Tarthocas : Chronicles of the Transmigrating Scribe

The room was silent for a heartbeat, the elders too stunned to react, until one of them suddenly regained his composure. Without warning, the elder dashed towards Ling Xuan, his movements swift and desperate.

SWOOSH!

The wooden boards beneath the old man exploded into splinters as he launched himself at Ling Xuan, who remained unfazed, smirking with an air of superiority.

“Fools,” Ling Xuan muttered, almost bored.

BOOM!

In an instant, before the other elders could even process what had happened, the attacking elder was sent hurtling backward. The force of the impact was so great that it nearly sent him crashing through the wall. He managed to stabilise himself, feet dragging across the floor as he skidded to a halt.

But the momentary reprieve was short-lived.

SPLURT!

The old man suddenly began to cough violently, blood and gore spewing from his mouth. The other elders recoiled in horror, their eyes wide as they saw the elder’s abdomen, now purplish and grotesquely twisted. Whatever had struck him had done terrible damage to his internal organs.

The elder’s body trembled, his eyes glazing over as consciousness rapidly fled. He collapsed onto the wooden floor with a sickening thud. His once formidable presence reduced to a pitiful, broken heap at Ling Xuan's feet.

“So, anyone else wanna try as well?” Ling Xuan’s voice dripped with mockery as he surveyed the room. The elders were still reeling from the shock of what had just transpired. Their minds struggled to grasp how Ling Xuan, who had been away for so long, could possibly possess such overwhelming power. Taking down a Master Stage individual in a single blow was unthinkable—it defied all logic.

And in truth, it shouldn’t have been possible at all. Ling Xuan, after all, had only recently completed the forging of The Ox Pathway. His opponent, on the other hand, was someone who had reached the pinnacle of their technique—a peak that should have made them nearly untouchable or atleast hard to beat for Ling Xuan.

But the answer to this mystery was as simple as it was devastating: quality. Comparing Ling Xuan’s technique to the Ling Clan Technique was like comparing the Sun to a mere bonfire. There was no contest, no room for comparison. Ling Xuan’s cultivation path was on a completely different level.

Not only that but there also was the fact that The Ox Pathway in particular didn't grant any new ability to Ling Xuan. It severely boosted his preexisting power to greater heights.

The elders, though seasoned and experienced, had never encountered anything like this. The gap between them and Ling Xuan was not just in strength, but in the very nature of their abilities. Ling Xuan’s smirk widened as he saw the dawning realisation on their faces. They were outmatched in every conceivable way.

“Why have you come to this place again?” Ling Xuanhuan's voice quivered with a mix of fear and disbelief.

Ling Xuan simply pointed to the current Clan Leader, a gesture that spoke volumes. The Clan Leader, burdened by the weight of the moment, let out a deep sigh before making the dreaded announcement.

“From today onwards, the entirety of the Ling Clan belongs to Ling Xuan.”

“What?!” The elders erupted in disbelief, their roars of outrage echoing through the room. The shockwaves of this declaration shattered whatever composure they had left.

Ling Xuan's ultimatum hung heavy in the air as he left the elders to stew in their fears and anxieties. As he walked into the garden, he felt a sense of calm wash over him. The chaos he had just unleashed was necessary, but it was also exhausting. Now, all he had to do was wait.

The night sky was dark, and the silence was thick. Ling Xuan found himself growing impatient. He glanced up at the stars, wondering when the person he was waiting for would arrive.

“When is he going to arrive?” he muttered to himself with a sigh.

“Are you looking for me?” a familiar voice called out from behind him. Ling Xuan turned and smiled, recognizing the speaker immediately.

“It’s been a while, Sect Master,” Ling Xuan greeted Dragon General Lei Tei, the former Sect Master of the Thunder Law Sect.

“I was wondering who could’ve broken into the Ling Clan so easily,” Lei Tei chuckled, his voice carrying a note of admiration.

Ling Xuan’s smile widened. “I think you know why I’ve decided to bring your attention here.”

Lei Tei nodded. “You want to meet the Dragon Emperor, right? Come on, then, hold my shoulder.”

Without hesitation, Ling Xuan placed his hand on Lei Tei’s shoulder, and in the next moment, they both vanished from the garden, leaving the turmoil of the Ling Clan behind.

For Ling Xuan, the chaos he had stirred within the Ling Clan was just a means to an end. His true goal was to meet Xia Fugui, the Dragon Emperor.

As Ling Xuan scanned his surroundings, he found himself standing in a vast marble castle. The air was thick with an overwhelming sense of power and grandeur. A massive staircase led up to a throne of gold, where a figure with the physique of a Greek god sat. This was Dragon Emperor Xia Fugui, the strongest existing entity in the world, surpassing even The Maitreya.

Xia Fugui's gaze fell upon Ling Xuan, and a slight curl appeared at the corner of his lips, a subtle but potent expression of authority and intrigue.

“You looked into my future, right? Or should I say you tried to look into my future?” Ling Xuan spoke, breaking the silence.

Xia Fugui raised an eyebrow at the boldness of the statement. “How did you know?” he asked, his voice calm yet piercing.

Ling Xuan smirked, enjoying the brief moment of leverage. “Who else but your son? He told me.”

The atmosphere shifted immediately. The entire marble castle began to tremble, and parts of the ceiling crumbled as the sheer force of Xia Fugui’s anger radiated outward. Lei Tei trembled in fear, his veins bulging visibly as the pressure in the room intensified to a terrifying degree.

“You dare to mention him!” Xia Fugui's voice was a shrill whisper, yet it carried the weight of an impending catastrophe. The golden throne he sat upon burst apart under the pressure of his fury.

Ling Xuan felt as if he was moments away from being crushed into nothingness. The weight of Xia Fugui’s anger was unbearable.

“That is enough, Father!” A voice suddenly rang out, cutting through the tension like a sword. Instantly, the immense pressure dissipated into nothingness.

Ling Xuan lifted his head, recognizing the voice. It was none other than Weiyu, Xia Fugui’s son.

Xia Fugui, now calmer, looked towards Ling Xuan. “Yeah, you are right,” he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. His gaze then returned to Ling Xuan, colder and more calculating than before. “So tell me, what do you want?”

Ling Xuan forced a smirk, gathering every ounce of his courage. “Simple. Make me a Dragon General!” he proclaimed, his voice steady despite the storm he had just weathered.