A Bountiful Harvest

"Clan Leader Xiao, I will give you one more stick of incense worth of time to consider," Xuan Hao said unhurriedly. "I have already shown mercy by giving you a chance. If I don't have the answer I want after that time, don't blame me for being impolite."

Xiao Zhan's face turned livid, his fists clenching until they creaked.

The Great Elder stood by, trying to smooth things over: "Master Xuan Hao, it is not that we refuse to hand him over, but we truly do not know where that person is."

"You don't know?" Xuan Hao sneered. "Just because you don't know, that doesn't mean your clan leader doesn't."

Xiao Zhan felt a sudden jolt in his heart.

"No need to look anymore."

Just then, the doors to the assembly hall were kicked open.

Ye Xiu stood at the entrance, with a sweat-drenched Xiao Yan following behind him.

"I am already here!"

Xuan Hao was stunned for a moment, sizing Ye Xiu up.

Ye Xiu ignored him and walked straight into the hall.

Xiao Zhan hurriedly stood up: "Senior Ye Xiu, you..."

Ye Xiu waved his hand, signaling him not to speak.

He walked to a spot three paces away from Xuan Hao and stood still, looking the sixty-year-old man up and down.

"You are Liu Xi's master?"

Xuan Hao narrowed his eyes: "That's right. Did you kill my disciple?"

"Yes."

Xuan Hao's expression shifted; he had not expected Ye Xiu to admit it so readily.

"Kid, do you know who I am?"

Ye Xiu said casually: "It's obvious, aren't you just a two-star Dou Ling and a third-tier Alchemist? And then what?"

Xuan Hao was so angered by his attitude that he laughed: "And then what? Then you will pay for my disciple's life today!"

Ye Xiu nodded: "Fine, let's get straight to it."

Everyone in the hall was stunned.

Xiao Yan stomped his feet in anxiety behind them: Senior, what are you doing? Even if you are a Dou Ling, he is a two-star and you are only a one-star; there is a full star's difference!

Xuan Hao was also a bit surprised. He stared at Ye Xiu and said: "Interesting, truly interesting. But kid, judging by your aura, you just broke through to Dou Ling, right? What gives you the confidence to fight me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the Dou Qi on Xuan Hao's body erupted.

A dark cyan Dou Qi surged from him, carrying a cold, sinister aura that caused the temperature in the entire assembly hall to drop by several degrees.

A two-star Dou Ling, the real deal.

The two black-clad guards behind Xuan Hao also stepped forward, both being nine-star Da Dou Shi.

Xuan Hao sneered: "Kid, if you kneel and beg for mercy now, I might still leave your corpse intact."

Ye Xiu looked at him and suddenly sighed.

"You know, you people who talk too much are the ones I find most annoying."

Having said that, he moved.

With just a single step, his entire body became like a streak of fire, reaching Xuan Hao in the blink of an eye.

Xuan Hao's pupils contracted sharply; he hadn't expected Ye Xiu to be this fast!

He had no time to think, striking out with a palm, his dark cyan Dou Qi transforming into a ferocious venomous python that lunged toward Ye Xiu.

Ye Xiu did not dodge at all.

He raised his right hand, spread his fingers, and grabbed directly at the Dou Qi python.

"You're courting death!" Xuan Hao sneered.

The next instant!

"Boom!"

Red-gold flames exploded from Ye Xiu's hand.

The Dou Qi python was like snow meeting boiling water, instantly burned into nothingness.

Xuan Hao's expression changed drastically, but it was already too late to retreat.

Ye Xiu's hand passed straight through the python and clamped onto his throat.

"You—"

The rest of Xuan Hao's words were stuck in his throat as a terrifying surge of Dou Qi rushed directly into his body, shattering the Dou Qi within his Dantian.

"A two-star Dou Ling?" Ye Xiu tilted his head to look at Xuan Hao. "Is that it?"

Xuan Hao's face turned beet red, his eyes bulging like copper bells. He, a dignified two-star Dou Ling and third-tier Alchemist, someone who counted for something in the Jia Ma Empire, had actually been subdued in a single move by a fifteen or sixteen-year-old kid?

Impossible!

Absolutely impossible!

He desperately urged his Dou Qi, trying to break free.

But it was useless.

The Dou Qi on Ye Xiu's hand was like an iron hoop; the more he struggled, the deeper the flames burrowed into his body, causing him to twitch in agony.

"Don't... don't..." Xuan Hao was finally afraid. "You can't kill me..."

"Oh."

Ye Xiu replied.

"Snap."

His neck broke.

Xuan Hao's head lolled to the side, his eyes still wide open, staring in death.

Ye Xiu let go, and the corpse hit the ground with a thud.

The entire scene fell into dead silence.

The two black-clad guards froze for two seconds before turning to run.

Ye Xiu didn't even turn his head, merely flicking his hand backward.

Two streaks of crimson-gold fire chased after them, piercing straight through their backs. The two men collapsed to the ground with a thud, twitching twice before going still.

From the moment Ye Xiu struck to the end, it took no more than three breaths.

Xiao Yan stood at the doorway, his mouth open wide enough to fit an egg.

The teacup in Xiao Zhan's hand fell to the floor, shattering into pieces.

The three elders looked as if they had seen a ghost, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Ye Xiu squatted down, rummaged through Xuan Hao's body, pulled the Storage Ring off his finger, and tucked it into his own.

Just as Ye Xiu was about to leave, Xiao Zhan hurriedly stood up, walked a few steps to Ye Xiu, and cupped his hands in a salute. "Senior, please stay! You acted righteously today and saved the Xiao Clan once again. I am eternally grateful! Please, do me the honor of allowing me to host a banquet to repay you!"

Although Ye Xiu was only fifteen and barely an adult by the standards of the Xiao Clan, in Xiao Zhan's eyes, Ye Xiu had long since become an untouchable big shot, and his attitude remained respectful throughout.

Ye Xiu glanced at him and waved his hand. "No need, I have things to do back home."

How could Xiao Zhan let him leave just like that? He quickly said, "Senior, even just a cup of tea would suffice! If you refuse to stay, I will feel terrible!"

The Great Elder also chimed in, "That's right, Senior. You've helped the Xiao Clan so much; if we don't show our appreciation, outsiders will say the Xiao Clan doesn't know its manners."

Ye Xiu thought about it; a meal wouldn't take up much time anyway.

"Fine, keep it simple."

Xiao Zhan was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "Go prepare a banquet, and bring out the best wine!"

The meal lasted about an hour.

Xiao Zhan accompanied him personally, the three elders took turns offering toasts, and Xiao Yan sat to the side, stealing glances at Ye Xiu from time to time.

They didn't discuss anything serious at the table; it was mostly Xiao Zhan expressing his gratitude while Ye Xiu responded with casual remarks.

When they finished and stepped out, it was already getting dark.

Xiao Zhan led the entire family to the main gate to see him off. "Safe travels, Senior. If you have any instructions in the future, just come to the Xiao Clan. I will go through fire and water for you without hesitation!"

Ye Xiu nodded and turned to leave.

Being able to form a good relationship with the Xiao Clan was not a bad thing.

Xiao Yan stood at the gate, watching Ye Xiu's back disappear into the night, and couldn't help but ask in his heart, "Teacher, who exactly is he? A Dou Ling at fifteen, my goodness."

Yao Lao was silent for a moment before saying slowly, "Regardless of who he is, just remember one thing: with a person like this, it is best to be friends rather than enemies."

Xiao Yan nodded.

Ye Xiu walked down the street, taking out Xuan Hao's Storage Ring to look at it again.

This old thing was worthy of being a third-tier Alchemist; his wealth was quite substantial. The Storage Ring contained nearly a million gold coins, several fourth-tier medicinal herbs, a dozen bottles of third-tier healing pills, and a dozen bottles of third-tier Qi Recovery Pills.

What surprised Ye Xiu the most was that there was also a Dou Technique scroll inside.

The Xuan-tier low-level Green Python Poison Palm.

Ye Xiu flipped through it casually and lost interest.

Still, it should fetch a decent price if sold.

He put the Storage Ring away and headed toward the residence he had purchased.