Chapter 179: Tao Ran's Arrival
Xiang Shaoyun was not the one injured in the exchange. It was the eighth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator. That person's cultivation level might be higher, but Xiang Shaoyun's combat power was no weaker than his. More importantly, Xiang Shaoyun's innate purple lightning was terrifyingly destructive. An ordinary person would not be able to withstand it.
Xiang Shaoyun did not want a prolonged battle. That was why he used the innate purple lightning right from the start. After crippling his opponent's arm, he took the chance and followed up with a punch to his opponent’s stomach.
Bang!
The eighth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator was fully wrapped in a layer of energy barrier, but Xiang Shaoyun's punch was too powerful. His energy barrier was instantly shattered, and he was sent flying while coughing blood. If that person was even slightly weaker, that punch of Xiang Shaoyun's would have been enough to take his life.
Wen Jinnuo had been standing behind waiting for an opportunity to capture Xiang Shaoyun during the chaos, but when he saw how vicious Xiang Shaoyun was, he shivered, "How is that kid so strong?"
He had heard from his father that Xiang Shaoyun was merely a second-stage Transformation Realm cultivator, a similar level of cultivation to him. But the combat prowess Xiang Shaoyun displayed just now was definitely not at the level of a second-stage Transformation Realm cultivator.
With what he just witnessed, he would believe it even if someone told him Xiang Shaoyun was actually a peak Transformation Realm cultivator. Standing right behind Xiang Shaoyun, Gong Qinyin was able to feel clearly just how powerful he was. Inwardly, she cried out in astonishment, He has already reached the Transformation Realm!
Xiang Shaoyun had been able to battle Transformation Realm cultivators ever since he was at the Astral Realm. Now that he was a Transformation Realm cultivator himself, his combat power became even more impressive. Gong Qinyin was in great shock over what she saw.
One ought to know that before this, Xiang Shaoyun used to run from her to avoid being beaten up. But he had grown rapidly and eventually surpassed her, to the point she now felt she would never catch up to him. The realization caused her to feel disheartened. All along, she had been confident in her talent in cultivation. But now, she realized that she had merely been a frog in a well.
I want to get strong as well! Gong Qinyin vowed to herself before she raised her sword and joined the battle.
The battle did not last long as the city enforcers arrived soon after.
"Everyone, stop now or die!" a loud voice rang out in the air.
A group of people mounted on tigers appeared. The leader of the group was a middle-aged man with a clear kingly aura around him. This was an enforcement squad of Cloud Margin City, led by the commander of the squad who was also a Skysoar Realm cultivator.
Their appearance caused the Gong Clan and Wen Clan to quickly break off from the fight. Even Gong Lianda and the two Kings from the Wen Clan did not dare to fight in their presence and returned to their respective groups as well.
"Creating trouble in the city is prohibited. All of you have the nerves to start a battle here? Are you challenging the city hall and the Cloud Margin Pavilion?" the middle-aged man berated as he glared at the two groups. He could see that the two groups were decently sized clans in the city, but even so, he showed no mercy when berating them.
"Lord, I am an outer disciple of the pavilion, Wen Jinnuo. They have stolen something belonging to the Wen Clan. We are only here to take back what's ours. But for some reason, the Gong Clan stepped out to prevent us from doing that. Please uphold justice, lord," Wen Jinnuo was no fool and immediately thought of an excuse to shift the blame.
"Bullshit. You people are the ones trying to rob something belonging to my distant relative. And now, you are trying to take the moral high ground?" Gong Lianda shouted furiously.
"He has on him the forging material we had lost. Otherwise, why would we have bothered making such a scene? Lord, please uphold justice for us!" Wen Jinnuo lied calmly.
"At such a young age, you are already a massive liar. Wen Dongyou sure has an excellent son," Gong Lianda sneered.
"Enough. This commander will investigate the truth of this. Now, I need your leaders to come with me to the city hall. As for the others, leave right now!" the middle-aged man interrupted their argument.
It was at this moment that a new group of people arrived in haste. Everyone looked over and saw that the newcomers were the people from the Cloud Margin Forging Pavilion, and even their elder, Tao Ran, had arrived as well.
"Greetings, Elder Tao." Even the commander had to get off his mount to salute Tao Ran. Everyone else did the same.
Tao Ran was a top blacksmith of the Cloud Margin Pavilion. Thus, he had a high status in the pavilion, and even their pavilion master had to show him a certain degree of respect. After all, a true tier-4 blacksmith had a great rallying power. With his ability to forge king-grade weapons repeatedly, he could befriend many King Realm experts. Nobody could afford to overlook someone like that.
When Tao Ran arrived, he did not even bother giving anyone else a glance. He went straight toward Xiang Shaoyun and said, "Kid, do you really have more than 100 catties of top-quality goldsteel stone?"
That's right. Tao Ran's appearance had been part of Xiang Shaoyun's plan all along. After sending Gong Qinyin to ask for the Gong Clan's help, he also had her send someone to inform the Cloud Margin Forging Pavilion about him having more than 100 catties of top-quality goldsteel stone.
As for the timing of their appearances, everything had been in accordance to his plan. Xiang Shaoyun replied seriously, "Yes I do. Unfortunately, someone is trying to rob it from me."
"Who dares?" Tao Ran roared and scanned the crowd. That roar of his nearly caused Wen Jinnuo's heart to pop out in fear. He had never expected that even this elder would be implicated in this conflict. Now, it would be hard for him to back off.
"He claimed that the top-quality goldsteel stone was stolen from his Wen Clan and nearly killed me here on the streets," said Xiang Shaoyun while pointing at Wen Jinnuo. He paused for a bit and continued, "In truth, after our previous transaction at the pavilion, someone called Wen Hong tailed me and requested that I trade with their clan instead. He even offered a higher price than you! But since I had already agreed to conduct the trade with you, I naturally rejected their offer. I did not expect them to be so shameless as to try robbing it from me instead. If it wasn't for my relative's help, the top-quality goldsteel stone would have been lost."
"Bullshit! You are clearly the thief!" Wen Jinnuo had no choice but to continue lying to cover up for what he said earlier.
"Elder Tao, I am Gong Lianda from the Gong Clan. I can guarantee with my own life that this distant relative of mine has definitely not stolen the goldsteel stone from anyone. Look, he is only a Transformation Realm cultivator. How can he even steal from the Wen Clan? Isn't that suicide?" Gong Lianda took the chance to show himself in front of Tao Ran.
"I am not blind. I am naturally aware of who's telling the truth here." Tao Ran frowned. He then glared at Wen Jinnuo and said, "I have long heard from the disciples that your Wen Clan has been stealing our business right in front of our pavilion. I never planned to do anything about it, but you guys are pushing it more and more! I guess your Wen Clan is getting tired of life in Cloud Margin City. Since that is the case, I hereby declare that from today onward, anyone caught buying weapons from the Wen Clan will be considered an enemy of the Cloud Margin Forging Pavilion!"