Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"You're Liu Cheng?"

Seeing the young man standing outside, Lin Ruotian narrowed his eyes.

Given how arrogant the other party was, he thought that he would be a formidable figure. Yet, contrary to his expectations, the other party was only a Tongxuan realm primary stage fellow. There were so many cultivators of his level in the residence that he wouldn't think it was a pity even if he were to kill a handful of them.

Yet, such a person dared to seek trouble with their Lin Clan. Was there something wrong with his head?

"You're the head of the Lin Clan?"

Ignoring the other party's question, Zhang Xuan placed his hands behind his back and looked at him indifferently.

"Teacher, he's Lin Ruotian, the head of the Lin Clan!" Lu Chong clenched his fists tightly.

Back then, when Lin Long sent someone to eradicate his entire clan, this Lin Ruotian must have participated in the operation as well!

Otherwise, how could Lin Long, who had already moved to Xuanyuan Kingdom, be so clear of the Qu Clan's situation so as to track and kill every single one of them cleanly?

For the past two years, even though Lu Chong didn't take any action, he had seared the appearance of all of the Lin Clan members deeply into his head.

"Lin Ruotian?"

Upon hearing that the other party was indeed the head of the clan, Zhang Xuan nodded in satisfaction. "Since you're the clan head, this matter will be much easier to settle. Two years ago, you killed my student Qu Chong's entire clan of 137 people. Do you still remember the matter?"

"Qu Chong? That little bastard who got away?"

Lin Ruotian was taken aback.

A young lad from the Qu Clan had managed to escape two years ago. Due to the limited talent and cultivation of that fellow, he didn't think too much of the matter. Yet, to think that the very same brat would eventually become a threat to him!

In less than two years, the other party had actually already reached Zongshi realm!

However...

Since the other party had come knocking on his own accord, then don't expect to get away alive!

Killing intent gleamed in Lin Ruotian's eyes. With a slight gesture, a few elders immediately spread out and circled Zhang Xuan and Lu Chong tightly.

"Since you're still here, allow me to send you on a journey to reunite with your family!"

Sneering coldly, the corner of Lin Ruotian's lips slowly crept upward.

"Killed an entire clan of 137 people? Clan Head Lin, what's going on?"

"Indeed. I've heard of the Qu Clan, but didn't they move away? Why is Liu laoshi saying that they were killed?"

"The kingdom forbids murder, needless to say, purging an entire clan. You have to explain yourself today!"

...

Those in the area were all respectable figures. Upon hearing the conversation of the duo, their sense of righteousness was immediately provoked.

The Qu Clan might not be a prestigious clan, but it still possessed a sizeable influence. The news that everyone else had received was that the clan had relocated to another city. Never in their dreams did they expect the clan to be slaughtered callously instead.

It was no wonder why Qu Chong's teacher would come knocking. How could anyone overlook such great injustice?

Even though they were dragged here by their offspring, they only intended to act as mediators for any conflict that would occur. They had no intentions of standing against the Lin Clan at all.

But upon hearing this tragic case, their faces immediately darkened.

Since the Lin Clan was capable of silently wiping the Qu Clan off the face of this world, they could easily do the same to their clans as well.

At this moment, they felt threatened by the domineering Lin Clan!

"There's no need for our Lin Clan to explain our affairs to you all!"

Gesturing grandly to stop the commotion among the crowd, Lin Ruotian sneered coldly, "The Qu Clan had colluded with Tianwu Kingdom's enemies and attempted to assault the princess consort... This matter has been verified, and if you all believe it, feel free to check it with Xuanyuan Kingdom!"

"You... Rubbish!"

Not expecting the other party to slander his clan instead, Lu Chong's entire body trembled in anger.

"Enough. Since we can use other methods to resolve the issue, let's not waste our time on words!"

Patting his student's shoulder, Zhang Xuan glanced at Lin Ruotian impassively and said, "Since you have admitted that the Lin Clan is responsible for the destruction of the Qu Clan, I'll offer you two choices. You can either hand the culprit over and have him held responsible for his own crimes or have the entire Lin Clan die for his sins!"

"Die for his sins? You actually think that you two can destroy our Lin Clan? Hahaha!"

As though hearing a hilarious joke, Lin Ruotian stared at Zhang Xuan in pity.

Where in the world did Qu Chong find such a lunatic of a teacher? If he had continued hiding, Lin Ruotian would have just allowed him to be, and he might still be able to continue living on peacefully. Yet, to attempt to assassinate his son and injure the Third Elder... Lin Ruotian wasn't magnanimous enough to forgive them for that!

A mere Tongxuan realm primary stage and Zongshi realm intermediate stage... Did they think that such a line up was sufficient to destroy the entire Lin Clan?

Even if Liu Cheng had been hiding his cultivation - otherwise it would have been impossible for him to injure the Third Elder - given his young age, and the limitations of Tianwu Kingdom, how powerful could he get?

So what if the other party was a Zongshi realm pinnacle expert?

As a Half-Zhizun, he could still easily squash him!

He wasn't the only one who felt this way. Even those who came to support Liu laoshi felt awkward as well.

To declare he would destroy the entire Lin Clan... Even Tianwu Kingdom's royal family didn't dare to spout such words. For a mere Tongxuan realm primary stage cultivator to spout such words, where does your confidence come from?

Mo Tianxue was also perplexed.

Where in the world did Guild Master Liu get such confidence from?

He couldn't help but turn to his daughter.

"I... don't know either!" Mo Yu shook her head.

During the master teacher examination back then, she personally saw Zhang Xuan achieving a breakthrough into Zongshi realm. It had only been six to seven days since then, and such a short period of time wasn't sufficient for one to finish reinforcing their cultivation realm, needless to say, reach higher heights. Yet, for him to come over here and arrogantly declare that he would destroy the Lin Clan...

Could it be that... he had brought the Steelfang Howling Firmament Beast here as well?

As such a thought popped into her mind, she immediately looked into the skies. But in the clear and cloudless skies, she couldn't see any hint of the savage beast at all.

The Howling Firmament Beast wasn't here? Then on what grounds was he saying these words? Wasn't he afraid of incurring Lin Ruotian's rage?

...

"You mean that... you refuse both of the options?" Ignoring the bizarre gazes everyone was shooting him with, Zhang Xuan gazed at Lin Ruotian.

"Agree your head! Brat, since you are courting death, I'll grant your wish!"

Before Lin Ruotian could speak, an elder among the group could not hold himself back anymore. Roaring furiously, he stepped forth.

Boom!

The moment he walked out of the group, his aura immediately burst forth as though gasoline being ignited. Vigorous zhenqi shrouded the entire area, causing the wind to blow furiously.

Zongshi realm advanced stage!

"It's the Eleventh Elder of the Lin Clan, Lin Hu!"

"I heard that he specializes in fist art, and he's unmatched in hand-to-hand fights. Out of respect, people have given him the moniker Steel Arm Tiger!"

"His invincible arms paired with his Zongshi realm advanced stage cultivation make it difficult for even a typical Zongshi realm pinnacle to triumph over him..."

...

Upon identifying the one who walked out, the crowd immediately whispered quietly amongst themselves.

Every single one of the Lin Clan's elders were famous figures in Tianwu Royal City.

This Lin Hu might not be as famous as the Grand Elder Lin Tao, but he was still a reputable figure in the capital. He was a formidable person whom even Zongshi realm pinnacle experts were hesitant to cross blows with.

His appearance caused Mu Xueqing and the others to subconsciously clench their fists.

"Will teacher... be alright?"

One of the students asked.

"He should be... Actually, we don't even know how strong teacher is..."

Mu Xueqing said.

Even though Mu Xueqing's words were confident, her tone betrayed her uncertainty.

However, thinking about how her teacher managed to help her to reach Tongxuan realm and Lu Chong to reach Zongshi realm in just a few short days... How could a person of such incredible means be weak himself?

"Don't worry. If anything, I'm confident that Liu laoshi's strength can't only be at Tongxuan realm primary stage!" said Apothecary Mu calmly with a deep gaze.

He had never seen Liu laoshi fighting before, but he had the experience of forging a pill with the other party. To be able to remain nonchalant before the forging a grade-4 pill despite the potential threat of an explosion, how could such a person only be at Tongxuan realm primary stage!

Besides, all of the methods that Liu laoshi brought up to prevent explosion happened to be within his means as a Zongshi realm expert. If Liu laoshi wasn't at the Zongshi realm himself, how could he possibly offer such detailed, precise, and accurate guidance?

"They're going to start fighting soon..."

At this point, Zhao Ya and the others finally arrived. Upon seeing the sight before them, they immediately realized that a fight was about to start.

...

"Die!"

After walking out from the group, Elder Lin Hu bellowed, and without any hesitation, he charged straight at Zhang Xuan.

Didn't you want our Lin Clan to apologize or die for our sins?

Fine, then let's see if you have the strength to back up your words!

"Teacher..."

Seeing the other party rush forward, Lu Chong tightened his fists and prepared to step forward.

"There's no need!"

Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan took a deep breath and stepped forward. Then, his legs suddenly moved.

With his hands still firmly behind his back, Zhang Xuan's entire body came crashing straight at Lin Hu.

Before Lin Hu's steel fist could land on Zhang Xuan, his body was already struck by the latter's body slam.

Peng!

Countless rocks flew into the air. Before this Lin Hu could react, he was already sent flying backward. In midair, blood spurted profusely from his mouth. Under this impact of the crash, his dantian broke apart, thus crippling his cultivation.

Putong!

Lin Hu flew for more than a dozen meters before landing heavily onto the floor. Then, he fell motionless, and it was impossible to tell if he was still alive.

However, given that his dantian was crashed and his entire skeletal rack was fractured, even if he were to be saved, he didn't have a future before him.

"What?"

"A Zongshi realm advanced expert was sent flying with a single strike?"

"How did he do it?"

...

Everyone was dumbstruck.

They thought that there would be an intense battle before a victor would emerge, and they could make use of this opportunity to gauge the strength of Guild Master Liu as well. Yet, this Steel Arm Tiger was already sent flying before he managed to even touch the other party...

How powerful must Guild Master Liu's body be and how fast must his reflexes get to achieve such a feat?

"His strength..."

Mo Yu was dumbfounded. She couldn't comprehend the situation before her.

It was just a few days ago that Zhang Xuan had reached Zongshi realm primary stage. Yet, at this moment, he sent a Zongshi realm advanced stage expert flying in a single blow...

How in the world does this fellow cultivate?

"Teacher..."

The one who was the most shocked of all was Lu Chong.

He wasn't just shocked, he felt frenzied!

It was just a moment ago that Zhang Xuan taught him the importance of using an opponent's weakness against them instead of relying on mere brute force. Yet... his teacher simply charged forward to strike his opponent with his body?

Isn't there something very wrong about this?

What about the weaknesses you talked about?

What about technique?

How was what you just did any different from me?

"Lin Hu..."

Lin Ruotian and the others didn't expect Lin Hu to be crippled in just a single attack from the other party. Their complexions immediately darkened.

Even though his strength couldn't be considered as one of the top in the Lin Clan, he was, by no means, weak. They had truly underestimated this fellow!

"Seems like he does possess some true capabilities. No wonder he's so arrogant. However... if he thinks that he can pull his weight with just a little bit of strength, he must be deluding himself!"

Glancing momentarily at the immobile Lin Hu, Lin Ruotian's eyes narrowed as he stared at Zhang Xuan coldly. The disdain in his eyes from before disappeared without a trace.

He was also capable of knocking down Lin Hu with a single crash, but he couldn't do it as easily as the other party had done.

Even so, he didn't think that he was weaker than the other party.

There were some people who specialized in brawling while there were some who specialized in battle techniques. Lin Ruotian happened to belong to the latter.

"Why, you still can't make a choice between the two?"

Despite having wounded Lin Hu severely, Zhang Xuan seemed as though he had just swatted a pesky fly. With his hands still behind his back, he chuckled lightly.

"Since you can't make a choice, then...!

"I'll beat you until you make up your mind!"

After which, he stepped forward, and his cultivation of a Zongshi realm pinnacle expert immediately burst forth without any restraints!