Cold Glint Beneath the Hat and the Might of a Single Move

Hunter's Home Tavern was noisy.

The stench of sweat, the sour smell of cheap ale, and coarse laughter and curses blended into a pot of thick, sticky air.

Han Yuchen sat quietly in a corner. His broad hat concealed most of his face, leaving only a clean-shaven chin exposed.

The wine cup before him was like a patch of calm within the eye of a storm.

A burly man swaggered over, reeking of alcohol and arrogance.

He was one of Gao Feng's men. Han Yuchen had ignored his provocative stare earlier.

Now, humiliated and enraged, he had come looking for trouble.

"Kid, are you deaf? Young Master Gao told you to get lost!"

The burly man's hand, like a greasy fan, reached straight for Han Yuchen's collar.

Tsk, filthy.

Han Yuchen did not even raise his head.

He merely held his cup and gave his wrist a slight flick.

The rim of the cup tilted ever so slightly.

A drop of amber liquor left the cup, tracing an almost invisible arc through the air.

Pop.

A soft sound, like a droplet falling into a still lake.

But what followed was not a ripple.

It was a tsunami.

That drop of liquor struck the burly man's outstretched wrist with perfect accuracy.

There came a dull thud, followed by the crisp crack of bones dislocating, clear enough to make everyone's scalp tingle.

The man's vicious grin froze instantly, turning into utter terror and agony.

A horrifying force he could neither understand nor resist erupted from his wrist.

His entire body flew backward with a scream, like a ragged sack struck head-on by a battering ram.

Boom! Crash!

He smashed over three tables, crushed two benches, then slammed heavily into the wall before sliding down and passing out on the spot.

A puddle of filth seeped from his crotch.

The entire tavern crashed.

The space that had been roaring with noise a moment ago was instantly stripped of all sound.

A pin could have been heard dropping.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the burly man sprawled on the floor, then looked toward the Hat Guest in the corner, who had not moved an inch from beginning to end.

What had happened?

No one had seen it clearly.

They had only seen a Gao Family man reach out to grab someone, then suddenly fly away.

Was this fucking hallucination?

Gao Feng, the Gao Family Soul Elder, had gone completely grim.

He stared fixedly at Han Yuchen, his eyes filled with wariness.

He had misjudged him.

This seemingly frail Hat Guest was an iron plate harder than iron.

He slowly rose to his feet. Soul Power surged through his body, giving him some confidence.

"Who might you be, sir? Why are you making an enemy of the Skywater Gao Family?"

Gao Feng's voice was cold, carrying a hint of accusation.

Only then did Han Yuchen leisurely lift his cup and drain the remaining wine in one gulp.

He set down the cup with a crisp tap.

The sound was not loud, yet it felt like a heavy hammer striking everyone's heart.

"I am merely a passerby who wanted to drink in peace."

His voice was calm, carrying a peculiar magnetism as it emerged from beneath the hat.

"Your dog was the one who bit first."

Those words were far too arrogant!

Gao Feng's face instantly flushed the color of pig liver.

He was a direct descendant of the Skywater Gao Family, a Soul Elder above level thirty. In this little patch of Star Dou Town, who dared speak to him like that?

"Courting death!"

His rage completely devoured his reason.

Gao Feng stopped wasting words. A flash of light flared beneath his feet.

Yellow, yellow, purple.

Three Spirit Rings abruptly rose. The purple Thousand-Year Soul Ring radiated a chilling pressure.

The Third Spirit Ring shone with blinding brilliance!

Roar!

The phantom of a male lion formed from flames appeared behind him. It was his Martial Soul, the Fierce Flame Lion.

Scorching heat waves spread outward from him in all directions.

Flame Claw!

Gao Feng stepped forward, his right hand curling into a claw as blazing flames wrapped around it. He lunged straight at Han Yuchen's face.

That claw strike was powerful enough to shatter stone tablets and split boulders!

Oh? A fire-attribute Assault System?

Well, isn't that convenient.

Water restrains fire. Even elementary school students know that.

You might as well be sticking your face out and begging me to hit it.

I don't even need to put on an act. This is a universally acknowledged Restraint relationship. No one can find fault with it.

Han Yuchen remained seated, without moving at all.

He did not even release his Martial Soul.

At the instant that scorching Flame Claw was about to touch his hat, he simply issued an exceedingly simple command in his mind.

Your raging flames happen to restrain my tranquil Water Element.

Yes, exactly. You restrain me to death.

[Restraint] skill activated.

The next second.

A scene so bizarre that it made everyone's soul tremble unfolded.

The ferocious flaming claw abruptly halted less than half a meter from the hat.

As though it had struck an invisible wall.

Then, it changed direction.

At twice the speed at which it had come, carrying even more violent and searing force, it swept back!

"What?!"

Gao Feng's pupils shrank to pinpoints.

He could not comprehend what was happening before his eyes. All he felt was the aura of death rushing toward him.

He wanted to dodge, but his own soul skill followed him like a shadow!

Boom!

The Flame Claw, now twice as powerful, struck Gao Feng squarely in the chest.

"Ah—!"

A shriek so miserable it barely sounded human rang through the tavern.

Gao Feng was completely engulfed by his own flames, turning into a human torch.

His fine clothes instantly turned to ash, while his skin sizzled with the sound of burning flesh.

He frantically rolled across the floor, slapping at the flames covering his body. He looked as pathetic as a wild dog set alight.

The tavern once again fell into deathly silence.

If the first time had been shocking,

then this time was pure, absolute horror.

Everyone's minds had gone blank.

What was this?

His own soul skill had hit him? And hit him that badly?

What kind of sorcery was this? Or some unheard-of, bizarre Martial Soul?

The way they looked at the Hat Guest had completely changed.

They were no longer looking at a powerful man.

They were looking at a monster, an existence beyond all common sense.

Han Yuchen slowly stood.

He took out a Gold Soul Coin from his robe and flicked it with his finger.

Ding.

The Gold Soul Coin traced a beautiful arc through the air and landed precisely on the bar counter.

Payment for the wine.

He adjusted his hat and started walking.

He headed for the door, where several Gao Family underlings still stood, frightened out of their wits.

When they saw Han Yuchen approaching, their legs shook like sieves. They scrambled and crawled out of the way, terrified of even brushing against him.

Han Yuchen stopped before them.

His gaze beneath the hat swept across each of them like ice that had not melted for ten thousand years.

"Tell your master that I want the Eastern District's Jade Fox with Emerald Eyes."

His voice remained calm, yet it carried an unquestionable dominance.

"Anyone who dares stop me will end up like this."

With that, he did not spare anyone another glance and walked straight toward the tavern entrance.

Wherever he passed, the crowd automatically made way, opening a broad path for him.

No one dared stop him.

No one even dared breathe loudly.

Only after his figure completely disappeared through the tavern door and melted into the night outside

did the atmosphere, suppressed to its limit, finally erupt!

"Hiss—"

An Old Hunter sucked in a breath, his face full of terror.

"What kind of ability was that? Words Manifested as Law? Making a soul skill attack its owner? That's terrifying!"

"My god, Gao Feng is a level thirty-seven Soul Elder! And he was just... defeated in one move?"

A mercenary beside him stared with fanatical admiration.

"Now that's the bearing of a true powerhouse! From beginning to end, he didn't even activate his Martial Soul!"

"Quick! Go see how Gao Feng is doing!"

Someone finally came to their senses and rushed toward Gao Feng, who was still groaning on the floor.

His entire body was charred black. His hair and eyebrows were all gone, and he smelled like roasted meat. His breath was weak; he had already suffered grave injuries.

"Hat Guest..."

Someone muttered the name, remembering that title.

A legend was born at the moment Han Yuchen left the tavern.

News that the "Hat Guest" had defeated Soul Elder Gao Feng in a single move seemed to grow wings, spreading through Star Dou Town at stormlike speed.

And at that very moment.

The man at the center of this storm had already entered the forest path leading to the eastern district of the Star Dou Great Forest alone.

The night was deep.