Defeat in One Move

"Xiao Yan, you—"

His dirty laundry had been aired in just a few words. If it had merely been a verbal clash between the two of them, it would have been one thing. But with a beauty present, once Xiao Yan opened his mouth, any hope Jia Lie Ao had of winning her over was doomed.

Watching Xun Er's gaze shift from indifference to disgust, Jia Lie Ao felt as though the duck already at his lips had been set free by someone else.

Naturally, he had no kind words for Xiao Yan.

"What? You can't win with words, so you want to fight?"

Xiao Yan silently shielded Xun Er behind him, still wearing a faint smile. It was as though he had expected this all along, and he showed no fear whatsoever.

"What, the Xiao Family's useless young master has reached the third stage of Dou Qi and now only knows how to hide behind his family's influence?"

Jia Lie Ao snorted. He had been waiting for Xiao Yan to lose his temper. Then, if he made a move, he would have an excuse.

As for whether he could beat Xiao Yan?

What a joke. Could he possibly lose to a worthless third-stage Dou Qi cripple?

"Using provocation against someone younger than you is childish. Making trouble on Xiao Family territory is stupid."

Xiao Yan shook his head, then changed the subject. "But since you want to fight, I'll oblige. After all, I'm not Young Master Jia Lie Ao. I don't need a pack of lackeys waiting on me hand and foot whenever I leave the house. Anyone who didn't know better might think Young Master Jia Lie Ao was in poor health, with crippled limbs."

"I'll cripple your limbs! Get out of my way!"

Jia Lie Ao had already been suppressing a bellyful of rage. Xiao Yan's taunts were the final spark that utterly enraged him.

As soon as he spoke, everyone else consciously moved aside and cleared an open space. In the narrow street, one was the Jia Lie Family's dashing young master, while the other was the fallen genius of the Xiao Family. Two "celebrities" of Wutan City stood facing each other.

Jia Lie Ao assumed his opening stance.

Though he was not yet a Dou Zhe, he was still at the eighth stage of Dou Qi. When he released his Dou Qi, a fierce gust swept forward.

Yet Xiao Yan stood there unmoved. Only the hem of his robes and his hair stirred slightly, as though nothing more than a gentle breeze had brushed his face.

"Xiao Yanzi, you're being too reckless."

Old Yao frowned and transmitted his voice to Xiao Yan.

"Maybe. But if you aren't reckless, what kind of young man are you?"

Xiao Yan admitted that even he found his actions somewhat rash. But he also understood why he had to fight.

Perhaps he wanted to properly vent everything he had endured since his decline.

Then Xiao Yan let out a long breath and merely raised his hands, without circulating any Dou Qi.

The passersby watching from the side were dumbfounded. Had the Xiao Family's Third Young Master gone mad? Though he had become useless, he still had some Dou Qi, didn't he? Yet facing someone at the eighth stage of Dou Qi, he did not even circulate his Dou Qi. Was he tired of living and looking to die?

But neither Jia Lie Ao nor Xiao Yan cared about that anymore.

Only Xun Er stood behind Xiao Yan, her large, clear eyes wide open.

She knew very well that Brother Xiao Yan would never do anything foolish without confidence. This time was naturally no exception.

Very soon, Jia Lie Ao let out a roar and charged at Xiao Yan.

But Xiao Yan did not move. Only at the final instant did he raise his knee and draw back his fist, blocking Jia Lie Ao's punch.

Jia Lie Ao felt as though he had punched a ten-thousand-pound boulder. Xiao Yan did not even tremble, while his own fist began to ache.

What was going on?

But Xiao Yan gave Jia Lie Ao no time to think.

After blocking the first punch, Xiao Yan's bent arm instantly shot straight. His clenched fist became a claw, striking directly for Jia Lie Ao's throat.

At the same time, he tightened his raised knee and kicked Jia Lie Ao's left foot away. Jia Lie Ao instantly lost his balance and crashed down, dazed and disoriented. In the blink of an eye, he had lost all ability to resist.

When his blurred vision desperately searched the ground for Xiao Yan's figure, a clean white fist was quietly hovering at his temple.

"You lost, Young Master Jia Lie Ao."

It had been only one defensive move, followed by a counterattack that subdued his opponent. In a flash, the utterly unfair battle was over.

Xiao Yan maintained his hold over Jia Lie Ao, then let out a whistle.

Only then did the Xiao Family's guards arrive, fashionably late.

There was no need to say more about what followed. No matter how unwilling Jia Lie Ao was, he could only be sent packing.

This time, not only had he failed to win the beauty, he had made a complete fool of himself.

He was a dignified eighth-stage Dou Qi cultivator, yet he had failed to last even ten exchanges against a useless third-stage Dou Qi brat who had not used any Dou Qi at all, relying solely on his fists and feet. He had been instantly defeated in a single exchange. Who could bear such humiliation?

Thinking of how everyone in Wutan City would spread word that the Jia Lie Family's young master could not defeat the Xiao Family's useless genius and could not even survive a single exchange, Jia Lie Ao felt his face burn even more fiercely than the bruises from his fall.

How was he supposed to show his face in Wutan City from now on?

And once he returned home, questioning from the elders and rebukes from his father would be unavoidable. As for relying on his family to settle accounts with Xiao Yan, that was even more impossible.

You, an eighth-stage Dou Qi cultivator, lost to someone at the third stage of Dou Qi, and you still wanted to complain that the victory was unfair? Was one slap to the left cheek not enough? Did you have to offer up your right cheek for another before you would be satisfied?

Jia Lie Ao might have been a womanizer, but he still possessed the intelligence of a normal person. He naturally understood that at this point, he would have to swallow this loss no matter what.

"Xiao Yan, Xiao Yan!!!"

Jia Lie Ao's face was mottled with blue and red bruises.

"Just you wait!!!"

No more need be said of Jia Lie Ao slinking away like a stray dog. After Xiao Yan defeated an eighth-stage Dou Qi cultivator in one move, the crowd first fell silent, then erupted into thunderous cheers.

Even the Wutan City Grand Theater likely could not have produced applause and cheers so resounding.

With only the third stage of Dou Qi, he had defeated an opponent at the eighth stage in a single exchange?

Let alone Wutan City, such a thing had never happened anywhere in the Jia Ma Empire throughout history!

What was more, everyone had witnessed it clearly: Xiao Yan had not even used Dou Qi. With nothing but his fists and feet, he had subdued Jia Lie Ao in one move.

Many people even felt that the Xiao Family genius had returned.

"This Xiao Yan of the Xiao Family truly is extraordinary. Even after his fall, he is still a Tiger of Pingyang. He isn't so easily bullied."

"A Tiger of Pingyang? He's more like a Dragon Entering the Sea. The Xiao Family's genius is coming back!"

"That's hard to say. But no matter what, Xiao Yan truly counts as someone remarkable now."

Naturally, the surrounding conversations also reached Xiao Yan's ears.

A Tiger of Pingyang? A Dragon Entering the Sea?

Xiao Yan had no interest in such titles, but that person was indeed right.

The Xiao Family's genius had returned!