Bargaining with Me?

No matter how she looked at it, Xuan Ji could never have imagined this outcome. After years of bitter cultivation, she had finally broken through to the mid Mahayana realm. With her extraordinary ice-attribute power, she had suppressed countless chosen prodigies. Yet the man before her... was clearly only in the early Mahayana realm! Why... Why was he this strong? Li Guanqi's gaze was cold, without the slightest ripple of emotion. Those pure white eyes were as deep and fathomless as a starry night sky, utterly unreadable. Suddenly! Xuan Ji seemed to sense something, and just as Xuan Zhèn spoke behind her, realization dawned on her. The man standing before her was the Thunder Lord! A possessor of a divine-grade lightning spiritual root! And someone like him appeared to have an extraordinary bond with Meng Wanshu—they seemed to be Dao companions. The more Xuan Ji realized this, the more delirious and manic the jealousy in her eyes became! *Why... Why does she get every single good thing?!* Roaring furiously in her heart, Xuan Ji's breathtakingly beautiful face contorted into something hideous. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Li Guanqi whispered softly. "Seal." Boom! Two bolts of lightning pierced straight through heaven and earth, instantly pinning the woman inside a cruciform lightning pillar. The raging lightning numbed Xuan Ji from head to toe, instantaneously sealing both her sea of consciousness and her dantian! The power Li Guanqi displayed could only be described as crushing. The might that erupted in that single instant sent shivers down even Dugu Chongming's spine. Within that sword light lay thousands of permutations, shifting as rapidly and unpredictably as lightning sweeping across the sky. And under the full release of Li Guanqi's strength, his aura was not the slightest bit weaker than any mid Mahayana realm cultivator present! *Swish! Swish! Swish!* Several figures teleported to their sides, falling into a defensive formation and surveying their surroundings with utmost vigilance. A flicker of surprise crossed Meng Wanshu's eyes. Reaching out with a fair hand, she actually plucked a large white radish right out of the void. Held in Meng Wanshu's hand, Pengluo's eyes went wide, and it mumbled in disbelief, "Mistress can actually spot me?" Meng Wanshu's ethereal voice drifted softly. "Long time no see. You've grown stronger." She offered no explanation for how she had noticed Pengluo, and the radish scratched its head in bashful embarrassment. After all, in its perception, the current Meng Wanshu was barely any weaker than Li Guanqi—in fact, she was noticeably more formidable. Meng Wanshu had only just absorbed the inheritance, her spiritual root ascending to a divine-grade spiritual root, which naturally drew the water-attribute spiritual qi of heaven and earth toward her. Her mid Mahayana realm aura was dense, settled, and freezing cold. The power of this inheritance was evidently immense. Li Guanqi surveyed the dense ring of cultivators around them before his gaze finally settled on the grim-faced Xuan Zhèn and Xuan Zhen. The reason Li Guanqi had not used Pengluo to make a direct escape was that Pengluo still required a bit more time. Therefore, what Meng Wanshu was holding at this moment was merely a clone. Both Xuan Zhèn and Xuan Zhen had sensed that the entity undergoing the tribulation breakthrough had the aura of a spirit entity. If they were not allowed to 'see' it, suspicions would inevitably arise. Things went precisely as Li Guanqi had anticipated: both men repeatedly cast furtive glances at Pengluo. A glint of greed flared deep in Xuan Zhèn's eyes, and he promptly sent a voice transmission to Xuan Zhen. *"Care to cooperate?"* Xuan Zhen's expression did not change as he replied through transmission, *"Hmph! Cooperate? What do you have to offer? Meng Wanshu and I have a Heavenly Dao contract between us. A share of the inheritance is rightfully mine. What makes you think you have any leverage to cooperate with me?"* At these words, Xuan Zhèn's expression shifted sharply. He had never been able to understand why Xuan Zhen would allow an outsider to accept the Bingqi inheritance. Now, everything made sense. Paying no heed to his younger brother, Xuan Zhen sneered and took a step forward, narrowing his eyes as he looked up at Meng Wanshu. "Miss Meng, our agreement still stands, does it not?" Meng Wanshu looked on calmly, gazing down at the man from high above. Li Guanqi had already told her the full truth of the situation. Whether Northern Faction or Southern Faction, neither side harbored good intentions. Li Guanqi sneered. "Agreement? What agreement?" Xuan Zhen did not waste words. With a wave of his hand, spiritual light flickered between his brows, and the corners of his mouth curled slightly upward. "The Heavenly Dao contract, of course! We agreed long ago: if Miss Meng truly obtained the inheritance, she must hand a share over to me!" Li Guanqi stood where he was and shrugged, stating bluntly, "I don't intend to let her give it to you." Xuan Zhen's eyelid twitched slightly, his gaze toward Li Guanqi turning dark. "Heh, then don't blame me for what follows!" Xuan Zhen truly lived up to his hypocritical nature, ensuring he publicly established the existence of the contract with Meng Wanshu first. That way, even if he broke faith, no one could fault him. In an instant, the contractual runes between his brows blazed with brilliant spiritual light. Suddenly! The man's surging aura was abruptly choked off, as though strangled by a massive unseen hand. A man who had been tortured beyond recognition, sealed inside a pillar of lightning, appeared suspended in midair. "Lan'er! If you dare harm my son, I will tear you to pieces!" Xuan Zhen erupted into furious rage. Never had he imagined that Li Guanqi had actually abducted his son. Boom! In a split second, the winds and clouds shifted across heaven and earth, and the temperature plummeted drastically, turning even the howling gale into an icy azure hue. The piercing wind bit to the bone, threatening to freeze one's very soul. With disheveled hair and glaring eyes, the enraged man gripped his sword and took a step forward. Yet the moment his foot moved, Li Guanqi turned his head slightly. Bringing his right fingers together like a blade, he violently thrust his hand straight into Xuan Lan's chest! His broad hand gripped Xuan Lan's heart, his wrist sunken into the chest cavity. "One step forward, and he dies." Xuan Zhen froze in his tracks out of sheer terror, cold sweat streaming down his cheeks. With Li Guanqi's current strength, he was fully capable of ending Xuan Lan's life long before Xuan Zhen could ever restrain him! Suddenly! Li Guanqi turned to Xuan Zhèn and sneered, "Did you think I was only speaking to him?" Xuan Zhèn's face drained of color. He had no choice but to pull back the ring concealed within his wide sleeve, not daring to make a reckless move. Dugu Chongming and the others wore exceptionally grave expressions. After all, the small group was facing the entire Xuan clan! Li Guanqi spoke in a bone-chilling voice, "Let us leave, and I will release the two of them." Li Guanqi's decision ultimately came down to a calculation of strength. Both Xuan Zhèn and Xuan Zhen were peak late Mahayana realm experts. Even if he joined forces with Meng Wanshu, it would likely be a taxing fight. Departing without bloodshed was undoubtedly the ideal outcome. Xuan Zhen hesitated for a long while, his eyes wavering with conflicting thoughts. Li Guanqi shook his head. With a flick of his hand, the Red Lotus bloomed, slashing straight toward Meng Wanshu's brow! In his heart, he chanted softly, *"Spirit Absolution!"* Watching the blade strike toward Meng Wanshu's forehead, Xuan Ji sneered inwardly. *Men are all filthy dogs. When it comes to an inheritance, he doesn't hesitate to butcher her!* Meng Wanshu stood motionless, as if completely unaware of the incoming blow. *Crack!* A crisp sound rang out. The ethereal thread connecting the contract mark between Meng Wanshu's brows to Xuan Zhen was severed in an instant! "You see? You don't even have the chips to bargain with me." Xuan Zhen stared in sheer horror at the white-robed youth. Those eyes burned deeply into his mind, impossible to banish. It was as though every single detail was firmly within the youth's grasp! Now, a deep wave of regret welled up inside Xuan Zhen for ever having offended this adversary.