Wu Xun was stunned, as were the other cultivators of Limitless Palace and their Dao Protectors. That young man sure is confident!

Suddenly, Wu Qing waved his feather fan and burst into laughter. “Why not?”

Su Yi turned to Fu Lingyun. “Take out a jade slip. When we fight, make sure to record Fellow Daoist Wu Xun in all his majesty.”

Fu Lingyun was stunned. “Why?”

“As proof,” said Su Yi. “If Fellow Daoist Wu Xun loses, the record will ensure he doesn’t go back on his word. After all, as an inheritor of Limitless Palace, reneging on his agreement will reflect badly on the entire sect.”

He spoke candidly and openly.

Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, and the others exchanged glances. Even if you’d hit them over the head, they would never have guessed that Li Muchen would be so unyielding even in the face of Wu Xun!

Wu Xun couldn’t help but furrow his brow. He looked Su Yi up and down, then said, “Does anyone know that guy’s name?”

Madam Rong Ye said softly, “That’s Li Muchen, a disciple of Light Beam Sword Pavilion. He wasn’t famous until quite recently, and Light Beam Sword Pavilion is the bottom of the barrel among the Literati Continent’s Heavenly Monarch factions.”

“Ohhhhhh,” said Wu Xun. “No wonder he values his life so little. He thinks fearlessness makes him look heroic, huh?”

The delicate beauty beside him smiled. “Perhaps he wants to show off in front of you. I bet he thinks that if he puts on a good show, he might well seize an opportunity to rise to prominence.”

Wu Xun burst into laughter.

Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, and the others felt conflicted. It was obvious to all of them that Wu Xun didn’t take Li Muchen, one of their fellow cultivators of the Literati Continent, the least bit seriously.

Su Yi put away his wine and walked forward. “I’ll let you laugh to your heart’s content after we’ve fought.”

Wu Xun rubbed his jaw. “I’ve got to say, he’s quite skilled at provoking others. See that arrogant look on his face? I can’t help but want to smack him to death.”

The delicate woman said, “I feel the same way. Let me take care of him!”

Her long hair hung loose, and she was dressed in purple palace garb. Her face was exquisite, and her appearance stood out in the crowd.

Her name was Lu Zhu, and she was Wu Xun’s junior apprentice sister. She was forty-third on the Unfettered Ranking, making her an unparalleled figure in her own right.

Wu Xun pondered briefly, then said, “Feel free to play with him, but don’t kill him. We need him to explore the Star Grave.”

Lu Zhu nodded. “Rest assured, Senior Apprentice Brother. I won’t ruin your plans.”

She tapped the ground with her feet, then shot into the air. Monstrous purple Dao Light surged around her delicate frame, manifesting a vision of “purple qi rising from the east and mountains bowing in reverence.” It blanketed thirty thousand feet of sky.

Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, and the others were instantly solemn. What a powerful aura!

As much as they were unwilling to accept it, there was no denying that, as tyrannical and overbearing as the disciples of Limitless Palace were, they had the strength to back it up!

It seemed to Xiao Chi and Wen Xiuran that Yun Qiaojun was the only one among them qualified to compete with Lu Zhu.

As for Li Muchen, well... it didn’t seem likely!

Only Liu Tianchen, Fu Lingyun, and Dao Protectors Wei Yun and Mo Lanhe watched calmly in silence.

Fu Lingyun was quite cooperative. She took out a jade slip, ready to record everything that happened.

Lu Zhu smiled, then stretched out a long, slender finger and hooked it at Su Yi.

“Let’s do this. Your big sister will even give you one free hit. After all, I’d hate for you to accuse Limitless Palace of bullying the cultivators of lesser continents.”

Boom!

Su Yi instantly vanished into thin air.

Sword intent created an invisible seal, locking down eighty thousand feet of sky. The diagram of “purple qi rising from the east” split, shattering like fragments of cloud.

Lu Zhu’s hair stood on end, but before she could react, a fist came crashing down.

The fist was like a slashing sword. A wave of tyrannical fist force burst forth, like a river of sword qi bursting through a dam.

Lu Zhu’s defensive Dao Light shattered on impact.

Suddenly, that fist force extended, its “fingers” wrapping around Lu Zhu’s slender white throat.

The moment she was captured, an avalanche of power sealed her cultivation, blood, qi, and soul.

She was overcome with terror. Instinct kicked in, and she tried to activate her Nine Luminaries Medallion to escape, only to discover that she couldn’t.

She’d hidden her medallion in her soul, yet someone had reached right in and seized it!

All of it happened in a flash. It was over as soon as it began.

Heaven and earth shook, and clouds of dust and smoke permeated the air.

A blue-robed figure stood there, holding Lu Zhu aloft like a chicken in one hand. The other gripped her Nine Luminaries Medallion.

Lu Zhu’s face was deathly pale, and her eyes were wide with terror.

Su Yi, however, spoke with the utmost politeness. “Thank you for the free hit. Your generosity is truly befitting of a disciple of Limitless Palace.”

Wu Xun furrowed his brow, while the other Limitless Palace experts looked on in astonishment. Lu Zhu lost in an instant!?

Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, and Wen Xiuran were inwardly stunned. They’d witnessed Li Muchen’s strength during the Nine Luminaries Dao Assembly. Only now did they realize he’d been hiding far, far too much!

Fu Lingyun put away the jade slip and scratched her head. The slip recorded mere moments; Su Yi’s victory had been too fast and overwhelming for more.

To the point that most of what she’d recorded was indistinct; the slip had merely captured Su Yi’s afterimage!

Liu Tianchen was inwardly wistful. He won in just one attack again! It was the same when he defeated Xue Sheng.

“Impressive! I wouldn’t have thought the Literati Continent had a hidden expert like you,” said Wu Xun, the depths of his gaze glinting with cold light. “Release my junior apprentice sister. I’ll fight you!”

Su Yi smiled. “We agreed that whoever lost had to explore the Star Grave. That goes for you, but it goes for her, too.”

Wu Xun stared intently at Su Yi, then burst into laughter, but it wasn’t the least bit mirthful. On the contrary, it was unsettling and imposing. “Don’t you think haggling with me like this is a bit petty? Are you really worried that we’ll go back on our word?”

Su Yi said calmly, “There’s nothing as unfathomable as the human heart. What if you turn around and do something shameless?”

“Bastard!” A powerfully built middle-aged man stepped forth, his gaze intimidating. “Let her go! Refuse, and you won’t be the only one to suffer. All of Light Beam Sword Pavilion will meet with disaster!”

The middle-aged man was called Meng Huai. He was Lu Zhu’s Dao Protector.

Su Yi raised Lu Zhu’s Nine Luminaries Medallion and smiled. “If I struck to kill, Miss Lu Zhu would be doomed. That might well earn me some enemies, but as her Dao Protector, I suspect you’d be punished far more severely.”

Meng Huai’s face was instantly incomparably unsightly. That was exactly what he was most afraid of.

Wu Xun suddenly interjected. “Li Muchen, if I win, let Lu Zhu go, alright?”

Su Yi nodded. “Very well.”

He used a spatial art to seal Lu Zhu and put her away. “Of course, if you lose, both of you have to explore the Star Grave.”

Wu Xun laughed. “Ah, but I’ve suddenly changed my mind.”

He pointed to Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, and the others, his gaze cold and cruel. “Refuse to let Lu Zhu go, and I’ll send my allies after them. Then, when we leave the Nine Luminaries Forbidden Zone, I’ll flatten the Light Beam Sword Pavilion. You and everyone connected to you will be annihilated!”

Everyone looked stricken.

Wu Xun pointed to his chest, his eyes narrowing into slits. “Trust me, this is no idle threat. It’s an inevitability!”

The other cultivators of Limitless Palace watched from behind him, their eyes playful. Indeed, this is how Senior Apprentice Brother Wu Xun does things.

You want to make conditions? Fine. He’ll just destroy your sect, and your whole family, too!

Some of their Dao Protectors looked on murderously, but others’ gazes were pitying. You think a hostage means you can do whatever you want? How naive!

Wu Xun waved his fan, then looked at Yun Qiaojun and the others. “Aren’t you going to try to talk some sense into him? Or do you want to become our enemies, too?

“That goes for you, too, girl. Your name was... Fu Lingyun, right? If you don’t want to see your family and your sect eradicated, hurry up and convince your senior apprentice brother to let Lu Zhu go!” Wu Xun smiled. “Is he worthy of negotiating with Limitless Palace? How is doing so any different from courting death? Doesn’t he know that Limitless Palace never makes concessions?”

Fu Lingyun’s face was as white as a sheet, and she hung her head in silence.

Her family and her sectmates’ lives were on the line. For a moment, she didn’t know what to do.

Mo Lanhe’s expression was as dark as could be. Is this how Limitless Palace does things?

Yun Qiaojun, Xiao Chi, Wen Xiuran, and the others’ expressions were dark, too. All of them were shocked and furious. None could stay calm. Wu Xun is too tyrannical and too brutal. He doesn’t give a damn about our relationship with Li Muchen. He’s jumped straight to threatening us!

Yun Qiaojun said coldly, “I refuse to believe that Limitless Palace would destroy the entire Southern Darkness Sword Sect on account of a single Unfettered Realm disciple like you!”

Wu Xun sneered. “Go ahead, see what happens! Offend me, and see if the Southern Darkness Sword Sect still cares about your survival, and what kind of price they’ll pay!”

Xiao Chi suddenly said, “We barely even know Li Muchen. Please, be magnanimous and give us a chance to draw a line between him and us!”

Yun Qiaojun furrowed his brow. Wen Xiuran pursed her lips in silence, while Liu Tianchen’s expression flickered between shock and fury.

None of them had guessed that Xiao Chi would make such a decision, but when they thought about it, it made sense.

Who’d dare to disregard the threat of Limitless Palace?

When disaster struck, you had to make a choice. Who’d concern themselves with someone they barely knew?

It was only natural to draw a line between yourself and the offender to stay alive!

Wu Xun threw back his head and laughed. “Want to draw a line between yourself and him! Very well. Make Li Muchen release Lu Zhu. I don’t care how you do it. Succeed, and I naturally won’t create any further trouble for you!”

He looked at Yun Qiaojun, Wen Xiuran, and the others. “You’re welcome to do the same.”

Wu Xun grinned like a cat toying with a mouse.

He was using human nature to orchestrate a spectacle of betrayal, of friends becoming bitter foes.

Could Li Muchen really remain so unyielding in the face of all this?

Wu Xun sincerely doubted it.

He’d seen far too many people unafraid to die, but even they obediently lowered their heads when those they cared about were threatened.

In the end, all of them became mere dogs, wagging their tails in a desperate bid for mercy!