"Who are you?"
Aaron Ao demanded, his face dark. His City Lord’s Mansion was heavily guarded, yet these four had managed to barge in without a sound—clearly no ordinary guests. Even with his late-stage Grandmaster cultivation, he could only make out the leading young man’s true strength.
"Pristine Way Sect—Leon Huang."
Ian Song said slowly.
"You’re actually from the Pristine Way Sect!"
Aaron Ao was startled, and the other Grandmasters from the allied sects turned pale as well.
Ian’s voice rang out again, playful: "What, is that a problem? Enough chit-chat—let’s talk business. If you grab your men and scram from Wicked Dragon City right now, young master here will spare your lives!"
"You’re awfully bold! Do you really think the four of you can force all three sects out of Wicked Dragon City?" Aaron Ao retorted angrily.
Ian nodded seriously. "More than enough. I’ll give you ten breaths to think it over!"
"No need to think it over. We’re not leaving!" Aaron Ao sneered.
Old Ox, kill them! Ian barked.
Yes, Master! Old Ox replied with a booming voice.
Long Jianming strode forward, his fists blurring as he unleashed three thunderous punches.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
In an instant, the three men were sent flying and crashed to the ground, lifeless. Old Ox's three punches had pulverized their organs.
There were six Grandmasters stationed in Wicked Dragon City by the three sects.
Now, three had been killed, and the other three were still mixed in with the army.
But finishing them off was no challenge at all.
In less than a quarter of an hour, the heads of the remaining three Grandmasters were laid before Ian Song.
With their leaders gone, the fighting spirit of the ten thousand troops collapsed. After a rampage by the three Martial Saints, a thousand were slain in an hour, and the remaining nine thousand surrendered on the spot.
City Lord’s Mansion dungeon.
Ian Song arrived with Old Ox.
Hundreds of people were imprisoned here—some were Pristine Way Sect disciples, others were Wicked Dragon City’s original officers and officials.
The black iron locks were slashed apart, and hundreds regained their freedom.
"Thank you, young master, for saving us. May we ask your name?" An elderly man and a middle-aged man in prison garb came forward together and bowed to Ian Song.
All three possessed Grandmaster-level cultivation, but their true qi had been sealed in their dantians.
"No need to be so formal, gentlemen. I’m Leon Huang, Core Disciple of Pristine Way Sect," Ian Song replied politely.
If he guessed correctly, the elderly man was Justin Lin, City Lord of Wicked Dragon City. He wasn’t a Pristine Way disciple, but the Lin family was closely connected to the sect.
The other two middle-aged men were likely the City Guard General and Deputy General of Wicked Dragon City.
The City Guard General was an elite Pristine Way disciple; the Deputy General was a member of the Stone clan, another family of Wicked Dragon City.
"So you’re a top disciple of Pristine Way Sect—this is excellent news!" Justin Lin said happily.
"Brother Huang, I’m Wade Ward, an elite disciple. My respects!" The middle-aged man bowed quickly when he heard Ian Song was a Core Disciple, though he wondered when Pristine Way had gained a new Core Disciple.
If Ian Song knew what he was thinking, he’d have told him: I just got promoted not long ago.
Although Ian Song declined the acting sect master role, all the Supreme Elders unanimously agreed to make him a Core Disciple.
Knowing Ian Song was a Core Disciple, Deputy General Trevor Stone dared not be disrespectful and hurriedly bowed.
Old Ox, help them restore their cultivation!
After a brief exchange of greetings, Ian Song gave the order to Old Ox.
"Yes!"
Old Ox stepped forward and struck three palms in succession. With three blows, the seals on their dantians were instantly broken.
The three men stared at Old Ox in shock. Their dantian seals had been placed by a peak Grandmaster, yet Old Ox had broken them with a casual wave—his cultivation must be at the Grandmaster level, at least.
"Thank you, Mister Ox!"
All three quickly expressed their thanks. Not knowing Old Ox’s true identity, they could only address him as 'Mister.'
Soon after, Ian Song led the group out of the dungeon and tasked them with restoring order in the city.
Justin Lin and his group were highly respected in Wicked Dragon City, and they quickly quelled the chaos.
The next day.
Supreme Elder James Jiang personally arrived with five thousand troops. When he learned Ian Song had already taken Wicked Dragon City, he was utterly astonished.
"Elder Jiang, split off half your troops and send them to Blackhorse City immediately. I plan to take Blackhorse City today as well!" After entering the city, Ian Song spoke directly to the arriving Supreme Elder.
"So soon?"
Elder Jiang was shocked again.
Blackhorse City might only be a mid-sized city, but it was garrisoned by five thousand troops. Capturing it wouldn’t be easy.
"No worries. I have my own methods!"
Once Elder Jiang agreed to send troops, Ian Song teleported with his three Martial Saints to Blackhorse City. First, he assassinated the Sea Emperor Sect’s city lord and city guard general, leaving the city leaderless. Then he tossed their heads into the barracks, and the three Martial Saints charged in for a round of slaughter.
In less than an hour, Blackhorse City was in Ian Song’s hands.
That evening, troops moved in to garrison Blackhorse City, led by Wade Ward, whom Ian Song had rescued from the dungeon.
Over the next ten days, Ian Song captured eight more cities. If Pristine Way’s forces could keep up, the number would have doubled.
In just over ten days, Pristine Way Sect reclaimed ten cities. News of this spread, and the entire sect was filled with joy and excitement.
The Supreme Elders no longer doubted Ian Song could break the three-sect siege crisis.
With their support, Ian Song’s reputation soared throughout Pristine Way Sect.
Meanwhile, the Sea Emperor Sect, Divine Moon Sect, and Sky-Net Gate were left stunned after losing ten cities.
How did Pristine Way Sect suddenly get so ruthless, snatching ten cities in just over ten days?
What made them even angrier was that not a single Grandmaster stationed in those ten cities survived—all of them had their heads chopped off.
This left the Grandmasters stationed in over fifty other occupied cities terrified.
Sea Emperor City.
The three sects convened.
The Sea Emperor Sect sent brothers Logan Ao and Hugh Ao, both early-stage Great Grandmasters.
The Divine Moon Sect sent Elder Mason Ming and Elder Gavin Wei—Mason was early-stage Great Grandmaster, Gavin was mid-stage.
Sky-Net Gate sent three representatives, all middle-aged women—the triplet Hall sisters: May, Flora, and Serena.
The three sisters had always eaten, slept, and trained together since childhood—never apart, even marrying the same man. Their bond was extraordinary.
Because of this, the sisters were so in sync that they’d mastered a joint combat formation; when united, they could even slay late-stage Great Grandmasters.
"Pristine Way Sect caught our three sects completely off guard, and the losses were disastrous. If we don’t crush their momentum soon, our troops’ morale will collapse!" Logan Ao declared.
"Logan’s right. So, what do you suggest?" Mason Ming nodded.
Logan Ao pulled a map from his storage ring and pointed to a city named Heavenly Peace. "I’ve studied Pristine Way’s advance. If I’m right, their next move will be on Heavenly Peace City. Let’s set an ambush there and make sure they never come back!"