Chapter 137: Chapter 134: Showdown with the Huangfu Family
A mighty voice boomed like rolling thunder, traveling from afar and instantly echoing through every inch of the Li Family’s estate.
WHOOSH—
In mid-air, four figures soared through the sky. A frigid killing intent radiated from them, and the very air seemed to grow colder.
"The Huangfu Family is here."
Li Shiyu and the others in the courtyard were all startled. The Huangfu Family had a total of four Innate Limit experts, and all of them had been deployed.
They weren’t surprised by this development. Ning Jiang had killed the Huangfu Family’s most brilliant genius. How could they not avenge such a deep-seated blood feud?
"Hmph."
Ning Jiang snorted coldly. That simple sound made the air tremble, and everyone’s ears began to ring.
"So it was you who went on a rampage in the Lotus Garden and killed Xiao?"
A hundred feet away, the four masters of the Huangfu Family landed.
The man in the lead was a gaunt, withered old man. His face was a roadmap of deep wrinkles, and his hands were as coarse as old tree bark, as if he had spent a lifetime doing manual labor.
But anyone standing before him would not mistake him for a decrepit old man. One could keenly sense a surging vitality roiling beneath his withered skin and white hair, like a stormy ocean. It felt ready to erupt at any moment, threatening to drown and annihilate anyone in its path.
"Huangfu Feihong."
Li Huqing uttered his name.
This man was his contemporary and the former Patriarch of the Huangfu Family. His strength was a notch above Li Huqing’s own, ranking twelfth on the Innate List.
Besides him, the Huangfu Family had three other Innate Limit experts, all of whom were his juniors.
One was named Huangfu Cheng, ranked twenty-seventh on the Innate List. Another was Huangfu Lin, ranked thirty-fourth. The last was Huangfu Xiong, who had not made it onto the Innate List.
Three masters from the Innate List, plus one more at the Innate Limit—these four powerhouses were the foundation of the Huangfu Family’s status as a Noble Family.
With such strength, the Huangfu Family was renowned throughout the entire Cyan Cloud Country.
"I killed him."
Facing the aggressive members of the Huangfu Family, Ning Jiang stood with his hands clasped behind his back, utterly composed.
"A life for a life!" Huangfu Feihong said coldly.
At the same time, a trace of shock flickered in his eyes. Although he had heard that Ning Jiang was very young and had mentally prepared himself, seeing him in person was still a jolt.
If Ning Jiang had killed an ordinary disciple, given his level of strength, the Huangfu Family would never have come seeking revenge. It simply wouldn’t have been worth it.
But Huangfu Xiao was the most outstanding genius the Huangfu Family had produced since its founding. He had reached the Innate Limit at a young age, and with him, the family was destined to reach even greater heights.
The Huangfu Family could not, under any circumstances, tolerate the death of such an important figure at Ning Jiang’s hands.
"Even if you hadn’t come for me, I would have come for you. Huangfu Xiao tried to force my sister to marry him. The Huangfu Family owes me an explanation for that," Ning Jiang said, his eyes narrowing as killing intent flared from him.
Ning Yu’an was his reverse scale—anyone who touched it would surely die!
"You killed our man and still dare to demand an explanation from us? You’re courting death."
A burly man standing behind Huangfu Feihong spoke, a large saber in his hand.
He was Huangfu Cheng, a man with a fiery temper. He licked the edge of his blade, looking as if he couldn’t wait to taste blood.
"Father, give the order! A blood debt must be paid in blood. Let this boy’s life be the price, so that Xiao may rest in peace!" Huangfu Lin added.
"Li Huqing, what is the Li Family’s position on this? This boy killed one of your people too. Don’t you have an opinion?"
Huangfu Feihong was a veteran of many conflicts. He was trying to pull Li Huqing into his camp. If Li Huqing joined them, their chances of success would be much higher.
"Brother Feihong, I don’t wish to get involved in this. Although Mr. Ning did kill someone, there were extenuating circumstances. It was indeed my Li Family that was in the wrong first."
Li Huqing shook his head. He was an old fox, cunning and shrewd, and knew it was better to stay out of these murky waters. He could afford to offend neither Ning Jiang nor the Huangfu Family.
He would help neither side and offend neither side.
"Fine. Fine."
Huangfu Feihong said the word "fine" twice, a flash of killing intent in his eyes. "Attack!"
"Kill!"
Huangfu Cheng was the first to charge. He had a powerful build, broad-shouldered and lean-waisted. The great saber in his hand felt immensely heavy as he swung it down from above.
"Sweeping Thousand Armies!"
Huangfu Cheng roared as the Innate Gang Yuan in his body converged on his great saber. As he swung down, a blade of light over a hundred feet long instantly erupted, fearsomely sharp.
At the same time, Huangfu Lin followed close behind.
He wielded a pair of axes, each more than half as tall as a man, their blades sharp and menacing. He swung them down repeatedly, and the air instantly filled with a dense, overwhelming torrent of axe shadows.
BOOM!
The sound of cracking air echoed from overhead. Among the four, the weakest, Huangfu Xiong, paradoxically created the most terrifying display. He held a massive hammer, pitch-black and covered in strange runes.
He leaped into the air and smashed the hammer down. The air itself seemed to explode with a deafening blast.
The last to act was the ancient-looking Huangfu Feihong.
Huangfu Feihong, who had been hunched over and inconspicuous, suddenly straightened up. His spine became ramrod straight, and he instantly grew several inches taller.
His withered skin visibly plumped and filled out, like a sponge soaking up water.
In the blink of an eye, he had undergone a dramatic transformation, appearing like a completely different person.
His once-withered skin now resembled yellow jade, hard and lustrous. His face looked thirty years younger, transformed from old age to his prime, and his eyes gleamed with vitality.
CRACK.
He stomped his foot, and the ground exploded, leaving a large crater. As he abruptly channeled his power, his clothes stretched taut, snapping violently.
Even more astonishingly, the sound of his blood coursing through his veins was audible, like great boulders rolling down a mountainside.
A vibrant aura of Blood Qi erupted from his body, rising ten feet high.
"A Body Refining Grandmaster."
Ning Changfeng was flabbergasted. Body Refining Grandmasters were exceedingly rare in the Cyan Cloud Country, primarily because the path of Body Refining was so difficult.
There were fewer than ten Body Refining Grandmasters in the entire Cyan Cloud Country. The physique of every single one was terrifying to the extreme.
"Father, don’t worry. My little brother will definitely win."
Ning Yu’an said with conviction, but her delicately clenched fists betrayed a hint of nervousness.
’Facing such a combined assault, he should probably evade the initial attack and then pick them off one by one, right?’
Li Shiyu thought to herself. ’This is an attack by the Four Great Innate Limits, and one of them is even a Body Refining Grandmaster. With such terrifying power, someone like the former Young Master Floating Snow would have been torn to shreds in an instant.’ She calculated that the wisest course of action would be a tactical retreat.
"You dare seek revenge on me with just this meager strength?"
Ning Jiang stood as straight as a spear. Instead of retreating a single step, he advanced.
WHOOSH.
He threw a punch. His fist shot out like an arrow, and a white, rainbow-like shockwave flashed forward and vanished.
DONG—
A colossal sound echoed out. The expression on Huangfu Xiong’s face, who was holding the heavy hammer, changed drastically. He felt as if Ning Jiang were an Ancient Wild Bull, possessing tyrannical and unrivaled Power.
Despite striking from above with all his might, he was completely unable to block the attack. His body trembled before he was sent flying backward, nearly losing his grip on the heavy hammer.
Just as Huangfu Xiong was sent flying, the great saber and twin axes arrived from both sides.
RIP.
The air was torn apart with a piercing shriek.
"Pathetic."
With a disdainful look in his eyes, Ning Jiang reached out. His fingers blossomed like a lotus as he flicked them forcefully against the weapons.
CLANG—
The sound of metal striking metal erupted and sparks flew. His palms were like the sharpest of Treasure Artifacts, effortlessly shattering their attacks.
"Take my fist—Withering and Flourishing Seal!"
Finally, Huangfu Feihong’s attack arrived. His Blood Qi surged, his eyes were wide, and his power was immense.
The Body Refining Technique he cultivated was called the "Withered and Flourishing Zen Skill."
Upon reaching Great Success in this Body Refining Technique, the body appears withered and decrepit, but this is actually a state where all of the body’s Energy is hidden away.
It’s like how trees store their energy during winter, only to burst with new life in the spring.
BANG!
Huangfu Feihong threw a punch, and an aura of half-withering, half-flourishing spread out. This single punch unleashed his body’s full potential, like an erupting volcano, a bursting dam, or the celestial river pouring down from the heavens.
It was an unstoppable and overwhelming punch.
’A little interesting.’
Faced with such a punch, Ning Jiang finally showed a hint of interest.
But only a hint.
"Great Sun Demon Slaying Fist."
Ning Jiang clenched his fist, raised his arm, and punched.
His fist shone with a brilliant, dazzling golden light that illuminated the entire area.
The power of this fist was such that it would slay gods and buddhas alike, and slaughter all demons that stood in its way.
DONG—
The two fists collided in an instant. Fist Force radiated in all directions, and the air rippled like water.
Immediately, a terrifying gale erupted from the point of impact, sweeping outward. The ground cracked and shattered at an alarming rate, and the surrounding walls were instantly blasted apart, crumbling to the ground.
This was a pure contest of physical strength and the toughness of their bones.
Ning Jiang’s body didn’t move an inch; his feet seemed to be rooted to the very earth.
He was the earth, and the earth was him.
"Impressive."
Huangfu Feihong’s expression was grave. He retreated three consecutive steps, each one leaving a deep crater in the ground beneath him.
In this clash of physical prowess, the victor was already clear!
"Father."
The three Innate Limit Strong People of the Huangfu Family couldn’t accept it. ’Huangfu Feihong, the Body Refining Grandmaster ranked twelfth on the Innate List and renowned throughout Cyan Cloud, was actually defeated by a sixteen-year-old boy?’
"Another Young Master Soaring Dragon..."
Li Huqing murmured in awe, seeing the battle as concluded.
Ning Jiang had easily dismantled their four-man assault. Li Huqing was grateful that he hadn’t chosen to stand against him.
’At this point, I suppose the Huangfu Family will have to show its true hand,’ Li Huqing thought, his gaze hardening.
"Patriarch, what do you mean?" Li Shiyu was taken aback. ’Does the Huangfu Family still have a trump card?’
Just then, her ears twitched. She heard a large number of masters entering the area!
