As Mu Li finished speaking, he was already moving. Dou Qi erupted from his body, fully revealing his strength as a One-Star Dou Zhe. He raised his hand and drove his palm straight at Xiao Yan's face.
Seeing Mu Li's palm coming at him, Xiao Yan stood without budging and merely gave it a casual glance. That's it?
With that thought passing through his mind, Xiao Yan casually raised a hand and met the attack with an effortless motion.
Bang! Mu Li flew backward and slammed into a wooden post beside a tent, snapping it on the spot.
The mercenaries present froze at the sight, unable to recover from their shock for a long while.
"How is that possible? The young commander is a Seven-Star Dou Zhe! How could this brat send him flying with a single palm strike?"
"Where did this brat come from? Could he be a Dou Shi?"
"No, even a Dou Shi couldn't do it that easily, could he? The young commander is a genuine Seven-Star Dou Zhe!"
Mu Li climbed off the ground, a trace of blood still hanging from the corner of his mouth. His face was frighteningly pale as he stared fixedly at Xiao Yan, his eyes full of disbelief. "You... just how strong are you? Are you a Dou Shi?"
Mu Li reeled inwardly, but on second thought, that did not seem right. After all, Xiao Yan looked barely over eleven. A Dou Shi so young-no one would dare believe it even if he told them.
Impossible! This brat must have used some secret art. It has to be a secret art!
Thinking this to himself, Mu Li turned toward the mercenaries behind him and roared viciously.
"What are you all standing around for? Attack together and slaughter this brat! Whoever kills him will be richly rewarded!"
Although Mu Li's words sent a chill through the mercenaries, they did not dare disobey their young commander. They steeled themselves, unleashed their Dou Qi, and closed in around Xiao Yan.
Most of them were Dou Zhe, with a few at eight or nine duan of Dou Qi. In a small place like Qingshan Town, they could be considered a formidable force.
They immediately surrounded him, yet Xiao Yan's expression did not change in the slightest. "Since you're so determined to court death, you can't blame me."
Xiao Yan spoke calmly, then vanished from where he stood in a flash. A rapid series of bangs followed, and the mercenaries who had just surrounded him flew backward one after another. Some crashed into tents, some smashed into the ground, and quite a few flew straight out of the camp. They spat blood and stopped breathing on the spot.
In the space of just a few breaths, every mercenary who had been standing lay on the ground. Not a single one could get back up.
At the sight before him, Mu Li's face instantly turned deathly pale, and his legs began trembling uncontrollably. How is this possible? These men were all Dou Zhe. How could he take them down with a single move...
Mu Li was overwhelmed with shock. Only now did he finally realize that the youth before him was no mere Dou Zhe or Dou Shi, but a true powerhouse-someone whose strength far exceeded anything he could imagine!
At that realization, Mu Li no longer cared about preserving his dignity as the young commander. His legs buckled, and he dropped to his knees, kowtowing repeatedly. "My lord, I had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai! I offended you. Please spare my life!"
"I'm willing to offer you all the wealth of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group! I only ask that you leave me a way to live!"
Mu Li knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for mercy, looking utterly wretched. Yet Xiao Yan's expression remained completely unmoved.
To Xiao Yan, Mu Li was nothing more than an ant. Whether he killed him hardly mattered. But since Mu Li had previously threatened to kill him, there was naturally no reason to let him go. He raised his hand, preparing to kill him with a single palm strike.
Just then, Mu Li seemed to sense something. He jerked his head up and glared at Xiao Yan with a savage expression. "You dare kill me? My father is Mu She, the commander of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group! If you kill me, he'll never let you get away with it!"
"My father is a Dou Shi, and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group has over a hundred men! If you kill me, he'll bring them here and tear you into ten thousand pieces!"
At Mu Li's words, the corners of Xiao Yan's mouth lifted slightly. A Dou Shi? Over a hundred men?
After mulling that over, Xiao Yan looked at Mu Li and said calmly, "Perfect. That saves me the trouble of hunting them down one by one."
As he finished speaking, Xiao Yan's palm had already landed on the top of Mu Li's head.
Bang! Mu Li went limp and collapsed to the ground, dying on the spot.
Not expecting Xiao Yan to kill Mu Li with a single palm strike just like that, Xiao Yi Xian froze where she stood. Her eyes widened, and for a long while, she could not speak. He... he really killed Mu Li?
Xiao Yi Xian was stunned. After all, Mu Li was the young commander of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, and his father, Mu She, was notorious around Qingshan Town for his ruthlessness. By killing Mu Li, Xiao Yan had forged a mortal feud with the entire Wolf Head Mercenary Group.
At that thought, worry began to creep into Xiao Yi Xian's heart.
"Xiao Yan, you... why did you really kill him? Mu Li's father, Mu She, is a Dou Shi, and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group has strength in numbers. You should leave here at once."
Yet when Xiao Yi Xian finished speaking, Xiao Yan merely smiled. "It's fine. I'll wait right here for them."
Xiao Yi Xian froze at his reply. She was just about to try persuading him again when a jumble of footsteps sounded outside the camp.
Soon, a large group of mercenaries poured into the camp. Leading them was a middle-aged man of around forty, powerfully built, with a brutish face and eyes filled with ferocity. He was none other than Mu She, commander of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.
As he entered the camp, he immediately spotted Mu Li lying on the ground. His expression changed on the spot. "My son!"
Mu She rushed forward and lifted Mu Li from the ground, but Mu Li had long since stopped breathing. There was not the slightest response.
Seeing his own son lying dead before him, Mu She's eyes instantly reddened. "Who was it? Who killed my son?"
Mu She snapped his head up and stared fiercely at everyone present before his gaze finally settled on Xiao Yan. "You? You killed my son?"
At Mu She's question, Xiao Yan made no attempt to deny it. He merely nodded calmly. "That's right. I killed him."
Seeing Xiao Yan admit it so readily, Mu She burned with fury. "You little bastard! You dared kill my son? You're courting death!"
Mu She roared, and Dou Qi suddenly erupted from his body. A powerful aura surged out of him, its intensity revealing that his strength had already reached the level of a Two-Star Dou Shi.
Sensing Mu She's aura, Xiao Yi Xian grew increasingly worried as she stood nearby. A Two-Star Dou Shi. Xiao Yan...
Although Xiao Yi Xian had already seen that Xiao Yan was no weakling, Mu She was a Two-Star Dou Shi, and there were so many mercenaries present. Could Xiao Yan really handle them all by himself?
As that thought crossed her mind, regret welled up in Xiao Yi Xian's heart. Had she known things would turn out this way, she should have stopped Xiao Yan from coming here.
But Mu She could no longer concern himself with anything else. He waved his hand and snarled at the mercenaries behind him, "All of you, attack! Chop this brat into mincemeat and avenge my son!"
At Mu She's command, the mercenaries unleashed their Dou Qi one after another and closed in around Xiao Yan.
At the sight, Xiao Yi Xian's heart leaped into her throat. Yet as Xiao Yan looked at the mercenaries surrounding him and the savage-faced Mu She standing behind them, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
A Two-Star Dou Shi and a bunch of small fry. With a lineup like that, you dare swagger and shout in front of me?
With that thought, Xiao Yan raised his hand, ready to strike.
Before you continue