A Blade Strike at Peak Mastery

"Heh, this kid was really crafty. He fought without any martial virtue at all~"

Not far away, Shangguan Feiyun watched Li Yan kill three men in succession, his face full of surprise.

When he saw the longsword break, Shangguan Feiyun had already been prepared to step in and save him.

After all, Li Yan had saved Shangguan Xiyun. A debt of life was the hardest to repay; if he returned it with another life-saving favor, things would be much easier to handle afterward.

Yet Li Yan's actions far exceeded his expectations. It was as though he had anticipated the blade breaking, turning it instead into a weapon that claimed lives.

"Second Brother, was that really impressive?"

Hearing this, Shangguan Feiyun shot his little sister a speechless glance. Born into a martial family, yet apart from some basic knowledge, she had no understanding of the martial path whatsoever.

Only because the entire family doted on this youngest child did Shangguan Feiyun let it slide. Otherwise, he would definitely have made this little sister suffer through the hardships of martial training~

Just as he was about to make another jab, Shangguan Feiyun suddenly sensed something and quickly turned his head.

When he saw Li Yan gripping a blade once more, the carefree expression on his face abruptly turned solemn.

At that moment, he actually sensed a trace of threat from Li Yan!

Li Yan was, at most, at the ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm, while he had already reached the Meridian Opening Realm. With two entire realms between them, this kid actually made him feel threatened...

In the next instant, Shangguan Feiyun's pupils contracted as an almost absurd thought surfaced in his mind.

Turning back, Li Yan slowly raised the blade in his hand. The moment his eyes met Yuan Feipeng's, Yuan Feipeng's entire body went ice-cold.

At that moment, in his eyes, Li Yan's blade seemed to possess some kind of magic. Simply looking at it, he felt as though he were standing upon a battlefield at the edge of the realm.

Beacon fires and smoke, severed limbs and broken arms, shattered armor and snapped swords—everywhere his eyes reached was scarred ruin.

Merely meeting Li Yan's gaze made him feel as though his mind were being dragged into that ancient battlefield, and he could not help falling into a daze.

Noticing Yuan Feipeng's lapse, Li Yan naturally would not let this chance pass. He stepped forward, and at the same time, the blade in his hand unleashed the most perfect strike he had ever delivered.

And in Yuan Feipeng's eyes, every broken blade and sword left behind across that ancient battlefield rose into the air, all slashing toward him at once.

Facing the blades and swords howling down from the sky, Yuan Feipeng wanted to block them, but his body could not move at all.

"Pshk."

The longsword swept through. Yuan Feipeng's head shot into the air, blood spraying in every direction like a fountain.

The sudden scene left everyone utterly stunned. It was difficult to imagine that Yuan Feipeng, who had just been beating Li Yan so badly he could not tell east from west, had been beheaded by a single slash from Li Yan!

"No, no, no... Impossible! I must have seen wrong. The Second Boss is dead?"

"How could that be? That guy was clearly only in the Body Tempering Realm—how could he possibly kill the Second Boss?!"

"Damn it, damn it! The Second Boss is dead! We're all going to die, we're all going to die!"

"Run! Run!"

Amid cries of alarm, the few Fierce Wind Bandits remaining nearby scattered and fled.

Only after most of them had run away did Li Yan's legs finally give out, and he dropped to one knee.

That strike had looked like only a single slash, but it was absolutely not something someone in the Body Tempering Realm should have been able to unleash.

Without True Qi to support him, he had relied entirely on his physique. By now, nearly all the strength in his body had been drained away.

Fortunately, with Yuan Feipeng's death, the Attribute Points arrived as expected.

Li Yan immediately raised his hand and collected all the Attribute Points.

Strength +1.5

Speed +1

Constitution +1.3

True Qi +0.1

Experience Points +115

Congratulations, you have obtained Tearing Wind Claws

A small amount of Experience Points entered his body, giving Li Yan back a faint trace of strength. He staggered to his feet and felt a flickering thread of warmth flow into his body.

Presumably, that was the effect of the 0.1 True Qi entering his body. But since he currently had no Cultivation Method, that strand of True Qi could only drift aimlessly, like duckweed without roots.

"Are you alright?!"

Shangguan Xiyun hurried to Li Yan's side and supported his swaying body.

"I'm fine. Just a little exhausted. I'll be alright after resting for a while."

"Hahahahaha! This is not something a little rest will solve!"

A hearty laugh rang out, and only then did Li Yan notice Shangguan Feiyun standing beside Shangguan Xiyun.

"Brother, at such a young age, before even entering the Qi Condensation Realm, you have already cultivated a Martial Arts technique to Peak Mastery. With this talent, there will surely be a place for you at the pinnacle of martial arts in the Great Wu Dynasty someday!"

With Shangguan Feiyun's discernment, he could naturally tell the level of Li Yan's previous strike.

When Li Yan had fought Yuan Feipeng earlier, he had already noticed that Li Yan's blade technique had reached the Mastered level.

To cultivate a Martial Arts technique to the Mastered level at such an age was already enough to look down upon the masses.

Then there had been Li Yan's final strike. It was truly difficult to imagine how a kid his age had cultivated a Martial Arts technique to Peak Mastery.

"You..."

Li Yan looked at the overly familiar Shangguan Feiyun, wariness in his eyes.

"Oh, sorry, I got too excited. I'm Shangguan Feiyun, this brat girl's Second Brother."

As he spoke, Shangguan Feiyun even patted Shangguan Xiyun on the shoulder, making her visibly unhappy.

Although Li Yan had already made his own judgment, hearing the man say it aloud finally made him breathe a sigh of relief.

Since people from the Shangguan Family had arrived, he was safe now.

"Let's go. We'll head back to Dongjiang City first. News has been blocked these past few days, and the family hasn't received any word at all. Everyone has been worried about you."

As he spoke, Shangguan Feiyun prepared to lead the two away. At that very moment, a mournful howl came from afar.

As the cry rang out, a figure came hurtling toward the three of them. Shangguan Feiyun stepped forward and gave a light wave of his hand. The corpse flying at them like a cannonball immediately became like a dead leaf caught in a whirlwind, spun twice, and crashed to one side.

"As expected of the Shangguan Family's Flying Flower Scattered Hands. Truly exquisite beyond words."

From the woods, Wang Dingtian, built like a small mountain, walked toward them step by step. Each step he took left a clear footprint in the ground.

"Wang Dingtian of the Fierce Wind Bandits."

Shangguan Feiyun frowned as well, staring fixedly at the approaching man.

The newcomer was none other than Wang Dingtian, the First Boss of the Fierce Wind Bandits.

"Second Young Master, let us speak plainly. It was improper of the Fierce Wind Bandits to abduct the Third Young Miss. Another day, Wang will surely prepare generous gifts and personally visit the Shangguan Family to apologize."

"But today, you must hand this kid over to me."

"Impossible!"

Before Shangguan Feiyun could even speak, Shangguan Xiyun had already spread her arms and shielded Li Yan behind her.

Seeing this, Shangguan Feiyun chuckled. "First Boss, you see it too. Our little sister does not agree."

Hearing this, Wang Dingtian's expression turned even uglier.

He and Yuan Feipeng had acted together, but each had their own role. Yuan Feipeng had come to kill that kid and seize an opportunity to abduct Shangguan Xiyun, while he himself had waited along Yuan Feipeng's retreat route to provide support and hold off the Shangguan Family's pursuers.

Yet they had never imagined that a kid in the Body Tempering Realm would accomplish a feat no one had achieved in a hundred years and actually kill Yuan Feipeng in return.

One had to know that the three bosses of the Fierce Wind Bandits were sworn brothers who had bowed to Heaven and Earth. Both of his younger brothers had died at this fellow's hands. As their Elder Brother, he naturally had to avenge them.

Even if it meant tearing all pretense of friendship apart with the Shangguan Family, Wang Dingtian would not hesitate!