Supreme Emperor of Mist

House of Jiao.

Like the Qins, they're also a family that's rooted deep in this Fu-Rong Town. With close to 500 people in their household, their influence in this town cannot be underestimated.

The family first started humbly under their patriarch, Jiao Cheng, who is a Half-Step cultivator in his Bone Reconstruction Layer. With that height of cultivation at that time, Jiao Cheng can be said to be one of the few top fighters at the county-level.

He's respectable, but at the same time, vicious to the point both friends and enemies will tremble if they get into his ugly side. The household performs best when it comes to shady deals, extortion, and human trafficking.

...

...

"Third Young Master!" Qin Lan's arrival made the head of security felt speechless for a moment. But he felt calmer because someone that could efficiently lead everyone present has finally arrived.

With Xiao-Ke nowhere to be seen, there's a small hope for them. Perhaps help will arrive sooner than they think.

"Do enlighten me, Kun Ning. What kind of herbs here in our lowly pharmacy managed to catch the attention of your prideful master? I dare to say that except for a few stalk of spiritual herbs here, we have nothing precious here." Qin Lan said.

"Heh, the third young master of the Qin. Why would you think I'll answer your question? Be it my master's intention or mine, we'll kill everyone here today before escaping. Your arrival would only make this even more entertaining." Kun Ning stares intensely at Qin Lan.

There are less than ten steps between Qin Lan and Kun Ning. The atmosphere in this courtyard was so quiet, to the point their nervous heartbeat can be heard clearly.

"Xiu!" Kun Ning made a punch forward, firing a bolt from a hidden crossbow strapped on his wrist. The sneak attack gave the head of security a shock as he shifted his gaze quickly to where Qin Lan stands.

"Young... Eh?" he was about to warn his young lord, but it seems that Qin Lan was a step faster than Kun Ning with his sneaky tricks.

Qin Lan throws the sword in hand towards Kun Ning and unsheaths the heirloom dagger on his waistbelt. A slight amount of Spiritual Energy is all he needs to activate the protective inscription on his trinket.

Rainbow Palm Kun Ning's gaze followed Qin Lan as the latter moves closer to his position. The Spiritual Energy on his palm remained fierce as he waits for the perfect opportunity to land an attack at Qin Lan's body.

"Three steps more," he whispered to himself.

"Urgh! - You!!!" but that distraction of a moving pouch of golden coins ended up as a problem when the Head of Security delivered a strike on his left armpit.

Blood immediately gushed out from the wound as Kun Ning turns his attention to the Head of Security.

"I'll kill you first!" he screamed. More Spiritual Energy is exhausted as he tried to stop the bleeding.

While at the same time, the servants move forward and engaged with the opposing force. The female workers grabbed pebbles and fist-sized rocks to throw at their enemies, while the men struggled to stop them from spreading out.

But even with an advantage in numbers, the servant of the Qin Family could hardly stop their enemies from doing what they want. A few assailants managed to slips through the line of defense and storm into the group of females as they started to ravage their bodies without remorse.

"Hahaha, nice body and breast you got there!" the assailants were immediately aroused as he strips one of the female naked. Although he did not continue with his heinous deed, that woman has undoubtedly had her heart scarred for the rest of her life.

"Ah! Help me!" another woman screamed. The assailant fondled her milky white body as his other hand tightened the blade on the woman's neck. Tears fall from both of her eyes as she started to lost hope in her survival.

Suddenly, the assailant froze and collapsed onto the ground.

A warm jacket covered the remaining modesty of the woman as Qin Lan made his way to another assailant.

"Thank you, young master," the woman stays where she was as she stares at her savior.

"Big sister Qi, please set the stack of straws on fire and fan the flames using this. I'll make sure of your safety while you're doing what I ordered." Qin Lan sheathed the dagger back and picked up another sword nearby.

The female servant immediately does what she was ordered. With Qin Lan's fan in her hand, she lit a few embers on the straws and started to fan the fire.

Smoke rises and immediately acts like a fire alarm that caught the attention of the people nearby the pharmacy. As the straw burns, the situation in the courtyard also started to get suffocating with smoke blowing everywhere.

...

...

"Old master! Something happened at the pharmacy! Old Meng and Old Tian are dead!" Xiao-Ke banged the door into the Qin Family Hall without showing any respect to those insides.

"Preposterous! How dare a servant randomly shout nonsense without asking for permission to speak first?" one of the elders of their Qin Household slaps his chair as he shifts his sight at the door.

As for the patriarch, he made a nod to the family butler standing near the door.

The door was opened, with Xiao-Ke rolled inside the Qin Family Hall nervously. He quickly kneeled before the five decisionmakers of the Qin Household and repeated what he had just said.

"Our pharmacy is under attack. Old Meng and Old Tian are dead." Xiao-Ke said.

"Absurd! Who has the power to do that inside Fu-Rong Town?" the third elder slaps the platter with a teacup at Xiao-Ke and caused a tooth of his to fall out.

"But! It's true! It's true! The third young master is there too! This lowly servant dare not to lie!" Xiao-Ke knocked his head on the ground, afraid that the third elder will continue to punish him.

"Old master, there's smoke blowing out from the direction of our pharmacy," the family butler whispered softly by his master's ear.

"Hmm..." Qin Tian took a glance at the four elders in front of him.

"Our discussion ends here today. Let us continue tomorrow," Qin Tian said.

"How can we stop in the middle of a discussion about allocating the resources to the younger generation?" the first elder tried to stop Qin Tian from leaving.

"IF I SAY THE DISCUSSION ENDS TODAY, IT ENDS HERE TODAY!" Qin Tian raised his voice slightly, with the strength of a Full-Completion Cultivator in Bone Reconstruction Layer explodes outward.

The patriarch calmly left the family hall, with his butler and Xiao-Ke following behind him.

The second and fourth elder left without saying anything else. But the facial expression of the first and third elder is turning uglier from frustration.

...

...

Looking at the billowing smoke, the expert outside of the pharmacy also started to feel unease. It was supposed to be an easy mission for his people.

He made his way quickly into the pharmacy like a ghost.

"Get rid of the fire and kill all of them!" Kun Ning shouts. The unexpected changes caught him by surprise as nothing went along like how he imagined.

(It was supposed to be a quick mission!)

Kun Ning frantically throws a few palms strike outward, and one managed to land beautifully on the waist of the Head of Security. The window of opportunity was grabbed quickly by him to deliver another attack.

Blood flows from all orifice on the head of the security leader as Kun Ning's Rainbow Palm slapped on the back of his head.

"Leader!!!" the remaining guards for the pharmacy called, but none of them dare to take a step forward. Their battle also quickly entered the conclusion with only two assailants left from their original number of eight people.

"Boss, let's leave." they retreated slightly. But before they managed to slips away from the courtyard, their head flew and rolled on the ground.

"We should go," the expert that effortlessly dispose of the two hired assailants spoke. Kun Ning turned around and ready to leave, but not before he took his final glance at Qin Lan. He's imprinting Qin Lan's facial features clearly into his mind to make sure he'll return today's favor.

"You're Qin Lan?" the expert asked.

"Yes," Qin Lan stabilized his posture as he answered the expert's question. The sword in his hand shook as he prepares for an unexpected thing to happen.

"What a coincidence. My hirer said that he'll pay me 10,000 gold coins more if I crippled your foundation." the expert's word carried a hint of danger to Qin Lan's mind. He raised both hands immediately before his head to receive a possible blow.

But instead, the expert attacked with two of his fingers, mimicking the tip of a sword. His blow punctured through the skin where Qin Lan's navel is and destroys his possibility to form a golden core.

The thin, gaseous layer of Spiritual Energy evaporates from Qin Lan's fragile cultivating foundation. With this, he's no longer able to cultivate nor refine his body.

Qin Lan falls onto the ground. Even the faintest hint of Spiritual Energy can no longer be felt surrounding him. From this moment, he was a cripple when it comes to cultivation.

"Young master!" Xiao Yun, who's hiding where Qin Lan hides earlier, came out and made her way to Qin Lan.

The expert was going to deliver a slap at Xiao Yun when she came into his reach. But as he was going to execute what was in his mind, Qin Lan struggled and pulled Xiao Yun down on the floor using the last bit of his strength. Additionally, he pointed the heirloom dagger at the expert.

"N - N - No..." the hand that holds the shivered. Even a knife is too heavy to him now, after he was crippled.

"Fine, I guess I'll let you keep that last bit of dignity as a man. Heh!" the expert turned and left with a chuckle.

The situation inside the courtyard quieted down once again, without anyone dare to make a sound. Only the cracking sound from the burning straws can be heard.

Until...

The patriarch of the Qin Household arrived.

Staring at his beloved third grandson lying on the ground, Qin Tian howled in anger.

"QIN LAN!!!"

But at the same time, the door to a deeper consciousness within Qin Lan's mind is unlocked.