Chapter 143: The Venerable of Joy

"This is the territory of Venerable Joy. Who are you to dare intrude?" Zhou Tian had finally reached a place where he could rest, but before he could even step inside, his path was blocked.

Frowning, Zhou Tian suppressed his rising anger and asked, "Since entry is forbidden, what about the people inside?"

"Hmph, those people are my master's subordinates, just like me. They are naturally allowed to rest here. Kid, if you don't want to die during the Night of the Blood Moon, you had better show your strength and pledge your allegiance to Venerable Joy. Otherwise, catch a hundred young boys and girls as an offering. I trust that if your tribute is of high quality, the Venerable will take you in as well."

"The Night of the Blood Moon?" Zhou Tian felt he had heard the term before, but having paid it no mind, he hadn't taken it seriously. Now, hearing it again from this subordinate, he couldn't help but wonder what this so-called Night of the Blood Moon truly signified.

"An outsider?" Seeing Zhou Tian's reaction, the subordinate frowned, drew his weapon without another word, and slashed at him.

"Clang!" The attack was blocked instantly by the Cloud Net Immortal Armor Zhou Tian wore.

Looking at the man with a sense of helplessness, Zhou Tian asked, "Why attack me?"

"Venerable Joy has issued an order: kill all outsiders!" Without considering whether his own strength was enough to handle Zhou Tian, the man raised his weapon and attacked again.

But this time, his strike was destined to miss. The first blow had caught him off guard, but if Zhou Tian allowed himself to be struck a second time, it would be his own failing. Zhou Tian had no penchant for masochism. Even if the attacks couldn't hurt him, he didn't enjoy being struck. As the man prepared for his second attack, Zhou Tian struck back first.

He didn't even use a magic treasure; the man wasn't worthy of such effort. Zhou Tian simply opened his mouth and spat a stream of venom. The man clutched his nose and mouth, collapsed, and died within moments under the serpent's toxin.

Though Zhou Tian killed cleanly, this act brought him trouble. He was on someone else's turf; by ignoring the Venerable's decree and killing his subordinate, he had ensured that neither the Venerable nor his dark-aligned followers would let him go.

Without hesitation, the moment Zhou Tian killed the subordinate, the nearby dark practitioners, after a brief moment of shock, began shouting and charging toward him.

"Troublesome!" Zhou Tian sighed, shaking his head. Seeing the creatures rushing at him, he stepped forward to meet them.

Zhou Tian didn't like to stir up trouble, but that didn't mean he feared death. Since the Venerable had decreed that all outsiders be killed, it was clear he held deep animosity toward them. Since a conflict was inevitable, killing one or slaughtering the entire faction made little difference to Zhou Tian. Why bother avoiding them?

Besides, why had he come to the Black Blood Plateau? Without combat, how could he break through his current realm? Since he needed a fight, he needed enemies. Now that the Venerable had walked right into his trap, Zhou Tian saw no reason to be polite.

Even without using his treasures, Zhou Tian's melee combat prowess was far beyond what these dark practitioners could handle. He had invested heavily in his strength attribute, and every punch he threw was now as powerful as his true form's attacks. Given the size of the territory the Venerable held, Zhou Tian estimated this faction was among the weakest on the Black Blood Plateau.

To an average outsider, a petty warlord like Venerable Joy was a formidable giant, a local snake. Even a mercenary group of similar strength would have less than a ten percent chance of winning against him in this terrain. Unfortunately for the Venerable, his gatekeeper had provoked an enemy he could not handle. Had Zhou Tian not been provoked, the Venerable could have continued his reign; but since Zhou Tian had chosen to strike, the downfall of the faction was at hand.

As Zhou Tian slaughtered the creatures, the Venerable, having received word, rushed over. As a leader, he held power but also bore responsibilities. If he weren't the ruler here, he could have ignored Zhou Tian's actions, but because the disturbance was happening on his land, he had no choice.

If Zhou Tian could kill people on his turf and walk away unscathed, the Venerable would lose his authority. If he wouldn't even stand up when someone came to wreck his house, who would follow him? He knew this well, so even though he knew Zhou Tian was dangerous, he gritted his teeth and confronted him.

"Stop!" the Venerable shouted as he arrived.

Unfortunately, Zhou Tian ignored him completely, continuing to cull the subordinates. Distracted by the shout, many of the followers lost focus, allowing Zhou Tian to kill another batch with ease.

If the Venerable had initially intended to assess the situation, he now abandoned all such thoughts. He had been ignored. In his position, he had never been treated this way. Regardless of whether they were stronger or weaker, everyone on the Black Blood Plateau gave him some face. To be treated with such disdain by some nobody from who knows where was intolerable.

Stimulated by the insult, the Venerable attacked.

Although Zhou Tian had not unleashed his full power, the Venerable realized that his subordinates could not take him down—at least not without sacrificing nine-tenths of their number. He was unwilling to pay such a price. Thus, despite his fury, he decided to handle Zhou Tian himself.

He did not realize that what Zhou Tian had displayed was only a fraction of his true capability. Since the Venerable assumed he had seen everything, he was walking toward his own doom.

Seeing the Venerable charge, Zhou Tian was momentarily stunned before a devious smile spread across his face. Since the Venerable misunderstood his strength, there was no need to correct him. Zhou Tian pretended to be oblivious, continuing to kill the subordinates as if he hadn't noticed the leader approaching.

The Venerable grew suspicious. Did this man not know who he was? Was he not afraid of death to be so careless?

"Does he really not recognize me?" The battlefield allowed no time for reflection. Despite his confusion, the Venerable could not stop his momentum. As he closed in, he abandoned his doubts and unleashed his full power, striking with Saint-level Dou Qi.

"Clang!"

Zhou Tian didn't know if a demigod could break the Cloud Net Immortal Armor, but in all his time, he had never encountered a Saint who could. If those outside couldn't break it, neither could the Venerable.

Influenced by Zhou Tian's apparent carelessness, the Venerable had put his entire strength into this blow. Because he had committed fully without leaving himself a retreat, he could not retract the attack. If he had killed Zhou Tian, it would be fine, but since he hadn't, he had effectively sealed his own fate.

Zhou Tian had waited long and risked taking a hit precisely to create this opening. Now that the opportunity was here, he would not waste it.

As the Venerable realized his mistake and attempted to retreat, Zhou Tian struck back. He summoned the Fan Tian Seal. Before the Venerable could dodge, the seal descended upon his head.

The power of the Fan Tian Seal was not to be trifled with. Had Zhou Tian's own strength not limited it, he could have used it to slaughter gods. Even though it wasn't at full capacity, it was still far beyond what a Saint could withstand. Upon impact, the Venerable couldn't even put up a decent defense; he died instantly under the weight of the seal.

Everything happened too fast. The subordinates, who had expected Zhou Tian to die, were stunned. The sudden, unexpected turn of events caused their expressions to shift drastically.

But once they realized what had happened, their response was swift. It wasn't the reaction of typical practitioners; it was distinctly characteristic of the Black Blood Plateau.

Elsewhere, if a leader were killed, his subordinates might seek revenge or at least shout threats before fleeing. But these dark practitioners merely paused in shock for a moment. Once they realized the outcome, they showed no desire for revenge. Instead, they immediately fell to their knees before Zhou Tian.