Keep Talking

"You..."

Galeo Bi stretched out a hand and pointed at the First Elder, yet did not know what to call him.

All this time, whenever the Xiao Family handled matters, Xiao Zhan had always personally stepped forward. At most, the three elders had followed along to run errands, and no one knew their names.

Even within the Xiao Family itself, people called them "the three elders" all day long. Hardly anyone knew what they were actually named.

Most likely, it was a decision made back when they withdrew from the Imperial Capital...

After all, there was no record on the clan genealogy either. It was a complete blank.

"...This Xiao Family Old Senior."

Galeo Bi held it in for ages and could only squeeze out such a form of address. "I can only lament that my Gale Family's information was slow. We did not know Senior had already broken through to the Dou Ling realm, and failed to visit and present our congratulations. I truly am ashamed!"

"Mm..."

The First Elder walked forward, leaning on his cane.

"Uh, this commotion is, for the most part, a misunderstanding... It's all a misunderstanding!" Sweat broke out on Galeo Bi's forehead.

No matter how great the big shot backing him was, that person still had to be right there.

With three or five cities between them, even if he got beaten flat as a pancake, no one would stand up for him.

"Oh?"

The First Elder pondered as he approached.

"Senior... Senior! I was only joking! I just wanted to liven up the atmosphere a little and discuss trade between our two families..."

Galeo Bi was the complete opposite of his earlier arrogance. Seeing the First Elder draw closer and closer, his legs were even faintly trembling.

But if he were asked to turn tail and run, he would not dare. He feared provoking this Dou Ling and being executed on the spot.

"Joking?"

The First Elder stopped in front of him.

Galeo Bi's face was so pale it had turned slightly green, and for a moment, he mumbled without daring to say more.

Indeed.

The gap between a Da Dou Shi and a Dou Ling was not actually that enormous. The possibility of fighting above one's level existed.

But it was merely a possibility.

If he could fight above his level, would he still be holed up in this tiny place? He would have seized resources and poured them into reaching Dou Ling long ago, then gone to the Imperial Capital to make his way in the world.

"Trash..."

The First Elder sighed faintly.

Crack!

"Mm..." Galeo Bi clutched his deformed left leg and retreated two steps.

The First Elder, whose cane was still extended, did not withdraw it. He swung again, leaving an afterimage.

"Annulment of Marriage, huh..."

Bang!

Galeo Bi grunted and fell to the ground. Dragging both legs, he continued backing away, only for the cane, its Dou Qi condensed into a blade, to pin down his left leg.

"Patriarch Gale, this old man truly is somewhat curious. Just what exactly happened to our Xiao Family Third Young Master?"

"No... nothing."

Cold sweat poured from Galeo Bi's entire body. Whether from fear or pain, his body would not stop trembling. "I don't know anything... No, everything is fine! It's all fine!"

"Is that so?"

The cane twisted, scraping against tendon and bone.

"Yes, yes, yes..." Galeo Bi sucked in a breath of cold air, though unfortunately, the scene did not quite match the classic.

"That's best." The First Elder withdrew, satisfied.

In the original work, the Xiao Family had been mocked like this, and insufficient strength had been the greatest factor.

If they could break the legs of everyone who mocked and sneered at them, who would still dare be so blind as to spread it publicly and make a huge fuss?

Of course, there was definitely no stopping the mouths of the masses.

But the Misty Cloud Sect had committed so many evil deeds and borne so much infamy, yet none of it had overshadowed its title as number one in the Jia Ma Empire.

As long as those busybodies were forced to hold their tongues and did not dare say much, that was already enough.

"If you ask me, it would've been better to just split that guy in half."

Yao Lao hovered in the air and looked at Xiao Yan, who was seated atop the city wall. "On the path of cultivation, a clear and unblocked state of mind is quite important. Enduring everything and never venting like you do can certainly spare you some trouble, but in the end, it isn't a good choice."

Ever since his youth, he had wandered the continent. Acting freely, repaying kindness and enmity as he pleased, had painted the first half of his life. Even after he established a force and took in disciples, the spirited pride in his heart had not diminished by much.

A carefree figure for an entire lifetime.

To him, Xiao Yan was a fine disciple in every way.

The only thing he disliked—perhaps even looked down on, to put it more harshly—was the temperament Xiao Yan showed. People had already come charging right into his face, yet he still hesitated, wavered, fretted over this and that, and who knew what he was thinking.

"Utterly spineless!"

Yao Lao gave a muffled snort, clearly not thinking much of Xiao Yan's way of doing things.

"Yeah... it is pretty spineless."

Xiao Yan's reaction was so calm it surprised him. He merely nodded softly in agreement, and even started laughing to himself.

"If you know it's spineless, then why are you acting like this!"

Seeing Xiao Yan care so little, Yao Lao grew somewhat angry too.

"Because I can't treat the Xiao Clan like a joke."

Xiao Yan glanced at Yao Lao. "Just like you, Teacher. You clearly have enemies, yet every other word out of your mouth is about resurrection, and you never mention revenge at all. Doesn't that count as a kind of spinelessness?"

"Just like me?"

Yao Lao's expression stirred slightly, but he still steadied his tone. "I'm afraid you'll fall into danger! That enemy is no simple matter."

"I'm afraid too."

Xiao Yan looked quietly at Yao Lao. "The Xiao Clan has enemies. If it were only a merchant clan tucked away in a small city, that would be one thing. But if an peerless genius appears... disaster could come at any moment."

Yao Lao fell silent.

He stared quietly at Xiao Yan for a long time before finally saying, "You really do have quite a few secrets on you."

"Not that many, actually."

Xiao Yan smiled, his eyes falling into the distance. "...They're here?"

A few tiny dots appeared on the horizon, moving slowly. Because they were too far away, no details could be made out.

"Mm. They're from the Gale Family."

Yao Lao nodded, then suddenly thought of something. "I thought you were only keeping routine watch..."

"But in reality, I'm going to make a move?"

Xiao Yan asked in return, his palm already gripping the Xuan Heavy Ruler. "Then that's right! Who's born with a spineless nature like this?"

Before his words had even faded, Xiao Yan leapt down from the city wall, free-falling from a height of several dozen meters.

"Whoo..."

The ground rapidly approached, pressing his entire field of vision gradually into darkness, while the fierce whistling wind by his ears grew clearer and clearer.

Xiao Yan flipped the Xuan Heavy Ruler out with his backhand and swung it down with all his might, throwing it like a cannonball.

Boom—!

With an explosive crash, a mushroom cloud of dust burst from the ground. The shockwave blasted out spiderweb-like trenches through the earth, raising layers of earthen ridges.

Xiao Yan landed with a bang, scattering the rising haze of dust and soil. He pulled out the Xuan Heavy Ruler. "The Gale Family is keeping two alchemists in its ranks. I imagine this batch of goods must be of very high quality."

"So you're going to pocket it?"

Yao Lao asked with a smile. Although he had not touched these materials in a long time, he still had ten thousand ways to put them to use.

"Otherwise? I have to collect a little interest, don't I? Can't let that loudmouth Galeo Bi get away cheap!" Xiao Yan sneered.

If not for the fact that he had to consider the Xiao Clan, he would have been unable to hold back long ago.

Even a clay man had some temper, and Nalan Yanran's visit had already pushed his anger to the limit.

This time, Galeo Bi had happened to come at just the right moment, blindly picking a fight with him.

"Once you've tested the Jia Ma Empire's movements, you'll take down the Gale Family, right?" Yao Lao guessed his thoughts with a single glance.

"There's no need to wait that long!"

Xiao Yan strode toward the convoy in great strides. The bracelets sealing his Dou Qi shattered one after another, and a majestic blaze of aura surged up. The blood and vitality within his body were like a roaring flood.

As it surged back and forth, golden light bloomed from his mouth and nose. "I'll cut down half his clan first..."