The moment Zhou Changqing crashed through the courtyard wall, a figure appeared atop the wall opposite him.
It was another man in black, masked and robed, his features completely obscured.
"This little bastard's talent is truly terrifying. Just over half a year ago, he was a high-level Dou Zhe, and now he's broken through to a four-star Dou Shi!"
"And his Magic Core Armor is even more powerful than the set sold at the Mittel Auction House! It allowed him, a mere four-star Dou Shi, to single-handedly fight a nine-star, an eight-star, two seven-star, and two six-star Dou Shi, along with more than a dozen Dou Zhe, not only holding his ground but killing most of them!"
"It's a good thing the clan leader had the foresight to send me as a failsafe. If we let this boy live, he would surely become the doom of our clan in the future!"
"He took my surprise attack—a high-level Huang Rank Dou Technique—completely off guard. Even with his inner armor and Dou Qi Mantle for protection, he must be on his last breath."
"Heh, whether he's dead or alive, I must grind his bones to dust to eliminate any future threat!"
The masked man's gaze was fixed on the dust-filled rubble of the collapsed wall, his mind racing through these thoughts in an instant.
At this realization, a vicious glint flashed in his eyes. He stomped his foot and leaped into the air, a thick surge of Dou Qi beginning to condense in his hand.
Within moments, the massive aura of Dou Qi shrank, clinging to his palm like a translucent, pale green glove.
Then, the masked man thrust his hand forward. The glove instantly detached, swelling as it flew through the air, transforming into a colossal, ten-foot-wide palm of pale green Dou Qi that slammed down toward Zhou Changqing's location.
For his earlier sneak attack, the masked man had used a high-level Huang Rank Dou Technique that could be cast instantly. Now, to ensure Zhou Changqing's complete annihilation, he unleashed his ultimate trump card: a low-level Xuan Rank Dou Technique.
The giant Dou Qi hand moved with incredible speed, about to smash into the rubble.
"Villain! How dare you! Raging Lion's Roar!"
"Stop this at once! Blazing Fire Seal!"
Just as all seemed lost, two furious roars echoed through the night.
Simultaneously, an illusory cyan lion's head materialized in the distance. It shot forward with terrifying power, tearing through the air in a series of flashes as it hurtled toward the giant palm.
Immediately following it, a fiery red seal, inscribed with mystical characters, blazed through the air and slammed into the masked man.
BOOM!
CRACK!
The lion's head collided with the giant palm, and the two attacks annihilated each other in a massive explosion. A terrifying shockwave swept through the courtyard, so powerful that it shattered the stone table in the center into countless pieces.
The fiery red seal, radiating intense heat, struck the masked man squarely, sending him flying back dozens of meters.
As he was thrown backward by the seal's impact, a spray of blood was faintly visible erupting from his mouth.
"Pah!"
"This is bad! I have to escape!"
Crashing violently against a building, the masked man knew the situation was dire. He suppressed the roiling Qi and blood in his chest and ignored the searing pain from his organs and the burns on his skin where his clothes had been torn. He forced himself to his feet and immediately fled.
By this time, two figures had already rushed into the small courtyard.
One was a middle-aged man, the other an elder.
"Clan Leader Xiao, don't give chase. We won't catch him. Let's check on young friend Changqing first!"
"Right! Master Gu Ni, you are a second-tier alchemist. If Nephew Changqing is… please, you must do everything you can to save him!"
They had launched their attacks from a considerable distance, and the masked man had used the force of the blow to aid his escape, disappearing from sight almost instantly.
Therefore, the two men did not pursue him.
The most urgent matter was to save the boy.
They leaped over to the collapsed wall and, with a wave of their hands, generated a gust of wind that blew away the lingering dust.
A figure was revealed to them.
"Nephew Changqing!"
"Young friend Changqing!"
Seeing his condition, both men cried out in alarm and rushed forward to check on him.
Zhou Changqing was a pitiful sight. He was covered in grime, his face was ashen pale, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. His clothes were shredded, revealing the damaged inner armor beneath, and his chest heaved erratically.
His heavy sword lay discarded by his side.
Fortunately, just as they reached him, his eyes fluttered open.
"Cough, cough~"
After two ragged coughs, Zhou Changqing recognized the men before him. He secretly dispersed the Dou Qi he had been gathering in his palm and spoke in a weak voice, "Uncle Xiao, Master Gu Ni…"
"Don't speak, young friend Changqing. Take this medicinal pill to stabilize your injuries."
Gu Ni raised a hand to silence him, then produced a verdant green pill and offered it to him.
Zhou Changqing accepted it without ceremony and swallowed it in one gulp.
The moment the pill entered his mouth, it dissolved, transforming into a cool stream of energy that flowed from his throat to his stomach and then spread throughout his body, steadily repairing his injuries.
Under the pill's effects, Zhou Changqing's weak aura quickly stabilized, and his breathing grew even.
Seeing this, Xiao Zhan and Gu Ni finally let out a sigh of relief.
Then, their faces contorted with rage. Xiao Zhan's voice was laced with ice as he said, "Damnation! Someone actually dared to ignore the Xiao Clan's warning and attack you!"
"Rest assured, Nephew Changqing, I will hunt down the mastermind behind this and give you the justice you deserve!"
"It seems some people in Wu Tan City no longer have any regard for the Mittel clan. My Mittel Auction House will also see this matter through to the end!"
"Young friend Changqing, this place is no longer safe. Until this is resolved, you should come back with me to the auction house."
Gu Ni's expression was equally grim. His cold words were directed at Zhou Changqing.
If the guards their two families had sent to protect Zhou Changqing hadn't noticed something was wrong and immediately sent someone to report back, allowing them to arrive in time, this young genius would have already fallen tonight.
Zhou Changqing did not refuse. He nodded. "Thank you for your trouble, Master Gu Ni."
Xiao Zhan opened his mouth, but then swallowed the invitation he was about to make, a flicker of regret in his eyes.
How had he been a step too slow, letting Gu Ni get the offer in first?
"In that case, let's leave now. With Clan Leader Xiao and me escorting you, those cowardly rats will not dare to show themselves."
"Master Gu Ni, not just yet. I left a survivor. If we bring him along, we should be able to find out who was behind this ambush."
"A survivor?"
Hearing Zhou Changqing's words, the two men froze, then scanned the ruined courtyard.
The place was a scene of utter devastation, littered with corpses and slick with blood. It was difficult to find a single intact body.
In their initial haste, neither of them had had time to assess the surroundings. Looking at it now, even as Da Dou Shi, they couldn't help but be shocked by the sheer number of mangled bodies.
One could only imagine how brutal the battle had been before their arrival.
By now, Zhou Changqing had managed to get to his feet and was staggering toward a corner of the yard.
Xiao Zhan and Gu Ni followed close behind.
The three of them came to a stop beside a "corpse" whose lower legs had been severed, though the wounds were not bleeding.
"This is the one. He was one of the leaders of the group that attacked me. I cut off his legs earlier but didn't kill him. I just knocked him unconscious. He should still be alive."
Looking at the "corpse," Zhou Changqing explained weakly.
It turned out that when the eight-star Dou Shi had thrown one of the leaders at him, Zhou Changqing had not delivered a killing blow.
After killing the first leader, he had used the momentum of his heavy sword to sever this man's legs before knocking him out with a single strike of his hand.
He needed to confirm if Qieluo was truly behind this, so he hadn't intended to kill them all.
The fleeing Dou Zhe would know far less than these Dou Shi leaders, making this man the perfect captive.
Just as he had suspected, this ambush was not so simple; even a Da Dou Shi had appeared.
He refused to believe this was all Qieluo's doing. If these men were truly Qieluo's subordinates, their master would not have waited until Zhou Changqing had lowered his guard to finally strike.
Qieluo could never afford such devastating losses.