Chapter 56: Hazy

Xu Ziyan walked to the middle of the two groups. Just as she was about to speak, Li Nu suddenly swung the riding crop he was playing with toward Xu Ziyan. The tip of the whip whistled sharply past Xu Ziyan’s ear. With Xu Ziyan’s cultivation level at the Fourth Layer of Qi Refining Stage, she naturally knew Li Nu’s whip couldn’t hit her, so she didn’t move.

But Li Nu thought Xu Ziyan was frozen with fear, and he couldn’t help but laugh out loud. The people around him burst into laughter too. Xu Ziyan was furious inside, but she still tried to calm her anger and turned to look at Li Nu.

Li Nu curled his lip and laughed coldly. “A mere Houtian ant like you has some nerve! How dare you get involved in a conversation between those of us at the Qi Refining Stage?”

Seeing Li Nu’s arrogance, Xu Ziyan’s face showed her barely suppressed anger. But thinking of her clan’s current situation, she forced herself to swallow her rage. Her mind raced quickly. Based on her experience, she felt that although these people had reached the Qi Refining Stage, they were still just teenagers who probably feared their parents. So, staring intently at Li Nu, she said firmly:

“Does your clan leader know you’re causing trouble here?”

Sure enough, as soon as Li Nu and the others heard Xu Ziyan’s words, their expressions changed. Xu Ziyan secretly smiled to herself—they were just a bunch of immature kids!

Li Nu’s face turned dark as he glared at Xu Ziyan and sneered, “Even if my father doesn’t know, killing a mere Houtian ant like you—I doubt anyone would say anything!”

“Little Sister Ziyan, come back!”

Xu Lin was very worried when he heard Li Nu’s words. He quickly walked to Xu Ziyan’s side, grabbed her hand, and pulled her behind him.

“Xu Ziyan, you should step back!”

Xu Tianlang had also appeared beside Xu Ziyan at some point. He looked at her coldly and said:

“This is not a place where you have any say!”

“Haha, has the Xu Clan run out of people, that they let a Houtian ant take charge?” Li Nu laughed scornfully at Xu Tianlang.

By this point, Xu Tianlang felt like killing someone. As the proud genius of Zhongdu City, when had he ever been insulted like this? His face turned pale with anger. Suppressing his rage, he glared at Xu Ziyan and shouted:

“Get back down!”

Beside her, Xu Lin gently tugged at her sleeve and whispered, “Little Sister Ziyan, you should step back for now.”

Seeing Xu Lin’s gentle face, Xu Tianlang’s furious expression, and Li Nu’s mocking smirk, Xu Ziyan gradually calmed down. She wondered whether she should reveal her true cultivation level to prevent this fight.

“I’ll risk it!”

Xu Ziyan made up her mind. She gently shook off Xu Lin’s hand, ignored Xu Tianlang’s angry eyes, and stared straight at Li Nu, saying coldly:

“What happens in the Xu Clan is none of your business! But are you really sure you want to clash with the Xu Clan?”

Li Nu was taken aback, then his face flushed with anger. He gritted his teeth and sneered, “What’s your name?”

“Xu Ziyan, an Outer Hall Disciple of the Xu Clan!” Xu Ziyan’s eyes flashed with sharp light as she slowly began to channel her cultivation.

Li Nu smirked and nodded, playing with the riding crop in his hand. He laughed and said:

“Good! Good! Well done, Xu Ziyan, Outer Hall Disciple of the Xu Clan! I’ll remember you! If I don’t strip you naked and hang you on the city gate today, I won’t go by the name Li!”

As he finished speaking, Li Nu took a step forward. Behind him, disciples from the City Lord’s Manor, the Xiao Family, and the Wu Family also stepped forward.

“Hmph!”

Xu Lin and Xu Tianlang both snorted coldly at the same time, stepping forward together to shield Xu Ziyan. The Xu Clan disciples also stepped forward bravely, glaring at their opponents. In an instant, killing intent filled the air, soaring skyward. The street was empty of pedestrians, and nearby houses quickly closed their doors and windows. A strong wind swept up the snow on the ground, making it swirl wildly.

Suddenly, a sharp shout came from mid-air:

“Stop!”

Four figures flashed through the air and landed among the crowd. When Xu Ziyan saw who had arrived, she relaxed and slowly withdrew her True Essence.

The newcomers were none other than Li Wanpeng from the City Lord’s Manor, Xiao Rugui from the Xiao Family, Wu Meng from the Wu Family, and her own clan leader, Xu Haoran.

As soon as the four landed, they cupped their hands and greeted each other:

“Brother Haoran!”

“Brother Wanpeng!”

“Brother Rugui!”

“Brother Wu!”

Then they each turned and scolded the disciples from their own clans. Under their clan leaders’ reprimands, Xu Tianlang, Li Nu, and the others all lowered their heads.

Xu Haoran was seething with anger. He shot a furious glare at Xu Tianlang, Xu Qi, and Xu Lin—and of course, he didn’t overlook Xu Ziyan standing behind Xu Lin and Xu Tianlang. He didn’t know Xu Ziyan had come to mediate; he thought she was there to join the fight. He thought to himself:

“Aren’t you just making things harder for me? Do you know what state the clan is in right now? We elders are already overwhelmed—can’t you youngsters just stay out of trouble?”

Li Wanpeng, Xiao Rugui, and Wu Meng were also deeply frustrated. They thought, “Didn’t we tell you? Don’t reveal your cultivation levels before the Grand Competition. And you still want to brawl with the Xu Clan? Aren’t you ruining your fathers’ plans? Can’t you just behave?”

The disciples from each side began to disperse. Before leaving, Li Nu suddenly looked up and stared intently at Xu Tianlang, saying:

“Xu Tianlang, we’ll meet at the Grand Competition half a year from now! I’ll make sure you, the so-called genius of Zhongdu City, fall in the Trial Valley!”

“Hmph! Just try!” Xu Tianlang’s expression darkened with rage.

Li Nu didn’t respond to Xu Tianlang. Instead, he glared viciously at Xu Ziyan and snarled:

“Xu Ziyan, right? Six months from now, if you have the guts to enter the Trial Valley, I’ll personally crush you like the ant you are!” As he spoke, he pinched his fingers together lightly.

“An ant? You’re talking about yourself!”

Xu Ziyan gave Li Nu a cold look, then ignored him as his face twisted and he trembled with rage. She turned and walked away.

Under another round of scolding from their clan leaders, everyone headed back to their own clans. They noisily returned to the entrance of the Xu Clan. Xu Tianlang paused, glanced at Xu Ziyan, snorted coldly, and walked inside with a stormy expression.

Xu Qi smiled warmly at Xu Ziyan and said gently, “Little Sister Ziyan, you might not know me. I’m Xu Qi. Come visit us when you have time!”

Xu Ziyan chuckled softly and said, “I know you’re the eldest son of my Eldest Uncle. I’ll visit him when I have the chance.”

“Mm!”

Xu Qi nodded, reached out to pull Xu Lin beside him, and left. Xu Lin glanced at Xu Ziyan, looking like he wanted to say something. But though he opened his mouth, he ultimately said nothing. A shadow of sadness crossed his face before he turned and followed Xu Qi away.

By now, the sun had passed its peak. The entire Xu Clan was covered in pure white snow, bathed in the chilly winter sunlight. Xu Lin’s back gradually grew hazy amid the wind and swirling snow…