Chapter 181: Turbulent Times

“Are you very afraid of me?” Seeing Rod avoid her gaze, Eirwen smirked like a witch, suddenly pressing close to him, her body almost sticking to his, and asked.
“If you dare to dodge, I’ll dare to hug you. If you don’t believe it, try it!” Eirwen threatened with a cold snort as Rod tried to back away.
“What do you want?” Rod asked coldly, his face grim. He disliked being threatened, especially by a woman.
“Nothing. I just want to see you—see how this seemingly ordinary man can make the Source of Darkness go mad for you. I want to see what the guy who caused such chaos in the Source of Darkness is like now, and what kind of man my sister has fallen for!” With a victorious smile as Rod didn’t dodge, Eirwen spoke slowly.
“Satisfied? If so, I’m leaving!” After a moment, feeling her warm, soft body, Rod grew restless. Scolding himself for weakness, he left a remark, then, ignoring Eirwen’s expression, vanished in an instant over ten meters away before striding forward without looking back, displaying a carefree demeanor.
“Rod? Hehe, an interesting man. I’m starting to like you a bit. What should I do? Let’s see what you achieve in three months. I’ll give you the chance! If you really succeed, why not like you?” She murmured to herself as she watched Rod go.
“I’ll wait and see what earth-shattering things you can do in these three months, what kind of greatness you can achieve!” Then, looking in the direction the man had disappeared, she said those words with a hint of expectation before turning and heading back to the mansion.
At that moment, she reverted to her pure, untainted demeanor. Likely, no one could have imagined that Princess Eirwen, who usually appeared so innocent, would behave like that before—her acting skills were truly remarkable.
After leaving the Dragon Clan’s mansion, Rod quickly returned to the hill where the fierce battle had taken place that night. It was still in ruins, desolate, and cold. Aside from the absence of three corpses, everything was the same as that day—the traces of the battle remained, with craters and chaos everywhere.
Gazing at Dark Moon City below the hill, he took a deep breath. “Nash Clan, Purple-Winged Thunder Eagles—I’m here. The storm has arrived. How much can you withstand?” With a cold smirk, Rod spoke calmly.

Looking back at this hill, for now he planned to use this place as his dwelling. It was sparsely populated and desolate, so it wouldn’t draw anyone’s attention. Moreover, its elevated location allowed a broader view, which Rod liked.

…

As Rod had predicted, the storm arrived as expected. Starting from the second day, Dark Moon City gradually descended into chaos.

It wasn’t for any other reason but because a madman had appeared during this period. Some said he was from the Dragon clan, others from the Black Phoenix clan, still others claimed he was a hermit from the mountains. Of course, there were also guesses involving divine punishment.

This intruder was targeting the Nash family and the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan. After killing three quasi-divine-level warriors from the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan on the first day, corpses of members from both the Nash family and the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan were found in Dark Moon City every day for the next three days.

In just three days, the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan lost not only the three quasi-divine-level warriors on the first day but also six more members—two mid-level quasi-divine warriors and four holy-level members!

As for the Nash family, their situation was even worse. In three days, they lost nine people—two low-level quasi-divine warriors and seven holy-level warriors.

These three days were like a symphony of death, driving the Nash family and the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan into fury. It was obvious to everyone that this was aimed at these two clans. Otherwise, why would only these two families be affected while others remained unharmed? And most could guess who the enemy was—probably the feuding Dragon clan and the Black Phoenix clan. This led people to think of that legendary young man who was supposedly dead. If that were true, he must be involved. Of course, this was the most widely held belief.

On the other hand, some speculated it was divine punishment. In this place, people’s reverence for gods reached terrifying levels. They believed that the Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan and the Nash family’s pursuit of that young man earlier had brought about divine punishment. The God-Annihilating Thunder Tribulation, which shouldn’t have appeared, did so because of them, and now divine punishment was falling upon these two clans. Naturally, this was the least believable theory.

In any case, rumors spread like wildfire during these days. Everyone talked about it over tea and meals. The Purple Wing Thunder Eagle clan and the Nash family became the subject of jokes and mockery.

“Damn it! Who is that bastard who’s enemies with our Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan? Damn! We must find him and tear him to pieces!” The third elder, who was guarding Dark Moon City, was furious as he stared at yet another corpse before him.

Although the members who died in recent days weren’t very strong, they were still part of their clan. Each death was like taking a slap in the face. Moreover, their numbers were limited—they couldn’t afford such losses every day. If this continued, the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan would be destroyed in just a few days.

“Killed with a single move! All of them killed in one strike! Who is that guy? He’s so powerful! Any clues?” After calming down a bit, the elder asked the members around him.

The others exchanged glances cautiously, afraid of angering the enraged third elder. Although he was the weakest among all the clan elders, even weaker than ordinary core disciples, he had unique abilities and a certain prestige. His ruthless tactics made people shiver with fear, and they were wary of drawing his wrath.

The members replied cautiously, “N-no! That guy is very cunning. We can’t find any trace of him. He acts very cleanly—he’s a master, no less skilled than us. Otherwise, we would have noticed that all these people were killed in a single strike!”

With a sigh, the first person spoke helplessly. As a beginner at the divine level, he had never felt so helpless before.

“I’ve also checked my side. It shouldn’t be the Dragon Clan or the Black Phoenix Clan. Both clans have returned to their territories. Right now, only two people from the Dragon Clan are here. We’ve watched them for days with no suspicious activity—definitely not them!” the second person said in a low voice. The Dragon Clan and the Black Phoenix Clan were naturally their top suspects.

“I think the same. The Dragon Clan and the Black Phoenix Clan are too busy protecting themselves to dare confront our Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan. We’re not the same clan that used to let them exploit us. They won’t dare provoke us—they might give us an opportunity to strike back!”Aero Eagle spoke up in agreement.

“We can’t rule them out. Also, stop saying such things in the future. Double the efforts to investigate. We must find out who it is. For the next few days, no one should go out unless in groups of three, with at least one divine-level member in each group. That should help. Send someone to inform the Nash Clan that we need to discuss something with them!”

After a moment of hesitation, with a gloomy expression, the Third Elder gave his orders in a deep voice. That was all he could do at the moment.
While the Third Elder of the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan was furious, within the Nash family, a middle-aged man was also enraged. Their Nash family lacked the strength of the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan, so the losses they had suffered in recent days were undoubtedly devastating. Two more people had died today, bringing the total to eleven—eleven people, including four near-divine-level individuals! That was half of their family’s outer defense force; they were essentially like people with one arm crippled!
“Let’s go find the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan and see what they plan to do!” The man shouted at the elders around him after throwing down his teacup.
With that shout, the group quickly headed outside. The family members had been ordered not to leave, so the Nash family was now in a state of isolation.
The following days seemed slightly calmer, but the Nash family and the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan became the laughingstock of everyone. Two prominent clans, especially the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan, which claimed to be the sixth clan, had been reduced to such a pitiful state—too afraid to go outside? Was it cowardice or avoidance? In any case, it only invited contempt from others.
As for that mysterious figure, he became a hero-like figure widely discussed by everyone. He overshadowed the young man who had once appeared like a comet in the sky some time ago, becoming the hottest celebrity of the moment, admired and revered by countless people.
“Heh, this kid is really ruthless. Two clans have been humiliated now, hahaha…” Inside the Dragon Clan’s residence, Sognar laughed heartily, thrilled by the news coming in these days.
“It’s true. Just look at those old guys, cowering at home like beaten dogs, not daring to step outside—that shows how frustrated they are. I wonder what new developments and news this kid will bring us next?” With a satisfied smile, Lilith also said jokingly that these days had been a satisfying victory.
Aida and Eileen on the other side also had smiles on their faces, though they carried a hint of concern.
After a while, Aida spoke up: “The two major clans remain indifferent to the outside world’s mockery. It’s not that they don’t want to act, but they really don’t know what to do. It’s said that the Purple-Winged Thunder Eagle clan has already asked for reinforcements from their family, and a group of strong fighters will arrive in a few days. We need to find a way to inform our elder brother; otherwise, we’ll be in trouble if we get surrounded!”