Turns Out, I’m In A Villain Clan! Chapter 417 Toward the Great Wilderness

Initially, Bai Zihan was certain he had misheard the news.

Luo Qing had been taken.

That was the claim his father had just made.

The statement drifted through his ears but failed to take root in his consciousness, vanishing like a thin fog before it could solidify.

Luo Qing?

He remained seated with a composed air, his posture relaxed and his face unreadable. He told himself that such a thing was impossible.

Why would Demonic Cultivators, after successfully infiltrating the most powerful clan, bother to abduct a mere mortal?

Even if they sought leverage, he couldn't imagine Demonic Cultivators being so foolish.

"...Are you certain?"

The inquiry left his lips devoid of any real weight.

Internally, his mind was shifting toward other matters, discarding the information as a simple misunderstanding.

Demonic Cultivators would never expend such effort on a meaningless gesture. However, Bai Tianheng confirmed the truth.

"Luo Qing."

Something came to a standstill.

It wasn't a violent crash or a sudden jolt.

It simply... stopped.

For a fleeting moment, Bai Zihan’s thoughts turned into a complete void.

Luo Qing!

She wasn't just any servant.

She was his maid.

No—

That wasn't quite right.

She had remained by his side during his childhood when his temper was volatile, when other servants shunned him like a plague, and when the Elders merely shook their heads in silence.

She was the only one who stayed.

It wasn't born of deep loyalty.

It was because no one else was willing to take the position.

And because he had neither dismissed nor executed her.

Whenever his fury erupted, the rest would flee. Luo Qing remained because she was his personal maid.

Excluding Bai Zihan’s parents, she was the person who had been in his life the longest.

One could almost describe her as a childhood friend—though, naturally, Bai Zihan viewed no one as his peer, so he had never possessed friends in the past, nor did he now.

Yet, perhaps she was the one who came closest to that definition.

"...She was kidnapped."

The reality finally sank in.

And something deep within him fractured.

No.

Fractured wasn't the right word.

Something shattered.

The light in the room seemed to fade as if the very colors were retreating in fear. The tent, the surrounding people, the distant battlefield—everything became a blur.

A solitary thought emerged, sharp and absolute.

(Those filthy mongrels...)

His fingers began to curl inward slowly.

They dared.

They actually dared to lay their hands on her?

A terrifying pressure surged before he even realized he had risen to his feet.

BOOM.

His aura detonated outward, no longer held back or moderated.

Killing intent—raw, bloodthirsty, and primordial—saturated the tent like the sky itself was falling. The earth beneath him groaned.

The air shrieked. Outside, disciples collapsed to their knees as if crushed by a divine weight.

Bai Zihan saw none of it.

He cared for nothing else.

His vision was dyed a deep, burning crimson.

"How dare they?"

The words emerged from his throat in a low, guttural rasp.

Then, his voice rose.

"HOW DARE THEY?!"

The composure he had spent years refining was completely obliterated.

"They are courting death."

Despite his rage, his mind remained cold and calculating.

Demonic Cultivators!!

Since the perpetrators were Demonic Cultivators, there was only one location that would provide the answers he demanded.

Where is Luo Qing?

Bai Zihan turned his gaze toward the far-off Great Wilderness.

Whoosh!

Bai Zihan disappeared.

The moment his eyes locked onto the Great Wilderness, his body tore through the tent's exit like a blade leaving its sheath.

The ground fractured where he had just been standing, Qi radiating outward in a destructive wake.

BOOM—

The entire camp was thrown into a state of panic.

"What happened?!"

"Is it an enemy raid?!"

"Assume battle formations—move!"

Disciples rushed from their tents, Elders took to the skies, and defensive formations activated by instinct.

Many assumed a hidden Demonic Expert had breached their perimeter.

Then they caught sight of him.

A solitary figure streaking through the heavens, killing intent rolling off him like a tidal wave.

"...That’s Young Master Bai."

"What is going on?"

"Damn—who managed to enrage him like that?"

Whispers spread like wildfire as cultivators looked up, their expressions turning from shock to utter disbelief.

Behind Bai Zihan, another presence surged forward—immense, steady, and unmistakable.

Bai Tianheng!

The Patriarch of the Bai Clan was in hot pursuit, his own aura unleashed to its peak as he chased his son.

Watching the two, some disciples traded confused glances.

"...Is the Young Master trying to challenge his father for leadership?"

"Hah—don't be ridiculous. Who would be brave enough to provoke Bai Tianheng?" "Still... look at that murderous intent. I've never seen Young Master Bai in such a state."

Some laughed out of pure nerves. Others swallowed hard in fear.

But not a single soul moved to stop him.

No one was crazy enough to stand between Bai Zihan and the source of his fury.

In the air, Bai Tianheng attempted to call out.

"Zihan—!"

His voice was instantly lost to the wind.

He increased his speed, pulling up alongside his son and reaching out—

"Zihan’er, regain your senses!"

There was no reply.

Bai Zihan’s eyes were fixed ahead, his pupils sharp and glowing, his aura roaring like a beast that had broken its chains.

He did not slow down, nor did he acknowledge his father's presence.

Bai Tianheng recognized that expression.

This wasn't a rage that could be calmed with logic.

The boy had already made up his mind.

If Bai Zihan kept this up—diving headfirst into the Great Wilderness alone—the results would be disastrous.

Demonic Cultivators were inherently sadistic.

Mó Zun was no trivial foe.

And in this mood, Bai Zihan would never turn back.

This is a disaster.

Bai Tianheng clenched his teeth.

"Grand Elder!"

A third figure accelerated forward, his presence serene yet crushing, slicing through the chaotic Qi with effortless grace.

Bai Tianheng had already foreseen this possibility—that Bai Zihan might react this way and need to be restrained.

Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—he was aware that his own power might not suffice.

For that reason, Bai Ren had been summoned.

Bai Ren had been trailing them silently until this moment.

Bai Tianheng didn't waste a second.

"Please, stop him."

No further words were required.

Bai Ren gave a single nod.

In the next heartbeat, space itself seemed to shrink. He vanished—

And materialized directly in Bai Zihan’s path.

He stood as an obstacle.

Bai Zihan’s killing intent slammed into him like a crashing ocean.

Bai Ren didn't flinch.

He lifted a hand and gripped Bai Zihan’s shoulder with a firm hold.

The resulting pressure made the heavens tremble.

"Bai Zihan," Bai Ren commanded, his voice low but saturated with absolute power.

"That is enough!"

Bai Ren’s grip was as immovable as a mountain.

The moment he touched Bai Zihan’s shoulder, the swirling Qi was forced downward, suppressed by an overwhelming force.

The weight of the Immortal Ascension Realm descended.

Bai Zihan’s frame shuddered in mid-air.

For the first time since his outburst began, he was brought to a halt.

His eyes darted toward the Elder.

"Move!"

The demand was icy and final.

It wasn't a plea.

It was an order.

Bai Ren didn't even bat an eyelid.

Instead, a small smirk touched the corner of his mouth.

"Heh," he let out a soft chuckle. "Just try it, kid!"

The pressure intensified further.

Bai Zihan’s skeleton creaked. His muscles strained under the sudden weight of the suppression.

For anyone else, this would have been the conclusion—forced back into submission by a realm they couldn't hope to fight.

But the fire in Bai Zihan’s eyes only grew more intense.

His Qi surged—not in a mess, but with a violent, focused order, like a blade being forged in the middle of a fight.

His voice sank to a low whisper.

"Heaven’s Mandate Reversal."

BOOM—!

The world shook.

Bai Zihan’s aura flared outward, no longer confined to the Spirit Severing Realm.

His Cultivation climbed rapidly, shattering invisible barriers in a heartbeat.

Peak Spirit Severing—

Void Refinement—

Great Ascension Realm!

Bai Ren’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"What—?!"

PAH!

Bai Zihan threw off Bai Ren’s hand as if it were a mere annoyance.

He bolted forward, putting hundreds of meters of distance between them in a flash.

Then, Bai Zihan pulled his blade from his storage ring.

With one swift, lethal motion, he struck downward.

RIIIP—!

The fabric of space was torn open.

A dark fissure appeared before him, its borders warping as chaotic spatial energy leaked out.

This was a feat only those at the Void Refinement Realm or higher could achieve.

Bai Zihan entered the rift without a second thought.

He was gone.

For a moment, the sky was eerily silent.

Then, Bai Ren erupted into a fit of laughter.

"Hahaha—!"

But there was no joy in his voice.

Only pure shock.

He vanished instantly, pursuing Bai Zihan while simultaneously projecting a powerful message.

"Grand Elders, follow me! Bai Zihan is in grave danger!"

Behind them, Bai Tianheng finally reached the spot, his face dark with fury.

"Why didn't you hold him?!"

He barked at Bai Ren, abandoning all formality as they flew through the air.

Bai Ren didn't slow down.

"Because if I had used more strength," he answered grimly, "I might have caused him serious injury."

Bai Tianheng realized the truth in his words.

Bai Ren had already applied Immortal Ascension Realm pressure against a Spirit Severing Realm cultivator—an act that usually results in injury.

Yet, despite that, Bai Zihan had still found a way to break free.

Bai Ren took a sharp breath, his gaze locked on the figure ahead who was still shredding space apart.

"Who could have guessed that even that wouldn't stop him?"

He shook his head, caught between wanting to swear and wanting to laugh.

"What a monster!"

Bai Tianheng followed in grim silence.

He couldn't blame Bai Ren.

The Elder had been careful not to hurt Bai Zihan—and it was that very hesitation that allowed the boy to escape.

Furthermore, Bai Tianheng wasn't sure what to make of his son's explosive reaction to Luo Qing’s disappearance.

He had always believed his son was incapable of caring for anyone.

And yet—here they were.

Ahead of them, Bai Zihan sliced through the void once more.

His path was set.

The Great Wilderness.

And anyone who dared to stand between him and Luo Qing—

Would perish!