchecked, more selfish figures like Zhang Yuan would emerge, which would lead to the downfall of the Sword Spirit Sect sooner or later.

Soon, two days had passed.

Over these days, the entire Great Xia was once again in turmoil.

The Second and Supreme Elders of the Sword Spirit Sect appeared in the depths of Black Wind Forest, searching for the twin-tailed snake tiger, killing many beasts.

Finally, after arousing several powerful eighth-level demonic beasts, they retreated from Black Wind Forest and returned to the sect.

For a time, many speculated whether the twin-tailed snake tiger had been killed.

Some believed it was dead, while others thought otherwise, leading to endless debate.

In the end, the death of the Sect Master of the Sword Spirit Sect gradually subsided.

Seeing the sect’s formidable display, many forces retracted their ambitions.