Chapter 16: The Annihilation of the Divine

“Are you coming to kill me?”

Su Baichen lightly tapped his fingers on the desk and nodded slightly. “You managed to grasp a hint of the realm while still at the True Martial stage, and you slew Zhao Ling by surpassing your level. You do have some talent. If given a few more years, it wouldn’t be impossible for you to kill Zhao Tianlei. The question is whether our Su family has that much time left.”

Su Xin’s expression grew serious.

The crisis facing the Su family now wasn’t just the malignant tumor led by Zhao Tianlei. The greater threat came from outside—such as the Pang family, who shared the same district, and the Situ family, who had been covertly supporting the Pang family and continuously suppressing the Su family through various means over the past three years.

The Situ family was a top powerhouse within the Tianyan Dynasty, their overall strength and foundation even surpassing that of the Su family before its decline.

If not for their fear that the Su family’s ancestor might have left behind some trump card, the Situ family would have long since taken action to wipe out the Su family entirely.

“Enough. Don’t think too much about it. Just focus on your cultivation.”

Su Baichen spoke gently. “During today’s competition, you managed to kill Zhao Ling only after he unleashed the Mad Demon Blade and you counterattacked. No matter how much Zhao Tianlei resents you, he wouldn’t dare to confront you openly. What you must be wary of are the hidden tactics behind the scenes.”

“I will also keep an eye on things for you. At least within the family, he won’t find an opportunity to strike.”

“Thank you, Father,” Su Xin said.

“All right, go back and remain secluded,” Su Baichen waved his hand.

Su Xin respectfully bowed and then turned to leave.

After Su Xin departed, a meaningful smile appeared on Su Baichen’s face.

“This boy is hiding quite deeply. He’s already awakened his bloodline but hasn’t mentioned a word about it?” Su Baichen chuckled softly.

The reason Su Xin was able to kill Zhao Ling today, besides his exceptional swordsmanship, was primarily due to the power of his bloodline.

However, bloodline power is triggered internally and is quite subtle. Even with so many people present in the training grounds, including Yuan Qing, the overseer of the Red Dragon Pavilion, no one could see through it directly. They only thought Su Xin possessed some unusual technique, hence his astonishing burst of strength.

After all, in the martial world, there are all kinds of fortuitous encounters—special cultivation methods, rare treasures, and even peculiar external artifacts—that can enable a martial artist’s explosive power to far exceed others of the same level.

Only Su Baichen could see at a glance that Su Xin was relying on his bloodline power.

“To enable someone at the peak of the ninth stage to instantly unleash strength surpassing even the peak of the tenth stage, reaching the threshold of the Transformation Sea realm—that kind of bloodline must be at least a top second-grade. Whether his bloodline has crossed into the first-grade realm, I’m not sure,” Su Baichen smiled faintly.

But suddenly, his brow furrowed, crimson veins appearing in his eyes, and blue veins twitching on his forehead. His expression twisted in pain.

He hurriedly took out a jade bottle from his robe, from which rolled out a scarlet pill exuding a strong metallic stench.

After swallowing the pill, Su Baichen’s expression eased somewhat.

...

Exiting the study, Su Xin exhaled deeply.

Since returning to the family, his father had not seen him, which made Su Xin worry whether his father still harbored resentment over the events three years ago, and if a rift had formed between them.

But today’s meeting made Su Xin realize that his father was still the same loving father who had never changed.

It was just that his father's love was not openly expressed on his face.

Indeed.

Which father in this world does not love their child dearly?

No matter how grievous the child's mistakes, a father’s reprimand is the most he can show; resentment is unheard of.

Returning to his courtyard—

“Hong Shan, Father ordered me to remain secluded in my room for ten days. During this time, you need only deliver my meals to the door punctually,” Su Xin instructed.

“Yes, Young Master,” Hong Shan nodded obediently.

Inside the room, Su Xin sat cross-legged on the bed.

“Zhao Tianlei’s cultivation has already broken through to mid-Transformation Void. Father thinks it will take me years to kill him, but Father doesn’t know that even now, I might already have the strength to annihilate him,” Su Xin’s eyes burned with a fierce killing intent.

Zhao Tianlei—he’s coming to kill me!

These were not empty words.

Even now...

“After awakening my bloodline, I obtained a bloodline inheritance cultivation technique and a forbidden art. The bloodline inheritance technique not only transformed my meridians and improved the quality of my spiritual power, allowing me to unleash greater strength, but also better fused my spiritual power with my bloodline strength.”

“As for the forbidden art...”

“Throughout history, the Eastern Wasteland has produced many bloodline awakeners. Many receive bloodline inheritance techniques upon awakening, but I have never heard of anyone granted a forbidden art. It must be unique to supreme bloodline awakeners. I wonder how effective it truly is?”

Su Xin’s heart brimmed with anticipation.

The next moment—

“Forbidden Art, Divine Annihilation!”

Hum—

With the forbidden art unleashed, Su Xin’s bloodline power—both the portion he could consciously control and the part he could not—blazed wildly at a terrifying speed.

His face flushed red, and he felt searing pain as if his internal organs were being roasted in fire. His body trembled uncontrollably.

As the bloodline power burned, his cultivation skyrocketed.

Once only at the peak of the True Martial ninth stage, he instantly soared to the peak of the True Martial tenth stage, then broke through the barrier to the Transformation Sea realm.

But even after reaching the Transformation Sea realm, the surge continued unabated.

From minor accomplishment to great accomplishment in the Transformation Sea realm, until finally reaching perfection, the growth ceased.

At this moment, Su Xin still felt as if flames burned within, but the pain had vanished, and his mind was clear.

“Transformation Sea Perfection!” Su Xin exclaimed in joy.

From the True Martial ninth stage to Transformation Sea Perfection, he had jumped several levels outright.

This was the Divine Annihilation forbidden art!

Moreover, Su Xin could sense that although his cultivation rose by burning bloodline power, it did not diminish the power bloodline strength contributed to his overall might.

Now, at Transformation Sea Perfection, with the bloodline inheritance cultivation method, his power rivaled that of a peak Transformation Sea expert. And when he unleashed his bloodline power, his strength alone reached the level of the Breaking Void realm!

“With this forbidden art, my combat power is truly at Breaking Void level,” Su Xin smiled.

Yet he knew this forbidden art could not last long.

He sat quietly, familiarizing himself with the power at Transformation Sea Perfection, then waited for the forbidden art to fade naturally.

Soon, the Divine Annihilation ceased, and Su Xin carefully measured the time.

“About fifty breaths since I activated the forbidden art before it stopped,” Su Xin frowned.

“That’s without engaging in combat, just normal passage of time. In a life-or-death battle where I’d be using sword techniques and other methods, the consumption would be greater. This forbidden art might only last thirty breaths at best.”

Thirty breaths—that was a bit brief.

But Su Xin was already satisfied, as it meant a leap of several levels in strength.

The only problem was, after the forbidden art ended, his spiritual power and bloodline power were completely depleted, leaving him in an unprecedentedly weak state.

“Side effect?” Su Xin sighed inwardly, though he had prepared for this.

An hour later, he recovered somewhat.

“Now, after using the Divine Annihilation forbidden art, relying on swordsmanship, I should be able to fight Zhao Tianlei evenly. But to kill him...” Su Xin shook his head.

Zhao Tianlei had reached mid-Breaking Void stage.

And Breaking Void experts wield extraordinary techniques.

Even with the forbidden art, one-on-one, he could not guarantee killing Zhao Tianlei. Moreover, with only thirty breaths of power before weakness set in, if he failed to kill Zhao Tianlei within that time, he would be the one to die.

However, Zhao Tianlei wouldn’t return to the family for a while, giving Su Xin time to strengthen himself.

For the next ten days, Su Xin remained secluded in his room, diligently cultivating.

By the third day, as he expected, his cultivation advanced from the peak of the True Martial ninth stage to the True Martial tenth stage.

With this breakthrough, his strength naturally increased.

Soon, the ten days passed.

...

*Creak!*

Su Xin stepped out of his room, squinting at the dazzling sunlight and stretching lazily.

“Young Master,” Hong Shan stood respectfully to the side. “During your ten days of seclusion, Miss Yu Ning and Young Master Su Ming both came seeking you. Finding you secluded, they left. Also, Zhao Qing from the guest faction left the family on the first day of your seclusion, reportedly carrying Zhao Ling’s corpse to Tianshui City to find his father, Zhao Tianlei.”

“Zhao Qing took Zhao Ling’s body to Tianshui City?” Su Xin smiled coldly. “Has Zhao Tianlei returned?”

“No,” Hong Shan shook her head.

“Just as Father said,” Su Xin sighed softly. “Zhao Tianlei still endures.”

“Hong Shan, let’s take a walk,” Su Xin said.

“Yes,” Hong Shan nodded.

Inside the Su family, Su Xin and Hong Shan strolled casually.

“Young Master!”

“Clan Brother Su Xin!”

“Su Xin, your seclusion is over?”

As they passed by, many Su family maids, servants, younger members, and even some elders greeted Su Xin warmly.

Compared to more than half a month ago, when he first returned home, the atmosphere was completely different.

This brought Su Xin immense comfort; he hadn’t felt the warmth of family in a long time.

Soon, they arrived at a training ground where many Su family disciples gathered, sparring and honing their skills.

Su Xin immediately spotted a strikingly heroic and beautiful figure among them.

“Hong Shan, let’s leave quickly,” Su Xin said as he prepared to depart.

Just then—

“Su Xin, stop right there!” a sharp, commanding voice rang out.

Su Xin stiffened and turned awkwardly toward the speaker.

“Ning, Sister Ning,” Su Xin’s lips twitched slightly.

In the current Su family, the person he feared encountering most was indeed this cousin of his.

...