Chapter 1819: Shaking the Heavens

Wang Da, brimming with vigor despite being captured, swept his cold, golden-lantern-like eyes over the figures before him.

His hair was streaked with gray and white, marking his ancient age. Who was he? The eldest son of Wang Changsheng! Born before the dawn of antiquity, his cultivation was unfathomably profound.

Many feared him, and few in the Nine Heavens dared provoke him—his origins were too formidable!

Yet here was such a powerhouse, thrown to the ground and captured alive, stunning everyone present!

No one knew exactly when, but he had long been a peak-level expert of the Dunyi Realm, his cultivation so profound that his name shook the world.

How could such a mighty figure be subdued and hurled into the hall without terrifying the onlookers?

“Who are you?” Wang Da’s voice was icy as he glared at Shi Hao, both shocked and furious. The Wang Clan was a lineage of immortality, and his father was hailed as invincible across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

By all accounts, the Wang Clan was now the most revered family in the world. Unless the immortals of the Celestial Realm intervened, who would dare provoke them?

Yet now, standing before him was Shi Hao—a figure he couldn’t pierce through.

Having reached the Supreme Venerable Realm, Shi Hao’s aura was vast enough to swallow the stars. He stood there calmly, shrouded in an enigmatic mist of the Great Dao.

In truth, there was no mist—it was simply that his cultivation was too profound for outsiders to perceive. Any attempt to probe him with divine sense would be obliterated by the Dao’s laws.

Such was the might of a Supreme Venerable. If they chose not to reveal themselves, even standing right before you, you wouldn’t recognize them.

Wang Da, however, clung to hope, believing Shi Hao was merely a Quasi-Supreme Venerable. He refused to accept that this was a true Supreme Venerable, sensing instead a youthful vitality that suggested Shi Hao couldn’t be too ancient.

Shi Hao stepped forward, looking down at Wang Da, who bristled at the disrespect—no one had dared treat him so dismissively in years!

Wang Da leapt to his feet, but crimson liquid trickled from his lips. He was injured, and severely!

“Fellow Daoist, you are far too overbearing. This is a border fortress—not a place for you to act recklessly!” Wang Da growled.

Shi Hao knew his temperament well. Arrogant and self-assured, Wang Da had once tried to kill him on a whim. His temper was infamous.

“Overbearing? How does that compare to your Wang Clan? A mere grandson of your family dared to order us to kneel and beg for punishment!” Shi Hao retorted.

Earlier, Wang Tian, the eldest grandson of the Wang Clan, had indeed sent two gray-robed servants to capture Cao Yusheng and the others, demanding they kneel in submission.

“Youngsters are hot-headed—that’s understandable. Why must you, Fellow Daoist, stoop to their level?” Wang Da said.

Though hot-tempered, he knew when to tread carefully. The man before him was too mysterious, his strength terrifyingly profound. Wang Da had no desire to escalate things here.

“I, too, have a temper. If someone slaps me, I can only kick back,” Shi Hao said calmly.

He held no goodwill toward the Wang Clan, especially the Nine Dragons. They had tried to kill him multiple times, once even storming the Celestial Deity Academy when the Grand Elder was absent, nearly taking his life.

Now, having emerged from seclusion as a Supreme Venerable, he would neither retreat nor flee from them.

“Friend, let’s let bygones be bygones, shall we?” Wang Da said, his gaze dark.

Cao Yusheng scoffed. “Old man, you’re truly full of yourself. Even now, you refuse to apologize, thinking you can just walk away? Planning to gather your brothers and your father to ambush us later?”

Wang Da shot him a frigid glare, his eyes deep and icy. An ordinary man would have died under such a gaze.

But with Shi Hao present, no harm could befall them. His presence was like a gentle spring breeze, neutralizing all threats.

“Tian’er, come here!” Wang Da called.

Wang Tian, his son and the Wang Clan’s eldest grandson, was a prodigy of immense strength. Yet now, he trembled on the ground, unable to rise—crushed by the aura of a Supreme Venerable.

The humiliation turned Wang Da’s face ashen.

He had called, but Wang Tian remained pinned.

“Fellow Daoist, you go too far! Even if Tian’er acted disrespectfully, he never succeeded in harming you. Must you be so relentless?!” Wang Da roared, his temper flaring.

Shi Hao remained silent, watching him. Memories of being looked down upon by the Nine Dragons, of narrowly escaping death, surged within him. Now, he stood unafraid.

The world changed swiftly. The young cultivator of yesteryear had risen beyond their reach.

“Still unwilling to let this go?” Wang Da’s voice was icy. “Wang Tian is the eldest grandson, beloved by my father. By humiliating him, are you declaring war on the Wang Clan?”

Wang Da’s anger surged. Though he recognized Shi Hao’s superiority, he refused to believe the man would dare cross the line.

His confidence stemmed from the Wang Clan’s rising dominance—his father’s power had grown monstrous, and they had forged ties with both the Celestial Realm’s great families and even the creatures of darkness.

With the “Pacification Art” in their grasp, even ancient factions of the Celestial Realm coveted their favor. Some had even promised them entry into the Celestial Realm.

Thus, the Wang Clan had grown increasingly arrogant.

Wang Da was unafraid. Unless Shi Hao was a creature of darkness, he believed the man would make the “wise” choice.

“Are you threatening me?” Shi Hao asked mildly.

“Release Tian’er, and this ends here!” Wang Da snapped, not denying it.

His confidence came from spotting allies in the tavern—members of a powerful Celestial Realm family who nodded and smiled at him.

With them present, he was certain Shi Hao wouldn’t dare act rashly.

They had sought the “Pacification Art” and actively courted the Wang Clan. Now, with the Wang Clan in trouble, they wouldn’t stand idly by.

Shi Hao chuckled.

“What’s so funny?” Wang Da glowered.

“I laugh at your ignorance. Even now, you dare threaten me,” Shi Hao said, his lips curling in mockery.

“What if I do? Will you release him or not?!” Wang Da’s fury boiled over.

His temper had always been his downfall. Once, he had even dared to bare fangs at the Grand Elder, relying on his father’s might. Now, with Celestial Realm allies, he remained defiant.

*Slap!*

Without a word, Shi Hao backhanded Wang Da, sending blood and teeth flying as he crashed into a wall.

Enraged, Wang Da leapt up, unleashing forbidden arts in a desperate assault.

But as he clashed with Shi Hao, his body convulsed violently, as if on the verge of exploding.

Wang Da’s heart sank. He had thought Shi Hao a Quasi-Supreme Venerable, slightly stronger than himself. Now, he realized the man had likely stepped into that supreme realm.

“Interesting. The so-called Nine Dragons have some tricks,” Shi Hao mused.

*Bam!*

This time, a kick sent Wang Da vomiting blood. Despite his profound techniques, he was utterly outmatched.

Wang Da far surpassed ordinary peak Dunyi cultivators—his body was engraved with a mystical formation, as were his eight brothers’. Together, they were invincible.

Shi Hao had learned of this at the borderlands, but now, facing Wang Da directly, he understood its depth.

Remarkable!

Against an ordinary foe, Shi Hao’s mere aura would immobilize them.

But the outcome remained unchanged.

*Boom!*

Shi Hao’s fist reduced Wang Da to a bloody mist, shocking the onlookers.

No one had expected him to strike lethally.

*Sizzle!*

The blood and bone fragments glowed as Wang Da’s body reformed instantly. Disheveled and ghastly, he stared at Shi Hao with terror.

“Impressive. Quite the trick,” Shi Hao acknowledged.

The formation within Wang Da’s body had thwarted death, allowing rapid recovery.

If two or three of the Nine Dragons stood together, their formations would synergize, becoming even more terrifying. Shi Hao grasped this now.

“You’re in luck,” the little dog said to Cao Yusheng. “You’ve got formations engraved in you too, right? If we transplant all nine formations from the Nine Dragons into you… well, you might just ascend through them!”

“Then I’ll give you a gift,” Shi Hao said, stepping forward and kicking Wang Da again, leaving him coughing blood and immobilized.

The tavern’s patrons trembled, some girls covering their mouths in shock. This man was fearless, unbothered by the Wang Clan’s might.

“Fellow Daoist, mercy begets mercy,” a voice finally interjected—members of the Celestial Realm’s Hong Family stepped forward, shielding Wang Da.

“The Wang Clan insulted me first. Is it wrong to punish them?” Shi Hao asked.

“Regardless of your grievances, cease now. You may leave,” a white-robed youth said arrogantly.

“Fellow Daoist, let’s end this peacefully,” an elder added, more measured.

Shi Hao eyed the elder. “Your words are fair. But this youth seems rather presumptuous.”

“Must my Hong Family of the Celestial Realm beg to protect someone?” the youth sneered.

Shi Hao smiled faintly. “These are my captives. None shall interfere.”

These weren’t even True Immortals, yet they dared order him around? If need be, he’d suppress them all and retreat to the lower realm with his prisoners.

“Do you oppose the Hong Family?” another demanded coldly.

Before Shi Hao could respond, the little dog spoke up. “The Hong Family? I once took a pet from your lineage in the Celestial Realm. Could it be yours?”

“You damned mutt—!” the white-robed youth spat, livid.

“Let me test this,” the dog muttered, shaking a bell from its neck.

*Ding-a-ling…*

Instantly, the Hong Family members collapsed, writhing in agony as cursed symbols flared across their bodies.

“It *is* that Hong Family! The curse I branded into my pet’s bloodline passed down. Heh!” the dog cackled.

“Ah—!” they screamed.

When the bell stopped, one knelt trembling. “Y-you… are that lord?”

Everyone was stupefied. Even the thickest-skinned among them stood frozen in shock.