Reversal Kill

While Xiao Han was slacking off and fishing for benefits in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the Xiao Clan's migration was, as expected, filled with surprises on the other side.

"Clan Leader, these flies have been following us the whole time without making a move. They're just hanging behind us, and it's really annoying. Why don't we just take them out?"

The recent surge in strength had made some of the Xiao Clan members feel a little too confident.

In the past, when they encountered such a situation, they would have been terrified, to say nothing of running away with their belongings.

But now, they even dared to suggest killing their opponents—reckless words like that. And this was not an isolated case.

It had to be said that on the Dou Qi Continent, strength truly was everything. With strength, their backs straightened, and their tone became much more forceful.

"Mm." Xiao Zhan nodded.

"We don't need to show them any courtesy. Just find a few Da Dou Shi and send them on their way. Don't expose the existence of the Dou Ling."

Xiao Zhan's tone turned sinister. "If we scare them away, how are we supposed to get our revenge?"

"Yes, yes, the Clan Leader has thought it through." The few Xiao Clan members nearby immediately began fawning over him.

With a few discreet hand signals, several figures quietly slipped away from the Xiao Clan's formation.

Although it was broad daylight, the Dou Qi Continent had no guarantee of peace and justice.

Just as one of the spies tailing the Xiao Clan's group was about to leave and report the situation, someone suddenly patted him on the back.

"Sorry about this!"

The young figure standing before him greeted him with a smile.

"It's awfully hot today. It must be hard on you to follow us all this way, huh?"

His tone remained as calm as ever, but the aura unique to a Da Dou Shi radiating from his body made the spy feel as though he had fallen into an icy abyss.

He was only a minor Dou Zhe. What had he done to deserve a Da Dou Shi personally attacking him?

What frightened him even more was that he knew all the Da Dou Shi-level experts in the Xiao Clan by heart. He even knew that the Xiao Clan might be hiding a Dou Ling.

Yet the person before him was a completely unfamiliar face. Had the Xiao Clan hired outside help, or had they been hiding their strength? That thought made his heart clench.

He instinctively pulled out his weapon. Feeling its heavy weight in his hand, he relaxed slightly. Just as he was about to circulate his Dou Qi and fight to the death, his eyes suddenly widened.

The next moment, he crumpled helplessly to the ground. Raising his eyes, he could only see the sword tip dripping with blood and those footsteps gradually moving away.

The spy exhausted all his strength and sent the final message of his life:

"The number of Da Dou Shi in the Xiao Clan is inaccurate. They appear to be hiding their strength, or a Dou Ling may be present."

He then slowly breathed his last.

After the people responsible for cleaning up the loose ends regrouped, one of them chuckled.

"They got the message out, right?"

"Of course. Otherwise, wouldn't all our work have been for nothing?" another replied.

"I wonder how many people they'll be able to send out tonight."

"Don't get your hopes up. There are plenty of Dou Ling and Da Dou Shi. How could it be our turn? This will probably be our last operation."

Everyone's spirits immediately sank. After all, the anger they had been bottling up over the past few days had yet to be vented.

Who could have imagined that in just a few short days, this group of former Dou Zhe would transform into Da Dou Shi powerful enough to dominate a small city in the outside world?

And who could have expected that the Xiao Clan, which had once fallen into crisis and panicked merely because its Clan Leader had been seriously wounded, would now casually discuss whom to send to eliminate the enemies plotting against it?

In only a few days, reality had completely reversed itself.

Life really was like a play!

Thinking of this, they admired that former Xiao Clan legend even more.

In the past, it had been because of his supreme talent. Now, it was because of the transformation he had brought to the Xiao Clan.

When the various factions received the messages their spies had risked their lives to send back, they were surprised at first, then disdainful.

In their eyes, so what if the Xiao Clan had hidden its strength? Could it withstand the combined forces of so many factions?

If it truly could, the Xiao Clan would not have hurriedly left the imperial capital. Most of its clan businesses would not have been abandoned without even having time to deal with them.

However, the truth was...

"Clan businesses? What would we keep those for? They aren't worth much anyway. Abandon them all and save ourselves the trouble."

That was what Xiao Han told Xiao Zhan when the latter came to ask for instructions.

By deep night, after traveling for a long time, the Xiao Clan's group began setting up camp to rest.

Rustling sounds began coming from the dense woods on both sides of the road. They were the various factions that had come to hunt down the Xiao Clan members.

Looking at the Xiao Clan's tightly guarded camp, the leader sneered.

"What use is such tight defense? Let me see who can come save you tonight."

"That may not be certain."

The sudden voice beside his ear made the man jolt.

"Who?"

At that moment, through the faint light of the deep night, he saw the masked figures.

The dozen or so people at the front possessed powerful, steady auras. Even he felt alarmed by them.

Dou Ling! More than a dozen Dou Ling!

His heart sank.

Forcing himself to calm down, he asked with a slight tremor in his voice, "May I ask how I should address you? What conditions did the Xiao Clan offer? We can double them."

"As for our identities..." The masked figure at the front deliberately kept him in suspense. "That's a secret."

"As for double the payment, it is indeed very tempting, but you should also respect our professional integrity!

"So, I'm afraid we'll have to apologize."

Before his voice had even faded, the masked leader's Dou Qi erupted. He charged first at the leader of the attackers.

"Like a Shadow." Black Dou Qi coiled around his entire body. "Kill!"

Faced with such a situation, reconciliation was impossible, so the attacker also circulated his Dou Qi with all his strength. The two immediately engaged in battle.

"Wind Strangulation."

"Shadow Hand."

"Boom~" The two-colored Dou Techniques dissipated in the air at the same time.

He tilted his head to the side, dodging the sword edge that slashed in from the side, but the sharp Sword Qi carved a wound across his cheek.

Gritting his teeth, he wrapped his palm in black Dou Qi and seized the sword. Blood continually seeped from his palm.

The pupils beneath the mask suddenly contracted. Then he saw a fist likewise wrapped in black Dou Qi suddenly strike toward his face.

Caught off guard, he could only barely shift his body and take the heavy blow on his shoulder.

He staggered back several steps, spitting a mouthful of blood onto his mask.

"You're pretty good." His tone was composed, revealing neither anger nor joy.

Without saying a word, the attacker used this opening to look around. To his horror, he discovered that barely one in ten of his men remained. Even those who had survived by chance were all wounded, and they were facing one perilous encirclement after another.

He sent out a mournful signal. "Retreat!"

Then he charged ahead, leading his remaining men in a breakout.

The few surviving attackers fled in panic, running all the way to the vicinity of the Garma Imperial Capital before finally stopping.

Looking at the two or three stragglers beside him, the leader was overcome with grief. He spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted on the spot.

On the other side, watching those figures flee in disgrace, the masked man removed his mask—it was Xiao Zhan.

"Clan Leader, don't we need to pursue and kill them?"

A Xiao Clan member beside him asked.

"No. If they were completely wiped out, how would we spread the news?"

Perhaps because he had finally gotten his revenge, Xiao Zhan's tone was rather lighthearted.

As Xiao Zhan had expected, when news of the attacking force's near-total annihilation spread, word that the Xiao Clan had paid a huge price to hire an Assassin Organization also quickly followed.

For a time, many factions beat their chests in regret while envying the Xiao Clan's good fortune.