"Who... who exactly are you?" Zhou Zhenghao stammered, his legs trembling so much that he couldn't even stand. His muscles twitched uncontrollably under the weight of overwhelming fear.

Xiao Tiance smiled at these words, squatting down in front of Zhou Zhenghao. He spoke slowly, "You want to know who I am? I'm just Xiao Tiance, really nothing special. I only established the Temple of the Gods, that's all. Nothing too impressive, just wiped out a few hundred foreign organizations on the battlefield. Compared to your Zhou family, it's nothing worth mentioning. Nothing worth mentioning at all. Your Zhou family is so powerful, after all—bullying my wife, harming my daughter, haha... haha... haha..."

As Xiao Tiance finished speaking, his voice turned icy cold. When Zhou Zhenghao heard Xiao Tiance admit his identity, his face went ashen with terror, and a foul-smelling liquid began to trickle down his pants. He had been scared out of his wits.

Stammering, Zhou Zhenghao pleaded, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I truly didn't know they were your wife and daughter. Please forgive me, I don't want to die. I really don't want to die."

Xiao Tiance looked at Zhou Zhenghao and said, "Do you really think you can survive? Or do you think that after bringing three thousand top warriors and dozens of war gods from the Temple of the Gods here, and being ready to clash head-on with the Dragon Nation's war department, I'd still let you go?"

After saying this, Xiao Tiance stood up, paused, and continued, "Of course, I can still give you a little more time to breathe, to savor the last bit of air in this world."

With that, Xiao Tiance turned and walked over to Shen Qingtian. He smiled at Shen Qingtian, who was so frightened that he struggled to stand up, lowering his head and saying with utmost respect, "Shen Qingtian greets Mr. Xiao. I was foolish before and made a big joke. Please, Mr. Xiao, don't hold it against me."

Shen Qingtian felt like crying inside. Was this the person his daughter had begged on her knees for him to come and rescue? Don’t be ridiculous! Xiao Tiance's power was overwhelming. This was the Temple of the Gods! A force that dominated countless miles of foreign lands, striking fear into the hearts of various alien races! And he was the master of the Temple of the Gods.

Honestly, at this moment, Shen Qingtian felt like crying for real. To think he had considered asking Xiao Tiance to leave earlier—now he felt utterly humiliated and had no choice but to lower his head even further.

As Shen Qingtian thought more about it, he even considered kneeling before Xiao Tiance, given how powerful Xiao Tiance’s identity was. Previously, he had only heard legends of Xiao Tiance; he never imagined the man himself would be standing right in front of him. Just as he was about to kneel, Xiao Tiance reached out and supported him.

Xiao Tiance said with a smile, "There's no need for formalities between us, Master Shen. Thank you for your help earlier. I’ll remember your kindness. From now on, Master Shen is a friend of our Temple of the Gods, so there’s no need to stand on ceremony. I’ll handle some matters first; please, take a rest."

Shen Qingtian quickly nodded, especially when he heard Xiao Tiance say that he was now a friend of the Temple of the Gods. Shen Qingtian was overjoyed, his entire body trembling with excitement. Tonight, the Zhou family was certainly doomed; even Jesus couldn’t save them in front of the master of the Temple of the Gods! And from now on, his Shen family would be the most powerful family in Qianjiang City!

No! With the friendship of the Temple of the Gods’ master, not to mention that his daughter and Xiao Tiance’s wife were best friends, what kind of glory would his Shen family achieve in the future? Shen Qingtian’s breathing grew heavier at the thought.

At this time, Shen Sihai, a high-ranking member of the Shen family who had betrayed them earlier, was so terrified by what he was witnessing that he soiled himself. His face turned deathly pale as he hurriedly knelt before Shen Qingtian, constantly bowing and pleading, "Big brother, I was wrong, I was wrong! It was all the Zhou family’s doing; they forced me, they forced me! Please, big brother, believe me, believe me!"

"Hmph!" Shen Qingtian snorted coldly, looking at him as if he were already dead. If you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place? Shen Qingtian had no intention of showing mercy to a traitor. With a single glance, a powerful Shen family member rushed over and snapped Shen Sihai’s neck.

As for Zhou Jie, Shen Qingtian didn’t even bother to look in his direction. A mere traitor, killing him was nothing. At this moment, Zhou Jie had collapsed again in the pigsty out of fear.

"I was wrong, I'm sorry, please spare me, please spare me. I don’t want to die. I’m not even thirty yet, I’m not married, and I have so many things I haven’t done. I’m not ready to die, I’m not ready!" Zhou Jie begged Xiao Tiance desperately, disregarding the filth in the pigsty as he knelt and kowtowed repeatedly.

Xiao Tiance's eyes flashed with killing intent as the scene of him rescuing his daughter last night replayed in his mind. In the next moment, he clenched his fist, and Zhou Jie’s body exploded into a mist of blood, leaving nothing behind. His body and soul were utterly destroyed, perhaps not even leaving him a chance to reincarnate.

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"You deserve to die! If I didn’t want to go back to see my daughter sooner, do you think I would have let you die so easily?" Xiao Tiance said coldly. Then he sat back in his chair as Tian Qi held an umbrella over him. Xiao Tiance’s eyes were fixed on Zhou Zhenghao, who was kneeling on the ground, looking ashen as if he were already dead.

Zhou Zhenghao had just watched his own son die before his eyes, his body reduced to nothing but a mist of blood. At this moment, beyond the sorrow, what he felt most was fear—fear of death. Yes, he had never imagined he would one day meet such an end.

He was a formidable figure in Qianjiang City. Over a decade ago, he had come to the city alone and built a vast empire within a few years. Even the once-dominant Shen family was crushed under his power; he had even broken the Shen family head’s spine! He himself was on the brink of becoming a five-star expert, perhaps even a war god! The Zhou family was on the verge of expanding out of Qianjiang to Tianhai City.

But now, all his grand ambitions were gone, and he would die. At this moment, Xiao Tiance's voice rang out, "Zhou Zhenghao, considering you were once a formidable figure, don’t say I didn’t give you a chance. End your own life."

As Xiao Tiance finished speaking, Tian Qi, who was standing behind him, tossed a dagger to Zhou Zhenghao, telling him to commit suicide. Zhou Zhenghao picked up the dagger from the ground but couldn't bring himself to do it.

The next moment, he hurriedly knelt in front of Xiao Tiance and begged, "Lord Xiao, I'm sorry, it was our Zhou family that was wrong. But you've already killed Zhou Jie, and I'm willing to give you all of the Zhou family's assets. Please, just spare my life."

After speaking, Zhou Zhenghao looked at Xiao Tiance with longing. He was a formidable figure in his time, and he really didn't want to die. If he died, everything would be gone, and all his grand ambitions would come to nothing.

Xiao Tiance looked at Zhou Zhenghao with interest, leaned forward slightly, and said, "Zhou Zhenghao, are you seeing things? The one I just killed was your own son!"

Zhou Zhenghao gritted his teeth and started kowtowing to Xiao Tiance, saying, "He deserved to die! He deserved to be killed! Lord Xiao, you did well to kill him. Even if you hadn't, I would have personally dealt with such trash myself! So, I beg you, Lord, please spare my life! I will serve you faithfully in the future!"

Xiao Tiance laughed and shook his head.

Bang! Zhou Zhenghao was in despair, blood streaming down from his forehead, unable to overcome the fear in his heart. Just then, a group of top-tier, fully armed experts rushed up the mountain. Leading them was a man who bore some resemblance to Zhou Zhenghao—it was Zhou Fei, the Zhou family's strongest warrior outside of the family.

Seeing Zhou Fei arrive, Zhou Zhenghao hurriedly said to him, "Fei'er, save us, save us! You're part of the Long Nation's War Department; if they dare kill you, it means they're declaring war on the War Department! Save your father, save me, and you'll be the head of the Zhou family in the future!"

"Oh? So you managed to plant someone in the War Department too?" Xiao Tiance smiled with interest as he saw Zhou Fei appear. Of course, Zhou Fei was deliberately allowed up the mountain by Xiao Tiance; otherwise, with just the dozen or so men Zhou Fei brought, they wouldn't have been able to make it up here.

Tian Qi's expression changed, and he said to Xiao Tiance, "Big brother, I'm sorry."

"Heh, no matter. I let Zhou Fei come up; otherwise, he wouldn't even have had the chance," Xiao Tiance said, waving his hand.

Then he looked at Zhou Fei, who clearly possessed the strength of a five-star top-tier warrior, and said, "Go ahead, what do you want to do? Let me be clear first: I will kill the Zhou family members."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fei glanced at Xiao Tiance, then trembled and turned pale. The next moment, he coughed up a mouthful of blood, because just then, the gaze of four Heavenly King-level experts from the Heavenly God Palace fell upon him, severely injuring him in an instant.

But Zhou Fei still gritted his teeth and, despite the overwhelming pressure, said to Xiao Tiance, "Lord Xiao! This is the Long Nation! Not some foreign land!"

"Oh? So what? Do you think I can't kill your Zhou family members? Or do you think I don't dare kill you? Hmm?" Xiao Tiance looked at Zhou Fei with interest. He had to admit, Zhou Fei had a sense of righteousness, but unfortunately, he had backed the wrong side.

Zhou Fei gritted his teeth and said, "Yes! I'm betting that you won't dare kill me!"

Xiao Tiance laughed, louder and louder, and at that moment, he stopped looking at Zhou Fei. Instead, he turned his gaze toward an empty space nearby and said calmly, "Have you seen enough? I'd like to know if Zhou Fei's words represent your stance?"

As Xiao Tiance finished speaking, his eyes narrowed, and his aura began to rise. He had already known that a powerful expert beyond the level of a War God had entered the area. Judging by the iron-blooded aura coming from the other side, this was one of the hidden masters within the Long Nation. He had been waiting for this person to appear; after all, the Heavenly God Palace had fully assembled within the Long Nation, and it would have been strange if the nation's hidden experts didn't show up.

As Xiao Tiance's words fell, the four Heavenly King-level experts from the Heavenly God Palace—Slaughter, Battle, Darkness, and Destruction—also locked onto that location with their immense auras.

The next moment, a thunderous explosion rang out, and two powerful figures with overwhelming auras emerged from that empty space. The one leading had graying hair and was dressed in a black coat. This was Long Zhanguo, the top expert within the Long Nation. Behind him was Wan Tianxue, who also exuded an aura at the peak of the War God level.

As Long Zhanguo stepped forward, Xiao Tiance continued to smile at him and said, "Long Zhanguo, the most powerful man within the Long Nation." Xiao Tiance's eyes narrowed further.

As Xiao Tiance finished speaking, the atmosphere in the area became extremely tense. Zhou Zhenghao, Zhou Fei, Shen Qingtian, and the others were all terrified once again. They never expected that the strongest man within the Long Nation would show up today.