24: Chapter 24 Regardless of the outcome, the reputation of Jin Yang Martial Arts School is ruined!

Li Hanyi watched as these people scrambled to make excuses, knowing that further words would be a waste of breath.

They naturally wouldn't admit to such a thing easily.

Ultimately, the truth would have to be settled with the sword in her hand.

She raised her hand and pointed at Song Jinyang, her tone resolute.

"Draw your blade."

"Ridiculous. Is a little girl like you even worth my personal intervention?"

Song Jinyang snorted coldly.

An elderly Martial Arts Hall Elder immediately stepped forward.

"The Hall Master's status is noble; I shall be the one to experience this young lady's superior skills."

Before his voice had even faded, a pair of bare palms surged with crimson Internal Energy, and the surrounding air seemed to heat up along with it.

"Hah!"

The Elder showed no courtesy, tapping his foot as he soared into the air, lunging straight toward Li Hanyi.

As his palms swung, the scorching palm wind rolled like waves of fire, howling downward, clearly intending to suppress his opponent with his Realm.

The onlookers secretly cursed the old fellow for his thick skin upon seeing this.

But facing the aggressive attack, Li Hanyi's expression remained unchanged, and the long sword in her hand stayed sheathed.

The old man's form was superficial, and his palm strikes appeared loose and weak.

Li Hanyi nimbly shifted her body, and the sheathed Cheng Ying Sword moved like a spiritual snake, tracing an arc and stabbing directly under the Elder's ribs.

The old man broke into a cold sweat instantly, forcing his body to twist in mid-air to barely avoid the strike.

Li Hanyi's sword missed, but her reaction was swift, clearly having anticipated this.

She followed the momentum, transitioning from a stab to a strike, and with a flick of the sword's edge, she sent the airborne Martial Arts Hall Elder flying.

The direction he flew was exactly toward the second floor of the restaurant across the street.

"Nice hit!" A crisp and powerful shout rang out from a window on the restaurant's second floor as a petite figure leaped out, delivering a kick in mid-air that sent the Elder flying back in the opposite direction.

Li Hanyi spun and swung her sword, striking once more to send the old man straight back toward the Martial Arts Hall group.

Two other Martial Arts Hall Elders flew up to catch him, retreating several steps after landing before they could steady themselves.

A small footprint was left on the back of the Elder who had been hit, and a red mark from Sword Qi also lined his face.

He looked quite pathetic.

His face turned purple with rage, his body trembling slightly, and with a roll of his eyes, he fainted.

The Martial Arts Hall Disciples were instantly thrown into a panic—an Elder had actually been knocked unconscious?

The surrounding crowd was also in a stir.

How could a Zizai Earth Realm expert be so fragile?

Song Jinyang saw at a glance that the Elder was faking the faint, simply because he was too ashamed to face the crowd.

"What a useless thing!"

He cursed inwardly and waved his hand for someone to carry the old man away.

He then signaled the other Elders with a look.

The others understood immediately; at this point, they couldn't worry about ganging up on her anymore.

Taking this girl down first was the priority.

That way, they could provide some sort of explanation for today's events.

In an instant, several figures leaped out, surrounding Li Hanyi.

Up in the restaurant, Sikong Qianluo, who had just delivered that kick, was still excited, but she grew anxious upon seeing these Earth Realm old fellows planning to join forces for a siege.

"Don't worry."

Su Rui spoke softly, calming Sikong Qianluo down.

That's right, with Teacher here, he would never let anyone suffer a loss.

Since Teacher was so composed, Senior Sister could surely handle it!

...

Su Rui looked down at the situation in the field, having full confidence in Li Hanyi.

These few old fellows were nothing to fear.

Even if the Martial Arts Hall Master Song Jinyang were to intervene personally, Li Hanyi could handle it with ease.

But others didn't think so.

"Several Zizai Realm experts ganging up on a Diamond Realm young girl—is this martial arts hall insane?"

Someone said with a face full of shock.

These words drew agreement from many people.

Regardless of the outcome, the Jinyang Martial Arts Hall's reputation was ruined.

Many people had already begun to curse them in their hearts.

What a bunch of scumbags!

Not far away, a green shadow leaped lightly from a rooftop by the street and landed in a corner.

Looking at the Martial Arts Hall group surrounding her from a distance, a flash of interest appeared in her eyes, and with a light leap, she landed on a roof where several people were already standing.

As soon as the figure landed, she heard the people on the roof discussing in low voices:

"The people of Jinyang Martial Arts Hall are truly shameless, several old men totaling over a hundred years old ganging up on a young girl."

"Exactly, and every one of them has a higher Realm than her. It seems this martial arts hall doesn't live up to its name!"

Wanwan listened, her gaze shifting toward the center of the field.

She saw that the one surrounded by several people was indeed Li Hanyi.

Dressed in exquisite attire, her Sword Qi was awe-inspiring and her noble character was innate, making one unconsciously feel respect.

Even Wanwan, as a woman herself, was moved by it.

Her heart stirred slightly, and she began to worry for Li Hanyi.

Although the division of Realms between the Great Tang and Northern Li was different,

The Zizai Earth Realm was already considered within the Grandmaster rank in the Great Tang's Jianghu.

Now, several Grandmasters were besieging a Diamond Realm girl—just how thick-skinned did one have to be to do such a thing?

Did these people have no regard for their status or their face?

While she was pondering, the situation in the field changed abruptly.

The five Martial Arts Hall Elders surrounding Li Hanyi each held their weapons, faintly forming a formation.

"Li Hanyi, since you have such high aspirations, you surely won't have anything to say if the five of us join forces..." an old man with white hair and beard said while holding his sword.

However, before his words even finished, the other four suddenly attacked.

This scene caused an immediate uproar in the crowd.

What a way to catch someone off guard!

As if ganging up wasn't enough, they even used words to distract her before taking the chance to launch a sneak attack.

These old fellows truly had no shame left!

Many people couldn't help but burst into loud curses.

The faces of the Elders who had attacked also flushed slightly.

But things had already come to this; as Elders of the martial arts hall receiving the Hall Master's generous salary, they could only harden their hearts and proceed.

Their goal was to take her down as quickly as possible.

Li Hanyi's previous move had been clean, decisive, and swift.

They actually felt a bit apprehensive in their hearts.

Five weapons almost simultaneously blocked Li Hanyi's surroundings and paths of retreat.

Just as it seemed she was about to be hit, her body suddenly blurred, and she vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.

The five were greatly shocked to see her suddenly disappear and immediately adjusted their formation.

They defended internally and attacked externally, looking out for one another and remaining alert for the next possible strike.

The surrounding discussions could no longer be suppressed.

In a corner of the rooftop, because they were far away, two people were conversing without any restraint.

"Earlier, when she said the Jinyang Martial Arts Hall drugged her to harm her, I didn't quite believe it. After all, this is the largest martial arts hall in Snow Moon City; they wouldn't stoop to such despicable deeds.

But seeing this now, when they're capable of ganging up and launching sneak attacks, what other methods wouldn't they dare to use?"

Upon hearing this, Wanwan could no longer hold back.

There was such a thing?

She had arrived late and hadn't seen what happened earlier.

And with her personality, she could never tolerate such behavior, so she immediately burst out into sharp curses.

Li Hanyi's figure reappeared in everyone's sight.

No one had seen clearly how she had dodged that fatal blow.

Even Song Jinyang's heart jolted.

He hadn't seen it clearly either.

One had to know that he prided himself on his excellent eyesight, yet he couldn't find even a single flaw.

It was as if she had simply shifted through thin air.

As soon as the five Elders sensed Li Hanyi's reappearance, although their perception was somewhat blurred, they immediately prepared to strike again.

But just then, a clear voice suddenly rang out:

"What a bunch of hypocritical, despicable villains! These are the so-called followers of the Righteous Path? Truly nauseating!"

This voice was infused with Internal Energy, spreading throughout the entire area in an instant.

Everyone began looking around, trying to find who was speaking.

Song Jinyang's expression turned extremely ugly.

Wasn't this pointing at his nose and cursing him in public?

"Who's the one hiding and speaking in the shadows? Do you not even dare to show your face?"

Song Jinyang shouted in a dark voice.

"I'm standing right here. If you can't find me, it's because you're incompetent! Don't blame others!"

The voice clearly belonged to a young girl, but her tone was as sharp as a blade, piercing straight into one's heart.

Song Jinyang was so angry he nearly exploded.

When had he ever suffered such humiliation?

Even those with higher cultivation than him had never treated him with such contempt.

On the second floor of the restaurant, Su Rui's gaze suddenly fixed on a certain spot, his expression momentarily stunned.

It was actually her!

...

[Wanwan: Eighteen years and seven months old; Aptitude: 92; Aptitude Evaluation: Sharp and intelligent, pure of heart, resilient temperament, full of charm; Strongly recommended to recruit into the martial arts hall]

Su Rui was curious as to why she would appear here.

From the Great Tang to Snow Moon City, it would take at least over a month of travel, and one would have to rush day and night to arrive.

"Who is it? Who's speaking?"

Sikong Qianluo's small head turned left and right, her eyes darting around as she searched for the person who had spoken up for Li Hanyi.

Su Rui glanced at the green figure on the rooftop diagonally across, then withdrew his gaze and looked back at the fierce fight in the field.

Wanwan's words just now had clearly been heard by the five Elders as well.

They were even a beat slower in their attacks.

Li Hanyi immediately captured this subtle change, and the long sword in her hand thrust out without hesitation.

The Yue Maiden Sword Technique was unleashed without reservation.

The person in front retreated repeatedly under the impenetrable shadows of the sword.

This retreat affected the others as well, and they were instantly caught in Li Hanyi's dense and unending sword momentum.

In the blink of an eye, Li Hanyi, with a single sword and Diamond Realm cultivation, was actually suppressing five Zizai Realm experts until they could barely breathe.

At this moment, everyone's attention was drawn by her sword momentum, and no one cared about the voice from before anymore.

Song Jinyang narrowed his eyes slightly.

This sword technique hadn't been mentioned in the intelligence reports.

Could it be that she was proficient in more than just the Ten Thousand Swords Art?

Thinking of this, Song Jinyang no longer dwelled on who had mocked him earlier, focusing all his attention on Li Hanyi, wanting to see the logic behind it.

If he really had to fight, this would be the key to gaining the upper hand.

The five Elders were currently suffering in their hearts.

If Li Hanyi were still at the Upper Unranked Stage like before, they might still have been able to use their Realm to forcibly suppress her.

But now, she was at the Diamond Realm Peak.

Facing this group of old fellows whose edge had been worn away by an easy life, the advantage of Realm had long since vanished.

Each sword strike was faster than the last, and every blow made their hearts tighten, leaving them almost unable to withstand the assault.