Chapter 75: A Lesson

"Hmm?" Both men were taken aback. Such minimal casualties?

"How could this be? Even with the aid of Fifteen Li Stage reinforcements, chaos in battle should have claimed many lives. Are your reports inaccurate? Did the Demon Creatures even number that highly?" Xia Yong snapped, his voice sharp with disbelief.

The coachman trembled, quickly stammering, "I would never dare lie, sir! The Demon Creatures were countless—swarming like locusts. I heard there were as many as forty or fifty thousand, and I personally witnessed seven or eight Spirit-Wandering Realm Great Demons, as well as one Red-Horned Serpent. But thanks to Young Master Li of the Li Clan, they were all slain—saving the entire city from annihilation."

The Red-Horned Serpent... Xia Qingshuang's eyes flickered. Her expression darkened. That creature was no ordinary Fifteen Li Stage Great Demon. It had cultivated techniques from the Sacred Palace, its power nearly on par with her own—only slightly inferior.

"Remarkable," she murmured. "The third generation of the Li Clan truly has talent."

"Hmph. Meddling where you don’t belong. This isn’t Qingzhou. It’s not your Li Clan’s domain," Xia Yong retorted, now convinced by the coachman’s account. He sneered. "Just arrived in the world, and already flaunting power here? Preposterous! Doesn’t the Yanbei Battlefield already have enough chaos without your interference?"

"Hey!" From inside the carriage, Li Yuanzhao couldn’t contain his fury. "How dare you speak like that? We helped your Xia Family deal with the Demon Catastrophe—now you’re blaming us?"

"Hmm?" The sudden outburst made both men pause.

Xia Yong’s face hardened. "You’re a Li Clan descendant?"

"Of course!" Li Yuanzhao snapped, his face flushed with anger.

These Tancheng Palace scholars wouldn’t dare impersonate a Li Clan heir. Xia Yong felt a pang of awkwardness. He’d only meant to vent privately—now the target had heard every word.

Now that the situation had spiraled, retracting was unthinkable. It would tarnish the Xia Family’s reputation. Coldly, he said, "A Li Clan heir who made it into Tancheng Palace Academy—your talent must be quite limited."

"You!" The insult stung everyone present.

Tancheng Palace was a top-tier academy, second only to Mount Wu Liang and the Divine General’s Residence. To even gain entry was a rare feat. To hear it dismissed as inferior was infuriating.

Still, Du Qiuyue and the others remained silent. They dared not speak—this was the Xia Family.

Li Hao, however, was mildly surprised. He hadn’t expected someone with such a lack of social grace. No wonder ancient martial generals always lost to civil officials. This man’s mind was clearly not suited for diplomacy—every word was a direct offense.

"Yongge, let’s go," Xia Qingshuang said quietly, realizing Xia Yong had crossed a line. She turned her gaze toward Cangyu City. If all was well, they’d return home as soon as possible.

Xia Yong grunted, seizing the chance to retreat gracefully.

But Li Hao spoke up. "Just like that? We’re leaving?"

"Hmm?" Xia Qingshuang frowned, her eyes narrowing at the young man seated at the center of the carriage. She instantly recognized him as the group’s true leader.

"You helped us crush the Demon Disaster, and not even a word of thanks? Then dare to lecture us on the Yanbei Battlefield? The Li Clan’s struggles are none of your concern!" Li Hao’s voice was icy.

If the mention of Yanbei hadn’t been made, he wouldn’t have cared. But his parents still lived there. Though he hadn’t seen them in decades, he remembered the rough-faced father who’d returned with a three-thousand-year-old demon corpse, and the young mother’s anxious gaze.

Deep down, he regarded them as family.

"And just who are you to speak?" Xia Yong’s face darkened. "You think you can judge us? The Li Clan’s been fighting in Yanbei for over a decade. How many requests for supplies and weapons did they send to the Imperial Court? Don’t you dare lecture me!"

"You dare insult Hao Brother!" Li Yuanzhao roared, fists clenched. He’d have attacked on the spot—if not for the realization that both men were formidable opponents.

"Decades of war, hardship we swallowed silently—wasn’t the Imperial Court’s supply of food and weapons supposed to be our due?" Li Hao said coldly. "You Xia Family has never begged for aid from the Court? You’re a Divine General’s Residence too. Shouldn’t you understand the burdens of guarding the frontier? Yet you come here, mocking us? Is this your Family Precept?"

"Are you also a third-generation Li Clan heir?" Xia Yong’s face twisted with irritation.

"You Li Clan are beyond reckoning. We’re still within Qi Province’s borders—our jurisdiction. Who are you to question our thousand-year-old Family Precept? Silence!"

He was a Fifteen Li Stage cultivator. To command a slap was to deliver one. With spiritual object manipulation, resistance was impossible.

But Li Hao didn’t move.

Instead, his eyes snapped open—Control-Objects Power surged forth, crashing down like a storm, suppressing Xia Yong’s very aura.

A mournful whinny erupted from the purple-horned horse beneath Xia Yong.

The beast was a First-Class Battle Horse—equal in quality to the Crimson Blood Horse—battle-hardened, soaked in demon blood, yet now its legs buckled. It collapsed to its knees, trembling.

Xia Yong’s face paled. He tried to leap into the air, but the oppressive force pinned him down, forcing him to tumble off the horse.

He scrambled up, disheveled and shaken, eyes wide with horror, staring at the carriage interior.

Despite wearing the same academy uniform, the young man radiated an undeniable noble aura.

"Fifteen Li Stage? How—how is this possible?" Xia Yong stammered, disbelief etched on his face. The boy couldn’t be more than a teenager—but his spiritual cultivation matched his own. And the power of his spiritual object manipulation... it was even more overwhelming than his own.

Xia Qingshuang’s expression shifted. She stared at Li Hao. "You… are which Young Master of the Li Clan?"

Li Hao didn’t answer. He simply said coldly, "I demand an apology. Otherwise, none of you leave today."

"You—!" Xia Yong snarled. "This is Qi Province! Not Qingzhou!"

"Even if this were the front gate of your Xia Family, you still owe an apology!" Li Hao spoke with icy precision.

"Fine. Then let me see if you can handle the consequences."

Xia Yong roared, summoning his Soul Spirit—golden light flaring as he struck toward Li Hao.

Li Hao remained seated. A flash of golden light erupted from behind him—his own Soul Spirit surged forth, and with a single punch, he struck back.

This was the Half-Step Invincible Fist, taught by Second Uncle. Even stronger than the fourth form of Sea Without Shore.

But he didn’t unleash full power.

Boom!

The clash sent shockwaves through the air. Xia Yong’s Soul Spirit shattered like snow under a furnace—dissolving instantly into chaos.

Xia Yong’s face turned ashen. He spat blood, staggered, trembling. He tried to speak, but words failed him. His vision blurred—then darkness.

The entire battle lasted a heartbeat.

Li Hao’s Soul Spirit re-entered his body.

Xia Qingshuang snapped back to reality. Her eyes widened in horror.

Shattered Soul Spirit. This was a grievous injury. Even with the Xia Family’s vast treasure medicines, recovery would take half a year to a year. For an ordinary cultivator, it could take decades.

Brutal. She stared at the young man in the carriage. His face was cold as ice, his gaze unwavering.

"You went too far!" she bit out, teeth clenched.

"Today, it was me. If it had been another Li Clan heir, they’d either have swallowed their pride in silence—or been slapped in public!" Li Hao’s voice was like steel. "You dared to demand my clan be slapped in front of all? Bold. I spared him only because I still hold some restraint."

A flicker of anger flashed in Xia Qingshuang’s eyes—but she knew she was in the wrong. And she was no match for this boy.

She raised her hand, summoning spiritual force. Xia Yong’s body floated into the air, then was placed onto the horse.

"Given your role in saving Cangyu City, I won’t press further. This matter is settled."

With a whip-crack, she turned the horse and rode off, leaving behind a trail of dust.

She couldn’t afford to linger. With Xia Yong severely wounded, she had to get him home for treatment—before any hidden injuries worsened.

Once the carriage vanished into the distance, the others inside the carriage finally realized what had happened.

Spirit Soul combat.

They hadn’t yet undergone Soul Inheritance, so they couldn’t perceive the details—but the energy fluctuations had been unmistakable.

"Those Xia Family people are utterly unreasonable!" Li Yuanzhao grumbled, fists clenched.

"Never thought they’d be like this," Ren Qianqian murmured, frowning.

She now saw herself as Li Hao’s attendant—half a Li Clan member. Thanks to Li Hao’s words at the tea stall, her respect for the Li Clan had only deepened.

Seeing another Divine General’s Residence so arrogant and cruel, she felt a deep disappointment.

Li Hao watched them go, not stopping them. He simply shook his head and told the coachman, "Continue on."

The incident didn’t weigh heavily on him. Great families always had arrogant individuals. He’d heard of the Xia Family’s legendary merits—but that didn’t change his opinion of them. He simply held them in slightly lower regard now.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end