Mere Jia Lie

Gu Fang listened to the angry roars around him and swept his gaze toward the burly figure that had just appeared.

That man radiated dense wind-attributed battle qi, which gathered around every part of his body. Faintly visible, a suit of cyan armor had nearly taken shape over his chest!

Battle Qi Armor—the mark of a Da Dou Shi, above the Dou Shi realm.

In other words...

The man who had appeared was a full major realm above Gu Fang.

"Jia Lie Bi, patriarch of the Jia Lie Family, and Jia Lie'ao's father."

Looking at the burly figure brimming with wind-attributed battle qi, Gu Fang spoke the man's name.

Although Gu Fang had never been to Wutan City, his memories of reading Battle Through the Heavens in his previous life had made him thoroughly familiar with its major figures.

Especially the Xiao Family and the Jia Lie Family—he knew them inside and out!

Just as Gu Fang and Jia Lie Bi faced off, a black-robed youth led a large group through the outer crowd. He first glanced at the battlefield.

After shooting Gu Fang a stunned look, shocked by both his young age and formidable strength, he turned his gaze toward the green-clad girl who had been watching the fight. His eyes softened slightly.

Then he asked with concern, "Nizi, are you all right?"

"Brother Xiao Yan, I'm fine!"

When Xun'er saw the black-robed youth, she pursed her lips and replied with a light smile.

"That's good. I heard something happened here and hurried over. As long as everyone's fine, that's what matters!"

Xiao Yan spoke casually. After finishing, he once again turned his gaze toward Gu Fang and Jia Lie Bi, who were confronting each other.

He knew Jia Lie Bi—the patriarch of the Jia Lie Family, a Da Dou Shi!

But he did not recognize the youth facing Jia Lie Bi at all. It was a completely unfamiliar face he had never seen before.

Battle Qi Gauze Robe—the strength of a Dou Shi!

A Dou Shi at such an age... If his cultivation talent had never vanished, perhaps he could have compared himself to him. But now, there was simply no comparison!

Still...

Xiao Yan raised a hand and touched the black Storage Ring on his finger.

With Old Yao around, he would soon reach that realm—and even surpass him!

Having witnessed Old Yao's alchemy firsthand, Xiao Yan had that confidence.

With that thought, he turned and looked gently at Xun'er. "Nizi, what happened earlier? Why did that old bastard Jia Lie Bi come here?"

Xiao Yan asked.

Meanwhile, Jia Lie Bi's roar had already rung out.

"Boy, you dare injure a member of my Jia Lie Family in Wutan City? You must be tired of living."

Recalling Jia Lie'ao's miserable state, Jia Lie Bi's face turned livid, his eyes filled with chilling killing intent. "No matter what family you come from, you'll pay the price!"

Jia Lie Bi sneered. Cyan battle qi rapidly condensed in his palms, and a whirlwind suddenly exploded beneath his feet. Borrowing that force—

His body shot down at Gu Fang like a cannonball. With a swing of his palm, battle qi gathered around his arm and formed a cyan wind blade several meters long.

The intense wind pressure produced by the blade was so strong that everyone around had to focus on steadying their bodies. There was no doubt...

Gu Fang had utterly enraged Jia Lie Bi. The moment he attacked, he had already unleashed the full strength of a Da Dou Shi.

"Teach me a lesson?"

Gu Fang sneered and shook his head, glancing at the wind blade Jia Lie Bi had formed. "Who the hell do you think you are? Do you really think your Jia Lie Family is something special?

You're nothing but a family worse than ants."

Gu Fang did not lower his voice in the slightest. If anything, he spoke loudly. At the very least...

Every mercenary watching nearby heard his words clearly.

Instantly, an uproar broke out...

They might have already guessed that the youth's background was not simple, but his earlier words had only been directed at some members of the Jia Lie Family. If one insisted, there had still been some room to smooth things over.

But now, Gu Fang was facing Jia Lie Bi, the patriarch of the Jia Lie Family.

For him to speak like that even now, it could only mean that Gu Fang truly thought so.

In the eyes of the force behind Gu Fang—

The Jia Lie Family really was nothing more than an ant!

"Come!"

Amid everyone's shock, Gu Fang muttered softly. Origin Flame gathered in his palm, and in the next instant, it condensed into a swirling vortex of multicolored flames.

Without dodging or retreating, he charged directly at Jia Lie Bi's violent wind blade.

Seeing Gu Fang actually choose to clash head-on with Jia Lie Bi, the surrounding crowd could not help but erupt in commotion.

They knew Gu Fang was a genius, having reached the Dou Shi realm at such a young age. They also knew that the force behind him was powerful enough that it would likely crush the Jia Lie Family.

But there was one thing everyone could plainly see...

The difference in strength between Gu Fang and Jia Lie Bi was enormous. Dou Shi and Da Dou Shi were separated by an entire major realm.

If Gu Fang continued to evade, he might still be able to hold on for a while. But if he chose a direct clash, defeat was the only possible outcome.

Just as everyone was lamenting, the Origin Flame vortex Gu Fang had formed finally collided head-on with Jia Lie Bi's cyan wind blade.

Bang!

With a muffled boom, flames and shattered fragments of wind blades exploded in all directions. The several-meter wind blade formed by Jia Lie Bi continuously sliced into Gu Fang's Origin Flame vortex.

Amid one ear-piercing crash after another, the cyan giant blade kept pressing closer to Gu Fang!

Finally, just as Jia Lie Bi's cyan wind blade was about to slice Gu Fang's Origin Flame vortex apart, Gu Fang's spread palms suddenly came together.

The instant the Origin Flame vortex vanished, his legs shifted in an intricate pattern. Battle qi surged, as though phantoms of dragons and snakes had gathered beneath his feet.

Dragon Snake Evasion Technique!

As the phantom figures flashed past, Gu Fang's entire body shot backward.

He actually escaped Jia Lie Bi's attack range directly!

Boom!

Having lost its target, Jia Lie Bi's attack slammed straight into the ground. The rapidly vibrating wind blade cleaved through the bluestone like tofu.

The force of the impact spread outward, eventually blasting a massive crater into the ground.

The onlookers all swallowed hard at the sight of Jia Lie Bi's attack. They did not dare imagine what would happen if that strike landed on them.

While trembling in fear, they looked at the retreating Gu Fang and sighed inwardly. When they had first heard Gu Fang's arrogant words, they had held some confidence in him and in the battle.

But now, the truth of the fight had shown them...

Gu Fang's strength was likely insufficient!

The power of a Da Dou Shi truly lived up to its reputation.

"Father, kill him!" Watching Jia Lie Bi seize the advantage with a single strike, Jia Lie'ao's face filled with wild joy before he shouted venomously.

But Jia Lie'ao's roar received no response from his father, Jia Lie Bi. In fact, it did not earn even a fraction of his attention.

At that moment, Jia Lie Bi's focus was on...

Liu Xi, who had been buried beneath the collapsed wall.

He carefully sensed Liu Xi's life aura beneath the rubble.

Only after confirming that Liu Xi was still alive did Jia Lie Bi turn his gaze back toward Gu Fang. Recalling the strange flames Gu Fang had used earlier and the peculiar movement technique he had used to retreat, a serious look flashed through Jia Lie Bi's eyes.

At the same time...

Jia Lie Bi remained absolutely confident in victory. No matter how great one's talent, background, or battle techniques, without sufficient strength, one could not unleash their proper power.

The gap between a Dou Shi and a Da Dou Shi...

Was not something that could be bridged by a few battle techniques. After all, even if a Dou Shi used a high-grade battle technique...

How many times could he use it?

At most twice—enough to completely drain the battle qi from his body.

Victory was already inevitable. Thus, what Jia Lie Bi was considering now was how to pull his family out of this storm and obtain the greatest possible benefit.

Jia Lie Bi had never been a fool. If he were, then even with enough strength, he could not have maintained the Jia Lie Family as one of Wutan City's three great families.

Jia Lie Bi could tell from their exchange...

The force behind Gu Fang was definitely no ordinary power. To cultivate a Dou Shi of such an age, a genius capable of wielding such strange flames...

To put it bluntly, his family was nothing in the eyes of the force behind Gu Fang.

If he had been given a choice from the start, Jia Lie Bi would certainly have chosen to treat Gu Fang with courtesy, exhausting the Jia Lie Family's resources to win Gu Fang's favor.

But now...

It was already too late.

His idiot son and Liu Xi, whose lust had gone to his head, had thoroughly provoked the other party.

Trying to repair the relationship, much less improve it further, was simply impossible.

Therefore, Jia Lie Bi could only seek another solution.

And the opening Jia Lie Bi had thought of was...

Liu Xi, and the network behind Liu Xi.

Alchemists were not strong in battle, but the connections behind them were terrifying. More importantly, there was Liu Xi's master and the network behind his master.

Jia Lie Bi's earlier act of checking Liu Xi's life signs had been for this very reason.

If Liu Xi had died, Jia Lie Bi could capture Gu Fang. That would allow him to give Liu Xi's master an explanation, while Liu Xi's master could negotiate with the force behind Gu Fang.

Even if the bond between master and disciple was close, the dead were dead. Liu Xi's master would not truly tear all ties with the other party.

But Liu Xi was not dead now...

That changed the final outcome completely. If Jia Lie Bi merely captured Gu Fang, the result would be no different from Liu Xi dying.

But if he killed Gu Fang now, the outcome would be entirely different.

The force behind Gu Fang would indeed fly into a rage, but after hearing Liu Xi's account, Liu Xi's master would not yield easily. More importantly...

Once, when Jia Lie Bi had sent Liu Xi a beauty, he had heard Liu Xi mention that an elder brother with an excellent relationship with both him and his master had actually entered the legendary Pill Tower.

What kind of force was the Pill Tower?

It was the continent's most transcendent and powerful force. In its eyes, the Misty Cloud Sect could be wiped out with a mere breath.

With such a powerful backer, what did it matter if Gu Fang's force was strong?

They would still have no choice but to leave with their tails between their legs.

When that time came, the Jia Lie Family might even ride this wave to meteoric success, becoming Wutan City's number one power in one fell swoop.

They might even expand their sphere of influence into other cities.

At that thought, Jia Lie Bi looked at Gu Fang, and killing intent surged within him.