After Being Reborn, I Refuse To Be The Holy Son Of The Sect Anymore

Chapter 66:

The Xiao family had returned.

Chu Guiyuan took the Liu family father and son with him, and they fled Yuanlong City overnight.

Liu Rulong, the eldest son of the Liu family, had been killed by Xiao Yang’s single stomp, and the Liu family didn’t even dare to voice a complaint.

Chu Guiyuan didn’t stand up for the Liu family. Although Liu Ruxian, the Liu family’s youngest daughter, was Chu Guiyuan’s Dao companion, his interest in her was purely due to her unique constitution, which aided his cultivation.

This shallow basis for their relationship was precisely why Liu Ruxian eventually betrayed Chu Guiyuan.

Chu Guiyuan’s rescue of the Liu family father and son was merely out of consideration for Liu Ruxian, not because he valued the Liu family in any way.

Xiao Yang, though fully aware of Chu Guiyuan’s personal affairs, didn’t bother to intervene or warn him.

When Xiao Yang and his group entered Yuanlong City, it caused a massive uproar.

News of the Liu family fleeing overnight spread quickly, and the entire city erupted in celebration. The streets were decorated as if it were a major holiday, with countless citizens rejoicing and clapping their hands in delight.

After entering the city, Xiao Yang didn’t accompany his father, Xiao Zhenshan, to the Xiao family’s ancestral residence in the eastern part of the city. Instead, he went straight to his grandfather’s old home in the southern part of the city.

Years ago, Xiao Zhenshan and his younger brother Xiao Zhenhai had clashed bitterly over the position of family head. Tired of their disputes, their grandfather had left the ancestral residence and moved into a modest courtyard in the southern part of the city, taking young Xiao Yang with him.

Even after Xiao Yang joined the Azure Sun Sword Sect, his grandfather had continued living there until his death.

It had been several years since Xiao Yang last visited.

To his surprise, everything in the courtyard was exactly as he remembered, untouched and unspoiled by the Liu family. Perhaps they had deemed the modest home too insignificant to bother with.

Inside, everything was coated in dust. In one corner of the courtyard stood an old, weathered tree, its leaves almost entirely fallen.

Xiao Yang gazed up at the tree, recalling the warmth of his grandfather’s hand holding his as they first arrived here. He remembered the creak of the wooden gate and the sight of the tree that greeted him.

Now, his grandfather was gone, but the tree remained.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds and littered with fallen leaves, a faint musty odor hanging in the air.

Xiao Yang set about cleaning the house and tidying the courtyard.

Meanwhile, the Liu family father and son, along with Gui Jianren, fled the city overnight to seek help from Gui Teng’s older brother, Gui Qianjue.

At the northern mines, the Xiao family members who had been enslaved were finally freed. Out of the hundreds of family members sent to toil in the mines, less than two hundred had survived.

Upon returning to the Xiao family ancestral residence, Xiao Zhenhai immediately clashed with his elder brother, Xiao Zhenshan, accusing him of abandoning the family and fleeing during their time of need.

“How dare you! Without me going to Azure Sun Mountain for help, you’d all still be rotting in those mines!” Xiao Zhenshan retorted angrily.

Xiao Zhenhai, though furious, couldn’t refute the truth. Xiao Zhenshan’s return with Azure Sun Sword Sect disciples had indeed saved them.

Despite his grievances, Xiao Zhenhai had to swallow his anger.

The Xiao family began reclaiming control over Yuanlong City.

Fortunately, the ancestral residence, though occupied by the Liu family, had not been damaged.

Lei Lie, Jiang Ting, and Qin Fei stayed in the ancestral residence.

Lin Wangchuan and Song Qiang initially wanted to follow Xiao Yang, but he refused, preferring solitude.

Meanwhile, Qin Fei began plotting.

He secretly contacted members of the Demon Sect hiding in Yuanlong City, even mobilizing deeper hidden forces.

“Xiao Yang, I swear, I won’t rest until you’re dead!” Qin Fei muttered, clenching his fists with determination.

…

The next morning, Xiao Yang prepared offerings to pay his respects to his grandfather.

When he arrived at the Xiao family’s ancestral burial ground outside the city, he was horrified to find it desecrated.

Graves had been dug up, and the ground was littered with shattered coffins and scattered bones.

“This is outrageous!” Xiao Yang roared in fury.

His heart sank as he rushed to his grandfather’s grave, fearing the worst.

When he saw the scene, an uncontrollable rage surged through him.

His grandfather’s grave had been dug up, the tombstone smashed into pieces, the coffin splintered, and the bones carelessly scattered.

“Unforgivable!” Xiao Yang’s eyes turned red, his veins bulging with anger.

“Grandfather, it’s my fault… I failed to protect you, even after your death.”

He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging into his palms until blood seeped out, yet he felt no pain.

Everything around him seemed frozen, except for the overwhelming rage burning in his chest.

When he saw his grandfather’s skull lying alone on a mound of dirt, Xiao Yang finally erupted.

“Whoever desecrated my grandfather’s grave will pay with their lives!”

A violent aura burst from Xiao Yang, sending dust and debris flying.

He reached for the skull with trembling hands, but the moment he touched it, a cold light shot out from beneath the soil, shattering the skull and aiming straight for his forehead.

Someone had hidden beneath the soil, waiting to ambush him in his moment of grief.

“What?!”

Xiao Yang reacted instantly. A sword aura surged from his body, intercepting the attack just inches from his forehead.

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing echoed as the sword light was deflected.

Xiao Yang staggered back, cold sweat dripping down his back.

The attack had been dangerously close. If not for his mastery of sword intent, allowing him to react at lightning speed, he wouldn’t have survived.

Several figures emerged from the surrounding mounds, their swords glinting as they surrounded Xiao Yang.

“Guiyuan Martial Sect?” Xiao Yang recognized their attire and was immediately enraged.

“You dared to desecrate my grandfather’s grave? I’ll kill every last one of you!”

An overwhelming killing intent erupted from Xiao Yang, shaking the very air around him.

On a nearby hill, Qin Fei stood under a large tree, watching the scene unfold.

“Xiao Yang… why won’t you just die?” Qin Fei muttered through gritted teeth.

Despite his elaborate plans and ambush, Xiao Yang had survived yet again.

But Qin Fei wasn’t discouraged.

If one plan failed, he had others.

As he thought back to Xiao Yang forcing him to kill his own shadow-like companion in the ancient ruins, Qin Fei’s hatred grew even deeper.