Everyone stared dumbfounded at Ye Xuan on the life-and-death stage, their eyes filled with disbelief!
The patriarch of the Ye family, Ye Cang, had turned pale at this moment, his hands clenched tightly, his whole demeanor like that of a lost soul.
As for the Great Elder and others, they were completely petrified!
A Sword Cultivator!
There had never been a Sword Cultivator in Qing City!
How could Ye Xuan possibly be a Sword Cultivator?
An Lanxiu was about to speak when the Great Elder suddenly roared, "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! You can't be a Sword Cultivator!"
Ye Xuan glanced at the nearly hysterical Great Elder and said, "Sorry to disappoint you, but I am indeed a Sword Cultivator. I guess that really pisses you off, old dog!"
"Pfft!"
The Great Elder suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, pointing at Ye Xuan with a ferocious expression!
Suddenly, he seemed to think of something and quickly turned to look at Ye Cang, "Patriarch, this person cannot be allowed to live. If he remains, he will surely bring disaster to our Ye family in the future!"
At that moment, An Lanxiu frowned slightly, "You really have a poor character. Such conduct is something I've never seen before!"
The Great Elder's expression changed. He was about to say something when An Lanxiu suddenly said, "Say another word, and today I will take your head."
The Great Elder turned pale immediately, not daring to say another word.
The nearby City Lord Jiang Nian and others had already turned to look at him, their expressions unfriendly!
An Lanxiu ignored the Ye family members, whose faces looked terrible. Instead, she looked at Ye Xuan and said, "Draw your sword."
Ye Xuan bowed slightly, holding his Lingxiao Sword, pointing it diagonally at the ground, standing completely still.
Facing him, An Lanxiu nodded slightly. She took a step forward, and in that instant, Ye Xuan took a sudden step forward, his speed as swift as a breeze!
Ye Xuan's Lingxiao Sword pointed straight at An Lanxiu!
Just one strike!
A very simple, direct strike!
At that moment, An Lanxiu leaned slightly to the side, and the next moment, she thrust her spear forward, directly clashing against the tip of Ye Xuan's sword.
Clang!
A piercing sound of metal clashing echoed throughout the stage.
Ye Xuan was directly pushed to the edge of the stage, but the next instant, he reappeared in front of An Lanxiu. However, before he could attack, An Lanxiu's spear was already a mere half-inch away from his forehead!
However, there was a hint of surprise in An Lanxiu's eyes, as Ye Xuan's sword was pressed against the tip of her spear. She wanted to stop the attack, but even if she hadn't, this strike still wouldn't have been able to kill Ye Xuan!
An Lanxiu's lips curved slightly, "Your combat sense is quite impressive!"
As her voice fell, her right hand lightly flicked, and her spear, as agile as a venomous snake, swept toward Ye Xuan's shoulder from an unusual angle.
Almost simultaneously, Ye Xuan lunged forward, using the momentum of An Lanxiu's strike to stab his sword towards An Lanxiu's heart!
Trading injury for an opportunity to attack!
The smile on An Lanxiu's lips widened, and without any apparent movement, her spear suddenly blocked Ye Xuan's sword from a vertical position!
Clang!
Another piercing clash of metal rang out!
The first strike failed, and Ye Xuan's figure floated to the right like a ghost, his sword stabbing downwards at An Lanxiu from an unusual angle!
The sword stopped half an inch from An Lanxiu's forehead, as An Lanxiu's spear had somehow already reached Ye Xuan's armpit. Just as it seemed like it was over, Ye Xuan suddenly released his sword, grabbed An Lanxiu's spear with both hands, and fiercely pulled it forward, crashing towards An Lanxiu.
An Lanxiu narrowed her eyes, her right foot lightly tapping the ground as she floated backward. However, since Ye Xuan was still holding onto her spear, her move pulled Ye Xuan along, and he took advantage of it to grab hold of An Lanxiu, catching her by surprise!
Under everyone's gaze, Ye Xuan hugged An Lanxiu tightly and then roared, slamming her down with a suplex!
Boom!
Both of them crashed to the ground, causing the life-and-death stage to tremble slightly.
However, the next moment, a figure was sent flying!
That figure flew out of the life-and-death stage entirely!
It was none other than Ye Xuan!
Outside the stage, Ye Xuan slowly got up. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, looked at An Lanxiu, and said, "No offense intended!"
An Lanxiu gave Ye Xuan a once-over, smiling, "I understand. I am a martial artist and am not delicate. I thought your swordsmanship was quite good, but I didn't expect that not only is your swordsmanship good, but you're also skilled in close combat. It seems you've experienced countless life-and-death battles."
Ye Xuan nodded slightly without saying a word.
An Lanxiu continued, "Our battle today relied heavily on my advantage in cultivation, which is a bit unfair. Let's fight again in the future, how about it?"
Ye Xuan looked at An Lanxiu and then nodded, "Alright!"
The person in front of him was a true expert. Sparring with her benefited him more than fighting the shadow.
An Lanxiu nodded, then seemed to think of something. She flicked her finger, and a white jade pendant floated towards Ye Xuan, "If you have no other destination, you may go to Cangmu Academy in the imperial capital. This is my personal jade pendant. With it, you can join Cangmu Academy as my recommendation."
Hearing this, Ye Xuan's expression changed. He did not refuse but accepted the pendant because he needed to join Cangmu Academy to seek treatment for his sister!
Ye Xuan put away the pendant and then cupped his hands towards An Lanxiu, "This great kindness cannot be expressed in words. I, Ye Xuan, will remember it for life!"
An Lanxiu shook her head, "I appreciate talent. Farewell!"
With that, she turned and left.
She left without hesitation, and soon, An Lanxiu disappeared from everyone's sight.
At that moment, everyone below turned their attention to the Ye family. Especially Jiang Nian and the others, who were all smiling maliciously.
Just then, the middle-aged man and woman from Yan City walked up to Ye Xuan, and both cupped their hands towards him. The middle-aged man said, "Young Master Ye, if you have the chance, please come visit Yan City and Luo City."
They wanted to make an alliance.
They had intended to recruit Ye Xuan, but now that An Lanxiu had recommended him to Cangmu Academy, they dared not recruit him directly but could only seek to establish a connection.
Ye Xuan cupped his hands towards them, "If I have the chance, I surely will!"
The middle-aged man smiled, "Then it's a deal. Farewell!"
With that, they turned and left.
At that moment, Ye Cang suddenly said, "Someone, take the Great Elder away!"
The members of the Ye family were stunned for a moment. Soon, some guards went to the Great Elder. He showed no expression and did not resist as he was taken away!
Ye Cang looked at Ye Xuan, hesitated for a moment, then said, "Ye Xuan, from now on, you will be the heir of the Ye family and the next patriarch..."
"Heir?"
Ye Xuan sneered, "Who cares about your heir position? From now on, I, Ye Xuan, reiterate once more—I am no longer a member of the Ye family!"
With that, he turned and walked away from the Ye Mansion.
Hearing Ye Xuan's words, Ye Cang and the others looked extremely grim!
Very grim!
They knew full well that Ye Xuan was no longer part of the Ye family. And the Ye family had thus lost an extraordinary talent, a Sword Cultivator at that, who might even hold a grudge against the family!
"Haha..."
Just then, the patriarch of the Zhang family, Zhang Lie, suddenly burst into laughter, "What an impressive Ye family, haha... You actually forced a peerless genius away. Your Ye family is truly remarkable, haha..."
Nearby, Li Yu laughed as well, "Not just a peerless genius, but a Sword Cultivator! In my opinion, that so-called heavenly omen was probably also caused by Ye Xuan. Otherwise, An Lanshou would never have come looking for him. It's laughable that the Ye family thought it was Ye Lang who triggered it. Truly ridiculous!"
The City Lord Jiang Nian smiled faintly, saying nothing, but the smile on his face spoke volumes!
Ye Cang clenched his right hand tightly, his face dark as iron. After a moment, he looked at Jiang Nian, "City Lord Jiang, Master Li, Patriarch Zhang, regarding previous matters, my Ye family wishes to make amends..."
Before he could finish, Zhang Lie suddenly waved his hand, "Make amends? Previously, your Ye family was all high and mighty, claiming to be Qing City's number one family and even wanting the ten-year mining rights of the nearby mountains. What now, you want to bow out and let bygones be bygones? Dream on!"
With that, he swept his cold gaze over the members of the Ye family, "Let me be clear, from this moment onwards, if anyone from the Ye family dares to set foot outside the mansion, my Zhang family will destroy them!"
Li Yu suddenly said, "My Li family will do the same. Any Ye family member who dares enter our sights will be killed without mercy!"
With that, he looked at Jiang Nian, "City Lord Jiang, what do you think?"
Jiang Nian smiled faintly, "Brother Li, Brother Zhang, naturally, I stand with you."
"Haha..."
Hearing this, Li Yu burst into laughter.
As for the members of the Ye family, their faces turned ashen. Needless to say, the Ye family was finished in Qing City!
At that moment, Ye Cang suddenly walked up to the Great Elder and slapped him fiercely across the face, "It's all your fault, old dog!"
Bang!
The Great Elder was sent sprawling to the ground by the slap, and all the members of the Ye family looked at him with hatred. If not for the Great Elder, the Ye family would not be in such a dire situation!
The Great Elder suddenly burst into mad laughter, "Ye Xuan was right. In this Ye family, once you lose your position, you're worse than a dog, haha..."
Ye Cang glared at the Great Elder, "Destroy his dantian and lock him in the water dungeon for the rest of his life!"
...
Ye Xuan returned to his room. He walked to the bedside, and Ye Ling looked at him, her eyes brightening as she smiled. However, as she smiled, tears began to flow.
Ye Xuan smiled as well.
"Brother!"
Ye Ling sat up and hugged Ye Xuan tightly, very tightly.
Ye Xuan carried Ye Ling on his back and walked out of the room, then left the Ye Mansion.
At dusk.
In Ye Lang's courtyard, Ye Lang sat cross-legged, his hair disheveled, his face twisted in rage, "Ye Xuan, our matter is not over! The humiliation of today will be repaid a hundredfold in the future!"
At that moment, a figure suddenly landed behind Ye Lang. In the next instant, a silver light flashed across Ye Lang's neck.
Shh!
Ye Lang's head was severed from his body!
The person was, of course, Ye Xuan!
Ye Xuan looked coldly at Ye Lang's head on the ground, "Sorry, I, Ye Xuan, do not leave loose ends."
With that, he turned and left.
Outside Qing City.
A young man was carrying a little girl as they walked towards the outskirts of the city.
"Brother, are we never going back to the Ye family?"
"Never."
"Brother, then where will our home be in the future?"
"Wherever my sister is, that's my home!"
"Cough... Brother, I'm feeling a bit cold."
"I'll take you to get treated!"
"Brother, what if the treatment doesn't work?"
"Then I'll die with you!"
"..."