Chapter 3334 — And You Call This Showing Mercy?

"Who goes there?!" Xiao Qi jumped in fright, never expecting anyone to dare speak with such arrogance. He was an envoy of the lofty Five Luminaries Sect, a disciple of Ancestor Xuanchen—so he flew into a rage on the spot. "A toad yawning—what a big mouth you have!"

Xiao Qi heard Wei Zhao's voice, and naturally so did Bingtang and Feng Xiaoxiao. Both of their expressions shifted slightly. Bingtang was somewhat irritated—not only did Wei Zhao insist on calling her his tiny-tiny-tiny-tiny-tiny wife, but he had also stuck his nose into other people's business and made an enemy of the Five Luminaries Sect! By thrusting himself forward here, wasn't Wei Zhao dragging the Ice Palace's name into the line of fire? Bingtang did not believe Wei Zhao had the ability to face the Five Luminaries Sect alone.

Feng Xiaoxiao, however, was another matter entirely. The moment she laid eyes on Wei Zhao, she was overcome with delight, so much so that she forgot all about the Ice Palace's troubles. She had not seen Wei Zhao for so long and had missed him terribly. Now she dashed straight into Wei Zhao's arms and hugged him tight. "Wei Zhao darling, you came to see me!"

"You... you're Wei Zhao?" The moment Xiao Liu heard Feng Xiaoxiao's words, his expression changed drastically! But it was not fear of Wei Zhao that altered his face; he had no idea that Xiao San, Xiao Si, and Xiao Wu had died at Wei Zhao's hands!

After all, Xiao San, Xiao Si, and Xiao Wu had been secretly carrying out Ancestor Xuanchen's orders, posing as a bandit gang. Such a thing was utterly disreputable, and even within the Five Luminaries Sect, Ancestor Xuanchen could not speak of it carelessly, lest word reach the ears of Ancestor Xuanzhen or the white leader.

What was more, when those three returned, one was dead and two were wounded—such a humiliating affair. Ancestor Xuanchen would never breathe a word of it and thus sap his own side's morale!

So Xiao Qi knew nothing of the particulars. He only knew that three senior brothers had been killed or crippled while carrying out a mission, but not at whose hands they had fallen. Shocking as the matter was, Xiao Qi also knew the rules—what should not be asked, he would not pry into.

Of course, given enough time, Xiao Qi might still have picked up a few hints from others' lips. After all, such a thing could not be kept hidden forever. But time had been short—Ancestor Xuanchen had assigned him a mission directly—so Xiao Qi had no inkling whatsoever of Wei Zhao's heroic exploits. His memory still lingered at the Ulanhot Mountains, when Wei Zhao had slain the twelfth and wounded Tagan Long!

"So it's you, Wei Zhao, you brat—what an insolent tone. Last time in the Ulanhot Mountains, you slipped away. This time, this old man will finish you first, and avenge my twelfth brother and Tagan Long!" Xiao Qi sneered coldly. He had not expected an unexpected gain from this outing—if he could kill Wei Zhao, the culprit of the Ulanhot Mountains, his merit would be immense!

Xiao Qi also knew that his standing among the Five Luminaries Sect's disciples had not been particularly illustrious before. There were six senior brothers above him. But now things were different. Apart from Xiao One and Xiao Two, he was next. If he won merit this time, Ancestor Xuanchen would surely hold him in high regard, wouldn't he?

At that thought, Xiao Qi resolved to strike Wei Zhao down right here and now.

"Is that so? Then let's see who dies first!" A faint smile flickered at the corner of Wei Zhao's mouth. The words had barely left his lips when he set Feng Xiaoxiao aside, circulated his heart-method mantra, and unleashed the eleventh stance of the Frenzied Fire Eight Trigrams Palm straight at Xiao Qi's chest!

Xiao Qi had been on his guard against the palm coming at him, but he did not take it too seriously. After all, when Wei Zhao circulated his heart-method mantra, he had seen that Wei Zhao was a capable hand of the mid Heaven rank. He was somewhat surprised that Wei Zhao's strength had risen so quickly, but mostly he was dismissive—for all Wei Zhao's improvement, he still did not enter Xiao Qi's eyes. Xiao Qi was a capable hand at the peak of the late Heaven rank.

Thus Xiao Qi unhurriedly circulated his heart-method mantra, preparing to shield his body with true qi. He did not dodge; instead he meant to wait until Wei Zhao's blow landed, then deliver Wei Zhao a devastating counterblow—clashing head-on with him!

"Boom!"

The eleventh stance of the Frenzied Fire Eight Trigrams Palm slammed into Xiao Qi's chest. It took less than a second for Xiao Qi's eyes to go from initial disdain to sudden shock. The next moment, Xiao Qi's body was sent flying backward with tremendous force, crashing into the Ice Palace's wall with a deafening roar that smashed a great hole through the Ice Palace's gate pillars of frozen crystal!

Xiao Qi was aghast—but Bingtang and Feng Xiaoxiao were even more so. A complex light flickered in Bingtang's eyes. Wei Zhao could actually kill a capable hand at the peak of the late Heaven rank? How was that possible? The strength Wei Zhao displayed was clearly mid Heaven rank—how could he unleash a move of such enormous power? Bingtang could scarcely believe her own eyes.

And Feng Xiaoxiao? Shocked as she was, she was even happier. Wei Zhao had grown stronger than when they last parted—strong enough to injure a capable hand at the peak of the late Heaven rank. Then who in the entire cultivation world could still look down on Wei Zhao?

"No... impossible!" Xiao Qi clutched his chest. He was not dead yet—thanks to the true qi he had circulated to shield his body. But even with that true qi shield, the power of the eleventh stance of the Frenzied Fire Eight Trigrams Palm, together with the essence necklace, was more than he could withstand. He had suffered extremely severe internal injuries!

"Those three wastes in the Night Palace before—one dead, two crippled—they were your senior brothers, weren't they? Tell me, Xiao Qi, why doesn't your Five Luminaries Sect ever learn its lesson? You think being killed by me is some kind of fun?" Wei Zhao gazed at Xiao Qi and spoke calmly.

"What?! Third Senior Brother, Fourth Senior Brother, Fifth Senior Brother—you did all that?" Xiao Qi's eyes flew wide with horror as he stared at Wei Zhao in disbelief. But his words also gave away the identities of Xiao San, Xiao Si, and Xiao Wu.

Wei Zhao had only spoken offhandedly before, because Xiao Qi's attire resembled that of the three bandit-gang men in the Night Palace. He had never expected that those three were actually Xiao Qi's senior brothers!

Haha—this Ancestor Xuanchen had lost three disciples all at once! He must be weeping his eyes out... oh, no, that should be four by now!

Even if Xiao Qi did not die, he was a cripple now, beyond healing. So instead of finishing him off, Wei Zhao had second thoughts and decided to spare him a way out. "Xiao Qi, do you know why I showed mercy and didn't kill you?"

"Huh?" Xiao Qi nearly burst into tears. You call this showing mercy? If you weren't showing mercy, what would that even look like? (To be continued)