1321 Exile Executioner

"W-What should we do now…?" One of the Players there asked out loud sometime after Yuan left them behind in the bloodied scene.

"What can we do? All of our Exiles are dead because of the Ten Great Families, but it's not like we can mention this to anyone without facing their wrath."

"What about our contract with them? Do we have to return the money and treasure since the quest failed miserably?"

"Fuck! What a goddamn mess this is!"

"If you think this is a mess, just wait until they start fighting in the real world… Do you think they'll shed blood?"

"I don't know about Player Yuan, but the Ten Great Families do not tolerate humiliation, and they definitely wouldn't hesitate to kill someone over such things."

"They are also above the law and backed by the government, so even if they kill someone, it could easily be swept under the rug."

"If we're talking about an ordinary person, that is. What about Player Yuan? The entire world is aware of his presence. There's no way to sweep him under the rug. I will probably sound crazy for saying this, but I don't think even the Ten Great Families can touch Player Yuan without immense backlash."

"No, I agree with you. If this had happened a year ago, I would've definitely called you crazy. However, Cultivation Online is no longer just a game, and just think of how much information and knowledge Player Yuan has about Cultivation Online. All of that information is priceless and could be used to fight back."

Due to the recent changes on Earth, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Cultivation Online has become a second 'Earth' — at least that's how the people on Earth are starting to see it. And as much as Xiong Lu wanted to ignore Yuan's influence in Cultivation Online, most would not agree with him.

Eventually, these Players logged off and called their recruiter to see what would happen to them.

Ultimately, they were informed that they could retain the funds already provided, as it constituted part of the contractual agreement. However, the other half of the reward would not be disbursed, given their failure to fulfill the mission.

The Players were relieved, but they were not satisfied. After all, their Exiles were worth far more than what they were given, and to lose them was an immense loss even for the Ten Great Families, much less these ordinary Players.

Sometime later, Yuan stopped walking when notifications suddenly bombarded him.

<...>

[Exile Executioner]

[Description: After executing over a hundred Exiles, your accomplishment and dedication have been acknowledged! You are now an Exile Executioner! As an Executioner, you will deal 100% increased damage when facing against an Exile! Weaker Exiles will also flee in your presence!]

'Oh?' Yuan was pleasantly surprised by this promotion.

However, he quickly became disappointed when he didn't receive anything else for his promotion.

'What can I even do as a General in the Faction? I probably won't find out until I climb much higher…' he sighed inwardly.

'Actually… I have to visit the Myriad of Techniques before I ascend to the next realm.'

After deciding to visit the Myriad of Techniques, he started making his way to the nearest city.

Meanwhile, the Players of the Ten Great Families gathered outside Cultivation Online sometime after they died to Yuan.

The atmosphere within the meeting room was thick with a profound silence, and not a soul uttered a single word for minutes after assembling, almost as if they were all too ashamed.

After many minutes of silence, someone eventually spoke out.

"What am I doing here?" Bai Lianhua asked.

Even though she did not expect to be summoned and had no desire to attend, her curiosity about their present predicament proved too compelling to ignore. Upon arriving last and sensing the tense atmosphere, she promptly discerned that their endeavors had ended in failure.

'So this is a loser's gathering, huh? But that doesn't explain why I was summoned as well. Are they going to blame me for not assisting them?' Bai Lianhua wondered inwardly as she anxiously waited for a response.

However, nobody answered her question.

After another minute of silence, Xiong Lu spoke, "Did anyone here lose their ability to cultivate?"

Since there was a chance for one's cultivation to be crippled after death, he had to know if anyone there experienced such a tragic fate.

'Losing their ability to cultivate…?' Bai Lianhua raised her eyebrows. 'That could only happen if you die… Did Yuan slaughter all of them?'

Bai Lianhua could barely keep her composure after learning of this news. If she had even slightly worse self-restraint, she would've burst out laughing.

In response to Xiong Lu's question, everyone that were slain by Yuan shook their heads.

'He killed all of them?!' Bai Lianhua subconsciously grinned at their misfortune.

When Fiery Queen saw Bai Lianhua smiling at them, she immediately slammed the table in anger, "What the hell are you smiling about, Bai Lianhua?! Do you think this is funny?!"

"Huh?" Bai Lianhua didn't even realize she was smiling until it was pointed out and was surprised by Fiery Queen's sudden outburst.

But she didn't back down and chuckled, "Of course I find it funny. The nine of you—the strongest and most powerful Players in Cultivation Online—couldn't take down a single Player and even died to him, not to mention the other Players you recruited. I have never seen a failure of such epic proportions. This will definitely go down in history—I will make sure of it."

"You're going too far, you bitch!" Fiery Queen roared.

The others also started cursing at her.

Bai Lianhua merely shrugged at their insults.