Behind Huo Jianghe was a middle-aged man with a bulky build. He was dressed in a suit of armor, and his eyes were filled with an imposing aura. Xue Qin, who was about to leave, immediately stopped when she saw this person. She bowed and said, "Father! Senior Huo! "
He was the city lord of Xuanjiang City, Xue Gan, who had been killed by Zhang Xuan with a single slash.
Behind the two of them were a dozen or so youngsters, all of them around sixteen or seventeen years old. Every single one of them possessed extraordinary strength.
They were all young talents who had come to participate in the assessment.
"Nephew Jiang He …"
Noticing that Zhang Xuan had interrupted Xue Chen's interrogation, City Lord Xue Gan looked at him doubtfully.
As the city lord of Xuanjiang City, he had to accompany the candidates personally. Yet, who could have thought that Huo Jianghe would insist on coming all the way here right after the preliminary selection? This left him bewildered.
"The second round will be held here. With so many people watching, it will be more fair and just!" Nodding, Huo Jianghe turned around and sat in the middle of the room.
He was representing the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion in this examination. Even though Xue Gan was the city lord, he had no choice but to sit on the sidelines.
Xue Chen was dumbstruck.
He was in the middle of an interrogation, yet he came over to take the test. What should he do next?
"Senior Brother Huo, as a member of Xuanjiang City, can I take part in the test?"
Dan Xiaotian said loudly.
"Of course!"
Huo Jianghe nodded.
"Young Master Huo, Dan Xiaotian is only a Saint 6-dan cultivator, and his cultivation is extremely low. On top of that, he has colluded with bandits and harmed the civilians of the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion.
Xue Chen was extremely anxious.
Even though Zhang Xuan knew that it was impossible for him to be selected even if he were to participate in the examination, but... if he were to really participate in the examination, the interrogation would become incongruous.
"You said I'm weak?"
Dan Xiaotian asked.
"That's right! A crippled Saint 6-dan cultivator, a person who can't even match up to an ordinary cultivator. If this isn't low, what else can it be? "Xue Chen frowned.
"Since that's the case, I would like to ask … Second Young Mistress, how strong is Xue Qin?" Dan Xiaotian asked calmly.
"Our young mistress is a genius. She's only sixteen this year, but her cultivation has already reached Great Sage 3-dan consummation. She'll be able to make a breakthrough at any moment now!" Xue Chen said proudly.
"Hehe!"
Dan Xiaotian's eyebrows suddenly shot up.
Buzz buzz buzz!
Sword Qi immediately shot out from his fingertips. The moment the chains on his wrists touched the Sword Qi, they immediately broke into pieces!
After breaking free from the shackles, the aura of the young man continued to surge, and in the blink of an eye, it had already reached Great Sage 3-dan consummation. At the same time, his bent back gradually straightened as well. Even though he was not as tall as Zhang Xuan, he was still around 1.75 meters tall.
Most importantly, as he slowly walked forward, his leg did not look like it was crooked at all!
In fact, even his appearance seemed to have changed, becoming more resolute and handsome. Compared to him, the dozen or so youths from before all felt inferior.
"This is impossible …"
Xue Qin's eyeballs were about to pop out from their sockets.
In her heart, this fellow was the synonym of weak and useless. Never in her dreams had she imagined that he would suddenly undergo a tremendous change, and it was simply as if he'd become a completely different person!
Paying no heed to Luo Ruoxin, Dan Xiaotian took a few steps forward before glancing at Xue Chen, and his lips curled up into a smile. "Despite being in the same cultivation realm, I'm a trash whereas the Second Young Mistress is a genius. May I know what kind of judgment Instructor Xue Chen has in mind? Toe or butt? "
"You …"
Xue Chen took a step back in shock.
When did this fellow become a cultivator? Not to mention, he was even at Great Sage 3-dan consummation?
They weren't the only ones. The crowd had fallen silent as well.
Previously, the reason they gave was that Dan Xiaotian was unable to cultivate, so he colluded with the bandits to prevent Xue Qin from becoming a disciple of the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion. But now that he had become so powerful, his reason was no longer convincing!
"All of you, make a move against me together!"
Dan Xiaotian said with a smile as he turned to the dozen or so youths that Senior Huo had brought with him.
"You want to make a move against me together?"
The crowd was taken aback for a moment. However, upon seeing Senior Huo nod his head in agreement, a glint flashed across their eyes, and they swiftly thrust their swords forward.
Using his finger as a sword, Dan Xiaotian grabbed forward like an eagle's claw, snatching the sword from a young man's hand. With a flick of his wrist, he brandished the sword.
Tzzzzzzz!
More than a dozen surges of sword qi shot forth from the tip of the sword.
Even though he had only learned the sword toss technique from his teacher, his teacher had imparted quite a bit of knowledge regarding swordsmanship. Even without executing his ultimate move, his fighting prowess was still formidable.
It was just like how Little Li's Flying Dagger was not limited to throwing daggers. Even without his daggers, he was still one of the top experts in the world.
Dang lang! Dang lang! Dang lang!
The sound of swords falling to the ground echoed in the air. The dozen or so youths clutched their wrists in horror.
The sword art that Dan Xiaotian had executed earlier had actually managed to injure all of them in an instant!
It was fortunate that he had gone easy on them, or else their wrists would have fallen to the ground.
Hu!
With a flick of his finger, Dan Xiaotian stabbed his sword into the ground right in front of Xue Qin. His sword vibrated intensely as if a white poplar in the wind. "May I know if the talented Second Young Mistress is able to do what a trash like me has just done?"
"…"
The crowd fell silent.
Despite being surrounded by more than a dozen youths, Dan Xiaotian had still managed to injure their wrists with a casual strike. His strength and swordsmanship were simply unheard of!
If Dan Xiaotian was a trash, what were they?
Xue Qin's face paled, and her body trembled uncontrollably.
Even though she was also a Great Sage 3-dan consummation cultivator, there was no way she would be able to pull off such a feat!
If she had charged forward, she might have been defeated in an instant, just like the others.
"Even if you aren't a trash, it's still a fact that you have colluded with bandits. Your neighbors can testify to that. There were bandits in your residence in the middle of the night …"
Xue Chen spat through gritted teeth.
"Did you all witness bandits entering my residence with your own eyes?"
Instead of answering Dan Xiaotian's question, Dan Xiaotian turned to look at the two witnesses who had just walked out.
"Yes … There's no doubt about it!"
"We really saw it with our own eyes!"
Under Dan Xiaotian's gaze, the two of them cowered in fear.
It would have been one thing if Dan Xiaotian was unable to cultivate. However, considering how talented he was and how powerful the Dan Clan was back then, they couldn't help but feel a little fearful. They couldn't even speak as confidently as before.
Just as their hearts were trembling in fear, Dan Xiaotian's voice suddenly sounded. "Since you saw it with your own eyes, it means that you are speaking the truth!"
"Hmm?"
The two of them were stunned.
Right?
Do you know what you are saying?
That would be equivalent to admitting to colluding with bandits. No matter how talented and powerful one was, there was no way the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion would accept such a person as a disciple.
A huge uproar broke out in the crowd as well.
"Hahaha, it's good that you have admitted to it. Since you have admitted to it, there's nothing more to be said. Men, arrest that fellow who colluded with bandits!"
Xue Chen was also stunned for a moment before frenzied joy surfaced on his face.
He had thought that the other party would refuse to admit to it no matter what after revealing his strength. If that was the case, his plan would be put in a very disadvantageous position. Who could have thought that the other party would actually admit to it without any hesitation?
Not to mention, he did it in front of so many people!
This time, there was no turning back. That was as good as slapping a huge hat on his head. He was doomed!
"Arrest him?"
Dan Xiaotian sneered coldly. He suddenly clasped his fist and bowed deeply. "Senior Huo, I would like to summon a witness. I hope that you will allow me to do so."
"Un."
Huo Jianghe nodded.
"Come in," Dan Xiaotian said.
Following which, a black-robed man with a bamboo hat walked in from outside. He walked up to the crowd and slowly removed his hat.
"It's Cao Chengli!"
"The leader of the bandits …"
"He actually dared to come to the City Lord Mansion, kill him …"
"Dan Xiaotian invited him in. It looks like the two of them are really in cahoots …"
…
The crowd burst into an uproar when they saw the figure's appearance.
It was none other than the leader of the bandits, Cao Chengli!
This guy had always been hiding in the deep mountains and forests. The City Lord's Mansion had tried to encircle him several times but to no avail. Now, he actually dared to come here. His guts were too fat!
"Did everyone see that? For Cao Chengli to actually listen to him, it's clear that he's already colluding with him … "
Xue Chen was so excited that he almost jumped up.
None of the previous incidents had any concrete evidence. At most, it was just some forged evidence. But now, this fellow actually brought the bandit leader here …
He would never be able to clear his name!
"Collusion?"
Dan Xiaotian sneered coldly as he looked at the black-robed bandit before him and said, "Just who in the world is colluding with you? I'll have to trouble Stockade Master Cao to answer me personally!"
"It's him …"
Cao Chengli stepped forward and pointed at Xue Chen and Xue Qin. "And her …"
"What nonsense are you talking about? Don't slander me … "
Xue Chen raised his eyebrows.
"Slander me?" Cao Chengli clenched his fists tightly as he took a step forward. "Yesterday, Xue Chen paid me a visit and entrusted me to kill a person. As long as I succeed, I'll be paid 50,000 Ethereal Coins. I asked around, and it turns out that the person I wanted to kill is a weakling, so I agreed to it on the spot … "
"Kill someone?"
"Weakling?"
Some of the smarter ones among the crowd had already guessed what was going on, and they quickly turned their gazes to Dan Xiaotian.
Over the years, he was the only one who had carried such a reputation.
"Indeed, it's Dan Xiaotian!"
Cao Chengli continued. "I went to set up the ambush that very night, but Young Master Xiaotian's strength far exceeded my expectations. Naturally, I couldn't have succeeded. In the end, my entire group was wiped out by him … "
The fact that his men had been killed by a horse and a carriage was simply too shocking. If he were to say it out loud, no one would believe him at all. Since that was the case, he might as well not say it at all.
"I was lucky and managed to escape with my life. I found Xue Chen once more, but he only gave me 500 Ethereal Coins. Back then, I was so furious that I wanted to see who it was that Dan Xiaotian and Xue Chen were, so I followed them discreetly. That's when I saw the two of them entering the City Lord Manor.
With a flick of his wrist, Cao Chengli released the recording from the previous night.
Everyone could see Xue Chen standing at the very front of the crowd in the heavily guarded City Lord Manor, instructing the guards to change out of their bandit attire before instructing them to kill Dan Xiaotian and his entire family.
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