Chapter Fourteen: The Clash!

Yang Yan, who had been silent until now, suddenly turned and glared at him with a threatening tone. Xu Shaoguang was momentarily stunned, then burst into loud laughter.

After a while, his laughter faded. Xu Shaoguang stared at Yang Yan with a mocking expression and said coldly, "With your strength at the Body Tempering Stage, you want to play the hero and save the beauty? Fine, today I’ll see just how much you're worth!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Shaoguang moved. His entire body shot toward Yang Yan like a bouncing ball! Despite his short, stout figure, his speed was surprisingly quick. In the blink of an eye, he reached Yang Yan, raising his fist—almost as large as a sandbag—and swung it fiercely toward Yang Yan’s chest.

"Brother Yang Yan, be careful!" Ziling, seeing the fat man attack without warning, felt her heart race with worry for Yang Yan’s safety.

Among the descendants of the three great families, most who were Yang Yan’s age had already reached the Spiritual Sensing Stage. With Yang Yan’s Body Tempering Stage strength, he was bound to suffer in a fight!

Yang Yan was a bit shocked himself. Xu Shaoguang's speed was completely disproportionate to his bulky frame. He quickly put aside any underestimation, sidestepped, and narrowly avoided the blow.

Xu Shaoguang was surprised when his punch missed, but he didn’t pause. He pivoted on his shoulder, swinging his arm toward Yang Yan, who had dodged to the side.

A sharp, whistling sound split the air as Xu Shaoguang’s thick arm, like a heavy iron hammer, rushed toward Yang Yan with terrifying force.

Yang Yan was startled. He hadn’t expected Xu Shaoguang to adapt so quickly, changing from a punch to a sweeping attack to catch him off guard. In haste, Yang Yan raised his arms to block.

A heavy thud echoed as their bodies collided. Yang Yan felt a tremendous force surge through his arms, making them tingle. He stumbled backward five or six steps before finally dispersing the impact.

"Brother Yang Yan, are you alright?" Ziling rushed to his side, her concern evident.

"I’m fine. Don’t worry. Trust me," Yang Yan replied.

Ziling wanted to persuade him not to act recklessly, but something in Yang Yan’s gaze stopped her. She quietly withdrew to the side. It was confidence—an expression she had never seen in him before. He seemed changed.

"Kid, you have some skill. Let’s see how many moves you can withstand!" Xu Shaoguang, seeing Yang Yan forced back but not truly hurt, and noticing Ziling’s anxious concern for him, grew even angrier. He attacked again, swinging his fist toward Yang Yan!

"This guy is stronger than me. Direct confrontation won’t work—I’ll have to use his own force against him," Yang Yan thought. Inspiration struck him. As Xu Shaoguang charged, Yang Yan smiled and moved swiftly, unleashing the Shadowstep technique.

Though martial arts in the mundane world paled compared to cultivation techniques, Yang Yan had spent two years at the Body Tempering Stage without slackening in his training. His mastery of Shadowstep was flawless. He had been caught off guard earlier, allowing Xu Shaoguang the advantage, but now, when fighting seriously, Yang Yan’s speed and adaptability rivaled his opponent’s.

With the fist barely a foot from him, Yang Yan moved like a specter, his steps strange and unpredictable. In an instant, he twisted his body, presenting his back to the attacking Xu Shaoguang.

Xu Shaoguang was startled. He was amazed at Yang Yan’s speed but puzzled why he would turn his back in combat, exposing himself and leaving a wide opening—a grave mistake.

"Could this kid be stupid? He’s supposedly a useless failure who can’t cultivate, but he is the Zhang family’s third son. If I seriously injure or kill him, there’ll be trouble. It’s not time to break with the Zhangs yet..." With this thought, Xu Shaoguang decided to hold back, aiming only to teach Yang Yan a lesson.

But before he could act, something unexpected happened. Yang Yan, as if he had eyes on his back, tilted his head just as Xu Shaoguang’s fist was about to hit, causing it to brush past his ear and miss completely.

"Now!" Yang Yan shouted softly, suddenly raising his arms to seize Xu Shaoguang’s limb like iron clamps. He bent his body and yanked down with force.

With a loud crash, Xu Shaoguang’s bulky body flew out the door like a ball, landing flat on his back in the street.

Pedestrians scattered in shock. A few bold onlookers stayed to watch, but when they recognized the fallen man, their faces changed dramatically.

"That’s... the second young master of the Xu family! Who could be so bold as to attack a Xu in Jinhuan City!"

"Yes, it must be some reckless outsider offending one of the three great families. There’ll be trouble for sure!"

The crowd buzzed with speculation.

In Jinhuan City, the prestige of the three great families was unquestioned, so no one expected the Xu family's second young master to be thrown out in public. The crowd was surprised and wondered who dared to do such a thing.

In truth, Yang Yan’s ability to toss Xu Shaoguang so far was not entirely his own doing. The greatest credit belonged to Xu Shaoguang himself. When Xu Shaoguang attacked, Yang Yan had already calculated his path. At the limit of their distance, Yang Yan turned his back to the enemy. In such a short span, Xu Shaoguang couldn’t change his attack route as before. Yang Yan dodged the punch, seized the moment when Xu Shaoguang couldn’t retract his fist, and used his own force as leverage, borrowing the momentum of Xu Shaoguang’s charge to easily throw him out!

The process sounded simple, but in the flash of a moment, Yang Yan not only devised a method to defeat his opponent but executed it flawlessly. Bold and meticulous, he overcame his foe with minimal effort, showing intelligence and courage far beyond his peers.