As Shangguan Feiyun sprang into the air, Li Yan also rushed out of the room. They borrowed force twice to reach the rooftop, where they saw two men confronting each other atop a distant tower.
One of them was surrounded by swirling leaves. Who else could it be but Shangguan Liuyun?
Upon the tower, Shangguan Liuyun had shed his usual refined and aloof manner. Every trace of cold severity showed on his face, sending a chill through the hearts of all who met his gaze.
Opposite him stood a middle-aged scholar with a goatee, his hands clasped behind his back. His scholar's robes snapped and danced in the wind, yet he himself stood as unmoving as a mountain.
This was Huang Lingyan, the City Lord of Dongjiang City. He prided himself on being a modest gentleman, favored Confucian learning, and usually appeared before others dressed as a scholar.
"City Lord Huang, if there is no reasonable explanation for what happened to my younger sister today, then though Father is absent, the Shangguan Family still has people left."
"Hehehehe, why is Eldest Shangguan so furious? This City Lord truly knows nothing of what happened to your sister."
Huang Lingyan spread his hands, wearing an innocent expression, but Shangguan Liuyun did not buy it in the slightest.
"City Lord Huang, my younger sister has been hunted for several days now, yet not a whisper of it reached the Shangguan Family."
"If not for my second brother's habit of wandering about whenever he has nothing to do, all I would be seeing now would be my little sister's bones."
"In all of Dongjiang City, who besides someone with extraordinary power could completely seal off news from the Shangguan Family?"
"What? Your sister was actually hunted down? Who dared act with such outrageous audacity?!"
"Anyone capable of blocking news from the Shangguan Family must have hands that reach the heavens. No, this matter must be investigated. I will certainly give the Shangguan Family a satisfactory explanation."
Huang Lingyan spoke with utter sincerity, yet Shangguan Liuyun clearly caught the mockery leaking from the corners of his eyes.
"Very well. Since you are giving an explanation, then give a time. I hope to receive the City Lord's answer tomorrow. Otherwise, do not blame Shangguan Liuyun for seeking out people from home."
As his words fell, the leaves filling the sky scattered apart. Shangguan Liuyun stepped upon the leaves and vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye.
Atop the tower, Huang Lingyan stroked his goatee, a dim light flickering in his eyes. With a leap, he too returned to the City Lord's Mansion.
The moment he entered the mansion, his subordinates immediately stepped forward.
"City Lord, the Shangguan Family has gone too far! They actually dared make trouble at the City Lord's Mansion."
"That's right, City Lord. Shangguan Liuyun clearly did not put you in his eyes at all."
"City Lord, the Shangguan Family has already grown into a force. If they are allowed to continue unchecked, then in the future, I fear they will..."
"Enough."
Huang Lingyan raised a hand and cut off his subordinates, then waved them away.
However, just as one subordinate was about to leave, Huang Lingyan reached out and pressed a hand onto his shoulder.
"City Lord, what are your orders?"
"The news of that girl Xiyun being hunted was intercepted by you, wasn't it?"
"Y-Yes. This subordinate believed that the Shangguan Family was a great threat to the City Lord. If Shangguan Xiyun could die outside, it would certainly be a tremendous..."
Before he could finish, he met Huang Lingyan's frosty, severe gaze. At the same time, a bone-piercing chill rose from beneath his feet.
Looking down, he saw frost already covering his feet. The icy chill rapidly climbed upward, freezing his entire body before he was even given the chance to beg for mercy.
"What I hate most is people acting on their own authority. Remember that in your next life."
Huang Lingyan lightly tapped the ice before him. With a crack, it shattered, scattering ice fragments across the ground.
Just then, a report came from outside the door. "City Lord, there is news."
"Enter."
A subordinate entered and relayed every detail they had uncovered, all concerning what had happened to Shangguan Xiyun over the past several days.
When he heard that a boy had killed over a hundred people in mere days to protect Shangguan Xiyun, his eyes narrowed once more.
"Hehehehe, a hundred-man slaughter in just a few days. What murderous nature this boy has... Wan Sanhuo, was it..."
"Go. Spread this news throughout the city. You know what to do."
"Yes, this subordinate understands."
That afternoon, in the front hall of the Shangguan Family, the three Shangguan siblings stared blankly at Li Yan. When Shangguan Liuyun sensed the aura of the First Level of Qi Condensation on Li Yan, he took several deep breaths before finally suppressing the shock in his heart.
Beside him, Shangguan Feiyun's jaw had nearly dropped to the floor. He stood utterly motionless, as though someone had struck his acupoints.
As for Shangguan Xiyun, she was excited, though she herself did not know what she was excited about.
After a long while, Shangguan Feiyun finally recovered from his shock, shaking his head like a rattle-drum. "Good, good, good! I have seen quite a few young talents in the martial world. There are some who think themselves extraordinary and possess remarkable gifts. Hah, how laughable that every last one of them thinks so highly of themselves."
"Indeed. Compared with Brother Wan, all the young prodigies I have known before seem utterly ordinary."
Shangguan Liuyun could not help adding his own words. Since this Cultivation Method had been created, no one had ever mastered it within a single day of receiving it.
Not even the ancestor who had created this Cultivation Method in the first place had managed that!
Faced with such lavish praise from the two of them, Li Yan did not act modestly. He merely said that he had eaten some herbs in the mountains years ago, and perhaps their medicinal power had yet to disperse, giving him a helping hand.
Now that he had entered the gate of the Cultivation Method, a round of sparring and guidance naturally followed.
Li Yan faced Shangguan Feiyun. Though the latter was injured, dealing with Li Yan, who had only just entered the Qi Condensation Realm, was still more than easy for him.
Only after truly exchanging blows did Li Yan personally feel the strength of the Meridian Opening Realm. The Hundred Battles Saber of the Peak Perfection Realm appeared unmatched in slaughter, yet in truth it could only tear through a thin layer of the True Qi condensed around his opponent.
Shangguan Feiyun, on the other hand, merely made slight moves, and his ever-changing Flying Flower Scattered Hands forced Li Yan back step by step.
Though Shangguan Feiyun had been beaten so badly by Wang Dingtian, if another Meridian Opening Second Layer cultivator had faced Wang Dingtian instead, their skull would likely have already been twisted off.
This showed that Shangguan Feiyun was by no means a useless fool.
Just as Li Yan was immersed in this exhilarating clash, a servant suddenly hurried over.
"Reporting to the Eldest Young Master, Second Young Master, and Third Miss, many martial artists from Dongjiang City have gathered outside the gates. They say... they say..."
"Say what? Hurry up and say it."
Hearing Shangguan Feiyun's impatience, the maid hurriedly replied, "They say they have come for the Murderous Fiend."
"The Murderous Fiend?"
The few of them looked at one another, then their gazes settled on Li Yan.
In this room, the only one who could possibly have anything to do with the words Murderous Fiend was Li Yan.
"Heh, it seems they came for me. Then let us see..."
"Wait!"
Shangguan Liuyun raised a hand and stopped Li Yan. "This is the Shangguan Family. For them to come knocking at our gates means they do not put the Shangguan Family in their eyes."
"If Brother Wan were to suffer an accident in the Shangguan Family, then there would be no need for our Shangguan Family signboard to remain hanging."
"Little Sister."
"Elder Brother, speak."
"You stay here with Brother Wan and wait. Make sure to take good care of him."
"Alright, Elder Brother."
Shangguan Liuyun looked at Li Yan, and Li Yan gave a slight nod.
Their origins and intentions were both unclear. Shangguan Liuyun wanted Li Yan to remain here and protect Shangguan Xiyun.
"Come, Second Brother. Let us see what is going on."
"Now that sounds good. I would like to see which blind dog dared come to the Shangguan Family and stir up trouble!"
Before you continue