"Miss Ning, who were you talking about just now?"
Wu Huai asked curiously.
"Young Master Wu, have you ever heard of the Crown Prince of Great Zhou?"
Ning Yao replied.
"I've heard a little."
Wu Huai's tone was light. "But has this person caused trouble for Miss Ning? If that's the case, as long as you wish, I can take care of it for you anytime."
The rumor that Yang Cheng had destroyed the entire Ouyang clan on his own—he absolutely didn't believe that. He'd heard that the Cang clan had been in close contact with Yang Cheng afterward, so in his view, the real mastermind behind the event was probably forces like the Cang clan.
Even if Yang Cheng really did have that kind of strength, he wasn't afraid.
As long as he laid down his formation, as long as Yang Cheng wasn't a Yin God expert, he was confident he could suppress him.
Not to mention, he still had his master behind him.
"It's not really trouble," Ning Yao said. "It's just that some elders in the family are a bit curious, that's all."
Neither of them took Yang Cheng too seriously. But the middle-aged woman beside them looked extremely serious.
She had gathered quite a bit of information on Yang Cheng. And the more she found, the more terrifying Yang Cheng seemed to her. The story of him destroying the Ouyang clan alone—there was a good chance it was true.
But in the end, she was just a servant. She'd already reported all the intel she'd collected to Ning Yao. What Ning Yao did with it was not her place to decide.
As a servant, she had no right to influence her master's judgment.
Just then, while the banquet was still in full swing, a deer-drawn carriage appeared outside the palace hall.
"That's Young Master Ning's carriage!"
Many eyes lit up.
Sure enough, Ning Yuan stepped out of the carriage shortly after.
As for the figure behind him—Yang Cheng—many people didn't even notice. They just assumed he was one of Ning Yuan's attendants.
The moment Yang Cheng entered the hall, his eyes went straight to Ning Yao.
She was just too dazzling—like a radiant pearl surrounded by countless stars, all vying to compliment her light.
Ning Yuan looked nervous and led Yang Cheng over to Ning Yao. "Sister."
Ning Yao nodded slightly, then looked curiously at Yang Cheng. "Ning Yuan, and who is this?"
Yang Cheng spoke calmly. "Ning Yao, Ning Yuan said he couldn't decide on his own, so I had no choice but to come to you."
Quite a few people frowned at that.
Ning Yao held a high status. For this young man to just call her by name—it came off as extremely disrespectful.
"Kid, which family are you from? Didn't your elders ever teach you to show respect when speaking to Miss Ning?"
Someone barked coldly.
Yang Cheng ignored them, smiled, and said, "Oh, right—forgot to introduce myself. I'm Yang Cheng."
Ning Yao's pupils shrank sharply.
Yang Cheng?
The age, the general appearance—they all matched.
She didn't believe in coincidences like this.
Which meant—just moments ago, she had received intelligence on Yang Cheng, and now he'd already shown up in front of her?
"Sorry, Young Master Yang, I don't believe we've met before. Why have you come to see me?"
Ning Yao asked.
"So Miss Ning doesn't know him after all."
"If not for Young Master Ning bringing him in, he should've already been kicked out."
Several young men voiced their displeasure.
They feared Ning Yuan, but Wu Huai didn't. He stepped forward and said, "Your tone is way too arrogant. I don't like it one bit. I'm sure Miss Ning doesn't like people like you either. I don't care what kind of shady friend you are that Ning Yuan dragged in—this isn't a place that welcomes you."
"Whether she knows me or not, or whether she likes me or not—that doesn't matter."
Yang Cheng said flatly, "I came here to collect a debt. As long as the Ning family pays back what they owe mine, I'll leave right away."
"What a joke. The Ning family—an existence like that—owe a debt to your family?"
Wu Huai's face darkened.
"Exactly."
A refined young man in purple added, "Mister, words aren't something you can just throw around. Otherwise, we'll take it as slandering the Ning family on purpose."
"You say the Ning family owes you a debt—where's your proof?"
Yang Cheng said nothing.
Seeing that, the purple-clothed youth looked smug. "No proof, and you're just making wild claims here. Then I guess I could say that Heaven owes me 10,000 years of cultivation too, right?"
"Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted all around.
"Who's that guy?"
Someone asked, curious about the young man in purple.
"That's Zhang Qian, an elder of the Bian'an Divine Sect under the Great Zhao Empire. Don't be fooled by his youthful appearance—he's not even 100 years old yet, but he's already a Martial Sovereign."
Someone nearby explained.
When they heard that, a few cultivators from the Horn Constellation Realm showed a hint of surprise in their eyes.
Becoming a Martial Sovereign before turning 100 was indeed impressive talent.
"So, if you have any sense, you'll apologize to Miss Ning right now and get lost."
Zhang Qian said, "Otherwise, I can have the Great Zhao Empire's officers arrest you on the spot."
But Yang Cheng acted like he didn't hear a word. He simply looked at Ning Yao and said, "Ning Yao, you already know what this is about. Don't test my patience. I'm speaking to you politely now, so you'd better take the chance. If you wait too long, I won't be so nice."
Ning Yao's heart clenched. She didn't know why, but she could feel an oppressive pressure in his words. It was as if something terrible would really happen if she missed this opportunity.
Zhang Qian's gaze turned icy. "You still dare to run your mouth and threaten Miss Ning? Just for that, you've already committed a major crime—"
"Scram."
Yang Cheng finally lost patience with this buzzing fly.
He didn't lift a finger—just gave Zhang Qian a look.
And Zhang Qian suddenly spat out blood and was sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing into the crowd.
Crash!
Everyone near him scattered in panic.
The raucous atmosphere instantly fell into a tense silence.
Zhang Qian was no ordinary man.
He was an elder of the Bian'an Divine Sect. A Martial Sovereign-level powerhouse. A major figure.
And yet someone like that had just been blown away by a single glance from Yang Cheng?
If it had been anyone else, they would've thought he was faking it.
But Zhang Qian's status was too high for him to play along with a mere kid's act. No way he'd help stage a performance.
Wu Huai's eyes froze.
What the hell just happened?
Even he couldn't figure out how Yang Cheng had hurt Zhang Qian.
Only the middle-aged woman looked unsurprised, like this outcome made perfect sense.
Yang Cheng was the kind of person who could slay seven Insight God experts. Zhang Qian had no right to offend him.
"What kind of evil spell did you use on me?!"
Zhang Qian climbed to his feet, staring at Yang Cheng in shock and fury.
Just now, he had felt an invisible force slam into both his mind and body at once. That was what sent him flying.
"You're still yapping?"
Yang Cheng's eyes stayed calm, but a subtle pressure leaked from them.
Zhang Qian felt a chill run from his heels to the top of his head. He clammed up immediately.
Everyone around them fell into deep thought. They all felt a sudden wariness toward Yang Cheng.
Seeing that Zhang Qian had gone quiet, Yang Cheng turned his attention back to Ning Yao.
"Some debts don't disappear just because you pretend not to know about them."
Ning Yao stood there, stunningly beautiful, breathtaking even. But in Yang Cheng's eyes, she didn't stir a single emotion.
That made many people feel uneasy.
They started to wonder if Yang Cheng's heart was made of stone.
"Yang Cheng, I'm just a junior in the Ning family. Even if the family really does owe you, what could a weak woman like me possibly do?"
Ning Yao bit her red lip as she spoke.