Chapter 336 : Enemy at the Door

"An... Ancestor?"

Chen Sixuan stood rooted to the spot, her heart pounding like a drum. Suddenly, realization dawned upon her.

Just then, Eldrin cast a few glances at Chen Nianxu, his brow slightly furrowed. "How did you end up in such a state?"

Chen Nianxu was over 20 years older than Eldrin (Person Name), and by all accounts should have had a dozen or so years of lifespan remaining. Yet now, his vital energy had withered to exhaustion, having already reached the end of his allotted years.

Chen Nianxu let out a bitter laugh, his face ashen as he said, "It was inflicted by my enemies."

It turned out that after Chen Nianxu had successfully built his foundation, he came to the Kingdom of Ji and established a Foundation Establishment immortal clan by claiming a spiritual mountain. Over the past 100 years, he had managed to accumulate some wealth, and the clan now possessed a spiritual mountain of its own and over a 100 Qi Refining cultivators.

He simply did not wish to attract the covetous gaze of a powerful immortal clan over a single spirit mountain. Yet overnight, the Chen Clan of the Ji Kingdom was nearly annihilated, leaving only Chen Nianxu to escape with Chen Sixuan in tow.

Though he had managed to escape with his life, Chen Nianxu had suffered fundamental damage during the great battle, depleting his vital essence until only a faint breath remained, which he now clung to by sheer force of will.

"Alas."

Eldrin (Person Name) let out a soft sigh and shook his head noncommittally.

He gazed into the distant void and said calmly, "Your troubles have arrived."

"Not good."

Chen Sixuan rose to her feet in terror, hurriedly turning to Eldrin (Person Name) as she said, "Ancestor, we must flee! The Wang Family's influence is immense—we cannot hope to oppose them. Let us escape while we still can!"

While they were still speaking, several figures flew over from the distant sky.

Among the group, all were Foundation Establishment cultivators, with their leader being a powerful Foundation Establishment expert who had already broken through the first level of the Zi Mansion.

Arriving before this spiritual mountain, the leader sneered coldly and said, "Chen Nianxu, I know you are here. Come out and meet your doom at once!"

"You—"

Seeing his enemies seeking him out, Chen Nianxu's face twisted with hatred.

He gritted his teeth and couldn't help but exclaim, "Nearly all the cultivators of my Chen Family have been slaughtered by your forces. With my lifespan already nearing its end, must you still pursue such utter annihilation?"

"Hmph."

The leader sneered coldly, his expression icy as he declared, "If we don't pluck the weed by its roots, it may grow into a calamity 1 day."

"Every last member of your Chen bloodline shall be spared by this elder."

Eldrin listened for a moment before realizing that the Wang family was the most powerful Foundation Establishment clan within a 10-1000-mile radius, and the man leading them was the Wang family patriarch.

This man, Wang Minghe (Person Name), had already opened 5 of the Meridian Paths within his Violet Mansion—no wonder he carried himself with such unbridled arrogance.

Witnessing several Foundation Establishment Elders storming in, Chen Sixuan (Person Name) at his side felt his doom was upon him, a trace of despair coloring his expression.

Her gaze fell upon Eldrin. Though she couldn't discern the depths of these 2 individuals, their cultivation aura seemed even more formidable than her clan's ancestral elder. Perhaps they held the key to his survival.

At that very moment, the Wang family members in the sky grew impatient. Wang Minghe sneered coldly as he summoned his magic treasure to assault the protective formation of the spirit mountain.

This spiritual mountain merely possessed a first-grade spirit vein, utterly incapable of withstanding the assault of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. In just a few moves, its mountain-protecting formation was shattered.

The Wang Family’s Foundation Establishment cultivator charged into the spirit mountain, exhilarated. But before he could even catch his breath, his eyes fell upon Eldrin (Person Name) and Lyra (Person Name).

With just a single glance, their hearts skipped a beat, and they hastily dropped to their knees.

Wang Minghe trembled with fear, his face full of terror as he said, "I pay my respects to the 2 Ancestors."

"Ancestral Elder..."

Chen Sixuan's (Person Name) expression shifted slightly. Though she had anticipated this to some extent, she couldn't suppress a flicker of pleasant surprise in her heart.

Though she had suspected her family's ancestor might have some extraordinary background after meeting the 2, she never imagined it would be this astonishing.

At this thought, she immediately dropped to her knees and said with a choked voice, "The Wang family slaughtered over a 100 cultivators of my entire clan. This is an irreconcilable vendetta. I beg you, Ancestor, to uphold justice for us in consideration of the Chen family blood flowing through our veins."

Bloodline.

Upon hearing this, the Wang family members all revealed expressions of despair.

He could never have imagined that the Wang family's bloodline was actually connected to these 2 terrifying beings before him—a truth he found utterly unbearable to accept.

"Do you have any last words?"

Eldrin spoke with utter tranquility, as if recounting the most mundane of matters.

Several Foundation Establishment cultivators trembled in terror. Wang Minghe (Person Name), knowing full well his actions left no room for peaceful resolution, gritted his teeth fiercely before turning to flee into the distance atop his sword.

"Everyone, flee for your lives."

"Scatter and flee for your lives! That may be our only sliver of hope for survival."

Watching the several Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Wang family flee in desperation, Eldrin’s eyes narrowed slightly. With a flick of his sleeve, he unleashed several sword auras that tore through 10 1000 zhang of void as they pursued their targets.

With several agonized screams, the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Wang family were all slain in a single strike.

Watching his foe fall, Chen Nianxu felt no surprise. Though he had long since left the Chu Kingdom, he was well aware of the fearsome prowess this clansman had cultivated over the years.

He coughed weakly twice, glanced at Chen Sixuan, then turned his gaze toward Eldrin (Person Name).

"My greatest wish in this life is to be reinstated in the clan registry, to atone for past wrongs and return to the family."

"Yet my lifespan has been exhausted, and I can no longer await that day."

He pulled Chen Sixuan close, tears streaming down his aged face as he implored, "Regardless of what transpired back then, this child is innocent. I beg you to allow her name to be restored to the clan registry—this is my final wish."

A few days later, Eldrin and Lyra emerged from the Spirit Mountain.

Chen Sixuan's eyes were red from crying as she followed behind the 2, cradling an urn of ashes.

Chen Nianxu departed after all. He had yearned for his homeland all his life, yet was forbidden by Eldrin (Person Name) from ever setting foot in Bianzhou again.

Now that his lifespan had been exhausted, only a handful of ashes would be brought back to his clan. He would be laid to rest in the ancestral tomb without an engraved stele—thus did dust return to dust, and earth to earth.

Eldrin returned to the Ji Continent Trading Post, as the Grand Barter Assembly of Jizhou was finally about to commence.

As was customary, the Ji Clan personally hosted the Exchange Convention of Jizhou, typically held at the Jizhou Pavilion within the Ji Continent Trading Post (Location).

That day, Eldrin and Lyra arrived at the Jizhou Pavilion, only to discover nearly a 100 Golden Core cultivators gathered within.

Among these individuals were some familiar faces, such as Yan Zi Ji, Taiwu Zhenren of the Cangqing Immortal Sect, and Patriarch Qian of the Cangqiong Sword Sect.

As they arrived, Yan Zi Ji strode over on her long legs. She cast a glance at Eldrin (Person Name), then teased Lyra (Person Name) with a playful smile.

"Decades apart, and your little man has made remarkable progress in his cultivation. It seems in another 100 years, he might just catch up to you and me."

Lyra's beautiful eyes flickered as she said with a smile, "Then you must devote yourself to cultivation."

"Greetings, Fairy Zi Ji." Eldrin (Person Name) inclined his head in calm acknowledgment.

After exchanging a few greetings with the others, Eldrin’s gaze swept over those present.

This trade gathering was exceptionally lively, with over 40 Golden Core cultivators from Ji Zhou in attendance—1 could say a significant portion of the Ji Clan’s Golden Core experts from across the region had gathered.