Chapter 500: Chapter 501: He Who Wins the Hearts of the People Should Win the World [3rd Update, Request for Subscription]

The air was so thick with the reek of blood that everyone could smell it. One could only imagine that a river of blood flowed just ahead.

"My lord," Liu Tianji said, "it seems something terrible is happening up ahead. Should we speed up and take a look?"

Wu Tian nodded. With such a heavy stench of blood in the air, everyone could already guess what lay before them.

Wu Tian’s group quickened their pace and finally saw the Barrier. The scene before it was gruesome: bodies lay strewn about, blood flowed in rivers, and corpses were piled high like mountains.

Among the perpetrators was an Immortal Seeker, his hand clamped around an old woman’s head. The old woman shrieked in terror, "No! Don’t! Please, don’t!"

But the Immortal Seeker turned a deaf ear. Clutching her head, he charged forward, dragging her body along and using it like a "Spiral Pill" to slam her head directly into the Barrier. Instantly, the old woman’s head exploded in a shower of blood and gore. Her body slumped to the ground, dead beyond any doubt. As they watched, the white light of the Barrier indeed dimmed considerably.

"These people... no, they’re a pack of beasts!" Wu Tian and the others watched from a distance, Liu Tianji and the rest grinding their teeth, their voices filled with fury.

Even Yin Fengxue, the master of the Heavenly Demon Palace, was shocked. How could such animals exist? What they’re doing is more ruthless than anything I’ve ever done!

The victims were all locals. They were not Immortal Seekers but had likely fled to this place to escape the wars raging on the surface. They longed for peace, but they never expected to meet such a horrific end. It was clear that all the innocents were now dead.

The light from the Barrier was dimmer, but it still held. The Immortal Seekers gathered before Luo Qingshan.

"Young Master, your method worked perfectly, but we’ve run out of people nearby."

"Yes, should we transport more from farther away?" the Immortal Seekers asked, troubled.

Luo Qingshan sighed. "No, we don’t know if the Barrier will regenerate on its own. Therefore, we must press our advantage. I think..." He trailed off, a difficult expression on his face.

"Young Master, just say what’s on your mind."

"Please, Young Master, just tell us," the Immortal Seekers pleaded, begging him for a solution.

Luo Qingshan hesitated for a long moment before asking, "In your quest to find an immortal, are you willing to sacrifice your own lives?"

His words hung in the air, and everyone understood. The Immortal Seekers exchanged uneasy glances. Who among them wanted to die?

Suddenly, one Immortal Seeker turned on his companion, kicking him with such force that he flew straight into the Barrier and was instantly obliterated. The Barrier’s light weakened a little more.

Before Luo Qingshan’s eyes, the so-called brothers-in-arms suddenly turned on one another, targeting the weakest among them. A brutal betrayal erupted.

"Why are you doing this?" screamed the handful who were recognized as the weakest. "Were all those years of brotherhood a lie?"

"If you were stronger, wouldn’t you do the same? Wouldn’t you sacrifice the weak to chip away at the Barrier’s power with their Life Force?" the others retorted, their actions ruthless. They seized those they had once called brothers, grabbed their heads, and smashed them into the Barrier.

BANG! With a sound like a shattering watermelon, the slaughter continued. After fifty of the original two hundred Immortal Seekers had been sacrificed, the Barrier finally dissipated.

Luo Qingshan walked out and gazed at the corpses strewn across the ground. He sighed, "This is all my fault."

"No, Young Master, this has nothing to do with you."

"That’s right. We’re the cruel ones."

"The Barrier is open now. Let’s go down and see what’s inside."

Hearing this, Luo Qingshan nodded.

From a distance, Wu Tian watched the entire scene unfold. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he uttered, "They all deserve to die."

Yin Fengxue, however, said, "I think that young man is decent. He didn’t lift a finger."

Yuan Beizheng and Liu Tianji shot Yin Fengxue a look and couldn’t help but shake their heads.

Wu Tian laughed. "I finally understand why your Heavenly Demon Palace fell into Beiming Fenghua’s hands back then. Human nature isn’t so simple."

Is Luo Qingshan a good person? No!

Luo Qingshan had the appearance of a Scholar and seemed afraid of the sight of blood. For instance, as he stared at the gore on the ground, his legs were trembling uncontrollably. To an onlooker, it was a tremor of fear. But Wu Tian knew it was a tremor of excitement.

"Kill!" Wu Tian ordered coldly from the hillside.

"Yes!" Liu Tianji’s thunderous reply echoed across the land. They could no longer stand by and watch. They mounted their Flying Swords and charged.

Just as Luo Qingshan’s group was excitedly preparing to descend into the Abyss, they spotted Liu Tianji’s party approaching. They froze, surprised to see them charging with such murderous intent. They quickly drew their swords, preparing for battle.

But these Immortal Seekers were no match for Liu Tianji and his people. Although they belonged to a Great Sect, there were only one hundred and fifty of them left, and they were far from the elite. The true elites, unable to do anything about the Barrier, had already left. When those elites were present, Luo Qingshan had deliberately kept his method for breaking the Barrier a secret, knowing he would be no match for them in a fight.

This current batch, however, was different. If there were traces of an immortal or Magical Treasures in the Abyss below, Luo Qingshan fully intended to kill them all and claim the spoils for himself.

Thus, this group of Immortal Seekers from the Great Sect was utterly outmatched. The ensuing confrontation was nothing short of a one-sided slaughter.

"Kill!"

Liu Tianji and his men showed no mercy to these ruthless butchers. They channeled their Spirit Roots, unleashing a flurry of Daoist Magic and a storm of Flying Swords. Screams rose and fell amidst the chaos, but the desperate Seekers still formed a protective circle around Luo Qingshan.

"Young Master, you have to go!"

"It doesn’t matter if we die, but you can’t!"

"If you die, the Honorable Master will not spare our families!"

"Yes, Young Master, you are so kind-hearted!"

"..."

Luo Qingshan listened to their words and nodded, his face a mask of grief. "No," he said, "we’ll leave together."

Hearing him still express concern for them at a time like this, the remaining Immortal Seekers were moved to tears. They believed Luo Qingshan was truly too good, a person who did not deserve to die.

The Immortal Seekers from the Great Sect stopped fighting back against Liu Tianji’s assault and fell to their knees.

"We can die, but we beg you to spare Qingshan!

"We’ve watched him grow up. He’s lived a bitter life—he has a father but cannot acknowledge him. He was born a young master, yet he was forced to grow up as a Menial, serving tea and fetching water from a young age. He learned the fickle nature of people the hard way. A man who can win hearts deserves to rule the world. Please, let him go, and he will surely repay you one day.

"Even in such a harsh environment, his kindness never wavered. Please, spare him! If you must kill someone, kill us instead!

"He is the illegitimate son of our Honorable Master! He cannot die!"

The Honorable Master’s illegitimate son? The expressions on Liu Tianji and the others changed drastically at this revelation.