Chapter 344: Imminent

At this moment, everyone seemed to have sensed something. The atmosphere of the open ground was once again deathly quiet. Numerous shocked gazes stared at Xiao Yan who stood on the edge of the open ground.

“This fellow, don’t tell me, is he really that mysterious person who killed Mo Cheng back then?” Jia Xing Tian muttered. His normally smiling face had finally become serious at this moment.

“That is something that no one knows. However, Xiao Yan really did use a type of white-colored flame during the Alchemist Grand Meeting. Although the flame merely appeared for a moment before disappearing, I dare to guarantee that it should also be a type of ‘Heavenly Flame’!” Fa Ma’s soft voice contained an aghast that was difficult to hide. Two kinds of ‘Heavenly Flame’ existing together within a single body? Heavens, was this not a little too crazy?

“Ah, we still ended up leaving some loose ends.” Hai Bodong sighed helplessly in his heart as he turned his gaze toward Xiao Yan on the square. Currently, whether he was to fight with the Misty Cloud Sect or do something else would entirely depend on Xiao Yan’s performance.

The deathly quiet atmosphere covered the entire open ground. Xiao Yan was quiet for a long time before he suddenly took a step forward. As he took this step, it immediately caused the Misty Cloud Sect’s Elders to tense their entire bodies. Faint Dou Qi that was partially concealed began to shroud them.

“I’m sorry, I do not know what Affairs Manager Ge Ye is talking about.” Xiao Yan lifted his head and eyed the Misty Cloud Sect’s Elders who were prepared to take action at any moment. His brow was slightly knit together and his tensed body began to relax a little. His voice was calm when he spoke. Honestly speaking, he did not want a falling out with the Misty Cloud Sect. This huge faction, which has stood in the Jia Ma Empire for so many years, had a foundation that caused Xiao Yan’s heart to fear regardless of how strong he was. Therefore, he would not completely become enemies with them until the last moment.

“Humph, you don’t know?” Hearing this, a cold smile surfaced on Yun Leng’s face. In a stern voice, he cried out, “Xiao Yan, the Yan Xiao who had become champion after participating in the Alchemist Grand Meeting is a disguise of yours. On this point, I can find more than ten people as witness. Do you think you can deny it?”

Xiao Yan was silent. Back then, in order to obtain the champion spot when he participated in the Alchemist Grand Meeting, he had exposed far too many trump cards. Yun Leng, as the First Elder of the Misty Cloud Sect, naturally had an information network which far exceeded Xiao Yan’s expectation. Therefore, Xiao Yan did not feel surprised should he be able to find sufficient evidence.

With regards to this silence of Xiao Yan’s which represented a quiet admission, the corner of Yun Leng’s mouth rose up as if to gloat. He continued, “In the Alchemist Grand Meeting, you once used a type of white-colored flame. Moreover, its strength is extremely great. This is something that countless people have witnessed. I think that it cannot be a lie, no?”

“The number of people who are able to use a white-colored flame is countless. Don’t tell me that all of these people are the murderer of Mo Cheng?” Xiao Yan curled his lips and laughed coldly.

Yun Leng coldly said, “For other people, using a white flame does not represent anything. However, from Ge Ye’s recount earlier, your suspicion was already the greatest. Moreover, you even use the same kind of flame as that mysterious person. If these are all just coincidences, aren’t they a little too numerous?”

The tit for tat exchange caused the two people to instantly become the new main characters on the square. Numerous gazes were thrown on Xiao Yan. The gazes of many Misty Cloud Sect’s disciples were a mixture of fear and shock. They had difficulty believing that the young man who was around the same age as them was actually the mysterious strong person who had easily killed Mo Cheng.

“The background of this Xiao Yan is rather mysterious.” Gu He fondled his chin as he slowly spoke while staring at Xiao Yan. As he heard the argument between the two of them and then connecting the matter to the green-colored flame, he understood the matter much more clearly in his heart. If what Yun Leng had said was true, the mysterious person who had benefitted from the fight of others in the vast desert the last time might well be this young fellow who was not even twenty years old.

A Dou Huang who was not even twenty years old? As he thought of this, he felt a sort of absurd feeling. Since when did it become so easy to reach the Dou Huang class? Even if he consumed high tier medicinal pills everyday, it would definitely be impossible to become a Dou Huang in less than twenty years.

Behind him, Liu Ling also laughed bitterly and shook his head. Not until this moment did he realize just how large of a gap existed between him and Xiao Yan. Each time he thought that the other party had reached his limit, another corner of the iceberg would surface, causing Liu Ling to be unable to catch up even if he wanted to.

The argumentative atmosphere in the open ground persisted for a while. Xiao Yan lifted his eyes and glanced at Yun Leng. He appeared to have also understood that this old fellow was determined not to let him leave today. At that moment, an impatience rose within his heart. He brushed his sleeves and coldly laughed, “Elder Yun Leng, I don’t wish to waste my breath with you. If you don’t have conclusive evidence, it would be better if you don’t randomly accuse others. Although the Misty Cloud Sect is powerful, it would not be too good if such a reputation were to spread. Moreover, my legs are a part my own body. It is not up to you to decide whether I leave or stay!”

Once he said this, Xiao Yan turned around and took a step down that rock stairs.

“I’m sorry, before we have fully investigated who killed Mo Cheng, Mister Xiao Yan may have to temporarily stay at the Misty Cloud Sect for a period of time.” Yun Leng waved his hand and coldly cried out, “Law Enforcement Unit, stop him!”

As Yun Leng’s cry fell, around ten plus white cloaked figures suddenly rushed out of the nearly one thousand Misty Cloud Sect’s disciples. Dou Qi wildly surged. As their bodies moved, they instantly surrounded Xiao Yan in between them. Without saying any nonsense, the few cold faced members of the Misty Cloud Sect’s Law Enforcement unit flipped their hands. Longswords flashed out. With a swing of their longswords, the ten plus sword shadows surrounded Xiao Yan.

The Law Enforcement unit of the Misty Cloud Sect was formed from among the disciples with the most outstanding abilities, hand picked by the Elders of the sect. If one were to discuss their strength, they would be able to rank among the top within the Misty Cloud Sect. Moreover, they coordinated very well. Usually when the ten plus of them were to strike together, even some of the opponents whose strength exceeded theirs would have difficulty stopping them. This time around, the ten plus Law Enforcement unit disciples which had acted against Xiao Yan were clearly at the Dou Shi class based on the Dou Qi cloak which covered their bodies.

“Get lost!”

Xiao Yan’s expression was cold as he eyed the continuous sword shadows which were attacking from all directions. He let out a cold cry and his palm abruptly grabbed the ruler’s hilt from his shoulders. With a wave of his hand, the huge Heavy Xuan Ruler left his back. His feet stepped gently on the ground and his body immediately became like gyroscope as it instantly spun around at a great speed. The black-colored huge ruler carried a powerful force which spread out from the spot where he stood.

“Clang, clang, clang.” As the breeze whistled, numerous clear sounds of metal clashing were repeatedly emitted from the spot where the human figures came into contact.

“Bang!” Following this soft muffled sound, ten plus figures abruptly shot out from the spot where blows were exchanged. Their feet were dragged across the ground for over ten meters before they slowly came to a stop. When they lowered their heads and eyed their longswords which were broken, the expressions of the members of the Law Enforcement unit disciples changed. This fellow really did not rely on luck to defeat Yanran shi-jie.

(TL: shi-jie - refer to a female senior of the sect or who shares the same teacher)

In one blow, Xiao Yan repelled over ten disciples of the Law Enforcement unit. His expression had also become a little gloomy. He turned around and coldly stared at Yun Leng. “What do you mean by doing this, Elder Yun Leng?”

“Mister Xiao Yan, before our suspicions of you are cleared, I’m afraid that you cannot leave the Misty Cloud Sect. Therefore, please obey the old me and stay at the Misty Cloud Sect for a period of time. Once the Sect Leader returns, we will investigate this matter in greater detail.” Yun Leng faintly said.

Xiao Yan’s eyes narrowed. An iciness flashed across his pupils. His gaze swept across the open ground and immediately stopped on Yun Leng’s body. The hand which he used to hold the hilt of the ruler tightened slightly. He then let out a long breath and his body also began to gradually relax.

Sensing Xiao Yan’s body relaxing, Yun Leng also quietly sighed in relief. Just as he thought that Xiao Yan intended to give up resisting, however, the latter suddenly stepped off the ground. Following an explosive sound, his body turned into a black shadow that shot toward the outside of the square.

“Stop him!” Xiao Yan’s sudden action caused Yun Leng’s face to grow cold as he cried out sternly.

As Yun Leng’s cry fell, Ge Ye by the side was actually the first to take action. Dou Qi violently surged out of his body. His feet stepped on the ground and his body immediately became just like an arrow which was unleashed from a bow. In an instant, he crossed over half the length of the square. His shrivelled hand was curled and a few sharp breezes shot out. As the wind interlaced, it actually faintly locked onto Xiao Yan. This kind of swift and precise action was really worthy of being a strong person of the Dou Ling class.

The rushing, sharp wind that came from behind him caused Xiao Yan to furrow his brows. The Heavy Xuan Ruler in his hand was abruptly inserted into the ground. His body, which was charging forward, came to a stop. Bending his knees, Xiao Yan immediately shot toward the sky. The Purple Cloud Wings appeared with the trembling of his shoulders. Without any hesitation, he flapped the pair of wings and wildly shot out of the Misty Cloud Mountain.

“Xiao Yan, you will stay behind!”

As he eyed Xiao Yan who was charging into the sky, Yun Leng let out a stern cry. He waved his hand and the bodies of three white robe elders, who were the oldest on the stone platform, vibrated. They actually slowly disappeared. When they reappeared, they were already in a triangle formation, completely blocking Xiao Yan’s path of retreat. Three surging Qis flooded out of the three bodies and their powerful suppressing force was firmly locked onto Xiao Yan.

In the sky, the Dou Qi wings on the backs of the three white robed elders slowly flapped. Due to the enormous Dou Qi spilling over, they actually caused the surrounding space to become a little distorted.

“Three Dou Wangs. The Misty Cloud Sect’s strength is indeed terrifying.” As he eyed the Dou Qi wings on the backs of the three white robed old men, Xiao Yan’s expression immediately became a little ugly.

“Xiao Yan, if you are not guilty, why are you in such a hurry to leave?” Yun Leng lifted his head and coldly eyed Xiao Yan. Immediately, his gaze glanced over toward the people gathered in the huge trees. In a deep voice, he said, “Everyone, seeing Xiao Yan’s action, it seems that Xiao Yan is really involved with Mo Cheng’s death. Therefore, before the Sect Leader returns, we cannot allow him to leave. This matter is quite serious and I beg all of you for your understanding.”

These words of Yun Leng which carried a little sternness which caused Fa Ma and the others to knit their eyebrows together. They glanced at each other and decided to temporarily watch the situation.

Seeing that no one had come forward to stop them, Yun Leng also sighed in relief. His gaze once again turned toward Xiao Yan. He slowly raised his palm and was about to give the order to capture Xiao Yan.

“First Elder, is there some misunderstanding regarding this matter? I have exchanged blows with him earlier. If he really is the one who killed Mo Cheng, he would not have had such a tough battle with me.” Before Yun Leng gave the order, Nalan Yanran hesitated for a moment before she could no longer resist opening her mouth to speak.

“Yanran, you should temporarily not be concerned about this matter. No matter what, I must at least hold him until the Sect Leader returns. If I have really wronged him when that time comes, I, Yun Leng, will apologize to him.” Yun Leng waved his hand. His eyes coldly stared at Xiao Yan in midair as he waved his palm down.

“Capture him!”

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

As Yun Leng’s voice fell, the imposing presence of the three white robed old men who were in front of Xiao Yan soared abruptly. The pressure of the majestic force was like an imminent thunderstorm that covered the entire square.

A huge battle was imminent.