Everyone was stunned, rising abruptly from the pavilion to face Shi Hao.
No one had expected the Desolate One to be so domineering, directly provoking them with such audacity. The severed head of the young master from the noble clan rolled on the ground, sending chills down their spines.
“Ah—!”
The young noble screamed in terror. His remaining head, deliberately left intact by Shi Hao, rolled beside the pavilion, writhing in agony as he was forced to witness everything.
Shi Hao, brimming with killing intent, activated the divine ability of shrinking the earth to a single step, closing the distance in an instant. His cold gaze locked onto every creature within the pavilion.
On a jade platter lay several children, no older than three or four, sealed and unable to move or speak. Their eyes were filled with sheer terror, as if they were on the verge of dying from fright.
Shi Hao had seen many vicious beasts, but none like this—elegant in appearance, resembling a refined and handsome youth, yet when feeding, they revealed monstrous, blood-drenched maws, a sight both horrifying and grotesque.
“Desolate One, this is not the Imperial Pass! You are in our domain—how dare you act so recklessly?” someone roared.
**Boom!**
Shi Hao responded with a single punch. His eyes were icy, his fist condensed with terrifying divine light, piercing straight through the man’s body. The victim shrieked as he was sent flying, exploding upon impact with the ground—only his head remained, rolling away.
It wasn’t that Shi Hao couldn’t kill them outright. He left them alive deliberately, forcing them to watch and taste the dread of impending death.
The pavilion housed eight or nine individuals, all ruthless killers who never batted an eye at slaughter. Yet now, faced with Shi Hao, they panicked, their usual composure shattered.
Only the refined man referred to as the “Imperial Son-in-Law” remained calm, still chewing slowly, swallowing his meal before dabbing the blood at the corners of his lips with a silk handkerchief.
“Desolate One, do you even comprehend what you’re doing?” he questioned coldly.
Behind them, the little girl beside the elderly woman had already burst into tears. Had Shi Hao not intervened, she would have suffered the same fate—devoured alive.
“Desolate One, don’t act rashly!” another in the pavilion shouted, his voice trembling despite his attempt at intimidation.
“You’ve reached a critical juncture in your cultivation, requiring the special bloodline of humans—and yet you resort to such cruelty?” Shi Hao’s voice was frigid.
If it were mere beasts, it would be one thing. But this was a humanoid being, elegant and composed, publicly feasting on living children—the contrast was too monstrous to ignore.
It was precisely for this reason that Shi Hao, witnessing it firsthand, resolved to strike with thunderous fury. In his eyes, this so-called Imperial Son-in-Law was a monster beyond redemption.
“These children are so young—how can you bear to devour them so brutally?” Shi Hao demanded.
Through his senses, he discerned that these children were born with peculiar bones, their bloodlines extraordinary. They would have grown into so-called “Primordials,” innately wielding a divine treasure art.
Yet these innocent, helpless souls had been reduced to mere food, destined to be consumed alive.
“I’ll give you one chance—turn around and leave. This is none of your concern. These are **my** meals,” the Imperial Son-in-Law declared.
The young noble from earlier had clearly sought to curry favor by offering the little girl.
“Who do you think you are, offering **me** a chance?” Shi Hao sneered, clenching his fist, ready to strike again.
“Desolate One, stop! Do not escalate this!” The gray-robed elder following behind urgently transmitted a mental message, urging restraint.
Shi Hao demanded to know the refined man’s origins. The elder revealed that this was the Imperial Son-in-Law of the Imperial Clan—and worse, he was tied to the most ruthless lineage: the Scarlet King’s bloodline.
“His betrothed is Chi Meng Hong’s sister!” the gray-robed man warned.
Chi Meng Hong, the Scarlet King’s most outstanding descendant of this generation, had once been tempered alongside Shi Hao in the Yin-Yang Crucible, his cultivation transcendent.
And Chi Meng Hong had always sought Shi Hao’s death.
Now, this Imperial Son-in-Law before them was connected to the Scarlet King’s lineage.
Chi Meng Hong’s sister, as a direct descendant of the Imperial Clan, held the status of a princess—making this man’s identity terrifying in its own right.
“Desolate One, you must realize your predicament now. Step back,” someone in the pavilion taunted, mistaking Shi Hao’s silence for fear.
The commotion had already drawn attention. Many beings on the distant mountain path had witnessed the scene.
“Must I kill you one by one?” Shi Hao finally spoke.
The speaker in the pavilion paled, stumbling back in regret, shadows of fear clouding his heart.
“Desolate One, you overstep. These are **my** meals. By what right do you interfere?” the Imperial Son-in-Law sneered.
“I am human. Seeing such savagery, how could I not act?” Shi Hao retorted.
“You think just because you’re human, you can interfere? But humans **are** my food. It is their fate to be eaten. Can you stop it all?” The Imperial Son-in-Law laughed mockingly.
“If you see humans as prey, then I see **you** as my quarry. I care not for where we stand or what consequences follow. Since you refuse to repent—**die!**” Shi Hao’s voice was steel.
Everyone gasped. The Desolate One was truly about to strike.
**Clang!**
The Imperial Son-in-Law moved first, summoning a golden blade that cleaved through the heavens, its edge trailing divine chains of order as it slashed toward Shi Hao.
He believed that even if he couldn’t win, reinforcements would arrive soon—the mountain was teeming with experts. All he needed was to hold out.
But the outcome defied all expectations.
Shi Hao caught the divine blade between two fingers. With a crisp **snap**, he shattered it effortlessly.
What kind of monstrous strength was this?
**Boom!**
The Imperial Son-in-Law was indeed powerful, erupting with radiant light as multiple secret arts surged toward Shi Hao.
**Splat!**
Yet Shi Hao moved like an indestructible golden deity, piercing through the ancestral techniques to appear before the Imperial Son-in-Law—ripping off one of his arms.
The onlookers were stunned. Though they had braced themselves for Shi Hao’s might, witnessing it firsthand was still shocking.
“Ah—!” The Imperial Son-in-Law screamed, his face ashen. Never had he imagined he’d be so thoroughly outmatched.
**Splat!**
Shi Hao struck again. Despite the Imperial Son-in-Law’s desperate resistance, eight exchanges later, his body exploded—only his head remained.
“This is disastrous! You’ve provoked something terrible!” the gray-robed man transmitted urgently. The Scarlet King’s lineage was not to be trifled with.
Shi Hao ignored him, stepping forward to crush the young noble’s head beneath his foot, blood splattering as the trapped soul dissipated into ash.
**Splat!**
Another light sound followed as Shi Hao crushed another surviving head.
“Don’t act recklessly! Chi Meng Hong’s sister is to be my dao companion! You—!” the so-called Imperial Son-in-Law howled in terror.
“So you’re not even the Imperial Son-in-Law yet. Even if you were—did you think that would save you now? I’ll send you to the afterlife all the same!”
**Splat!**
Shi Hao stomped, shattering the man’s skull. The Imperial Son-in-Law was no more.
Silence.
Every being present was dumbstruck, unable to process the sheer audacity. In mere moments, Shi Hao had executed them all with ruthless efficiency.
This was beyond bold—this was **tyrannical**.
**Boom!**
Only after a pause did the crowd erupt into chaos. The Desolate One had truly crossed a line, daring to slaughter even a figure tied to the Scarlet King’s bloodline.
“Desolate One, you’ve invoked catastrophe!” the gray-robed man shouted, shaken to his core.
“The Desolate One has slain the Scarlet King’s prospective son-in-law!”
“Heavens! An Imperial Son-in-Law, killed just like that!”
In moments, the news spread like wildfire, a storm of shock and fury.
Meanwhile, Shi Hao continued ascending the mountain, step by step, nearing the summit. The elderly woman and the little girl followed, their expressions complex yet relieved.
Below, the repercussions of his actions were already unfolding like a tempest.
But Shi Hao had already reached the mountain’s peak, where a hazy glow emanated—the radiance of an immortal herb.
In the distance, an immortal tree stood rooted at the summit, its crystalline form exuding a sacred, soothing light.
“Desolate One! You’ve slain a member of the Imperial Clan?!” a voice roared from above.
“And what of it?” Shi Hao replied, his steps unwavering, his presence only growing more formidable.
“The Imperial Clan will **never** let this stand!”
“Then let them come!” Shi Hao declared.
Today, most of those present were youths. Was the Desolate One truly prepared to wage war here, to paint the mountain red with blood?
The thought sent shivers down countless spines.
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