Chapter 613: Xu Xu Tianling

When the man whose entire body radiated astonishing cold Qi and the oppressive might of phase force appeared, the expressions of everyone present shifted, for the person before them was no stranger.

Xu Xu Tianling, the chief among the three Grand Protectors of the Luo Lan Mansion.

It was just that he had vanished for two or three years, and no one had expected him to appear at this juncture in such a setting.

Yuan Qing's gaze darkened somewhat as he stared at Xu Xu Tianling. The oppressive might of phase force emanating from the latter had clearly reached the Da Tian Xiang Jing level, a tier above his own Xiao Tian Xiang Jing. It seemed that in these past few years, the latter had encountered other opportunities.

This made Yuan Qing somewhat alarmed. One had to understand that in phase force cultivation, the stages before Tian Xiang Jing were relatively simple—as long as one's talent sufficed, cultivation could advance vigorously. For instance, those elite students of the Holy Mystic Star Academy might step into Tian Zhu Jing while still in the Four-Star Academy, but to break through from Tian Zhu Jing to Tian Xiang Jing was an exceedingly difficult process. This could be seen from Gong Gong Shenjun and the Princess—counted among the top geniuses of the Four-Star Academy, and with the backing of the Wang Ting, yet even so, they likely could not achieve a breakthrough to Tian Xiang Jing within four years at the academy.

This was because Tian Xiang Jing required not only talent but also accumulation and comprehension, and for a Xiao Tian Xiang Jing cultivator to advance into Da Tian Xiang Jing, the difficulty was far greater still.

One could say that Tian Xiang Jing was the most difficult threshold before stepping into the Marquis Realm.

Yuan Qing had already stepped into Tian Xiang Jing for several years now, yet even so, he still lingered at this realm today, unable to successfully advance into Da Tian Xiang Jing.

But the Xu Xu Tianling before him had reached it one step ahead.

Facing Yuan Qing's questioning, Xu Xu Tianling smiled faintly, only then shifting his gaze to Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge, cupping his fists: "Young Mansion Master, Young Lady Jiang Jiang Qinge, long time no see, I hope you've been well."

"Now I see where Manager Pei Hao got the nerve to show himself—turns out he had a Protector who'd broken through to Da Tian Xiang Jing backing him." Jiang Jiang Qinge said coolly.

Li Luo was also sizing up this Grand Protector of the Luo Lan Mansion, saying: "It seems Protector Xu also intends to support Manager Pei Hao in splitting the Luo Lan Mansion?"

Xu Xu Tianling smiled: "What the Young Mansion Master says is a bit harsh. I do have feelings for the Luo Lan Mansion, and naturally don't wish to see it fall apart. But Pei Hao is, after all, a registered disciple of the two Mansion Masters, and the two Mansion Masters once made it clear that if someone of suitable status could obtain the support of two Protectors, then they would have the qualification to compete for the position of Mansion Master."

"Pei Hao meets both conditions, so he is indeed qualified."

"And he can compare qualifications with me?" Li Luo said flatly.

Xu Xu Tianling gazed at Li Luo, speaking with some emotion: "If the Young Mansion Master had not been plagued by the Empty Phase before, the Luo Lan Mansion would not have been in such chaos. But once things have started, there's no turning back. Everything can only be blamed on the caprice of fate."

Li Luo was indeed the most legitimate candidate. His qualification to inherit the position of Luo Lan Mansion Master was even stronger than Jiang Jiang Qinge's. If the Empty Phase incident had not occurred back then, many people within the Luo Lan Mansion would have supported him. Unfortunately, the Empty Phase matter caused those who had originally been loyal to the Luo Lan Mansion to waver, and Pei Hao took the opportunity to win hearts, leading to the chain of events that followed.

Now that the situation had been pushed to this point, even if Li Luo resolved the Empty Phase issue and displayed extremely strong talent, could those who had already followed Pei Hao down this path really turn back?

Even knowing full well it was a dark road, they could only walk it to the end, to see if there was any other hope.

Because they all understood—turn back, and did they really think Li Luo would spare them in the future? Don't be naive.

Li Luo shook his head, too lazy to argue such meaningless matters with the other party. Those truly bent on betrayal would always find opportunities and excuses.

"I am truly in awe of my old man and old lady." Li Luo couldn't help but sigh.

Then his gaze swept over the Manager Pei Hao, Xu Xu Tianling, Elder Mo Chen, and the other three Pavilion Masters before him, his expression complicated as he said: "They clearly count as astonishingly brilliant figures themselves, so how could their judgment be so poor that half of the Luo Lan Mansion's upper echelons are this kind of trash?"

"How on earth did they manage to gather so much garbage into the Luo Lan Mansion and even promote them all to the upper echelons?"

Li Luo's words were vicious enough to make the smile on Xu Xu Tianling's face gradually fade, a flash of anger crossing his eyes.

"You can't blame Master and Mistress."

Jiang Jiang Qinge shook her head, speaking earnestly: "Those two lofty figures roamed the mortal world as a lark, and the Luo Lan Mansion was merely a passing fancy of theirs. Given their strength, do you think they'd care what schemes the people below harbored? After all, if anything truly went wrong, a casual slap would suffice."

"They were confident that no matter how big the mess, they could clean it up easily, so they didn't place too much importance on scrutinizing the character of those below. Didn't you see how utterly loyal these people before you were when Master and Mistress were still around?"

Jiang Jiang Qinge's earnest answer instantly made Manager Pei Hao, Xu Xu Tianling, Elder Mo Chen, and the others look even more ill at ease. Especially when the two Mansion Masters were mentioned, complex emotions rose within them—reverence, fear, and a secret delight at their disappearance.

And from Jiang Jiang Qinge's answer, they could also sense the two Mansion Masters' casual attitude toward people like them. Those two simply didn't care about their character or whether they harbored traitorous intentions toward the Luo Lan Mansion. After all, would a lion care about the scheming of a pack of foxes in its territory?

"The two Mansion Masters were naturally worthy of trust. If they were here, how would we dare harbor the slightest disloyalty?" Xu Xu Tianling suppressed his emotions, his expression calm as he spoke.

"But the Young Mansion Master and Young Lady Jiang Jiang Qinge needn't keep living in the past. With the two Mansion Masters sheltering you before, you naturally sat high above, ignorant of our hardships. But the situation is different now, and the two of you must face reality."

"So here, I still hope the Young Mansion Master will reconsider Manager Pei Hao's earlier suggestion of the two Mansion Masters standing side by side." His gaze fixed on Li Luo with a sharp, pressing quality.

Meeting that pressing gaze, Li Luo curled his lip and said lazily: "If you're deaf, I can repeat it for you. At the Mansion Sacrifice, spare no tricks—bring everything you've got. If the Luo Lan Mansion gets smashed to pieces, don't feel sorry for me." Xu Xu Tianling's eye twitched slightly, a surge of foul temper rising within. How could this Li Luo, as Young Mansion Master, seem even less concerned about the Luo Lan Mansion's future than they were?

Truly a wastrel!

"It seems the Young Mansion Master still fails to grasp reality." Xu Xu Tianling spoke in a dark tone, then stepped forward. The oppressive might of Da Tian Xiang Jing poured forth like a flood, sweeping directly toward Li Luo.

Icy phase force spread out, and frost began to form over the entire Spring Lake Tower.

"Since that's the case, let me, on behalf of the two Mansion Masters, first teach the Young Mansion Master what reality means." Xu Xu Tianling's five fingers curled inward, frost surging forth, transforming his palm into an ice-jade eagle claw that radiated waves of extreme cold and sharpness.

Yuan Qing stepped forward, about to bark a warning, but was stopped by Li Luo.

Li Luo looked at Xu Xu Tianling with a half-smile, tilting his head slightly: "Da Tian Xiang Jing, truly impressive... you hear that?"

Xu Xu Tianling's eyes narrowed slightly. Just as he was about to speak, his expression suddenly changed drastically, because at that very moment, outside the Spring Lake Tower, a streak of flowing light suddenly pierced through the air. That streak seemed to pierce directly through the void, and wherever it passed, even space itself was sliced open, leaving trails of dark black.

The world's energy fled in all directions beneath that streak of light.

"A Marquis-level powerhouse?!"

Feeling the supreme oppressive might contained within that streak of light, Xu Xu Tianling cried out in horror. At last he saw clearly that within that streak of light seemed to be a gleaming butcher's knife.

Yet this absurdly comical butcher's knife made his entire body break out in cold sweat, and terror surged wildly in his heart.

Why would a Marquis-level powerhouse strike at him?!

But he had no time to think further. That butcher's knife came straight at him, and the killing aura pervading it made Xu Xu Tianling feel death drawing near. He let out a roar on the spot, and atop his frost eagle claw, a blood-red fist-claw flashed into view. Upon that fist-claw, a golden eye flickered in and out of sight—clearly a Golden Eye treasure.

With the Golden Eye treasure in hand, Xu Xu Tianling finally dared to strike out with a palm, meeting that butcher's knife head-on.

Hiss!

At the moment of contact, there was no earth-shaking sound, because everyone saw that the gleaming butcher's knife merely swayed lightly, and then the Golden Eye fist-gauntlet in Xu Xu Tianling's hand was sliced apart like tofu. What was sliced along with it was half of his palm.

Fresh blood, along with severed fingers, instantly splattered down.

Xu Xu Tianling's body flew backward, smashing through numerous tables and chairs. His face instantly went deathly pale, his eyes filled with terror and shock.

And that butcher's knife, after shearing off half of Xu Xu Tianling's palm, circled above the rooftop for a while, and from within it, a cold sneering voice slowly emerged.

"You dog, tell Laozi—how exactly were you going to teach the Young Mansion Master?!"

(Yesterday at the end of the chapter when Xu Xu Tianling appeared, it should have been Da Tian Xiang Jing, but I missed the 'Da' character. Adding it in today.)

"The Indestructible Great Village Chief"