C27 I Am That Accident!

City Lord Yuan Lianyao is the Huang family's prime target!

Known as the sole practitioner at the Penetrating Stage in Darkmoon City, Lianyao possesses the highest level of cultivation, holds significant authority, and can sway the decisions of both the Zhao and Yu families. She was also the one who bestowed the "Burning Blood Lotus Seal" upon Yu Yuan and executed Huang Bin.

Naturally, she was marked for death first.

As for Yu Yuan, still at the Pulse Opening Stage, he could easily be manipulated once the bigger picture was settled.

"I'm not even a blip on their radar," he mused.

Watching the Jewelry Stone shatter into a cloud of dust under Yu Wei's powerful strike, Yu Yuan offered a calm smile. "Uncle, at this juncture, our Yu family is actually in a safer position. It's the Yuan and Zhao families that the Huangs are keen to take down first. We... we're just too weak."

The Huang family patriarch, Huang Fann, was a formidable figure at the Middle Period of the Profound Break Stage.

His brother, Huang Tianyi, was at the Early Period, while Huang Chen, the second generation, had also reached the Early Period of the Profound Break Stage, hot on his father's heels.

With three members at the Profound Break Stage, the Huang family's might was undeniable. It's no wonder they no longer saw the Yu family as a threat, having kept them subdued for years.

Yu Wei led him away from Yuan Lianyao's platform, and only when they noticed that neither Huang Fann nor Huang Chen paid them any mind did he accept Yu Yuan's assessment.

Turning his attention to the Yu family's situation, Yu Yuan saw Huang Tianyi and the other Huangs being encircled by Zhao Dongsheng and Yuan Fu.

Clearly, the Huang family had exhausted their resources and could no longer afford to trouble the Yus.

"The Huang family's rise to power was abrupt, just over the past decade," Yu Wei said gravely. "Both Huang Tianyi and Huang Chen advanced to the Profound Break Stage during this time. Huang Fann also ascended from the Early to the Middle Period of the Profound Break Stage. All this happened after our grandfather's legs were broken."

Yu Yuan paused, a sudden realization dawning on him. "Grandfather's legs... the rumor is that the Huangs hired an outsider to do it, right?"

Yu Wei nodded in agreement. "The old master was at the early stages of the Profound Break Stage, similar to Huang Fann. Back then, our Yu family was not only on par with the Huang family but slightly stronger. Given the same level of cultivation, the old master should have been more powerful than Huang Fann. Had the Huang family not resorted to enlisting an outsider for a sneak attack, the old master would never have ended up in such dire straits."

"I see," Yu Yuan said, his eyes icing over. "It must have been the work of the Blood God Cult. Who would have thought that the Huang family had fallen under their influence over a decade ago?"

"The Blood God Cult?" Yu Wei exclaimed in disbelief, "The infamous Blood God Cult from the northern reaches of the Quietus Continent?"

Yu Yuan gave a subtle nod.

Yu Wei's face drained of color.

"Hu! Hu! Hu!"

Nine dazzling, crimson lotuses burst forth from beneath Yuan Lianyao's feet, spiraling above her head.

Beads of blood, glistening like red agate, sprayed from the shattered jewelry stones, only to be ruthlessly crushed by the swirling red lotuses.

"Boom!"

The blood beads dissipated into a thin veil of scarlet mist.

The mist descended like a drapery, transforming the valley's daylight into a sea of deep red.

An oppressive, blood-soaked force bore down from above, shrouding everyone in the valley.

"The blood sacrifice array!" Yu Yuan's face grew tense, his brow furrowing. "Something's off. The elder from the Red Devil Sect was supposed to have disrupted the other arrays on the City Lord's command. It's still daylight; the blood sacrifice array shouldn't be active."

"Lord City Lord!" Huang Chen bared his teeth in a wide, mocking laugh. "Didn't see this coming, did you? Don't assume that just because you've reached the Penetrating Stage, you can do as you please in Darkmoon City!"

As Huang Chen spoke, Yu Yuan's attention was immediately drawn.

He saw the blood mist enveloping Yuan Lianyao thicken rapidly, until it resembled viscous blood.

To his astonishment, the nine scarlet lotuses under Yuan Lianyao's command began to wobble uncontrollably.

Pain etched across Yuan Lianyao's beautiful face as her eyes repeatedly darted to the profound gate at her chest.

"The blood sacrifice array, when used with the boiling blood mist, is formidable—even against someone at the Penetrating Stage," Huang Fann, gaunt and wiry, declared from his perch on the high platform above Huang Bin's body, his hands weaving through the air.

With a resounding "Crack!" his gestures rent the valley floor with golden light, unearthing chunks of jewelry stone.

These stones, long buried and laden with peculiar blood beads, burst open mid-flight, releasing more beads that transformed into a blood mist, surging towards Yuan Lianyao.

It was clear now; the Huang family had been mining and stockpiling these jewelry stones for years, all for this moment.

"The blood sacrifice array significantly amplifies the blood mist—a clever tactic indeed," Yu Yuan remarked, a note of admiration in his voice as he turned to his uncle. "Unless something unexpected happens, our City Lord at the Penetrating Stage is in trouble. The Qi within his Mystical Gate is in turmoil, likely using the eight extraordinary meridians to strike at his vital organs."

Yu Wei blanched at the thought. "If the Mystical Gate in his middle dantian is out of control and his organs are damaged, he may no longer have the strength to fight."

Yuan Lianyao, the Penetrating Stage's most formidable figure in Darkmoon City, stood a cut above the rest—she was the linchpin in the struggle against the Huang family.

Should she fall first, the morale of the Yuan, Zhao, and Yu families would plummet in an instant.

The cultivators from all three families would be disheartened, reasoning that if even she could not withstand defeat, how could they hope to triumph over the Huang family, especially with their external allies still hidden from view?

"Brother Yu."

Zhao Yafu, alongside Zhao Xi, broke away from the main force and approached Yu Yuan and Yu Wei with urgency.

"Lih Feng! I've been commanded by Elder Fu to protect you," the guard announced, his reluctance clear as he joined Yu Yuan, flanked by Zhao Xi and Zhao Yafu.

Zhao Xi, still puzzled, scratched his head. He had yet to grasp why his father, Zhao Zhenghao, had insisted he escort Zhao Yafu and stay close to Yu Yuan.

Zhao Xi, at the late stage of the Yellow Court, along with Yu Wei and Lih Feng from the middle stage, all converged around Yu Yuan.

"Elder Fu instructed me..." Lih Feng said, his voice tinged with resentment, "to follow your orders during this time. Damn it, I'm the captain of the Darkmoon City guard. If I'm taking orders from you, does that mean all the city guards will be under your command too?"

He muttered the last part under his breath.

Yet, Zhao Xi, Yu Wei, and the others heard him loud and clear.

And as if in answer to his complaint, Yuan Fu of the Yuan family gestured, directing the other guards to break away from their formation and head their way.

The Darkmoon City guards and the Yuan family members were typically two distinct factions.

But now, both were orchestrated by Yuan Lianyao.

"This..."

Zhao Xi's face registered shock. What virtues or powers did Yu Yuan possess to earn such trust from Yuan Fu?

To have Lih Feng and the city guards at his beck and call?

"Lian Ran!"

In that moment, the City Lord, his face contorted with agony, let out a piercing call.

The nine wilting, vibrant lotuses seemed to be revitalized by a surge of spiritual energy in the blink of an eye.

The lotuses burst into divine light and quietly ignited.

They resembled nine dazzling, fiery red lanterns!

The look of pain on Yuan Lianyao's face vanished instantly, replaced by a sly, venomous smirk of triumph.

Huang Fann, seated across from her, manipulating spiritual energy to levitate the Jewelry Stone, caught sight of her tell-tale grin and shuddered, "You... your sect didn't descend into chaos!"

"How could this be?" Huang Chen was petrified, "With the blood boiling mist and the blood sacrifice array, how could she possibly be unscathed?"

"Go!"

Yuan Lianyao stood on the dais, her waist twisting as she danced gracefully.

Two blazing red lotuses, like fiery orbs, hurtled towards Huang Fann and Huang Chen.

"Boom! Boom!"

Blood spurted from the mouths of Huang Fann and Huang Chen as they were blasted more than ten meters through the air.

With a single blow, father and son were both grievously wounded.

"Merely at the Profound Break Stage, and yet you have the audacity to spout nonsense before me," Yuan Lianyao chuckled with a hint of admiration, casting a glance at Yu Yuan from a distance. "Don't assume that the Blood God Cult's support can constrain me or cause my sect to spiral out of control."

Yu Wei, in a daze, said, "Yu Yuan, you mentioned that barring any surprises, the City Lord's sect should be in chaos by now, right?"

Zhao Xi, Zhao Yafu, and Lih Feng all gave him peculiar looks.

They had all caught the meaningful gaze Yuan Lianyao directed at him.

Her eyes clearly conveyed that her immunity to the effects of the boiling blood mist and the blood sacrifice array had a significant connection to Yu Yuan.

"How fortuitous, the unexpected has occurred," Yu Yuan said with composed assurance, pointing to his nose. "I am that unexpected element."

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