Chapter 67: Ji Dengqi

In the brisk autumn breeze, Ji Dengqi kneeled behind his father, trembling as he witnessed the head of the Wan Family contemptuously lift his father's bloodied face and then spit on it.

"I guess this is all there is to the Ji Family," he mocked disdainfully.

Ji Dengqi kept his head lowered. Tears streamed down his face, dampening his thin autumn clothes and the grout between the floor tiles under him.

When he lifted his head, he saw a lavishly dressed youth standing behind the head of the Wan Family, watching him with a cold, mocking smile.

He later found out that the youth was Wan Xiaohua, the future head of the Wan Family.

While Wan Xiaohua stood in arrogance, Ji Dengqi kneeled in despair.

Such humiliation was unbearable. The Wan Family's sudden assault on Mount Huazhong shattered the protective formation that had only been completed three years ago in mere moments, slaughtering the head of the Ji Family at the time and rudely dragging every Ji family member out of their bed.

There were twenty-nine of them, all caught off guard in their slumber and forced to kneel outside in the front yard, dressed thinly with only blankets wrapped around them as they witnessed the humiliation of Ji Dengqi and his father.

A crowd of mortals, once governed by the Ji Family, kneeled beyond the ruins of the courtyard wall, bearing witness to the humiliation of a family that had been revered as immortals. They saw the women in the family being stripped of their blankets and huddled in fear, while the men were mercilessly trampled upon.

Haunted by these visions night after night, Ji Dengqi's fury knew no bounds. With tears streaming down his cheeks, he would sit up straight and immerse himself in cultivation with renewed vigor.

The head of the Wan Family's brutal kick had his father coughing blood and collapsing in a heap on the ground. In desperation, Ji Dengqi clung to the man's leg, tearfully pleading, "The Ji Family will be your loyal dog, we'll watch the Yu Family for you in Golden Tang Gate and offer tributes every year..."

The man's laughter was cruel as he kicked Ji Dengqi away with so much force that it knocked two teeth out of his mouth and left him reeling.

"Our families have been sworn enemies from the start, countless have fallen at our border conflicts. If it weren't for the shared border between your family and the Yu Family, the Wan Family would have destroyed you long ago. You offer to serve as our loyal dog, but the Wan Family dare not keep a pet like you," he scoffed.

Wan Xiaohua stood behind the man, watching him with scornful eyes and a smirk on his face.

The man stripped the Ji Family of their wealth and departed with the rest of the arrogant members of the Wan Family, leaving behind nothing but the desolate Mount Huazhong, the disgraced Ji Family, the mortals whose perception of them had changed, and the mountain of corpses in the courtyard.

Three days later, his father succumbed to his injuries. His Profound Scenery Chakra had been shattered, causing his spiritual qi to dissipate. He murmured weakly as he lay on his deathbed, compelling the crying Ji Dengqi to lean closer to catch his words.

"Don't forget to... avenge me." These were his father's final words.

Ji Dengqi bit his lip so hard that it bled and took on the position of the head of the family.

He began killing indiscriminately—executing even mortals who dared meet his gaze. He killed until his hands were stained with blood, and until no one dared to speak of the night the Wan Family had ascended Mount Huazhong again.

At the age of thirteen, Ji Dengqi was fascinated with smashing mortal's heads. He loved seeing blood.

Two more years passed, and Ji Dengqi received both thrilling and disheartening news—that man had attained the Qi Cultivation Realm and was extremely skilled in formation arts, but had met his demise on Mount Dali at the hands of his enemy.

This marked the end of the Wan Family's golden era, with Wan Xiaohua, the newly appointed family head, strategically withdrawing to consolidate power. With this, the land in the east was returned to the Lu Family.

"This isn't enough... Wan Xiaohua is more talented than me and the Wan Family's roots run deep. This alone isn't enough."

A golden opportunity came when the young master of Golden Tang Gate visited Moongaze Lake, seeking a specific type of spiritual qi of heaven and earth.

Ji Dengqi followed the young master around like a faithful dog. Under the gaze of a group of stoic guards, he tried to entertain the bored young master who was lounging beneath a tree while dressed in gold. Finally, the young master laughed and asked him what he wanted.

Ji Dengqi knew very well that the question was not about what he wanted, but rather what he could offer. So, Ji Dengqi told him that a dog like him wanted nothing; instead, he could offer him a girl.

With a deferential whisper, Ji Dengqi proposed, "Your Highness needs a considerate woman blessed with remarkable talent and a spiritual orifice."

Thus, he presented his own younger sister, a girl both innocent and gifted with a spiritual orifice. She was barely twelve and had always been joyful around him and affectionately addressed him as "big brother".

The girl covered her face as her tears flowed. With a breaking yet resolute voice, she said, "I want to avenge Father too, Big Brother."

So, his younger sister left with the young master and became his servant. Following that, the Ji Family began receiving useful pills and resources every year.

Ji Dengqi immersed himself in cultivation and finally broke through to the Qi Cultivation Realm. The Ji Family celebrated his achievement not with joy but with tears of relief.

He immediately avenged his family by eliminating Wan Xiaohua's uncle, an old but formidable cultivator at the peak of the Qi Cultivation Realm, on the land that the Ji Family once lost. It was at this point that he discovered that Wan Xiaohua, who was on Mount Huaqian, was only a cultivator of the Jade Capital stage.

The sudden demise of a Wan Family cultivator in the Qi Cultivation Realm and Ji Dengqi's unexpected ascent to the same realm within merely a decade took everyone by surprise.

However, the Wan Family's ancestor, Wan Huaqian, left behind a formidable formation that proved as resilient as a tortoise shell. Despite Ji Dengqi's relentless efforts to breach it over more than a decade, it had been futile. Observing the Wan Family's rallying support from neighboring clans during this period of time filled him with anger that kept him awake through countless nights.

A few nights ago, Ji Dengqi received a letter from his younger sister saying that the young master of Golden Tang Gate was going to visit Moongaze Lake. As he read the letter over and over again, a plan began to formulate in his head.

It had been so many years since then. That man was returning to Moongaze Lake in search of that elusive spiritual qi of heaven and earth. Ji Dengqi could not fathom what sort of spiritual qi it was to draw this man back time and time again, yet he recognized the opportunity it presented.

He instructed his younger sister to reveal the blood feud between the Wan and Ji Families and exaggerate the invincibility of the Wan Family's formidable formation to ignite the young master's competitive spirits.

With a hearty laugh, the man declared, "Wan Huaqian was a formation genius recognized by the three sects centuries ago. For Yu'er's sake, I shall test the strength of this formation."

And so, Ji Dengqi came to a halt at the foot of Mount Huaqian with a long saber in hand, along with the other Ji Family members behind him, dressed in leather armor, fixing their gazes upon the mountain that was aglow with a white radiance in silence.

"Where's your support now, Wan Xiaohua?" he whispered to himself, "No number of cultivators of the Qi Cultivation Realm can save the Wan Family now. The day of your downfall is here. Neither your reinforcements nor support will alter your fate."

Ji Dengqi was overcome by a profound sense of destiny. He could feel the watchful eyes of his father and grandfather on his back, as he was moments away from crushing Mount Huaqian.

"This time, the Ji Family is backed by the formidable might of the Golden Tang Gate, a support beyond your wildest imaginations."

As tears streamed down his face, the humility that once shadowed his demeanor vanished, and was now replaced by a fierce determination and a deep, pervasive sorrow. These emotions lent Ji Dengqi an imposing presence despite his smaller physical stature.