"You..." Half of the young man's face had swollen up like a pig's head. Someone helped him to his feet.
"Xin'er, why did you hit someone?" Ning Hengqing said.
Ning Xiner glared at Ning Hengqing. "Say one bad word about my mother if you dare. Believe me, I'll beat you too."
Ning Hengqing's mouth twitched. Though he was proud and arrogant, he did not dare flaunt his might before Ning Xiner. She had already cultivated a Divine Martial Body; even with his Profound Qi Eighth Level cultivation, he was no match for her.
Of course, there were many descendants of the Marquis Mansion present. If Ning Xiner frightened him off with a single sentence, he would lose all face. So he fixed his gaze on Ning Xiaochuan and sneered. "Everyone is only speaking the truth. Your brother is a good-for-nothing to begin with. Was Cousin Ning Xiao wrong to question his birth? It was only a verbal dispute, yet you struck members of the Marquis Mansion. Once your cultivation grows stronger, will you start killing your own clansmen? Have you forgotten the family precepts of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion?"
"That really was going too far. No matter what, she shouldn't have fought so viciously with her own clansmen!"
"We're already so divided among ourselves. No wonder others dare kill descendants of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion."
"Her own brother is a good-for-nothing and refuses to amount to anything, yet she won't even let people say so. We criticize him for his own good."
Many people were condemning Ning Xiner. Some said she was arrogant because of her talent, some said she bullied others with her power, and some said she had violated the family rules and ought to be punished by the family law.
Although Ning Xiner's cultivation was high, she was still only a fourteen-year-old girl. Under everyone's accusations, she stood alone and helpless, like a blade of grass beneath a raging storm, battered by wind and rain from every direction.
She had endured so strongly all these years. She knew that if she did not hold on, those people would have her brother killed.
And now it was the same. Facing everyone's reproaches, she bit her lip tightly, her eyes gleaming with tears, stubbornly holding them back. "That's not true! My brother isn't a good-for-nothing!"
"Shut up, all of you! So what if I hit someone? Whoever dares wag their tongue again, I'll still hit them!"
"Shut up!"
Ning Hengqing watched Ning Xiner, surrounded in the middle of the crowd, with a smug smile on his face.
Ning Xiaochuan also watched Ning Xiner defend him, and an inexplicable warmth stirred in his heart. For the first time, he truly regarded her as his little sister. Clenching his fists and gritting his teeth, he cursed, "Who the hell dares bare their fangs at me again? So what if I'm a good-for-nothing? Did I sleep in your wives' beds, or put green hats on your fathers? If you have the guts, come at me! What kind of skill is it to bully a little girl?"
Everyone was dumbfounded, as though turned to stone. More than a thousand pairs of eyes fixed on Ning Xiaochuan at once.
Ning Xiner blinked up at her brother too, her bright eyes fluttering!
Ning Xiaochuan straightened his collar and walked to Ning Xiner's side. His gaze was razor-sharp as he looked over everyone present. "Who is the good-for-nothing? You are—the lot of you, a pack of useless fools who only know how to fight among yourselves! Didn't you see the three corpses on the ground? Did you care who killed them? Did you examine their fatal wounds? Did you think about why someone killed them? You only know how to bully my sister and me because we have no father or mother, because we're orphans, because you think we're easy to bully. Why don't you go after the enemies who killed the Marquis Mansion's descendants? Because you don't dare! Because you're cowards! Because you bully the weak and fear the strong! Good-for-nothings! Every last one of you is a good-for-nothing!"
Many people were left dazed by his roar.
Ning Hengqing's face turned livid as he smiled mockingly. "The uncles already examined their fatal wounds. They're discussing it in the Deliberation Hall right now. Does a sickly weakling like you need to worry about such matters?"
Ning Xiaochuan said, "The uncles have eaten dinner tonight, so are you going to eat or not? The uncles will use the latrine tomorrow, so will you use it tomorrow or not? The uncles will also lead troops into battle. Does that mean none of you will ever lead troops into battle from now on, and will just squat around the mansion every day thinking of how to deal with this good-for-nothing?"
Ning Hengqing's face alternated between green and white at Ning Xiaochuan's words. His blood energy nearly burst through his veins and blew his body apart. Gritting his teeth, he said, "What are you, to dare lecture this young master? I'll cripple you!"
A great mass of blood-red Martial Dao Profound Qi erupted from Ning Hengqing's palm. A chilling current surged from within his body, and his clothes fluttered though there was no wind.
"Look! Look! He's lashing out in shame! Knowing full well that my body is weak and that I haven't cultivated Martial Dao Profound Qi, he still attacks me. He wants to kill me in broad daylight before everyone's eyes! We sprang from the same root—why must we burn each other so fiercely? Ning Hengqing, you already want to slaughter descendants of your own clan. What will happen later? Will you even dare kill the Marquis? Have you rebelled?" Ning Xiaochuan said.
"Will you even dare kill the Marquis? Have you rebelled?" Those words were far too grave, no less serious than the crime of treason.
Ning Hengqing's Martial Dao Profound Qi had already burst from his body, but Ning Xiaochuan's words forced it back inside. The Profound Qi flowed in reverse within him, and his blood energy surged backward.
Pfft!
He spat out a mouthful of blood.
Ning Hengqing was severely injured by his own reversed Profound Qi. He glared viciously at Ning Xiaochuan, then fell straight to the ground.
Seeing Ning Han spit out such a huge mouthful of blood, Ning Xiaochuan hurriedly pulled Ning Xiner two steps back, afraid it would splash on them. He lightly rubbed his nose and said sheepishly, "I told you long ago that respect goes both ways. You just refused to listen."
Pfft! Ning Hengqing spat another mouthful of blood and passed out completely.
"He calls himself an expert, yet he couldn't even take two sentences. His mental fortitude needs work!" Ning Xiaochuan shook his head and sighed.
Ning Xiner rolled her eyes, dearly wanting to say, Brother, those two sentences really aren't something ordinary people can take!
Everyone froze once more, all staring at Ning Xiaochuan in unison. Their expressions seemed to say, You talked an expert at the Profound Qi Eighth Level into having his blood energy run backward and fainting from rage. You're fucking incredible!
"What are you making such a racket for? Men, carry Ning Hengqing away and send him to Elder Lin for treatment." Ning Qianwu walked out of the Deliberation Hall just in time to see the scene.
His son had died, and his mood was already wretched beyond measure. Seeing Ning Xiaochuan now made him even more irritated. Killing intent flashed through his eyes before vanishing as he said in a deep voice, "Our preliminary conclusion is that Ning Han and the two family servants died at the hands of the Blood Devouring Demon Sect. For the next half month, no descendants of the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion may leave the Marquis Mansion without permission. We will wait until the Old Marquis emerges from seclusion and let him make the final decision."
Ning Qianwu gave Ning Xiaochuan another cold glance, a flash of icy light passing through his eyes, then turned and walked back into the Deliberation Hall.
Outside the Deliberation Hall, the crowd erupted. All the descendants of the Marquis Mansion were talking at once; some were furious, while others were heavy with worry.
"The Blood Devouring Demon Sect actually dared kill descendants of our Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion in the Imperial City. This is a blatant provocation! Fight! We must fight! Wipe out every branch headquarters of the Demon Sect within the Imperial City!"
"The Blood Devouring Demon Sect is immensely powerful, with countless disciples. The masters of the Six Demonic Paths are all Martial Venerable-level figures. Going to war with them would do no good for the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion!"
"Could it be that our Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion fears them? The master of the Asura Demonic Path was once such a wildly arrogant figure, yet the Marquis still severed his right leg with one sword. Even now, he doesn't dare come to the Imperial City."
Ning Han's death caused an enormous uproar within the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion. Especially since it was connected to the Blood Devouring Demon Sect, many people were deeply uneasy.
Ning Xiaochuan naturally knew that the Blood Devouring Demon Sect had not done this. He had drained their blood dry himself. But he could only bury this matter in his heart and tell no one.
Originally, he had planned to tell Ning Xiner that he could cultivate Martial Dao Profound Qi once he became a Heart Nourisher. But after this incident, he felt it was necessary to keep hiding it.
It was already very late when Ning Xiaochuan and Ning Xiner returned to their courtyard. They ate the dinner the maid had brought them.
"Brother, what does 'bare their fangs' mean?"
"Brother, 'We sprang from the same root—why must we burn each other so fiercely?' Where did you copy that poem from?"
"Brother, you were so fierce when you cursed people! Ning Hengqing is at the Profound Qi Eighth Level, yet you actually scolded him until he coughed blood. Tomorrow, you'll definitely become famous throughout the Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion."
Ning Xiner's large eyes curved like twin moons as she kept asking question after question.
"Haven't I always been famous?" Ning Xiaochuan said.
Ning Xiner rested her head in her hands and thought about it, then nodded. "Seems like that's true."
"I'm full. I'm going back to my room to sleep."
Ning Xiaochuan stood and headed outside, burning with impatience. There were ten Nourishing Heart Grass plants and ten Blood Accumulation Grass plants in his bundle. He had been delayed at the Deliberation Hall for so long, but now he could finally begin refining them. Once the refinement was complete, it would be a great fortune. Perhaps he could even use this chance to charge straight into the Profound Qi Fifth Level.
At that thought, he could not wait another moment!
Before you continue