Killing was common enough, but to have a death in the open street like this would hurt their business. Merchants put profit above all else, so no matter what the Enforcement Hall of the Threefold Pavilion might do, within the Inner Street they had to intervene—and here, their word was law.

A bucket of cold water seemed to be dumped over his head. Facing more than a dozen formidable experts all stronger than himself, even Nan Tianyong could not keep from trembling inside, to say nothing of Yu Zhe beside him, whose cultivation reached only the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

In that instant, enveloped by so many powerful auras, he felt as though the very next moment he would become a corpse, never to take another step out of the Inner Street alive.

"It seems you were right, disciple—this brat really is a sly one!" Only now did Nan Tianyong understand. This Wei Zhao dared to act so brazenly before master and disciple, not only refusing to flee but even boldly approaching them of his own accord—because he had backing all along!

In such a situation, no matter how bitterly Nan Tianyong gnashed his teeth in hatred, for the moment he did not dare strike at Wei Zhao rashly. Even if he succeeded in killing Wei Zhao, he himself would likely pay a grievous price. To deal with a mere ant at the peak of the early Foundation Establishment stage was clearly not worth it to him.

"Master, there's no great harm in letting him swagger about for a while. Once he steps out of the Inner Street, Master, you can slap him to death—same road to death either way!" Yu Zhe said from the side, trying to console him.

He knew well how explosive his cheap master's temper was. If the old man flew into a rage and struck, and he himself got caught in the crossfire, that would be disastrous.

Nan Tianyong might be thick in the head, but he had, after all, suffered a great loss at the Hong Merchant Guild last time. If he had not learned his lesson by now, he could never have clawed his way to his present standing.

So they really are following! Wei Zhao glanced back at the two figures not far behind him, and the corners of his mouth curled into a playful arc.

The reason he had deliberately approached them a moment ago was indeed just as master and disciple had guessed: with so many guest experts from the various merchant houses holding the fort all around, and with Hong Zhong's intentional guidance, Wei Zhao truly had backing to spare here.

Yet Wei Zhao was not so idle as to provoke for provocation's sake. His deliberate close-range goading of master and disciple—of Nan Tianyong especially—served a particular purpose.

He and Yu Zhe were already locked in a fight to the death, and Yu Zhe was exceedingly cunning. To try to confuse him or set a trap for him was simply impractical. But what Wei Zhao meant to do now was not to make an issue of Yu Zhe at all—his target was Nan Tianyong.

Yu Zhe might be a formidable mid-Foundation Establishment expert and no small threat to Wei Zhao, yet set against Nan Tianyong, a peak late-Foundation Establishment master, he could not be mentioned in the same breath.

To Wei Zhao, if he wished to resolve this sudden, deadly crisis, then unless he dealt with Nan Tianyong, that peak late-Foundation Establishment expert, it would be useless even if he found a chance to kill Yu Zhe. Unable to shake off Nan Tianyong, he would still end up dead in the end.

To simply run and run alone was surely unrealistic. However fast Wei Zhao might be, he was only swift compared with experts of his own level. Against a grand expert at the peak of the late Foundation Establishment stage, to think of shaking off his opponent by sheer speed was a fool's dream.

And to cross realms and deal with an enemy so vastly above his level as Nan Tianyong was, under ordinary circumstances, utterly impossible. Even if by some stroke of luck he got a chance to strike, it would come at most once—there would be no second chance.

So, with no opportunity at hand, Wei Zhao—for the sake of that one thread of survival—had no choice but to grit his teeth and court death, even if to others it looked like suicide. Others would say that if you do not court death, you will not die; but for Wei Zhao, it was the opposite—if he did not court death, death would come to him all the same.

And the way Wei Zhao courted death was simple and direct: to enrage Nan Tianyong.

Unlike the deep-scheming Yu Zhe, Nan Tianyong might be powerful and hold such a vital post as an inspecting deacon of the Soaring Heavens Pavilion, yet in temperament the man was far easier to handle than his disciple Yu Zhe. To provoke him was simplicity itself for Wei Zhao.

And indeed, things were unfolding exactly as Wei Zhao had foreseen. For a lowly ant who could be crushed at any moment to walk boldly up in front of everyone with such backing—even if he said nothing to provoke—in Nan Tianyong's eyes the act itself was already a provocation, an unforgivable provocation!

"I'm going to butcher that brat, absolutely!" Nan Tianyong stared at Wei Zhao's leisurely figure ahead and could not help but bare his teeth in a savage snarl.

Not far ahead lay the exit to the Back Street. He had already made up his mind: the moment that brat dared set foot outside, he would strike at once and kill him. To vent this foul temper, the bloodier the better!

Yet Yu Zhe, watching from the side, felt vaguely that something was off—though he could not put his finger on what. After all, from any angle, with a peak late-Foundation Establishment expert like Nan Tianyong making the move, no matter how many schemes that Lin Er might have, there was absolutely no chance he would survive.

Could it be that he meant to provoke his cheap master into a rage? The thought flashed through Yu Zhe's mind. If that was the intent, then it had indeed succeeded—but what use was it? It would only mean a faster death!

True enough, in a blind fury a man was more apt to expose openings he would never otherwise reveal—but such openings were only an opportunity when facing an expert of one's own level. Against Nan Tianyong and this Lin Er, however, no matter how many openings Nan Tianyong exposed, it was useless; and with Lin Er's mere peak early-Foundation Establishment strength, no matter how many opportunities came his way, he could never bring his opponent down. It would all come to nothing.

It was like a dragon against an ant: no matter how many fatal openings the dragon exposed, what of it? Could the ant seize the chance and slay the dragon?

Standing on the second floor of the Hong Merchant Guild, watching the scene below, Hong Zhong shook his head with a knowing smile. "Truly baffling, this young man who calls himself Lin Er. But it seems that this time, that fool Nan Tianyong is in for another bitter lesson."

What Wei Zhao had been doing during the hour he lingered in the Hong Merchant Guild, he, as the host, had seen perfectly clearly.

Truth be told, when he saw Wei Zhao's movements—especially after those movements had continued for a full hour—even an old hand like him could not suppress a sharp intake of breath. Though he did not know what strange technique Wei Zhao was brewing, the power hidden within it was such that even he, Hong Zhong, an unfathomable expert above Nan Tianyong's level, would not dare take it lightly.

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