As for the several Tanner Clan elders behind Owen Tanner, they too were left utterly stunned. The Imperial Armament Grand Abyss, when unleashed at full power, could produce attacks on par with an eighth-tier War General!
How could it be shattered so easily?
But what followed was panic—fear and deep anxiety.
That young man called Ian Song could shatter the Imperial Armament Grand Abyss with a single punch, proving his strength had reached the terrifying ninth-tier War General level.
In the entire Central Empire, there were only a little over a thousand ninth-tier War Generals.
Of those, the empire itself held sixty percent.
So,
any ninth-tier War General was a force that could dominate an entire region.
In those super sects and major clans, they were even considered the ultimate anchor—the stabilizing pillar.
The Tanner Clan might be a major family in Skywind City, but compared to those super clans and sects, it was worlds apart.
If they had known that this young man called Ian Song possessed ninth-tier War General strength, no matter how much humiliation they suffered, they wouldn’t have dared to resist. Now, having completely made an enemy of him, the Tanner Clan’s destruction was all but certain.
Thinking of this, not only the elders but even Owen Tanner himself felt a deep, bitter regret. If they hadn’t wiped out the Hua Clan for clues to the Radiant Emperor’s Treasure all those years ago, they wouldn’t have ended up like this.
"You may take your own lives now!"
Ian Song landed, looked at Owen Tanner and the elders, and spoke.
Suddenly, Owen Tanner’s body hunched over, and he seemed to age decades in an instant. With a voice full of despair, he said, addressing Ian Song by his Chu-clan alias, "Young Master Chu, I have one request."
Ian Song said nothing.
Owen Tanner continued, "We can take our own lives and hand over all Tanner assets to Miss Flora Thrall. But I beg you, Young Master Chu—" he used Ian Song's Chu-clan persona, "—let a branch of the Tanner bloodline survive!"
With that, Owen Tanner bowed deeply, and the elders followed suit. Having witnessed Ian Song’s terrifying strength, they had lost all will to resist.
Ian Song nodded. "Anyone who wasn’t involved in the massacre back then—I’ll spare their lives."
"Thank you, Young Master!"
Owen Tanner expressed his gratitude. Then, his body and those of the elders shuddered; their vital essence drained away rapidly. In moments, they turned into stiff corpses and fell from the sky...
The clan head was dead.
The three young masters were dead too.
Even the strongest elders had died.
The entire Tanner Clan was thrown into panic, running around like headless flies. Some tried to escape, but the grand formation covering the estate was simply too strong—no matter what they tried, they couldn’t budge it an inch.
"All Tanner Clan members, gather at the Martial Arena Plaza immediately! Anyone who isn’t there within a quarter-hour—will die!"
From his vantage point above, Ian Song swept his gaze over the chaotic Tanner estate, then suddenly shouted in a deep voice. His words instantly echoed throughout the entire compound.
No one dared resist.
No one dared to hide, either—because in their eyes, Ian Song was simply too terrifying, capable of anything.
So, in less than half a quarter-hour, all remaining Tanner members inside the estate assembled at the Martial Arena Plaza. Of course, this wasn’t everyone—some were still outside managing the clan’s various businesses.
Half an hour later.
After interrogation, out of the thousands present, more than three hundred were found to have taken part in the Hua Clan incident years ago.
"Whether they live or die—it's up to you to decide!"
Ian Song spoke softly to Flora Thrall.
Thud! Thud!
Some began to kneel and beg for mercy. Soon, all those singled out dropped to their knees:
"Miss Flora, back then we were just following orders. Please, spare us!"
"Yes, Miss Flora, the real culprits were the clan head and the eldest young master—they planned the Hua Clan massacre. We were just small fry following orders!"
Faced with a chorus of pleas, Flora Thrall’s eyes flickered with hesitation. The hatred in her gaze gradually gave way to clarity.
After a full half quarter-hour, she finally spoke again: "Sever your right arm and you may live. Also, each of you will write a list of every person who took part in that incident. Anyone who dares conceal a name—will be executed without mercy!"
In the end, with the lists collected, five more were singled out from the crowd.
These five had tried their luck, hoping to escape punishment without confessing.
Flora Thrall showed no mercy to these five—she executed them on the spot. There were still over a hundred others who had taken part in the incident but were not present in the estate; some were already dead, some were out on errands, and others were managing clan businesses.
Boom! Boom!
At that moment, the grand formation enveloping the Tanner estate suddenly began to tremble.
Ian Song looked up and saw a new group of people appear above the formation.
Leading them was a refined young man in his early thirties, dressed in a moon-white robe. The one attacking the formation was a giant, armored brute.
Behind the refined youth stood a crowd, and at the very back was Frank Murong, chief constable of Skywind City.
The giant brute attacking the formation was extremely powerful—likely a ninth-rank warlord. The refined young man’s aura was restrained, but Ian Song could tell he was at least an eighth-rank warlord.
Whoosh!
In a blur, Ian Song appeared outside the formation and swung his palm.
Bang!
The giant brute attacking the formation was sent flying a thousand meters by Ian’s slap. Yet, his body was so tough that he wasn’t injured at all.
Seeing this, the refined young man and the others couldn’t help but narrow their eyes in shock.
That giant brute was Lu State’s commanding general, a rare ninth-tier War General. Now, he’d been sent flying with a single slap—proof of the handsome youth’s terrifying strength.
After a moment, the refined young man spoke slowly, "Do you realize that your reckless actions have violated imperial law?"
"So what?"
Ian Song replied disdainfully.
"Insolence! This is Lord Wanyang, Lu State’s governor. You, an outsider, should kneel and beg forgiveness!"
Kane Ji suddenly barked coldly.
"Beg forgiveness?" Ian Song chuckled. "If you have the guts, come and arrest me. But let me warn you—think carefully before you act!"
"How dare you!"
Kane Ji was furious, but Lord Wanyang waved a hand and looked at Ian Song. "With your strength, you could easily serve the Empire. Why oppose us?"
Ian Song sneered, "Recruit me? You’re not qualified! Actually, even if your emperor tried to recruit me, I wouldn’t bother with him. If he gave me the throne, maybe I’d be interested!"
"You’re far too arrogant!" Lord Wanyang’s face darkened.
"Enough. Go back to wherever you came from! If you want to arrest or kill me, do it now. I don’t have time to waste on you!"
"Governor, this man is simply...!"
"Say no more—we’re leaving!"
Lord Wanyang raised a hand to silence Kane Ji, then turned and left. Although he could use the ancient super-formation’s power to reach ninth-tier War General strength, he still wasn’t confident he could defeat Ian Song.
Since he wasn’t certain, he chose to leave. He’d return with reinforcements and settle the score later.