"Li Ye! You are a member of the Li clan but you have killed your own brethren! You are a traitor, and I will kill you today!"
For the sake of retaining his strength to fight Li Ye, he immediately forfeited his battle with his old rival Wu Batian. It was all for that moment, so the whole of Wu Prefecture City could watch him kill Li Ye!
Everyone knew that and therefore, the battle attracted the attention of many.
The Wu and Yuwen clans were intrigued as well. They wanted to see how the Li clan's internal feud would play out.
Li Ye jumped straight into the arena without declining.
"Traitor? Who's really the traitor here?"
An indifferent smile appeared on his face. He was not the boy whom everyone remembered as trash in the past. Everything that happened that fateful year, including Li Kainian's disappearance and the letter left to him, were vaguely pointing to many things.
Moreover, he noticed the attitude shown toward him—or more accurately, Li Kainian—by a majority of Li clan members was an indication that Li Kainian's disappearance was not as simple as it seemed.
Boom!
Their gazes collided in midair before they even fought. It was as if an infinite spark was created, bringing with it a heavy air flow that engulfed everything in its wake.
"Who will win?"
The answer to that question was what everyone wanted to know!
"Although the boy's performance has been eye-catching before, he still falls short against Li Mo. After all, he's facing one of the four prodigies of Wu Prefecture City. These four prodigies have been unshakeable individuals for many years, and his level is only latter phase Level Six. He's not even a Level Seven Martial Master yet. He has only a twenty percent chance of winning against a Level Nine Grandmaster like Li Mo!"
Many people agreed with that view as it was a more objective analysis. Except for Yuwen Wushuang—who left everyone else in his dust and made everyone despair in their attempt to catch up with him, the famous Li Mo had an undefeated track record, along with the rest of the two prodigies!
"With his latter phase Level Nine, not even those of the older generations are a match for Li Mo, let alone those of his peers."
Those in the crowd with the most convoluted expressions were from the Li clan.
If Li Ye had not killed Li Yue and angered the Head Elder's faction, his tally of victories thus far was enough to make the family extremely proud! He would become the new generation's rising star, just like Li Mo!
"Such a pity! If it wasn't for Li Yue's murder, Li Ye would have become the Li clan's double star alongside Li Mo! Li Ye is younger compared to Li Mo and has already displayed a strength exceeding that of Level Seven, despite only being at Level Six. His combat strength might even be the same with a Level Eight Eminent Master! "
Some Li elders felt a streak of helplessness in their hearts. In fact, they opined that Li Ye was more suitable for the development of the family, rather than the so-called genius Li Yue who did not think highly of anyone else. At the time, the Li clan was under complete control by the Head Elder and his faction.
"Li Ye, your biggest mistake is to show up and return to the clan! If you endured for a few more years, we probably wouldn't have any reason to do anything to you. Such a pity! It's unfortunate that you are so stupid!"
Lowering his voice, Li Mo's eyes revealed a hint of scorn, as if mocking Li Ye's naivete.
Li Mo was incredibly distressed by Li Ye's progress. Half a month ago, Li Ye had less than half his present strength during the inner disciples' battle! It was way below half, even!
Li Mo did not take Li Ye seriously at all two weeks ago!
Unfortunately, the Prodigy Summit's battles made him realize how ridiculous his earlier opinion was. Li Ye was no longer the trash that was chased out of the Li clan! Even Li Mo was unable to help himself from feeling that ruthlessness when watching Li Yue being killed by a mere three strikes of the palm! Though he viewed his brother as a piece of trash as well, it was far from easy for him to kill his brother with just three thrusts of the palm!
"I'll slaughter you outright in the arena!"
As Li Mo uttered that, he flashed an abrupt sinister smile and whispered, "I know the elders have been protecting you secretly, but the elders are no longer here. This time, no one can save you!"
Whoa! Before those words were heard, a powerful vital force three times stronger than that of Li Ye's erupted forward suddenly.
A palm's formidable force rushed onto Li Ye's face and destroyed his entire body. However, everyone noticed that it was just an afterimage. The real Li Ye had shifted his position in quick succession, executing the Footstep Mirage at once.
Boom!
Li Mo's attack came suddenly, but each one only managed to strike Li Ye's doppelgangers.
"Footstep Mirage!"
Li Mo's had a serious look on his face. He used to study that particular Yellow Rank Advanced technique but gave up in the end due to its extreme difficulty. Seeing Li Ye execute the technique with such ease invoked slight feelings of envy in Li Mo.
Up in the stands, the three clans' seniors followed the battle closely. They noticed that it took relatively quickly for things to turn out unexpectedly.
"Although this kid's level isn't that high, he is very proficient in physical techniques and has a keen awareness of danger, something ordinary people do not have!"
The Wu patriarch whispered softly and his eyes lit up.
It was plainly obvious that Li Ye was only latter phase Level Six. Reaching the finals with that sort of cultivation was an uphill task and no one expected Li Ye to go the distance.
To think that he could do all that even when facing Li Mo, whose name had made the rounds in Wu Prefecture City for some years already.
"If you give him five years, no, three! It might be enough for him to be on par with the other three prodigies, except Yuwen Wushuang!"
Li Ye was only sixteen or seventeen after all. All of Wu Prefecture City's Four Great Prodigies were at least twenty years-old! The period of a few years was enough to change a lot of things!
"Other than Yuwen Wushuang, the rest of the three prodigies did not have such powerful combat strength at that age!"
Indeed! Combat strength! No one was going to emphasize Li Ye's Martial Spirit Level anymore. They were more concerned about his combat strength!
He was at latter phase Level Six, yet his strength was above Level Seven and was almost as formidable as a Level Eight Eminent Master!
"This is interesting. I did not expect two good seeds in a row from this desolate town."
All of a sudden, those from the Three Great Clans heard a gentle chuckle coming from beside them. Head Elder Li's expression changed in an instant, with coldness emerging and intensifying in his eyes.
On the other hand, the Wu and Yuwen clans were horrified! The Yuwen patriarch's eyes flickered, but he relaxed as soon as he looked at Yuwen Wushuang. The young man was standing behind him with closed eyes, recuperating with detachment from the world.
"No matter what happens, Wushuang is destined to enter there. That kid definitely won't live today!"
No one noticed the flash of killing intent in the Wu and Yuwen clans.
The mysterious trio seemed to sense something, but they simply smiled coldly with regard to those actions and did not seem bothered by them.
Thump!
Down below, Li Ye and Li Mo slammed into each other's fists and were almost struck out from the arena.
"I'll be honest. I admire your courage. You had the choice to forfeit, in which case, I really can't do anything to you before the Prodigy Summit ends. Unfortunately, you gave up that opportunity."
In contrast to Li Ye, not even a single corner of Li Mo's clothes was ruffled. The latter had a relatively calm expression.
Wiping off the blood from the corner of his mouth, Li Ye glanced over at Li Daokui in the stands. Li Ye knew full well that Li Daokui and others would never let him live after he had killed Li Yue!
"I wonder what that decrepit Li Daokui would feel if he witnessed another one of his grandsons die in front of him."
That sentence immediately made Li Daokui tremble in anger. The rage in his eyes was like a volcanic eruption and his formidable vital force threatened to engulf everything!
Even Li Mo was briefly stunned before bursting into laughter.
"Li Ye! I have to admit that you are really naïve! Do you mean to say that you can kill me, one of the four prodigies of Wu Prefecture City? You want to kill a latter phase Level Nine Grandmaster like me? On what grounds? You're a piece of trash that hasn't even reached Level Seven! Hahaha! "
Many people shook their heads. Li Ye's incredible arrogance slashed his chances in the eyes of those who felt optimistic for him. Even people like Li Yuanjia, who did not want Li Ye to fall out with the clan, had a bitter smile and thought that Li Ye was simply uttering nonsense in the face of despair.
"Haha, this kid is interesting!"
The Wu and Yuwen clans expressed looks of disdain. It was especially refreshing to see the expression plastered all over the face of the Li clan's dictatorial Li Daokui. It felt good!
Even the trio, whom the Three Great Clans treated with such esteem, had a different expression on their face.
The fat man among them spoke for the first time toward the arena. "Kid, if you can kill your current opponent in the arena, I will make you a disciple of the Nine Flowers Sect!"
The Nine Flowers Sect!
Everyone lost their minds at that moment!
"Those three turned out to be Masters from the Nine Flowers Sect? Goodness me!"
"Nine Flowers Sect? Isn't that one of the rumored Eight Elite Sects?"
Some people below went crazy, but of course, there were still some ignorant individuals who had no clue what the Nine Flowers Sect stood for, including Li Ye.
"Nine Flowers Sect?" He had only ever heard of the Dark Heaven Sect and that was because of his relationship with Li Yating and Xiao Qing. Eight Elite Sects? Everything seemed strange and foreign to him.
"Your Excellency! You..."
The Wu patriarch became anxious. Even Yu Wenshuang, who was standing at one side, opened his eyes wide. He then directed his sharp gaze to the arena, staring profoundly at the inexplicable young man. For some reason, he felt a sudden stir in his heart—it was something that he never felt for more than a decade.
"No!"
Li Daokui yelled all of a sudden and his expression was extremely ugly. If Li Ye entered the Nine Flowers Sect, his chance to deal with the boy was all but gone. In the future, Li Ye might even become a serious threat to his position in the Li clan!