Without a second thought, Zhang Zhaoshen charged out. With his dual swords in hand, Ding Heyan was a completely different person from when he was unarmed! If his opponent got ahold of those swords, it would be all over!

At that moment, Lu Ying’s sharp cry rang out. "You and your son are truly vicious!"

SPURT!

It was the sound of Zhang Yi spitting blood as he was sent flying by Lu Ying’s palm strike.

In the courtyard, Ding Heyan had only managed to grab one sword, but that was more than enough.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Amidst the flurry of sword light, Ning Xuan saw Zhang Zhaoshen, half his flesh and blood already stripped away. His opponent’s sword is incredibly fast!

"Father!" Zhang Yi shrieked from inside the room, his eyes looking as if they would split from rage.

THUMP!

The only answer he received was his father’s severed head hitting the floor.

At the same time, Lu Ying’s hair danced wildly as she began to play her Qin.

CLANG!

A single note rang out, and Zhang Yi’s body convulsed as if struck by lightning. A moment later, his head exploded.

Ning Xuan’s eyes narrowed. A terrifying sonic attack. Though it wasn’t aimed at me, I can still clearly feel its horrifying power.

Holding Ding Heyan’s other sword, Ning Xuan’s expression was grave. I was careless. This girl’s strength is no less than Ding Heyan’s!

Lu Ying’s eyes were now filled with cold indifference. She glanced at Ning Xuan, then played her Qin again.

But this time...

THUD!

A sound came from Ning Xuan’s side as well. The wooden fish in front of him floated into the air. However, the corner of Ning Xuan’s mouth twitched, because the wooden fish had been struck by the golden carp.

"How do you have the Evil-Slaying Fish?!" Lu Ying stared at Ning Xuan, her face a mask of astonishment.

With those words, I can be certain. She and the Lu Jing I met in Tian Shu are from the same family!

Instead of answering, he immediately posed a question of his own. "Has Lu Jing returned?"

Hearing this, Lu Ying’s murderous intent flared. "You killed my grandfather?!!"

Ning Xuan shrugged noncommittally. I didn’t kill Lu Jing. But what does that matter now?

"Kid, give me back my sword, and I’ll let you live!" Ding Heyan declared. This was a decision he made after seeing Ning Xuan’s lack of a rebuttal. This kid seems to have something up his sleeve. I need to be careful.

"What took you so long!" Ning Xuan suddenly shouted with joy, looking behind the two of them.

Without thinking, both Ding Heyan and Lu Ying spun to the side and unleashed attacks.

BOOM!

The front hall of the building behind them exploded into splinters, but there was no one there. Realizing they’d been tricked, they knew instantly what had happened. They whirled back around, but Ning Xuan was already gone.

"You deserve to die!!" they both roared in unison.

They were about to give chase, but this time, they couldn’t get away. The experts of the Zhang Family had finally arrived.

「Atop the ridge of a tall building」

Ning Xuan glanced back toward the Zhang Family estate. When he saw a peerless beam of sword light soar into the sky and cleave the heavens, he chuckled softly and departed. He headed straight for the dueling grounds where the selection was about to begin.

As his gaze swept across the venue, he saw dozens of Law Enforcement Officers seated in meditation. Seeing this, Ning Xuan found a quiet corner, sat down, and closed his eyes to rest his Divine Soul.

He wasn’t worried about Ding Heyan and Lu Ying at all. First, it was uncertain if they could escape unscathed now that the Zhang Family’s experts had intervened. Even if they did manage to flee, Ning Xuan wasn’t afraid in the slightest. The selection tournament was about to start, and the Ten Elders of the True Servant Society would never allow anyone to cause a disturbance at a time like this.

「As dawn began to break」

True enough, a blood-soaked Ding Heyan and Lu Ying appeared. Though their eyes were locked on Ning Xuan, neither made a rash move.

Then, one of the Ten Elders landed beside the pair. He seemed particularly concerned about Lu Ying. After she whispered something to him, the Elder’s gaze immediately swept over Ning Xuan, his eyes filled with killing intent.

Witnessing this, another man appeared. He stood on Lu Ying’s other side and began conversing with the first Elder. Before long, one more person was glaring at Ning Xuan with murderous eyes.

"You bastard, you really have a talent for stirring up trouble!" Zang Peng’s voice suddenly rang in Ning Xuan’s ear.

Ning Xuan did not respond.

"Don’t fucking play dead! I know you can hear me!" Zang Peng said irritably. He wasn’t one to curse, but this damned Ning Xuan was just too good at pissing people off. He couldn’t help it.

"The dual-wielding swordsman is Ding Heyan," Ning Xuan finally transmitted back. "His Swordsmanship is terrifying, and both his swords definitely possess a Sword Soul. I threw one of them to a place I don’t even know, and he still managed to find it."

"Then there’s the woman," Ning Xuan continued. "Don’t be fooled by her delicate appearance. Her Qin music is frightening and can attack the Divine Soul."

"Wait, why are you telling me this?" Zang Peng asked, puzzled.

He immediately heard Ning Xuan’s reply. "Aren’t you supposed to capture me and take me back to the Chaos Boundary Sea? Well, these two want me dead. We’re in the same boat now, with common enemies. You have to help me deal with them."

Zang Peng was completely rattled. What the hell! This bastard is a real piece of work! Damn it! That son of a bitch Ning Xuan is absolutely doing this on purpose! Aaaargh! I want to chop this guy to pieces myself!

But Ning Xuan just kept rambling. "They don’t know I have backup. You can definitely kill them in a single strike! I believe in you!"

"That woman is quite a looker," Zang Peng retorted irritably, intending to mock Ning Xuan. "Could you really bear to see her die?" He had been tracking Ning Xuan long enough to know his weakness: he could barely walk straight when he saw a beautiful woman. But once again, Zang Peng only ended up humiliating himself.

"Women only slow down the speed at which I draw my sword!" Ning Xuan’s indifferent voice replied. "If you could finish her with one blow, I’d be overjoyed!"

Zang Peng was rendered speechless. When it comes to a battle of words, ten of me would be no match for Ning Xuan.

Damn it, why do I keep humiliating myself?! Stay calm, stay calm! We’ll settle this in the arena! Comforting himself with this thought, Zang Peng finally went quiet.

Ning Xuan enjoyed the silence and naturally didn’t provoke him further. But soon, he heard a transmission from Leng Yi.

"Brother Ning, what’s going on? I’ve noticed several of the Ten Elders seem to want you dead!"

"What can I say? I’m just too talented," Ning Xuan replied. "Leng Yi, participate in a few rounds and then get out of here. I’ve left your share of the Divine Crystals at..."

Ning Xuan told him the location.

"Alright!" Leng Yi didn’t hesitate and agreed immediately.

The power of the Ten Elders was unfathomable. If he stayed to help Ning Xuan, he would only be throwing his life away for nothing. That being the case, it was better to leave. With that taken care of, Ning Xuan no longer had anything holding him back and might even have a chance to escape with his life.

Besides, I can tell that even though Zang Peng claims to be my enemy, he’ll definitely step in if I’m in real trouble! My instincts have never been wrong! Leng Yi thought.