Celestial 'War God' Return-Chapter 279: The Miao Clan

The day passed quickly, and evening had arrived.

Tang Xiao’s clone, who was cultivating in his inn room, suddenly heard heavy footsteps coming from outside. He stopped his cultivation, walked to the door, and listened to the footsteps. He heard the footsteps stop in front of Shen Ling’s room, so he went into the void to check on the person.

From within the void, Tang Xiao’s clone saw a tall, burly middle-aged man standing in front of Shen Ling’s room. He saw a cross scar on his left cheek, making him wonder whether he was a member of the Miao Clan or not.

Not long after, Shen Ling opened the door of her room, and the middle-aged man showed a gold plaque with the word "Miao" to her. "My name is Miao Han, and Ancestor Yusheng asked me to pick you up and bring you to our Miao Clan."

"What—"

"I’m a field officer from the Miao Clan, and I was assigned to pick you up, so I can’t decide anything for you. You should talk to my leaders about your problem yourself, and they will decide how to help you."

"I see," Shen Ling asked him. "How long will it take us to arrive at the Miao Clan, Senior?"

"Three to four hours." Miao Han turned to leave. "You should prepare now, and I will wait for you in front of the inn."

Shen Ling watched Miao Han leave, and his attitude made her feel that he was much different from her master. Since he was carrying the Miao Clan’s plaque, she didn’t feel suspicious of him, and she returned to his room to tidy up her things.

On the other hand, Tang Xiao’s clone left the inn, where he saw Miao Han summoning a flying beast. "What kind of beast is that?"

[The beast is an Azure Luan, Master. People say that Luan Beasts are descended from the Phoenix because their appearance is almost like a Phoenix, but this one is the most common of all Luan Beasts, and the most special is the Five-Colored Luan. Although this one is nothing special, it has a decent flying speed, so you have to think of something to follow them to the Miao Clan.]

Tang Xiao’s clone nodded slightly. "I’ve heard stories about the Luan Bird and the Phoenix, but this is my first time seeing a Luan Beast in person. Does that mean the Phoenix and the others also exist in this universe?"

[The Phoenix, the dragon, and the others once existed in this universe, Master.]

"What do you mean by that?"

[All mythical beasts, including phoenixes and dragons, have long since become extinct from this universe, Master.] Tang Xiao’s clone was shocked to hear that. [My old master has lived for tens of thousands of years, but he has never encountered a single living mythical beast. Instead, he has found many ruins and murals depicting their past existence. This Luan Beast looks big, but its size is nothing compared to the phoenix depicted in those murals. The giant beast recorded in the murals is Kunpeng, a fish that transforms into a massive bird whose wings span thousands of miles.]

Tang Xiao’s clone was not surprised to hear about Kunpeng because it was as described by many sites, but he was confused about the extinction of those mythical beasts. "How did they become extinct, Xiao Ai?"

[Master, I don’t have that information because my old master never discovered the reason behind the extinction of the mythical beasts. In this universe, there are some dragon-like beasts, like the flood dragons, but they aren’t true dragons, and their size is too small compared to true dragons.]

"Flood dragons, huh? I’d like to meet one in the future." Tang Xiao’s clone saw Shen Ling already walking out of the inn, and Miao Han took her away from the city, so he immediately followed them from within the void. "Damn! The Azure Luan’s speed is really fast!"

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Three hours later, Tang Xiao’s clone saw the Azure Luan enter the mountainous area, and it landed in front of a vast old residence located in the valley between the mountains.

Miao Han immediately helped Shen Ling get off his beast contract. "Miss Shen, you should go inside by yourself, and I’ll go carry out my other duties in another region."

"Thank you, Senior." After Miao Han left, Shen Ling looked at the old sign above the gate, which said "Miao" on the plaque. "Why did the Miao Clan choose to live in a place like this?"

Shen Ling shook her head slightly and walked into the residence, and an old female servant was already waiting for her there. "I will take you to our patriarch, Miss Shen."

"Thank you, Senior."

The woman shook her head at her. "Please don’t call me senior because I’m just one of the servants in this residence."

"Oh." Shen Ling nodded and followed the old female servant as she looked around the residence. Although the residence was ancient and located in a remote area, she could see the beauty of its surroundings, and the air there was much cooler and fresher than in the polluted city.

From within the void, Tang Xiao’s clone followed the two women. Just like Shen Ling, he enjoyed the beauty of the residence’s area, and he was thinking of building a similar residence in the future so his family could enjoy a quiet life without disturbance.

Although the ark was the safest place because no one could enter without his permission, and Xiao Ai could deactivate all the keys, Tang Xiao’s clone felt that it was not suitable for his permanent residence, especially after he had children in the future.

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Soon, Shen Ling arrived in front of the main hall, and the old female servant immediately went to another area, leaving her there.

Shen Ling took a few deep breaths before entering the main hall, where a middle-aged man and a middle-aged woman were already waiting for her. "Greetings, Senior."

"Are you really Ancestor Yusheng’s disciple?" The middle-aged woman asked her.

Shen Ling nodded at her. "I met my master five years ago in Europe, and he offered me to become his disciple at that time."

"I see." The middle-aged woman nodded slightly. "My name is Fei Yan, and the man next to me is my husband, Miao Cangyu."

Miao Cangyu asked her. "What exactly is your problem with the Tang Clan? Ancestor Yusheng asked me to help you investigate that clan, but he didn’t explain the details to me; instead, he asked me to ask you directly."

Shen Ling immediately explained to them about the problem between her family and the Tang Clan, and she suspected that people from that clan had killed both her parents and her brother.

The two exchanged glances after Shen Lin explained everything, and Fei Yan immediately spoke to her. "Honestly, I feel it’s only natural that the Tang Clan killed both your parents and your brother, Ling’er. If I were in their shoes, I would definitely do the same."

"But—"

"The late Tang Ye was not a cultivator because he was born without profound veins, but he was still a descendant of the Tang Clan." Shen Ling looked at Miao Cangyu with a complicated gaze. "Your father committed such an evil act against his wife, and your mother also supported his barbaric actions at that time, which ended with their deaths at the hands of your father’s friend. Your brother’s character was no less rotten than your father’s, and he tried to violate Tang Yin with his friends, but they failed because she tried to commit suicide."

Shen Ling knew that her parents’ and brother’s actions against the Tang family were indeed barbaric, but she was unwilling to accept their deaths because everything happened so suddenly. She wanted to find out their true killer before deciding her next course of action.

Miao Cangyu spoke to her again. "I’m not sure if Tang Huang killed them because he was previously in seclusion for seven years, and he wouldn’t dare kill those mortals with Wang Fuxi present in the outside world."

"You mean?"

"Yes." Fei Yan nodded to her. "Even though we haven’t investigated this matter, I’m sure that Tang Huang wasn’t the murderer of your parents and brother, and I’m sure their murderer was someone else who had direct ties to the Tang Clan."

"Could it be that Tang Yin killed them?" Shen Ling muttered softly.

Fei Yan thought for a moment before speaking to her. "I don’t know about the current situation with Tang Yin, but I’ve heard that her late parents forbade Tang Huang from teaching cultivation to their two children. For many years, he followed the wishes of his son and daughter-in-law, but he may have changed his mind after their deaths."

"What about Tang Ye’s son?"

"Tang Ye’s son, Tang Xiao, died in prison, Seniors." Shen Ling’s answer shocked Miao Cangyu and Fei Yan, and they thought that the Tang Clan would be finished because there was no longer a male heir. "He went to prison after being accused of forcibly violating several women, one of whom was Ouyang Qing. He was supposed to be released some time ago, but several inmates there ganged up on him, and he fell into a deep ravine."

"Did Tang Xiao really do something like that?" Fei Yan asked her. "I remember that Tantai Lingyan raised him from the age of five, and she was a strict woman, so I don’t believe that kid would do something like that."