Chapter 33: Eyes Extremely Red

The structure did not collapse, and there was no wind. Yet, it seemed as if it was difficult to open his eyes, and he struggled, trembling as if it was hard to breathe.

It was a crazy scene that would make anyone wonder what was going on.

The box containing the Thunderbolt of Heaven was also calmly placed in its spot.

Moreover, Xumen Jia held his sword, made a motion to stab it into the air, and then used his palm force to kill a nearby sword guard, before falling to the ground in a prone position.

While doing so, he said,

- Do not be deceived. This phenomenon is merely tricking our senses. The wind... is cold... the air...

Despite his rambling, it was hard to believe even while watching with his own eyes.

"Prince, so the Xumens are falling, right?"

Chui Yun Kai asked.

Hou Gong nodded.

"They are almost at the ground."

This was an expansion of the truth that Hou Gong had instructed Yun to implement.

Under normal circumstances, the inside of the cliff is the boundary of the outer formation, but in emergencies, the entire mountain can be surrounded and utilized.

The Xumen family had no way of knowing this, so they only talked about the Thunderbolt of Heaven outside the formation.

"Quack, quack, quack, the Heavenly Flower Repository is not called a fortress beyond the heavens for nothing. Quack, quack, quack..."

"This is a scene that cannot be described as merely impressive."

"Phew! Look, it seems we are about to hit the ground!"

As they each muttered and stuck out their tongues, the collision with the ground was imminent. The posture had changed. The Xumen family members, who had spread their limbs to increase air resistance, were now covering their heads with their arms and screaming. In the illusion, the falling speed was terrifying, and the ground was rapidly approaching at a frightening speed.

Everyone was in a state of shock and chaos.

Seeing this, Hou Gong furrowed his brow in confusion.

'Why are these guys making such a fuss? Could it be that they have never experienced an illusion formation before?'

While the illusion formations of the Heavenly Flower Repository are sophisticated and excellent, such extreme, reality-like illusion formations are not unique to the Heavenly Flower Repository.

Objectively speaking, the formations of the Heavenly Flower Repository are elegant and well-behaved. Even without going as far as the demonic sects, the evil spirit formation of the Four Demonic Heavens involves endless attacks by evil spirits that keep coming back to life, and even a slight touch can burn through clothes.

In the past, when he infiltrated the Four Demonic Heavens and got caught in a formation, he killed a few and then got bored, so he blew up a hundred yards of the area. The illusion formations of the demonic and heterodox sects have a different level of lethality and ferocity.

Yet, how could these guys, with their limited martial world experience, be so shocked? To Hou Gong, it was pitiful and astonishing.

"Kaaaaaaah..."

"Noooooo..."

"Uaaaaa, this is just an illusion, why...!"

Finally, they collided with the ground.

With a terrible scream, something burst, and the sound of bones breaking followed one after another.

The scene that unfolded was gruesome.

Out of thirty-three, ten died instantly.

Five of them had buried their heads in the ground, and their brains burst. Three died from broken necks. Another one folded his waist backward and died from the shock, probably because the impact was on the waist side in the illusion.

Another one was killed by Xumen Chui.

In addition to the dead, about eleven were severely injured, gasping as if they were about to die. The rest were not unscathed either. They were all writhing like worms, with some part of their bodies broken. Even Xumen Chui's left arm was twisted at an odd angle, and he was spitting out fresh blood, probably due to internal injuries.

"How can someone die from a broken neck in an illusion?"

"They crushed their own faces. What kind of madness is this?"

"Is it because they couldn't escape the illusion?"

Everyone was in chaos. They were puzzled as to why, in an illusion, they would die from falling and breaking their bones. The last words of the White Flower Sect leader were closest to the truth.

Where is the separation between the mind and the body?

If one can heat up the body with just thoughts, then the opposite is also true; one can damage internal organs with mental distress.

Why does blood become hot?

Why do tears flow naturally?

Why does the heart beat faster just by looking at someone with affection?

The phrase "the sorrow of a section leader" is not just a saying.

About ten years ago, a guy named Moxue Gongzi died like this.

The Immortal Sound Maiden, without even releasing the Ice Lotus Needle, casually said that the Ice Lotus Needle had already penetrated his blood vessels. That night, Moxue Gongzi was terrified. When he was found in the morning, he was frozen to death, covered in frost.

Because he knew the power and consequences of the Ice Lotus Needle, he trembled with self-suggestion all night and froze to death. If Moxue Gongzi had not known what the Ice Lotus Needle was, nothing would have happened.

The Xumen family members were the same. The moment they accepted the fall as reality, they suffered the impact according to the intensity of the illusion.

Hou Gong gestured to the guards.

The guards quickly rushed over and began to gather Xumen Chui and the Black Flame Annihilation Team.

They separated the dead from the injured and began to seal the acupoints of those with relatively minor injuries, including Xumen Chui.

Their movements were swift and precise, and the leaders of the prestigious families were inwardly amazed.

'It's as if they were waiting for this to happen.'

They thought they were called to protect the Xumen family. But it was a arrogant misconception. The Heavenly Flower Repository stood up to the Xumen family with their own strength. They were only invited to show the truth as it was.

"Prince..."

One of the guards approached and whispered.

He was asking what to do with the critically injured who could not be saved.

Hou Gong scanned the scene with his eyes. Killing them would be a clean solution. Their condition was severe, and there was no chance of survival. However, the Heavenly Flower Repository would not make the decision for the Xumen family.

He turned his gaze to Xumen Feng, an elder of the Xumen family.

"What do you think, Elder?"

"Hmm..."

Xumen Feng, who had already heard the conversation, sighed and looked at the critically injured.

"They will only suffer more if they live. Please put them out of their misery."

"Yes."

Hou Gong nodded to the guards.

The guards returned and relayed the message. Then, a few of them moved around, severing the lives of the critically injured. In the end, only thirteen, including Xumen Chui, survived from the Xumen family.

**

They immediately moved to the inner hall and sat down.

The Grand Prince of the Heavenly Flower Repository and the leaders of the seven prestigious families.

Hou Gong had Yun sit to one side to observe.

Such an opportunity was rare. It was to broaden his horizons. When the Open Sect's Chui Yun Kai and his disciples came, he also had them sit to one side as part of this.

The meeting was opened by Xumen Feng.

"Truly, I am ashamed. As a member of the Xumen family, I could not prevent this series of events, and I feel like hiding in a mouse hole out of shame. Xumen Chui, being originally devious and only caring about his own people, seemed to only focus on strengthening his power within the family. I did not realize he would be this wicked."

Sighing deeply, Baihua Sect leader Miao Yun Liao shook his head.

"Who in this room can say they have no shame? If the Heavenly Flower Repository had not responded properly, we would have been criticizing them for not acting in time, lamenting the rampaging of some evil group."

"Seeing this incident, there are many unresolved cases. While boasting of being a prestigious orthodox sect, we failed to notice and only watched from the sidelines, which is deeply shameful."

Yan Hua Sect leader sighed deeply.

The Qingyue Sect leader, the Iron Gold Sect leader, and others all shook their heads and expressed their regret in succession.

The sighs of regret seemed endless.

It felt like it could go on for days.

Chui Yun Kai of the Open Sect stepped in to clear the air.

"Come, come, it's not over yet. Whether it's sighing or cheering, let's finish it all. It's already past midnight. Let's wrap this up quickly and get some sleep by dawn."

With Chui Yun Kai's words, everyone began to voice their opinions.

As various opinions emerged and were revised, after about an hour, a clear plan of action was established.

In summary, it was simple.

This night, the elites of each family and sect would lead an attack on the Xumen family. The discussions continued to adjust the timing, routes, and specific targets that needed to be dealt with first.

'They are enthusiastic.'

Watching them, Hou Gong was reminded of the martial alliance.

Then and now, meetings are boring to the extreme.

Yet, some faces came to mind.

He thought about visiting the martial alliance suddenly but quickly dismissed the idea.

There was no rush. He had just reached the realm of enlightenment. Among the three major protective techniques, only the Blood Circulation was complete. Hu Yun and Tong Ge were not yet perfect. At his current level, he was at best a major leader in the alliance. If he were to fight Chui Yun Kai now, it would be hard to guarantee a win. With a sword, he might barely maintain a draw.

"Prince, what do you think?"

Chui Yun Kai, having finished the discussion, asked.

Everyone's gaze turned to him.

'I can handle this.'

It seemed they were looking for his final approval.

He understood. It was not just a matter of courtesy.

As the one who brought them to this point, they wanted him to check if there were any overlooked aspects.

"Let's proceed as discussed. With your outstanding abilities, it should be a smooth operation."

"Good. But it's quite strange."

Chui Yun Kai furrowed his brow and continued.

"Why is there no tension at all? You look as