Didn't Your Patriarch Die

The Fat Monk pressed his palms together.

“I am of the No-Life Past-Age Sect. I pay my respects to the Emperor of Great Xia.”

Hundreds of cultists followed behind him.

They carried incense burners, soul lamps, iron beds, and all sorts of bizarre instruments whose purposes were impossible to discern.

For the first time, Wu Xuance’s face went pale.

The No-Life Past-Age Sect.

One of the most infamous evil cults in the Nine Provinces.

Their doctrine held that living was suffering.

Therefore, they helped all living beings experience suffering again and again.

Only after one had suffered enough would they ask whether one wished to be liberated.

If the answer was yes, they would tell that person that harboring thoughts of death proved their cultivation was still insufficient.

So they had to continue suffering.

The imperial court and the various sacred lands had hunted this sect down several times, yet they had never been able to eradicate it completely.

The Fat Monk had only just landed when blood mist began to roil on the other side.

A group of figures in bright-red robes emerged from within it.

The leader carried eight blood bags on his back.

Something inside the bags appeared to be struggling for life.

“The Everlasting Blood Society offers three hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.”

“We hear that two Martial Gods are among the auction items?”

The Fat Monk smiled.

“Four hundred thousand.”

“The souls of Martial Gods are quite durable. This humble monk is willing to light a Lamp of Compassion for a Hundred Lifetimes for them.”

Wu Xuance glared at Wang Hao.

“Kill me!”

“Wang Hao!”

“If you have the guts, kill me now!”

Wang Hao lowered his head and looked at him.

“Weren’t you quite the tough one just now?”

“Why did your price go up the moment a buyer arrived?”

Several more evil cult factions soon arrived.

The Skinchanging Society.

Burial Life Valley.

The Daylight Ghost Court.

Weeping Manor.

These forces usually hid in dark corners, hated and hunted by everyone.

Today, however, every one of them entered the Dark Ancestral Court openly, carrying spirit stones, spiritual medicines, and sinister artifacts.

Of course, before entering, they had all signed a contract three hundred pages long.

First, they were forbidden from preaching within Great Xia.

Second, they were forbidden from harming the innocent.

Third, all criminals obtained through the auction had to be used according to the terms of the contract.

Fourth, the prisoners were not allowed to die during their sentences.

The White Bone Old Monster finished reading the contract, the flames within his eye sockets flickering incessantly.

“They’re not allowed to die?”

“Then how is that supposed to be punishment?”

Wang Hao cast him a glance.

“Sometimes, living is harder than dying.”

The White Bone Old Monster fell silent.

He suddenly felt that, as an old monster of the demonic sects, he was still far too kind.

The auction was about to begin.

But just as several Great Xia martial artists were preparing to escort the members of the Slaying Hao List onto the platform, a cold glint suddenly flashed through Wu Xuance’s eyes.

“Move!”

Boom!

Seven stewards of the Dark Immortal Sect simultaneously self-destructed in the southeastern part of the plaza.

Blood mist soared into the sky.

The explosion did not attack Wang Hao.

Instead, it shattered an ancient formation buried underground.

Hum!

The ancient formation sprang back to life.

A black pillar of light descended from the heavens, enveloping Wu Xuance and more than a dozen other members of the Slaying Hao List.

Spatial teleportation!

At the same time, two Martial Gods who had been hiding among the crowd suddenly erupted into action.

One wore golden battle armor.

He was none other than a Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land.

The other had his face covered by a black veil and held a poisoned needle in his hand. He came from the Blood Lotus Sacred Land.

Both of them were secret agents on the Slaying Hao List.

They had been waiting for this moment all along.

The Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land punched toward Wang Hao.

“You damn emperor!”

“Hand over the Dark Immortal Sect’s treasury!”

The aura of a fifth-level Martial God exploded in full force.

This Supreme Elder had clearly calculated everything.

Wang Hao was only a second-level Martial God.

The two ninth-realm thunder dragons from the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda had already been exhausted.

After enduring one bloody battle after another, Wang Hao was also seriously wounded.

This was the perfect opportunity to kill him.

The radiance of his fist was like a golden sun.

In an instant, it sealed off every avenue of retreat available to Wang Hao.

The Taiyin Old Matriarch and the others tried to come to his aid.

But the Blood Lotus Valkyrie sent countless poisoned needles flying, temporarily holding them back.

A savage grin spread across Wu Xuance’s face.

“Wang Hao.”

“Did you really think you had won?”

Wang Hao remained seated on the dragon throne.

He neither stood nor dodged.

He merely closed the account book in his hand, slowly and calmly.

“I’ve been waiting all along.”

A sudden unease arose in the heart of the Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land.

In the next instant, Wang Hao raised his hand.

Heaven-Prisoning Earth-Covering Palm!

First Palm!

A golden palm print appeared before him.

The Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land shattered it with a single punch.

He sneered.

“A second-level Martial God dares to clash head-on with this old man?”

Wang Hao said nothing.

The second palm had already descended.

Boom!

The Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land’s body froze.

The third palm pressed down from above his head.

The fourth sealed off the surrounding space.

The fifth shook his qi and blood.

The sixth crushed his Martial God Dharma Idol.

The savage grin on the Supreme Elder’s face vanished completely.

He suddenly realized that every palm Wang Hao struck was borrowing the momentum of the one before it.

The force of the palms stacked upon itself layer by layer.

The Emperor’s might grew stronger and stronger.

By the seventh palm, the Supreme Elder could no longer advance another step.

“How is this possible?”

“You’re clearly only a second-level Martial God!”

Wang Hao finally rose to his feet.

“Realm is one thing.”

“Combat strength is another.”

“Who says a second-level Martial God can’t kill a fifth-level Martial God?”

Eighth Palm!

The golden light protecting the Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land shattered with a thunderous crash.

He turned and fled.

Wang Hao’s right hand closed around the New Emperor Sword.

The Nine Heaven-Cleaving Swords—First Sword!

A river of golden and silver sword light stretched across the sky.

It severed the Supreme Elder’s escape route.

“Come back.”

Ninth Palm!

The nine palm prints fused into one beneath the heavens.

The Supreme Elder of the Golden Turret Sacred Land threw back his head and roared. His Martial God Dharma Idol rose from the ground.

It was a golden palace ten thousand zhang tall.

But the moment the Emperor’s Palm descended, the golden palace shattered inch by inch.

Boom!

The Supreme Elder plummeted from the sky and crashed into the auction platform.

Every bone in his body was shattered.

His qi sea was sealed.

His soul could not move.

From the first palm to the ninth, Wang Hao had not given him the slightest chance to catch his breath.

A mid-stage Martial God had been suppressed on the spot.

On the other side, the New Emperor Sword had transformed into a silver-haired youth and excitedly charged into the ranks of the Dark Immortal Sect stewards.

It possessed only seventh-realm combat strength.

But against stewards who had lost the protection of their formation, that was more than enough.

Silver sword light darted left and right through the crowd.

As it hacked people apart, it shouted:

“None of you are allowed to run!”

“You’re worth money now!”

Seeing that the situation was turning against her, the Blood Lotus Valkyrie turned and fled into the void.

The Sword Ruins powerhouse merely raised two fingers.

A sword cry rang out.

The void was cleaved open.

The Blood Lotus Valkyrie fell from the spatial rift.

The Taiyin Old Matriarch struck with one palm, freezing her in midair.

The Yellow Springs Ancestor gave a sinister laugh.

“You came whenever you wanted.”

“And now you think you can leave whenever you want?”

“Do you really think old monsters like us are all dead?”

As for Wu Xuance and the others, the teleportation formation beneath their feet had indeed activated.

But they were not transported away.

Because Wang Hao had long ago stamped the seal of the Great Xia Mountains and Rivers Register onto every spatial node within the Dark Ancestral Court.

This entire ancestral court now belonged to Great Xia.

Without Wang Hao’s permission, not even a fly could teleport through space.

Wang Hao looked at Wu Xuance.

“Do you know why I chose to hold the auction here?”

Wu Xuance’s face turned deathly pale.

Wang Hao smiled.

“The Slaying Hao List records eighty-three people.”

“I captured only sixty-seven.”

“The remaining sixteen hid too well.”

“So I deliberately gave you an opportunity to rescue them.”

Wang Hao pointed toward the people who had just revealed themselves.

“Not one more, not one less.”

“Exactly sixteen.”

The entire crowd fell deathly silent.

Those who had previously thought Wang Hao careless now felt a chill run down their spines.

The auction had been a falsehood.

The real purpose had been to lure them out.

From beginning to end, every reaction they had made had been within Wang Hao’s calculations.

Wu Xuance shrieked hoarsely:

“You madman!”

Wang Hao shook his head.

“I’m not insane.”

“I just happen to be a little more calculating.”

The auction continued.

The first item up for auction was none other than the Golden Turret Supreme Elder.

The Skinchanging Guild offered the highest bid.

One million two hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones.

The guild’s mistress was a woman whose skin was so pale it was almost translucent.

She looked at the Golden Turret Supreme Elder with great satisfaction.

“A Martial God’s body. Its skin can regenerate every day.”

“It’s perfect for researching the Myriad Forms Skinchanging Art.”

The Golden Turret Supreme Elder struggled frantically.

“Senior Taiyin!”

“Save me!”

“I am a Martial God of the Holy Land!”

The Taiyin Old Matriarch glanced at him coldly.

“You were responsible for using thirty million Great Xia citizens to refine curses for the Hao-Slaying List.”

“You are not worthy of being saved.”

Wang Hao brought down the hammer.

“Sold.”

The second item.

The Blood Lotus Valkyrie.

She was purchased by the Everlasting Blood Society.

The third.

An elder of the Dark Immortal Sect’s Punishment Hall.

This man had once used one hundred thousand living people to refine a Human-Soul Bell.

Wang Hao had released the victims’ remnant souls from the treasury.

When Wang Hao asked those remnant souls whether they wanted him dead or alive, the answer given by all one hundred thousand was the same.

Alive.

And so, he was sold to Wailing Manor.

There, they would forge a new bell.

He would be the bell.

And also the one who struck it.

With every peal of the bell, he would experience one of the agonies suffered by the one hundred thousand remnant souls during their lives.

The term of the contract:

Ten thousand years.

Finally, it was Wu Xuance’s turn.

The Fat Monk of the Deathless Past-Life Cult offered three million high-grade spirit stones, along with a Hundred-Lives Substitute Death Lamp.

This lamp had only one function.

If its bound owner died, their soul would return to their body.

The price was retaining every sensation experienced before death.

As Wu Xuance stared at the lamp, he finally broke down completely.

“Wang Hao!”

“Kill me!”

“Please, kill me!”

He frantically slammed himself against the stone pillar beside him.

But the Soul-Sealing Chains held his body fast.

He could not even bite through his own tongue to commit suicide.

Wang Hao walked up to him.

“Do you remember what was written in your Hao-Slaying List plan?”

Wu Xuance’s body trembled.

Wang Hao recited it for him.

“Capture one hundred thousand children of Great Xia.”

“Kill one every day before my statue.”

“Use that to contaminate the will of the people.”

“You thought it was fun.”

Wu Xuance’s lips quivered.

He could not utter a word.

Wang Hao patted him on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry.”

“I’m not as cruel as you are.”

“You won’t die.”

“Not ever.”

The auction hammer fell.

“Sold.”

All eighty-three members of the Hao-Slaying List were purchased by different evil sects.

Wang Hao added the same clause to every contract:

They had to remain alive.

They had to remain conscious.

Only after repaying every blood debt would they be qualified to request death.

As for when they would have repaid those debts—

that would be determined by the Great Xia Ministry of Justice.

After the auction ended, vast quantities of spirit stones and heavenly treasures were delivered to the treasury of Great Xia.

Thirty percent would be used to repair Blackheaven City.

Thirty percent would go toward compensating the families of the dead.

Twenty percent would be divided among the forces that had taken part in the battle.

The final twenty percent belonged to Great Xia.

The White Bone Old Monster looked at his share and suddenly sighed.

“Wang Hao.”

“I used to think I was a pretty twisted old monster.”

“But compared to you, I look like a saint who spends his days doing good deeds.”

Wang Hao replied calmly:

“You flatter me, Senior.”

“I merely enforce the law.”

In the distance, Wu Xuance and the others were escorted aboard a bone ship.

The despair in Wu Xuance’s eyes was absolute.

But just as the bone ship was about to depart, he suddenly turned his head and looked toward the deepest part of the Dark Immortal Sect’s ancestral grounds.

There stood an ancient Ancestral Master Hall.

It had not been opened in tens of thousands of years.

The despair on Wu Xuance’s face suddenly transformed into a bizarre fanaticism.

“Wang Hao.”

“You can’t win.”

“The Dark Immortal Sect will never perish.”

“Our Ancestor will return.”

Wang Hao narrowed his eyes.

“Wasn’t your Ancestor already dead?”

Wu Xuance threw his head back and laughed.

“Immortals cannot die!”

“Neither can the Immortal Sect be destroyed!”

“Everything you took from us—our Ancestor will make you spit it all back out!”

The bone ship sailed into the void.

Wu Xuance’s maniacal laughter continued to echo across the ancestral grounds.

Wang Hao raised his head.

He looked toward the Ancestral Master Hall, which had lain silent for ten thousand years.

At the same time, the system notification sounded once again.

[New special sign-in location detected.]

[Sign-in location refreshed: Ancestral Master Hall of the Dark Immortal Sect.]