Spirit Realm
chapter-587

Xing Yuyuan busied himself, trying to console his big brother in the face of Xiang Xi’s and Bo Boze’s insolent, grating laughter. It resounded across all of the Setting Sun Islands.

The Xing brothers didn’t ride their crystalline war chariots out to face them. Instead, they emerged from their Flowing Gold Fire Phoenix and appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Xing Yumiao wore golden spirit armor forged from a type of light metal. The surface of the spirit armor looked like liquid gold. The armor shone brightly, the power of light coursing through it.

Xing Yumiao resembled a frightening golden war god that had appeared from an ancient battlefield, cutting through the void.

Xing Yuyuan, on the other hand, wore bright dazzling silver armor. Patterns of celestial bodies and spirit birds were engraved into it, making him appear impressive and refined.

Both brothers floated into the air and put their late stage Fragmentation Realms on display. This instilled the Xing Family clansmen, as well as the Gold Sun Island martial practitioners loyal to them, with confidence.

Upon seeing how calm the Xing brothers were, all of them shed their panic and regained their composure.

They believed in the Xing brothers.

“Xiang Xi must be tired of living!” Xing Yao cried. Instead of leaving her shocked, this outcome cheered her up. “Considering my father’s realm, he can kill all four of those traitorous enforcers by himself. These people are literally committing suicide right now!”

“It can’t be this simple.” Guo Yanzheng shook his head, a grim expression on his face. “Xiang Xi may have a horrible temper, but he isn’t stupid. There must be a reason why he dares to take such a reckless approach!”

They knew that the situation definitely wasn’t as simple as Xing Yao thought.

Numerous Xing Family clansmen stared up at the enforcers led by Xiang Xi. Their group of four drove their crystalline war chariots through the sky, slowly approaching the Xing brothers.

Qin Lie’s group had emerged from their five-story wooden building on Xu Changsheng’s fire phoenix long ago. All of them watched this scene unfold from a distance.

“Fighting the Xing brothers head on is suicide,” Xue Moyan said softly. “Xiang Xi must have a trump card.”

She used her soul consciousness to pay close attention to the surroundings islands, trying to see if she could figure out where that trump card was hiding.

“This is quite a spectacle!” Du Xiangyang exclaimed in excitement.

“It has nothing to do with us,” Luo Chen said.

All of a sudden, Qin Lie spoke up.

“Don’t bother searching for their trump card anymore,” he said. “It’s under the sea.”

Everyone immediately turned to Qin Lie, questioning looks in their eyes.

“The eight god corpses are around two thousand meters deep within the sea,” Qin Lie said calmly. “Xiang Xi’s trump card is about a thousand meters above them.”

“You can sense them?” Xie Jingxuan asked, somewhat surprised.

“With my realm, it obviously isn’t possible for me to actually sense them. But god corpses can,” Qin Lie explained. “I share a… unique connection with them.”

When he had the god corpses stealthily make their way to the depths of the sea around the Setting Sun Islands, they’d already noticed powerful signs of life there.

The eight god corpses weren’t completely dead. They still possessed some of their fragmented soul. These god corpses had reached a terrifying realm prior to their deaths. Just their fragmented souls alone were like bright lamps capable of revealing people hidden in the shadows.

The people hidden in the depths of the sea were so inferior to the god corpses in realm and quality of soul that they had no idea that the god corpses were in the waters far below them.

“How many of them are there?” Xue Moyan asked hurriedly. “What are their realms?”

Since she still wanted to convince the Xing Family to serve Blood Fiend Sect, she was still concerned about them. She clearly hoped that the Xing Family would be able to weather this calamity.

“It isn’t really possible to investigate all of them closely,” Qin Lie said. “There are, however, quite a few of them, and there are a few auras that… should be no weaker than those of the Xing brothers.”

The moment he said this, a solemn expression came over Xue Moyan’s beautiful face. She sighed and said, “The Xing Family is definitely in great danger this time.”

“That’s good news!” Qin Lie exclaimed gravely. “Without Xiang Xi’s inescapable death trap, how else would we recruit the Xing Family?”

“You’re saying that…?” Xua Moyan suddenly became excited again, her eyes lighting up.

“Are you going to stick your hand where it doesn’t belong again?” Xie Jingxuan asked with a slight smile on her face.

“Even if I only care about Xing Shengnan, I can’t just stand by and watch the Xing Family get slaughtered to the last clansman,” Qin Lie declared in a calm voice.

Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan couldn’t help but give him a second, closer look.

“Your taste is seriously…” Before he could finish what he was saying, a sudden realization struck Du Xiangyang and he shut his mouth.

Du Xiangyang quickly thought about the matter and understood that Qin Lie didn’t want to help Xing Shengnan because she was a woman. He wanted to help her because she truly thought of him as her little brother, and in recent days, had clearly shown how genuine her concern for him was.

That was all.

Upon looking at Qin Lie once more, Du Xiangyang wore a complicated expression and couldn’t help but inwardly nod in understanding.

Floating in the air, Xing Yumiao sighed. That sigh contained a hint of loneliness.

“Why, Big Brother Xiang? Why have you done this?” he asked. “I truly miss the days we shared back then. When the three great families hunted us Xing siblings and cornered us, we sought your help and hid in Gold Sun Island. You were the one who gave us a home. It was thanks to your care that the three of us were able to set foot on Gold Sun Island.

“We fought many forces for the sake of Gold Sun Island. With our combined efforts, not only did Gold Sun Island escape the oppression of the Pan Family, it even became a Copper rank force capable of standing amidst the surrounding forces as an equal.

“You were a noble person of unquestionable integrity, Big Brother Xiang. You insisted on giving us the positions of island masters so us Xing siblings could lead Gold Sun Island.”

“……”

Xing Yumiao paused for a moment, clearly reminiscing about the past.

“I have always been grateful to you, Big Brother Xiang,” he eventually said. “I never thought you would do something like this.”

He gave Xiang Xi a deeply profound look and said, “If you truly want to be Gold Sun Island’s island master, Big Brother Xiang, you can just say so. I, Xing Yumiao, am willing to surrender it to you.”

“Big brother!” Xing Yuyuan exclaimed. “Have you gone insane?”

“Big brother!” Xing Shengnan cried out from below.

“Cease your hypocrisy!” Xiang Xi suddenly yelled.

All eyes turned toward him.

“If you truly felt grateful to me, you would’ve left a long time ago, in secret. Why would you have waited until this very moment?” Xiang Xi snorted coldly, then continued. “Yes, my talent doesn’t compare to that of you Xing siblings. I admit that I’m inferior to you. When I led Gold Sun Island, it was just a Black Iron rank force under the Pan Family’s control. Thanks to the three of you, Gold Sun Island is able to enjoy what it has today. I’m well aware of how outstanding your achievements are and that you do deserve to be island masters!”

“But?” Xing Yuyuan sneered.

“I created Gold Sun Island!” Xiang Xi yelled, pointing to Xu Changsheng and Xu Jiadong. “I, Old Xu, and Jiadong risked our lives to conquer Gold Sun Island and raise it to glory! What I don’t understand is… how Gold Sun Island suddenly became the Xing Family’s!”

“I just told you I would relinquish control over Gold Sun Island,” Xing Yumiao said solemnly.

“No, you won’t.” Xiang Xi shook his head. “Not only will you not give up control, you just can’t! I know you, and I know what you’re trying to do.”

Xing Yumiao frowned.

Looking deep within himself, he realized that Xiang Xi was right. He couldn’t give up Gold Sun Island. He would at most take the Xing Family and his subordinates and leave Gold Sun Island.

But doing that would be no different from taking away the very core of Gold Sun Island. He would be taking the elites and the people that made it… it.

The only thing he’d leave Xiang Xi and his men was an incomplete Gold Sun Island—a force that would fall back to Black Iron rank.

“I know about your plan to kill your way back to the Heavenly Calamity Continent and slaughter the every last member of the three great families.” Xiang Xi frowned. “I know you want to take revenge for the Xing Family’s destruction from a thousand years ago. You’ve spent a large amount of resources in the past few years sending men there and making preparations. I know what you’re trying to do.”

A dark expression covered Xing Yumiao’s face.

—He didn’t bother explaining anything because Xiang Xi spoke the truth.

“I’m not rebelling today because others convinced me to. I’m not even doing this for myself. I’m doing this so that Gold Sun Island will live on!” Xiang Xi exclaimed, his voice gradually growing louder and more spirited. “Fighting against the three great families in the Heavenly Calamity Continent is no different from walking to our own deaths! Victory is impossible! Gold Sun Island would only be buried along with your selfishness and hatred. The Gold Sun Island that my brothers and I risked our lives to create… you’ll destroy it all!

“I’ve chosen to rebel against you because you’ve been blinded by hatred. All you care about it revenge and striking back at the Heavenly Calamity Continent!

“I’ve chosen to rebel against you because your actions are no longer in the best interests of Gold Sun Island. You are acting out of selfishness and concern for just your family!

“I’ve chosen to rebel against you because you are leading Gold Sun Island to its doom!”

Xiang Xi’s words rang loud and clear.

Every martial practitioner loyal to Xiang Xi, such as Xu Changsheng, Xu Jiadong, and many other veterans held their heads high when they heard this.

Everyone on the side of the Xing Family, however, fell silent.

Guo Yanzheng, Qi Jing, and most of the other martial practitioners loyal to the Xing Family came from the Heavenly Calamity Continent. All of them were people that had been harmed by the three great families and were later invited by the Xing brothers to join Gold Sun Island. The reason for this didn’t need to be stated.

Xiang Xi was right.

From the very beginning… from the day that Xing Yumiao stepped foot on Gold Sun Island and began fighting for it… his goal was to borrow this force’s strength to fight his way back to the Heavenly Calamity Continent.

Hearing Xiang Xi’s words, both Xing Yumuiao and Xing Yuyuan wore grim expressions. They had no response.

“The idea of a mere Copper rank force fighting against three Silver rank forces is just wishful thinking,” Xu Changsheng shouted. “You, Xing Yumiao, are a madman!”

“We do not wish to die with you,” Xu Jiadong said.

This was the main reason they decided to stay on Xiang Xi’s side, rebel against the Xing Family, and seize control of Gold Sun Island.

In recent years, the Xing brothers sent many people to assassinate martial practitioners of the three great families. They sometimes slipped into the Heavenly Calamity Continent personally. They had long since attracted the attention of the three great families.

In the eyes of Xiang Xi’s men, the Xing brothers had already gone insane.

Xiang Xi decided to rebel during this voyage because the three great families had already figured out what the Xing brothers had done and even took the initiative to seek Xiang Xi out personally.

The three great families had two choices.

They could either assist Xiang Xi in eliminating the Xing brothers and ending Gold Sun Island’s internal strife. By doing that, they’d be able to avoid a breakdown in relations with Illusory Demon Sect and starting a war to the death...

—or they could risk completely destroying relations with Illusory Demon Sect and eliminate the threat that Xing Family and Gold Sun Island represented.

Xiang Xi didn’t have much of a choice, and this one was one he hadn’t wanted to make.

Because he understood Xing Yumiao. He knew that once Xing Yumiao made a decision, there would be no way to stop him.

If Xing Yumiao didn’t die here, he’d still ignore all the consequences and fight the three great families to death all the same.

He would lead Gold Sun Island to a bitter end.

This was why Xing Yumiao needed to die.

……