Chapter 135: Situ Deng, come up and meet your death!

At the same time, on the outskirts of Jinling, at Purple Mountain.

Long Sihai and Wu Xingyan stood in the air, each perched atop a towering tree over ten meters high, their gazes locked onto each other with sharp intensity. They had been battling for the entire night, yet the outcome remained undecided. Long Sihai had originally come to keep the appointment solely to rescue his granddaughter, but after fighting Wu Xingyan for so long without catching a glimpse of Long Tianjiao, he grew increasingly impatient, and a seed of suspicion began to sprout within him.

"Wu Xingyan, where exactly is my granddaughter?" Long Sihai asked, his face darkening with a stern demand.

"Heh, heh, heh... once you are dead, you will naturally see her!" Wu Xingyan let out a strange, shrill laugh, a flicker of madness flashing in his eyes.

"Did you kill Tianjiao?" Long Sihai’s expression shifted drastically, a momentary instability creeping into his composure.

"That’s right. I killed her, and then I carved her flesh off piece by piece and ate it all!" Wu Xingyan’s tone grew even more deranged, as if the sight of Long Sihai’s agitation only fueled his excitement.

"You are courting death!" Long Sihai’s aura surged violently, his frenzied internal energy erupting in all directions and instantly snapping countless towering trees. He knew full well that Wu Xingyan was intentionally goading him, but the mere thought of his granddaughter in danger—or worse, dead—made it impossible to contain his grief and rage.

In that split second, a gleam of sharp intent flashed in Wu Xingyan’s eyes, as if he had spotted the perfect opening. He kicked off the tree with such force that the massive trunk, as thick as a water barrel, snapped instantly. The falling tree smashed into the surrounding ones, while Wu Xingyan transformed into a blur, lunging straight at Long Sihai. Swathed in black mist and radiating an oppressive, evil presence, he struck out with a palm.

Long Sihai did not choose to block; instead, he leaped back, retreating rapidly.

Boom!

Wu Xingyan’s palm strike shattered countless trees, causing a dozen of them to collapse like dominoes in the direction of Long Sihai’s retreat. Long Sihai pulled back dozens of meters in an instant, landing steadily on the crown of a trunk just as the line of trees crashed down before him. They had been locked in combat all night, and both had depleted much of their strength. In a direct confrontation, Long Sihai should have been more than a match for Wu Xingyan, but with Long Tianjiao still in the enemy’s hands and Chu Tian yet to appear, he had been constantly distracted. Unable to unleash his full potential, he had been forced into a defensive, passive position.

If this continued, he wouldn’t last much longer.

Just then, a cry of alarm echoed from the mountain below. "Patriarch! The young miss is safe and sound! She is currently at the arena for the North-South Tournament. Please return immediately!" A servant sent by Long Jianfei shouted from the base of Purple Mountain, his voice echoing all the way to the summit.

Long Sihai’s expression shifted to one of pleasant surprise. Tianjiao was free? Hearing the news so suddenly, he found it almost hard to believe.

On the other side, Wu Xingyan’s face darkened. Long Tianjiao had been buried deep in the underground palace; how could she possibly be alive? What was the motive of this messenger? Was he trying to lure Long Sihai away? The battle had reached a critical juncture where the outcome was imminent. If Long Sihai pulled away now, all of Wu Xingyan’s efforts would go to waste.

"Nonsense! You are courting death!" Enraged, Wu Xingyan shifted his target and struck a palm toward the mountain base.

Boom!

Instantly, rows of trees at the foot of the mountain were shattered, crushing the Long family members beneath them. The messenger was struck by a falling giant tree, coughing up a mouthful of blood; it was clear he would not survive.

"Wu Xingyan!" Long Sihai had no time to intervene, his eyes burning with fury. However, this was not the time to settle scores. The priority was to verify Long Tianjiao’s whereabouts. Although Wu Xingyan claimed to have captured her to force his compliance, he had never actually produced her. Long Sihai was no fool; he wouldn’t blindly believe every word. Since there was no hostage to be seen and a report had come from his own family, he would no longer waste time. He needed to see his granddaughter with his own eyes to set his mind at ease.

In the next second, Long Sihai flashed away, speeding toward the North-South Tournament arena.

"Don't even think about running!" Wu Xingyan’s face was grim as he gave chase.

Experts at the Martial Saint level could manipulate the power of heaven and earth, even traveling through the air. In an instant, the two figures turned into beams of light, tearing through the sky.

...

At this moment, on the stage of the arena, after subduing the various forces of Jiangbei, Chu Tian turned his gaze toward the Situ family.

Situ Deng’s face turned ghastly pale, panic washing over him. Under Chu Tian’s stare, he felt as if he were being hunted by an ancient, ferocious beast, an unprecedented sense of crisis enveloping his entire body.

"Since no one from Jiangbei dares to face me, it is time to settle some personal scores," Chu Tian said, his voice icy, his eyes locked firmly onto Situ Deng. "Situ Deng, come up and accept your death!"

A stir of shock rippled through the crowd. "Mr. Chu still wants to challenge someone?"

"Even if he wants to challenge the Situ family, he should at least take a break. How can he be so reckless?" The patriarchs had never expected Chu Tian’s next target to be the Situ family. He had just killed Situ Wugou and slaughtered members of the Situ family in public; the family hadn’t even had a chance to seek retribution, yet Chu Tian was challenging them again—was he insane? The Situ family was second only to the Long family in martial arts prestige; their foundation was incredibly deep. If Chu Tian were at his peak, this decision might not have been so shocking, but he was at the end of his strength, his internal energy not yet recovered. How could he possibly fight the entire Situ family? Even if he had a grudge, this was an irrational decision; it was pure suicide!

"Father!" Situ Deng’s expression was agonizing as he turned to look at Situ Wuhen. Even if Chu Tian’s aura was weak, his combat prowess still remained far above Situ Deng’s. Situ Deng knew he was no match for him; stepping onto the stage would be the same as throwing his life away. Yet, if the Situ family refused to fight, their reputation would be ruined. They would lose any chance at the championship, and the family’s standing in Jiangnan would plummet.

However, Situ Deng was different from Situ Wugou. Situ Wugou had only achieved the rank of Grandmaster in middle age, his talent nowhere near that of Situ Deng. Situ Deng was not only exceptionally gifted but had also become a disciple of Wu Xingyan. By his twenties, he had already reached the rank of Martial Venerable, and his future was limitless; he was even expected to follow in the footsteps of Situ Wudi and challenge the realm of a Martial Saint. The Situ family could afford to lose Situ Wugou, but they could never afford to lose Situ Deng!

"Chu Tian, you killed my son, humiliated my family, and now you come here making threats—do you really think my Situ family is defenseless?" Situ Wuhen demanded, his voice trembling with rage.