If You Weren't the Young Sect Master

If You Weren't the Young Sect Master...

The approaching shadow swayed faintly, every step carrying a dull thud, as if it weighed a thousand tons.

Nalan Yanran's gaze trembled.

She did not know if it was an illusion, but an invisible pressure like a collapsing mountain was slowly bearing down, flooding into the Main Hall like the tide.

"Tap... tap... tap..."

That figure stopped in front of her, then leaned in slightly, as if his face had pushed through the shadow, his features becoming clear.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

One of the lackeys who had come along on errands shot to his feet in anger, releasing the aura of a Five Star Dou Zhe as he reached out to shove him. "Stay away from Yanran!"

"Smack... whoosh... bang!"

Xiao Yan kept his eyes fixed on Nalan without shifting in the slightest. With one hand on the hilt, he lifted the Black Ruler down and planted it on the ground, then, amid the violent rush of air, lightly pushed it into the man's hand.

The young man's expression changed the instant he touched the Black Ruler. His Dou Qi seemed to slam on the brakes, clogging every corner of his body.

In the blink of an eye, his face turned the color of a pig's liver—

"...Clang...!"

With a mournful cry from the wooden furniture, the young man fell heavily back into his chair while hugging the Black Ruler, pinned firmly in place.

The Dou Qi congealed in his Meridians was like stagnant water. No matter how he called upon it, it remained frozen where it was, leaving him so stifled he could neither move nor speak.

A single ruler had pinned this Five Star Dou Zhe to his seat.

As the airflow gradually faded, the shock in Nalan Yanran's eyes deepened another degree.

"You were never crippled at all!!"

"Heh..."

Xiao Yan smiled noncommittally, looking down at her ever so slightly. A strange scent spread out, faintly bitter yet carrying a clear fragrance, as if medicine had just been boiled. "You're... Nalan Yanran?"

"Yes."

Nalan Yanran hurriedly retreated a few steps and steadied herself. "Since those rumors were all false, then that's perfect..."

You can be your great genius, and I'll be my Young Sect Master.

They could part ways then and there, and she would not have to be saddled with the ugly name of a snob!

"Perfect for you to use your status as the Young Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect to tear apart the marriage agreement between the Nalan Family and the Xiao Clan in front of the whole world?"

Xiao Yan looked at her quietly. "The Young Sect Master certainly has fine methods. Borrowing the Misty Cloud Sect's power to soar straight into the clouds, then kicking your own family's reputation to pieces with both feet... Looks like Nalan Old Master raised you for nothing."

No matter how much you twisted your tongue, people would only see that this young lady had climbed onto the power of the Misty Cloud Sect, then turned around and struck the first sword blow at her own family.

"Xiao Yan! Stop twisting things with your nonsense!"

Nalan Yanran's pupils shrank, and she cut him off sharply.

A reputation like that was something not only she herself, but even the Misty Cloud Sect could not bear. Countless pairs of eyes across the entire nation were watching this "number one sect."

"This Annulment of Marriage was entirely my own decision. I, Nalan Yanran, will never follow this marriage agreement and marry a man I've never even met!"

Nalan Yanran pointed at Xiao Yan. "Whether you are a genius or a cripple, my choice remains the same! No one can change it!"

"I alone did this, and naturally, I alone will bear the infamy!"

Her words rang out firmly, and in the silent Main Hall, they actually echoed once or twice.

"Heh."

Xiao Yan could not help but give a snort of laughter.

"You'll bear it? What are you going to use to bear it? Have you never thought about what exactly you were relying on for today's Annulment of Marriage?"

"I..." Nalan Yanran's finger trembled.

"If you hadn't draped yourself in that skin, where would you get the chance to stand here squawking?!"

Xiao Yan took a step forward and knocked her hand away. "Based on what you've done today, it would already be merciful for my Xiao Clan to have you flogged out of here! And you still have the nerve to show off your aura? Do you really think we're made of mud?"

"Boom—"

The many auras that had fallen silent surged up once more, as if they would move to seize her in the very next instant.

"..."

Nalan Yanran's lips trembled a few times. She looked around, as though facing such a scene for the first time.

Everything had exceeded her expectations.

"What? You got used to throwing your weight around in the Misty Cloud Sect and the Nalan Family, and never experienced anyone denying you face?" Xiao Yan raised a brow.

The Main Hall suddenly erupted in laughter.

Layer after layer of sound pressed her smaller and smaller, as if the entire world were accusing her from within the darkness.

"Why are all of you forcing me..."

Nalan Yanran's face was deathly pale, but there was even more anger in it. "Fine, I won't annul this marriage agreement. Are you satisfied now!"

"Force you? Ha! Who would force you? Who would dare force you?"

Xiao Yan looked as if he had heard the funniest thing in the world—though it really was funny enough. "Open your eyes and take a good look again. Of everyone here, which one of them wasn't forced by you?"

"Am I right, Mr. Ge Ye?"

Ge Ye...

Nalan Yanran froze, then whipped her head around and saw Ge Ye, whose gaze was dodging as he remained silent.

When it came to being forced, the one present who felt it most deeply was precisely him.

The Misty Cloud Sect. The Young Sect Master.

If either one of those titles had been missing, just see whether he would still have waded into these muddy waters.

"Do you understand now? You're the main character here, at this time and in this place."

Xiao Yan stepped forward, walking in an arc until he circled around in front of Nalan Yanran. "Everyone is afraid of you in their hearts. Afraid of you, the Young Sect Master. Everything everyone does revolves around you, forced by you to do this and that... Don't tell me you really thought what you did was purely your own business?"

"Oh, and don't forget."

Xiao Yan's smile was extremely dangerous. With a turn of his fingers, he produced a visiting card between them. "What's written on this from the very start is: Misty. Cloud. Sect."

"Give it to me!"

Nalan Yanran cried out sharply, losing her composure, and reached out to snatch it.

Xiao Yan calmly hid it behind his back, watching the young woman before him grab for it like she had gone mad. "Do you understand now? How does it feel to have every path of retreat blocked by someone else? Care to make a speech about it?"

"You!"

Nalan Yanran grabbed Xiao Yan by the collar.

"Young Sect Master!" Ge Ye growled in a low voice, showing anger in front of this little leader for the first time.

The Misty Cloud Sect had already lost enough face. If she kept disgracing herself like this, what kind of behavior would that be? Only then did Nalan Yanran regain a little clarity. She pulled back, putting distance between them as she slowly calmed her emotions.

"Calm now?"

Xiao Yan flipped his hand and passed the invitation over, then turned and walked outside. "Let's talk outside, Eldest Miss Nalan!"

Halfway there, he casually picked up the Xuan Heavy Ruler and slung it behind his back, still without so much as glancing at that person. "Many thanks for the help, brother."

"You... you bastard..."

The young man gasped as if he were about to stop breathing. "Young Sect Master?"

Seeing Nalan Yanran follow him out, he immediately struggled to get up, only to be pulled back.

"This is the Nalan Family's business," Ge Ye said, then lifted his teacup and took a sip.

"Hmph..."

The Third Elder shook his head and laughed nonstop, then waved his hand to signal that everyone should disperse.

Xiao Yan strode ahead, while Nalan Yanran silently followed behind.

Her steps were a little shorter, and every so often she had to quicken her pace to catch up a bit to Xiao Yan, but the distance between them never disappeared.

"What, have you figured it out now?"

Xiao Yan looked back.

"If I had never come..." Nalan Yanran asked softly.

"Then no one could have forced you."

The dignified Young Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect—what madman in this world would be so blind as to leap into her face and publicly bring up this joke of an engagement?