Water Tower City, usually teeming with life long after sunset, was now silent. The streets were deserted. Businessmen who normally chased every opportunity now stayed locked in their homes, and tourists or visiting merchants huddled inside their hotel rooms. Even the beggars dared not show their faces, either spending the night outside the city walls or pleading with acquaintances to let them inside. Most people, gripped by the same fear, obliged.

The bars were full, but there was no ruckus, no singing, no parties. Patrons sat in silence, speaking only in whispers, all wondering the same thing. When they emerged from hiding tomorrow, would they find a river of blood flowing from the Qing clan's estate?

News of Liu Xing had spread through the city like a plague.

In an affluent district, a little girl with pigtails asked her mother why they had to hide. "There's a terrifying cultivator out there," her mother whispered. "We need to stay inside so he won't get angry with us."

In a small bar, customers circled a table where one man spoke. "I saw him," the man said. "He was devilishly handsome, but his eyes were cold. He stood by while his woman asked to buy groceries from my wife. My wife—bless her naive soul—asked what had happened to the woman's face. It was swollen, some of her teeth were missing. When she said the Qing clan did it, I felt that man's eyes on me. It was like he was looking at me with murder in his eyes."

In a small military barrack housing new recruits who had not yet met the city's standards, several guards huddled around a bunk bed. The one speaking was a young man with his black hair tied in a bun. "I just got news from my cousin in the Mirror Tide Empire," he said. "In total, around one hundred men died, including a general. He said the fight between this Liu Xing and their army was terrifying. Nearly every ship sustained damage just from the force of his attacks."

A man finally arrived home. The moment the door opened, his wife pulled him into a hug. "Dear! I'm glad you're finally home!" The man closed the door and returned her embrace. "Yes, I'm home." His wife began to set food on the table, knowing her husband ate when he was stressed. Their dinners were often late or early, since his guard shifts were always rotating. Sometimes they ate at seven, sometimes eleven, sometimes two in the morning. But no matter how inconsistent the time, the couple loved each other so much they always ate together. The wife, who had a bad premonition that morning, had prepared a feast. The man began to eat, his hands moving quickly, but his eyes were unfocused. "I saw people from the Qing clan returning, carrying their clansmen. I know some of them. They're so strong and aloof that they always look at me, a mere guard, like I'm some kind of maggot. And yet, they ran past my gate without their usual arrogant gaze. Their faces were terrified, and some of them had even soiled themselves. My captain said I was lucky my shift had ended and let me come home." He glanced out the window. The sky was a deep orange. In minutes, the sun would set, and that man, Liu Xing, would come.

Similar conversations were happening in almost every establishment. In the academy, some students decided it was safer than their own homes. The governor's palms were slick with sweat, and even the Jin clan was restless. But the greatest commotion was within the Qing clan's own walls.

After their clan members returned, terrified and talking loudly about what had happened, murmurs spread throughout the Qing residence. Whether they were cultivators hastily recalled to the clan, workers, or servants, they all spoke of the man who had threatened them. His name was Liu Xing. He came from the Purple Moon Sect. News of what he had done on Blue Emerald Island and in the Mirror Tide Empire spread like wildfire, but the most important thing was his threat.

He would come today, once the sun set and darkness descended to swallow the world.

Normally, the Qing clan would have scoffed at such a threat. They were one of the ruling powers in the city. Even their workers and servants held a high position, to the point that businesses always prioritized them. But their opponent came from a great sect.

On the east side of the Qing clan's estate, several cultivators were busy planting flags in the ground. The flags had to be spaced evenly; the slightest misplacement would weaken the barrier. The man in charge of the east wall was a veteran of the Qing clan, already at the sixth stage of the Lock Opening realm. His hair was white, but thanks to the money he had spent energizing his physique in his youth, he was still powerfully muscled. He was so proud of his strength that even as a chill wind began to blow, he wore no upper garments.

The man ground his teeth at his two assistants. "Stop doing that!"

His two young assistants, both only at the second stage, snapped their heads toward him. "Senior, what do you mean? Are we making some mistakes?"

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"No, I mean your faces! You look pathetic. Is your trust in our mighty clan so low?" he snorted. "Our opponent is only one person! There's no way we will lose to him."

The two looked at each other, their eyes uncertain. "But, he is a Core Splitting realm. It's a realm higher than us. For someone with that much power, we're merely ants."

"That's right, senior," his other assistant said. "I don't wanna die."

The man snorted again. "He's merely bluffing. If he truly had that much power, the commotion this morning wouldn't have happened. We should have died then. Instead, that Liu Xing ran with his tail between his legs and was hiding somewhere. It doesn't make sense for him to have been this strong from the start." At the time, he had been deep inside his quarters reading about array formations, but he had heard enough accounts to know what happened that morning. "In fact, I don't think we need to raise a barrier at all. We're merely burning precious resources for a bluff."

"But what about the defeat of our men? Do you think they are lying?" he asked. "Senior, one of them is the Patriarch's nephew, and we know how serious and stuck-up he is. Even he looked terrified."

"That—" The man was lost for words, but instead of backing down, he twisted his face into a scowl. "It must be some trick! Believe me, our clan will not lose! We're mighty, we're the Qing clan!"

Despite his words, he began to plant his flags more forcefully, calculating and measuring twice to ensure their positions were perfect.

After a while, all one hundred and fourteen triangular blue and white flags were successfully planted around the walls of the Qing clan estate.

When everyone in charge of planting the flags reported that they had finished their assignment, the patriarch of the Qing clan nodded. He stood in the middle of a vast, paved field before the main building. His name was Qing Yunxiao. He was a man with cold, steady eyes, and his hair was jet black. He stood taller than anyone around him. To his right stood the Second Master of the Qing clan, the patriarch's brother Qing Haoran. To his left was an old man no one had expected to see again, Qing Jianqing.

In the field, around fifty cultivators stood in neat rows, their cultivation ranging from the first to the sixth stage of the Lock Opening realm. The patriarch himself was at the seventh stage, though people were positive he would break through to the Core Splitting realm in just two or three years. In fact, he had been in the middle of seclusion in a hidden cave belonging to the Qing clan.

In front of these three prominent men stood a table, and on it lay three treasures. The first was a dagger that looked as if it were forged from frozen orange fire. Its handle was ornate, sprinkled with gems. The blade itself seemed to glow, promising to burn anyone who touched it. In the middle was a silver hand mirror that emitted qi so strong it felt like standing before a powerful cultivator. It gave off a soft glow like moonlight. On the other side was a small bronze cauldron standing on three legs shaped like the feet of an elephant, a lion, and a horse.

"All preparations are complete," the patriarch said, his voice calm but loud enough for everyone to hear. Even the servants and workers, who had been ordered into their dormitories and were peering from their windows, heard him clearly. "These three treasures are precious and hold immense power. Each of them is a treasure that could deflect an attack from a Sun Refining cultivator."

As the cultivators in their neat rows heard this, murmurs broke out. "Each of them could deflect an attack from a Sun Refining cultivator? What crazy treasures!"

"With this, that Liu Xing will never break through our defense!"

"I know that dagger!" a cultivator said excitedly. "I don't know its name, but it is said that when activated, it creates a giant fire sword that will chase an enemy to the edge of the world!"

"I know that mirror!" another one shouted. "It absorbs an attack and deflects it with ten times more power."

"How about the cauldron? Does anyone know the effect?"

"I don't know, but it must be strong!"

Happy, excited, and smug comments spread among the Qing clan members. These three treasures were their most precious treasures, and their effects were indeed worthy of bolstering their confidence. The patriarch, Qing Yunxiao, was usually a man who disliked commotion, but he let his clan members talk, wanting to bolster their morale. He activated an illusion treasure to create a silent field around himself and the two men beside him.

"Father," Qing Yunxiao, the patriarch and father of Qing Lian, said to the old man at his side. "Do you think this is too much? Is he truly so strong that we need to bring out all three treasures at once? Would one or two be enough?"

"Don't let their words lead you astray," Qing Jianqing replied calmly as the clan members began to boast and mock Liu Xing. "This enemy is undoubtedly strong. He is truly a cultivator from a great sect. His nonchalant words were what made me finally break through to the Core Splitting realm, and it is true that a disciple from a great sect is stronger than others in the same realm. This is not excessive if we want to avoid any casualties."

Qing Haoran snorted. "It seems the news about the great sects was exaggerated. He was running from me, after all."

"Then, can you claim that you're stronger than me, Little Haoran?" the old man flashed him a small smile. The Second Master snorted and turned his face away, as if ashamed to admit he could not defeat his father.

"Begin your preparations," the old man said to the patriarch as he saw the sun was minutes away from disappearing below the horizon, and the man nodded.

Any minute now, Liu Xing would arrive.

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