A quick note — tomorrow I'm heading to Wuhan. Haven't been back in nearly a year and a half, and it happens to be a classmate's wedding, so I'm going back to visit. Should be gone about three or four days. Updates won't go dark during this period; I should be able to keep up the two-a-day schedule.
*****************************
Huo Xingchen was shouting at the top of his lungs. This Huo young master — the infamous Zhongdu Wolf, the dissolute young master of the Huo family — who among the people present hadn't heard of him?
When he said that, both sides locked in fierce combat couldn't help but roll their eyes. Yang Zhao and Yang Shen's faces darkened even further.
Huo Xingchen planted himself right in the middle of the battlefield, an absolute hindrance. Everyone who launched attacks had to be careful to avoid him, and the surging True Yuan energy had to steer clear as well.
Otherwise, if someone actually injured this person, given his dandy temperament, he would certainly settle scores later. At that time, even with Yang Zhao and Yang Shen's protection, whoever hurt him wouldn't be able to escape the inevitable backlash.
Of everyone present, only those who also hailed from the Eight Great Families had the standing to engage him and subdue him. But with the battlefield in such chaos, neither Yang Zhao nor Yang Shen had the nerve to go down there personally.
Before Huo Xingchen had even finished speaking, a Shenyou Realm Third Stage warrior was knocked out of the fight by Qu Gaoyi, slamming right into his shoulder.
Young Master Huo exploded with rage on the spot, swinging a massive slap across the man's face while cursing: "Fuck! I already told you I'm Huo Xingchen, and you still can't watch where you're going? If you break something on me, can you afford to make it right?"
This Shenyou Realm Third Stage cultivator had already been beaten by Qu Gaoyi to the point where he could barely breathe, his blood and qi roiling uncontrollably, his chest heaving. To then be publicly slapped across the face by Huo Xingchen — his resentment and fury had nowhere to go. He opened his mouth and spat a mouthful of fresh blood before collapsing limply to the ground.
He had actually been knocked unconscious from sheer anger.
"What an blind fool!" Huo Xingchen snorted lightly.
Yang Zhao and Yang Shen's expressions grew uglier still. Huo Xingchen's behavior was utterly thuggish and rogue-like. Besides him, no young master among the Eight Great Families of Zhongdu would have had the shamelessness to pull something like this.
Ye Xinrou of the Ye family had a bitter smile appear on her delicate face, and Qiu Ziruo shook his head helplessly as well.
Everyone was ashamed to be seen alongside this man!
Qiu Yimeng, by contrast, stood not far away with an amused smile, enjoying the performance by young master Huo.
Huo Xingchen wandered through the chaotic battlefield as if no one else existed. Whoever saw him coming had to retreat and make way. This left Huo Xingchen bored out of his mind. He stood in place, scratched his head, and turned back dejectedly: "Qiu Yimeng, can I come back now? Nobody's fighting with me."
After what he'd said, who would dare fight him? He was the sole heir of the Huo family. Not like the other clans, which had at least several successors to carry on the bloodline.
"Just stand there and hold your position!" Qiu Yimeng replied with a smile. She'd suddenly realized that this dissolute young man could actually serve a surprisingly useful purpose.
"No way…" Huo Xingchen's face immediately crumpled.
From the outer ring, Ye Xinrou's beautiful eyes darted about as she said softly: "Second Young Master, let me go bring him back."
Although Ye Xinrou's fame wasn't as great as Qiu Yimeng's, she was still one of the outstanding figures among Zhongdu's younger generation. Some even referred to her and Qiu Yimeng as the two beautiful flowers of Zhongdu.
Moreover, her own strength was not weak. Paired with various high-grade Artifacts, she was more than capable of trading blows with an average Shenyou Realm First Stage warrior.
She felt somewhat confident about subduing Huo Xingchen. Others might not dare touch young master Huo, but that didn't mean the Eight Great Families couldn't.
Yang Zhao shook his head at this, his expression grave: "You're not his match."
Ye Xinrou was taken aback and let out a disbelieving laugh: "Second Young Master underestimates me. Don't let my delicate appearance fool you — I do have some skill."
Yang Zhao smiled faintly, with a hint of deeper meaning: "I naturally know your abilities and haven't underestimated you. It's you who has underestimated young master Huo."
Ye Xinrou's expression shifted to shock, and she said hesitantly: "You mean he…"
Yang Zhao chuckled softly: "Before the Yang family's descendants returned to Zhongdu, there were three most famous figures among the younger generation. Huo Xingchen was ranked among them at third. Did you think he became famous solely through his dandy antics and lechery? Xinrou, you underestimate the depth of the Huo family's foundation far too much."
Ye Xinrou's expression sobered, and she nodded gently: "Second Young Master makes a fair point. Perhaps because I dislike this person, I let that blind me to his true capabilities."
While the two were talking, Xiang Chu, standing beside them, subtly caught the eye of a Shenyou Realm expert below.
The Shenyou Realm expert understood the signal, silently breaking away from the formation besieging Qu Gaoyi, and crept toward Xiang Tianxiao, who was locked in combat with a peak Zhenyuan Realm warrior.
The battlefield was chaos — no one had the presence of mind to notice such a small detail. Not even Xiang Tianxiao himself was aware.
Moments later, the Shenyou Realm expert had reached a position not far from Xiang Tianxiao. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as an invisible, traceless wave of Divine Sense erupted.
At that exact moment, for reasons unknown, young master Huo stumbled on his feet and happened to shift several steps to the left.
Those few critical steps placed him squarely in front of Xiang Tianxiao.
The Divine Sense blast surged into his brain and detonated.
A ring of azure-blue light radiated outward from Huo Xingchen's body — it was the soul-protecting Artifact he carried, automatically activating in defense.
Seeing the azure-blue halo shimmer around him, Huo Xingchen cast a suspicious glance left and right, his gaze landing squarely on the Shenyou Realm expert who had attacked Xiang Tianxiao.
As if only just realizing what had happened, Huo Xingchen broke into a savage grin: "Motherfucker! You actually dare use a soul technique to attack this young master? You've got some nerve! Good thing I had a soul Artifact on me, or you might have actually gotten away with it!"
That person had never expected such a turn of events. His soul nearly fled his body in shock.