Chapter 724: Elder Sister Dong Ling

Snap!

The entire scene froze instantly.

Nangong Yin, stuck in the doorway, became completely rigid.

Dongling, the president of the Alchemist Association, was approaching with graceful steps, but her delicate body trembled.

Everyone in the audience who heard the sound had their pupils shrink sharply, and the room fell into utter silence.

Liu Lu's knees hit the ground with a thud, and his whole body went limp on the floor.

He turned back in disbelief, staring at Xu Xiaoshou and observing his arrogant demeanor, and suddenly understood what was happening.

Xu Xiaoshou had clearly mistaken the person in front of him for some insignificant nobody.

After all, Xu Xiaoshou had only been in Wang Cheng for a few days and didn't recognize this "old auntie" he mentioned. That was perfectly normal.

"Xu... Xu... Xu Shao!"

Liu Lu's teeth chattered as he crawled step by step to Xu Xiaoshou's side, grabbing his pant leg. "There's something I don't know if I should say."

"Spit it out."

Xu Xiaoshou flicked his sleeve.

He was still immersed in the notifications from his system: "Received suspicion, passive value, 1," "Received admiration, passive value, 1," "Received fear, passive value, 1," and so on.

Although he didn't understand why everyone was reacting so intensely, Xu Xiaoshou simply assumed it was the effect of his overwhelming presence, dominating the room. So he didn't think much of it.

Liu Lu took a deep breath, climbed up along Xu Xiaoshou's pant leg, and whispered,

"Perhaps you do know her, Xu Shao, but I have to risk my life to remind you."

"The 'old auntie' you mentioned is the president of the Wang Cheng Alchemist Association headquarters... Dongling!"

"Ah?"

Xu Xiaoshou froze, his heart skipping a beat.

"Received shock, passive value, 1."

Through the eye holes in his beast mask, he turned his gaze sluggishly toward the trembling figure who seemed to be suppressing her rage—the old auntie— and suddenly felt a chill run down the back of his head.

"Received shock, passive value, 1."

He glanced back at Liu Lu, who was nodding lightly with an expression that said, "You heard that right."

"Received shock, passive value, 1."

Three shocks in a row, and Xu Xiaoshou exploded on the spot.

Like a startled cat with fur standing on end, he sprang away from Liu Lu, exclaiming in disbelief, "What did you say? Dongling should be a white-haired old man, right?"

The room, which should have been buzzing with whispers after the silence, was once again silenced by Xu Xiaoshou's words.

Liu Lu: ???

Nangong Yin: ???

Dongling: ???

Everyone in the audience: !!!

"Received admiration, passive value, 142."

"Received praise, passive value, 166."

"Received pity, passive value, 233."

Liu Lu's eyes rolled back, and he fainted with a thud.

Sorry, Xu Shao, it's not that I don't want to save you, but in this situation, there's nothing I can do...

Across the corridor,

Dongling's face was covered in frost, with a faint purple hue emerging.

Her slender figure, hidden under her alchemist robe, trembled at a rapid pace, broadcasting her boundless fury.

Her black hair whipped around as if stirred by the wind.

In that moment, though there was no sand, a fierce wind howled through the room, rustling everything.

Hiss—

Without any visible movement, Dongling took a step forward, and eerie purple flames instantly enveloped her entire body.

Her bloodshot eyes burst with an intense, mismatched glow from within the purple fire, clearly indicating that Dongling had entered a berserk state.

You can say my alchemy skills are lacking...

Or that my Zhan Dao cultivation level doesn't match the high status I hold...

People can gossip about those things behind my back, and I don't really care.

But!

I'm only thirty-four!

Even when others mention it, they say "the thirty-four-year-old beauty"!

In this Sheng Shen Continent, where Zhan Dao reigns supreme and lifespans are endless, being just thirty-four...

And you call me an old auntie?

And a white-haired old man?

What kind of description is that? Does the name "Dongling" give you that impression?

As the saying goes: Even a dragon has its reverse scale—touch it, and you die.

In this world, people are used to treating Wang Zuo and Zhan Dao as elders, used to everyone interacting with courtesy before resorting to conflict.

Sometimes, they forget certain things.

For example, a thirty-four-year-old single woman might not fear any other gossip because she's strong inside.

But when it comes to age and marriage, some people really don't like it being brought up!

Even if it's just said offhand...

"Ignorant fool, you deserve a lesson!"

Dongling, shrouded in purple flames, reached out into the void, drawing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth like a divine summon. It gathered into binds that hoisted Xu Xiaoshou into the air.

Then, with a pull, Xu Xiaoshou's body crashed through the door and was yanked in front of her.

The purple flames condensed in the air, forming a massive hand over three zhang long, which swung straight toward the face of this insolent offender.

"Damn, she's really attacking?"

The audience erupted, with many people scrambling to move away to avoid any splash damage.

"That's Duo Yuan Zi Huo!"

Someone stared in shock at the imposing purple flames. "It's Duo Yuan Zi Huo! Dongling has gone mad... I mean, truly angry! That guy in front of her doesn't even seem like a Zhan Dao— is she trying to obliterate him?"

"Oh my god, Dongling isn't usually this volatile!"

"Old auntie wasn't kidding— is this just her having a bad day? Who in private box 172 is that unlucky bastard? He walked right into it, and he deserves it..."

"Shh, shut up! Are you crazy, calling her that? Do you have a death wish?"

"Oh, oh."

In the nick of time, Zhou Tiancan snapped to attention and dashed toward the base of the purple flames.

Halfway there, he realized he could just send a message...

So Zhou Tiancan quickly transmitted his voice to Shi Ti, who was still standing dumbfounded in the back: "It's him! That's the guy! Tell Dongling to stop!"

Shi Ti turned in confusion, not understanding what Zhou Tiancan was babbling about.

"It's him, I tell you!"

Zhou Tiancan nodded desperately. It's Xu Xiaoshou— he can't die!

Suddenly, Shi Ti figured it out.

Looking at the scene, his mind involuntarily flashed back to when he had been scorched inside and out in the Dan Ta.

Oh, so that's what happened...

Shi Ti suddenly understood. The only one who could cause such chaos at the trade fair was clearly an acquaintance's doing.

"Stop—"

Shi Ti stepped back to avoid the battlefield and called out, "Dongling, hold back— there's a misunderstanding!"

"Show mercy—"

At the same time, Nangong Yin leaped into the air and shouted.

Descending from the sky was another black-robed figure with a beast mask— the Tai Xu expert overseeing the event.

No matter how high Dongling's status or power, she couldn't just kill someone here.

Otherwise, the rules of the trade fair would be completely disrupted.

The restraints of Zhan Dao and Tai Xu power were invisible to outsiders, but Dongling could feel them.

She realized her actions were too impulsive.

She could punish him after the trade fair...

The purple flame hand paused in midair just as it was about to strike Xu Xiaoshou's masked face.

In that split second, the attack stopped inches away.

But the flames didn't dissipate; their momentum carried on, and the wave of fire swept over Xu Xiaoshou's entire body in an instant.

It looked as if he had been burned through completely.

Shi Ti halted his retreat.

From his position behind the fight, his spiritual sense couldn't pierce the Duo Yuan Zi Huo, but his eyes could see that Dongling had held back.

Still...

"You don't have to hold back entirely— a little punishment would be fine!" Shi Ti clenched his fist and muttered quietly.

The spectators in the seats couldn't see the details.

Their spiritual sense couldn't penetrate the "Duo Yuan Zi Huo," so all they saw was the insolent offender being crushed to pieces under Dongling's grasp and slap— body and all gone.

"He's dead?"

The purple flames faded.

Nothing remained in the void!

This stunned not only the spectators but also Dongling herself.

The figure bound by spiritual energy had vanished under the purple flames?

"Damn!"

"Did Dongling just kill someone?"

"At the trade fair?"

Shouts of shock and alarm made everyone tense up.

But Dongling shot them a glare. "Shut up!"

"Uh..."

Everyone fell silent instantly.

There were plenty of big shots in the room who could discern the situation.

Clearly, Dongling's attack hadn't landed, yet the person had disappeared.

That meant, even if the purple flame hand had struck, it probably wouldn't have harmed him at all.

"What the hell is going on?"

Those in the private boxes at Wang Zuo level and above were deeply shocked.

"That guy didn't even seem to be at Wang Zuo level, right?"

"What just happened... Teleportation? But we didn't detect any spatial fluctuations."

"What an incredible spiritual technique! It's like vanishing into thin air— I wonder if it's for sale..."

Everyone waited for the fight to continue.

The guy Dongling had grabbed was completely gone.

Some realized he had escaped.

Others truly thought he had been obliterated.

Zhou Tiancan quietly returned to Hua Luo's side and whispered in her ear, "It's him!"

He was thrilled, as if uncovering a secret, and ran to Su Qianqian: "It's him!"

Su Qianqian nodded slightly, which cooled Zhou Tiancan's excitement a bit.

Oh, right!

She's the one who calls him "Xiao Shou gege," so of course she recognizes him.

Hua Luo was momentarily stunned, still a bit confused.

She turned gracefully, giving Zhou Tiancan a look that said, "That's not what you thought earlier."

"It's absolutely him!" Zhou Tiancan said with full conviction.

The way he speaks, his connections, the surname "Xu"...

And the ability to cause such a commotion at the trade fair and escape from Dongling's grasp...

Who else could it be but Xu Xiaoshou?

Zhou Tiancan knew that the Xu Shao from Tian Shang First Tower was around the same age.

And he wanted to join the Wang Cheng trials.

That meant Xu Shao was only at Xiantian level.

A Xiantian cultivator escaping from a Zhan Dao's hand in such a mysterious way— after thinking it over, Zhou Tiancan could only picture Xu Xiaoshou.

Hua Luo's expression grew complicated, her fingers intertwining as she recalled what had just happened. "Tell me the truth, he... really is?"

"Mm-hmm!" Zhou Tiancan nodded.

Oh no, that's awkward.

In that moment, Hua Luo felt like she was bleeding inside.

The chaos at the trade fair boiled down to her making the first move, testing for the presence of Jin Zhao power.

Then Dongling stepped in, thinking she was being bullied, and tried to help.

Though the situation escalated because of Xu Shibo's "old auntie" comment...

But he was Xu Shibo!

Hua Luo hadn't learned much alchemy in Sheng Gong, but she had picked up enough social savvy.

With a mess like this, how could she shift the blame to her own shibo?

"It's over, it's over!"

Hua Luo's legs trembled as she imagined her master, Bai Lin, punishing her.

What was she going to do?

"Um..."

Just as everyone was still searching fruitlessly,

Xu Xiaoshou, still shaken, dispelled his invisible state and reappeared in a remote corner of the trade fair.

"There he is!"

"He's not dead!"

Someone shouted immediately.

But as soon as Xu Xiaoshou appeared, Dongling's gaze locked onto him first.

Nangong Yin, the Tai Xu expert maintaining order, and the various big shots in the private boxes were equally alert.

This time, his reappearance drew all eyes.

Every force was stunned by Xu Xiaoshou's unharmed figure.

"Received attention, passive value, 267."

"Received astonishment, passive value, 225."

"Received speculation, passive value, 222."

Dongling raised an eyebrow, her eyes filled with surprise.

She knew the power of her strike.

Even if the Duo Yuan Zi Huo hadn't hit him,

How could a Zhan Dao's grasp fail to leave even a scratch on this junior?

And...

When had Zhan Dao become so powerless?

Even if she couldn't injure him in battle, why did this guy seem so composed, as if dealing with Zhan Dao was commonplace?

Dongling thought she must be seeing things.

But indeed, though Xu Xiaoshou had landed in the corner,

His air of calm in the face of crisis made it seem like being grabbed by a Zhan Dao was trivial.

Their mindsets were completely out of sync. The only thing Xu Xiaoshou was still fretting over was,

"Messing with the Alchemist Association like this is going too far, right?"

Just look at where Zhou Tiancan and Shi Ti were standing.

They were all on the same side, basically family. No need to make things ugly.

"So..."

Faced with the suspicious gazes, Xu Xiaoshou decided to back down. After all, he was the one who misspoke first, so he couldn't blame Dongling.

A real man knows when to yield and when to stand firm.

In this case, showing weakness was the smart move.

With that thought,

Xu Xiaoshou forced a smile, removed his beast mask, and put on a delighted expression.

"Oh, so it's Dongling jie! What a mix-up— it's like family fighting family. I'm also part of the Alchemist Association!"

He pulled out his alchemist badge.

It was just tenth grade.

But that was enough to prove... he was one of their own!

Snap!

The room froze again.

No one expected Xu Shao to handle it this way.

Dongling's mouth twitched, her face darkening.

Trying to get close now?

Calling her "Dongling jie" at this point and flashing a tenth-grade badge— was that a bit too late?

"You little..."

Dongling clenched her fist and took a step forward, making several people behind her tense up immediately.

"Hold on!"

"Stop!"

"Wait!"

Nangong Yin was terrified of another fight breaking out.

As he moved, the Tai Xu beast-masked expert followed, ready to restrain Dongling.

Unexpectedly, Shi Ti jumped in too.

This outsider, an unfamiliar old man, was the quickest to act.

Shi Ti stood in front of Dongling and advised earnestly, "Calm down, Dongling. He's... well, just let it go. Be forgiving, be generous... it's all small stuff, no big deal!"

Shi Ti finished with a raised eyebrow, as if to say, "You know who he is."

Dongling turned back, giving him a cold stare.

Shi Ti fell silent and shrank back.

But then Hua Luo stepped forward, her face urgent. "Dongling, stop! No more fighting— it's all a misunderstanding. A thousand wrongs, ten thousand wrongs, they're all my fault!"

Dongling: ???

Xu Xiaoshou: ???

Everyone: ???

In that moment, no one in the room was unmoved by this sudden beast-masked woman.

Who was she?

And what nerve did she have to stop Dongling?