Chapter Fourteen: Clash

Hand over the Heaven and Earth Shift?!

Lie Chen’s heart skipped a beat. He had only just acquired this advanced Profound-tier battle technique at the auction, and already someone had come to steal it. Had he been marked from the very start?

But no one could have predicted with certainty that the Lie family would prevail at the auction, especially since news of their heavy losses had already spread like wildfire throughout Changling City. If the intruder hadn’t planned to target the Lie family beforehand, their aim must be this very scroll. But the technique had only appeared at the auction this afternoon—he himself had just left the auction house. Could the thief have been present as well?

Lie Chen carefully recalled the scene but couldn’t remember anyone entirely wrapped in black. Was this the scheme of another family?

Though the attack seemed swift, it made sense—once he returned to the family estate, seizing the technique would be far more difficult, for the Lie family’s defenses were no idle boast.

No, this was indeed the best timing!

These thoughts flashed through Lie Chen’s mind. His expression grew cold, his voice frosty as he faced the black-robed figure. “Who are you, to dare covet the Lie family’s possession?”

The figure let out a mocking chuckle. “And what of the Lie family? You cowered in your shell well enough after last night’s robbery, didn’t you?”

Since becoming patriarch, Lie Chen had never heard such brazen insults hurled at his lineage. True, the Lie family had been attacked by a mighty cultivator last night—but that had been a lord of the Earth-tier. Yet this man, whose aura was hardly superior to his own, dared to be so insolent!

A glint of icy light flashed in Lie Chen’s eyes as he sneered, “The Lie family is no one’s prey! The scroll is on me—let’s see if you have the strength to take it!”

No sooner had his words fallen than a chorus of whistling sounds broke the air. Seven or eight figures leapt out from all directions, landing around Lie Chen with overwhelming presence.

Lie Feifei, who had been startled, now brightened with delight upon seeing them. “Elders—you’re here too?”

A white-robed elder smiled. “The patriarch ordered us to watch over you in secret, in case something happened. It appears his foresight was well-placed.”

Had Lord Chet, the city governor, still been present, even he would have marveled at the Lie family’s display of force!

The Lie family had five elders, each a formidable Douluo. The one called Lie Yun, who had just spoken, was already at the peak of sixth-grade Douluo, rumored to have one foot in the Doulong realm!

Aside from the two elders seriously wounded the night before, the other three were present. Though numbers seemed lacking, the five other burly men accompanying them were no minor figures—each was a second- or third-grade Douluo.

Eight Douluo experts—a terrifying force in Changling City—now gathered as one. With such power, they could sweep the city with little resistance.

As the eight assembled, their mighty auras surged and merged, filling the whole field with a torrent of energy like roaring waves.

Even though the pressure wasn’t directly aimed at her, Lie Feifei, with her modest strength, felt a tightness in her chest, almost suffocated by the force.

Her heart trembled. So this was the aura of Douluo masters—indeed, extraordinary! As the young mistress, she rarely witnessed such clashes firsthand. Even last night, she’d been shielded away, hearing only the distant sounds of battle from within her chambers.

Could she one day become so powerful herself? The thought both frightened and excited her, her mind wandering—with no warning—to Su Yi, once the most dazzling genius in Changling City.

She remembered her youthful infatuation with Su Yi began with his effortless style in repelling enemies. After falling for him, she’d even had dreams—ones that left her blushing—where he was, naturally, her knight in shining armor.

But ever since Su Yi became the city’s laughingstock, she’d stopped seeking him out, feeling shame even at the memory of those dreams. How could she have dreamt of letting such a useless man… press her beneath him…

While Lie Feifei’s thoughts drifted, her father’s stern shout snapped her back: “Lie Yun, Lie Feng, Lie Sui—elders, deal with him. The rest of you—protect the young mistress!”

“Yes!” The three elders answered as one, their figures blurring with surging battle aura as they bore down on the mysterious intruder.

“How interesting…” The black-robed stranger showed no trace of surprise at the massed might before him. Instead, a low chuckle sounded from beneath his cloak.

Lie Yun, taking the lead, saw the man’s apparent disregard—he wasn’t even defending himself! Anger flared. In Changling City, Lie Yun was a top-tier master, having recently approached the Doulong threshold.

Since you dare underestimate me, I’ll teach you a painful lesson!

With a sharp cry, Lie Yun unleashed a torrent of battle energy from his right fist. It transformed into a brown spinning drill, whirling toward the intruder.

To reach the Profound-tier was to master the external manifestation of battle energy. Many aspired to become Douluo for this reason alone—projecting their energy as tangible weapons. The most renowned were remote and wide-area techniques such as Void-Piercing Arrow, Blazing Inferno, and Divine Collapse—each legendary in scope and devastation.

With the Void-Piercing Arrow, energy could be shaped into a massive missile, killing foes or shattering walls hundreds of meters away. Blazing Inferno, requiring fire energy, was harder to master but devastating—decades ago, an enraged Dou Wang incinerated an entire city with it, earning an empire’s eternal enmity.

Divine Collapse was a mythic Heavenly-tier technique, surfacing only once or twice in history, bringing cataclysmic destruction.

Regardless, the destructive power of battle energy was immense. Lie Yun believed his spiraling drill, with its condensing force and velocity, could wound even a newly-advanced Doulong master.

The drill, gleaming coldly, hurtled toward the black-robed man. All watched, expecting him to be impaled—only to be stunned by what followed.

At the instant of impact, the intruder’s body shuddered—then faded into a shadow and vanished, slipping from the encirclement to walk calmly toward Lie Chen and his group.

“Heh, your strength is decent—but your speed is lacking…”

Lie Yun and Lie Sui, closest to him, shouted as they surged with energy and attacked. The three clashed; the two elders were forced back several steps, while the black-robed man barely wavered.

Lie Chen frowned. This foe was stronger than anticipated. Two fifth-grade Douluo elders working together had been overmatched—this man was at least the peak of sixth-grade Douluo, possibly even a Doulong cultivator!

A cold sweat crept into Lie Chen’s palm. The gap between sixth and seventh grade was a leap of essence, not degree—a whole new realm.

Even between fifth and sixth there was a gulf—between sixth and seventh, a chasm.

Fortunately, the intruder’s aura was far weaker than the terror of last night. If he’d just broken into Doulong, the Lie family need not fear annihilation.

But last night, the family had been utterly helpless, at the mercy of slaughter—a night forever burned into their memory as a living nightmare.

Now, surrounded by the Lie family’s experts, the black-robed man shrugged off his cloak and sneered, “If I weren’t injured and my power sealed, you Douluo would be as ants to me—a finger could crush you.”

Clearly, the mysterious elder found the earlier exchange humiliating.

Having missed his blow, Lie Yun was both embarrassed and furious—never had he failed so completely. At full force, he hadn’t even brushed the man’s sleeve!

The man’s arrogance only stoked his rage. “Good! Let’s see you crush me with one finger!”

Before the words were out, Lie Yun shot forward, fist raised. His surging energy radiated fury, pressuring the field until it seemed all present could barely breathe.

But then—a strange sight. Lie Yun’s fierce punch veered away, striking empty ground.

Had he missed? Surely not at such a moment—

Suddenly Lie Yun’s instincts kicked in. With years of battle experience, he twisted mid-air, redirecting his punch toward the black-robed man’s chest.

Yet his chance was lost—the opponent’s fist, unremarkable but laced with black energy, struck with terrifying force.

A thunderous blast followed. The shockwave whipped their robes, nearly knocking some to the ground. The earth beneath the two combatants cracked with spiderweb fissures.

Still airborne, Lie Yun was thrown back by the counterforce, barely landing on his feet before coughing up a mouthful of blood.