The yellow-haired man was stunned.
He couldn’t recover for a long time. The dignified Young Duke Zheng Poyue of the Qi State, someone at the mid-stage of the Life and Death, and this was it?
He had expected a fierce battle between dragons and tigers. But now? It ended before it even began.
Li Xun's voice drifted over.
The yellow-haired man quickly hid the shock on his face and forced a dry laugh. "Of course, you may."
Before long, under the man’s lead, the Golden Divine Chariot carrying Li Xun disappeared from everyone’s sight.
After Li Xun left, the entire street on both sides erupted.
"Hiss—! One punch to defeat a mid-stage Life and Death expert? Is the Holy Son of Profound Sun really that terrifying?"
"This person must not be allowed to live!"
"Then go kill him if you’ve got the guts. He’s already in Life and Death! Even a Divine Palace Realm expert might not be able to take him down. Not to mention, he has a Saint backing him. He wouldn’t have dared show up here if he wasn’t confident he could walk away alive!"
As the crowd chattered in shock—
Nearby, on an upper floor of a teahouse, the two Marquises, Marquis Mang Huang and Marquis Wei Yuan, sat facing each other. Both had witnessed Li Xun’s power before. They were here today just to observe.
But what they didn’t expect was that, after only half a year, Li Xun's single move left them utterly shocked.
Marquis Wei Yuan asked solemnly after a pause.
"It’s unfathomable," came the heavy reply.
"Even I might not be a match for the Holy Son of Profound Sun Holy Land now."
Marquis Mang Huang shook his head with a hint of emotion in his eyes. "When we first saw him on the border of Yunzhou territory, he was only at the mid-stage Divine Power Realm."
"Who would’ve thought, in such a short time, his strength would reach this level? It's simply unbelievable!"
"So then, how likely do you think Champion Marquis would win if he fought Li Xun again?" Marquis Wei Yuan asked curiously.
"Less than ten percent," the Marquis Mang Huang said gravely.
"What if Champion Marquis brings along his new allies?" Wei Yuan pressed.
Over the past six months, Champion Marquis had been pulling out all the stops to deal with Li Xun — bringing in plenty of powerhouses from top-tier forces.
Among them were other Holy Sons, Saintesses, and even some monster clan prodigies.
"Fifty-fifty at best," the Marquis Mang Huang replied calmly.
In his view, those so-called Holy Sons and Saintesses were weaker than Champion Marquis himself. If they faced Li Xun directly, they'd be throwing their lives away. Only by ganging up on him could they serve as a distraction.
"Honestly, the Young Duke Zheng acted too rashly. Champion Marquis' plan was probably to intercept Li Xun midway after he got the supreme-grade Dao Weapon."
"But Young Duke Zheng thought he was being clever, trying to intimidate Li Xun here and now. And look what happened. He brought this on himself."
Marquis Mang Huang took a sip of tea and commented blandly.
Having lived for seven or eight centuries, he had seen all the schemes and plots. Champion Marquis’ thoughts couldn’t fool an old fox like him.
After all, the value of a supreme-grade Dao Weapon was obvious to all.
In ordinary sects, it would be a treasure of the sect.
Forget Life and Death experts—even Divine Palace Realm cultivators rarely had one. In fact, some Saints still used Dao Weapons as their main armament.
And now Li Xun was about to receive a supreme-grade Dao Weapon. Who wouldn’t want to intercept and steal it halfway?
Marquis Mang Huang put down his teacup, thinking back to the scene earlier, then said with a thoughtful expression:
"Did you notice something about Li Xun’s cultivation level?"
"Isn't he at the early stage of Life and Death?"
Marquis Wei Yuan replied casually.
The Marquis Mang Huang replayed scenes in his mind, murmuring to himself:
“Something feels off. I feel like I overlooked something. My instincts tell me… Li Xun’s strength is likely far beyond just early-stage Life and Death.”
“That Young Duke Zheng… no matter what, he himself had passed the six lightning calamities tribulation and was at mid-stage Life and Death. How could he be defeated in just one move?”
A quarter of an hour later.
The yellow-haired man stopped in front of a grand mansion.
He cupped his hands toward the Golden Divine Chariot and said, “Daoist Friend Li Xun, this is your residence for today. If there’s anything you need, feel free to instruct the servants.”
“I don’t need any servants,” Li Xun replied calmly from within the Golden Divine Chariot. “Dismiss them all.”
With a wave of the man’s hand, several attendants behind him entered the estate and promptly removed all the servants.
Once everyone had been cleared out, the man asked again, “Daoist Friend Li Xun, is everything to your satisfaction now?”
Li Xun responded with a quiet hum. “I once killed Fa Zhao. The supreme-grade Dao Weapon owed to me—when does the Great Chu Dynasty plan to deliver it?”
“By tomorrow evening at the latest,” the man answered. “Is there anything else Daoist Friend Li Xun requires?”
Li Xun gently urged the Obsidian Qilin pulling the Golden Divine Chariot forward, and stepped into the estate.
As he watched Li Xun disappear into the residence, the man’s expression quickly darkened.
This Li Xun… was far too mysterious.
From beginning to end, he hadn’t revealed his face once—he remained inside the Golden Divine Chariot the entire time. The man had no way of gauging his actual strength.
As for the defensive power of the Golden Divine Chariot—that was one thing—but in terms of blocking spiritual sense, it was second to none. Even an average Divine Palace Realm expert’s spiritual sense couldn’t pierce it.
“Just what are you hiding?”
The yellow-haired man narrowed his eyes and gave the estate one last look before turning away with a grim expression.
“The Great Chu Dynasty, to me, is no different from a dragon’s den or a tiger’s lair. How could I not take precautions?”
Li Xun chuckled softly.
He stepped out of the Golden Divine Chariot with long strides.
Tall and upright, he stood in the middle of the courtyard, scanning the surroundings. He was fairly satisfied — at the very least, a formation had been set up above the estate.
The formation also had a spiritual sense isolation effect. It wouldn’t stop a Saint, but against a Divine Palace Realm cultivator, it was more than enough.
He wasn’t expecting to fool the entire Great Chu Dynasty — just the specific people he needed to keep secrets from.
“The Saints of the Chu Dynasty, the Emperor, and those Dukes... they probably don’t have the time or interest to investigate my cultivation, right?”
Li Xun muttered to himself.
“That’s not a given.”
Just as he spoke, an old voice suddenly rang out behind him.
Li Xun’s expression changed. He whirled around.
Not far behind him stood an elderly man with snow-white hair and beard, dressed in a light blue robe. His hands were folded behind his back, and his eyes held a hint of a smile.
With some emotion in his voice, the old man said:
“The Holy Son of Profound Sun truly lives up to his name. It’s been less than a year since you passed your Life and Death Tribulation, and yet you’ve already reached the late stage of the Life and Death Realm. If word of this got out, no one would believe it.”
Li Xun asked with a frown.
“Who I am isn’t important,” the old man replied with a slight shake of his head. He took out a letter and handed it to Li Xun.
“I’ve come at the order of my Young Mistress to deliver this message to you.”