He raised three fingers towards the sky and vowed, “I, Zhao Zhi, vow to fight a fair battle against Zu An today. Regardless of what the result is, I will not rely on my family background to retaliate, lest I suffer the wrath of the world.”

After saying this, his body was wreathed in a faint golden light, indicating that the oath had taken effect.

Zu An sighed in relief. He’d learned the power of such oaths when he had just arrived in this world. Now, he didn’t have to worry that King Qi would retaliate against him—openly, at least. This was already enough. He would just deal with whatever underhanded tricks he used. He was equipped with powerful cultivation now, and with his smarts, it’s not too big of a problem as long as a grandmaster like King Qi didn’t attack him himself.

Then, he also made a vow in suit. “I, Zu An, vow to fight a fair battle against Zhao Zhi. Regardless of what the result is, I will not rely on my family background to retaliate, lest I suffer the wrath of the world.”

The driver with the missing tooth snickered. “This kid really is shameless.”

King Qi’s heir is backed by a powerful clan. What kind of family background does a brat like you have?

The woman in the carriage chuckled and nodded in agreement. “He’s just like he was back then.”

The driver’s eyes lit up. There really was some drama going on between them. He had to find a chance to look into this later.

Murong Qinghe tugged at Chu Youzhao’s sleeve. “Big brother Chu, your brother-in-law is so shameless. Your eldest sister is probably bullied by him all the time, right?”

She had met Chu Chuyan before, and always assumed that there was no way someone like Chu First Miss would be bullied. However, after seeing Zu An for herself, she was suddenly no longer so confident in her judgment.

“Yeah, she’s always being bullied.” Chu Youzhao’s face turned red. She remembered that time she accidentally stumbled upon the scene of her big sister, pressed down beneath Zu An, her usual cold expression nowhere to be found. Just the thought of it alone left her feeling rather hurt.

Zhao Zhi’s face twitched. He had clearly noticed this hole in Zu An’s oath, but he didn’t care. Whatever the case, his victory was assured. He would use this fair fight to completely cripple this man. That way, neither the crown prince, the crown princess, nor even the emperor could blame him for his actions.

“You can make the first move. You might not have another chance.” King Qi’s heir said, his voice oozing arrogance. He was profoundly confident in himself. Being in a rush to take down a piece of trash would only drag down his reputation.

Even though most of the commoners had been scared off, they still had a small audience—the heir of the Chu clan, the young miss of the Murong clan, and whoever was in the carriage.

Speaking of which, the presence of that carriage is really quite bewildering. Why did it remain, even after the situation became clear?

Could some important figure really be sitting inside? But it looks just like any ordinary carriage from the outside.

“If you want to get beaten up that badly, then I’ll lend you a hand.” Zu An wasn’t about to refuse his offer. Since the other party was underestimating him, he would make full use of the opportunity. He shot forward like a bullet, appearing in front of his opponent in a blink of an eye.

King Qi’s heir jumped in fright. How is this guy so fast?!

He saw Zu An’s fist flying towards him, and hastily threw out a fist to meet it. A malicious smirk appeared on his face. With the difference in their cultivations, his fist would instantly crush the other party’s hand.

Just as the two fists were about to meet, Zu An’s seemingly hardened fist somehow took on a flexible form. His arm slipped past his opponent’s fist like a snake, and his five fingers spread out. 

*Smack!*

Everyone observing their battle was stunned. As someone obsessed with martial arts, Murong Qinghe had been observing the battle with her eyes open wide. She wanted to see if there was anything she could learn and employ.

She’d fought against Zu An before. Even though she had suffered a miserable defeat, she knew that he was definitely no match for an eighth-ranked cultivator. In her opinion, Zu An’s best choice was to focus on defense and let the fight drag out. Perhaps he could stall long enough for someone from the Eastern Palace to appear.

However, Zu An had seized the advantage instead. It was one thing to go on the offensive, but he had somehow managed to smack King Qi’s heir in the face.

Why did that move look so much like the Pei clan’s Entangling Feathersilk Art?

It couldn’t have been, right? Why does he know the Pei clan’s technique?

Even though she could tell that, by the time Zu An’s hand made it that far, his strike had lost most of its strength, it was just too humiliating.

Sure enough, the fiery sensation on his face made King Qi roar in anger. “How dare you slap me? How dare you?!”

You have successfully trolled Zhao Zhi for 999… 999… 999…

With a force that set his hair and beard flying, he smashed a fist towards his opponent’s chest. He was in no mood to spare his opponent. His only thought was to pulverize Zu An into a bloody paste. Only then could he rid himself of his shame.

The driver with the missing tooth frowned. “That wasn’t a wise decision by the kid. That slap had no power in it, and all it did was provoke his opponent. Now, King Qi’s heir is attacking with the intent to kill. Madam, should I step in to save his life?”

He could tell that she cared about this kid.

“Let’s see what happens first,” the woman in the carriage said with an air of indifference.

From what she knew of Zu An, he wasn’t the impetuous sort.

Besides, someone who had faced the emperor and lived was bound to have some tricks up his sleeve.

Chu Youzhao cried out in alarm. The fight had taken another turn. King Qi’s heir, Zhao Zhi, managed to land a blow right in the center of Zu An’s chest, whose body promptly exploded.

Zhao Zhi frowned. The sensation coming from his fist told him that he’d missed. He had only hit a mirage.

Sure enough, Zu An was already several zhang away.

King Qi’s heir was baffled. Why is this guy so fast? However, this wasn’t important right now. He quickly gave chase.

No matter how fast you are, do you believe that your speed can surpass that of an eighth-ranked cultivator? 

He was even a lightning-element cultivator who excelled in speed!

Zu An hurriedly raised his palms to meet his opponent. The two of them instantly exchanged a dozen blows. The ki that rippled outwards caused the cavalrymen-shaped sculptures to rock, and even Chu Youzhao and Murong Qinghe were forced to back away.

Their eyes widened as they watched the fight unfold. They never expected that Zu An would hold his own against an eighth-rank cultivator.

Chu Youzhao clenched her fists. The scene of her brother-in-law brushing off the assassins reappeared in her mind. Perhaps he really has a chance of winning.

Murong Qinghe seemed to have read her thoughts. She shook her head and said, “Even though your brother-in-law’s strength is quite admirable, there is still a gap between him and King Qi’s heir. The higher the level of cultivation, the more difficult it is to win as an underdog. He might not even be able to break through his opponent’s defenses.”

As if to prove her words, Zu An thrust out his fingers, employing Snowflake Sword to stab at his opponent’s ribs.

However, a layer of purple radiance flickered across the surface of Zhao Zhi’s body, completely neutralizing the attack.

The reaction force from striking that electrical barrier caused Zu An’s fingers to go numb. A sudden realization came to Zu An, and he immediately used Sunflower Phantasm to withdraw three zhang away.

The spot he had been standing on a split second ago exploded, sundered by the power of a lightning-shrouded fist. Tendrils of electricity flickered outwards, blasting open a massive crater into the ground. Even the rubble was scorched black by the powerful lightning.

King Qi’s heir frowned at his opponent. This movement technique was quite strange, but it didn’t matter. He said coldly, “Your movement technique is probably what gave you the confidence to face me, I presume. Unfortunately, your attacks can’t even pierce through my elemental barrier. How could you possibly defeat me?”

He was in an invincible position right now. All he needed to do was exhaust his opponent’s ki. As a fight dragged on, the ki of lower-ranked cultivators would quickly deplete. Once Zu An grew tired, that strange movement technique of his wouldn’t be a big deal anymore, and Zhao Zhi could easily smash Zu An to bits.

Zu An sighed. “Why do you villains love to go on and on? If you think I can’t break through your defenses, then do you have the guts to stand there and take three hits from me?”

As he spoke, he secretly drew his Tai’e Sword. This sword specialized in piercing through the elemental barriers of cultivators. Going up against someone with a higher cultivation rank might be impossible for others, but for him, that was not the case at all.