No Leniency

A distance of a hundred li was nothing to a Foundation Establishment cultivator—he arrived in the blink of an eye.

The deputy manager's cave residence had been carved into a cliff overlooking the river, protected by a simple formation.

Xu Yuan stood in the air, looking down at the cave residence concealed by the formation's mist. His voice was calm, yet it spread across the surrounding lands. "Water Manor Manager Zhao Kun, you failed to report by the deadline and showed contempt for superior orders. By regulation, you are stripped of your post, and your cave residence is to be reclaimed. Within ten breaths, leave the residence of your own accord and proceed to the Water Manor to await judgment. Otherwise, I, the garrison commander, will personally invite you out."

Silence reigned within the cave residence at first. Then an indignant, flustered voice rang out. "Commander Xu! I am a member of the Zhao Clan. I was at a critical juncture in my cultivation two days ago and was unable to leave seclusion for a time. How is that contempt? You've only just arrived, yet you act with such tyranny! Aren't you afraid—"

"Ten breaths have passed." Xu Yuan cut him off directly.

The next moment, he held two fingers together like a sword and pointed at the cave residence's formation below.

Yin Wood Divine Thunder!

A streak of azure lightning, far thinner than the one he had used against the water ape yet even more condensed, descended and struck precisely at a node in the cave residence's defensive formation. It was merely a simple warning and protective formation—how could it withstand even a casual strike from a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Xu Yuan?

With a crisp crack, the formation's light screen shattered, revealing the entrance to the cave residence.