Published: March 8, 2025
With a single command, heads fell to the ground! Blood gushed out, pooling all around.
Ao Tianxing clearly noticed that in the final moment, his ninth brother cast a complicated glance his way, saying nothing at all.
Perhaps from the very beginning, when he cultivated his son and urged him to seize the position of future patriarch from Ao Xieyun, he was already aware of such an outcome.
But... he still went ahead with it!
Thus, he had no complaints about the severed head that lay before him now. It was eerily calm, yet complex.
Earlier, when he first realized the weight of his decision, Ao Tianfeng was shockingly filled with despair; but now, from that glance, he couldn't even see a lingering attachment to life.
The thirteenth brother, Ao Tianwu, had always been the fiercest among them, but now he merely spoke his last words: “Let them reunite with me soon!”
Ao Tianxing closed his eyes as tears streamed down his face.
You all knew!
You were all prepared!
You clearly understood that your strength wouldn't ultimately lead to a reversal, yet why did you still choose to act this way?
The person was dead, and perhaps all these questions were taken into the loam.
Ao Tianxing would never know what his brothers truly thought in their hearts.
Ao Xieyun kept his lips pressed together, watching the execution unfold. The muscles in his face twitched, and at the moment when so many heads fell simultaneously, he felt a wave of dizziness wash over him!
His body swayed, nearly collapsing to the ground.
Chu Yang was beside him, silently extending a hand to steady him, saying calmly, “In the end, victory belongs to the conqueror. They were prepared for this, and now there is no hope left; the pillar of their lives has collapsed, and they are merely walking corpses. Death, in fact, is a form of liberation.”
“Liberation... ha ha ha...” Ao Xieyun let out a bitter laugh.
“Yes, liberation. Their sons are dead, and they themselves have no hope left. Decades of hard work have become meaningless; if you, out of pity, spared their lives, allowing them to live like the dead, that would be the cruelest torment. A clean break is a good thing for them.”
“Though for those of you who remain, it may seem harsh... Regardless of whether it's cruel or not, you must bear it.” Chu Yang smiled reassuringly, adding, “Fortunately, humanity has one great gift, or talent, and that is the ability to forget!”
“No matter the matter... everything can be forgotten.” Chu Yang smiled lightly.
Yet in his heart, he sighed deeply: “I comfort Ao Xieyun in this way, but... can people really forget everything? Then why do I have so much that I can't let go of...”
“Forget...” Ao Xieyun repeated the words slowly, “is indeed humanity's greatest talent!”
Meanwhile, the other brothers were lost in their thoughts.
This massacre was different from others. Witnessing brothers turn against each other is an entirely different sensation compared to facing mere enemies, creating a profound shock and impact on the heart.
Especially for the Ao Clan, the first family of the Middle Three Heavens, executing this painfully necessary purge only intensified the turmoil in their hearts.
Xie Danqiong thought to himself: “Life in this world is perhaps just like the blood bursting from the neck, radiant yet cruel. It vanishes in an instant, yet it is a life... And my jade flower, perhaps it is just so, blossoming with the most beautiful petals, exuding the fragrance of death, taking away the last of life's attachments... The jade flower blooms, not to be admired by others, but blooms mercilessly. No matter who gazes upon the jade flower, as long as it blooms for them, they must die without question! Such is the jade flower.”
With this thought, Xie Danqiong seemed to gain some understanding, feeling a slight itch in his palm, unable to suppress the urge to deploy the jade flower.
Rocky Luo thought, “Such cruelty, no matter what, I must avoid in my life.” With that, he glanced in his brother Luo Kewu's direction, solidifying his resolve to leave the family and preserve his kinship.