Xiang Shaoyun's strength had exceeded Qiu Chonglei's expectations. When Qiu Chonglei's companions worked together, they were strong enough to defeat even ninth-stage Transformation Realm cultivators.
However, Xiang Shaoyun only needed one slash to defeat them all. He raised his saber and slashed downward, sending an enchanting saber energy that flashed forth and instantly broke the combined attacks of the group attacking him. A slash wound appeared on each and every one of them as well.
"Ahhhh!"
They collapsed to the ground, wailing miserably without stop. All of them were eighth-stage Transformation Realm experts. For them all to be defeated by a single slash, it was obvious how powerful Xiang Shaoyun was. The crowd that had followed Xiang Shaoyun here all opened their mouths wide agape in shock.
They felt like they were already overestimating Xiang Shaoyun's strength earlier. But now, they felt like Xiang Shaoyun's strength was bottomless, to the point they wondered if there was actually a limit to his strength.
"T-that's way too strong! Has he been hiding his actual cultivation level? He was taking so long to fight Xie Sanqian earlier, but he's suddenly so strong now?"
"No, that's not possible. His cultivation base has been constantly stable, but his energy is really very thick and powerful. H-he might be a War King!"
"That's right. Not even a peak Transformation Realm expert will be able to defeat so many senior brothers with one move. He is most certainly a War King!"
"No wonder he has the guts to challenge the Lightning Alliance. So it turns out his courage is backed by actual strength."
...
After defeating them, Xiang Shaoyun started striding toward Qiu Chonglei one step at a time. Qiu Chonglei had already been injured by Xiang Shaoyun, and although he was still capable of combat, he no longer had the courage to fight after witnessing the might Xiang Shaoyun had just displayed.
"Xiang Shaoyun, you better not act rashly. You have already killed Junior Brother Zhao. He is the disciple of Elder He Luo. You need to start worrying about yourself now," warned Qiu Chonglei.
He Luo was stronger than Long Hui and was similarly a high-level elder. He had a rather high status in the pavilion. Thus, Qiu Chonglei thought bringing He Luo's name up was enough to scare Xiang Shaoyun off. Too bad he was completely wrong.
"Hehe, your Junior Brother Zhao was not killed by me. It won't be that easy for you to frame me for something I didn't do," said Xiang Shaoyun with a sneer. His body flickered as he dashed toward Qiu Chonglei.
Qiu Chonglei was unable to react in time and was lifted up by the neck. An intense murderous intent surged out of Xiang Shaoyun's eyes, greatly frightening Qiu Chonglei.
Qiu Chonglei could sense a clear threat of death. When he got the feeling that Xiang Shaoyun was really going to kill him, his fear started suffocating him. He was so frightened he started peeing and shitting, causing a foul stench to drift about in the air.
Xiang Shaoyun covered his nose and tossed Qiu Chonglei away before saying, "Shit! Guardian Qiu, you are shitting in public like this? You got to be more civil-minded! Alright, alright. I admit defeat, alright?"
When Qiu Chonglei heard that, he coughed a mouthful of blood before fainting from pure shame. Xiang Shaoyun was greatly disgusted by the stench and quickly distanced him from Guardian Qiu. In any case, he no longer felt any need to stay.
Not a single person dared to block his path. They all moved away to make way for him, all of them looking at him with revering gazes. Gong Qinyin followed behind Xiang Shaoyun obediently and left with him without saying a single word. After Xiang Shaoyun and Gong Qinyin left, a massive uproar erupted there.
"Guardian Qiu and the others were actually defeated? Xiang Shaoyun is really trampling on the honor of the Lightning Kid!"
"Things will become interesting now. The Lightning Alliance will not let this slide. When their experts that are outside on missions return, Xiang Shaoyun will suffer."
"But how many people in the Lightning Alliance can actually defeat Xiang Shaoyun? I think only the alliance leader and the two vice alliance leaders can be his match."
"I think this will end soon. No matter how strong Xiang Shaoyun is, Senior Brother Zhao's death will draw Elder He Luo into this."
...
Xiang Shaoyun had charged straight to Qiu Chonglei's estate and defeated the numerous Lightning Alliance experts. He had also killed Zhao Changshui and frightened Qiu Chonglei so much he shat himself in fear. This news spread like a wildfire in the Cloud Margin Pavilion.
In a certain estate of a high-level elder, He Luo was being informed about the death of his disciple. With a gloomy expression, he asked the overseer making the report and asked, "Tell me everything that had happened. Do not miss a single detail."
The overseer then told him everything.
He Luo frowned and said, "Cripple the disciple who killed Changshui and toss him out of the pavilion. As for that Xiang Shaoyun, hehe. Even if he is a War King, he still needs to die."
"Lord, he has some sort of relationship with the Zither Empress's disciple," reminded the overseer after a slight hesitation.
"So long as he is not her lover, everything will be fine. I doubt the Zither Empress will be bothered by something this trivial. Just do as told," said He Luo with a wave of his hand.
There was indeed a rule that the older generation should not interfere in the affairs of the younger generation. But everything changed now that someone had died.
In a different estate, Xie Sanqian's guard had also heard what Xiang Shaoyun had done. He sneered and muttered, "Looks like I don't even have to waste the 10,000 spirit crystals anymore."
In many elder estates, the various elders were being briefed on the same news as well. Unlike He Luo, they did not hold any hostility toward Xiang Shaoyun. But a lot of them became curious about this newcomer.
For any elder, accepting a young man like that as a disciple would be glorious. Furthermore, with a disciple like that, they would have a future King or even a future Emperor under their wings. For them, this had suddenly turned into something extremely important.
Thus, a lot of elders started asking more about Xiang Shaoyun, trying to understand him and to see if he had a master or if he was from some influential clan. In the deepest part of the Cloud Margin Pavilion was a high-level estate. Here, a vice pavilion master resided.
This vice pavilion master's name was Tian Xu. From his looks, he was about 30 years old, still in his robust years. But in truth, he was already over 100 years old. Back in the day, this Tian Xu was also a young genius. He wouldn't have been able to rise to the position of vice pavilion master relying on his own power.
Currently, two people were before this scholarly and smart-looking vice pavilion master. One was Liu Xinji, the other was Zi Changhe. Why was Liu Xinji and Zi Changhe here? That was because Liu Xinji was a follower of this vice pavilion master. As for Zi Changhe, he was naturally here because of Liu Xinji.
"Is this Xiang Shaoyun really a young man from the Martial Hall Palace?" asked Tian Xu curiously with one hand behind his back and the other holding an ancient scripture.