A month passed in the blink of an eye.
The heavy stone gates of Li Wei's courtyard ground open, revealing a figure who seemed to have been reforged in a divine furnace. The oppressive aura that coiled around him before was now a palpable force, pressing down on the very air. Mei, who had stood guard without fail, felt a shiver run down her spine. The Young Master was different. Stronger. Immeasurably so.
Li Wei took a deep breath, the spiritual Qi of the world rushing towards him, only to be devoured and converted into raw physical power. A faint golden sheen pulsed under his skin before vanishing.
*Eighth Level of the Body Tempering Realm.*
In a single month, he had advanced five levels. Such a speed was not just unheard of; it was a myth, a legend spoken of in ancient texts. If word of this got out, it would shake the very foundations of the Grand Xia Empire. The so-called geniuses of Azure Dragon City were nothing but ants in comparison.
"Mei," he said, his voice deeper, resonating with a newfound power.
"Young Master," she bowed, her heart trembling with a mixture of awe and fear.
"My physical foundation is solid, but my combat techniques are lacking. I will visit the Myriad Arts Tower."
Without waiting for a reply, he strode out, his every step silent yet heavy, as if the ground itself was submitting to his will.
The Myriad Arts Tower was the heart of the Li Clan's martial heritage, a grand pagoda housing countless techniques accumulated over generations. As the Patriarch's son and the clan's Saint Root prodigy, Li Wei had unrestricted access. He bypassed the lower floors, filled with Mortal and Earth-grade skills, and ascended directly to the highest level, a place reserved for the clan's absolute core.
His spiritual sense swept across the ancient scrolls. He needed something that matched the tyrannical nature of his cultivation. His eyes soon landed on two scrolls.
The first emanated a terrifyingly sharp aura. *Asura's Heavenly Sword Art*, a Heaven-tier technique. It focused on absolute offensive power, each slash meant to dominate and destroy. It was a perfect fit.
The second was an Earth-tier movement skill, *Shadow Serpent Steps*. It emphasized explosive, unpredictable agility, allowing the user to close distances in an instant and evade attacks like a phantom. It would complement the sword art perfectly.
With his choices made, he committed them to memory with a single glance and turned to leave. As he walked back towards his mansion, the hushed whispers of two passing clan servants reached his ears.
"Did you hear about Young Master Feng? What a disgrace..."
"Shh! Don't speak so loud! I heard he tried to force himself on a married woman at one of the Jade Goblet Consortium's taverns. Her husband and his friends beat him half to death right there in public."
Li Wei's steps halted. The air around him dropped several degrees. Li Feng. His older half-brother, born of a concubine. A 22-year-old waste who, despite being fed countless pills to reach the Qi Condensation Realm, had no talent for cultivation and was relegated to managing some of the clan's businesses.
To be humiliated so publicly? By a commoner? He wasn't just disgracing himself; he was staining the name of the Li Clan. He was staining *Li Wei's* name.
A murderous glint flashed in Li Wei's eyes. He changed direction, his pace quickening into a blur. He arrived at Li Feng's residence—a respectable courtyard, but a hovel compared to his own—and kicked the gate open with a thunderous bang.
The servants inside froze, their faces paling in terror as they saw the furious expression on Li Wei's face. They dropped to their knees, heads pressed to the floor, not daring to make a sound.
Li Wei stormed into the main hall where Li Feng was nursing his bruised face with a wet cloth, groaning in pain.
"You are a disgrace," Li Wei's voice was cold as ice.
Li Feng looked up, his eyes widening in fear. "Wei... brother, I..."
"Brother?" Li Wei's voice dripped with contempt. "You dare call me brother after dragging our family name through the mud?"
Before he could finish, Li Wei was upon him. A single, brutal kick sent Li Feng flying across the room, crashing into a decorative table and shattering it to pieces. Li Feng coughed up a mouthful of blood, his Qi Condensation aura flaring weakly in defense.
It was useless. Against Li Wei's pure, tyrannical physical might, it was like a candle flame against a hurricane. Li Wei mercilessly stomped on his brother's chest, the sound of ribs cracking echoing in the silent hall.
"A member of the main Li family, beaten by commoners over a woman?" Li Wei snarled, grinding his foot down. "You have shamed us all!"
Li Feng choked, blood bubbling from his lips. "They... they didn't know who I was..."
"That makes it worse!" Li Wei's voice rose, the pressure in the room intensifying. "You should have made them know. You should have made them beg for mercy before crushing them!"
He was a realm higher in Qi cultivation, yet he was utterly powerless. This monster... his little brother was a monster! All he could do was endure the beating, his heart filled with silent curses and impotent rage.
Just then, Mei arrived with several of Li Wei's personal guards, having followed his furious departure. They took in the scene without a change in expression.
Li Wei finally lifted his foot from his half-brother's broken body. He turned to Mei. "Find out who did this. I want his name, his family, and his location."
Before Mei could respond, one of Li Feng's trembling servants spoke up. "Young Master Wei... it was the manager of the Whispering Willow Tavern, a man named Zhao Kang. The Jade Goblet Consortium owns it. He... he should be at the tavern now."
Li Wei's lips curled into a cruel smile. "Good."
He turned and strode out of the hall, his guards falling in behind him. "Jiao Long," he commanded.
A tall, imposing man with a saber scar across his face stepped forward. His aura was as deep and vast as an ocean. Jiao Long, a late-stage Golden Core expert who could be a patriarch of a lesser clan, was the captain of Li Wei's personal guard.
"Young Master."
"We're paying a visit to the Whispering Willow Tavern."
***
The Whispering Willow was one of the most popular taverns in the city's entertainment district. As Li Wei's entourage approached, the guards at the door moved to block them, but froze when they saw the emblem of the Li Clan on their robes. They bowed their heads and stepped aside without a word.
Li Wei walked in, his cold gaze sweeping across the boisterous room, silencing it instantly. His guards fanned out, their powerful auras locking down the entire establishment.
"Who is Zhao Kang?" Li Wei's voice, though not loud, cut through the silence like a blade.
A burly man behind the counter, his face a mask of arrogant confusion, stepped forward. "I am. Who the hell are you to barge in here..."
He never finished his sentence. Jiao Long moved, a blur of motion too fast for anyone to see. A resounding slap sent Zhao Kang spinning through the air, crashing into a wall with enough force to crack the stone. His teeth scattered across the floor.
Panic erupted. The tavern's guards drew their weapons, but they were all in the Qi Condensation or Foundation Establishment realms. Against a Golden Core expert and his elite team, it wasn't a fight; it was a slaughter.
Li Wei simply watched, an indifferent expression on his face, as Jiao Long and his men dismantled the tavern's security in seconds. Men were thrown through windows, their bones shattered, their screams cutting through the night.
In less than a minute, it was over. Jiao Long dragged the battered, unconscious Zhao Kang and a terrified woman—the one from the incident—and threw them at Li Wei's feet.
"An excellent display, Jiao Long," Li Wei said mildly.
"It was nothing, Young Master," Jiao Long replied, his voice a low rumble. "They were merely insects buzzing too close to the dragon."
He looked down at the pathetic pair, then turned to leave as if they were nothing more than trash on the side of the road.
"Drag them back to the estate," he commanded over his shoulder.
As they left, Mei glanced at Li Wei. "The Jade Goblet Consortium might not take this lightly, Young Master."
Li Wei's smile remained cruel. "Let them come. It will save me the trouble of hunting them down."