Chapter 111: An Unexpected Turn

Jiang Xiaotian himself had not expected the true power of that single slash—he had directly slain this formidable Divine Strength expert!

Yet, it made sense. Having absorbed more than half of the spiritual energy from the city park, using part of it for himself, Jiang Xiaotian had channeled the remainder entirely into that strike. An ordinary martial artist could never withstand such a blow. Indeed, the Shadow truly lived up to its name as a Divine Strength warrior; to endure such an attack head-on and still utter a word was remarkable.

However, he was already on his last breath. Even if Jiang Xiaotian hadn’t finished him off, he likely wouldn’t have survived much longer. Killing him was merely a mercy.

After confirming the Shadow’s death, Jiang Xiaotian slowly climbed out of the pit. The next target to deal with was that bastard Zhao Zheng!

There was no doubt that the Shadow’s killings and theft of martial paths were all for the sake of this young master’s family, and Zhao Zheng was the mastermind behind it all.

It was likely that the martial path teachings had shown him how to exploit others to strengthen himself; thus, Zhao Zheng had made rapid progress in a short time, though he appeared superficial and hollow. He couldn’t even easily suppress Ouyang Zijing, who was at the early stage of inner strength.

Under the astonished gazes of everyone, Jiang Xiaotian approached Zhao Zheng. Suddenly, a sharp pain gripped his chest, and his throat burned as he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

Clearly, he still couldn’t fully control such immense power and was now being counterattacked by it. Fortunately, it wasn’t serious.

As for the others, they could hardly believe their eyes. Some braver ones went to the edge of the pit to look and then fell back to the ground in shock, rubbing their eyes repeatedly in disbelief.

After multiple confirmations, someone paled and shouted hoarsely: “The Divine Strength expert of the Zhao family… is dead!”

Those words struck everyone like a thunderbolt. The Zhao family warriors roared furiously: “Impossible! Stop spouting nonsense! A Divine Strength expert isn’t someone you can insult so casually!”

They charged forward anxiously, though inwardly they were panicked beyond measure. The fact that it was Jiang Xiaotian, not the Shadow, who emerged from the pit was ominous beyond words.

When they saw their lord’s body torn apart, many fainted outright, and some inner strength warriors wept bitterly, completely stripped of the Zhao family’s former pride.

They knew that once their foundation was lost, the Zhao family would truly be unable to maintain a foothold in Dragon City. Even if the Li family wished to support them, the Ouyang family certainly would not.

Upon hearing this news, Ouyang Zijing’s face was filled with shock. She wanted to believe it, but remained doubtful—until she saw it with her own eyes, she couldn’t fully accept it.

Dragging her injured body to the pit, she finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.

“The Zhao family’s foundation is dead. Who would dare to support them now? The Divine Sword belongs to Jiang Xiaotian!” she declared loudly.

To be honest, she wasn’t without sympathy. The Ouyang family had lost so many strong fighters, and yet their treasured weapon was handed over so easily. No one would be happy about that. But Jiang Xiaotian’s miraculous overthrow of the Zhao family’s backbone was equivalent to helping her destroy them.

Thus, despite everything, Ouyang Zijing was genuinely pleased.

But before she could fully revel in her triumph, she trembled all over.

A sharp sword blade was pressed against her neck.

She could not resist, for behind her stood an inner strength warrior at the mid-stage. Ouyang Zijing was stunned: “Who…?”

Who was this person? To dare threaten her at a time like this?

Could it be Li Qing?

Ouyang Zijing looked up and saw Li Qing standing not far away, staring at her in shock, seemingly just as unprepared for this situation.

Others in the Ouyang family who could still move rushed forward to rescue her, but the man pressed harder, slicing her skin.

“Hey! Back off! Everyone back! If you come any closer, she’s dead.”

Then the man turned to Jiang Xiaotian.

“Not bad. No wonder you took my spot. Jiang Xiaotian, you’ve got some skill. I’m Zhang Lan and I admire you, but this is where it ends. Hand over the sword.”

Ouyang Zijing could hardly believe her ears.

Zhang Lan? Isn’t he from the Falcon Squad? He actually appeared just to seize the sword…

Jiang Xiaotian, clearly caught off guard, turned and frowned at the stranger. “Who are you? Have I offended you?”

Zhang Lan laughed. “Of course not. But since you’re so powerful—killing a Divine Strength expert and all—I won’t confront you head-on. Just hand over the sword, and I’ll let this woman go. Otherwise…” He pressed harder.

Ouyang Zijing winced but showed the spirit of a heroine, unafraid of death.

“Jiang Xiaotian! Don’t give it! Absolutely not! Giving it to someone like him will only bring endless trouble!” she shouted.

But Zhang Lan slapped her.

Jiang Xiaotian twitched, teeth clenched in fury. He thought everything was settled, but out of nowhere, this Zhang Lan appeared. Who was he? What grudges did he hold?

“What makes you think holding her hostage can threaten me? If I don’t give you the sword, what then? Kill me if you can. You’ll die too,” Jiang Xiaotian said nonchalantly.

Ouyang Zijing bit her lip, her feelings a tangled mess. Though she hoped for this outcome, hearing it from Jiang Xiaotian was painful.

Zhang Lan was unmoved. He seemed certain that Ouyang Zijing could soften Jiang Xiaotian’s heart and refused to let go. He shook his head mockingly.

“You’re not much of a man after all. Fine, I’ll give you ten seconds. Drop the sword in front of me, or get ready to be buried.”

He began the countdown.

Jiang Xiaotian turned his back, acting completely indifferent. The Ouyang family members were frantic!

Ouyang Ziqian was deeply distressed but trusted Jiang Xiaotian wasn’t like this. Perhaps there was some misunderstanding.

Ten seconds passed quickly. At one second remaining, Jiang Xiaotian suddenly called out:

“Stop. Shut your damn mouth. Enough barking. If you want it, take it.”

He then threw the Divine Sword onto the ground. Zhang Lan’s face lit up with triumph as he laughed heartily.

Ouyang Zijing was stunned, then smirked secretly, but quickly wiped it off and returned to a serious expression.

Yet, she was no pushover—she stubbornly obstructed Zhang Lan from taking the sword. In truth, Zhang Lan dared not kill her now; without the sword in hand, it would be suicide.

Ouyang Zijing, an early-stage inner strength warrior, twisted and writhed like an eel, driving Zhang Lan to extreme irritation.

Just then, Li Qing suddenly stepped forward.

“Heh, you’re Zhang Lan, right? The Li family has a grudge against Jiang Xiaotian. As long as you don’t let him have the sword, I’m willing to lend you a hand.”

Zhang Lan had witnessed everything and knew Li Qing and Jiang Xiaotian didn’t get along. He was delighted, giving three approving nods, but remained cautious.

“What exactly do you plan to do to help me?”

Li Qing stepped back obediently.

“I’ll take charge of this woman. You take the sword. Deal?”

Zhang Lan finally relaxed.

“Alright! The Li family, huh? Zhang Lan remembers this. One day, you’ll have your place in Dragon City.”

Ouyang Zijing was utterly disappointed in Li Qing.

“I never thought this of you! I used to think you were just a bit effeminate, but now I see you’re utterly disgusting!”

“Heh, once I have her, everything will be beyond your control. You wanted to help Jiang Xiaotian, but now it’s too late to regret,” Zhang Lan mocked, glancing at Jiang Xiaotian before slowly approaching Li Qing.

“Didn’t expect you to make so many enemies. Pathetic.”

He handed Li Qing a short blade and pressed it against Ouyang Zijing’s neck. Despite her delicate appearance, Li Qing was even more ruthless. As soon as he took over, he slashed her again.

Zhang Lan was somewhat impressed.

“Brother Li, you really don’t know how to cherish the fairer sex.”

“That depends on what kind of ‘jewel’ she is. Is a dead woman worth cherishing?” Li Qing said coldly.

Zhang Lan smiled knowingly and moved toward the Divine Sword.

Jiang Xiaotian was still pondering his next move as Zhang Lan drew closer to the sword.

Suddenly, Li Qing spoke.

“Oh, Zhang Lan brother, there’s something I forgot to tell you. You really shouldn’t have taken her hostage.”

With a hint of hatred, he suddenly released the blade, pulling Ouyang Zijing behind him, then shouted:

“Jiang Xiaotian! Seize the sword now!”