Chapter 112: The Seven-Gate Pagoda

Unlike the anger of the maid, although Tie Xinlan was somewhat annoyed in her heart, it was ultimately only because she was upset at Ling Xiao’s rudeness.

In truth, at this moment, she was quite pleased.

After all, she was finally no longer betrothed to Ling Xiao!

With that matter settled, she could now follow the path of the one she truly wished to pursue.

Thinking this, she let out a long breath and smiled calmly.

“Let’s go. Since we’ve come to Jiangzhou, we might as well stroll around this mundane world for a while, to clear our minds.”

The maid muttered under her breath.

“Young Mistress, we’ve been rejected from the engagement. How can you still have the leisure to relax?”

Tie Xinlan smiled serenely.

“What’s so bad about that? Ling Xiao chose to break off the engagement himself. That’s his loss; why should I be angry?”

“That’s true. Ling Xiao must know he’s unworthy of you, Young Mistress, so he ended the engagement himself.”

“Enough about him. From now on, Ling Xiao and I are strangers.”

The maid brightened.

“Young Mistress, I heard that a new Cai Family Restaurant recently opened in Jiangzhou. They brought over a famous chef from the Northwest. Their culinary skills are excellent.”

“You little foodie, let’s go then.”

The two women got into the carriage and, following the navigation, arrived at the Cai Family Restaurant on the outskirts of the city.

To their surprise, despite it being nearly eleven o’clock, the restaurant was brightly lit and packed with guests.

“Hmm? Young Mistress, why are there so many people here? Do common folk really go out to dine this late?”

Tie Xinlan narrowed her eyes slightly. With her keen vision, she immediately sensed that these people were no ordinary citizens.

“Xiao Yu, don’t speak so much.”

“Okay,” the maid nodded, half understanding.

As they stepped inside, many eyes turned toward them.

Tie Xinlan’s beauty was top-tier even in the cultivation world; here, it was simply unparalleled.

Before the two could find a seat, someone could no longer restrain himself and approached them.

“Ladies, you are truly like fairies descended to earth, rare in this world. May I have the honor of buying you a drink?”

Xiao Yu’s expression darkened, her delicate brows furrowing.

“Get lost! Who do you think you are? You’re not worthy to buy a meal for our Young Mistress.”

The man’s face immediately turned cold.

“What a big attitude! Today, I just want to see how precious your Young Mistress really is!”

He reached out to grab Tie Xinlan’s shoulder, but halfway there, a jade hand suddenly caught his wrist out of thin air, preventing him from moving an inch.

“What?” he exclaimed, startled.

Tie Xinlan let out a light snort, applied a slight twist, and snapped his arm like a twig.

“Ah—!”

He screamed in pain and was kicked flying across the room.

The entire restaurant fell into a sudden hush.

One by one, the other guests stood up, their eyes fixed intently on Tie Xinlan.

“Unexpectedly, you are a martial artist! May I ask which sect you belong to?”

Tie Xinlan’s gaze turned cold as she swept the room. With a proud expression, she declared:

“Divine Water Palace. Tie Xinlan.”

At her words, everyone’s faces changed in shock.

“Divine Water Palace? The seventh-ranked sect among the Nine Great Sects?”

“Is it true that Tie Xinlan, one of the four great beauties of the Jianghu, is you? So you must be the Young Palace Lord of Divine Water Palace!”

Xiao Yu smiled proudly.

“Well, at least you have some sense!”

The crowd gasped in awe as several elders quickly emerged and bowed respectfully toward Tie Xinlan.

“Apologies, Young Palace Lord. We failed to recognize you earlier. We did not expect you to be from Divine Water Palace. Please forgive our rudeness.”

“This time we will let it go. But in the future, do not use your identity as martial artists to bully common folk, tarnishing our reputation.”

“Yes, Young Palace Lord, your lesson is well taken. Since we have met, please do us the honor of dining together.”

Only then did Tie Xinlan nod.

The man from earlier was merely a low-ranking thug. These elders, however, were qualified to invite them to a meal.

“Please, Young Palace Lord, take the seat of honor.”

Without hesitation, Tie Xinlan took the seat.

The reputation of Divine Water Palace was well-earned.

Though Xiao Yu was just a maid, she could still hold her own place here.

Once seated, Xiao Yu couldn’t help but ask:

“By the way, which sects are you all from? What are you gathered here for?”

The elders smiled lightly and chuckled.

“Young Palace Lord, we are all brothers from the Jiangdong Water Association.”

Tie Xinlan frowned slightly.

“Why are people from Jiangdong here in Jiangzhou?”

“You may not know, but we are not afraid to tell you. We came here waiting for the Hundred Sects Contest to begin, so we can attack and annihilate the Young Master of Ghost Valley!”

“Hm?”

Tie Xinlan’s pupils constricted sharply. She exchanged a glance with Xiao Yu, both noticing the confusion mirrored in each other’s eyes.

“Why would the Jiangdong Water Association target the Young Master of Ghost Valley? And travel all this way? What’s the point?”

The elders chuckled darkly.

“You may not know, but Ghost Valley is also participating in the Hundred Sects Contest this year, so killing the Young Master of Ghost Valley won’t draw the attention of the Dragon Faction.”

“Of course, that’s not the main reason. The main reason is that Young Master Ling Xiao of Ghost Valley is far too arrogant. If we don’t kill him, it would be a violation of heavenly justice!”

Tie Xinlan’s curiosity deepened.

“What do you mean?”

“Since Ling Xiao left Ghost Valley and came to Jiangzhou, he has killed countless people without mercy.”

“Within just a few days, he took control of Jiangzhou through slaughter. We martial artists cannot allow such a murderous fiend to oppress the weak in the mortal world.”

“On top of that, he interfered in the family affairs of the Kongtong Sect in the Northwest, killing some of their key figures in the secular world there. He even killed Ye Gucheng, one of the former Four Young Masters of the martial world and the young master of Kongtong!”

“He killed Ye Gucheng?”

Tie Xinlan was taken aback.

She had previously thought Ling Xiao was just a lucky brat. Now it seemed he possessed considerable strength.

Setting everything else aside, she had witnessed Ye Gucheng’s power firsthand; that man was only slightly weaker than her.

If Ling Xiao could kill him, that meant his strength was comparable to her own.

“That’s right. Kongtong has now deployed all their forces—two hundred thousand troops—at the Jiangzhou border. Once the Hundred Sects Contest begins, they will launch a massive assault into Jiangzhou.”

As Tie Xinlan expressed her shock, Xiao Yu couldn’t help but ask in puzzlement:

“But isn’t that Kongtong’s family matter? What does it have to do with you?”

“Hmph. Half a month ago, Jianglin discovered a spirit crystal mine, estimated to hold at least a hundred thousand tons of spirit crystals. Seven sects, including us, gathered to claim it.”

“But Ling Xiao of Ghost Valley was the last to arrive. Taking advantage of Jiangzhou being Ghost Valley’s territory, he slaughtered our disciples and seized all the spirit crystals. Except for the Tiger Gate, which escaped early, the six sects lost six or seven hundred people—none survived!”

“Now, our six great sects have mobilized and are waiting for the Kongtong army to approach. When they attack, we will join in to claim our share.”

Xiao Yu stared in disbelief.

“My goodness, to think that a mere Ling Xiao dares to provoke seven sects. He really is too bold!”