The moon was dark and the wind high, a chill creeping through the night.
Xiao Yan put on the Thousand Illusion Mask, and his features immediately twisted and shifted.
Having taken on the appearance of a sinister-looking middle-aged man, Xiao Yan draped himself in a loose black robe and activated his movement Dou Technique. His figure swept forward like a phantom, silently reaching Xiao Zha's courtyard.
Yao Chen did not possess him. He merely wrapped a strand of Soul Force around Xiao Yan to help conceal his aura.
"Boy, I won't be stepping in this time." Yao Lao's voice sounded in Xiao Yan's mind.
"At the Dou Shi realm, you barely have the strength to protect yourself. Unless your life is in danger, deal with it yourself."
"What you lack now is experience fighting others, and the tempering of iron and blood."
"Rest assured, Teacher."
Scarlet flames flashed through Xiao Yan's eyes. "I've been wanting to see just how far all this arduous training has taken me."
Xiao Zha's courtyard was secluded and quiet.
Without Dou Qi Wings to aid him, Xiao Yan could only vault over the wall like a wildcat, landing without a sound.
Yet the instant his toes touched the ground, a black figure burst from the shadows. Murky Dou Qi struck like a venomous snake!
I've been spotted?!
Xiao Yan hurriedly darted aside, a heavy sword already gripped in his hand.
He had chosen not to use the Heavy Xuan Ruler. After all, quite a few people had seen his weapon.
The black figure moved with tremendous speed, his Dou Qi dense and solid. Each strike carried an icy aura, leaving a rotten stench in the air wherever it passed.
"Eight Extremes Collapse!"
Xiao Yan shouted inwardly, several layers of hidden force stacking over his fist as he abruptly chose to meet the black figure head-on.
Yet the black figure merely swayed slightly before thrusting out a palm in return. Surging Dou Qi formed a sharp claw and rushed toward Xiao Yan!
Boom!
Both figures staggered several steps backward.
So strong!
A chill ran through Xiao Yan's heart.
This black figure's strength was definitely at the level of an Eight- or Nine-Star Dou Shi, perhaps even a Da Dou Shi!
He swiftly drifted backward, his movements flowing like clouds and water, putting a little distance between himself and his pursuer.
Yet the black figure seemed tireless. His attacks surged like the tide, sinister Dou Qi continually spewing into the night as he sought to kill Xiao Yan in one stroke.
"Fire-Blowing Palm!"
Xiao Yan abruptly stopped and put his heavy sword into his Storage Ring. A fierce blast of wind pressure erupted, catching the black figure off guard and sending him stumbling backward.
Then his Storage Ring flashed, and the heavy sword returned to his hand. Wrapped in fiery Dou Qi, it formed a scarlet blade over ten feet long and cleaved down fiercely!
Bang!
Fiery Dou Qi collided with icy Dou Qi, producing a piercing explosive crack.
The black figure was driven several steps back. The lingering flames tore his loose robe, and his bamboo hat flew off with it.
Moonlight spilled down, revealing a withered face as pale as paper.
And Xiao Yan knew that man all too well.
Jia Lie Bi!
His face was utterly bloodless, his eyes hollow and lifeless. His unfocused pupils resembled two dried-up wells, filled with deathly stillness.
Although the Dou Qi fluctuations radiating from him were weaker than before, they were even colder and more sinister, as though they could corrode life itself.
It really... is true...
Xiao Yan's pupils sharply contracted. Looking at the man before him, he felt a tangled rush of emotions.
"Who dares trespass on the Xiao Clan in the dead of night?"
A clear, strong voice came from the house beside the courtyard.
Xiao Yan whipped his head around. The door opened gently, revealing Xiao Zha leaning against its frame, the faintest relaxed, languid smile playing at his lips.
His fine blue robes fluttered in the wind, and two dim red glimmers in his eyes looked particularly eerie in the night.
"The Xiao Clan? Hmph! Why is someone from the Jia Lie Family here in the Xiao Clan?"
Xiao Yan lowered his voice, deliberately answering in a hoarse tone. At the same time, he turned slightly sideways, adopting a stance that let him meet an attack at any moment.
Xiao Zha smiled softly at the sight and walked forward at an unhurried pace.
His gaze swept over Xiao Yan before settling on the puppet that had been driven back. A trace of puzzlement and amusement flashed in his eyes.
"From what you're saying, you seem to recognize him. Have you come visiting so late tonight because of this puppet?"
"To defeat him, you must be at least a Da Dou Shi. I don't believe Wutan City has anyone like you. An outsider?"
His tone was calm, yet a pressure that set the heart faintly trembling began to seep through.
"Could you be... from the Mittel Auction House? Or were you sent by the Ao Ba Family?"
Xiao Yan's heart stirred at those words, and he seized the opening.
"You needn't know that. Since Jia Lie Bi is here, the others who disappeared with him must be here as well!"
"If you don't give me an explanation today, don't expect this to end peacefully!"
He deliberately raised his voice, even as he secretly edged backward, ready to act at any moment.
On the day Nalan Yanran broke off their engagement, Xiao Zha had apparently happened to be away and had not been at the Xiao Clan.
Besides, Dou Techniques came in countless strange forms. The techniques he had just used should not prompt Xiao Zha to make a connection or grow suspicious.
At his words, Xiao Zha suddenly smiled. There was a hint of mockery in that smile, along with cold indifference.
"An explanation?"
He tilted his head, his dark blue sleeve brushing lightly through the air. "I'm under no obligation to explain anything to someone who hides his head and shows only his tail."
"I don't believe I left any tracks. How did you manage to point your spear straight at me?"
"But since you're here, then... stay."
Before his words had faded, he suddenly lunged forward! His speed was not the slightest bit inferior to the puppet's!
Flying Escape Technique!
Pitch-black Dou Qi gathered at Xiao Zha's fingertips, forming a dark gleam as fine as a strand of hair. He unleashed it instantly, aiming straight at the space between Xiao Yan's brows.
"Mystic Soul Thorn!"
The dark gleam bared its deadly edge wherever it passed!
Secretly alarmed, Xiao Yan pushed his flowing movement Dou Technique to its limit, drifting backward like running water.
At the same time, he swept his heavy sword across. With his Dou Qi supporting it at full strength, he forcefully blocked the terrifying black thorn and knocked it down!
Yet in that very instant, Xiao Zha had already darted in front of him. Sinister bloodlight surfaced around his body, and a blood-red edge suddenly flared in his palm!
"Blood Refinement Divine Light!"
The blood-colored light struck like a venomous snake. An overwhelming sense of danger instantly rose in Xiao Yan's heart, as though taking that blow would put his very life at risk!
At the critical instant, Xiao Yan gave a sharp shout. Scarlet Fatal Flame surged from his palm, forming a wall of fire that forced Xiao Zha back.
At the same time, he used the momentum to retreat explosively, his figure sweeping toward the wall like drifting willow fluff.
"Trying to leave?" Xiao Zha sneered. With a turn of his right hand, a surge of violent energy began churning.
"Yin Fire Thunder!"
Pitch-black flames intertwined with lightning, forming an egg-sized sphere of thunder and fire that flew straight toward Xiao Yan's back!
Xiao Yan planted his foot against the wall and kicked off hard.
Having feigned a retreat, he used the change in terrain to suddenly drive force through his feet.
He swung his heavy sword back in a reverse slash, carrying vast fluctuations of Dou Qi. The surrounding air grew fiercely hot, even taking on a faint trace of the energy of heaven and earth!
"Flame Splitting Wave Ruler!"
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