Chapter Ten: Coming to Break Off the Engagement

Memories from fifteen years ago flooded his mind.

Back then, his father was still alive—the youngest elder of the Xiao clan, and a brother-in-arms to the head of the Liu family, with whom he had once shielded the other from a fatal blow during a monstrous beast tide. On the day Xiao Yi turned five, their fathers had forged a marriage contract between them.

They had grown up inseparable, childhood sweethearts.

Everything changed three years ago. Xiao Yi’s father fell in a secret realm, and his own cultivation stagnated at the third level of Qi Refining, turning him into the laughingstock of the entire clan. Soon after, Liu Ningxia caught the eye of an elder from the Biluo Sect and departed to join them. For the past three years, the two had remained completely out of touch.

"Creeeak—"

A white jade carriage descended into the center of the martial arts arena. As the halo of spiritual energy dissipated, Xiao Yi’s gaze locked onto the cold, detached eyes of the woman before the carriage.

"Ningxia!" Xiao Yi stepped forward, the lingering flames of his aura softening, a flash of long-awaited joy lighting up his eyes.

The carriage landed, and a slender, pale hand lifted the curtain. Liu Ningxia stepped out, draped in a moon-white immortal gown. The green jade belt around her waist marked her status as a direct disciple of the Biluo Sect, and the cinnabar mark between her brows gave her an imposing air. Yet, her eyes were as cold as frost.

"Xiao Yi." Her lips parted, her voice as chill as an icy spring, devoid of warmth. "I have come today to dissolve our engagement."

"What?!"

The words exploded across the arena like a thunderclap!

The faces of the Xiao elders turned ashen. Xiao Zhen slammed his hand onto the table, shattering his sandalwood chair into splinters: "Liu Ningxia! Do you have any idea what you are saying?"

This was a direct slap to the face of the entire Xiao family!

"Why?" Xiao Yi’s voice went hoarse. His body trembled slightly, but he stared fixedly at her, a glimmer of desperate, unwilling hope still lingering in his eyes.

Liu Ningxia’s lips curled into a sneer, as if mocking an ignorant child. "Why? Look at your own strength. I am now a direct disciple of the Biluo Sect at the first level of the Golden Core stage. The gap between us is as vast as the distance between the clouds and the mud!"

"That’s too cruel..." someone nearby muttered, unable to hide their disdain. "They were childhood sweethearts, after all."

"What would you know?" Xiao Lin sneered from the side, intentionally raising his voice. "In the world of cultivation, strength is everything! A piece of trash is not worthy of a genius—it is only natural! If it were me, I would have broken the engagement myself long ago rather than hold Fairy Liu back."

Xiao Zhen suppressed his rage and said in a deep voice, "Miss Liu! Your father swore a blood oath before all the noble houses of the city that the Liu family would never go back on their word! Are you not afraid of divine retribution for breaking your promise?"

"That was nothing but drunken prattle." Liu Ningxia withdrew a storage ring from her sleeve and tossed it carelessly at Xiao Yi’s feet. "There are one hundred high-grade spirit stones here. It is more than enough for you to live a life of comfort in the mortal world. From this day forward, we have no connection!"

"Hiss—"

A collective gasp swept through the crowd! Xiao Ming swallowed hard, his eyes wide. "One hundred high-grade spirit stones! That’s equivalent to a million low-grade crystals—enough to buy half the city!"

Xiao Lin’s eyes turned red with jealousy; that amount would have been enough for him to purchase a profound-grade artifact!

Xiao Yi looked down at the ring at his feet and suddenly began to laugh. The laughter grew louder, filled with such desolate irony that it made the spectators’ scalps tingle. The next second, he brought his foot down heavily!

"Crunch!"

With a crisp sound, the priceless storage ring shattered, and the high-grade spirit stones inside were pulverized by the force of his stomp.

"He’s lost his mind! He actually crushed one hundred high-grade spirit stones!" Xiao Lin shrieked in disbelief—it was a fortune that would have had Foundation Establishment cultivators killing each other!

"Xiao Yi! You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit—are you seeking death?" Behind Liu Ningxia, an elderly man in grey robes suddenly barked, his pressure as a third-level Golden Core cultivator descending upon Xiao Yi like Mount Tai!

He was Elder Wang Qing of the Biluo Sect. He had only come along to oversee the process, never expecting that anyone would dare disrespect the sect.

"It’s over! It’s Elder Wang of the third-level Golden Core!" Xiao Ming’s face turned deathly pale, his legs shaking uncontrollably. "This pressure—someone at the Qi Refining stage cannot possibly withstand it!"

"Serves him right! Let him be arrogant!" Xiao Lin clenched his fists in excitement, waiting to see Xiao Yi crushed into a pulp.

Under the immense pressure, the *Burning Heaven Fire Sutra* within Xiao Yi began to circulate on its own! He gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead. Despite being only at the ninth level of Qi Refining, his aura stood firm as a rock, his spine straight as a blade.

"How... how is this possible?" The onlookers stared in shock. A Qi Refining cultivator resisting Golden Core pressure was unheard of!

"You old dog! Is this how your Biluo Sect conducts itself? By bullying the weak?" Xiao Yi roared, his eyes bloodshot.

Wang Qing laughed in fury. "You little beast, you are courting death!" Green light surged from his palm, and he unleashed a crushing strike, intent on killing Xiao Yi on the spot.

"It’s over! Xiao Yi has no way out; he cannot survive a blow from a Golden Core cultivator." Xiao Ming covered his eyes, unable to watch.

Just as the palm strike was about to land, a white shadow flickered like a teleportation.

"Presumptuous!"

Ye Chentian stood before Xiao Yi before anyone could blink. With his hands behind his back, he casually raised a palm to meet Wang Qing’s strike.

"Bang!"

The moment their palms met, Wang Qing felt an irresistible force surge through him. His palm print, condensed with the power of a third-level Golden Core, was utterly outmatched. More terrifyingly, the opponent’s force pierced through his defense and struck his chest without obstruction.

"Crack!"

The sound of shattering ribs was clearly audible. Wang Qing’s body flew backward like a kite with a broken string. He slammed into the ground, his life force extinguished the moment he hit the earth.

This formidable Golden Core cultivator, a man who had commanded respect across the region, had been struck dead by Ye Chentian with a single blow, without even a chance to utter his final words.