The central plaza of the merchant district was thick with tension. The ambient chatter of the market had completely died down, replaced by the hushed, nervous whispers of the gathering crowd.
From the safety of the bystanders, Yoriichi kept his iron grip on Xiao Yu's wrist. She had stopped struggling against his hold, though her chest still heaved with suppressed, righteous indignation. She glared at the center of the square, where the drunken Tier 1 Alchemist, Liu Xi, was aggressively posturing in front of their clan mates.
"You really think you are something, don't you, brat?" Liu Xi sneered, his alcohol-laced breath visibly wafting in the afternoon air. He completely ignored Xiao Yan's fierce, protective stance and leaned sideways, trying to catch another glimpse of Gu Xun'er's ethereal beauty.
"A piece of trash who fell from grace, acting like a hero. Miss, why hide behind a broken shield? My pavilion has silks from the capital and pills that can smooth your skin to jade. Come with me, and I will show you what a real man of status can provide."
Gu Xun'er's delicate face remained a mask of flawless, unreadable calm. However, to Yoriichi's heightened Transparent World vision, the reality was vastly different.
The golden, primordial flame resting deep within her Dantian was beginning to violently churn. Tiny, microscopic sparks of terrifying heat were traveling up her meridians, congregating near her fingertips.
'Hmm... will she attack him herself?' Yoriichi thought, his crimson eyes tracking the flow of her energy with deep fascination. He genuinely wanted to see the extent of her powers.
The girl was a walking enigma, possessing an aura that felt older than the mountains surrounding Wu Tan City. 'If she releases that golden flame, this alchemist will not just burn; his very ashes will be erased from existence.'
However, Xun'er did not raise her hand. She merely looked at Liu Xi with the kind of distant, absolute disgust one might reserve for a squashed insect on the sole of their shoe. She was waiting, trusting the young man standing in front of her.
Seeing that neither Xiao Yan nor Xun'er had initiated an attack—giving Liu Xi the perfect excuse to claim "self-defense" in front of the city's merchants—the alchemist clicked his tongue in annoyance. He was a pampered, arrogant man who preferred to keep his own hands clean whenever possible.
Liu Xi lazily waved a pale, trembling hand over his shoulder, gesturing to his escort.
"Jia Lie Ao," Liu Xi commanded arrogantly, not even bothering to look back. "Teach this crippled Xiao Clan trash a lesson. Break his legs and toss him into the gutter so I can properly escort this young lady."
The crowd held its breath. The Jia Lie Clan and the Xiao Clan were bitter rivals. A public brawl between their young masters was exactly the kind of bloody entertainment the mercenaries loved.
However, seconds ticked by. Nothing happened.
Liu Xi frowned, turning his head. "Did you not hear me, boy? I said break his legs!"
Standing a few paces behind the alchemist, Jia Lie Ao looked like he had just swallowed a mouthful of bitter poison. His face was pale, and a bead of cold sweat rolled down his temple.
Jia Lie Ao's eyes had been frantically scanning the crowd ever since the confrontation began. And just moments ago, his gaze had locked onto a tall, imposing figure dressed in dark robes, standing silently among the bystanders. The man was staring right at him.
It was Yoriichi.
Jia Lie Ao felt his soul practically leave his body. Yoriichi had just officially adopted a martial pseudonym and warned him that night before. And now, this idiot alchemist was ordering him to publicly cripple a member of Yoriichi's clan, right in front of the "Demon" himself?!
'If I take one step toward Xiao Yan, Master Yoriichi will sure beat me to death later on!' Jia Lie Ao panicked internally.
Thinking faster than he ever had in his entire life, Jia Lie Ao suddenly let out a loud, exaggerated groan. He violently gripped his right shoulder, dropping to one knee with a face twisted in theatrical agony.
"Ah! Master Liu! Forgive me!" Jia Lie Ao cried out, his voice cracking perfectly. "My old war injury... it has suddenly flared up! It is an ancient, terrible curse! My arms... I cannot lift my arms!"
Liu Xi stared at the young master, utterly dumbfounded. "War injury? You are eighteen years old! What war?!"
"The pain is unbearable!" Jia Lie Ao wailed, ignoring the alchemist's logic and doubling over. He subtly kicked the shin of his friend standing next to him.
The youth, catching on to the young master's desperate signal and also recognizing Yoriichi in the crowd, immediately grabbed his own stomach and collapsed. "Ah! My meridian cramps! The bad tofu I ate this morning! Master Liu, we are incapacitated!"
The entire plaza fell into a bizarre, stunned silence. Even Xiao Yan blinked in confusion, his combat-ready stance faltering slightly at the sheer absurdity of the Jia Lie Clan's sudden, collective "illness."
Xiao Yu, standing beside Yoriichi, had to slap a hand over her mouth to muffle a sudden, highly undignified snort of laughter.
Liu Xi's face rapidly transitioned from pale white to a brilliant, furious shade of crimson. The public humiliation was absolute. The crowd of mercenaries and merchants began to openly snicker, pointing at the supposedly elite Jia Lie youths rolling on the ground complaining of bad tofu.
"Useless garbage!" Liu Xi roared, kicking a small stone at Jia Lie Ao's hunched form. He had completely lost his patience. The lust clouding his mind was instantly replaced by a volatile, burning rage.
"Fine! I will crush this Xiao Clan trash myself!"
Liu Xi snapped his head back toward Xiao Yan. With a furious shout, the alchemist forcibly circulated his Dou Qi. A distinct, potent aura erupted from his body, carrying the heavy pressure of a 6-Star Dou Zhe.
"Die!" Liu Xi screamed, launching himself forward. His fist tore through the air, aiming directly for Xiao Yan's chest with lethal intent.
Xiao Yu instinctively tensed, her hand gripping Yoriichi's arm tightly. "Xiao Yan!" she gasped, knowing her younger cousin had only recently recovered his cultivation and was nowhere near the 6-Star level.
But Yoriichi's crimson eyes narrowed, his Transparent World vision zooming in on the exact point of impact.
Xiao Yan did not retreat a single step. His dark eyes remained calm, filled with a cold, mocking light. As the alchemist's fiery fist closed the distance, Xiao Yan subtly shifted his stance.
Right before Liu Xi's knuckles could connect, a bizarre, invisible phenomenon occurred.
Yoriichi saw it clearly. A sudden surge of profound spiritual energy erupted from the simple black ring on Xiao Yan's finger. It was an aura that was terrifyingly vast, ancient, and bone-chillingly cold.
This foreign Qi did not take the form of a flashy spell; it simply materialized as an invisible, dense wall of spiritual force directly in front of Xiao Yan's chest.
Bang!
Liu Xi's fist slammed into the invisible barrier. The alchemist's pale orange flames were instantly snuffed out, as if doused by a glacier.