"Hmm?"
Yun Xiao glanced over those trifling Cultivation Techniques and Meridian Techniques, as well as some Earth-rank weapons, when his gaze finally sharpened. A flick of the wrist, and a somewhat oddly-shaped iron token appeared in the palm of his hand.
"What is this thing?"
Looking at the peculiarly shaped iron token, Yun Xiao fell into doubt. While it looked like an iron token, the material might not be fine iron, but perhaps something else.
"Thunder?"
In the next moment, Yun Xiao turned the iron token over and saw a small "thunder" character engraved on its back. Then, he felt a special sensing beneath the skin of his back, just below his shoulders.
"It seems that this thing is indeed related to the Thunder Wood!"
After feeling the information emitting from his back for a while, Yun Xiao's face revealed a touch of joy. Although the Thunder Wood had been refined by him, the remaining aura still allowed him to sense something.
Originally, Yun Xiao intended to visit the so-called Thunder King Valley in Thunder Mountain once Yang Family's affairs had concluded. Now, it seemed that this curious iron token in his hand must also relate to Thunder King Valley.
For the legacy of an expert who at least reached Heavenly Rank Third Realm, Yun Xiao still harbored a trace of reverence. Even if he was the Long Xiao Battle God in his previous life, the body he had in this reborn life was only at the late stage of Qi Seeking Realm.
Yun Xiao, who may not even be able to defeat a middle-stage Origin Seeking Realm Cultivator, did not become complacent due to killing the Yang Family Head. Having ascended from Heavenly Rank Third Realm in the past, he naturally knew how much more powerful an expert of this level was compared to an Earth-rank Cultivator, with insurmountably powerful means.
Even if it was just the Meridian Treasure of a Heavenly Rank Expert who had died who knows how many years ago, the traps set within and left behind, even a strong Earth Concealing Realm cultivator might not be able to withstand them.
"Regardless, I have to take a look at Thunder King Valley and act according to the situation!"
Yun Xiao played with the iron token in his hand for a while, and eventually put it into his Waist Storage, along with everything from Yang Dingshan's Waist Storage, emptying it. Some items might have been useless but would be good for giving to others.
After he had done all this, Yun Xiao had no intention to stay here much longer. Moreover, he also knew that after Yang Dingshan and those Yang Family Elders died out, the Yang Family would probably fall to a second-class family. It was, in a way, indirect revenge for the Hu Family.
"Hmm?"
However, just as Yun Xiao had taken a few steps and was yet to reach the gate of the courtyard, the hair on his entire body suddenly stood on end. Almost instinctively, his body flashed to the left side, and a streak of light brushed past where he had just been. It was a close shave, narrowly avoiding a divided end.
"Who is it?"
Yun Xiao, having dodged the attack, also broke out in a cold sweat on his back. He was certain that none of the Yang Family Elders, at least not with their level of strength, could launch such a silent and breathless sneak attack. Even Yang Dingshan, the half-baked early-stage Origin Seeking Realm strongman, couldn't do it.
From this, it seemed that the person hiding in the shadows and launching the sneak attack was at least an initial-stage Origin Seeking Realm veteran who was much stronger than Yang Dingshan.
"I didn't expect this young one to have such quick reflexes!"
After Yun Xiao's words fell, a voice that he found somewhat familiar suddenly came from outside the courtyard. Following this, several figures approached together, the one in the lead was not too unfamiliar to Yun Xiao even in the dark night.
"Xu Huang!"
These two words were somewhat low because Yun Xiao had already recognized the origins of these people. The man leading them was Xu Huang, the branch Chairman of Douling Commerce from Yuyang City, a middle-stage Origin Seeking Realm strongman.
"Yun Xiao, you didn't really think that after killing my son, you could continue to be carefree, did you?"
The person who came was Xu Huang. It is worth mentioning that at this moment, he did not seem to have the bitterness and anger he initially had upon hearing of his son's death. Instead, he looked at Yun Xiao with a calm demeanor and spoke coldly.
Or perhaps Xu Huang knew that in front of himself, a strong middle-stage Origin Seeking Realm cultivator, Yun Xiao would absolutely not be able to leave the Yang Family headquarters today. Thus, he no longer needed to have that much worry and anger.
"Are these... the corpses of the Yang Family?"
Standing beside Xu Huang was Vice President Xu Dian from the Douling Commerce of Yuyang City. When his gaze swept over the many corpses in the courtyard, his face could not help but reveal a trace of shock.
It should be noted that Xu Dian is also a genuine early-stage Origin Seeking Realm strongman. Moreover, his early-stage compared to the half-capable Yang Family Head was like heaven and earth, with no comparability whatsoever.
The backing behind Yang Family of Ancient Moon City was none other than the Douling Commerce branch in Yuyang City, and it was only after taking the Elixir given by Douling Commerce that Yang Dingshan, who was originally at the Peak of Qi Seeking Realm, forcibly broke through to Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage.
Such affairs were naturally not something Xu Huang, as the Chairman, would attend to personally; hence, all communications with the Yang Family were handed over to Vice President Xu Dian. So, he did have some recollection of the strength of these Yang Family Elders.
"Was it you who killed them? Where is Yang Dingshan?"
Xu Dian stepped forward, his eyes filled with sinister fury as he stared at Yun Xiao. The Yang Family was a force secretly nurtured by Douling Commerce in Yuyang City, an important chess piece laid for Yucheng Commerce to control the surrounding cities in the future. Now that things had turned out like this, how could he not be furious?
"Are you referring to the Family Head of the Yang Family? He's nothing but ashes now!"
Yun Xiao, seemingly oblivious to the imminent danger surrounding him, simply stretched out his hand and pointed somewhere, only to reveal nothing there, which ostensibly confirmed the words "nothing but ashes" from his mouth.
Yang Dingshan was indeed reduced to nothing but ashes, as even his whole body had been devoured by the Ice and Fire Giant Dragon, leaving behind not a trace except for that pale blue Waist Storage.
"What a joke! How could you, a mere Late Stage Qi Seeking lad, be able to kill Yang Dingshan, who's at the Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage?"
Xu Dian simply couldn't believe what Yun Xiao had said, and even Xu Huang, the branch Chairman, although shocked that Yun Xiao had broken through from Early Stage to Late Stage Qi Seeking Realm during these past two months, didn't believe his Cultivation was on par with Yang Dingshan's.
In Xu Dian's mind, even if Yang Dingshan's Cultivation at Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage was somewhat inflated, if this youth truly managed to defeat him, wouldn't he be on equal footing with Xu Dian himself? That was something Xu Dian was absolutely unwilling to acknowledge.
Therefore, these strong practitioners of the Douling Commerce branch in Yuyang City deemed that Yun Xiao was simply bluffing, hoping to intimidate them and seize a chance to escape.
But if Xu Huang, who had today ostentatiously come knocking, allowed Yun Xiao to slip away, then he might as well not sit in his position as Chairman of the Yuyang City Douling Commerce branch any longer, and instead go home and babysit.
"Believe it or not, it's up to you, but don't blame me for not warning you; if you act rashly, you might end up like these fellows from the Yang Family!"
Yun Xiao saw their expressions and didn't pay much attention, and his seemingly calm words infuriated Xu Dian.
"Arrogant brat, take my palm!"
In a fit of rage and deep hatred for Yun Xiao's disruption of his plans with the Yang Family, Xu Dian could no longer restrain himself and struck out. His strength as a Seasoned Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage Expert was indeed far superior to that of Yang Dingshan previously.
Yun Xiao, facing such an attack, hastened to respond. Seeing his silhouette pivot, he left a Shadow Clone in his place while his true body moved with extreme speed to appear in front of a Peak Qi Seeking Realm expert.
Any Cultivator on the Tenglong Continent who witnessed Yun Xiao using his Shadow Clone would likely be baffled upon the first encounter, even Xu Dian, an Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage Expert.
"It's an Afterimage?"
So when Xu Dian was happily striking the Shadow Clone, his face had turned beet red, and even the Chairman on the side seemed to wear an odd look in his eyes.
Snap!
At this moment, Yun Xiao's actions with the Dragon Taming Sword were anything but slow. A swift flick of his wrist and the unsuspecting Peak Qi Seeking Realm expert promptly met the same fate as a few of the Yang Family Elders earlier; his head soared into the sky, with blood splattering and drenching the others nearby.
Such an unexpected development startled the several experts at the Peak of Qi Seeking Realm from the Commerce, causing them to retreat instinctively in various directions. They were uncertain when the dark gleam of the swift blade would land upon their own necks.
At this moment, everyone seemed to believe a bit more that the numerous corpses inside the courtyard and the "nothing but ashes" state of the Family Head of the Yang Family, Yang Dingshan, were indeed the workmanship of this youth before them. With such ghost-like speed and an unanticipated sword strike, how many could withstand it?
Even Xu Huang, who had always been full of confidence, couldn't help but show a hint of shock. It seemed that in just over two months, the young man named Yun Xiao had significantly improved his fighting power, and it was clearly not as simple as merely having his Meridian Qi Cultivation break through to Late Stage Qi Seeking Realm.
At the Spirit Fighting Conference, Yun Xiao was only at Qi Seeking Realm Early Stage with exceptionally stunning Meridian Spirit, but Xu Huang had never truly taken his combat strength seriously.
However, now looking at this youth who dispatched Peak Qi Seeking Realm experts as if slaughtering dogs, although his face seemed somewhat unfamiliar, Xu Huang knew that the Yun Xiao of today was no longer the same as he was over two months ago.
"Damn brat!"
Compared to Xu Huang, Vice President Xu Dian was clearly in a worse mood. His previous attack had missed, and instead, he had been toyed with by Yun Xiao, who then managed to deceive with distractions and kill a member of the Commerce.
For him, this Vice President, such a situation was a massive humiliation. So, after a brief shock, he couldn't help but shout out loud and lunged ferociously at Yun Xiao once again.