594 Battle of the Courtyard
Amid the endless roars, the five black figures retreated like five bolts of lightning. Their figures instantly retreated from the middle of the plaza before jumping up into the sky and disappearing into the darkness. On the ground, there were traces of dripping blood and Ling Lei suffered from a sword cut when attempting to assassinate the other party.
Lei ZhenTian was devastated!
Facing an assassination from such a short distance, there wouldn’t be many capable of avoiding the assassination techniques that Ling Tian had personally taught. Of the few who could accomplish such a feat, they definitely wouldn’t be part of the Lei Family’s experts. Lei ZhenTian was naturally an exception and thus Ling Feng and the rest did not make him their target but chose the other Lei Family experts. All of the targets that they picked were experts who they were confident that they could take down. However, the Lei Family truly sent all of their elites this time. Even with absolute confidence and catching their enemy off guard, Ling Lei had still suffered from a counterattack.
However, the fatalities of the Lei Family were far worse! Under the lightning-fast strike, five Lei Family Elders who were top-notch experts in the family were sliced at the throat and an arrow of blood shot out afar before they lifelessly collapsed onto the ground.
The other members of the Lei Family did not even have the time to react!
The many members of the Lei Family stared at the five corpses before them and trembled. Some of them trembled with shame, others with anger, but the most with… fear!
These five individuals were extremely prominent individuals within the Lei Family and each of them had an extremely high level of martial arts! Who would have thought that they did not have the strength to fight back in the face of an assassination?
“Sl*t! You dare to trick me!” A thunderous roar sounded and Lei ZhenTian’s eyes turned red as he pounced forward in an almost maniacal manner. He charged right at Ling Chen who was on the roof and commanded, “KILL!”
The black-robed man in the tree looked at Lei ZhenTian gleefully and muttered, “This father and son pair are truly alike; they are both equally stupid! What is the point of talking to your enemy? Do you really think that your enemy will surrender in their very own territory? Hopelessly idiotic.” As he said that, the black-robed man looked at Ling Chen with a smile, “This lass is just as crafty as Ling Tian. That darn Ling Tian has truly ruined such a fine young lady…”
Ling Chen intentionally provoked Lei ZhenTian so that he would launch his attack towards her and she would be able to tangle with him. As long as Lei ZhenTian could not easily give out his orders, it would be the most advantageous situation for Ling Feng and the rest to drag out the battle.
Just when Lei ZhenTian’s figure was halfway in midair, Ling Chen jumped off the roof and received Lei ZhenTian without the slightest bit of fear, “Kill!” Her cold eyes were fixed on Lei ZhenTian’s figure and she circulated her Divine Ice Formula to the maximum!
Nine ghostly figures had also charged out the moment Ling Chen gave her orders and they began their massacre among the Lei Family troops! They were Ling Feng, Yun, Lei, Dian, Twenty-two, Six, Seven, Eight, and Nine.
Following the two of their commands, the whole Ling Family Courtyard erupted with battle cries all over as the forces from both camps clashed with each other. The usually tranquil Courtyard had turned into a slaughterhouse!
Feng Mo’s shoulder was still wrapped up in bandages as he had yet to recover from his previous battle but he still dashed forward like the wind to block a leader of the Lei Family.
In mid-air, Lei ZhenTian’s palms clashed together with Ling Chen’s palms firmly and with a loud bang, the two of them shot backward in two different directions. Lei ZhenTian felt his hands freeze and the chilly air assaulted his forearms before slowly creeping into his shoulders! He could not help but be startled and hurriedly circulated his inner qi for a full three cycles before he could get rid of that numbing feeling. Who would have thought that the frail-looking beauty before him would be actually a top-notch expert? Not only was her cultivation extremely profound, her cultivation formula was also extremely strange. Despite matching a palm strike with him head-on, she did not lose out in the slightest.
Ling Chen floated backward and she felt an aching feeling on her arms. A sweet feeling filled her throat and she almost spat out a mouthful of blood. Lei ZhenTian truly lived up to the name of being the family head of a Great Family. The height of his strength could be ranked among the top five of all the experts that Ling Chen had seen before in her life. His cultivation was probably higher than Ling Jian and not any lower than Li Xue! The depth of his cultivation wasn’t something that she would be able to contend with. But if she allowed him to escape from her grasp and deal with the others from the Courtyard, their Ling Family Courtyard would truly be doomed. As long as she could tangle with him for a while longer, she would be able to increase their chances of victory!
The tip of Ling Chen’s feet tapped onto the roof lightly and she propelled herself forward again. After making a somersault in mid-air, she charged at Lei ZhenTian again and with the flash of a chilly glow a sword appeared in her hands. Under the reflection of the surrounding fire torches, it glowed with splendor.
Lei ZhenTian let out a roar and shot forwards to tangle with Ling Chen in an intense battle. Those fighting beneath them could only see a black and white shadow tangling with each other in mid-air, unable to tell them apart. The two of them met speed with speed and in a short instant, they had already exchanged dozens of blows.
Lei XiaoSong blocked Ling Seven’s sword with his own sword. While this little brat was a hopeless lecher, all of his subordinates fought with valor and he did not lose out the slightest when fighting against Ling Seven alone. He even had the extra energy to shout out to his father who was fighting above, “Father, show some mercy. Don’t harm her…”
Hearing those words, the black-robed man in the tree almost fell out of the tree. This brat is truly a work of art. He couldn’t be bothered about his father but only cares about the beauty! He is truly frivolous…
Lei ZhenTian who was fighting an intense battle against Ling Chen almost fainted from anger. This daddy here is fighting a life and death battle with the lass and could lose my life at any moment! You disobedient child are still caring for the fairer sex at this moment? You are still thinking about the welfare of the greatest enemy before me? If I don’t harm her, should I stretch my neck out and hand my life over to her?
All the experts of the Lei Family spread out into formation and flooded over like a tsunami…
While the experts of the Ling Family Courtyard were powerful, they were too few in numbers and many of the Blood Iron Warriors were still injured. Even if the Lei Family experts were to gang up three to one on the Ling Family troops, they would still have a large excess of soldiers.
Even if the soldiers of the Courtyard were elites among elites and were invincible against ordinary soldiers, when facing a troop full of martial arts experts who had the absolute advantage in numbers, they were extremely vulnerable. In just a few short minutes there were countless troops who were already seriously injured.
Ling Feng and the rest who had the upper hand for a short period of time indeed managed to slaughter their enemies like they were dicing up vegetables. However, they were quickly surrounded by the experts of the Lei Family and fell into an encirclement.
An assassin needed to catch his enemy off guard and kill his enemy with a single strike! Even when facing an expert at the same level, he would also have the confidence to kill with a single strike. But when facing enemies in a head-on battle, they were no different from ordinary martial artists. At the very most, they would be slightly more agile.
Even if the troops of the Courtyard fought with all of their strength, the gap between their strengths was far too large, and the troops of the Courtyard were forced into retreat.
As the battle became more and more miserable, the members of the Lei Family had managed to break through the third garden and were driving the Ling Family troops into a desperate situation.
With her left palm and sword in her right hand, Ling Chen tangled with Lei ZhenTian in an intense battle. Since she wasn’t a match for Lei ZhenTian, she couldn’t help but be on the losing end. However, her sharp sword qi and strange inner qi together with her determination to perish with Lei ZhenTian also created plenty of trouble for him. Since he had the ability and confidence to beat Ling Chen, why would he have to accompany her in death? He only needed to exhaust Ling Chen’s inner qi by dragging out the battle for a long time and there wasn’t a need for him to take any risks.
Feng Mo was currently fighting three Lei Family experts alone at the moment. His own martial arts weren’t at the level of top-notch experts and together with the fact that he had yet to recover from his injuries, he could only clench his teeth and fight the three enemies in front of him. Finally, he gradually couldn’t withstand the combined attacks from his opponents and was already bleeding in many parts. All of a sudden, a lovable shout could be heard and two slender figures flashed in front of Feng Mo, attacking together to block two of his enemies.
The two slender figures who had just arrived were Shui QianRou and Yu BingYan! Xue Leng and Xue Fei both guarded closely beside Yu BingYan’s side, refusing to be even an inch away from her.
Yu BingYan’s movement was extremely agile and her swordplay was exquisite. Every time she stabbed out, it was as though she was a peerless painter adding a masterful stroke to create a masterpiece. Her swordplay was filled with sharpness but also carried with it the fresh smell of paper. This was what Yu BingYan had comprehended over the past year of seclusion. She had already attained minor accomplishments in melding her martial arts into painting and melding painting into martial arts. The moment she took action, she managed to create this dreamlike effect that not only managed to break Feng Mo out of a sticky situation but also killed and injured countless Lei Family experts.
Shui QianRou’s sword was like the wind and the moment she brandished her sword, she suppressed her enemy with killing intent burning in her eyes. The Ling Family was already Shui QianRou’s final hope so how could she allow the Lei Family to wipe them out? Compared to the many Ling Family members present, Shui QianRou was definitely the one who was the most anxious for the Ling Family Courtyard. Even though she wasn’t part of the Ling Family, the Ling Family was already her final hope. If the Ling Family Courtyard was in peril, Shui QianRou would definitely risk her life to prevent its destruction! Shui QianRou’s true strength was not weaker than Ling Chi and the rest. The moment she took action, many Lei Family members also perished under her hands and she was no weaker than Yu BingYan!
As Shui QianRou killed the enemies of the Lei Family, she looked at Yu BingYan with shock in her eyes. She had always heard that the little princess of the Yu Family was weak and a martial arts trash. However, after seeing Yu BingYan take action today, while Yu BingYan was still a distance away from her, ordinary experts were no longer a match for her. The exquisiteness of Yu BingYan’s moves was something that Shui QianRou herself had never seen before! Just what was going on?
Looking at Yu BingYan who was supposed to be her opponent two years later and also her sworn sister, Shui QianRou was at a loss.
The moment these two ladies charged out, they were actually able to slightly ease the situation of the Ling Family.
Feng Mo felt the pressure on him ease up and he brandished his blade to force his opponent away before crying out with anxiousness, “Why is Young Madam out here? This place is extremely dangerous and you should get away from here quickly. If you get injured, how am I going to answer to Young Noble?”
Yu BingYan was already betrothed to Ling Tian and had once said in front of the First Elder of the Yu Family, “I belong to the Ling Family and am Ling Tian’s woman. Even if I die, I will be the Ling Family’s ghost.” With regards to Yu BingYan’s dedication and infatuation towards Ling Tian, Feng Mo and the rest were extremely moved, and thus addressed her as ‘Young Madam’. Apart from Ling Chen, no one in the Ling Family had such a privilege. Even Ling Tian’s fiancee in name, Princess JiaoYue, did not have such an honor!
Yu BingYan smiled and said, “If I can’t protect my husband’s estate, even if I am able to stay alive, how would I be able to face my husband? How can I live up to the name of ‘Young Madam’?!” She then did not say another word and dashed out with her sword to kill.
While the battle was currently in a stalemate, it was becoming more and more miserable by the minute. The soldiers of the Ling Family dashed forward batch by batch and they collapsed onto the ground batch by batch as well. Every time a batch of soldiers perished, another batch would quickly take their place and they would charge forward without a care for their life. The blood on the ground had already formed puddles and corpses were littered everywhere.
The fifth yard was where all the injured soldiers of the Ling Family had retreated to. They were all weak from their injuries but still guarded the door of the fifth yard to the death and refused to retreat even a single step!
Dong! A Ling Family soldier smashed onto the wall of the yard with blood trailing down from the corner of his lips. He clenched his teeth, pulled out a blade from his abdomen, and was about to charge out again but the swords of two Lei Family experts landed on him…
That Ling Family soldier stared at his enemies with deadly intent but struggled for a moment before closing his eyes and collapsing on the ground with regret in his eyes.
All of a sudden an ear-piercing roar could be heard and dozens of soldiers charged out from the fifth yard. They had either lost a leg or arm but had anger all over their faces as they wobbled forward unsteadily…
Seeing their brothers reduced to such a pathetic state to protect them, these burly men could no longer hold themselves back and they charged forward using their clutches, hands, or even teeth to fight the enemies…
They would rather die in the hands of the enemy than let their brothers sacrifice their lives for them! The injured soldiers charging out from the yard increased rapidly as though they were a bunch of injured beasts…
Feng Mo roared, “All of you get back! who asked all of you to come out? Are you guys here to seek death?!”
A burly man trembled with a face full of fury and tears in his eyes as he roared, “Commander, this subordinate would rather die!”
Feng Mo roared crazily, “You still dare to talk back?! After today, this daddy will take you apart piece by piece!”
That burly man chuckled and fresh blood suddenly spewed out from his mouth as he muttered, “Commander, I will accept my punishment now…” He then collapsed weakly onto the ground as two bloody wounds opened up in his chest. He held firmly onto the neck of a Lei Family soldier and refused to let go. The sword in that Lei Family soldier’s hand had already drooped down and he was no longer breathing anymore.
“AHHHH!!!” Feng Mo roared crazily and dashed forward to knock the few Lei Family soldiers aside. He could not be bothered about whether or not the Lei Family soldiers were dead and he grabbed the body of his fallen brother, “BROTHER! BROTHERRRRR!”
The eyelids of that burly man trembled slightly as though he wanted to open his eyes but failed to do so as he muttered, “… I… I did not… suffer a loss at least…I…” He could not even finish his sentence before he took his last breath.
Feng Mo’s eyes and face was flushed completely red in anger as he slowly laid the burly man down. Letting out a loud roar, he charged out…
The sky was gradually becoming bright. The three thousand experts of the Lei Family had arrived at midnight and the battle had already lasted for over six hours. Both parties suffered countless casualties and while the Ling Family Courtyard seemed to be on the brink of destruction, they were still holding on firmly.
There were less than 2000 people left among the Lei Family troops. Shui QianRou and Yu BingYan had their backs facing each other and they were entrusting their backs to the biggest ‘nemesis’ of their lives. They tried their best to defend against the gushing soldiers and were struggling more and more by the minute. Shui QianRou’s left shoulder and leg were already bloodied and Yu BingYan also had a wound on her left hand. At the same time, Yu BingYan was already limping and her left foot was obviously injured. It was impossible for her to unleash her exquisite fairy-like movement techniques any further! If not for Shui QianRou and Yu BingYan watching each other backs, the two of them would have probably perished already!
The casualties who had settled down in the fifth yard had mostly rushed out from to dive back into battle. Apart from those who couldn’t move, many seriously injured soldiers had charged out despite their injuries. In just an instant, many of them had died under the hands of the Lei Family’s warriors. After all, the troops of the Lei Family were all martial arts experts and it would be difficult for the Ling Family’s soldiers to even perish together with them. Feng Mo witnessed all of these with devastation and he was angered to the point he felt his chest exploding. However, it was a pity that he was trapped in an encirclement and it was impossible for him to provide them with reinforcements.
Shui QianRou’s sword was brandished wildly and she tried her best to block a couple of Lei Family warriors. Looking around, she saw a black-robed teen charging towards the two of them and he was the son of Lei ZhenTian, Lei XiaoSong. An idea sprang into her mind and she said to Yu BingYan, “Little sister BingYan, hold on alone for a moment. I will find a way to kill that little thief.” As long as she could kill Lei XiaoSong, it would definitely be a huge blow to Lei ZhenTian!
Yu BingYan responded with a nod and her sword light became thirty percent stronger. Her sword light covered the two of them and also dragged Shui QianRou’s enemy closer. While her body was slightly weaker than others, she carried with her a large number of Great Cyclic Pellets no matter where she went. Every time her inner qi was depleted, she would take a pellet and by this time she had already taken two pellets. Apart from physical exhaustion, her inner qi was not exhausted in the slightest.
In the entire world, the only person who could use the Great Cyclic Pellet to replenish her inner qi freely was probably Yu BingYan. Of course, this was also because Yu BingYan’s body was far too special and it was impossible for another person to replicate her actions. Only Yu BingYan wouldn’t be afraid of the fiery medicinal effects of the Great Cyclic Pellet bursting through her meridians. Her Divine Black Negative Meridians would automatically make use of the excess medicinal effects to repair themselves. It was akin to treating her injuries while fighting at the same time…
Shui QianRou’s body shook and she jumped out of the battle circle. Picking up a bow and arrow, she then hid behind Yu BingYan and her figure seemed to have turned into Yu BingYan’s shadow. Circulating her inner qi, the bow in her hand was pulled to a beautiful crescent shape and Shui QianRou imbued all of her inner qi into this arrow of hers. Releasing her hand, the arrow broke through the air! The moment the arrow was sent out, Shui QianRou felt her whole body turn weak but a fierce smile could be seen on her face.
Lei XiaoSong killed his way over and the sky was gradually turning bright. He suddenly realized that there was a peerless beauty struggling amid the warriors of his Lei Family. What made him the most surprised was the fact that this beauty wasn’t inferior to the white-robed lady in the slightest. The lust in his heart was ignited again, and afraid that his subordinates would not know how to show mercy to the fairer sex, he hurriedly rushed over with the intention to protect the lady.
The Lei Family warriors already had the absolute advantage in the current battle. Thus, their young master was naturally free to go wherever he wanted.
After taking a mere two steps forward, Lei XiaoSong saw the stubborn look on the beauty’s face and he loved her even more. With a smile, he said, “There isn’t a need to be afraid Miss, with XiaoSong around…” Before he could finish his sentence, he saw a black shadow flash past his eyes before a short sharp pain on his forehead and then he lost all feelings of pain. He was sent somersaulting into the air from the force of the arrow and even in death, his eyes were wide open in disbelief, completely unaware of how he died.
The sharp arrow shot accurately on his forehead and flew out from the back of his head. Even if an idiot was here right now, he would be able to tell that this young master Lei who wanted to save the damsel in distress had been wiped out…
“Young master…” A wave of cries sounded and a commotion could be heard. Following that, silence filled the air!
Nobody would have expected that right before the battle was about to be over, right when the Lei Family was about to emerge victorious, Lei ZhenTian’s son had actually died in battle!
Lei ZhenTian’s palms were brandished wildly as he increased the pressure on Ling Chen. In order to deal with the pressure, Ling Chen was waving her sword wildly and she tried to tangle with Lei ZhenTian with her exquisite movement techniques. A trace of blood could already be seen on the corner of her lips and Ling Chen was already seriously injured under the ferocious attacks of the Lei Family Head.
Even though her inner qi was extremely strange, her movement technique agile and her inner qi profound, it was also depending on who she was being compared to! After all, Lei ZhenTian had decades of bitter cultivation and this distance was not one which could be closed in one or two days. Especially the fact that Lei ZhenTian’s Heavenly Penta Lightning Sutra had achieved a realm which his ancestors had never attained. The depth of his cultivation was no weaker than Yu ManLou himself! It was already a feat for Ling Chen to survive until now!
Right at this moment, a series of shrieks could be heard from beneath them and Lei ZhenTian felt his body shake. His face then turned completely pale and he pounced down ignoring Ling Chen’s possible counterattack.
Peng! Ling Chen’s palm strike filled with her Divine Ice qi struck squarely onto Lei ZhenTian’s back and he spat out a mouthful of black blood with his descent speeding up further.
Ling Chen grunted coldly and ignored the tumbling blood in her body. Raising her sword, she charged forward after Lei ZhenTian. But after just a few steps, three bearded elders appeared in front of her and blocked her path. They were the deacons of the Lei Family who were only second to the Lei Family Head!
Ling Chen’s inner qi was already at the brink of exhaustion and her sight was already starting to dim. Her face was completely pale and this beauty was already at her wit’s end. However, she did not hesitate in the slightest and she lifted up her sword while circulating her inner qi with her left palm and causing a gust of icy wind to blow past. She had actually chosen to initiate the attack and while her attack couldn’t be considered sharp, it was definitely majestic!
“Even a rice-sized pearl would glow with splendor!” The three elders snorted and took action together.