Jiang Xingzhou turned around, his body utterly rigid.
He saw Li Yang standing in the air with his hands behind his back.
The Li Yang of today was no longer the Qi Refining Sword Cultivator of old, who had needed a Sword-Riding Talisman just to fly.
He stepped off the Void-Piercing Sword, shattering the void beneath his feet, and stood above and behind Jiang Xingzhou. His blood-red eyes regarded him with the contempt one reserved for an ant.
The pure yang origin source within him blazed like a great sun, stained blood-red by scarlet killing intent. He was like a walking, world-destroying calamity, his oppressive presence making life itself tremble.
Especially with the enormous Void-Piercing Sword behind him, where over three thousand Sword Cultivators stood in the air with grim expressions. Their combined sword might seemed capable of splitting even the firmament.
"Li..."
Before Jiang Xingzhou could get the words out, Li Yang's palm had already struck his face.
He was slapped straight underground, throwing up a massive cloud of dust. Not a trace of his graceful, carefree bearing remained.
"You're the one who shouldn't regret this. You're getting closer and closer to my bottom line." Li Yang's voice seemed to rise from the Nine Hells, cold enough to freeze a Nascent Soul.
The hired muscle Jiang Xingzhou had recruited scattered like birds and beasts at the mere sight of Li Yang.
Every one of them fled in terror, without even the courage to face him.
Unlike the other Crown Champions, Li Yang's fearsome reputation came neither from the established order nor from the tradition backing him. He had earned every bit of it through killing.
So when others mentioned Li Yang, they did not think of the Xuanyuan Sword Sect. All they thought of was the terror of this