Chapter 454

Chapter 454: He’s No Longer the Little Boy from Back in the Day

Ming’s voice reverberated around the crowd.

Upon hearing Ming’s words, both Yi and Shan narrowed their eyes, clearly looking very displeased. They felt as if they were being looked down upon. Not “as if” – Ming was indeed looking down on Yi and Shan. In fact, Ming was deliberately belittling them. To make these guys behave, he had to make them realize the gap between them and himself; even some proper humiliation was necessary. Normal sparring wouldn’t work. By humiliating them to a certain extent, it would also serve as an intimidation tactic against those within the Xu Mansion with ulterior motives.

“Fifth Brother seems overly confident,” Yi said with a grin that didn’t reach his eyes, a glint of murderous intent flashing within.

Ming just smiled. “Big Brother, you’ll see once you try.”

“Hmph!” Yi scoffed, sending a talisman flying from his sleeve. The talisman ignited mid-air, transforming into a fiery dragon.

“Roar!” The fire dragon let out a fierce roar, causing the temperature in the courtyard to soar, heat waves sweeping through the entire yard. Some people were already sweating profusely.

Most of the people in the courtyard were ordinary folk who had never witnessed cultivators dueling. They thought the fire dragon conjured by the young master looked incredibly powerful, truly impressive, befitting of a great cultivator. In comparison, the small twig floating in the air near Fifth Young Master seemed rather pitiful.

However, just as everyone thought the fire dragon was about to engulf the twig, it emitted a streak of sword qi. A mere gust of sword wind swept past, and the fire dragon dissipated into thin air. It felt like chopping a worm with a kitchen knife.

Yi was startled. He knew Ming’s cultivation level; it was merely at the Dragon Gate Realm. So was his own. But how could the sword qi of a Dragon Gate Realm sword cultivator be so sharp? During his travels down the mountain, he had fought many cultivators beyond his level, including several Golden Core Realm sword cultivators. None of them could achieve such prowess.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Yi summoned two more talismans. One transformed into a giant hand, the other into a ferocious tiger, both charging straight toward the twig. But again, the twig emitted two streaks of sword qi, effortlessly destroying both the hand and the tiger. Not only that, the twig then darted toward Yi as if provoked.

Ii quickly leaped up to avoid it. Seeing this, Shan seized the opportunity and punched the twig with his Flame Yang Fist, filled with scorching flames. In Shan’s mind, this punch had shattered a small mountain before; how could it not break a twig? But when the punch landed, not only did the twig remain unscathed, but Shan was sent flying back, landing on the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

“Mountain….” Shan’s mother rushed forward upon seeing her son injured, helping him up.

Ii flew into the air, summoning numerous talismans to form the image of a fearsome Asura. The twig shot toward Ii like a spear. Behind Ii, the Asura wielded a long sabre, attempting to cut down the twig. However, the twig was like a divine weapon, easily breaking through the sabre and the Asura’s manifestation, piercing toward Ii’s chest. His pupils contracted sharply as he hastily pulled out a protective talisman.

The moment the talisman shattered, Ii plummeted into a pond in the courtyard, looking utterly disheveled. Qian Lady was startled and quickly ran over to the pond.

The twig remained suspended in the air, ceasing its attack.

Throughout the entire process, Ming sat calmly eating, never once lifting his head. Despite their best efforts, neither Yi nor Shan could break the twig.

“Ancestor, everyone, there are still matters I need to attend to. Please excuse me, enjoy your meal slowly.”

Ming placed down his chopsticks and bowed respectfully to Elderly Lady Xu and the elders at the table. Having eaten his meal and taught his lesson, with nothing else left to do, he decided to handle his cultivation progress promptly.

“Ah, alright.” The old patriarch finally reacted, saying to Ming, “Young Ming, take your time leaving, don’t forget the ancestral rites tomorrow.”

“Of course,” Ming nodded, strapping his Tang broadsword to his waist, and walked out of the courtyard. Everyone’s gaze followed him, filled with greater reverence.

Only when Ming stepped out of the courtyard did the twig fall to the ground. A playful little girl jumped off her chair and ran towards the twig.

“Marbles!”

Her mother was startled and hurriedly called her back, but the little girl had already reached the twig.

She picked it up and with a gentle effort, snapped it in half. She gleefully shouted to her mother, “Mommy, mommy, I did it! I broke the twig!”

“…”

Every man, woman, and child in the courtyard fell silent, no one daring to utter a word. Especially Qian Lady and Lin Lady, whose faces turned extremely pale. If they had lost under normal circumstances, where there was give-and-take in the fight, it would have been easier to swallow. They could have said, “Indeed, Fifth Young Master is worthy of being second on the Azurecloud List.”

But their sons suffered a complete defeat. A single twig injured their sons, and after Ming left, a little girl could snap that twig with ease.

“I’m full too.” The elderly lady stood up, glanced at Lin Lady seated nearby, and said nothing more. Fragrant Mud quickly helped the elderly lady walk away.

“Don’t even think about any schemes,” Shuiya said, taking a sip of wine. “From today onwards, whatever Ming says is equivalent to what the elderly lady says. Whatever rules Ming sets will be our Xu Mansion’s house laws. Are we clear?”

All the men and women seated at the main table nodded in agreement. “Yes.”

Shuiya stood up and walked away. At the main table, no one had any appetite, but no one dared to leave either.

Lin Lady stared at Phoenix in shock, her alluring peach blossom eyes seeming to ask, “When did Ming become so powerful?”

“You’ve noticed now?” Phoenix chuckled, gazing outside the courtyard, her eyes filled with pride and a tinge of nostalgia.

“Our Ming isn’t the little boy he used to be anymore.”