Back then, Li Qiang had approached Xu Yang and the others with ulterior motives, and Sun Tao, Zhang Yong, and Jiang Ping had all easily trusted him.

Only Xu Yang had been wary of him from the very beginning, remaining completely unreceptive and refusing to get close to him no matter what was said.

He knew back then that Xu Yang was a vigilant person, which was why he wasn’t surprised that Xu Yang was the first to guess he was about to make a move.

Sun Tao’s expression shifted. "Senior Brother Li," he said, "are you really going to attack a fellow sect member over something so minor?"

Li Qiang glared at him viciously. "Shut up! All this talk about ’fellow sect members’... Where was your sense of camaraderie when I was the one who needed help?"

He hated Sun Tao even more than he hated Xu Yang.

Xu Yang had refused all contact with him from the start, turning down every invitation to eat or drink.

’But Sun Tao... he ate my food, took my gifts, and then refused to lift a finger when I needed help. Wasn’t that just playing me for a fool?’

’If Sun Tao hadn’t refused, I might be an Inner Sect Disciple by now. I wouldn’t be stuck doing these shitty, life-on-the-line missions, constantly terrified of being ambushed and killed by some Demon Dao master.’

Sun Tao’s expression soured. "I already told you! We were in trouble at the time and couldn’t leave. Besides, your intentions were never good to begin with—you’re the reason Senior Brother Jiang Ping lost an arm!"

’This shameless scoundrel... to think he’d turn it around and blame me. The sheer audacity!’

"Say whatever you want. This place will be your grave today," Li Qiang said, his gaze ice-cold. "Do it yourselves, and I’ll leave you with intact corpses." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Sun Tao turned to Gu Haoming. "Brother Gu," he asked, "are you really going to side with Li Qiang against me and Junior Brother Xu?"

Gu Haoming remained expressionless. "I only want to kill Xu Yang. It’s your own bad luck you took this mission. I’ll just have to get rid of you both."

"You’re going to kill us? Aren’t you afraid you won’t be able to explain this when you get back?"

"You think the Sect gives a damn whether you live or die? We’ll just go back and say we were ambushed by the Demon Sect. Do you really think a Sect Steward is going to come all the way out here and check your corpses to see if we’re lying?"

Li Qiang was completely brazen.

He’d been in the Purple Sun Sect for four years; he knew better than Sun Tao just how callous the Outer Sect Stewards were.

’As long as you didn’t kill someone right in front of them, they couldn’t care less who died.’

"That is a pretty good excuse," Xu Yang chuckled.

’I’ll take that excuse. That’s what I’ll report when I get back.’

"Xu Yang, I’ve tried to kill you several times, and you’ve always managed to escape. Today is the day you die!" Gu Haoming’s killing intent billowed around him.

’After every auction at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, he had looked for a chance to kill Xu Yang, but a suitable opportunity had never presented itself.’

Xu Yang smiled. "What a coincidence. I’ve tried to kill you a few times myself, but someone always inadvertently saved you. The first time was Cao Jin, the second was Jiang Fan and Jiang Yan."

Gu Haoming’s pupils contracted. ’That time Cao Jin saved me and Cao Rong... Xu Yang was actually lurking in the shadows?’

"Are you finished?" Li Qiang said coldly. "If you are, let’s make our move. I’ll kill Xu Yang. You have no problem keeping Sun Tao busy, right?"

"No problem!" Gu Haoming replied with a smile.

BOOM!

Li Qiang slapped a hand on his horse’s back, and his Gang Qi surged like a tidal wave. He launched himself at Xu Yang like a ferocious tiger, the oppressive aura of his Gang Qi Great Success causing the nearby horses to shriek and struggle to flee.

At the same time, Gu Haoming leaped from his own horse, lunging toward Sun Tao. "Brother Sun, don’t blame me! You can only blame your bad luck."

"It’s true you can’t reason with someone hell-bent on dying. Bring it on!"

Sun Tao’s fighting spirit surged. Letting the horse beneath him bolt, he also leaped into the air to attack Gu Haoming.

’Xu Yang even managed to kill Xiao Chen. Is there any way he can’t kill Li Qiang?’

’After all that talk, he was just confirming whether Gu Haoming deserved to die. And it was clear he did. The man had tried to ambush Xu Yang several times; it was a miracle he was still alive.’

Xu Yang moved as well.

Worried that his Gang Qi might kill the horses, he too leaped from his steed.

A brilliant light erupted in his eyes. The hidden aura of a Bone Marrow Cleansing Master burst forth like a volcano, surging through the air in a tidal wave.

BOOM!

A tyrannical pressure descended. The three men in mid-air felt as if a giant boulder had suddenly crushed down on them from above. The circulation of their Gang Qi froze for an instant, and their bodies began to plummet.

"Marrow Cleansing?!" Li Qiang shrieked.

The terrifying pressure of the aura made his Heart Spirit tremble, and he felt an overwhelming sense of impending doom.

’Marrow Cleansing... This is the pressure of Marrow Cleansing! I’ve felt this many times from Inner Sect Disciples.’

’Xu Yang wasn’t at Gang Qi Minor Achievement—he was at Marrow Cleansing! He joined the Sect two years ago, and he’s already reached Marrow Cleansing!’

"No—"

Li Qiang roared in despair. Under the pressure of the Marrow Cleansing aura, his Gang Qi stagnated, refusing to circulate smoothly as his body fell.

Within his line of sight, a large foot grew rapidly larger as it stomped down toward his face.

CRACK!

THUD!

The first sound was his Protective Gang Qi shattering. The resulting backlash caused Li Qiang to bleed from all seven orifices as he could only watch helplessly while the large foot smashed through his defense and stomped down hard on his face.

The second sound was Li Qiang’s face being stomped flat like a pancake. With that single stomp, his face was completely flattened, his nose, eyes, and mouth mashed into a single pile.

BANG!

His body fell from the sky, slamming into the ground and gouging out a large crater as cracks spiderwebbed outward.

"SQUELCH... My eyes! My eyes are blind! Xu Yang, you’re vicious!"

A mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips, followed by Li Qiang’s bloodcurdling screams. He was a miserable sight, his face a mask of gore. His eyeballs had burst, a dark fluid gushing out with the blood.

His hands reached up from the crater, blindly trying to pull himself up.

But a graceful figure descended, stomping him back down into the earth.

"I told you this would be your grave." Xu Yang looked down at Li Qiang in the pit. "Did you really think you had me beat just because you’re at Gang Qi Great Success?" The man’s once-savage expression was now nothing but miserable agony.

"Marrow Cleansing... How could you possibly have reached Marrow Cleansing?!" Gu Haoming was trembling uncontrollably, his teeth chattering. He found he couldn’t throw the punch he had readied.