It was widely known that as a Cultivator advanced, the strength of their physical body severely lagged behind their Spiritual Energy Cultivation. The physical strength of a Super Spirit Realm expert might only be equivalent to someone at the Strong Spirit Realm, or perhaps even weaker. This was precisely why once a Cultivator’s Spiritual Qi was exhausted, they had no choice but to wait for death.
However, the Divine-Demonic Overlord Body could slowly increase one’s physical strength to match. Actually, Ye Xuan’s current Physical Cultivation was already on par with his Spiritual Energy Cultivation. This wasn’t due to the Divine-Demonic Overlord Body, however, but rather because of the Dragon Blood’s remolding of his body.
"AH, it hurts, it hurts..."
The pain was still ongoing, and Tang Long and Zhou Yuxin were still singing.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, the carriage finally came to a halt.
Tang Long turned to Ye Xuan. "Lord of the Family, we’ve arrived at the Niu family’s estate."
Ye Xuan immediately parted the curtains, his complexion warm and smooth as jade. A faint smile graced his lips. Having completely absorbed the power of the Dragon Blood, his body had grown visibly stronger. The sensation was incredibly refreshing, making him feel as though he had been entirely reborn.
His only regret was that this single droplet of Dragon Blood had merely pushed his cultivation to the 7th Layer of the Frenzy Spirit Realm—much lower than he had anticipated. After all, he had advanced three full layers during the Gathering of Ten Thousand Spirits that night. This was legendary Dragon Blood, yet it yielded the exact same three-layer increase.
Of course, while his cultivation hadn’t spiked drastically, his physical strength was now tens or even hundreds of times greater than an ordinary person’s. In future battles, his physical attacks might still lack absolute destructive force, but his Defense Power had become increasingly astonishing. From now on, his internal organs wouldn’t be easily injured.
"Patriarch, you seem different..." Zhou Yuxin’s surprised voice rang out. She stared intently at Ye Xuan’s face as if searching for something extraordinary blooming on his skin.
Ye Xuan paused. "Is that so?"
Before Zhou Yuxin could answer, Tang Long nodded in agreement. "You are indeed different."
"How am I different?"
"The contours of your facial features are much more defined than before. Your entire presence carries a greater aura. Especially that smile on your lips... I don’t know how to describe it, but it seems to hold a sort of magical power."
"Magical power? That’s an exaggeration. Let’s go find Niu Tong and get the map."
Naturally, the reason Ye Xuan had come to the Niu family’s estate was to get a map from Niu Tong. Otherwise, he would have no idea where the Ning Family was located.
"Ye... Ye Xuan!" Niu Tong was incredibly shocked when he saw Ye Xuan. He had never imagined he would see him again. It was impossible; logically speaking, Ye Xuan absolutely shouldn’t have lived to see today’s sunrise. Yet the sun had already set, and Ye Xuan was actually still alive? How could this be?
Could it be that the assassins from the Ning Family hadn’t arrived yet?
"Are you surprised that I’m alive? Enough, I can’t be bothered to waste words with you. Give me a map to the Ning Family’s Main Town."
"What? You... you want to go to the Ning Family’s Main Town!" Niu Tong’s breathing quickened. Trembling, he took out a map and handed it to Ye Xuan.
Ye Xuan didn’t linger; he turned and walked away.
Seeing that Ye Xuan’s back was about to disappear from view, Niu Tong finally couldn’t help but call out. "Lord Ye Xuan, did the Ning Family send anyone to kill you?"
Ye Xuan’s voice drifted back calmly. "Six people came in total. They’re all dead."
"Wh... what!" Niu Tong’s eyes widened to the size of saucers.
He didn’t know if he was hallucinating, but under the fading light of the setting sun, Ye Xuan’s retreating figure looked like a towering, insurmountable mountain.
"Patriarch, Ning Family Town isn’t very far from the Niu family’s estate. It’s only about two or three hundred miles," Tang Long said.
"Then let’s go. We will annihilate the Ning Family!"
A day later, as the carriage traveled further along the route, a magnificent town appeared in Ye Xuan’s line of sight.
This town was simply massive! It was more than five times the size of Niu Family Town. The towering black walls were dozens of meters high. From afar, they looked like a colossal Wild Beast lying prone across the earth. Upon getting closer, Ye Xuan was even more shocked to see that the main town’s walls were actually built entirely out of Black Steel Rock.
He inwardly marveled at how many Silver Taels this single stretch of wall must have cost. But thinking carefully, would a powerful Cultivator family like the Ning Family ever care about Silver Taels? The wealth of ordinary people was merely a string of numbers in their eyes.
Above the town’s grand entrance hung a black-and-gold plaque. Carved into it were four large characters: "Ning Family’s Main Town".
Bizarrely, however, the plaque had been split squarely down the middle, shattered into two halves. A strong gust of wind blew past, and the broken pieces crashed directly onto the ground. Corpses littered the earth, and a thick stench of blood assailed their faces.
"What happened?" Ye Xuan and Tang Long exchanged looks of dismay, unable to believe their eyes. If it weren’t for the characters still etched into the fallen plaque, they would have definitely assumed they were in the wrong place.
Just as the two were puzzling over the scene, a figure suddenly appeared on top of the towering walls. This person grabbed a tattered flag from the ramparts and unceremoniously threw it down. The flag landed right at Ye Xuan’s feet. Due to the folds in the ruined fabric, the two-headed snake embroidered on it looked as if it had been decapitated.
Soon after, a new flag was hoisted atop the town wall. On the banner, a Flaming Lion looked majestic, seeming to glare down at the world with absolute disdain. Across the entire length of the wall, apart from the Flaming Lion Clan Banner, there were no other flags in sight.
"Patriarch, it seems someone beat you to the punch and annihilated the Ning Family," Tang Long said, being the first to react.
On the Beast Soul Continent, a Clan Banner held supreme importance to any family. The Ning Family’s Clan Banner had been tossed into the dirt like garbage; wasn’t that enough to indicate exactly what had happened?
Ye Xuan frowned, then gestured forward. "Let’s go in and take a look."
The carriage rolled into the streets, which were still a scene of utter chaos. Several Cultivators with a Flaming Lion embroidered on their chests were currently sweeping the battlefield and hauling away the corpses.
"Hmm? Are you outsiders?" Suddenly, a passing guard noticed Ye Xuan’s carriage.
Before Ye Xuan could reply, Tang Long spoke up respectfully. "Yes, we are from Niu Family Town."
"Niu Family Town? I know of it. I believe it was a subsidiary town of the Ning Family. But now, you’re all under the jurisdiction of my Zhang Family. See the Flaming Lion on our chests? Show some respect whenever you see this crest from now on. Otherwise, it will cost you your lives.
"Alright, you may head in, but leave the carriage behind. You won’t be able to get through with it anyway since there are corpses everywhere inside. Go find an inn to settle down at first. It would be best not to wander around blindly for the next couple of days."
"Yes, my lord."
Tang Long immediately alighted from the carriage and proceeded on foot alongside Ye Xuan. Along the way, bodies and shattered bones littered the path. The once-grand Ning Family’s Main Town was now in utter ruins.
The trio searched for a long time before finally finding a small inn with its side door propped open. Inside, the lobby was packed with dozens of Cultivators.
As Ye Xuan walked in, he heard someone lamenting the situation.
"Overnight, the Ning Family has ceased to exist! This world is truly too cruel. Even a family as powerful as the Ning Family can be wiped out in a single night."
"Yeah, but I find it incredibly strange. The Zhang Family’s strength is about the same as the Ning Family’s. How could they manage to annihilate the Ning Family completely overnight?"
"I heard that half of the Ning Family’s experts suddenly vanished without warning, and the Ning Family’s Grand Elder went completely missing. Because of this, the Zhang Family gained the upper hand. After a bloody night of fighting, they successfully captured the Ning Family’s Main Town."