Chapter 14: The Brink of Conflict

What had just happened?

Qin Hu, Qin Xue, and the sturdy youth named Fang were all wondering about this. Given their cultivation levels, none of them had clearly seen what exactly took place in that brief moment.

That was their first reaction, followed immediately by astonishment!

Utter astonishment!

On the Tianyuan Continent, all high-level martial artists relied on their own Yuanli as the foundation during battles. The more abundant one’s Yuanli, the more powerful the Combat Techniques they could unleash.

This principle had been repeatedly verified over thousands of years, and no one ever questioned it.

Yet, none of them had detected even the slightest fluctuation of Yuanli from Qin Li!

What did this mean?

Except for the young man named Fang, who knew little about Qin Li, both Qin Hu and Qin Xue were well aware that Qin Li’s internal Yuanli wasn’t even at the first level!

How did he manage to kick a master with fifth-level Yuanli flying?

All of this happened in the blink of an eye. By the time the group of guards outside realized something was wrong and rushed in following Han Xue, they were all stunned.

Qin Hu snapped back to his senses. His first reaction wasn’t to confront Qin Li, but to rush to his younger brother Qin Feng, who was lying on the ground and hadn’t gotten up. Even his moans were weak and faint, clearly indicating severe injuries!

The sturdy young man named Fang looked at Qin Li with a complicated expression, a bitter smile full of helplessness on his face. He knew very well in his heart that things had escalated, and he would inevitably be implicated as well.

Qin Xue walked over to Qin Li’s side. Seeing Qin Li, who was radiating a murderous aura, she cautiously asked, “Young Master, are… are you okay?”

Qin Li shook his head, then opened his mouth—whoosh—and spat out a mouthful of blood. His body swayed lightly twice before he let out a long exhale and said, “I’m fine!”

Internally, however, he couldn’t help but feel extremely wary of the sheer strength of martial artists on the Tianyuan Continent. He hadn’t expected that a Mysterious Rank expert could possess such power. If he hadn’t persistently maintained his training over the years, if this body didn’t have an excellent foundation, if he hadn’t struck first… if even one of these factors had been missing, the one lying on the ground today would undoubtedly have been him!

If a Mysterious Rank martial artist already had such might, what about those at the Earth Rank? And what about the Heavenly Rank?

Qin Li asked himself inwardly: If he encountered such powerful beings, would he really have to lower his head, just as the young man named Fang had said?

No, absolutely not! He would rather die than bow to anyone!

Moreover, in this world where strength determined everything, killing was as simple as slaughtering a chicken! Often, even if you wanted to lower your head, it depended on whether others would give you the chance to do so!

Take the Qin Feng and Qin Hu brothers, for example. They clearly knew that he was about to form a marriage alliance with the Shangguan Family, and they understood that this matter concerned the Qin Family’s fortune for years to come. Yet, for the sake of some completely unnecessary anger, they had dragged innocent him into this mess.

Beat me up to vent their anger? Qin Li sneered inwardly. As long as he had even a breath left, their wish would never come true!

“Little Feng, are you okay?” Qin Hu first carefully checked his brother’s body and was relieved to find that he hadn’t been injured by the weapons scattered on the ground. Then, seeing the pained expression on Qin Feng’s pale face and the beads of sweat covering his forehead, his anger surged to its peak.

“Second Brother… my stomach hurts… I can’t muster any strength. It might be… my Dantian is injured!” After stammering out these words, Qin Feng’s face was again contorted with pain. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to let out any groans.

“What!” Qin Hu was shocked. He sprang to his feet and roared at the guards, “Are you blind or stupid? Quickly take Third Young Master home for emergency treatment! Tell them he was beaten by that little bastard Qin Li!”

Only then did the guards snap out of their stupor. They hurriedly came over, lifted Qin Feng up, swiftly placed him in the carriage, and with a crack of the whip like a firecracker, the carriage sped away.

Qin Hu then slowly turned around, his eyes bloodshot. Seeing his own brother so severely injured, the last remnants of reason in his mind had long been flung to the Ninth Heaven. His eyes fixed fiercely on Qin Li as he growled in a low voice, “Qin Li, I’m going to kill you!”

“Qin Hu, don’t do something you’ll regret!” Qin Xue stepped forward, shielding Qin Li, and shouted sharply, “Qin Li is about to get engaged to the Shangguan Family’s eldest young lady! If you dare harm him, the Lord will not spare you!”

Hearing Qin Xue’s words, the young man named Fang trembled all over, his eyes revealing an incredulous glow. The only one in the Shangguan Family who could be called the eldest young lady was currently just one person!

Shangguan Shiyu!

Damn it! Qin Hu, you bastard, you’ve doomed me! Fang Haonan felt like killing Qin Hu right then. By the looks of it, the Qin Hu and Qin Feng brothers must have known about this but hadn’t informed him. It didn’t matter whether Shangguan Shiyu was called a freak or a monster—the Shangguan Family… what kind of family was that? How could his Fang Family afford to offend them? If he stood by and let the Shangguan Family’s future son-in-law die in his martial arts hall, Fang Haonan was certain that no matter how important his status was, he would be abandoned by the Fang Family as a scapegoat to appease the Shangguan Family’s wrath!

No, I have to stop Qin Hu! Fang Haonan thought to himself as he strode toward Qin Hu, shouting in a low voice, “Qin Hu, calm down! Don’t bring trouble upon yourself!”

“Get out of my way, all of you!” Qin Hu’s steps were slow, each one seeming heavy. Qin Li immediately realized that Qin Hu was building up his energy!

Just like the king of beasts, the tiger, in the mountains and forests, would adjust its state to the peak through accumulation of momentum before pouncing on its prey.

Qin Li gently pulled Qin Xue behind him and said calmly, “It’s not right to let a woman stand in front.”

Qin Xue was taken aback. From childhood, the only concept she had been taught was that the master’s safety always came first! And the important figures in this world, if not all, then the vast majority, believed the same: their own lives were paramount! In critical moments, subordinates were meant to be sacrificed!

Qin Xue felt her nose tingling slightly. She obediently stood by Qin Li’s side, but her body was tensed like a leopard spotting its prey. Even without Qin Li’s words, she would have shielded him. Not to mention, she was already deeply moved by Qin Li’s offhand remark.

To serve such a master, death would be worth it!

Qin Li’s eyes remained calm as he watched Qin Hu approach. The Innate Purple Qi Art was frantically absorbing energy from the surroundings; it seemed that in such moments, the absorption rate was several times faster than usual!

No wonder people said that battle was the best training. Qin Li was fully alert. Facing Qin Hu, who was also a top expert among the Qin Family’s younger generation, possessing fifth-level Yuanli and Mysterious Rank fifth-stage strength, he had no certainty of winning.

However, if the other party wanted to kill him, they would have to pay a considerable price!

Qin Li’s eyes were also filled with a murderous aura, but his mind was crystal clear. He had experienced countless crises before, and he viewed death with detachment. However, within a person’s body, there was one most precious thing called dignity!

Even in death, he must not lose his dignity!

The atmosphere in the entire hall felt as if it had solidified, unbearably heavy. Just at this critical moment, a thunderous roar came from afar.

“Everyone, stop right there! Whoever dares to lay a hand on my Shangguan Family’s future son-in-law, I’ll wipe out their entire family!”