One palm killed Jia Lie Ao, one sword slew a Dou Shi!

The Jia Lie Family, council hall.

"The Xiao Clan has an Alchemist?" Jia Lie Bi looked at the Steward before him, his expression somewhat grim.

The Steward said quietly:

"The Xiao Clan has been buying medicinal ingredients in bulk lately. They no longer buy Medicinal Baths for their guards from outside, either."

"Several men who were injured have now recovered completely. And before those three newly advanced Dou Shi broke through, Xiao Zhan summoned them all to the same courtyard."

Jia Lie Bi's fingers stilled on the armrest.

One or two could still be explained as having accumulated enough strength.

But three had broken through one after another, and then there were those Medicinal Baths. Who would believe there wasn't an Alchemist behind it all?

A few months ago, the Xiao Clan had produced an eleven-year-old Dou Zhe.

Now they had an Alchemist as well!

If this continued, how many of Wutan City's Marketplaces would remain in the Jia Lie Family's hands a few years from now?

"Father, why not let me take a look?" Jia Lie Ao rose from a lower seat, little concern showing on his face.

"If the Xiao Clan really has good medicine, they'll have to sell it. I'll stroll around their Marketplace and ask a few people. Won't that tell us?"

Jia Lie Bi glanced at him and considered briefly. "Take Steward Luo. Listen carefully, watch closely, and find out where their medicine comes from."

A middle-aged man in gray beside him immediately bowed.

"Rest assured, Clan Head."

A two-star Dou Shi.

In Wutan City, such strength was already enough to oversee a business. Accompanying his son to a Marketplace was certainly beyond the ability of ordinary guards to prevent.

Jia Lie Ao agreed with a smile.

He was only at seventh-stage Dou Qi now, and normally had to restrain himself somewhat when facing the Xiao Clan's guard captains.

Today, with a Dou Shi backing him, he would see who still dared give him attitude!

The next morning, the Xiao Family Market.

Xiao Yan had just passed the entrance of an apothecary when someone gently tugged his sleeve.

He turned to find Xun'er looking at him.

"Brother Xiao Yan, we agreed we were only coming out for a stroll today."

The girl's gaze moved between him and the apothecary.

Xiao Yan chuckled.

"I wasn't going in. I was just looking."

Lately, someone had been handling the clan's medicinal purchases for him. He only needed to fire up the furnace on schedule, saving him considerable time and effort. He really had come out today to take a break.

Only then did Xun'er release his sleeve, a smile blooming at her lips.

They walked along the street for a while.

Suddenly, a sharp crack sounded ahead.

Crack!

A medicine bottle shattered on the ground, splashing pale yellow liquid everywhere.

"You dare charge fifty Gold Coins for this stuff?"

Among the crowd, Jia Lie Ao pinched his nose, his face full of disgust.

The shopkeeper behind the counter was both angry and anxious.

"Young Master Jia Lie, this is wound medicine for external application! You poured out the whole bottle to sniff it. How could you possibly judge its quality that way?"

"What, you want to teach me how to use medicine?" Jia Lie Ao sneered and kicked the broken porcelain beneath the counter.

Two patrolling Xiao Clan guards hurried over at the noise. Just as they were about to step forward, Steward Luo shifted sideways, his sleeves trembling slightly as a wave of Dou Qi pressed toward them.

Both guards' expressions changed at once.

A Dou Shi!

Butler Luo stood with his hands behind his back and said blandly, "Our young master is only asking a few questions. What's your hurry?"

The people in front of the shop backed away, revealing Xiao Yan and Xun'er standing behind them.

Jia Lie Ao was about to continue making a scene when his gaze swept over them and suddenly brightened. "Miss Xun'er? It's been a while."

He immediately forgot the apothecary and approached with a smile.

"What a coincidence, running into you here."

Xun'er glanced at the shattered bottle on the ground, her brows drawing together slightly. She did not answer.

Jia Lie Ao paid it no mind. His gaze shifted to Xiao Yan beside her, and he smiled. "Well, well, the Xiao Clan's little genius is here too?"

A Dou Zhe at eleven.

He had heard that title so often at home that his ears were practically growing calluses. Every time his father scolded him, he brought up Xiao Yan.

Why?

Wasn't he just a little faster at cultivating?

However strong a Dou Zhe was, could he be stronger than a Dou Shi?

Thinking of Steward Luo behind him, Jia Lie Ao straightened his back further and spoke with a sleazy air.

"Miss Xun'er, what's so interesting about browsing these shabby shops with him? A new batch of jewelry just arrived on the street ahead. If you like it, I'll buy it all for you."

"No need."

Xun'er's voice was slightly cold.

Yet Jia Lie Ao took another step forward, neatly blocking their path. "Why be so distant? Do me the honor of coming along."

As he spoke, he actually reached for the girl's wrist.

A speck of golden light quietly surfaced in Xun'er's eyes, but before she could act, another hand reached out first and clamped around Jia Lie Ao's wrist.

Xiao Yan stepped in front of her, his fingers slowly tightening.

"Don't want your hand anymore?"

The smile on Jia Lie Ao's face instantly froze.

The searing pain in his wrist bones made him suck in a breath. Dou Qi surged hurriedly through his body, yet he could not even pry the other boy's fingers loose.

"Xiao Yan, you're asking to die!"

Shocked and furious, he clenched his other hand into a fist and swung it straight at Xiao Yan's face.

Xiao Yan's gaze turned cold.

Over these past few months, he had refined medicine and practiced his swordsmanship, thinking about how to ease his father's worries and give the Xiao Clan a few more people capable of holding the fort.

I almost forgot Wutan City still had a piece of trash like this!!!

The Eight-Nine Arcane Arts circulated.

Xiao Yan casually brushed aside the incoming fist, raised his palm, and thrust it forward, moving so quickly that Jia Lie Ao could not even see it clearly.

Butler Luo's expression changed abruptly.

"Stop!"

Bang!

The palm struck Jia Lie Ao squarely in the chest. He flew backward, knocking over the wooden rack behind him as several medicine boxes tumbled to the ground.

A section of the fabric over his chest caved inward.

Jia Lie Ao's mouth hung open, as though he still wanted to call for Steward Luo. But only a mouthful of blood welled from his throat before his head drooped limply.

The meridians around his heart had been severed.

The man who had been shouting threats moments ago had stopped breathing in the blink of an eye.

At the sight before them,

the entire street suddenly fell silent.

Butler Luo flashed over and reached out to check him. His face instantly went deathly pale. He had never imagined Xiao Yan would actually kill Jia Lie Ao outright with a single palm strike.

The clan head had told him to accompany the young master, yet the young master had been killed with one palm strike right before his eyes?!

Butler Luo whipped his head around, his gaze fixed viciously on Xiao Yan. "You little bastard, I'll take your life!"

Gray Dou Qi erupted, forming a gauze-like mantle around his body.

The blue bricks beneath his feet cracked as Steward Luo charged forward. His fingers curved into claws, and the force of his attack tore at his sleeves, making them snap as he went straight for Xiao Yan's throat!

People on both sides cried out and scrambled away.

Xun'er raised a hand to steady the wooden rack knocked askew by the rushing wind, then pulled a vendor who had failed to dodge behind her. Her gaze remained fixed on Xiao Yan, and the wisp of Dou Qi in her palm did not disperse.

"Young master, watch out!"

Before the guard finished shouting, Xiao Yan had already stepped diagonally forward, shielding Xun'er behind him as Steward Luo's attack closed in.

The clawed hand swept past Xiao Yan's shoulder. At the same moment, his right hand settled on his sword hilt.

Shing!

A clear metallic note rang out.

The Taiji Liangyi Sword left its sheath, clear and black colors flashing along its spine.

A stream of pure Dou Qi flowed through his meridians into the blade, gathering at its edge along the clear and black patterns.

His attack having missed, Steward Luo's heart suddenly clenched. At such close range, he finally sensed the pure, powerful aura within Xiao Yan.

This was no newly advanced Dou Zhe!

"A Dou Shi?!"

"How is that possible?"

The startled cries had barely left his mouth when a bright line of sword light filled his vision.

Hiss!

His protective Dou Qi Gauze Robe split at the sound. Butler Luo went rigid, his forward lunge stopping short as the viciousness in his eyes rapidly turned to terror.

He tried to retreat, but his legs no longer had any strength. A line of blood emerged across his chest.

Xiao Yan lightly turned his wrist and withdrew the sword, as though he had merely crushed an ant.

"You..." Butler Luo staggered two steps before crashing to the ground. His outstretched fingers twitched once, then went utterly still.

From the moment he lunged to the moment he fell, Xiao Yan had made only one sword strike.

The onlookers stood with their mouths open, unable to make a sound for a long while. The shopkeeper gripped his counter, even forgetting that he had just been mourning that bottle of medicine.

Jia Lie Ao, with his seventh-stage Dou Qi, had died to a single palm strike. Even the Dou Shi whom the guards dared not approach had lasted only one sword strike?! This was a Dou Zhe???

Xiao Yan glanced down at the sword's edge, then sheathed it.

Behind him, the lingering golden light in Xun'er's eyes gradually faded. Looking at his back, she felt somewhat surprised as well, but still called softly:

"Brother Xiao Yan."

"Your sword is so fast!"

Xiao Yan turned toward her and smiled slightly.

"Did that scare you?"

Xun'er gently shook her head.

At last, someone beside the street recovered his senses. His gaze shifted from Steward Luo on the ground to Xiao Yan, his voice trembling.

"Just now... didn't Steward Luo say Xiao Yan was a Dou Shi?"