Turns Out, I’m In A Villain Clan! Chapter 458 Aren't You Glad to Be Useful?

Elder Han's sight blurred uncontrollably.

His form defied his every command.

Regardless of how hard he pushed his qi to flow or how urgently he urged his body to act, it all fell flat.

It felt like his cultivation was cut off from his very being.

As though his physical shell had become someone else's.

His legs shook wildly, muscles twitching beyond his control. The weapon tumbled from his lifeless grasp and rang out sharply on the rocky ground. Clang!

That noise boomed much louder in Elder Han's mind than expected.

Terror rushed in.

This sensation-

It resembled what those other elders had gone through.

Dawning horror hit him like a thunderbolt.

Ah, so that's the reason they collapsed.

Chilling perspiration soaked Elder Han's spine.

He attempted to shout, to bellow, to react in any way-

Yet his breathing emerged rough and faint.

His gaze rose unsteadily to meet Bai Zihan's.

Puzzlement warped his expression.

Terror!

And a hint of utter incredulity.

"What... have you done...?"

Elder Han croaked, his tone rough and nearly shattered.

He gazed intently, probing for answers.

No array in sight.

No charm visible.

No stir of qi detectable.

Zero signs.

To this day, he remained clueless about what afflicted him.

Or precisely when it started.

Bai Zihan regarded him.

Then-

He chuckled.

A light, entertained chuckle, like observing a kid fumbling with an impossible riddle.

"Haha..."

Gradually, Bai Zihan advanced.

One stride.

Followed by the next.

His steps came leisurely, composed-each striking solidly on the stone surface.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

"Cultivators at Great Ascension are truly exceptional. You're still able to speak!"

Bai Zihan murmured.

In truth, he felt quite pleased and amazed by this initial trial.

While he had anticipated success, the gap between words on a page and witnessing it firsthand was vast.

He could verify now that it affected even Great Ascension Realm experts.

Those at Immortal Realm or higher might fend it off more effectively.

Still, this was without real exertion-once he applied himself, not even Immortals practicing the Heavenly Mandate Assimilation Art could slip his grasp.

Bai Zihan halted directly before Elder Han.

He peered downward.

Next-

He moved ahead.

Crack!

His boot sole ground down on Elder Han's torso, slamming him back onto the icy stone.

The force wasn't intense, but to Elder Han, it was like an entire peak crashing onto him. His bones protested fiercely, air exploding from his chest in a choked

gasp.

Bai Zihan bent forward a bit, adding just enough pressure to drive home the shame.

"So you're the one scheming to extort the Bai Clan," Bai Zihan remarked

reflectively.

He angled his head, inspecting Elder Han from overhead, like scrutinizing an odd

bug.

"Tsk... I truly misjudged your capabilities!"

Elder Han's eyes flared crimson with fury and dread, blood vessels throbbing as he writhed pointlessly under Bai Zihan's sole.

"You rose to become Sect Leader," Bai Zihan went on steadily,

"seized influence and command..."

His foot bore down slightly more.

"Yet rather than embracing satisfaction, you chose to stake your existence on

avarice?"

He offered a subtle grin.

"Quite the diligent fool."

The remark cut deep like blades.

Elder Han yearned to yell.

To swear.

But only a raspy, fractured rasp escaped.

In that instant-

"STOP!"

Han Shenwu's cry pierced the air, edged with alarm.

Bai Zihan's foot halted.

Han Shenwu froze in place, his sword quivering in his hold, one arm locked firmly

around Kong Zhanhong's throat.

The edge hovered so near that a slender trail of crimson dripped along Kong

Zhanhong's flesh.

"Move one more inch," Han Shenwu bellowed, his eyes injected with blood, "and I'll end him!"

Han Shenwu's torso rose and fell rapidly.

"Reverse what you've inflicted on my father!" he thundered. "Immediately! Or I vow-!"

Bai Zihan swiveled his head.

He eyed Han Shenwu.

A single look.

That's all.

No murderous aura.

However-

In that split second, Han Shenwu's eyes contracted to tiny points.

An overwhelming force descended like heavenly retribution.

"-UGHH!"

His knees gave way abruptly.

Nearby-

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

All his followers met the identical end.

Forms crashed to the floor successively, moans fading as awareness faded out.

Just one figure stayed upright.

Kong Zhanhong.

The sword dropped from Han Shenwu's fingers as he slumped senseless at Kong

Zhanhong's feet.

The chamber fell quiet again.

Bai Zihan averted his gaze, completely indifferent.

He raised his foot off Elder Han's chest and pivoted around, as though no disruption had occurred.

"Now, where did I leave off...?"

Bai Zihan wondered, brushing his chin gently.

He advanced with a deliberate pace.

Then another step.

Coming to a halt by Elder Han anew.

"Ah, yes," he remarked offhandedly. "I was pondering how to handle a moron."

He shot a look at Kong Zhanhong, his eyes sparkling with mirth. "Kong Zhanhong," Bai Zihan queried teasingly, like chatting about idle topics, "What

do you suggest?"

Kong Zhanhong had shifted position after his release and positioned himself a pace

behind Bai Zihan-spine rigid, stance deferential, resembling a devoted servant reclaiming his proper station.

He surveyed the chaos ahead-the bowed elders, the toppled minions,

Elder Han sprawled like a wounded animal-and pondered deeply.

After a pause, Kong Zhanhong replied.

"For this insolence and disregard toward the Young Master, they deserve torment unto death."

The statement landed flatly.

Elder Han's eyes widened in shock.

The nearby elders sensed icy sweat bursting forth on their backs.

Slain?

They were Heaven Sword Sect elders!

Mighty beings who once dictated fates with mere utterances!

Were they able to voice it, they would have howled.

Could they stir, they would have ranted.

Within their thoughts, wrath and disgrace surged wildly.

(How dare such a one-!)

(Mind your tongue! Naturally you'd toss that out-you're no true kin to us!)

(Aren't you part of the Heaven Sword Sect? Don't you feel any loyalty?)

Yet no utterance broke free.

Kong Zhanhong pressed on, ignoring their stares.

"We could execute them right here," he stated evenly. "The fallout would be minor even if word spreads, and we can pin it on someone else."

His eyes darted momentarily to Elder Han.

"Should Young Master eliminate him, Tian Yuheng would reclaim the Sect Leader role. With the Heaven Sword Sect purified, retaliation becomes no concern."

That was plain enough.

It addressed the crisis swiftly with minimal hassle.

Yet Kong Zhanhong gave a faint shake of his head.

"Still," he added deliberately, "that would merely restore the old order."

Bai Zihan inclined his head a touch.

"Go on," he urged.

Kong Zhanhong drew breath.

Then his gaze intensified.

"These figures," he noted, waving vaguely at Elder Han and the rest,

"hold vital roles."

Sect Leader.

Elders.

Plus, ones relied upon by the Li-Zhao Alliance.

"Dispatching them proves simple," Kong Zhanhong went on. "But should Young Master dominate them... "

A subtle, suggestive lull.

"They'd prove invaluable against far tougher foes."

The target was unmistakable.

The Li-Zhao Alliance.

Bai Zihan grinned.

Truly, Kong Zhanhong-who oversaw the Black Lantern Society and funneled intel to him-had matured.

Commanding Elder Han effortlessly would outshine Tian Yuheng, who, despite alliance ties, could never deliver total loyalty.

"Yet that seems overly laborious, right?" Bai Zihan queried. "We've got an infiltrator in the Li-Zhao Alliance already. Why bother with these?"

(Infiltrators?)

Elder Han and the elders reeled in shock.

Surely a spy or two existed-but Bai Zihan's inflection suggested ranks rivaling their own.

Thus, from start to finish, Bai Zihan had grasped most of their plots-particularly the bid to dethrone Tian Yuheng as Sect Leader.

Just as survival glimmered, Bai Zihan uttered those lines.

Now, they staked everything on Kong Zhanhong devising a solid case to preserve them. Kong Zhanhong showed no delay. "Quantity enhances value," he put it plainly.

Intelligence never flows from one source alone.

...

Certain details one might grasp. Others another reveals.

At times, identical informants yield matching... or clashing reports.

Thus falsehoods get sifted-and he spots what needs deeper probing.

This method had always served him, amassing the truest data for Bai Zihan.

"Extra agents offer no drawback," Kong Zhanhong wrapped up steadily. "Particularly at Elder Han's stature."

Elder Han's pulse hammered fiercely.

He'd never fathomed a lone phrase could seal his fate.

"Furthermore, their demise leaking out would surely rouse the Li-Zhao Alliance."

Bai Zihan stroked his chin softly, eyes squinting in contemplation. Spot on! Elder Han amounted to a trivial nuisance-barely a blip in the bigger picture.

The true adversary was never the Heaven Sword Sect.

It was the Li-Zhao Alliance.

Eliminating them fixed little-only signaled dire trouble to the foes.

Bai Zihan inclined his head gradually.

"Logical enough."

Ease-intense, head-spinning ease-swept over the elders.

Chilly sweat drenched their garments as they latched onto that nod like shipwrecked souls to flotsam.

Bai Zihan's stare wandered idly over them.

Then he smirked.

A smirk brimming with delight.

He progressed, palms linked behind, and gazed down at Elder Han again.

"Well," Bai Zihan noted breezily, "Aren't you all thrilled to remain of service?"