Dust and smoke filled the sky as everyone scrambled back in a panic. No one would have thought that someone would dare to rush into it.

The moment the dust and smoke began to settle, Gou You swooped down from the air. Even among the reclusive families, that sword was considered a Top-Grade Treasure! Gou You had no intention of losing it here.

But when he landed, all he saw was a massive pit, dozens of meters wide and more than ten meters deep! Groundwater bubbled up from the bottom, turning it into a muddy, turbid mess. There was no sign of the sword anywhere.

’Someone must have used the chaos to steal it!’

Gou You roared in fury and shot out of the pit. His sharp gaze swept over the distant crowd, lingering suspiciously on the Messengers from the reclusive families and sects.

Yet all their expressions were composed, and they were relatively free of dust.

’Impossible... It’s impossible that someone could have stolen my sword without getting hurt!’

Gou You muttered distractedly to himself. Li Yan’s earth-shattering strike had reached the very limit of a Sword Sect’s power! Of everyone present, besides that giant, no one could have possibly withstood that blow!

’The giant... Right, where is that giant? I remember he came over here too, didn’t he?’ Gou You’s mind raced, his eyes searching frantically for Tiger. A man that tall should have stood out no matter where he was. Gou You scanned the crowd for what felt like an eternity, but the colossal figure was nowhere to be seen.

He couldn’t stop himself from roaring, "Ling Xiao! Give me back my sword!"

Ling Xiao, standing with Yisha and the Messengers from the reclusive families and sects, looked over at Gou You with a puzzled expression. "You call yourself an expert? With which of your eyes did you see me take your sword? Besides... do you really think I have the ability to snatch your sword from the middle of that last attack?" Ling Xiao scoffed. "What a joke. If I had that kind of power, I’d have already beaten you to a pulp!"

The surrounding Messengers from the reclusive families chuckled. Truth be told, none of them had a high opinion of Gou You, and they too wouldn’t have minded seeing him beaten to a pulp.

"You... Ling Xiao, let me ask you, where did that Sword Emperor subordinate of yours go?"

Gou You’s gaze turned cold as he spoke in a menacing tone, "I suggest you return my sword to me at once. Don’t wait until your family is annihilated and all your loved ones are dead to regret what you’ve done today!"

The smile vanished from Ling Xiao’s face, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Gou You, for someone who’s supposed to be a renowned master, you resort to threatening people’s families pretty quickly. Don’t you think that’s beneath you? I’m the one you have a problem with, so deal with me. If you have any semblance of a man or any dignity as a High-tier Martial Artist, you’ll come after me and me alone!"

Gou You sneered. "Nonsense! ’Always use the simplest method to solve the most complex problems’—that is our family’s creed. I’ll say it one last time: return my sword and agree to my demands, and I’ll... AARGH!"

Before Gou You could finish, he sensed something was wrong. Without even looking back, he pushed off the ground to launch himself into the air. But just as he became airborne, he felt a hand grip his ankle. He screamed in terror and looked down to see the giant’s eyes, as frigid and menacing as Ten Thousand Year Ice. Then, his other ankle was seized by the behemoth’s other hand!

A guttural roar rumbled in Tiger’s throat. He suddenly let out a deafening shout, "Die!"

Four golden rings of light rose from beneath Tiger’s feet, rapidly ascending his body and surging into his arms.

Tiger’s biceps swelled, the exposed muscles twisting and bulging like savage pythons coiling around his bones.

His two enormous hands suddenly glowed with a golden light, and the intricate runic patterns across them became perfectly distinct.

Gou You felt his legs being forced apart and let out a horrified shriek. "You can’t kill me!" A powerful aura erupted from his entire body as he screamed, "If you dare kill me, I’ll self-destruct!"

Tiger shot one last look at Ling Xiao, who cleanly and crisply uttered a single word.

"Kill!"

"AAAAAAH!"

Gou You let out a bloodcurdling scream. The more timid onlookers squeezed their eyes shut. Everyone near Ling Xiao stared in utter horror at Tiger, who stood there like a veritable God of Slaughter... holding the two halves of... Gou You!

A Tier Six Sword Sect... had just been torn to pieces!

He didn’t even have time to self-destruct!

Blood sprayed across the ground. Though only one man had died, the stench of blood that instantly filled the air was so thick it was as if hundreds had been slaughtered.

Many of the onlookers couldn’t handle such a gruesome sight and doubled over, vomiting on the ground.

Even the faces of the members from the reclusive families and sects were deathly pale. Most of them had killed before; few among them had hands completely clean of blood. But to so brutally rip a living person in half... forget doing it, they had never even *heard* of such a thing!

As they looked again at the giant, who was still roaring and bellowing while holding the two halves of Gou You, their eyes were filled with nothing but terror.

The powerhouses of the Beast Race, while lacking powerful sword techniques, were compensated by the heavens with formidable physiques and... a unique battle aura! It could nearly double their strength in an instant.

Ling Xiao had only been able to defeat Tiger that day thanks to a surprising, earth-shattering sword strike. If a powerful Beastman like Tiger got in close, his opponent wouldn’t even have a chance to react.

Yisha’s face was ashen. She shook her head slightly, thinking, ’This Beastman... he’s simply terrifying!’

Yisha couldn’t help but glance worriedly at Ling Xiao. ’With such a savage Beastman by his side,’ she thought, ’what if he goes berserk one day and turns on him?’

Of course, she didn’t dare voice such a thought to Ling Xiao right now. She was certain that what they had just witnessed from Tiger would be seared into the memory of everyone present for the rest of their lives.

Just then, the sound of hoofbeats echoed from the distance. A man in black armor with a bright lightning bolt emblazoned on his chestplate rode at the head of the group. It was Ling Wu. He dismounted, approached Ling Xiao, and bowed.

"Young Master, the ones who fled have all been eliminated!"

The members of the reclusive families and sects were stunned once again. They couldn’t help but stare at the rugged man, wondering how he could possibly have had the strength to kill Gou You’s men.

But the proof was undeniable. More than a hundred cavalrymen arrived in a cloud of dust behind him. A few of them carried bodies, which they threw to the ground with a heavy THUD. All the Knights wore masks that revealed only their bright, shining eyes, which they fixed on Ling Xiao with a fanatical gaze.

Ling Xiao nodded. "Good work. Take them and head back to the city." This was precisely the kind of shocking effect he had wanted. In truth, the ones who had killed Gou You’s men—several of whom were Demon Swordsmen, with one being a Demon Sword Master—were indeed Ling Wu’s group. The ones who had actually struck the blows were Uncle Fu, Meng Li, and... clown!

Li Yan had also descended from the sky by now. He stared, dumbfounded, at Gou You’s bisected corpse. He, a High-tier Sword Sect, had been grievously injured and still couldn’t finish the man, yet this giant had torn him apart with his bare hands!

Seeing that not a single one of Gou You’s followers had escaped, he couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh. He then walked over to Ling Xiao and nodded. Unconsciously, the tone of his voice had changed.

"Young friend Ling Xiao, thank you for your help in killing this villain. I must return to my family at once and confirm whether this man was truly from the Dragon Valley Gou Family. Li Yan will not forget the kindness you have shown today!"

Ling Xiao smiled faintly. "Think nothing of it. The man threatened me repeatedly, so I couldn’t possibly let him live. But more importantly, are your injuries severe?"

Li Yan laughed heartily. "Don’t worry, a wound like this is not enough to take me down! Young friend Ling Xiao, until we meet again!" With that, he turned and left with his men.

"Wait..." Ling Xiao suddenly called out.

Li Yan turned back, looking at Ling Xiao with confusion. He saw Ling Xiao say something to Yisha, who then walked over to Li Yan. She took out a porcelain vial, tipped out an Elixir, and said softly, "This is for you. It will help with your recovery."

Li Yan gave Ling Xiao a deep, meaningful look before shifting his gaze back to Yisha with a smile. A short, antique-looking dagger suddenly appeared in his hand. "Miss Yisha, please thank young friend Ling Xiao for me. I came across this dagger by chance many years ago. Please, take it. Consider it a small gift."

With that, he placed the dagger into Yisha’s hand, then gave Ling Xiao another cupped-fist salute and departed.

The other Messengers from the various families and sects also took their leave one by one. They needed to report the day’s events in Penzes City back to their families and await further instructions.

Ever since the young Lord, Ling Xiao, had appeared on the scene, he had been a constant source of debate. The rumors about him were endless.

But regardless, one thing was now certain: from this day forward, countless families would list Ling Xiao as a person not to be provoked. Gou You was a High-tier Sword Sect, yet he and all his men had been killed on Ling Xiao’s own territory, and Ling Xiao hadn’t even batted an eye. Was he not afraid of provoking a powerful reclusive family?

Ling Xiao was tying a letter to clown’s leg. He smiled as he stroked the ring of soft feathers around clown’s neck—a place only he was allowed to touch. Others couldn’t even dream of it, not even Ye Zi or Yisha.

"Go on now," Ling Xiao said with a smile. "Be careful on your journey. Deliver this letter to my father and my brother! I’ll have a nice reward for you when you return!"

clown let out a clear, bright cry, and with a beat of its wings, it was gone, streaking across the sky in an instant.

Ling Xiao watched as clown shrank to a dot in the distance and sighed softly. ’Killing Gou You today wasn’t my intention, but the man was too arrogant, threatening me again and again. He was completely condescending, treating everyone else like ants.’

’If I let a person like that live, I might as well dig a hole and bury myself. After all, I have the Deep Sea Poison Dragon Eye’s "Avoiding Earth" ability.’ (To be continued. To find out what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com for more Chapters. Please support the author and the official release!)