The martial arts arena suddenly fell into silence.

The Shentu clan actually tried to arrange a marriage with Jiang Xuan? Wasn’t that an attempt to win him over? Jiang Xuan actually turned down such an opportunity? And now, he was going to fight the Shentu clan to the death? The people from the Nalan, Hu, Sha, and other clans all looked at Jiang Xuan, unsure whether they should praise his loyalty to his tribe or call him foolish.

Shentu Lie was even willing to let his only daughter go, which was certainly a sign of sincerity.

"Xiao Xuan, you..." Granny Jin Hua and the others looked at Jiang Xuan in disbelief.

Such a thing had actually happened...

Jiang Xuan hadn't told them about it!

In the crowd of the Shentu clan, several young men standing with Jiang Jingsheng all had their expressions change. In the past half month, including Jiang Guang, four Jiang tribe members had defected to the Shentu clan.

After defecting to the enemy, they became some of the people who most wanted Jiang Xuan dead because only when Jiang Xuan died would the Jiang tribe perish, and they would no longer carry the label of traitors. Then, they would have a chance to fully integrate into the Shentu clan.

"So, there was this? That’s truly stupid!" Jiang Guang sneered, speaking to the people next to him. Jiang Xuan's choice was an insult to those like him who had defected to the Shentu clan.

"His brain is definitely not working right," a young man named Jiang Sheng added.

Shentu Lie frowned slightly. He hadn’t expected his daughter to bring up this matter suddenly, but after thinking about it, it didn’t matter whether it was said or not. The matter was almost over anyway.

"Jiang Xuan, good choice! You’re not worthy of my precious daughter, at least you have some self-awareness!" Shentu Lie took a step forward, slamming his spear onto the ground, and grinned, "This is the first time I’ve publicly made a move in three years. To die by my hand, it’s your good fortune!"

Jiang Xuan didn’t want to respond to Shentu Yu. The life-and-death match on the arena was enough, but since Shentu Lie had made this public statement…

"Did you not tell your father about my conditions?" Jiang Xuan said, appearing very puzzled as he looked at Shentu Yu.

At these words, the entire arena’s gaze shifted to Jiang Xuan.

He had actually discussed conditions with the Shentu clan?

So it wasn’t a matter of outright rejection, but that the conditions weren’t agreed upon?

Shentu Yu’s face shifted slightly, her lips pressed tight as anger flared in her eyes. The words Jiang Xuan had spoken back then had been cruel and unpleasant, clearly intended to provoke. She had no need to repeat it to her father, but now Jiang Xuan was bringing it up in front of everyone, obviously trying to humiliate her again.

Shentu Lie turned to look at his daughter, his eyes questioning.

Shentu Yu slightly shook her head, indicating there was no need to say more.

"Jiang Clan Leader, what conditions were not agreed upon in your negotiations with Shentu Yu?" The one-eyed elder from the Nalan clan raised his voice.

"By joining the Shentu clan, not only would you be safe, but with your talent, you could even be specially cultivated. If you took the Shentu name, it’s possible you could even become the Shentu clan leader in the future. What was the condition you couldn’t agree on?"

"Yes, what conditions?"

"Tell us, Jiang Clan Leader."

There were indeed some who enjoyed stirring up trouble, and not just one.

"Nothing much. I asked her to marry into the Jiang tribe, be my concubine, and for the Shentu tribe to merge with the Jiang tribe. In exchange, I’d spare her father and the rest of the Shentu clan," Jiang Xuan casually said, as if he were truly negotiating in earnest.

The arena fell silent again.

Many people looked at Jiang Xuan with stunned expressions.

The one-eyed elder from the Nalan clan was speechless. Was this a negotiation? Wasn’t he just deliberately trying to disgust everyone? It seemed the negotiation hadn’t gone well, and Jiang Xuan just wanted to make Shentu Yu uncomfortable by saying such things.

He wasn’t even trying to negotiate.

"Then..." Jiang Xuan continued to stare at Shentu Yu, "She told me, if I agreed, she would be mine. I said, kill your father, and you’ll also be mine..."

"Hahaha, Jiang Clan Leader, what a hero!" The one-eyed elder laughed loudly. "A hero indeed! Your integrity is something we admire!"

He wasn’t necessarily genuinely praising Jiang Xuan, but it was obvious that he truly wanted to disgust the Shentu clan.

The Ten Great Clans of Heitan Mountain had been overshadowed recently by the Nalan clan, and now the Shentu clan was about to devour the Jiang tribe, so this first position among the clans of Heitan Mountain was likely going to be taken away.

"Jiang Clan Leader, you’re a real man! We all admire you!"

"Only a true warrior can face death with such calmness!"

"If Jiang Clan Leader’s talent were not inferior to his father’s, if he were given another twenty years, he might truly have been able to follow through on his words!"

"Fifteen years old, and he has such guts!"

Some people echoed the one-eyed elder, praising Jiang Xuan.

"Hmph!" Wei Yuanlang, standing in a corner, sneered, "So the tribe people aren’t just barbaric, they’re hypocrites too. A brat who doesn’t even know how to adapt, but calls himself Jiang Clan Leader and a hero!"

"The tribe people are still people, their essence is no different from ours," Cao Tai said nearby. "They have their joys, sorrows, anger, and jealousy. They praise Jiang Xuan, but I doubt how much of it is sincere. Most of it is just to embarrass the Shentu clan."

"The benefits in these tribal territories in Heitan Mountain are limited. The fights are just like wild dogs fighting over food—boring!" Wei Yuanlang yawned, "Once this is over, we’ll head back. There’s nothing else to see."

Boom!!

Suddenly, a loud rumble echoed. Shentu Lie stomped on the ground, cracking it beneath him, his face dark as he glared at the warriors from the other tribes who had been talking. His gaze was full of murderous intent.

The arena fell silent again.

Even the one-eyed elder from the Nalan clan didn’t say anything further. While they were jealous and envious, they had no intention of truly provoking the Shentu clan, especially not Shentu Lie, the number one warrior in Heitan Mountain, known for his volatile temper.

"The time is almost up," Lei Hong, sitting on the observation platform, finally spoke in a calm tone. "You may begin."

"Yes, sir!" Both Jiang Xuan and Shentu Lie bowed to Lei Hong.

Whoosh!

Shentu Lie leapt onto the stage first, swinging his spear with the thickness of a wrist, casually spinning it into a beautiful flourish. He stood there like an iron tower and loudly commanded, "Come up and face death!"

With another flick of his wrist, the spear vibrated, creating a humming sound.

Buzz!!

Some warriors at the acquired realm even felt their heartbeats quicken, their breath grow shallow, and dizziness set in. Only those who had comprehended the "Heavenly Human Power" could perceive his movements clearly.

"Shentu Clan Leader’s Heavenly Human Power is even more profound!"

"Shentu Clan Leader hasn’t made a public move in years, but he has never slacked off in his cultivation."

"Did I speak too loudly just now?"

On Jiang Xuan’s side, many of his people also felt dizzy. Granny Jin Hua forced herself to suppress her discomfort, and finally, she squeezed Jiang Xuan's hand, giving him a firm look.

"I’m going." Jiang Xuan took a few steps forward and leapt onto the stage.

Whoosh! A faint, crystal-clear light appeared on Jiang Xuan’s body, his overwhelming aura rising to the sky. His body seemed to perfectly merge with the energy, and unlike the unstable and violent aura he had displayed when he was just at the half-step innate stage, this time his aura was steady and persistent. Everyone who saw this scene froze for a moment.

"Innate!"

"True Innate realm!"

"He actually reached Innate! Truly Innate! With Innate body and Innate power, and he’s only fifteen! The only one in the last hundred years in Heitan Mountain!"

A burst of astonished exclamations rose. The warriors from the various tribes were shocked, but deep down, they also felt a sense of relief, glad that Jiang Xuan was about to die and wouldn’t grow any stronger, thus no longer posing a threat to them.

"A fifteen-year-old in the Innate realm... What a pity," Cao Tai muttered to himself.

"What a pity? Even with this kind of talent, in Feixue City, he would only be considered second-rate," Wei Yuanlang said dismissively. It wasn’t that he thought too highly of himself, but he was qualified to say that. When he himself was fourteen, he reached the Innate stage, and as one of the Wei family’s top three geniuses, he couldn’t even rank in the top ten in his generation in Feixue City.

"Innate? Hahaha! True Innate!"

Shentu Lie was first shocked, then praised, his gaze cold as he stared at Jiang Xuan. He grinned and said, "What a pity you didn’t want to be my son. Then I’ll just have to kill you."

"You butcher with bloodstained hands, you deserve to die!"

Jiang Xuan stared at Shentu Lie, murderous intent rising in his eyes.

Three years of life-and-death battles, too many of Jiang Xuan’s relatives had died—his eldest uncle, third uncle, four cousins, two close uncles—all died on the arena, killed by the Shentu clan! Blood debts must be repaid with blood! It was time!

"I’m the butcher? Hahahaha, how childish!" Shentu Lie mocked, lifting his 830-pound spear with one hand, pointing it at Jiang Xuan.

"Die!" Shentu Lie took a step forward and charged.

"This strike, I must not miss!" Jiang Xuan closed his eyes for a moment, his hand resting on the hilt of his blade.

Shentu Lie paused slightly, then roared, "Stop pretending!" In an instant, he turned into a blur, his movements almost impossible to track. Only those at the Innate realm could barely follow his path. He didn’t hold back, his spear crashing forward like a mountain, roaring toward Jiang Xuan!

This strike, even an Innate body would be crushed into a bloody mist!

At the very peak of this crisis, Jiang Xuan vanished.

Cold light flashed from the blade!

A terrifying murderous intent, born from the speed and sharpness of the strike, covered not only Shentu Lie but the entire arena, its speed and spread so fast that no one could react in time.

Several flashes of cold light intersected, cutting through Shentu Lie's body.

Shentu Lie sensed the approach of death. His spear fused with his body, and his "Heavenly Human Power" allowed him to react just in time. He tried to block with the spear, but the cold lights moved as if they could leap through space, directly appearing behind the spear, piercing through his body!

Whoosh!

Jiang Xuan appeared behind Shentu Lie, several steps away. The two were back-to-back, still holding their blades as if they had never drawn them.

Turning to face Shentu Lie.

Clang!

The long spear and two arms crashed heavily onto the arena. Shentu Lie's body began to disintegrate, the slashes from the intersecting blades shattering his body into a dozen pieces, his head rolling away, blood staining the ground.

In the northern lands of the Great Qian Empire, Heitan Mountain, on the seventh of August, Jiang Xuan killed Shentu Lie.

The arena was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Almost everyone was staring in shock at the arena. Shentu Lie’s head had rolled to the edge of the stage, lying sideways, eyes wide open… No one could believe what had just happened! The number one warrior of Heitan Mountain, the most powerful being, someone with ambition, strength, and the ability to act decisively, Shentu Lie… had been killed by a strange and terrifying technique.

What was that technique?

What had Jiang Xuan practiced?

How strong was he?!

"This strike, I’ve been traveling for twenty years, and I’ve never seen anything like it," Cao Tai murmured, his voice filled with awe. "Such a unique skill shouldn’t belong to someone unknown! To be able to perform this skill at the early Innate stage, the arena is too small for him to avoid it."

"It’s impossible, this can’t be real…" Wei Yuanlang muttered, still unable to accept the reality.

He remembered how he had been at the early Innate stage at fifteen and could never have executed such a powerful killing move. Now he was comparing it to his own experiences, and the realization made him more furious.

"He has a problem, he definitely has a problem!"

"Xiao Xuan, Xiao Xuan... did he win? Did he win? He won!!" After the shock, there was joy and ecstatic screams, the women of the Jiang tribe hugged each other, crying and laughing, as if they couldn’t believe it—this felt like a dream!

"One strike to kill Shentu Lie?!"

"Is Xiao Xuan the number one warrior of Heitan Mountain now?"

"What technique did Xiao Xuan use? That blade style feels familiar, but it's not our tribe's 'Chasing Wind Blade.' What exactly was it?"

"Who says it wasn’t the Chasing Wind Blade..." Granny Jin Hua’s eyes shone brightly, as if she had returned to her youth, her body trembling with excitement.

"He..." Lei Hong, the inspection officer, looked at Jiang Xuan, his indifferent expression fading. His mind quickly reviewed all the details of Jiang Xuan’s recent strike. "That strike had the feeling of wind. The Jiang tribe’s inherited sword technique, 'Chasing Wind Blade,' even in Feixue City, would be among the top ten in power. But it’s difficult to practice, which is why its overall evaluation isn’t as high... That move just now should be the ninth style, the one Jiang Hanfeng never mastered."

"Just last month, he was using brute force to kill Shentu warriors. But today, he uses a technique with such power."

"Two possibilities."

"Either he has been practicing the ninth style for years but couldn’t perform it due to his lack of realm. It was only after he became truly Innate that he was able to execute it successfully."

"Or he practiced the ninth style intensely over the past month, finally mastering it. The ninth style helps refine one’s skill and greatly enhances comprehension, which aids in breaking through the Innate realm... So, his breakthrough came!"

"He became the clan leader, gaining access to all the clan’s resources, and this is the main reason for his rapid progress..."

"Regardless of the truth, the fact that he reached the Innate realm at fifteen and has comprehended such a level of skill proves that he has an extraordinary talent and is a genius with a rare gift in swordsmanship!"

"In Feixue City, only the geniuses of the 'Star Pavilion' could rival him. As for the Wei family... perhaps only Wei Shaoqing, their top genius, could compare."

Lei Hong still had many things he couldn’t figure out, but he had made a reasonable guess. Whether Jiang Xuan had really used the Chasing Wind Blade or not was still up for debate. After considering everything, he found it troublesome and decided to just ask.

"Jiang Xuan! I ask you, was that the ninth style of 'Chasing Wind Blade' you just used?"