Chapter 30 - ◑.◑

"The Yangs are truly relentless. They won't even give us a moment to breathe," Xuan Yi exclaimed, frustrated.
"Huh. You're quick-witted. You caught on quite fast," the young man replied with a smile.
"Are you related to killer hornet insects? Once you lock your eyes on a target, you never forget or relent until either of you is dead," Xuan Yi mocked, tauntingly.
"Well, that's not entirely true, at least not the part about being related to killer hornets. We wouldn't dare claim such credit—it's not our style to be impostors unlike some people. But the rest is pretty accurate," the man said, sitting upright and yawning in an almost exaggerated manner before resuming to fan his face.
The onlookers, particularly the wincing short man and the second man struggling to get to their feet in the distance, began to grasp the situation.
"The Yang... Yu... imposters... two young masters..." the second man muttered under his breath, trying to piece together the information. It wasn't too difficult to connect the dots.
"Please spare us your high pedestal of pretense and righteousness. For all we know, you pursued Qing Fu and intended to take her against her will, which means kidnapping her. We were merely acting justly, but you relentlessly pursued us to this end," Xuan Yi retorted to the dashing man.
"Well, all of that doesn't matter now. Qing Fu is where she's supposed to be, and I'm here for an entirely different matter," the man replied coolly.
Xuan Yi, though maintaining a smile on his face, felt his heart boiling with anger at the man's indifference toward Qing Fu's fate.
"Let me introduce myself. I'm Ming Wen, a disciple of the Yang Sect. And what should I call you?" he asked, taking a few steps forward with a confident stride.
"You grandfather," Xuan Yi exclaimed, unleashing a vine of light as sharp as metal towards the man.
The man smiled crookedly, effortlessly breaking apart the vine. The long street cracked slightly along its length, causing several people to gasp and hastily retreat from the unfolding battle scene.
To them, this fight was far from the ordinary skirmish they witnessed daily.
"Now, that's rude. I was merely extending the courtesy of sharing my name with you," the man feigned offense while wafting his fan.
"Is it the latest trend in the cities or something? Young men flaunting fans everywhere?" Xuan Yi retorted sarcastically.
"I thought it might add an interesting ambiance, especially after hearing about your initial encounter with the Yang. And it certainly seems to have," he responded, closing the fan and tossing it aside. "Now, I know you've had a few skirmishes with individuals like Tai Leong in the canyons, but don't fool yourself. I'm here for the one with the Yang Ten Thousand Sword Tempering technique. However, since I can't determine if either taught the other, or from whom you learnt it, I must take both of you in for further investigation."
Xuan Yi took a moment to pause and contemplate the situation. Their strength had undoubtedly grown since their encounter in the canyon, but this person—judging from his informal address of the formidable woman they had fought—was clearly on another level.
"I'll tell you the same thing I told the others. Be gone," Tian Wei finally spoke, his voice resonating with a powerful aura that caused the air to tremble.
"I suppose we'll have to settle this the hard way," the young man responded, and as if in response to his words, a few vibrant green bamboo leaves materialized in the air, swirling around him in the gentle breeze that followed.
"If you believe for even a moment that your companion stood a chance against me, you're as deluded as they were. And while Qing Fu may have been retrieved during my momentary indecision, don't think too highly of yourselves," Tian Wei warned, his body emanating a faint golden glow.
Everyone around had scattered, and the streets were now nearly empty, save for a solitary woman sitting on a chair at a nearby merchant's stand, engrossed in what seemed to be a book.
It appeared to be the same book that Tian Wei had purchased. As she stood up, she dropped the book onto the stand.
Time seemed to come to a standstill as the woman moved. It was as if she effortlessly tore through space, flickering ten steps closer in an instant, then flickering again to shorten the distance by another ten steps.
Finally, she appeared a mere five steps away from Xuan Yi, Tian Wei and Ming Wen. Astonishingly, by the time she arrived, the book had not even touched the surface of the table.
Suddenly, the sky cracked with a jarring thunder.