Following that brief moment of absolute silence in the lobby, a massive chaotic brawl predictably erupted.
Xue Mu noticed that the Righteous Sects hadn’t brought any big shot figures along.
Perhaps none of them were currently stationed in the capital?
This was actually a rather interesting detail—the Righteous factions had no powerhouse presence in the capital…
Well, come to think of it, neither did the Star-Moon Sect.
Xue Qingqiu and her disciple had only arrived a single day ago.
It actually made perfect sense.
The capital’s grand array suppressed everyone’s cultivation by fifty percent.
Powerhouses generally hated putting themselves in situations where they couldn’t unleash their full strength.
This was likely one of the primary methods the Imperial Court used to maintain absolute control over the capital.
Consequently, this so-called “massive brawl” was actually just Yue Xiaochan single-handedly massacring the Righteous disciples.
On the Star-Moon Sect’s side, even Zhuo Qingqing and Menglan didn’t bother to lift a finger, purely to avoid ruining their Young Sect Master’s fun.
Yue Xiaochan giggled merrily, weaving through the crowd like a butterfly fluttering through flowers.
Wherever her delicate hands brushed past, a cultivator would instantly collapse to the floor.
The scene perfectly mirrored a textbook movie trope of a ruthless demonic enchantress unleashing absolute havoc.
The contrast between this terrifying display and the little girl who had spent the last two days blushing down to her ears and neck was a bit too vast.
Watching her, Xue Mu felt a sudden chill run down his spine.
Yue Xiaochan struck down a female disciple from The Sword-Seeking Sect, casually tossing her body toward Menglan.
“Here’s another uniform!
Strip it off first!” Alright then, Xue Mu thought.
It turns out these people are literally just a uniform delivery service in her eyes.
A young Taoist priest cried out in grief and fury, “You fiend!
Heaven will bring retribution upon yo—urgh…” Before he could even finish his sentence, Yue Xiaochan casually kicked him into the air.
He executed a perfect three-and-a-half-spin rotation in mid-air before crashing down with a resounding thud right in front of Xue Mu.
Xue Mu blinked in utter bewilderment.
The young Taoist, his mouth overflowing with blood, painfully lifted his head.
His eyes locked right onto Xue Mu’s entirely innocent, novice gaze.
“Die, you demonic scum!” Summoning strength out of absolutely nowhere, the young Taoist scrambled to his feet.
He had lost his sword somewhere along the way, so he raised a bare palm, preparing to smash it down.
“Holy shit…” Xue Mu turned on his heel and bolted, the young Taoist desperately giving chase.
Two panicked feminine cries instantly rang out from across the lobby: “You dare?!” and “Young Master, watch out!” Yue Xiaochan hadn’t anticipated that casually kicking a stray body would land it right in front of Xue Mu.
The realization that Xue Mu was a complete mortal with absolutely zero cultivation slammed into her mind.
Blurted out a furious “You dare?!”, she flicked her wrist and unleashed a silver hairpin, sending it flying like a bullet straight toward the back of the young Taoist’s head.
At the same exact time, Menglan, completely pale with fright, threw herself forward.
From a great distance away, she unleashed a fierce blast of palm qi aimed squarely at the Taoist’s back.
All fighting in the lobby ground to a sudden halt.
Everyone’s eyes locked onto Xue Mu’s position.
The entire scene seemed to unfold in slow motion, leaving everyone wondering if the Taoist would strike Xue Mu down first, or if the Taoist would be pierced through the skull and blasted through the heart first.
The actual outcome defied everyone’s expectations.
Just as the Taoist’s swinging palm was a split second away from striking Xue Mu’s back, he abruptly pulled his hand back.
His face contorted in sheer agony as he clutched his own throat.
In an instant, blood began erupting violently from his seven facial orifices.
At that exact moment, Yue Xiaochan’s silver hairpin and Menglan’s palm qi struck simultaneously, obliterating the Taoist into a literal heap of minced meat.
Yue Xiaochan, still shaken by the close call, panted heavily for a few breaths.
Then, she suddenly burst into laughter, pointing a finger at Xue Mu.
“You didn’t take your medicine today!” Xue Mu finally caught on as well.
“So I’m toxic as hell right now?” Menglan, who had already rushed to Xue Mu’s side, also underwent a subtle shift in expression.
She instinctively took a half-step back, whispering in a low voice, “Young Master, your poison arts are incredibly sharp.” Xue Mu offered a thoroughly awkward smile, staring at the messy remains of the Taoist on the floor.
He felt a bit strange deep down.
It wasn’t exactly guilt—after all, the guy had tried to kill him out of nowhere without a second thought.
But still…
a life had been taken.
As a modern person raised in a civilized society, he ultimately had a psychological hurdle when it came to killing.
Fortunately, the guy had been passively poisoned to death rather than beaten to death by his own two hands.
The visceral shock wasn’t as intense, allowing him to suppress his bizarre emotions.
Indeed, the twelve-hour efficacy of the medicine suppressing Xue Mu’s toxicity had already worn off.
He truly hadn’t taken his pills today.
The Taoist had been thoroughly invaded by the cocktail of various mutated viruses radiating from Xue Mu’s body.
Already severely injured, the man stood absolutely zero chance of resisting and was essentially poisoned alive.
The few remaining Righteous disciples in the lobby retreated in unison, finally realizing they had absolutely no upper hand here.
A single Yue Xiaochan was already enough to toy with all of them like playthings, while Zhuo Qingqing and Menglan hadn’t even lifted a finger yet.
To make matters worse, there was actually a monster hiding in the back—one who looked like a completely defenseless mortal but secretly possessed an unfathomably deep poison cultivation.
Yue Xiaochan was in an excellent mood now.
She smiled shifting her gaze to the survivors.
“Did I say you could leave?” One of them yelled in fury, “You fiend!
Are you truly planning to slaughter every last one of us?!” Yue Xiaochan curled her lip disdainfully.
“None of your sects have any elders stationed in the capital.
You brought nothing but a handful of useless shrimp and crabs, yet you still had the audacity to barge through our doors demanding justice?
What a bunch of absolute blockheads.” The man spat back angrily, “If you hadn’t ambushed Martial Uncle Dongfeng…” Yue Xiaochan stuck her tongue out and scraped her finger against her cheek mockingly.
“Even if he fought me in a fair duel, do you honestly think he wouldn’t have died?” The man choked on his words, unable to argue.
Anyone could tell this demonic enchantress possessed extremely high cultivation; in fact, none of them could even see through her true realm.
In other words, these people didn’t even have the right to force her to show her hidden cards.
What was even more ironic was that, looking at Yue Xiaochan’s brightly smiling, utterly adorable face, he found himself entirely unable to muster up any harsh words.
A sudden chuckle echoed from outside the doors.
“Barely a slip of a girl, yet you already possess the talent to bewitch the world.
The young successor of the Star-Moon Sect is indeed extraordinary.” Following the voice, a man and a woman stepped through the entrance.
The man was an elder dressed in a flowing teal robe, his long white beard drifting in the wind, giving him the classic look of a transcendent immortal.
He was the one who had spoken.
The woman appeared to be around twenty-five or twenty-six years old.
She was dressed in the iconic uniform of The Six Gates—a dark crimson armored vest over form-fitting black martial robes.
The striking combination of red and black tightly contoured her body, giving her a heroic yet authoritative presence.
As she strode forward, her remarkably long, straight, and slender legs commanded immediate attention, radiating the toned athleticism of a stalking panther.
A scarlet cape was fastened to her shoulders, billowing dramatically behind her with every step.
She looked incredibly dashing.
Forgoing a hat, her hair was tied back casually in a high ponytail.
A piercing, razor-sharp focus gleamed in her icy eyes.
While her facial features weren’t delicate, her fierce, commanding charisma gave her a thoroughly unique and striking allure.
Xue Mu’s eyes were instantly locked onto her.
Could this be the “crazy woman” Xiahou Di they were talking about earlier?
he thought to himself.
She’s actually a stunning, athletic powerhouse of a beauty, not some old hag!
Yue Xiaochan tilted her head, propping up her cheek with a single finger.
She looked back and forth between the two newcomers before her face lit up with a grin full of malicious gossip.
“Chief Constable Xiahou, and you, Old Grandpa…
Walking in so closely together, could it be that you two are dating?” The duo had marched in with a powerful, commanding presence, but that single sentence nearly caused them both to stumble mid-stride.
In extreme awkwardness, they immediately forced a two-foot gap between each other.
Xiahou Di sneered, “Cut out the demonic act.
Murdering people out in the open right under the Emperor’s nose…
has your Star-Moon Sect completely stopped respecting The Six Gates?” Yue Xiaochan’s face instantly transformed into a mask of pure terror.
“Constable Xiahou, you must seek justice for this weak civilian!
Look at these people, barging into a brothel brandishing blades and swords.
The girls of our Hundred Flowers Pavilion are all defenseless, fragile women.
If I hadn’t happened to know a move or two, they would have met a horrific fate by now, boohoohoo…” Xue Mu nearly burst out laughing.
Looking at the expressions of the Righteous Sect members—which looked exactly like they had just swallowed fresh manure—he knew Yue Xiaochan was entirely in the right from a legal standpoint.
No wonder she had slaughtered them so cleanly.
Xiahou Di opened her mouth to argue, but closed it right back up.
According to imperial law, Yue Xiaochan had killed a band of armed martial artists who had forcefully broken into her private property; her actions were completely legal.
If Yue Xiaochan turned the tables and demanded that The Six Gates punish the remaining Righteous disciples instead, Xiahou Di wouldn’t even know how to respond.
The elder stepped in to break the impasse.
“I am Miao Yue of The Mind-Intent Sect.” Yue Xiaochan blinked innocently.
“Ah, so it is Martial Uncle Miao of The Mind-Intent Sect.
But your sect prides itself on following your inner intent, so you don’t even have a uniform.
This whole uniform issue has absolutely nothing to do with your sect.” Miao Yue replied indifferently, “The Righteous Sects stand as one.
An insult to one is an insult to all; we naturally share the same roots.
Furthermore, even putting the uniform incident aside, Nephew Yue has brutally slaughtered so many Righteous disciples.
How can my Xinyi Sect simply sit idly by?” Xue Mu had been closely observing Xiahou Di the entire time.
He noticed that the moment Miao Yue uttered the words “share the same roots,” Xiahou Di’s brow furrowed slightly in clear distaste.
Xue Mu’s mind raced.
This is getting interesting…
The Imperial Court must absolutely despise the idea of the Righteous Sects becoming too united.
Yue Xiaochan remained as cheerful as ever.
“What does Martial Uncle Miao intend to do, then?
Are you planning to bully the young, perhaps to give me a little…
instruction?” Miao Yue already had a beard full of white hair; he couldn’t bring himself to duel a thirteen-year-old girl in front of a massive crowd.
Stroking his beard in thought, his gaze suddenly landed on Xue Mu.
He offered a faint smile.
“This young hero is likely not a member of the Star-Moon Sect, correct?
Your Excellency used poison to murder a disciple of the Xiantian Sect.
Shouldn’t you give this old man an explanation?” Xue Mu rolled his eyes.
The Taoist tried to kill me first, why didn’t you mention that?
In reality, this old man simply figured the Star-Moon Sect wouldn’t go out of their way to protect a lone man.
He was intentionally picking on a soft target to give the surrounding Righteous disciples a satisfying conclusion.
Yue Xiaochan clearly saw through his intentions as well.
She pursed her lips and smiled.
“He is indeed not a member of our Star-Moon Sect.
However, Martial Uncle Miao should take note—his surname is Xue.” Xue Mu smiled, cupping his hands in a formal greeting.
“Xue Mu greets everyone.” Surname Xue…
Miao Yue froze, his face shifting drastically.
An uproar erupted among all the Righteous disciples in the room, and even Xiahou Di’s gaze turned incredibly heavy as she stared at Xue Mu.
Using Xue Qingqiu’s massive reputation as a shield truly carried an extraordinary amount of intimidation.