Chapter 48 – Arrest Warrants Issued against Florida Man for Allegedly Disintegrating Corrupted Cop to Ash
200 kilometers north of Cauliflower City was Frozen King City, the home of the Ouyang Clan. Unlike regular towns and cities, the entire population consisted of slaves and servants of the family while the people with Ouyang surname controlled the administrative offices.
In short, this place was the Ouyang Clan's domain.
Not only the Ouyang Clan was wealthy enough to establish and govern a city, but they also had a deep background. Every daughter and maiden of the Ouyang Clan was sent to marry prominent lords and talented cultivators around the world, drawing in top experts to join their clan and serve as their underlings. They used these top experts to train their combat slaves and soldiers, increasing their military prowess.
Because of their military power and wealth, their family earned a seat in the Jianghu Alliance, which upheld the judicial system – Their purpose was to eliminate evil sects and enforce the laws in this chaotic world, where cultivators ran rampant.
With the authority power in their hands, Ouyang Clan became the most influential family on the mainland. However, someone recently offended them.
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In the main house of the Ouyang Family, the patriarch of the Ouyang Clan, Ouyang Zi, sat on the throne in a large meeting hall, gazing at the 11 elders and the grand elder of the Ouyang Clan, who gathered here to answer the summon.
A red carpet at the center of the room was the only empty place. The elders sat on their honored seats, located on the sides of the carpet. Their chairs faced the center of the room, forcing them to look at the other elders on the opposite side of the room. Meanwhile, two hundred entourage, servants, and children of the elders stood behind them, listening and observing the meeting.
Ouyang Zi had a long grey braided beard. His fur helmet hid his hairless head, and he wore a black fur coat on top of his robes as the temperature of the Phoenix city was always under minus 30 degrees Celsius (-22 Fahrenheit). Because of his large physique, big muscle, and his 7'4 height, he was a giant among men.
The crowd also wore multiple layers of robes while some sported fur coats like the patriarch. However, they looked tiny in front of their clan leader.
Ouyang Zi tossed the broken Life Candle of Ouyang Long to the middle of the room and informed everybody of disturbing news.
"Ouyang Long is dead."
"…"
All elders stared at the broken candle in silence. The grand elder closed his eyes while the other members frowned.
The grand elder asked, "Patriarch, who killed him?"
"A soul formation rogue cultivator."
"A rogue cultivator? Soul formation stage?"
The elders were puzzled. Considering Ouyang Long's strength and wisdom, he shouldn't have been so weak to the point that he got killed by a soul formation cultivator. Even if he lost, he should have easily escaped.
"Doesn't he have the fastest flying sword, the Cugatti? Even if he lost all his limbs, he shouldn't have died."
The patriarch shook his head, "Ouyang Long didn't have a chance. He died in one move."
The elders widened their eyes and murmured, exclaiming and chatting with their subordinates behind them. The noise was so loud that Ouyang Zi smacked the armrest with his fist to silence them.
BOOM
The wooden armrest was broken. However, Ouyang Zi opened his palm and released his wood essence. A few seconds later, the wooden armrest grew from the wooden chair and restored itself.
After repairing his chair with his power, Ouyang Zi bellowed.
"Order!"
The crowd stopped talking. They looked at their clan leader, waiting for further instructions.
Seeing that the crowd shut their mouths, Ouyang Zi proceeded with the first agenda, "We will select a new representative to replace Ouyang Long. I want new candidates. Any suggestion?"
Every elder looked at each other for a moment before they turned to the grand elder, whose strength was second after the patriarch. One of them stepped up and saluted Ouyang Zi.
"I would like to nominate Lord Ouyang Ke."
The rest of the elders also stood up, "We believe senior Ouyang Ke is the right candidate."
Ouyang Zi nodded. He then looked at the grand elder, "What do you think? Care to work at the Jianghu Alliance?"
Ouyang Ke was already 330 years old. His thin stature and wrinkled skin made him look like a dried mummy. His long white hair and thick white eyebrows covered half of his face but highlighted his deep eyes. Every youngster often mistook him for a ghost, and they were scared of him. In addition, his cultivation base was at the soul formation stage, and he was one step away from reaching the soul transformation rank, which was where Ouyang Zi had reached.
After getting nominated, Ouyang Ke laughed. He leaned against his chair and sipped the rejuvenate tea, which he made for himself.
"I'm afraid I have to decline. I'm an alchemist, and I'm also a guest elder of World Tree Sect. I don't have time for politics."
Ouyang Zi agreed with Ouyang Ke. He turned to the elders, "You heard him. My uncle is busy. Anybody else wishes to nominate another candidate?"
The elders were disappointed. They looked at each other as nobody dared to nominate each other. After all, they didn't want to stand out and ire a certain someone.
As nobody spoke, the patriarch was disappointed. He baited them to get their attention.
"The next mystic realm expedition is 12 days away. The candidates will get to participate using our family's quota."
The elders were tempted, but they were afraid of something. They bit their lower lips, waiting for the others to take the bait.
Suddenly, a young man behind the grand elder coughed. He looked at the patriarch and made a suggestion.
"Can I nominate myself?"
"…"
The elders bitterly smiled. Some of them let out a sigh of relief as THAT PERSON made a move himself.
The grand elder giggled while the patriarch deeply frowned. The latter asked the former.
"Are you allowing this, uncle?"
"Why not?" Ouyang Ke couldn't stop smiling. "Sometimes, adults like us have to step back and let the next generation basks in the limelight. Since my grandson is confident, let him have it."
"We're talking about the Jianghu Alliance here. Do you think those undying geezers will allow it?"
"It doesn't matter. Let him learn the ropes and expand his horizon."
"…"
Ouyang Zi deeply sighed. He gazed at the youngster, whose cultivation base surpassed most of the people here.
He was Ouyang Feng, the grandchild of Ouyang Ke. He joined the Death Sword Sect and became the youngest nascent soul cultivator at the age of 18. Ouyang Feng was 25 this year, and he was at the pinnacle of the nascent soul realm, waiting for the right opportunity to break through.
Ouyang Feng was a stud among men. He had a handsome face, toned muscle, a tall physique, and light skin. His kept hair, black robes, and perfectly smooth skin made him attractive among the female servants and daughters of other clan members.
Looking at the handsome youth, Ouyang Zi was reluctant.
"Are you sure you want this? Your opponents will be those soul-formation geezers in the alliance. They're going to bully you."
Ouyang Feng brightly smiled, "More like they will offer their granddaughters to me as soon as they notice my talent!"
Everybody in the room burst into laughter. Even Ouyang Zi grinned.
"Alright. If you say so, go and dominate the alliance. Make it yours for our family!"
"Yes, patriarch!"
The elders in the room smiled, relieved that the scary guy got what he wanted. However, they still remembered an issue, which involved the death of Ouyang Long.
Ouyang Zi also noticed their expressions. He concluded the agenda.
"Alright. Since there is only one candidate, Ouyang Feng will be chosen as the new representative of our clan by default. Is that alright with you?"
The elders saluted, "We agree with you, patriarch!"
"Good," Ouyang Zi paused to take a deep breath. Then, he moved on to the next important agenda.
"Next agenda, the killer of Ouyang Long. Justice must be upheld, and we will not allow anybody to tarnish our reputation! Unfortunately, we must also prepare for the mystic realm expedition so we cannot focus on revenge at the moment."
The elders looked disappointed as the patriarch didn't reveal the identity of the killer. They could only give up pursuing the matter until the end of the mystic realm season.
"However," Ouyang Zi continued. "That doesn't mean we will give up on the criminal. I have the complete sketchs of the rogue cultivator that killed Ouyang Long!"
Ouyang Zi waved his hand, and a thousand papers were ejected from his spatial rings. Everybody in the room immediately used their Qi to pull one of the papers into their hands.
The portrait of Leo was neatly drawn, and all papers were identical. Ouyang Feng also got his hand on it.
"Remember his face. Since he's strong, one of the sects might invite him to join their expedition team, and we might encounter him in the mystic realm. If anybody finds him in the mystic realm or somewhere on the mainland, contact me! Do not pick a fight with him or provoke him. Got it?!"
Ouyang Feng, Ouyang Ke, and every clan member put the warrant papers in their clothes. Then, they saluted Ouyang Zi.
"We understand, patriarch!"
"Good. You're dismissed, except for Ouyang Ke and Ouyang Feng. You two stay behind. We need to teach you what you need to do as a representative."
The elders deeply bowed and guided their followers to leave the meeting hall. As for the grand elder and his grandson, they remained in the hall.
After everybody had left, Ouyang Zi brought out a cultivation pill and gave it to Ouyang Feng. Coincidentally, it was a Fenrir Dantian Pill, which another alchemist had made long ago. However, it was medium-grade, and it took the alchemist one entire year to refine this pill using three sets of ingredients.
"Feng'er. You cultivate poison Qi, right? This pill should bring you to the soul formation stage. Eat it when you find the right place to cultivate in the mystic realm."
Ouyang Feng accepted the pill in glee. He looked at the Fenrir Dantian Pill and smiled, "Did Uncle Situ make this?"
"No. It was someone from the Tang Clan. Tang Clan is the best in poison, and this pill is one of their specialties."
"Hahaha! Thank you, patriarch. I won't disappoint you!"
"Good. Also, we need to talk about what you need to do…"
Ouyang Ke and Ouyang Zi began teaching the young man about the etiquette, rules, and tasks he had to do. Also, they revealed the secret warehouse that they had entrusted to Ouyang Long.
Two hours later, they finished their lecture. Ouyang Zi reminded him, "Be careful about your status as well. You might be as strong as many geezers out there, but you're still a member of the Death Sword Sect. Those hypocrites from the Life Sword Sect won't work with you, and the alchemist sects won't talk to you. However, you can always ask the Situ Clan to sell you some talismans and artifacts. Also, if possible, seduce the fairies of the Amazonian Sanctuary. As long you get their favor, you can use them to coax those virgin alchemists for their treasures and pills."
"I get it, patriarch! That's my forte!"
"Haha. Good. Now, go!"
Ouyang Feng bowed and left the meeting hall in joy. He looked forward to courting the fairies of the all-female cult, which only trained female cultivators.
.
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Meanwhile, Cat ran around in the forest. Her human infant torso practiced moving while her waist was still attached to the chomper's head. She ordered her lower parts to sit and rest while her branches extended and grabbed a few pine nuts to eat.
Cat put a raw pine nut in her human mouth at first. She tried crushing it with teethless gum.
"MYA!!"
She regretted it. Her humanoid gum were too soft to crack the nut, and she hurt herself.
Still, Cat didn't give up. She circulated metal Qi into her mouth, reinforcing the gum. A minute later, she retried.
CRACK
Her hardened gums easily crush the metal-like nut like a press machine, and she savored the wood-like taste. After chewing the entire outer skin of the nut to small pieces, she swallowed them all.
"Meow <3"
Eating with a human mouth was different than the monster mouth as the tastebud was more sensitive. As for the monster's mouth, it was still useful for eating large food.
While eating pine nuts in the forest, a small flying ship passed by, but it immediately turned around. One of the cultivators onboard jumped down and landed in front of Cat.
The person wore a thick triangle straw hat, and a thick veil covered the person's face. The long robes covered most of the skin, but the small wrinkled hands revealed her age and gender.
Cat looked at the female cultivator and tilted her head. Although the person looked different from the cultivators she had seen, Cat asked for a toll fee anyway.
"Nom-Nom Meow?"
The old lady giggled. She took off her hat and opened her cloth veil, revealing the face of a kind grandmother.
"Hello, child. How does an infant dryad like you manage to survive here all alone? Where is your parent?"
"Meow?"
