Qingyun Town.

The Black Tiger Gang.

Inside the heavily guarded main hall.

A burly member of the Black Tiger Gang hurried in, his face masked with panic as he shouted to the middle-aged man seated at the head of the hall:

“Gang Leader! Disaster has struck!”

Seeing this, the Black Tiger Gang Leader, Li Hu, frowned and coldly rebuked him:

“What has happened? What is with all this shouting and panic? Have you no sense of decorum!”

Li Hu was originally an Outer Sect Disciple of a minor cultivation sect. Due to his abysmally poor aptitude, he failed to break through to the sixth level of Qi Refining even after turning thirty and was ultimately expelled. Left with no choice, he could only return to the mundane world.

Strength at the fifth level of Qi Refining counted for little in the cultivation world, but placed within the mortal realm, it made him a veritable local expert.

Relying on his cultivation and ruthless methods, Li Hu quickly gathered several hundred subordinates, founded the Black Tiger Gang, and became the undisputed authority in this small backwater called Qingyun Town—practically a local tyrant.

His authority within the gang was absolute. After his rebuke, the subordinate immediately fell silent, trembling as he replied:

“R-reporting to the Gang Leader… an unknown cultivator has arrived outside. That person claims to be Qi Yuan’s cousin. He keeps shouting that he wants to find Hall Master Xu to avenge his cousin, and he has already injured several of our brothers.”

“A cultivator?!”

Hearing this, Li Hu’s heart skipped a beat, and his eyelids twitched violently.

He didn’t care about the victim’s name; too many people had died directly or indirectly by his hand for him to remember each one.

But a cultivator causing trouble at their doorstep was a different matter. His background was unknown. If they had provoked someone powerful, the consequences would be catastrophic.

However, judging from his subordinate’s description, it seemed the newcomer’s strength wasn’t much to write home about—most likely a blustering fool putting on a brave front.

The logic was simple: if the other party were truly a high-level cultivator seeking revenge, they wouldn’t need to go through all this trouble. They could simply obliterate his insignificant Black Tiger Gang with a wave of a hand.

Furthermore, true experts were mostly arrogant figures who wouldn’t deign to even look at ordinary mortals without cultivation.

Yet, this fellow had attacked his mortal gang members while challenging them, merely injuring them instead of killing them. This proved his schemes weren’t deep enough, and his methods weren’t ruthless enough—his cultivation level definitely couldn’t be high.

After all, Li Hu would never dream that a Golden Core expert would come to such a remote town just to deceive a minor character like him, a mere fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator…

Though he rationalized it this way, Li Hu still rose and entered the rear hall. From a hidden compartment, he retrieved an oddly shaped small hammer and carefully tucked it into his sleeve.

With this trump-card magical artifact in hand, his spirits immediately lifted. He promptly flew to the front hall and barked an order:

“Pass down the command! Gather every brother currently in the compound and follow me out to meet this troublemaking thief.”

……

Meanwhile.

At the main entrance of the Black Tiger Gang.

Thud!

After kicking away a Black Tiger Gang lackey who had charged at him with a blade, Qi Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly. He looked up at the plaque above the gate, then casually flicked his finger.

Crack!

The wooden plaque fell with a crash, shattering into splinters on the ground.

All around, groups of Black Tiger Gang members lay scattered in disarray, their moans of pain rising and falling continuously.

Perhaps due to the Black Tiger Gang’s fearsome reputation—or fear of being caught in the crossfire—despite such a massive commotion, there wasn’t a single onlooker on the street. Vendors had packed up early; the entire street was eerily empty.

Seeing that the remaining Black Tiger Gang lackeys didn’t dare approach, Qi Yuan smiled faintly and slowly walked toward the inner courtyard, shouting loudly:

“Xu Biao! Get your ass out here and face your death!”

“If you don’t hand him over today, I’ll flatten your Black Tiger Gang to seek justice for my cousin!”

Qi Yao followed closely behind him, step by step, her pretty face filled with gratitude.

Although Qi Yao didn’t understand the profound meaning behind this mysterious expert’s actions, since he was actively picking a fight with the Black Tiger Gang, it certainly looked like he was standing up for her deceased brother. How could she not be grateful?

Brother Qi is truly a good person.

The moment they stepped through the Black Tiger Gang’s gate, an explosive roar sounded out:

“You dare cause trouble at the Black Tiger Gang? Are you tired of living?!”

Before the words faded, dozens of fierce-looking thugs surged out from the courtyard ahead.

Leading them was a broad-shouldered middle-aged man wearing a short jacket that barely contained his bulging muscles. A ferocious tiger was embroidered on his chest—this was none other than the Black Tiger Gang Leader, Li Hu.

Having confirmed the newcomer’s cultivation level, Li Hu completely relaxed, and killing intent surged in his heart.

Damn it.

This kid is only at the third level of Qi Refining. Who does he think he’s bluffing?

I originally thought it might be a tough customer, but it turns out it’s just some brat!

Thinking this, Li Hu spoke with a sinister tone:

“Kid, you’ve got quite some nerve daring to provoke our Black Tiger Gang. Unless you explain yourself properly today, I’m afraid you won’t be leaving!”

The implication was to probe Qi Yuan’s background and origins.

If he had backing, Li Hu would still be somewhat wary; otherwise… heh!

“Explain myself?”

Qi Yuan scoffed disdainfully.

“This young master is none other than the Holy Scion of the Supreme Mystery Sanctuary! Today, I’ve come specifically to avenge my cousin. If you still don’t hand him over now, I’ll dismantle your shabby gang!”

“Supreme Mystery Sanctuary?”

“Holy Scion?”

“You? Hahahaha—”

Hearing this, Li Hu was stunned for a moment before bursting into uproarious laughter, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world. He laughed so hard he nearly choked.

The other Black Tiger Gang members joined in with raucous laughter; an atmosphere of mockery filled the air.

“Young punk! If you’re going to make up stories, at least make them believable.”

Li Hu finally stopped laughing, his gaze toward Qi Yuan overflowing with menace.

“What kind of power is the Supreme Mystery Sanctuary? Forget about Holy Scions; even an ordinary servant coming out of there could crush our Black Tiger Gang into dust! How could they possibly act like street thugs, challenging us publicly?”

“If I believed that, I’d have to gouge my own eyes out for being blind.”

As he spoke, he shook his right arm, instantly summoning the magical artifact hidden within his sleeve.

“Brothers, attack! Chop this thief impersonating a Holy Scion into mincemeat and throw it into the yard to feed the dogs!”

“But capture that little beauty behind him alive! I’m really fuming right now!!!”

Boom!!!

Once it left his palm, the dark, small hammer expanded against the wind, smashing heavily toward where Qi Yuan stood.

“Brother Qi, careful!”

Beside him, Qi Yao cried out in fright, instinctively moving closer to Qi Yuan’s side.

Qi Yuan seemed frightened and dazed. He “flusteredly” pulled a dusty gray storage pouch from within his robes, extracted a small shield made entirely of crimson gold, and blocked it directly in front of him.

Thud!

A dull impact rang out. The magical artifact launched by Li Hu bounced off the small shield. The shockwave repelled the attacking Black Tiger Gang members, forcing them to retreat several steps.

Qi Yuan’s body trembled as he staggered back, his face turning extremely pale. A trace of blood “appropriately” seeped from the corner of his mouth, and his third-level Qi Refining aura noticeably weakened.

“Run! Quickly!”

He grabbed the hem of Qi Yao’s sleeve and began to “flee in panic” toward the outside of town.

“No wonder he dared to come here and challenge us… it turns out the kid has a decent quality magical artifact…”

Seeing this, Li Hu wasn’t alarmed but delighted. The greed in his heart blazed even fiercer. While hurriedly recovering the true qi consumed by using the artifact, he loudly urged his subordinates:

“Hurry! Chase after them for me! Whoever catches that kid will receive a heavy reward from this Gang Leader!”

Instantly, the entire Black Tiger Gang poured out under Li Hu’s lead, ferociously chasing in the direction the two had fled.