An Ziyang called out to his father, and seeing that the middle-aged man still didn't respond, he turned his head to look at Li Miao.
"Your Excellency, if you have a grievance with my father, my An Family is willing to offer all our possessions to resolve the enmity."
"However, if Your Excellency insists on resorting to swords, I, An Ziyang, am not made of mud!"
An Ziyang declared loudly, shielding the middle-aged man behind him.
Then, his hand quietly gripped the hilt of his sword at his waist, his eyes fixed on Li Miao, feigning a posture of guarding against Li Miao. Yet, his feet subtly shifted, bringing the middle-aged man within his attack range.
He was very intelligent and skilled at playing dumb.
The An Family of Quanzhou was also somewhat famous in the Huguang martial arts world, considered a newly prosperous and prominent wealthy family and martial arts clan in recent years. There were only two people in the family: the patriarch An Wenjie and the young master An Ziyang. Their vast family fortune was built by these father and son themselves.
Compared to his father's good reputation, An Ziyang's reputation was not as favorable.
His martial arts nickname was "Lingxu Gongzi," but behind his back, people in the martial arts world called him "Kidney Deficiency Gongzi." This was because he was too fond of "that matter"; out of 360 days a year, he spent 250 days in brothels. He was either going to or on his way to prostitutes, a notorious playboy. People in the martial arts world said that the An Family would eventually fall into his hands.
However, what the martial artists didn't know was that his supposed indulgence in pleasure was half due to his genuine liking for it, and the other half was to mislead others.
The two An Family members, father An Wenjie was the face, and An Ziyang was the one who did the dirty work behind the scenes.
In fact, a moment's thought would reveal that the An Family had only recently risen to prominence, and the father and son started from scratch. An Ziyang had been traveling the martial arts world with his father since he was twelve, and having come all this way, how could he be a simple character?
After what happened last night, he already knew the extent of the Ming Cult's disguise techniques.
For a moment, numerous conjectures arose in his mind.
"Was it really a coincidence that I happened to encounter the Ming Cult's disguised courtesan?"
"Or... was it to mislead others, deliberately keeping me outside, infiltrating my home, and replacing everyone in my household one by one?"
"Is Father... truly still my father?"
As his thoughts raced, An Ziyang's heart slowly sank to the bottom.
Neither the Ming Cult nor the seemingly relaxed, heroic-looking man in front of him was someone he could handle.
How could he manage to save their lives, father and son, between these two fierce tigers?
"Father, I'll hold him off first. Your martial arts are not as good as mine, so go first."
"Remember to take 'that thing' with you."
An Ziyang said without turning his head.
The middle-aged man was silent for a moment, then said, "Alright, be careful, don't overexert yourself."
With that, he was about to slowly retreat.
Clang!!——
In an instant, An Ziyang drew his sword and directly slashed at the middle-aged man's neck!
What 'that thing' nonsense! My An Family never had any 'that thing'!
Even if your Ming Cult understands the An Family's background thoroughly, you wouldn't dare claim to know everything! As long as I vaguely mention something that seems unspeakable, you'll agree first because you can't be sure it doesn't exist!
You are fake!!!
This unexpected sword strike reached the middle-aged man in an instant.
The middle-aged man suddenly raised his hand, unleashing a "Great Nine Heavens Palm" in mid-air, intending to shatter An Ziyang, person and sword, together!
Whoosh!—
Clink!
The long sword flew out and stuck into the ground, humming incessantly.
An Ziyang had already retreated behind Li Miao, his face pale and gasping for breath.
"You, you damn Ming Cult... I almost died, young master."
"Aren't you awesome!? Try it again with this sir!"
Hiding behind Li Miao, An Ziyang gasped and shouted, then looked at Li Miao fawningly.
"Sir, I'm not a match! You take him down!"
Li Miao glanced at him with a half-smile.
"This kid is an interesting one!"
Taking advantage of that feigned sword attack, An Ziyang, the moment the sword blocked the middle-aged man's sight, abruptly let go and retreated, hiding behind Li Miao.
Upon realizing that his father had been replaced and his fate unknown, he not only didn't act impulsively but, in the blink of an eye, suppressed his anger and fear, finding the only path to survival for himself.
This cleverness, combined with his shameless and calm demeanor in crisis—truly a promising talent.
Li Miao happened to be in need of such a person under his command.
Someone who could bring together Mei Qinghe, Wang Hai, and Xiao Si—one who was stubborn, one who was ruthless, and one who was cunning—to mediate disputes and clean up messes.
Thinking of this, Li Miao gestured behind him: "You hide far away."
"Aye, aye, yes."
An Ziyang nodded and bowed, then darted away to a safe distance.
Li Miao turned to look at the middle-aged man, scrutinizing him from head to toe, and frowned.
"Ji Tianrui ran away?"
"Your Excellency—"
"Alright, alright, stop pretending. I've already come to your doorstep, and you still think you can fool your way out?"
Li Miao waved his hand.
"Your Ming Cult truly has many tricks. First, you pulled off a Witchcraft stunt, and now another disguise appears. Your technique is even more profound than that courtesan's; even I can't tell if you're male or female."
"However, it doesn't really matter."
A chilling smile appeared on Li Miao's face.
"When I chop you into mincemeat, those three inches of flesh won't make a difference."
Before his words faded, Li Miao raised his hand into a claw, grasping at the void.
"I want to see how many Heavenly Human Realm experts your Ming Cult has for me to kill."
The middle-aged man was already fully on guard against Li Miao, and seeing Li Miao make a move, he immediately dodged sideways.
Unexpectedly, just as his body moved a few inches, he felt a sharp pain in his waist and abdomen!
"Capturing Hand! True Qi leaving the body to form a shape! So fast!?"
He was also someone who had fought his way through life and death, and with decisive action, he formed his palm into a blade, directly cutting off a large piece of flesh from his waist and abdomen.
Splash—
Blood splattered, but he showed no reaction, immediately striking Li Miao with a "Great Nine Heavens Palm" with his right palm!
The momentum was immense, and the overflowing True Qi actually lifted all the surrounding bluestone slabs!
This person was clearly a "Xumi" just like Lan Lechuan!
Li Miao sneered, shaking off the grabbed flesh. Without dodging, he stepped forward and threw a punch.
Hengshuquan (Horizontal Vertical Fist)!
A sweeping punch, like a great spear, exploded with a series of loud bangs in mid-air!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Dust filled the air, obscuring vision.
Boom!
The middle-aged man had no intention of charging into the dust. He stomped his foot on the ground, and his entire body soared into the air, intending to fly onto the roof and escape.
Just as he left the ground, he heard a sharp whistling sound from above his head.
"Did I let you go? Get down!"
Li Miao had appeared above his head at some unknown point.
At this moment, a leg-axe strike was chopping down from mid-air, aimed directly at his shoulder!
The middle-aged man was in mid-air with no leverage, so he could only raise both arms to protect his head and neck.
Boom!
The roof within several yards instantly shattered!
With a loud crash, he plummeted like a meteor, smashing through the roof and crashing heavily onto the ground.
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, he slammed his palm onto the ground, and his body abruptly shifted several feet sideways.
Boom!
Li Miao stomped on his original position, and in an instant, the entire floor of the room exploded. The ground was lifted several feet, then fell back down.
Almost half of Quanzhou City felt the ground shake, thinking it was an earthquake.
The rafters snapped, and the entire house immediately collapsed.
In the courtyard, the middle-aged man raised both palms and continuously struck towards the ruins!
Great Nine Heavens Palm!
Great Nine Heavens Palm!
Great Nine Heavens Palm!
He continued striking until the pile of rubble became a cloud of flying dust.
He dared not approach; being in close quarters with Li Miao meant certain death.
But he was a "Xumi" with inexhaustible True Qi. His only option now was to maintain distance and wear down his opponent!
He dared not stop for a moment, continuously striking at the pile of rubble, hoping to exhaust Li Miao.
Suddenly, he heard Li Miao's strange voice from behind him.
"Who are you hitting?"
His pupils constricted, and he spun around, striking with a palm!
Only to see Li Miao's fist, infinitely magnified, in his vision.
————————
Meanwhile, An Ziyang had taken advantage of the two men's battle, which left them no time to pay attention to him, and quietly ran through several courtyards, cursing as he went.
"Damn it, damn it, is this even human! Is this still Great Shuo!"
"What the hell, can this even be called martial arts!? Then what have I been practicing all these years, Five Animal Frolics!?"
"When immortals fight, mortals suffer!"
Running to a courtyard, An Ziyang pulled open the main gate, overturned a table, pulled back a rug, and pressed a spot on the ground.
Click, clack, clatter...
The floor tiles shifted, revealing a deep, dark passage.
An Ziyang didn't enter but reached out and felt along the edge of the secret passage mechanism, pulling out a strand of hair.
He straightened the strand of hair and checked its length.
"Indeed, the hair is broken. Someone other than my father and I has entered this secret passage."
"No matter how miraculous that disguise technique is, not everyone can master it, nor is it possible to replace everyone in the mansion. Other Ming Cult members must have a place to hide."
"In a hurry, they wouldn't immediately kill Father, but would keep interrogating him for details to ensure even I couldn't find any flaws. If they needed to hide him to mislead others, there's no other place to consider besides this one."
"And Father definitely wouldn't reveal everything; he'd disclose information little by little to buy time. The fact that I tricked that person proves he wasn't confident he had thoroughly interrogated Father."
"The commotion from over there is so loud that the Ming Cult members might prepare to kill him and escape. The Ming Cult is an enemy, and the man with incredibly high martial arts is of unknown origin, not necessarily a friend. Life and death must still be held in my own hands."
An Ziyang raised his hand and tore off all his accessories, then ripped a piece of his robe into strips, tying all his clothes tightly. Finally, he took off his shoes, stood barefoot on the ground, drew his sword, and slowly walked into the secret passage.
"Father, we've been through wind and rain together; don't die inexplicably in our own home."
"Hold on, your son is coming to save you now."