Chapter 1303: Apprehending Them

Chapter 1303: Chapter 1303: Apprehending Them

When Pei Yan said this, the crowd from the Dragon Taming Institute finally focused their attention on the two men beside him. Seeing the uncertain expressions on their faces, Pei Yan was secretly alarmed. Could these country bumpkins really have never met these two big shots from the Hongjun Sword Furnace? If his courteous flattery were to be mistaken for mockery by these people, it would become a gigantic joke.

As Pei Yan thought, these people feared exposing their secrets and rarely interacted with the outside world. Even when visiting the main institute, it was usually just the warden who traveled. High-ranking members like Mo Baiqi were folks they never had the chance to meet. Just when the atmosphere was getting awkward with Liu Xuanji and his brother’s faces darkening, Leng Shuyi—who had accompanied her senior brother to the Immortal Palace several times for business and had happened to see Liu Xuanji from afar once—hesitated and tentatively asked, "May I ask if this esteemed person is none other than Elder Liu, Liu Xuanji from the Hongjun Sword Furnace?"

"Hehehe! At least someone still recognizes this old man, otherwise today would have been utterly embarrassing! Brother, I may be excused! I’m usually guarding the gates of the Immortal Palace Villa, not stepping out. But you, who have been traveling around the world for years, why do people not recognize you?" Liu Xuanji laughed coldly a few times when someone recognized him, then turned to his senior brother Mo Baiqi and teased.

"As for my so-called travels, they were merely journeys with familiar friends. How would I get to know these lesser folks?" Mo Baiqi, knowing his junior brother was giving him face, smiled slightly and replied.

These people may not have seen Liu Xuanji and his brother, but they knew their names. When Leng Shuyi called out Liu Xuanji’s name, the crowd was astonished. Hearing Liu Xuanji call the other person senior brother made his identity obvious. Although the main institute didn’t inform the Beast Taming Institute about their recent actions, rumors of friction between the Hongjun Sword Furnace and the Investigation Hall had reached them. Now, with the three allies of the Dragon Realm coming here, even the dimmest in the lower institute could guess what they were after.

"If I am not mistaken, this is Sect Leader Mo of the Hongjun Sword Furnace. Hahaha! How could our small White Deer Institute lower institute deserve a visit from the head of the Hongjun Sword Furnace and the elder of the Immortal Palace Villa? I think there must be some misunderstanding or someone has sown discord. Esteemed seniors, please don’t listen to slanders and let it disrupt the peace between our two factions." Leng Shuyi, knowing his words were futile, made a final attempt. Concurrently, he secretly signaled to several of his junior brothers, instructing them to follow his command. If forced to, they should sacrifice a few to block the four Spirit Beasts behind, while the others break out with all their might. Although the hope was faint, there was still a chance someone could escape.

"Peace? Hahaha! Joke! What peace do my Hongjun Sword Furnace and your White Deer Institute have to talk about? Didn’t you recognize this old man’s identity? Alright then, surrender obediently and save yourselves from some pain!" Liu Xuanji responded with a disdainful cold laugh to Leng Shuyi’s words.

"Senior brother! What’s the use of talking to this old scoundrel! They obviously don’t want to let us live well. I’d rather die fighting here today than suffer the torment of interrogation in the Immortal Palace Celestial Prison! Senior brother, let’s fight this old scoundrel!" Elder Xiu, already covered in blood from the battle, was now filled with rage, forgetting the disparity in power, and yelled at Leng Shuyi.

"Senior brother! Let’s fight!"

"Breaking out might still give us a chance to survive!"

With the support of their junior brothers, Leng Shuyi made a final decision, waving his hand and shouting, "Since the two esteemed seniors are so unreasonable, don’t blame us for not respecting your status! Let our Beast Taming Institute learn about the techniques of the Hongjun Sword Furnace!"

"You think you’re worthy? Pei Yan, just stay here and watch carefully! Don’t interfere!" Liu Xuanji pressed down on the eager Pei Yan’s shoulder, telling him this before stepping forward with Mo Baiqi.

Pei Yan, pressed back to his spot, did not resist, crossing his arms and preparing to watch how the two would make their moves, hoping to glimpse their abilities through this opportunity.

While Pei Yan could afford to gloat, Leng Shuyi and his group were like facing a great enemy, taking out all their possessions to prepare for a confrontation. When they talked about fighting to the death, they weren’t just saying it. Under Elder Han’s leadership, two junior brothers took a Spirit Beast, responsible for blocking the pursuit of the four Spirit Beasts behind. With such a formation, they could only rely on their Secret Techniques for a short delay, but ultimately would be reduced to a state of complete obliteration.

The reason for this was to leave more Spirit Beasts for the other brothers to resist powerful enemies. After all, against human experts and Cultivators like Liu and Mo, many methods used within the sect to subdue Spirit Beasts were useless. They had to rely on the Spirit Beasts to engage.

At this moment, standing on the sidelines, Pei Yan could see that the people from the Beast Taming Institute were really pushed to a dead end. Everyone was intimately connected with their Spirit Beasts, and after using some unknown techniques, blood gushed from their mouths and noses, while desperate roars echoed from the Spirit Beasts beneath them. Whether in strength or confidence, they surged to peak levels in this moment.

However, what happened next left Pei Yan, who was hoping to watch a good show, both excited and disappointed. Excited because the techniques Liu and Mo used were indeed exceptionally brilliant, but disappointed because the people from the Beast Taming Institute were really not resilient, being subdued by the two in just an instant.

One move! It took only one move! By slowing down the scenes repeatedly, Pei Yan could vaguely catch the afterimages of Mo Baiqi and Liu Xuanji. Their Hongjun Sword Furnace Sword Qi was on a completely different level from Pei Yan’s own haphazard Sword Qi sweeps. Their movements were as natural as river water flowing around a boulder. Mo Baiqi’s longsword at his waist was never drawn. As he brushed past his enemies, sword qi flowers, resembling plum blossoms, were reflected and scattered from the tip of his fan.

At first, Pei Yan thought this was just Mo Baiqi being pretentiously elegant. However, when those plum blossoms touched the enemies, they immediately exploded into countless petals, each petal possessing fierce Sword Qi. If it were just that, Pei Yan believed he could mimic it, albeit less gracefully, maybe achieving seventy percent. The most exquisite part was how the petals of Sword Qi pinpointed where the Beast Taming Institute’s elders and the Spirit Beasts were connected, as if predicting their reactions, delivering a continuous barrage. This forced the opponents to retreat from their bond with the Spirit Beasts and seek safety, covered in injuries.

As Mo Baiqi leaped above, Liu Xuanji traversed beneath the Spirit Beasts. To outsiders, he appeared like an old drunkard, stooped and staggering, passing under the giant Spirit Beasts, making spectators fear he would be crushed into pulp at any moment by the hulking limbs of these prehistoric creatures.