At this moment, the second floor of the pavilion was filled with the smell of gunpowder, with two forces confronting each other, seeming to have no possibility of compromise.

The golden-robed scholar scanned Li Qingming and others with a glance, his lips curling into a slight smile as he said, "You all should just commit suicide! In doing so, you could still leave a trace of soul for reincarnation and further cultivation, otherwise, if you wait for this young master to take action, you will all be utterly annihilated in both body and spirit!"

Long Xuhu said in a cold voice, "I really want to slap you to death, Daoist! You look like a human but act worse than animals, how can you be so shameless? Asking us to commit suicide, who do you think you are!"

"That's right! You dare to surround us without knowing the facts, you're nothing but a straw bag!" Man Niu also started taunting.

The golden-robed scholar sneered, "Facts? The facts are that you killed Manager Jiang of Elegant Scholar Pavilion, and you even want to destroy the entire Elegant Scholar Pavilion!"

"Are you sure you want to say that?" Li Qingming stopped Long Xuhu and Man Niu from exploding with rage, stood up, and said with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

"In this Yafeng Ancient City, I am the Law, I am the Dao!" the golden-robed scholar laughed arrogantly.

Li Qingming merely shrugged noncommittally and turned to address the two hundred cultivators and Confucian scholars from various realms and the local realm, "Since this young master says he is the Law, then I will show something to everyone here!"

"Wait, what do you mean?" The golden-robed scholar frowned, asking.

"You'll understand soon!" Li Qingming said without looking back, flicked his fingers, and a dense Power of Space-Time Law emanated from his body, with golden specks of Immortal Light forming into a clear mirror with rippling water waves.

"Power of Space-Time Law!" Just when the mirror appeared mid-air, the face of the golden-robed scholar changed, turning unspeakably ugly.

Others might not recognize it and assume it to be just a minor trick, but as the son of Saint Yan Hui, he was particularly sensitive to various Laws.

Not to talk about others, but just this skillful use of the Space-Time Law let him know that he might have been misled this time.

Sure enough, the mirror showed the scene when Li Qingming and his companions first appeared in front of the pavilion's door.

Following that, Manager Jiang appeared, said some things, did some things, and the actions of the two servants at the door were also clearly depicted in the mirror.

"This, this is completely opposite to that damn Manager Jiang's account! It's outrageous and bizarre that such a person with lowly conduct could serve as the manager of the Elegant Scholar Pavilion!"

"I, a Confucian scholar of the True Confucian Origin Realm, always self-regulate with the demeanor of a gentleman, but this Jiang Yan has no virtues of a gentleman, his actions are those of a villain, having such a shameless person around really tarnishes the reputation of our True Confucian Origin Realm!"

All the cultivators and Confucian scholars present changed their expressions. Their gaze towards Manager Cai and the line of red-robed Confucians also changed, filled with immense disdain!

"Old man Le Fan, what the hell is going on? Didn't you say they were the ones who started the trouble?" The golden-robed scholar no longer had his superior arrogance, his face covered with the fury of being deceived, the surging Vast Energy bursting forth, pressing down ruthlessly on the old musician.

"Young Master, please calm your anger! Surely it's these people cheating, it's all a blinding trick played by him, it must be!" Overwhelmed by this tremendous pressure, Le Fan started shivering and spouting nonsense.

"Damn it, still making excuses! This is clearly a Great Power who has comprehended the Power of Space-Time Law, and you deceived me into courting death, do you really think I'm a fool?" The golden-robed scholar roared in a towering rage, swinging his hand fiercely.

"Ah!"

Le Fan screamed miserably, as he was directly slapped away, his face immediately marked with five bloody fingerprints, and blood streaming from the corner of his mouth, he was fixated against the distant wall.

"Slap!"

Moments later, a crisp slapping sound finally emerged from the space where the palm met the face.

"Holy shit, that's so damn harsh!" The crowd, stunned by this sudden turn, instinctively touched their own left cheeks after seeing Le Fan's miserable state.

Manager Cai Wen, also witnessing Le Fan's pitiful condition, shivered uncontrollably. Ultimately, he knew he held great responsibility for what had transpired. Now, even Le Fan, who was merely a messenger, had suffered such a tragic fate, which meant that he, too, would likely not be left off easily. Perhaps it was time to...

Just as this thought crossed his mind, the Golden Robed Scholar turned his gaze towards Cai Wen and coldly said, "Manager Cai Wen, will you suppress your own cultivation and leave yourself at the mercy of this elder, or would you prefer this young master to take personal action and subdue you?"

Cai Wen thought to himself: If I stand still and do nothing, either way, I'll end up in your hands. Just the words I've said to those people are enough to sentence me to death a hundred times over. Rather than that, it's better to take a gamble and try to escape with the power of the Spiritual Treasure. If worst comes to worst, I can always abandon the True Confucian Origin Realm and never return!

With that in mind, Cai Wen channeled his True Yuan throughout his body and swiftly poured it into the Mountain and River Brush in his hand. He summoned a blue brilliance and broke through the sky, making his escape.

The Golden Robed Scholar's face turned rigid, and he was left dumbfounded. His subordinate had not followed his orders and had forcibly fled. How ironic!

Grinding his teeth and staring at the fading blue glow left in the air of the pavilion where the figure had vanished, the Golden Robed Scholar was about to give chase when a clear voice rang out not far away, "Ga She, you're the match of that old fellow in cultivation. Go bring him back to me!"

"Yes, my lord!" Ga She, still donning his monk-like disguise, nodded slightly. In an instant, his figure flickered, turned into golden light, and disappeared within the pavilion.

The Golden Robed Scholar was taken aback, but soon calmed his emotions. He walked calmly towards Li Qingming and brought his fingers together, bowing as he said, "I am Yan Xingzhi. I've been offensive just now; I hope the elder will not take it to heart."

"Yan Xingzhi, Yan Xingzhi... Damn, I know who he is!"

"Oh? Please, enlighten us, fellow senior!"

"He's the only son of Saint Yan Hui, Yan Xingzhi, known as the 'Golden Abacus'—that's him!"

"Oh, the Saint's Son, no wonder!"

The distant crowd buzzed with discussion, finally making sense of the origins of the group before them.

Li Qingming, oblivious to the murmurs of the crowd, smiled and with a gesture of his hand, released a soft force to lift Yan Xingzhi, saying, "No harm done; it's just that some villains have stirred trouble, and you were deceived."

If Yan Xingzhi had previously harbored doubts about Li Qingming's cultivation, he was now genuinely convinced! All the Vast Righteous Qi he had mustered couldn't break through that one flick of force. It was only fitting to show respect to such Great Power by bowing.

"Senior, I am truly sorry for what transpired in the pavilion earlier!" Yan Xingzhi stood up, gesturing for the Blood Robed Confucians to disperse, but he himself looked at Li Qingming with a wry smile.

Li Qingming patted Yan Xingzhi on the shoulder and said, "No worries, we can discuss these minor matters later! First, let's see where that old fellow Cai Wen has fled to."

Saying so, he lightly tapped the still lingering mirror in front of him.

"Hum~~~"

The entire mirror's surface rippled like water waves, and in a moment, two streaks of light appeared in the mirror one after the other. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we welcome you to vote for us with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets at Qidian [qidian.com]. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)

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