Xiao Tian's Way of Welcoming Guests

As soon as the words left his mouth, everyone instinctively turned toward the sound, and saw Xiao Tian seated among the elders.

Xiao Tian wore a black robe. His features were sharply defined, his sword-like eyebrows swept toward his temples, and a faint hint of mockery curled at the corners of his mouth.

Before this, he had been just as awestruck by the Misty Cloud Sect as everyone else. But Ge Ye's actions had completely enraged him.

The moment Ge Ye proposed breaking off the engagement, Xiao Tian keenly noticed the change in his uncle Xiao Zhan's expression. The feeling of being consumed by anger with nowhere to vent it was almost impossible to describe. In his fury, Xiao Zhan had even crushed the teacup in his hand.

What was more, Xiao Yan, down below, also wore a dark expression. His anger was plain to see.

This time, the Misty Cloud Sect had sent someone to break off the engagement in front of the entire Xiao Clan. There was no doubt they had dealt a heavy blow to Xiao Zhan's pride as clan leader.

Over the years, plenty of people in the Xiao Clan had been waiting for Xiao Zhan to make a mistake. Now that they were watching him be humiliated, they couldn't have been more pleased. Many in the crowd below were already wearing mocking, contemptuous expressions.

After all, it was Xiao Zhan's own son, Xiao Yan, who had been rejected—the good-for-nothing whose strength had regressed and who remained at the Three stages of Battle Qi.

"Preposterous! Xiao Tian, do you know what you're saying?" Just then, as Xiao Tian's words rang out, the First Elder flew into a rage. He slammed the table, sprang to his feet, and glared at Xiao Tian as he roared.

"Xiao Tian, do you really think you're the Second Elder of the Xiao Clan? Since when does a junior like you get to speak here? Apologize to Mr. Ge Ye!" The Third Elder was just as furious. He fixed Xiao Tian with a cold glare and snapped.

"Exactly! Xiao Tian, don't let youthful arrogance make you run wild here!"

"Apologize at once!"

"Youngster, don't speak recklessly to our esteemed guest!"

Several senior members of the Xiao Clan chimed in as well. They were furious that Xiao Tian had suddenly stepped in to disrupt things. Seeing him seated above them in the elders' seats only made them angrier.

And he had openly insulted the Misty Cloud Sect, acting as if the sect meant nothing to him. Wasn't he dragging the entire Xiao Clan into disaster?

"Enough chatter. Do any of you have the right to speak here?"

Facing the rebukes from the Xiao Clan elders below, Xiao Tian scoffed and retorted without hesitation, then calmly took a sip of tea.

"You bastard! You're far too arrogant!"

"You little brat, you're asking for a beating!"

Several Xiao Clan elders were beside themselves with rage. They looked ready to lunge forward and teach Xiao Tian a lesson.

Before they could move, however, Ge Ye's face darkened. He took a few steps forward, glanced at Xiao Tian, then looked toward Xiao Zhan and said coolly:

"Clan Leader Xiao, I never expected this to be the Xiao Family's way of welcoming guests. I, Ge Ye, have certainly seen it for myself. Since that's the case, I'll get straight to the point. The sect leader sent us here to dissolve the engagement. For the sect leader's sake, please end the engagement between Yanran and Xiao Yan!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, many of the clan members below looked toward Xiao Yan in the corner with mocking expressions.

Having the woman's family come to break off an engagement in public was not only humiliating; it trampled Xiao Yan's self-respect into the dirt. And of course, it humiliated his father, Xiao Zhan, too.

By now, Xiao Zhan's fists were clenched tight. Blue Dou Qi surged from him, revealing the boundless fury in his heart.

Seeing Xiao Zhan like this, Ge Ye snorted. His own surging Dou Qi gathered around his eagle-claw-like right hand, gleaming with a bone-chilling light.

As the two secretly tested each other, their immense auras left many in the hall pale and short of breath.

The situation was on the verge of exploding, and the air grew oppressively tense.

But before long, Xiao Zhan's aura faded, and a deep look of helplessness appeared on his face.

At the instant they had faced off, Ge Ye's strength as a Seven-star Great Dou Master had been laid bare. Xiao Zhan might have been able to hold his own for a time, but he was no match for Ge Ye. Besides, was he really going to turn against the Misty Cloud Sect over this?

Xiao Zhan's gaze swept across the faces in the hall before settling on his son, Xiao Yan, not far away. He sighed inwardly.

However, just as Xiao Zhan was about to helplessly agree to Ge Ye's demand, an immensely powerful aura suddenly burst out beside him, sweeping across the entire hall in an instant!

"Boom!"

A deafening crash rang out. Ge Ye, who had been releasing his aura, was struck as if by a heavy blow. He staggered through the air and slammed into a stone pillar several yards away, then slid to the floor and spat out a mouthful of blood. His face turned deathly pale.

What was more, even the crowd who had been mocking and sneering in the hall were flung away all at once, like kites with their strings cut.

The hall fell silent in an instant. Every mocking laugh abruptly ceased. In the sudden stillness, everyone stared blankly at the scene, their expressions dazed, as if they had lost their souls.

Shock, terror, and fear filled everyone's eyes.

No one had expected Xiao Tian, once the family's good-for-nothing, not only to have cultivated Dou Qi but also to possess such immense strength. In a single breath, his aura had sent a Seven-star Great Dou Master flying.

The impact of that powerful aura had been so swift and fierce that no one could have seen it coming.

At that moment, Ge Ye slowly got back to his feet, clutching his agonizing chest. His face was deathly pale, and his eyes were filled with shock.

The young man who had come with Ge Ye also rose from his chair, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Nalan Yanran beside him wore a stunned expression on her delicate face. She stared blankly at Xiao Tian on the raised platform, her chest rising and falling slightly, her eyes gleaming with astonishment.

"Clan Leader Xiao, I never expected the Xiao Clan to have such a prodigy. You've certainly opened my eyes today." After climbing to his feet, Ge Ye took a deep breath, looked at Xiao Zhan, and spoke with a dark expression.

With that, he took an ancient, pale-green box from his Storage Ring and opened it.

The moment the small box opened, a delicate fragrance filled the air. Everyone who caught its scent felt invigorated, their faces showing intoxication.

"This... This is..."

"Is that a fourth-tier pill, Qi Gathering Powder?!"

Looking at the entirely green pill in the box, everyone present couldn't help exclaiming in hushed voices.

Qi Gathering Powder was a fourth-tier pill. It could guarantee that a cultivator at the Nine-stage Fighting Qi level would form a Dou Qi Vortex and advance to Dou Zhe. Its value was virtually limitless.

To a cultivator on the verge of becoming a Dou Zhe, this pill was as tempting as a beautiful young woman.

The Xiao Clan members around them stared at the green pill with burning eyes, most of them nearly ready to snatch it away. Xiao Mei, the Third Elder's granddaughter, was especially eager. She licked her rosy lips with the tip of her tongue, her beautiful eyes brimming with desire.

Seeing the crowd's covetous expressions, Ge Ye recovered a little of his dignity. He looked over Xiao Zhan and spoke with a proud, scornful smile:

"Clan Leader Xiao, I'd intended to give the Xiao Family this Qi Gathering Powder, made by Alchemist King Gu He, after the engagement was dissolved. But the Xiao Family's way of welcoming guests has left me thoroughly disappointed. So you've missed your chance to obtain this Qi Gathering Powder!"

As the words fell, a smug look appeared on Ge Ye's face.

He hadn't brought out the Qi Gathering Powder to give it to the Xiao Family. He'd only wanted to flaunt it and let the Xiao Clan know that they had missed their chance to obtain a fourth-tier pill.

Sure enough, after hearing Ge Ye's words, the Xiao Clan members' faces grew grim. The First Elder and Third Elder looked especially dark. If Xiao Tian hadn't stepped in and shown off, the Qi Gathering Powder would already have belonged to the Xiao Family.

However, just as resentment filled everyone's hearts, a calm voice rang out once more from the elders' seats on the raised platform:

"What's so special about Qi Gathering Powder? Is it more precious than Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill?"