Elder Archie and Elder Noah were dumbfounded, their faces heavy and grim.
They stared at the figure holding a sword in the air, their old eyes filled with intense fear.
“Elder Archie, the lord is dead, we…” Elder Noah didn’t finish his sentence.
He knew very well that anyone capable of killing Lucas Collins could easily kill the two of them as well.
“If there’s no other way, we’ll have to fight!” Elder Archie said through gritted teeth, helplessly.
Under the fearful gazes of everyone, Leo’s figure flashed and landed on the ground.
The surviving Cultivators didn’t dare to make a sound.
They were truly afraid that Leo might kill them all as well.
Leo reached out his right hand towards Lucas Collins’ corpse, and with an art of controlling objects, Lucas Collins’ Storage Sack flew into Leo’s hand.
Seeing Leo take Lucas Collins’ Storage Sack, the Cultivators couldn’t help but feel envious.
As the lord of Clearwind Town and a Spirit Saint, Lucas Collins surely had many valuable items in his Storage Sack.
Arthur Watts ran over excitedly, saying, “Leo, you’re amazing! You actually killed Lucas Collins. My admiration for you is beyond words.”
Leo smiled faintly and looked at the dozen or so Cultivators in the distance. He asked Arthur Watts, “Will there be any trouble because I killed Lucas Collins?”
Although Leo’s question was directed at Arthur Watts, his voice carried far, clearly meant for the remaining Cultivators as well.
The Cultivators weren’t foolish; they understood that Leo was implying that if anyone dared to spread what happened here, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill them all.
Arthur Watts thought for a moment and replied, “Lucas Collins was the lord of Clearwind Town. Probably only the city lord’s mansion in Zratol would inquire about it, but it shouldn’t be too much trouble.”
In Arthur Watts’ view, the city lord’s mansion was unlikely to make a big deal over a dead lord.
Of course, if word got out about what happened here, Leo would undoubtedly become a key investigation target for the city lord’s mansion, which would still be troublesome.
In the current Wu Dynasty, sects were numerous, and royal power had weakened somewhat. Thus, many towns were managed by powerful Cultivators who became local lords.
Lords only needed to submit a fixed amount of Spirit Stones or resources to the court each year.
Every year within the Wu Dynasty, many lords were replaced by other Cultivators. Therefore, the death of a lord wasn’t considered a major event.
Lucas Collins’ death would soon lead to someone else taking his place as lord. However, anyone capable of killing a lord would still be monitored by various forces.
“So, if the city lord’s mansion learns about this, they’ll investigate and monitor me?” Leo pondered with a thoughtful expression.
Having already offended the Bloodsoul Sect, he didn’t want to attract further attention from the city lord’s mansion.
Noticing Leo’s face turning cold, Duran quickly said, “Fellow cultivator, rest assured. We will not reveal anything that happened in Thunder Valley!”
“Fellow cultivator, if you hadn’t killed Lucas Collins, he would have killed us. By killing him, you saved our lives,” another Cultivator added hastily.
“Fellow cultivator, please be at ease. We will keep what happened here a secret.”
“We promise not to disclose anything that occurred here!” The other Cultivators echoed in agreement.
Elder Archie and Elder Noah exchanged glances before Elder Noah said, “Please spare our lives, fellow cultivator. We also swear to keep this matter confidential.”
Although Elder Archie and Elder Noah had followed Lucas Collins, it was primarily out of self-interest. They weren’t loyal enough to avenge him.
Besides, they didn’t have the capability to avenge him; at most, they could accompany him in death.
With their current strength, finding another place to serve as Honored Elders wouldn’t be difficult for Elder Archie and Elder Noah.
Despite everyone’s assurances under his threat, Leo didn’t fully trust them. However, he also didn’t want to kill anyone unnecessarily.
After some thought, Leo looked at them and said, “I’m not Lucas Collins; I won’t kill you all. But I don’t trust you to keep quiet unless you take a Skybound Oath.”
“A Skybound Oath?”
Hearing these three words, the Cultivators’ faces changed.
“What? Unwilling?” Leo raised an eyebrow as his Dragon Sword emitted powerful sword energy.
The terrifying sword energy made everyone’s hearts skip a beat.
Duran quickly said, “Since I made a promise earlier, I’m willing to take a Skybound Oath!”
Duran knew very well that with Leo’s strength-capable of killing Lucas Collins-none of them together could be his match.
Understanding that it’s better to live another day, Duran decided to take the Skybound Oath. As long as he could leave here alive, it was worth it.
Immediately, Duran focused his mind, and a drop of red blood essence emerged from his forehead, floating in front of him.
With a solemn expression, Duran declared loudly, “I swear to the heavens that I will not reveal today’s events. If I break this oath, may I be struck down by heaven and earth!”
After speaking, Duran pointed his right index finger at the blood essence in mid-air and quickly moved his finger. The red blood essence soon formed an intricate rune.
The rune emitted a strange fluctuation as if connecting heaven and earth.
Finally, with a point of Duran’s right index finger at the rune, it turned golden and then dissipated into golden light particles in the air.
As the rune disappeared, a small golden rune flashed on Duran’s forehead before vanishing.
It seemed as though an invisible force from heaven and earth had entered Duran’s body.
Taking a Skybound Oath with one’s blood essence meant being supervised by heavenly rules. Breaking the oath would result in heavenly punishment unless one was strong enough to withstand it-otherwise, death was certain.
Satisfied with Duran’s actions, Leo nodded approvingly before looking at the others.
Elder Noah and Elder Archie then declared, “We are also willing to take a Skybound Oath.”
Since they had followed Lucas Collins and he was now dead, they needed to show some initiative. Angering Leo wouldn’t end well for them.
Soon enough, Elder Noah and Elder Archie took their Skybound Oaths just like Duran did in front of the other Cultivators.
People tend to follow others’ actions. Seeing three powerful individuals take their Skybound Oaths prompted the remaining Cultivators to follow suit.