THE MARTIAL KING VOLUME 2 - Season 10 Episode 71

“Aside from the news about Miss Xi, we’ve also acquired an interesting new piece of information,” Darius said upon seeing Eddie’s grim expression.

“What is it?”

Eddie asked.

“Zen has returned,” Darius immediately replied.

Eddie’s eyes immediately flashed with a malicious aura, “Zen… Hmph! He actually returned!”

Rumors and speculations about Zen dying had spread all over Central Region but Eddie did not believe any of it.

He had seen firsthand how Zen became the ultimate winner of the Wheel of Fortune, signifying that he was a man of great destiny. Eddie did not believe that Zen was someone who would die so easily. The only way Eddie would ever believe Zen’s death would be if he killed him with his own hands.

“What are you going to do now?”

Darius asked cautiously, clearly aware of the malicious aura that emanated from Eddie.

“Temporarily halt all attacks on the Ethereal Spirit Sect. Station everyone a hundred miles away while we wait for Simon’s men to arrive. Do not make a move until I come!”

Eddie ordered.

Simon, the Poison King, had recently joined Eddie’s Heavenly Evil Divine Kingdom despite them initially being on opposing sides.

It was Eddie who extended the invitation and Simon accepted after weighing up the cost and benefits. Despite the conflict between them at the start, Simon had since put aside past grudges once he came to realize the benefits of joining Eddie and his divine kingdom.

At that moment, Simon was already rushing over with a group of independent warriors.

The Ethereal Spirit Sect must not be underestimated. It was not heralded as the number one sect in the Central Region for no reason. Although its sect-protecting array constructed by Arnold was not on par with Cloud Hall’s, Eddie knew that the Illusory Array was still capable of causing a great deal of trouble for his army.

Moreover, the Ethereal Spirit Sect had Xander and Eddie did not dare to look down upon him. The joint forces of the Septuplets of Ethereal Spirit were comparable to a Life and Death Realm master’s strength.

It would be difficult but if he managed to get the Ethereal Spirit Sect to yield, Eddie was sure that his Heavenly Evil Divine Kingdom would reap huge benefits.

After Darius left to enforce his orders, a plan was already brewing in Eddie’s mind, “I want to see just how he will escape this time,” he muttered to himself with a sneer. Then, he turned into a beam of light and charged straight towards Ethereal City.

Meanwhile, inside the Ethereal Spirit Sect, Xander stood in a huge Eight Diagrams and looked up to the sky with a complicated expression.

The Septuplets of Ethereal Spirit formed a unique formation that was in accordance with the shape of the Big Dipper. They looked up solemnly at the large number of warriors in the sky.

The majority of their attackers were at the Illuminating Soul Realm and did not pose any immediate threats as the Illusory Array assured the death of any warrior below the Internal Elixir Realm.

The problem, however, was that Eddie’s army also contained a handful of Internal Elixir Realm warriors and had more Virtual Tribulation Realm martial artists than the Ethereal Spirit Sect.

If a war did break out between them, the outcome was uncertain.

Xander had already foreseen Eddie’s attack. In fact, many people had already predicted it. What they did not expect, however, was for him to come so soon.

Xander would’ve never thought that Eddie would actually dare to make a move against the strongest sect in Central Region. In this aspect, Xander paled in comparison of Eddie’s great ambition and courage.

All elders and disciples of the Ethereal Spirit Sect were alert and ready for battle. However, the sight of Eddie transforming into a streak of light and leaving elicited a few shocked gasps.

What was more surprising was the sudden but orderly retreat of the Heavenly Evil Sect warriors!

“Sir, Eddie is flying towards Ethereal City,” one of the Septuplets of Ethereal Spirit announced.

Xander’s eyes widened. “He must be heading towards the Xi Clan! This is my fault! I shouldn’t have pampered her too much. Her willfulness and my indulgence have only brought harm upon us all,” Xander sighed. It took everything in Xander not to rush out and stop Eddie.

He might not be as powerful as Eddie but he knew he had the ability to contend with Eddie and delay him for a bit in the Ethereal City.

But his role as Ethereal Spirit Sect’s leader prevented him from doing so. His place was within the sect where he was to take charge during such a crisis.

Although the Xi Clan was important to Xander, the Ethereal Spirit Sect was more important. The entire Xi Clan and Ethereal City were established under the protection of the Ethereal Spirit Sect.

There was a saying, “If the skin does not exist, then where would the hair adhere to? One thing is dependent on the other.” Xander was fully aware of what was more important.

“They’re retreating. Should we rush out?” one of the Septuplets of Ethereal Spirit asked.

The retreat of the opposing army was a chance for the Ethereal Spirit Sect to launch a counterattack by taking their enemies by surprise. It was a good chance for them to turn the tides but Xander still shook his head. What if it was a trap?

“No,” his voice resonated while his eyes filled with determination. “We will remain and guard this place.” From the exact moment he assumed the position as the leader of the Ethereal Spirit Sect, Xander’s life had been firmly tied to the entire sect.

Just then, the beam of light neared Ethereal City but was suddenly blocked by an invisible force.

A flying ban had been enforced around the city. Such restrictions were very popular a thousand years ago and were enforced by many other cities. However, too many warriors complained and the flying ban was removed. It was only Ethereal City that followed the old convention and retained their restriction against flying.

Eddie could only snort as he casually threw a punch and destroyed the ban. Once he arrived in the Ethereal City, he quickly headed for the Xi Clan’s castle.

The luncheon in Xi Clan’s castle lasted for an hour. Robin, the clan master, held Zen with high regard and, despite telling him that it would only be a simple meal, treated Zen to specially made dishes of the highest quality. And it cost much longer time to prepare the dishes.

Brent continued to harp about his regret of not getting the chance to fight Zen all throughout the meal. “Zen, if there’s a chance, I will definitely go to Cloud Hall and challenge you. When that time comes, you have to come out and fight with me!” he insisted.

Brent was so stubborn. Zen smiled helplessly and was forced to agree in the end.

Robin smiled in amusement. He knew his adopted son’s temperament very well. Brent was not a sore loser and even if he lost this fight he was proposing, he wouldn’t regret it.

Brent was about to say something else when his complexion suddenly paled. He quickly reached into his space ring and took out a token that had turned blood-red.

Zen frowned at his sudden change in demeanor, “What’s wrong?” he asked. Even Robin’s face turned pale when he saw the blood-red token.

The color of the Ethereal Spirit Sect’s token signaled three different situations: emerald green for normal, yellow for a state of high alert, and blood-red once a war arrived at their doorstep. The token had been yellow for the past few days but it had now turned to the most ominous shade of red.

“The Ethereal Spirit Sect is under attack! I need to go there right away!”

Brent announced. After entering the Virtual Tribulation Realm, he had become one of the top warriors of the Ethereal Spirit Sect. There was no way he could stay in the castle with the threat of war upon them.

Zen’s face darkened at his words. He immediately stood up and cupped his hands to Robin, “I’ll take the young lady out of the Ethereal City right now!”

Had he not stayed for the luncheon, Zen would’ve already left Ethereal City with Margaret hours ago. He did not expect that a war would suddenly break out while he was casually eating lunch with the Xi Clan.

Robin nodded, “I’ll bring you to her right now!”

While Brent rushed to the Ethereal Spirit Sect, Robin led Zen towards Margaret’s residence.

Inside her residence, Margaret was alone and sulking thinking that she was about to leave the castle. Her table was full of delicious food but she didn’t eat a single bite. Her mind was a mess and she was in no mood to eat.

Bam!

Her door and screens were suddenly smashed into smithereens as Zen forced his entry into her room.

The two screens were made of precious jade and were of high value. Margaret liked them very much and had spent a lot of effort getting them two years ago. To think that Zen broke them just like that made her furious!

“You! You must pay for the screens!” she shouted.

‘This guy is truly despicable. He didn’t show any respect to me at all!’ she thought to herself as she seethed with anger.

Robin ignored his daughter’s tantrum. “Margaret, forget about the screens! You have to go now!” he shouted in desperation. He did not know what to say to make his daughter behave at such a critical moment and it wasn’t really the time to lecture her.

Zen did not even bother calming her down. There was no time to be gentle given the urgency of the situation. He just went directly to her and roughly grabbed her hand. “Let’s go!”

He then immediately flew up and smashed her ceiling into pieces. Margaret’s residence was made of wood and sturdy iron but it was reduced to nothing by Zen just like that!