"Yan Zaizen?!" Ya Qinqan's startling reaction of disbelief elicited curious gazes from all those present. When they looked at her beautiful countenance only shock and constricted pupils could be seen.
"Yan Zaizen?" Mei's eyes shone with an intelligent light, her thoughts obviously reached a conclusion. As someone from the Earthly Fortune Palace, she regarded herself as a well-read individual that kept up with current events. Not to mention, she researched every individual that she interacts with thoroughly.
If materials could be considered wealth, then knowledge was power. She believed in this philosophy.
She knew of the Yan Clan mysterious disappearance within the Water Veil Territory. The squabble that occurred due to Ya Qinqan's marriage disagreement with a Yan Clan member. Now that she thought about it, it made sense that Yan Zaizen's reaction was so intense when he walked in, his eyes focused on Ya Qinqan.
Besides those thoughts, she had her assumptions, but just that. She couldn't be completely sure.
Ke Zedong also knew of Ya Qinqan's background. As someone who was attempting to court her, how could he not? Unfortunately, he didn't know as much as Mei did regarding the situation. Despite that, his eyes furrowed in contemplation.
Hei didn't know much about the situation, so he wasn't even remotely affected, but he remembered that name intently. Sun Huan also had zero reaction to the name but felt quite interested by all the varied reactions.
Li Ruogang understood a little about the situation, but it wasn't at the forefront of her memory, thus not making any immediate connection.
"Impossible! Why take someone else's identity? Do you have no shame?!" Ya Qinqan immediately came to the most logical conclusion. This person had to be an imposter as the Yan Zaizen looked completely different, had a different aura, and his eyes had a weak amber color to it.
This person before her was the exact opposite of the Yan Zaizen she remembered. If logic was taken into consideration, even if Yan Zaizen didn't kill himself, only three years passed since. Even if he cultivated with the heavens support, how could he be in the Qi Unification Realm and change so much?!
"Hahaha! I'm not that shameless." He couldn't help but laugh intensely at her reaction, finding it quite funny. He decided that playing the 'you are, you aren't' game was a waste of time and directly said some choice words.
"Do you remember the times I'd sneak out of the grounds to the Ya Clan for you? The times I would haul the materials on several trips to your doorsteps because I broke my spatial bracelet? Or how about the time I wanted to kiss you, but you told me you weren't ready? Directly leaving with the words: 'Give me time.' Do you remember?"
A smirk appeared on Yan Zaizen's face, his eyes flashing with traces of disdain. Even if the Ya Qinqan from before was a figment of his imagination, that didn't mean he liked this one.
The Ya Qinqan before him was an insignificant flower while her Master could only concede in defeat within his presence. She may embody the proper characertistics of the cultivation world, but those memories of his past still existed.
"Im-impossible! How could you...you're…" She couldn't even finish a sentence. Her state of mind was in chaos due to disbelief. For a second, she believed she was dreaming it all. Could this be her internal demon manifesting?
Seeing her state, Yan Zaizen couldn't help but shake his head at her patheticness. Who knew she was so basic in mentality? Tao was right, on this continent, it's highly unlikely any girl was worthy of him, Ya Qinqan included.
"Oh, don't forget to tell your master to remember our agreement. Otherwise, The day the Water Veil Sect is drenched in blood will come." His tone was so casual that it didn't seem like a threat, more of a casual promise to pay money if someone performed a specific task.
"..." Those words caused all of their pupils to constrict in utter disbelief.
So brazen!
Yao Wuhen was an initial-True Essence cultivator and yet he threatened to wash their entire sect in blood? Who would believe he had such capabilities?
However, Mei's eyes flickered with some calculation and information she obtained about the Water Veil Sect's assault nearly a year ago surfaced. It mentioned there was a young male at the forefront of it, but the Water Veil Sectmaster suffered injuries that required her to heal in seclusion.
If what Yan Zaizen said earlier was true, then he, or someone he knew, defeated Yao Wuhen and let her live within her own territory! That person must have the strength of at the mid-True Essence Realm to achieve such a feat easily!
That was someone who stood at the apex of the entire Fallen Stars Continent.
"You…" Ya Qinqan couldn't gather her bearings to speak, still in shock at the realization of who was in front of her.
Yan Zaizen simply ignored her, continuing to eat without feeling the slightest bit concerned.
BOOM!!!
A thunderously loud smashing sound echoed out throughout the entire Tian. All those within felt a tremor that shook them to the core.
SWIPP!!!
An odd tearing sound appeared that seemed like plastic was ripped off with a swipe of one's hand. An aura erupted from afar bringing an intense pressure to all those in Tian.
"What's happening?!" Su Huan was shocked, his heart felt like it was going to explode as the blood in his body felt torrential and flowed at odd speeds. He felt like his body's blood was affected by an external aura.
"Blood Laws?" Yan Zaizen calmly commented. Everyone here, excluding Yan Zaizen, was clutching at their hearts, circulating their qi to abate the symptoms, but was obviously struggling. As for him, he wasn't affected. How could a Herculean's heart or blood be so easily affected?
"Li Clan, it's time you paid the price for your actions!" A booming sound rang out. Li Ruogang's eyes flickered with intense fear. It seems a great enemy with a grudge was outside.
Tian restaurant may be fortified, but under the assault of a True Essence aura, it was of very little help. If a powerful expert wanted to enter here, the formations couldn't stop them for more than a few seconds. Fortunately, it wasn't the target.
"Who would attack the Capital so brazenly?" Yan Zaizen casually questioned, his spiritual sense spreading outwards. He continued to eat an elegant fruit cake on his plate, truly having no concerns at the outside events.
"This is really good!" He muttered with a mouth filled with delicious cake.
The outside was chaotic. There were thirteen individuals in unified blood-red attire fiercely assaulting a single man. There were also several other figures in the sky a distance away, but they didn't intervene, as if letting the man fend for himself.
This man looked in his early thirties with a grand beard, a fiery-red robe with the character for 'Li' embroidered on his back, chest and sleeve. He was surrounded by a world of fire that seemed intent on incinerating the world. Within his hand was a sky-rank armament in the shape of a large fan. With each swing, a storm of flames would incinerate all in its path.
His cultivation was extraordinary!
Peak initial-True Essence Realm!
He was the Li Clan's Patriarch. From an outsider point of view, this was a premeditated conflict. The thirteen individuals each had a profound cultivation base and each held a talisman that shone with a resplendent cerulean light.
Ten late-Origin Core Cultivators, two peak-Original Core Cultivators, and one half-step True Essence Realm fought against one man. They each held peak earth-rank armaments while maintaining a perfectly executed formation that allowed them to rival a weak initial-True Essence expert. This formation created the manifestation of a 40-meter blood giant with the half-step True Essence expert at its lead.
The talismans in their hands seemed to possess an incredible water-based true-essence aura. They released a combined aura that weakened the Li Patriarch's fire-attributed true-essence. The aura it gave off was indeterminate, but to Yan Zaizen with his extraordinary spiritual sense, he could see they were linked to Yao Wuhen somehow.
Despite this, Yao Wuhen was floating nearby like a bystander enjoying a show. The fight was taking place several li in the sky, avoiding damage to the people on the ground. This seemed to be a deliberate agreement between both opposing parties.
"Oh? If this continues, the Li Clan Patriarch will die soon." Yan Zaizen commented, the fight put an intense pressure on the Li Clan Patriarch, he seemed to have been injured before this fight so his cultivation was incredibly superficial. It's possible his base strength could barely be considered at the True Essence Realm, let alone defeating those well-prepared against him.
A few dozen blows in several seconds passed and the aura in the sky continued to rise to the peak, but soon abated shortly afterwards. The Li Clan Patriarch was slain just as Yan Zaizen predicted. The blood giant held a spear constructed of hardened blood that ran him through and caused his body to nearly explode in a torrent of blood and flesh.
A few blows after that strike, his lifeforce was severed. Despite this, three of the late-Origin Core experts and one peak-Origin Core expert lost their life in his fierce retaliation. He ignited his true essence, but it just wasn't enough to survive.
"It seems the Li Clan will decline." He casually commented, causing all the genius youths to have eyes filled with shock. What just happened?
Li Ruogang could barely catch her breath under that intense blood aura. When she heard Yan Zaizen words, she grew enraged. "Shut up! You don't have the right to decide that!"
Glancing at Li Ruogang's struggling form, Yan Zaizen shook his head slightly and proceeded to eat his cake. They were nothing but ants, how could they know the gravity of what just occurred?