"What happened here? Who did this?"
Fu Xiaojie's death was truly horrifying. Though every person present was ruthless—each had blood on their hands, each carried the weight of lives taken—seeing this sight still sent chills down their spines.
Because Fu Xiaojie was a Xuan Wu Realm first-stage expert. Who could kill him so quickly, in such a cruel manner? He hadn't even managed a single scream. How terrifying must the killer be?
"Swish, swish, swish."
Just then, three aged figures emerged from the deep forest behind the crowd—these were the elder figures who had been secretly protecting the younger generation.
The three had heard someone cry out, so they'd already suspected something was wrong. Upon seeing the scene before them, their brows knitted together and their expressions changed drastically.
"Elders, thank goodness you've come. There's danger inside Hundred Bend Valley!" Gong Luyun and the others hurriedly rushed over when they saw the three old men.
Though these three elders hailed from different sects, each possessed Xuan Wu Realm fifth-stage cultivation. Such strength was already formidable across the entire Qingzhou, so when they appeared, the terrified Core Disciples looked upon them as saviors.
"Who dares do such a thing?" one of the elders roared toward the direction from which Fu Xiaojie's body had flown.
*Shhh, shhh, shhh.* No sooner had his words fallen than the sound of slow, deliberate footsteps began to echo. Someone was approaching from the dark woods.
At that moment, everyone's hearts leaped into their throats. Gong Luyun and the others all positioned themselves behind the three elders, eyes locked on the path ahead, for they knew the culprit who had brutally murdered Fu Xiaojie was about to reveal himself.
And under the gaze of all, Chu Feng slowly walked out of the forest. He had already changed his attire—he now wore that gray Spirit World robe and had drawn upon Egg's power, radiating the majesty of a Xuan Wu Realm expert.
He was no longer the humble young man Chu Feng, but rather the figure who had risen to fame across all of Qingzhou in a short span of time: the Gray-Robed Gentleman.
"You... who are you?!!!"
Upon seeing Chu Feng, not just the disciples but even the three elders' expressions shifted dramatically. One after another, they recalled the mysterious gray-robed man who had annihilated the Shangguan family some time ago—the Gray-Robed Gentleman.
"This senior... might you be the Gray-Robed Gentleman?" One of the elders stepped forward and bowed respectfully to Chu Feng.
*Boom!* But Chu Feng said nothing. He simply raised his hand and struck—a single palm that unleashed devastating force. The Xuan Wu fifth-stage elder, caught completely off guard, was instantly reduced to a puddle of blood that exploded before everyone's eyes.
*Boom!* After the first strike, Chu Feng launched another palm. Likewise, another person was obliterated into a spray of blood, dead without hope.
"This senior, we have no grudge against you! Why would you attack us?"
"Uwaah—!" someone shouted desperately, but before he could finish, Chu Feng's palm struck him as well, and he burst apart in an explosion of gore.
After that, Chu Feng unleashed several more palms, each one delivering absolute, overwhelming force. With every strike, someone perished.
None of the people present could resist—they couldn't even dodge. They could only watch helplessly as their bodies were torn apart, not even a whole corpse remaining.
"Run!!!» Finally, someone came to their senses as blood sprayed across their body, turning to flee.