Gang Qi arced like a rainbow, and killing intent surged like a tide.

They were here to kill, not just to steal the Spirit Medicine.

Lu Ren had told him to be clever and just stay hidden. But there was nowhere to hide. They had specifically sent a Gang Qi expert to kill him.

’In that case, I’ll have to reveal my Gang Qi Cultivation today. It’s been long enough; revealing it now won’t be a big deal.’

A fierce wind howled as the Gang Qi tore through the air. Just as it was about to slam into him, Xu Yang moved.

He twisted aside, and the searing Gang Qi grazed past his body, slamming into the ground.

The ground trembled. Flagstones shattered, sending shards of rock flying. A deep crater formed where the attack landed, with cracks spiderwebbing outward.

’If I truly only had a Qi Gathering Cultivation, that blast of Gang Qi would have torn me in two.’

In just two steps, Xu Yang’s figure vanished. A searing blast of his own Gang Qi erupted, propelling him forward like a thunderbolt.

Amid a roar from his very bones and sinews, he unleashed the punch he had been charging.

A series of eleven sharp cracks rang out as his fist, empowered by the Eleventh Layer of Force, ripped through the assassin’s Protective Gang Qi and crashed down like a meteor.

Before the punch even landed, the sheer force of its approach tore the mask from the assassin’s face, revealing a visage so pale it seemed to have never seen the sun.

"Gang Qi!" The assassin’s pupils contracted.

’This isn’t Qi Gathering Cultivation! He’s a Gang Qi expert, just like me!’

Caught completely off guard and still suspended in mid-air, he could only watch as Xu Yang’s fist smashed into his chest.

A tyrannical blast of Gang Qi erupted, pouring from the fist and driving the full might of the Eleventh Layer of Force into the assassin’s body.

BANG!

CRACK!

A sickening crunch of breaking bone echoed as the point of impact on his chest caved in. The assassin’s pale face contorted in agony, and he spat out a mouthful of blood thick with fragments of his internal organs.

WHOOSH!

With a strangled cry, he was sent flying backward even faster than he’d arrived, spewing blood in mid-air as his body convulsed violently.

He wouldn’t have been defeated so easily. But his arrogance, born from the assumption that Xu Yang was merely a Qi Gathering cultivator, was his downfall. He had attacked from a distance with his Gang Qi, giving Xu Yang the perfect opportunity to close the gap. With a single punch, Xu Yang had shattered his Protective Gang Qi and landed a solid blow from his Thunder Shock Fist, backed by the full might of the Eleventh Layer of Force.

THUD!

His body slammed into the compound wall, stopping his momentum and leaving a web of cracks on its surface.

"Help—"

His face was a mask of terror as he opened his mouth to call for help, but Xu Yang was already on him, fast as a shadow.

He had barely choked out a single syllable when Xu Yang’s fist crushed his throat.

CRACK!

With another crack of breaking bone, he clutched his throat in agony as his body slowly crumpled to the ground.

"Aaaargh..."

A scream echoed from the front.

Xu Yang’s heart sank. ’That was Gu Haoming’s voice. He must be critically injured; otherwise, he wouldn’t scream like that in the middle of a battle.’

"Quick, signal for reinforcements!" another roar echoed.

It was Jin Lei.

’His voice is filled with a frantic helplessness. What kind of powerful enemy are they facing that he can’t even fire the signal flare?’

’These idiots really got in over their heads.’

The sounds of clashing Gang Qi echoed from all directions. Neither Lu Ren nor Hu Fengyi had a free hand to fire the signal. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Left with no other choice, Xu Yang took the signal flare from his waist and pulled the cord. A moment later, a firework erupted in the sky above the Hundred Medicine Hall, bathing the night in light.

Cyan Yang City owed its existence to the Purple Sun Sect, and its administration was naturally filled with sect members. Many of them lived within the city walls. Seeing the distress signal, someone would surely come to their aid soon.

"That worthless Liu San! He couldn’t even kill a single Qi Gathering Martial Artist and let him get a signal flare off!"

"We have what we came for. Let’s go!"

"We’ll punish him when we get back."

The shouts came from up ahead. Clearly, with the distress signal fired, the attackers didn’t dare to linger. They were afraid that if experts from the Purple Sun Sect arrived, not a single one of them would escape.

Xu Yang bent down and frisked the corpse. He found a few silver banknotes but nothing else.

Once he was done, he leaped into a large nearby tree to lie in wait.

After a while, the sounds of fighting up ahead died down. He jumped down from the tree and, hoisting the corpse, walked forward.

The warehouse area had been reduced to rubble. Craters of varying depths pockmarked the ground. The warehouse’s iron doors had been violently blasted open, and its contents were scattered everywhere.

Jin Lei’s face was pale with fury, his hair a mess. There was a trace of dried blood at the corner of his mouth, but the extent of his injuries was unclear.

Gu Haoming was in the worst condition. He sat miserably on the ground, clutching one arm that appeared to be broken. His forehead was beaded with cold sweat from the pain, and a bloody Fist Seal on his chest was still oozing blood.

Hu Fengyi had clearly been struck by a blade; a gash more than half a foot long on his chest exposed the bone beneath.

Although it looked the most gruesome, a flesh wound like this wasn’t severe for a Gang Qi expert. It would heal completely after a few days of rest.

Lu Ren approached from another direction, his steps heavy. The webbing on both of his hands was split and bleeding, and a faint Palm Seal was visible on his ribs.

All four of them looked grim. They had blundered badly—not only had they failed to earn any merit, but the Spirit Medicine had been stolen right from under their noses.

When they saw Xu Yang approaching with a corpse, all four of them turned to look, their faces filled with astonishment.

’Xu Yang actually killed one of them?’

’No wonder he was the one who managed to fire the signal flare.’

Lu Ren’s expression was particularly complex—a mixture of shock, disbelief, and acute embarrassment. The bold pronouncements he’d made to Xu Yang earlier now felt like a sharp slap to his own face.

"We have to go after them! We can’t let them escape!" Jin Lei said through gritted teeth.

"We can’t," Hu Fengyi countered. "If we give chase, who’s going to guard this place?"

Just as Gu Haoming was about to speak, a sharp sound cut through the air. A figure drifted down from the rooftops, their domineering aura kicking up a wave of air and dust. As the dust settled, a slender figure was revealed.

The newcomer was dressed in white, with sharp, sword-like eyebrows and eyes as bright as stars. He held a longsword in one hand, and his gaze seemed to glow in the darkness.