Like i said, the children of those clans, their mere existence can be viewed as a sin from a certain point of view. There is a reason why the kids of those powerful clans are talented. They didn't just become talented out of nowhere by chance, the clan wouldn't be able to survive by chance for so long, so much bloodshed over thousands of years lies behind the culmination of their superior bloodline. For their bloodline to be improved to such a point, they carry the sins of the clan itself just from being born. They can not be free of responsibility when they enjoy all the benefits. Their existence itself relies on it, so they must carry the responsibility of the clan too. It is nonsensical to think the kids of those clans as completely 'innocent' just because they are kids. In that kind of cultivation setting, parents and ancestors sins are a part of their existence and bloodline, that can not be disregarded.
Btw, most of the time mc doesn't even need to eradicate a clan completely. Since the clans are so arrogant and have been in power for so long, they keep on coming till their most powerful ancestor is eradicated. When the clan is left without power, their enemies take the chance to eradicate or enslave the rest of the bloodline anyways even if mc doesn't do anything about it. It really changes nothing whether mc takes the time to completely eradicate the bloodline or not in the end. Even when it's not explicitly stated, that's obviously what's happening in the background.
(aorry for the long rant, my man, and hope you dont think i sound like too much of an ass or that im tryna pick a fight lol...just giving my own perspective too. )
Bro you really sound like you're making excuses for child murder here. And its based on some nonsensical notion about their "sins" via a mere accident of birth. Now, those in powerful clans ARE often very arrogant scum, even as children, but thats not always the case. And they ALL need to die?
Yes not every MC kills the entire clan and other clans just pounce on them when the MC KILLS the elders and patriarchs who supported the clan.....so? thats another topic, or rather besides the point. Im just talking of the Mcs here and i say they're pissy little cunts for any mass extermination of a family unless they know for a fact every man, woman and child is guilty of some grave crime.
Its like blaming someone's kids for being born rich when their parents worked hard to earn that wealth they enjoy. Its fucking ridiculous. People always moan about unfairness when they didn't put in the same effort as others did to become as well off as they are. It being easier to attain great wealth when you're born into already wealthy families is simply your right, earned by and given to you by your parents or grandparents or whoever.
If im a xianxia clan leader and i killed thousands to make my clan powerful, thats MY sin. You can just push it onto my offspring and later descendants or say that they hold some blame for enjoying the things I provided them. If someone doesn't like it, they can claw their way up too.
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@CupcakeNinja said, whatever justification you use, how can you blame a child for the ‘sins of the father’? (You can look that up as a trope).
That’s just pure nonsense.
@N0xiety, I get where your coming from as a fellow Xianxia reader who has seen the tropes multiple times, but things can only get better if there’s change. Plus, there’s a difference between understanding and including the META added to story (like it being Ancient China most the time, where cruelty was seen differently), and trying to portray your mass murderer as virtuous.
Readers absolutely love Reverend Insanity when he goes on a killing spree. Why? It’s because he doesn’t flaunt how ‘good’ he is like Chu Feng from MGA and Yun Che from Against the Gods.
But they do hate it when the supposed ‘good guy’ gets long monologues like: “Oh woe is me, I had no choice but to kill these innocent babies still sucking on their momma’s milkers, as well as pregnant women. Because they would influence me in a bad way in the future after what I did.
What? They’ll fall into poverty and not be able to do anything to me anyway since I killed all the leading figures, and they need time to re-elect elders and leaders that could move them?
You’re saying I could have used my supposed ‘wit’ and ‘intelligence’ to put my people in positions of power to control the clan? Using a clever manipulation of fear and intimidation?
Nah, killing them is way easier.”
Alright, I get I’d exaggerated some of that, but you get what I’m getting at. Women and children above the age 4 aren’t what I’m get here. The normal trope that leads to genocide is usually that the protagonist is following customs.
Killing families in response to a wrong done by one individual happen a lot in Ancient China settings. They’re usually done for the shock value and to show a character’s ruthlessness.
Some Xianxia writers don’t get that and instead just use it to eliminate potential plot holes since they have a setting where everyone is magic. It’s usually less about morality and more about the MC refining a weapon out of their blood or smth.
The readers can’t ask why a certain clan with a genius bloodline disappeared later if the MC kills them first. Plus, edgy teens just love protagonists that can stand up for themselves by murdering a bunch. Slaughter is just a trope now.
But like I said before, you can only improve a genre by identifying the common tropes and executing them better (or in this case, removing the problem altogether). Enough said.