Sovereign of Stars

Chapter 26 – Midnight Bloodshed

The sense of dread came without warning, purely an instinctive alert from his body and bloodline to the threat of life and death.

A ghostly figure had appeared behind him at some unknown time.

In the darkness, a black light, carrying endless killing intent, thrust directly towards Su Xin's heart.

"An assassin!" A trace of terror flashed in Su Xin's eyes.

Too fast!

Unbelievably fast!

And without any sign, this person made no sound, not even a breath, until they were right behind him, not even before they made their move.

Su Xin had just finished practicing his swordsmanship and had relaxed his whole body.

The timing of the attack was perfect.

The assassin's strength was equally terrifying.

In such a situation, even Su Xin couldn't completely avoid that black light. The only fortunate thing was that he had broken through to the Sea Transformation Realm, and his bloodline gave him a sense of crisis far beyond ordinary people, allowing him that instinctive warning.

At the brink of life and death, Su Xin twisted his body with all his might, barely moving a bit just as the 'black light' was about to touch his skin.

"Thud!"

The cold 'black light' pierced through Su Xin's body, his chest bursting open on one side, flesh and blood scattering, and a sweetness rising in his throat.

Whoosh!

Ignoring the intense pain in his body, he quickly retreated.

"Not dead?"

Under the moonlight, a bewitching face covered with a veil lifted, a trace of astonishment flashing in her cold eyes.

With her strength, such a perfectly timed assassination should have killed even a peak Sea Transformation Realm expert, unless they were the top-tier ones who could pass through the Dragon-Seeking Tower. Yet, this young master of the Su Family, with mere minor Sea Transformation cultivation, hadn't died on the spot?

"Still, you must die!"

An astonishing killing intent erupted from the bewitching figure, and she burst forth with terrifying speed, catching up before Su Xin could steady himself.

Swipe! Swipe! Swipe!

The cold 'black light' shone again, bursting with terrifying speed, repeatedly stabbing towards Su Xin's throat.

Facing the attack head-on, Su Xin finally saw that the 'black light' was actually a cold, pitch-black dagger.

"Mountain-Sea Volume!"

With a fierce shout, Su Xin swung his long sword, instantly invoking layers of Concept Comprehension, like the waves of the sea.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Several clashing sounds rang out, and Su Xin blocked all the black light.

"Blocked it? Time to go!"

The bewitching figure turned without hesitation.

As an assassin, and a terrifyingly strong one at that, she knew that once she exposed herself and failed to kill her target instantly, she lost the best chance to kill them.

She had continued the pursuit because she saw Su Xin was only at minor Sea Transformation cultivation and already heavily injured, thinking she could easily succeed. Who would have thought Su Xin would easily block her with his swordsmanship?

Naturally, she had no more reason to linger.

One failed strike, and she fled immediately!

However...

"Can you escape?"

A fierce shout erupted from Su Xin's mouth.

Buzz~~~

A hazy sword light suddenly shone.

Dreamlike and illusory!

It felt like a phantom, yet incredibly real.

It floated lightly through the void.

The Northern Azure Sword Art's Phantom Volume, second form, Shadow Play!!

"Not good!"

The bewitching figure's face changed dramatically, swinging her dagger to block the sword.

However, the hazy sword shadow was impossible to capture...

Slash!

The sword light passed, leaving a small wound on the bewitching figure's neck, and she fell unwillingly.

The Northern Azure Sword Art has three volumes: Thunderfire Volume focuses on frontal combat, Mountain-Sea Volume on defense.

And the Phantom Volume focuses on speed, also being a lethal sword art!

The Phantom Volume consists of five sword techniques, the first called Dark Light, where a single sword strike leaves only a single light in the world.

The second, Shadow Play, with its hazy sword shadow, is impossible to capture.

Su Xin had just mastered this sword technique after breaking through to the Sea Transformation Realm.

Once executed, it was a throat-sealing strike!

Thud!

After slaying the assassin, Su Xin could no longer stand, collapsing to the ground, gasping heavily, blood continuously oozing from his mouth, and a terrifying wound on his chest, with much of the flesh torn apart.

But fortunately, he had barely moved his body at the critical moment, causing the dagger to deviate slightly and miss his heart. Otherwise, that strike would have been fatal.

"That was close!"

"I almost died."

Su Xin was filled with lingering fear.

At that moment, whoosh!

A figure swiftly descended from the night sky, landing in the courtyard—it was Su Xin's father, Su Baichen.

Su Baichen was the strongest in the Su Family. Though he hadn't detected the assassin's infiltration beforehand, he sensed the moment the assassin attacked Su Xin and rushed over as fast as he could.

"This is..."

Su Baichen looked at the corpse on the ground and Su Xin's miserable state, immediately understanding what had happened.

"Quick, take this pill."

Su Baichen crouched down, urgently taking a white pill from his sleeve for Su Xin to swallow.

After swallowing the pill, a peculiar power began to work within him, and Su Xin's pale complexion improved slightly.

Meanwhile, Su Baichen began examining Su Xin's wound.

"Fortunately, it's just a stab wound, and it avoided the vital organs. Most importantly, the blade wasn't poisoned." Su Baichen breathed a sigh of relief.

"Poison?" Su Xin was startled.

Yes, his body had been pierced by that dagger. If it had been coated with poison, his fate...

"Your injury isn't too serious. Take the pill and rest well for a few days, and you'll be fine."

Su Baichen stood up, his gaze shifting to the corpse beside him, removing the veil to reveal the assassin's face.

"A woman?" Su Xin squinted his eyes.

Not only a woman, but an incredibly bewitching one with considerable charm.

"It's her!"

"The number one assassin in Yongning Prefecture, Phantom!"

Su Baichen recognized the woman, "It's said that Phantom has a strange temperament. Since leaving the Three Kill Tower, she's been living on Baishan Island, rarely interacting with the outside world, and hasn't made many moves in recent years. Yet this time, she came to assassinate you..."

Su Baichen was internally shaken.

Firstly, because Phantom would come to assassinate Su Xin.

But what truly shocked him was that Su Xin not only survived Phantom's assassination but also killed her on the spot.

Phantom was a genuine peak Sea Transformation expert, and she had assassinated dozens of peak Sea Transformation experts before, even reportedly killing a Void Shattering expert.

And Su Xin, newly entered into the Sea Transformation Realm, could kill Phantom?

What kind of strength did he possess?

"This boy, could his awakened bloodline truly be of the first grade?"

"Or perhaps even higher, a Divine Bloodline?"

Su Baichen looked at Su Xin, who was recuperating, his eyes narrowing slightly.

He dared only to think of a Divine Bloodline.

As for the even higher Supreme Bloodline... that had never existed in the entire Eastern Wasteland, belonging only to legend, so he naturally didn't think of that level.

At this moment, having sensed the commotion, the Grand Elder Su Boyong, who had returned from Tianshui City, along with some of the Su Family's stronger Sea Transformation experts, were rushing over.

"What is this?"

Su Boyong looked at Phantom's corpse, immediately recognizing from the wound that it was a sword kill.

He immediately understood that the one who killed Phantom was Su Xin.

"Grand Elder, have someone handle this corpse immediately, and don't let anyone see her wound." Su Baichen instructed.

"Understood." Su Boyong nodded.

Soon, someone had taken care of the corpse.

"Xin'er, tomorrow morning, you'll move to the Bihui Courtyard." Su Baichen said.

"Bihui Courtyard?" Su Xin's heart stirred.

The Bihui Courtyard was right next to Su Baichen's residence, clearly indicating his father's concern about other assassins coming after him.

Half an hour later.

In the Su Family's main hall, all the high-ranking members of the Su Family were gathered, having already learned about the assassination attempt on Su Xin.

"Patriarch, we absolutely cannot let this matter go as if nothing happened. We must retaliate!" The hot-tempered Second Elder Su Tietong was the first to speak.

"Yes, we must retaliate!"

"Retaliate fiercely!"

Even without any evidence.

In Yongning Prefecture, they didn't need to think hard to know who had sent Phantom.

The Su Family's elders and high-ranking members were unanimous in their stance to retaliate fiercely against the Pang Family!

After all, this was within the Su Family's estate, and the young master of the Su Family, the holder of this generation's Sword Order, had been assassinated...

If the Su Family tolerated this, they would first be ridiculed by everyone, and in the future, anyone would dare to send people to kill within the Su Family!

Secondly, it would dishearten the Su Family's own people.

...

The Su Family acted quickly, and by early the next morning, their retaliation against the Pang Family had already begun.

This retaliation encompassed various aspects, including industrial impact, interest disputes, and most importantly, the battle between the strong of both sides!

The Su Family and the Pang Family were the two strongest families in Yongning Prefecture. In terms of high-level combat power, the Pang Family had a slight edge, but in terms of foundation, they couldn't match the Su Family.

The clash between these two strongest families stirred up a storm throughout Yongning Prefecture.

In the blink of an eye, seven days passed.

Within the Su Family estate.

"Second Elder!"

"Greetings, Second Elder."

Second Elder Su Tietong walked by with his hands behind his back, and the young disciples of the Su Family all bowed in respect, their eyes filled with admiration.

"Have you heard? Just yesterday, in a battle against the Pang Family in the south of the city, our Su Family was at a disadvantage, but once the Second Elder arrived, he not only turned the tide but also killed a Pang Family elder at the peak of Sea Transformation with thunderous means!"

"That's peak Sea Transformation, second only to Void Shattering. The Second Elder is also at peak Sea Transformation, yet he could single-handedly kill that Pang Family elder."

"In these past few days, nearly ten Sea Transformation experts from the Pang Family have died at the hands of the Second Elder."

"Yes, ten. Two days ago, the Second Elder personally killed two peak Sea Transformation experts from the Pang Family."

The young disciples of the Su Family, along with some maids and servants, were whispering among themselves.

In this clash between the Su Family and the Pang Family... with both sides wary and no Void Shattering experts stepping in, peak Sea Transformation was the strongest combat power on both sides.

The Su Family had only a few peak Sea Transformation experts, and as the strongest among them, Second Elder Su Tietong led the charge in the battles against the Pang Family, personally taking action to kill the Pang Family's experts.

Over the past few days, many strong individuals from the Pang Family had fallen at his hands.

In terms of results, the Pang Family had suffered significantly more losses than the Su Family in these seven days of fighting, even losing a peak Sea Transformation expert.

"Second Elder." Another person appeared before the Second Elder.

"Su Xin?"

Su Tietong finally stopped, glancing at the newcomer, "Is your injury okay now?"

"Almost fully recovered." Su Xin smiled slightly.

He had been directly pierced by the female assassin's dagger, a severe injury that would have left an ordinary person bedridden for at least half a month. But he... perhaps due to his bloodline, had a recovery ability far superior to ordinary people, and in just three days, he could walk again.

In seven days, he had fully returned to peak condition.

"Second Elder, I heard that the family has been fighting the Pang Family's experts these days. If possible, I'd like to join the battle." Su Xin said.

"You?"

"Foolish!"

Su Tietong frowned, then directly reprimanded him.

"Su Xin, you should know that this conflict with the Pang Family started because of you. The Pang Family spent a huge amount to hire an assassin to kill you because they knew your talent and potential. Unfortunately, they failed."

"At this time, what you need to do is focus on improving your cultivation and strength. As for the external battles... the Pang Family would love for you to go out and fight them now, giving them a chance to kill you."

"If you want to fight for the family and battle the Pang Family's experts, you can! Once your strength improves, once your cultivation reaches late Sea Transformation, and your combat power can face the Pang Family's peak Sea Transformation experts without fear, even against Void Shattering experts, with some self-preservation ability... then, come find me."

Su Tietong's reprimand made Su Xin smile wryly.

He knew Su Tietong's words made sense, but... he couldn't exactly tell Su Tietong that he already had that strength, and even if he did, Su Tietong probably wouldn't believe him.

After all, only Su Baichen and Grand Elder Su Boyong had seen the assassin Phantom's corpse and knew he had killed her. Everyone else thought it was Su Baichen who did it.

At this moment, Su Tietong stepped forward, patting Su Xin's shoulder solemnly, "Su Xin, remember, you are the hope of the Su Family. Only when all the old fellows of the Su Family are gone will it be your turn to fight for the family."

With that, Su Tietong left.

Su Xin remained standing there.

"Second Elder is right. I carry the hope of the Su Family's rise. My vision should be broader. Even if I reveal my strength and kill many of the Pang Family's experts, it won't significantly impact the Pang Family." Su Xin pondered.

The core of the Pang Family was the Void Shattering experts.

Without killing the Void Shattering experts, merely killing some Sea Transformation experts wouldn't shake the foundation of the Pang Family.

"In that case, I'll go there." Su Xin clenched his fist tightly.

Crimson Dragon Tower!

Two towering black towers stood majestically. In front of one, the True Martial Pavilion, a sea of people gathered, with numerous True Martial Realm warriors constantly entering the tower to explore.

As for the other towering black tower—the Dragon-Seeking Tower, it was rarely visited.

A young figure in black, wearing a bamboo hat and holding a sharp sword, arrived in front of the Dragon-Seeking Tower.

"I want to challenge the Dragon-Seeking Tower!"