Chapter 24: Li Zhongxuan, The Mysterious Clouds of the Mu Clan

  Xu Yang turned over and carried two disabled Xuan Shi out of the house, hooked open the door with his toes, and threw them out like dead dogs.

  Lu Zhuo and Wei Haoshan not only had their limbs severed, but Xing Hai also suffered a severe blow from Xu Yang. Although Xu Yang did not disable the two men's Xuanli vortex, after this severe injury, the two of them were finished for life. Just reconnecting their broken bones was no easy task, and even if a Dan master intervened to reconnect their bones, it would be difficult to cure the severe damage to their Xing Hai.

  "What's going on outside? It's such a mess!"

  Xu Yang was about to close the door when he inadvertently saw the situation outside, and he couldn't help but pause. Originally, there were neat stacks of firewood chopped by Xu Yang outside the courtyard gate, but now those firewoods were scattered all over the ground, with many of them broken into several pieces.

  "Zhèng yáng?" A tentative voice came from the side, and Xǔ Yáng turned around to look, but it was a middle-aged man with a dignified face, holding up a thin and frail person in grey clothes.

  His inner strength is profound and unfathomable! This person is at least a master of the mysterious level!

  The moment he saw this handsome young man, Xu Yang made a judgment.

  "May I ask who you are?" asked Xu Yang with a bow.

  "Li Zhongxuan," a sturdy Englishman threw the grey-clad man in front of Xu Yang like a broken sack, "This person's actions are suspicious. He circled around your mansion three times before I took action and captured him."

  Xu Yang rummaged through his memories, but couldn't recall the name Lei Zhongxuan. However, he saw the emblem of Qi Men Dao Xue on the grey-robed man's belt and suddenly realized, bowing deeply: "Thank you, Senior Lei."

  "Whatever, just call me Uncle Lei," said Lei Zhongxuan, glancing at the two Huoyun Daoist priests on the ground. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, "To be able to defeat two Daoist priests with the strength of a single cultivator, I underestimated you. This time, there's no need for me to come over, you can handle it yourself."

  "Uncle Li..." Xuyang called out, feeling a bit unaccustomed, "I don't know why you went to the trouble of protecting me?"

  "I have some history with your father," said Li Zhongxuan, a fleeting look of reminiscence flashing in his eyes before he turned serious again. "So when someone endangers your life, I will take action."

  "These two groups, one from Huoyun Daochang in this city and the other from Qimen Daochang," said Li Zhongxuan, "You're quite skilled, taking a difficult path of cultivation and yet managing to provoke the enmity of two powerful forces."

  Xu Yang reluctantly told Lei Zhongxuan everything that had happened on the road to bitter practice, omitting only the part about killing Hong Xi. He then made an educated guess: "The people from Huoyun Daochang came to capture me, probably because the leader of their bitter practice team has returned and reported back to their master. As for Qimen Daochang, they must have come to investigate the reason behind the destruction of the bitter practice team, after all, I am the only survivor."

  Li Zhongxuan seemed to be thinking: "So that's how it is, this matter is actually quite easy." He waved his hand and three cyan-colored long whips wrapped around the three Xuan scholars, shaking them off dozens of meters away: "You've heard today's events clearly. Go tell your sect master, our two families will settle the score at the northern city's dueling platform soon, don't involve unrelated people! From now on, whoever comes to bother Xu Yang again, I'll make him extinct!"

  "Remember, I'm Lí Zhōngxuān!"

  Huoyun Daochang

  "That person said his name was Lí Zhōngxuān?"

  The stout master of the door saw Wei Haoshan and Lu Zhuo being carried back on stretchers, and was shocked at first, but after listening to their account, his face changed even more, and even his usual smile disappeared without a trace.

  "Who is this Master Lei Zhongxuan? He has the surname Lei and speaks with such arrogance, could he be from Beining..." asked the Daoist teacher named "Lianting".

  "That's right, he is the second son of Lin Yuanjun today, and the younger brother of City Master Li Boyan!" The fat gatekeeper took a deep breath and solemnly announced, "Pass on my order, from now on no one is allowed to find trouble with Xu Yang, and no one is allowed to mention this matter again!"

  The same scene also occurred at the Qimen Daochang, where Li Zhongxuan used his overwhelmingly powerful demeanor to pull Xu Yang out of the whirlpool of the two Daochang families, allowing him to stand aside.

  In the castle lord's mansion.

  "Zhongxuan, you've made your move."

  On the high seat, a majestic and elegant man spoke. He had an aura of authority without being angry, he was the eldest son of Lin Yuan Jun, the current master of Lin Yuan City, Li Bo Yan!

  "Yes, big brother." Facing the elegant and refined man's pressure, Li Zhongxuan's waist was straight as a pen, his whole person like a long spear, with its sharp edges exposed.

  "Alas..." It seemed that Lí Bóyán had already guessed his brother's response, "Do you know the consequences of doing this? It may very likely lead to misunderstandings with the Mò family!"

  "It's been over a decade, and Mo Shi still can't let go of those two little kids?" Li Zhongxuan retorted loudly.

  "Have you forgotten that big stir back then?" asked Lí Bóyán, "I know what's on your mind, but as the head of the Lí family, I must make it clear to you! We cannot oppose the Mò family!"

  "If Mo Shi really pursues it, I'll take the responsibility!" Li Zhongxuan threw out these words and walked away without looking back.

  Xu Family Ancestral Hall.

  "Qing Ge, how's everything going?" A faint figure spoke in a hoarse voice from behind the heavy curtains.

  "Reporting to father, I didn't make a move." A man with a strong facial feature and about thirty years old said with his head bowed.

  "Oh, you can hold back and not take action? Are the people of Huoyun Sect and Qimen Sect easy to talk to?" The old voice was calm and unruffled.

  "The situation is that Li Zhongxuan has made his move, he has sealed off a Xuanwu of the Qimen Daochang with the Star Ocean Grab, and the other two Xuanwu..."

  "What about the other two? They should be people from Huoyun Daochang. What's going on? Since Li Zhongxuan has taken action, there's no reason for him to hold back." The old voice seemed to know Li Zhongxuan's character well. "He took the initiative to act, which means he has put aside his reservations... Alas, I didn't expect that my grandson, Xu Changling, would need an outsider to protect him. It really pains me and fills me with regret."

  "Father is also for the survival of the Xu family," said Xu Qinggong, with a stern face. "The other two Xuan Shi were thrown out by Zhengyang."

  "What?! This news is too shocking! Even the usually calm and collected Xu Changling's voice was filled with astonishment, "Yang Er can't be that formidable!"

  Xu Qingbai nodded and said, "At that time, my son was also stunned. After repeated confirmation, the two people who were thrown out by Zhengyang were indeed two Xuan Shi of Huoyun Daochang. One was named Lu Zhuo, a late-stage Xuan Shi; the other was Wei Haoshan, a peak-stage Xuan Shi!"

  "It seems that Yang Er has a powerful trump card," said Xu Changling, who was experienced and knowledgeable. Although he was shocked, he quickly accepted this reality. "He's indeed the son of Qing Yuan."

  "Although Zhengyang's current strength is not strong, his senses are extremely sharp and he almost discovered me several times when I was hiding in the dark. Father, shouldn't we find an opportunity to explain things clearly to Zhengyang, so as to avoid deepening the misunderstanding?"

  Xu Changling slowly shook his head and said, "There are still twenty or so days left until the family's grand comparison... there's no need to rush. As for guarding Yang Er, it's not necessary anymore. Li Zhongxuan has already spread the word, so Yang Er's safety is guaranteed. As long as he doesn't suddenly run into the Giant Python Mountain Range like last time, we don't have to worry too much."

  Xu Qinggong was deeply moved, in fact, he had been secretly protecting Xu Yang's safety under orders, but due to the might of the Mo clan, he could only hide and not take action unless Xu Yang's life was in danger. Several times, Xu Yang was bullied and fell unconscious, it was him who quietly took him back home to recover from his injuries.

  Xu Yang suddenly joined the Qimen hard training team and disappeared for three months, Xu Qing didn't keep up and was even punished by Xu Changling.

  In the entire Xu family, only a few people like Xu Qinggang knew that the head of the household had never given up on the Xu Qingyuan lineage!

  As for the situation where some family members bullied Xu Yang, Xu Qing initially wanted to stop them but didn't take action in the end. Xu Changling's intention was very clear - these minor conflicts could be ignored and if they were heard by others, it would mislead people into thinking that the Xu Qingyuan lineage was being ostracized.

  Xu Changling had three sons, Xu Qinggao, Xu Qingyuan and Xu Qingbiao. The eldest branch of the family never participated in bullying Xu Yang like other branches did.