Schadenfreude!
Tian Yan was positively reveling in the moment. Bi Xiao had mocked her endlessly before, and now Bi Xiao herself had clashed with this King of Backing!
The feeling was beyond delightful!
More importantly, it was now certain that the King of Backing wouldn’t side with the clans of the Zhou Yuan Realm.
Truth be told, she’d been worried about this before. If Ye Xuan had teamed up with Bi Xiao, it would’ve been a disaster for the Tianqi Clan! But now, she had no such concerns.
Not only that, there was now an irreconcilable rift between the King of Backing and Bi Xiao’s group!
If Bi Xiao agreed to Ye Xuan’s terms, the Zhou Yuan Realm alliance would either fracture or descend into chaos, even if it didn’t collapse entirely. If she didn’t agree, given Ye Xuan’s temperament, would he ever let it go?
If the Zhou Yuan Realm alliance faced off against Ye Xuan and *that monstrous woman* showed up…
Tian Yan glanced at the silent Bi Xiao, a smirk of glee spreading across her face.
In the distance, Bi Xiao remained silent.
She was, undeniably, in a bind!
Agreeing wasn’t an option, nor was refusing!
Just then, Ye Xuan suddenly laughed. “Miss Bi Xiao, I think you’ve misunderstood something! Whether I take revenge has nothing to do with you! Lastly, if you interfere again when I’m killing, I’ll wipe out your Shenhuang Clan too! Don’t believe me? Try it!”
As his voice fell, he turned to Gu Sen. The next moment, he vanished from his spot.
*Splurt!*
A streak of sword light tore through the scene!
Bi Xiao’s face darkened beyond measure.
Nearby, Tian Yan’s lips curled upward—this was her favorite scene to witness!
She had to admit, Ye Xuan was growing more appealing by the moment!
Of course, that was only true as long as she didn’t clash with this infuriating man!
In the distance, Gu Sen’s expression shifted—he was starting to fear Ye Xuan. That sword was simply too terrifying!
With no time to think, he clasped his hands together, silently chanting a spell. A strange black vortex appeared before him, swirling with countless mysterious energies.
Then, Ye Xuan’s sword arrived.
*Boom!*
The vortex trembled violently, waves of immense power rippling outward, instantly turning the surrounding space illusory!
Ye Xuan slashed down again!
*Splurt!*
This strike ripped the vortex apart. Gu Sen’s face changed as he stumbled back, but Ye Xuan’s sword was faster!
*Splurt!*
Before Gu Sen could stop, the space before him split open, and a sword thrust out!
Gu Sen’s heart raced in terror. He flipped his right hand upward. “Great Luo Heavenly Hand!”
As his voice fell, the space before him cracked, and a colossal hand emerged—only to be shattered by Ye Xuan’s single strike.
*Boom!*
With a deafening explosion, Gu Sen was flung thousands of zhang away. As he stopped, his body was shredded by countless sword qi, leaving only his soul!
Seeing this, Shi Bian and the others’ faces changed. They couldn’t just watch Ye Xuan kill Gu Sen and were about to intervene when Bi Xiao suddenly appeared before Gu Sen. Before anyone could react, she slapped his soul with her palm.
*Boom!*
Gu Sen’s soul scattered, vanishing from the world entirely!
This sudden turn stunned everyone in the scene.
What was Bi Xiao doing?
Ye Xuan paused too, clearly bewildered by her actions.
Nearby, Tian Yan’s eyes narrowed, lost in thought.
Bi Xiao waved her right hand. Instantly, over a dozen powerful auras appeared behind the Gu Xing Clan members. The next moment, they were all cut down!
Shi Bian stared at Bi Xiao. “What are you doing?!”
Bi Xiao walked slowly to Ye Xuan and smiled. “Young Master Ye, from this moment, the Gu Xing Clan will cease to exist in this world.”
Ye Xuan remained silent.
Bi Xiao turned to Shi Bian and Li Qiu. “Wipe out the Gu Xing Clan!”
Shi Bian sent a telepathic message. “Clan Leader Bi Xiao, who *is* this man?”
Shi Bian and Li Qiu weren’t fools. They knew by now this youth had a monumental background—otherwise, Bi Xiao wouldn’t act this way!
Bi Xiao said softly, “Someone we can’t afford to provoke! See Tian Yan over there? She was practically cursed to her face by this man before, yet she didn’t dare do a thing.”
She paused, then added, “Simply put, he has a superpower beyond Circle-Creators backing him!”
A powerhouse beyond Circle-Creators!
Shi Bian and Li Qiu froze in place.
Shi Bian’s voice trembled. “That… how is that possible?”
Bi Xiao replied calmly, “Why not? Look at Tian Yan. She calls him the King of Backing—know why? Because he *has* backing!”
Shi Bian and Li Qiu: “…”
Bi Xiao glanced at Li Xun’er and Shi Tian in the distance. “We have a chance against the Tianqi Clan, but against him, it’s a dead end! You two decide!”
Their faces darkened at her words.
By now, Li Xun’er and Shi Tian sensed something was wrong. They looked to their clan leaders, eyes pleading.
They knew they might be sacrificed!
Even the Gu Xing Clan had been forsaken!
Then, Bi Xiao said, “Let me be the villain!”
As her voice fell, she waved her sleeve.
*Boom! Boom!*
Li Xun’er and Shi Tian were erased!
Not even a chance to resist!
Shi Bian and Li Qiu fell silent.
Bi Xiao turned to Ye Xuan with a faint smile. “Young Master Ye, this was our fault. We failed to discipline them properly, leading to this mess!”
She gave a slight bow. “Young Master Ye, on behalf of the Shenhuang Clan, I apologise!”
An apology!
Her demeanor was utterly humble.
Shi Bian and Li Qiu exchanged a glance, then bowed slightly too.
Tian Yan suddenly spoke up. “How dull!”
Bi Xiao looked at her and smiled. “Miss Tian Yan, it seems I’ve disappointed you!”
Tian Yan laughed. “I thought you lot had some backbone!”
“Backbone?”
Bi Xiao smiled faintly. “Tian Yan, I thought you had backbone too! But when someone carved those humiliating words on you, you didn’t resist, did you? No—you *couldn’t* resist! With all that backbone, why didn’t you fight to the death?”
Tian Yan didn’t get angry. “Bi Xiao, you’ve surprised me! To avoid offending this King of Backing, you’d sacrifice your own allies!”
She gave a thumbs-up. “Impressive!”
Bi Xiao laughed. “Tian Yan, since when did you become such a talker?”
Tian Yan chuckled, glanced at Ye Xuan in the distance, then turned and left.
Bi Xiao and the others didn’t stop her—they knew if Tian Yan wanted to leave, they couldn’t hold her!
Just like back then, when Tian Yan retreated for her clan’s sake, and they’d been powerless to stop her.
After Tian Yan left, Ye Xuan turned to An Lanxiu and Zhang Wenxiu. “Let’s go!”
With that, he led the two women away.
Bi Xiao watched Ye Xuan depart, her expression dimming. The goodwill she’d built with him was now gone.
Such a pity!
But at least they hadn’t made an enemy of him!
Shi Bian spoke gravely. “Clan Leader Bi Xiao, who *is* this youth?”
Li Qiu looked at her too, curiosity brimming in his eyes.
Bi Xiao said softly, “I don’t know who he is exactly. I only know that when Tian Yan tried to kill him, a woman in a plain skirt appeared behind him. She nearly wiped out Tian Yan and the Tianqi Clan! And her true body didn’t even come!”
Li Qiu frowned. “An avatar?”
Bi Xiao shook her head. “She struck across countless star domains with a single sword—and that one sword defeated Tian Yan! Tian Yan had no chance to fight back!”
One sword!
Shi Bian and Li Qiu’s faces grew solemn.
Striking across countless star domains with one sword to defeat Tian Yan!
They didn’t know how terrifying the woman in the plain skirt was, but they knew how fearsome Tian Yan was—the Zhou Yuan Realm’s top powerhouse back in the day!
Yet she’d been beaten by a single sword from across the stars!
Now they understood why Bi Xiao was so deferential to this youth!
She *had* to be!
Bi Xiao said quietly, “He’s just a Circle-Breaker, yet he can kill Circle-Creators! He’s more monstrous than I imagined… Of course, with such a powerhouse backing him, even average talent wouldn’t hold him back—let alone his exceptional gifts!”
She sighed again. “I’d built some goodwill with him before, hoping to bring him to our side. If he’d joined us, we’d have been invincible forever! With him here, Tian Yan would’ve been wary. But now…”
She shook her head with a bitter smile.
Shi Bian said, “No point dwelling on it! As long as he’s not our enemy, that’s enough!”
Li Qiu nodded. “The priority now is dealing with the Tianqi Clan. If I’m right, they’ll soon launch a full assault on the Tianhe Gate. We need to prepare!”
Bi Xiao nodded. “Send word for Meng Qian and Tianyuan Xian to come discuss!”
Li Qiu nodded and turned to leave.
Bi Xiao looked into the distance, her face gradually darkening, lost in thought.
—
Elsewhere, Ye Xuan returned to the small tower. By now, An Lanxiu’s body had been restored!
Ye Ling’s body was restored too!
Ye Xuan looked at An Lanxiu and asked softly, “Are you alright?”
An Lanxiu shook her head. “No major issues!”
Zhang Wenxiu suddenly said, “You’ve gotten this strong?”
Ye Xuan smiled faintly. “Of course! Don’t you know who I am?”
Zhang Wenxiu blinked. “That woman called you the King of Backing—what’s that about?”
Ye Xuan’s expression froze.
Then An Lanxiu said, “I think something might’ve happened to Nian-jie!”
At that, Ye Xuan and Zhang Wenxiu’s faces changed.
