"I heard you have some distinguished guests here. Why not invite them to join us?"
Liu Shan, who had been slightly bowing his head, paused for a moment before quickly recovering. "I'll send someone to inform them right away."
He turned to the two elders beside him and said, "First Elder, please go and ask Xiao Jietian and the others if they are willing to come."
As he spoke, he gave a subtle, knowing look.
"Yes, Family Head." Liu Yang, the Liu Family's First Elder, responded and headed toward the guest rooms.
"Everyone, please come inside first," Liu Shan invited the Burning Flame Valley group.
The group entered the reception hall.
...
Everything said by the Burning Flame Valley members and Liu Shan's group had been under Xiao Jietian's surveillance. He and Xuan Yi had heard every word clearly.
After instructing Xiao Ling and Xiao Meng to continue cultivating diligently, the two of them walked out of the guest room courtyard.
As soon as they stepped out, they ran into Liu Yang, who was coming to find them. Before Liu Yang could speak, Xiao Jietian interrupted him. "I already know everything. I'll go handle it now."
"Lord Xiao Jietian, please be careful. They clearly came prepared this time after investigating beforehand," Liu Yang whispered beside him.
Xiao Jietian nodded to show he understood. Seeing this, Liu Yang said nothing more and led them toward the reception hall.
Xuan Yi walked side by side with Xiao Jietian, a few steps behind Liu Yang. She spoke softly, "Leave today's matter to me. We might even need to make them bleed a little."
Xiao Jietian glanced at her, a smile tugging at his lips. "Why do I feel like I'm being protected? Does this mean I'm living off a woman?"
Xuan Yi's ear tips flushed slightly. She huffed softly and turned her face away, though she couldn't resist glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "I have no intention of protecting you or letting you live off a woman. Don't get any funny ideas."
"Is that so? That's too bad. I was planning to use a honey trap and sacrifice my good looks," Xiao Jietian said with a dramatic sigh.
Xuan Yi snorted coldly, but secretly pinched his arm with her fingertips inside her sleeve. "You're asking for death. There are other people here. Behave yourself and stop talking nonsense."
"So it's okay when no one's around?" Xiao Jietian grabbed her small, soft hand and asked playfully.
"No, it's not. Get all that dirty garbage out of your head," Xuan Yi glared at him in annoyance, using a phrase she had recently learned.
Liu Yang, walking ahead, suddenly looked pained. Was this something he should be hearing? He was already so old, yet he was still being force-fed dog food. There was no respect for the elderly at all.
When Xiao Jietian and the others arrived at the reception hall, they saw Liu Shan and another Dou Zong from the Liu Family looking somewhat displeased.
Liu Shan had already spoken with the Burning Flame Valley group earlier, even exaggerating the Cheng Family's crimes and emphasizing that they had been in the wrong first.
From Elder Chihuo's expression, he confirmed what the previous intelligence had suggested: the Cheng Family had been continuously bribing Elder Chihuo.
As Xiao Jietian and the two others walked in, everyone in the hall stopped what they were doing. All eyes turned toward them.
Several young people who had come with Elder Chihuo looked at Xiao Jietian's refined appearance, a flash of jealousy in their eyes.
When they saw Xuan Yi standing beside him—with her full chest and perfectly rounded figure—a fervent desire flashed across their faces.
One of the young men sitting beside Elder Chihuo narrowed his eyes. Glancing at Xuan Yi, his jealousy intensified. He stood up and spoke to Xiao Jietian in an arrogant tone:
"You are Xiao Jietian? You're the one who killed the Cheng Family Head, right?"
"That's correct. What? Is there a problem?" Xiao Jietian replied calmly.
"Good that you admit it. Do you know he was a subordinate of our Burning Flame Valley? Do you know that your actions are provoking our Burning Flame Valley and making enemies of us? Today, you will return with me to the Burning Flame Valley to face punishment. This woman beside you must come as well."
As he spoke, his eyes lingered on Xuan Yi with a lewd gaze, clearly harboring ill intentions. Although the other party had managed to kill the Cheng Family Head, they were too young. He believed they must have used some underhanded tricks and colluded with the Liu Family Head to succeed.
Moreover, his teacher was right beside him. His teacher was a peak nine-star Dou Zong, and he was his most favored disciple.
Elder Chihuo did not stop him. After all, this was his beloved young disciple and future successor.
Slap!
A crisp slapping sound rang out. The arrogant young man was suddenly struck across the face by an invisible force. His body flew backward, several teeth flying out along with blood. He crashed heavily into the wall and fell unconscious.
The entire hall fell deathly silent.
"What are you? Some people are not for you to scheme against," Xiao Jietian said indifferently, standing with his hands behind his back as he looked at the fallen man.
Xiao Jietian had not killed him outright. Instead, he had silently crippled his lower body. If the man ever wanted to act like a man again in the future, he could forget about it.
First, he would experience the pain of no longer being able to be a man. Xiao Jietian had also left a bolt of lightning in his Qi Sea that would explode whenever he became too excited.
There was nothing he could do about it—he was simply too kind. Even after that lewd look, he had still allowed the man the chance to die happily later.
"Presumptuous!!!" Elder Chihuo roared, slamming the table and standing up furiously when he saw his beloved disciple sent flying. "How dare a junior like you attack a disciple of my Burning Flame Valley? So young, yet so ruthless. This old man will discipline you on behalf of your elders!"
Though furious, Elder Chihuo did not forget to claim the moral high ground and emphasize his background, lest others accuse him of bullying the weak.
Dou Qi surged around Elder Chihuo as scorching flames condensed in his palm, ready to strike Xiao Jietian.
However, in that instant—
A powerful aura instantly pressed down on everyone present. Even Elder Chihuo, who had been condensing his Dou Qi, felt his flames instantly extinguished.
He swallowed hard and struggled to look up at the source of the pressure. Realizing it came from the woman beside Xiao Jietian, he cried out in horror, "Dou… Dou Zun!!!"
Xuan Yi looked at him coldly. "Presumptuous? Your mother's presumptuous! Who do you think you are? Is he someone you can curse and threaten to discipline?"
Xuan Yi waved her hand gently. Elder Chihuo was sent flying, spitting blood as he crashed into the wall beside his disciple. His face turned deathly pale in an instant.
This was Xuan Yi holding back. Otherwise, that single palm strike would have killed him without question. After all, if he died, there would be no one left to negotiate with.
Xiao Jietian glanced at Xuan Yi with slight surprise. He hadn't expected the usually gentle Xuan Yi in front of him to curse so sharply.
He silently lamented in his heart: Being handsome was truly troublesome. Everywhere he went, there was soft rice to eat—and the protective kind at that. It was truly fragrant and soft.
Unlike his other brothers, who could only experience the floral language of steel wool.
At that moment, Elder Chihuo struggled to get up from the wall. Suddenly, the sound of tearing air rang out. His pupils constricted, and he instinctively tried to circulate his Dou Qi to block.