NOVPUB
Chapter 253: The Attack on the Mansion
"Oh, so you’re threatening me by using my friends?" Aldrian asked with a calm expression while dodging one of Wei Zhi’s attacks.
Master Dan only smiled slightly.
"It’s not a threat, but if you continue down this path, I can only lament your decision to abandon your friends. Your mansion is already surrounded by assassins. They report to me every four hours, and if they don’t hear response from me, that will be their signal to strike. Their next report is almost due, so you’d better give up."
"Hahahaha."
The others were stunned when Aldrian suddenly burst out laughing. After a few seconds, he stopped and his face returned to its usual calm expression. However, the others could sense that the atmosphere had already shifted. The presence Aldrian now exuded was somehow more intimidating and oppressive.
"I see, so that’s how you’re playing it. No wonder I sensed a few suspicious presences when I left the mansion today. You stationed the assassins as preparation for tonight, and the four-hour reports are just a failsafe in case something happens to you and you need their presence there," Aldrian said.
"I already know about your betrayal, so I doubt you’ll let me live. But here’s the thing, Master Dan—I hate being threatened, especially when it involves my loved ones." Suddenly, crackling lightning began to surround his entire body. The others who witnessed this trembled at the overwhelming might they sensed from the lightning.
"Heavenly lightning! How is it possible for a human to possess the power of the heavens?" Grand Duke Gouvard exclaimed in shock. But it didn’t stop there—suddenly, the white-blue lightning turned black, radiating an even more terrifying pressure and strength.
The others had never seen or felt anything like it. It was as if they were standing before death itself. Their souls trembled, as if on the verge of being pulled away, and their minds were deeply shaken.
"What the fuck is that?" the king-stage devil beside Wei Zhi asked. For him to feel that long-forgotten sensation, the fear, he knew the black lightning was bad news. They had already witnessed a heavenly tribulation and knew how fearsome it could be, but they had never feared it to the point of giving up facing it.
However, that black energy combined with lightning was something that could trigger fear deep within his soul. The dark abyss that seemed ready to swallow his sanity and life made him feel as if he would be doomed the moment he was struck by that lightning.
"To be honest, I don’t think any of you here are worthy of this new technique of mine, but thanks to someone, I want to test it on you guys," Aldrian said. Lightning crackled around him, striking the area with terrifying force.
"You’d better prepare your best to survive, because this time, I’ll be more serious."
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In the mansion where Aldrian and the others were staying, Sylphia walked through the garden, enjoying the breeze and gently touching the beautiful flowers, as though she were communicating with them. 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓅𝓊𝓫.𝒸ℴ𝓶
The elves have a deep appreciation for the beauty of nature, and plants are among the things they truly preserve. To them, plants are like friends. As the princess of the Elven Empire, Sylphia naturally shares this principle. Since she was a child, she loved watching plants, especially flowers. It was during this time that she awakened her hidden talent—the ability to "communicate" with them.
It’s not the same as communicating with the World Tree’s spirit like Olivia, but she felt as though she could communicate with them. Although not too clearly, she could somehow sense their intent.
As she touched the flowers, enjoying her time alone and occasionally thinking of Aldrian, she suddenly felt one of the plants’ intents warning her of danger. Confused at first, she then sensed a few presences behind her. Without hesitation, she instantly unleash one of her defensive techniques.
But their movements were fast. With daggers in hand, they aimed to strike at Sylphia’s vital points. Just as the daggers were about to pierce her, a flash of light passed before her eyes, and suddenly, the attackers’ heads flew in all directions.
Thud! Thud!
The heads rolled in many directions as Sylphia looked at them with trembling eyes. She had almost died! She thought she was done for because she hadn’t detected them until they attacked. She glanced to her side and saw Xin Haotian clean his sword by swinging it to the side before sheathing it.
"Sylphia, you’d better return to your room; it’s much safer there right now. These guys are actually quite skilled for assassins—most of them are at the Marquess level, and there’s even a King-stage among them. I’ve already taken care of some inside the mansion, so it’s safe for now, but I can still sense a few around the vicinity. I’ll handle it first," Xin Haotian said.
Sylphia widened her eyes but nodded.
"Thank you, Sir Xin Haotian."
After seeing Sylphia enter the mansion safely, Xin Haotian looked in a certain direction. Truthfully, he was stunned by the sudden appearance of these assassins inside the mansion. It was still daytime, with the sun shining beautifully, but they had appeared through the portal formation that Aldrian had already explained to them. Fortunately, Aldrian had modified the portal formation so that it directed them to the designated locations he wanted—his room and Aldrian’s room.
Because of that, his work was much easier—he just needed to kill them as soon as they popped up from the formation.
Now, he needed to quickly take care of the others he could sense, whose appearance he had noticed earlier. He was worried that another batch of assassins might have come through the teleportation formation inside the mansion.
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In the vicinity of the mansion, there weren’t many buildings due to the exclusivity of the area, but there were plenty of trees. Under the shade of the trees, a few assassins were hiding, observing the mansion. They seemed to be waiting for something.
"Why hasn’t there been a report yet? Is something wrong?" asked one of the assassins.
"I don’t think so. Our targets are only at Marquess stage at most, so with their strength, they should have completed their task easily."
"Who is the targets, that we need Duke stage assassins? Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration? There’s only one Marquess stage cultivator, and the rest are just weaklings under Marquess."
"I don’t know, but we better—" Suddenly, he felt his vision shift upward, and he saw his own body. The others were shocked by the sudden death of their fellow assassin. His head flew off his body and landed with a thud. Before they could even register what had happened, the rest of them only saw a flash of light moving horizontally, passing each of them before their heads rolled from their bodies.
Xin Haotian looked at the bodies of the assassins for a moment before disappearing again. There were others, just like these, hiding in the surrounding area.
At that time, many dead bodies were scattered around or inside the mansion grounds. It was also when Lorenzo’s informant arrived and observed the situation. He sensed that something was wrong when he caught the smell of blood, and upon checking the condition, he was shocked. He immediately reported it to Lorenzo.
From their attire, they were clearly assassins, but to dare attack someone in broad daylight was reckless. Who could their clients be?
Boom! Suddenly, a loud explosion and the rumbling of lightning echoed from a distance. He looked toward the source of the sound and was shocked to see black lightning striking toward the sky. Though he was far from it, he could still feel the terrifying power of the black lightning.
"What is that?"
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In one part of the city, panic spread due to the sudden appearance of lightning from the underground. Fortunately, the lightning emerged in a vast plaza, and there was no one walking through that part of the plaza at the time. From the terrifying power of the lightning, they were certain that anyone struck by it would instantly be reduced to ash.
The lightning from underground created a sinkhole, but the people dared not approach it. They were terrified of the remnants of the lightning, which seemed like heavenly lightning, yet exuded a terrifying energy.
At the bottom of the sinkhole, Aldrian looked at the remaining four opponents after he had killed one of the king-stage cultivators with his lightning strike. The strike had obliterated his target instantly, and Aldrian himself was stunned by the sheer power of his own attack. His heavenly lightning, combined with death laws, had not only shattered the spatial barrier he had created but had also broken through the ceiling, piercing all the way to the surface.
"Well, I think that was a bit much for my first time. Fortunately, there’s no one up there." Aldrian sensed that there were no passersby on the surface, which was a relief. He smiled at the remaining opponents, who stared at him in horror.
"Let’s change our location, shall we?"
