Under the intense gaze of everyone, the figure finally became clear. It was a middle-aged man clad in a silver robe, his features refined but his expression as cold as ice.
Despite the crowded hall, when spiritual senses swept toward the man, they were all repelled by an invisible force, unable to probe his cultivation level. Yet, given his audacious entrance, his origins were undoubtedly extraordinary.
Few noticed, however, that the moment the purple beast saw the man’s face, its eyes lit up with wild joy—though its body remained tightly bound by the golden-silver threads, rendering it immobile.
“Who are you, and how did you enter? Where are the guards outside?” Xiao Buyi demanded sternly.
“I brought him in. The guards were stopped by me. Any objections?” A new voice suddenly rang out, followed by footsteps as another figure strode into the hall.
This newcomer was a barefoot young man in a plain white robe, appearing no older than twenty-seven or twenty-eight, with utterly unremarkable features.
“Senior Fei!”
At the sight of this youth, Xiao Buyi, who had remained composed until now, paled and hastily bowed from the platform.
“Greetings, Senior Fei!”
“Respects to Senior Fei!”
The other Saint Tribe members on the platform, including the elderly Lu and the old man, also recognized the youth’s identity and immediately bowed with deep reverence.
Not just them—numerous other Saint Tribe cultivators hidden on the third floor now emerged from their rooms, paying their respects in unison.
Han Li’s gaze swept across the crowd, spotting even Qian Jizi and Duan Tianren, two peak Body Integration cultivators, clasping their fists with expressions of shock and awe.
“Mahayana stage!”
The realization flashed through Han Li’s mind. When his eyes returned to the youth, his face finally revealed sheer astonishment.
With so many Saint Tribe members bowing to the same person, the other races in the hall immediately grasped the youth’s true status. Many swallowed hard, equally stunned, and the entire hall fell into silence once more.
“Senior Fei, why have you come here? Weren’t you in seclusion?”
The question came not from Xiao Buyi but from a peak Body Integration cultivator on the third floor—a bizarre-looking man with dark green markings and clad in an unknown beast-hide robe.
“Ah, Nephew Hei, you’re here too? Never mind—I won’t pry into your affairs. My presence in Cloud City was initially due to the recent attacks by the Horned Race. But now, I’m here solely because of Fellow Daoist Tu,” the youth replied with a sigh, glancing at the odd man.
“Senior, may I ask who this Senior Tu is…?” The man’s face darkened with unease.
The youth smiled but didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he turned to the silver-robed man. “Brother Tu, have you found the one you’re looking for?”
“Of course!”
The silver-robed man’s gaze swept the hall before settling on the platform. At the sight of the purple beast, his eyes first lit up with joy—then turned icy when he noticed the black cage and the golden-silver threads binding it.
With a flicker of silver light, his figure vanished.
The next moment, he reappeared silently on the platform.
“Senior, you—” The elderly Lu, standing nearby, flinched as the silver-robed man materialized right beside him.
“Get lost!”
The silver-robed man had no patience for words. With a flick of his sleeve, an overwhelming force blasted toward the old man.
Lu instinctively inhaled sharply, summoning a yellow glow around his body to block the attack.
**BOOM!**
A deafening explosion erupted as the yellow radiance trembled violently. Lu staggered back seven or eight steps, nearly tumbling off the platform.
Xiao Buyi’s face drained of color.
He knew well the old man’s formidable earth-attribute techniques, renowned for their defensive might. Yet, he couldn’t withstand a casual strike from the silver-robed man.
*This man must also be at the Mahayana stage,* Xiao Buyi concluded instantly.
The old man and the other three recoiled in shock, hastily retreating as the silver-robed man advanced toward them.
But to their surprise, he ignored them entirely. Instead, he strode to the cage, gripping its edges with both hands.
**CRACK!**
With a burst of spiritual light, the seemingly indestructible black cage was torn apart like paper. The remnants of the cage and the beast plummeted downward.
Before the cage could hit the ground, it dissolved into black mist. Meanwhile, the purple beast let out joyful cries as the silver-robed man caught it mid-air. With a casual wave, the golden-silver threads binding it shattered.
Freed at last, the beast nuzzled affectionately against the man’s chest, its happiness unrestrained.
“Hmph, instead of staying safely in the cave, you dared to wander the sea. Did you suffer for it? Tell me—who captured you?” The man stroked the beast’s head tenderly before his voice turned frigid.
The old man and his companions exchanged terrified glances.
This beast was the very one they had captured and brought here for auction. Otherwise, as guest elders of Cloud City, they wouldn’t have appeared here so casually.
The purple beast glared hatefully at the old man, growling as if recounting its ordeal.
“What? He tortured you? Good. Very good. Then your lives will suffice as repayment.”
The silver-robed man’s face twisted with fury. A terrifying murderous aura erupted from him as his arm shot toward the old man like lightning.
**SNAP!**
Despite the distance of over ten zhang, the man’s arm elongated unnaturally, his silver-clawed fingers appearing right before the old man’s face in an instant.
The attack was too fast to evade. The crushing spiritual pressure left the old man gasping for breath.
“NO!”
Though he had been on guard, the old man never expected such ferocity. Desperately, he spat out a cyan orb and activated a pre-prepared spell, summoning three layered barriers before him.
But his efforts were futile.
The orb shattered mid-air under a flash of silver. The next moment, the claws tore through all three barriers effortlessly, poised to crush the old man’s skull.
Pale with terror, the old man had no time to react.
Yet, in that critical instant, a calm voice intervened.
“Fellow Daoist Tu, show mercy. Have you forgotten your promise to me?”
A seemingly ordinary hand emerged from the void, deflecting the silver claws effortlessly. Space rippled as the Fei youth materialized between the two, his expression grave.
“Hmph, I agreed not to kill here, but I never said I’d let them off lightly,” the silver-robed man growled, though he refrained from further action, clearly wary of the youth.
“Naturally. Since Fellow Daoist Lan and his companions offended your daughter, death may be spared, but punishment is warranted,” the Fei youth replied with a faint smile.
“What? You’re the Human-Faced Flood Dragon!” the old man blurted out, his face ashen.
“Indeed. My true form is the Human-Faced Flood Dragon. Do you still wish to challenge me?” The silver-robed man’s eyes gleamed with menace.
“Never! This junior had no idea of your esteemed identity! We beg for your forgiveness!” The old man, though a Saint Tribe elder, knew when to yield.
“Fellow Daoist Lan, your recklessness knows no bounds. How dare you capture spirit beasts near Brother Tu’s abode—let alone his own daughter? Had any harm come to her, even I couldn’t have saved you,” the Fei youth scolded sharply.
“We truly didn’t know that area was Senior Tu’s domain! We’d never dare such a transgression!” Sweat poured down the old man’s face.
The other three looked equally terrified, their faces deathly pale.
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