Wait a minute, where is my master?

Just as Mr. Lan was staring blankly.

The young Taoist looked calmly at the two blue and white orchids swirling in his palm, and with his right hand, he moved the golden Spiritual Power Ball from in front of his left shoulder into his left palm as well.

The Fire Condensing Skill was activated, and the violent flames within the Spiritual Power Ball instantly became as docile as a little lamb, obediently returning to their previous Flame Orchid form.

"Tch, the aura of Spiritual Power this time feels stronger than before. If it were a thousand... no, ten thousand times stronger, it might be comparable to the golden spiritual power in my body."

Jin Xu silently compared the three orchids to the golden spiritual power within him.

And then...

He raised his hand and tossed the three orchids back.

If you could catch the fire carp just now, there's no reason you can't catch these three orchids, right?

That's what the young Taoist was thinking.

But Lan Junyan truly couldn't catch them, her Spiritual Power was as dry as a fish in the desert at this moment, how could she have the strength to catch a blow of Mahayana magic, let alone three.

Mr. Lan saw the three Flame Orchids growing larger and larger in her pupils, and her heart sank to the bottom of the valley.

"The Cultivation World is a place where the weak are prey to the strong; I am inferior in skill, and if I am to die, so be it. It's just a pity I've tarnished the reputation of my sect and failed the teachings and kindness of my master."

Lan Junyan was originally an orphan picked up by the Old Dean of Qingmu Academy during his travels; thus, to her, Qingmu Academy felt like home, and the Old Dean was like both a teacher and father to her.

Indeed, even on the verge of death, she was still concerned about the reputation of the academy.

However, though that was what Mr. Lan thought, her subconscious survival instinct still made her use the Youlan Ancient Mirror to shield herself.

The three Flame Orchids, containing the might of the Mahayana Realm, hit the surface of the mirror firmly.

The rich flame Spiritual Power burst forth, and Mr. Lan was swept up by the force and sent flying backward.

Just then, an unexpected change occurred.

As the ancient mirror was bathed in flames, a clear light suddenly emitted from the Empty Valley Orchid Map carved upon it, and soon after, on one of the orchids, a blurry silhouette of a woman appeared.

This was a spiritual imprint left by the original owner of the object, intended as a final means of protection for the inheritor.

"Eh!? Isn't this the power of the ancient mirror?"

After the woman's silhouette appeared, she first voiced her confusion, then waved her sleeves. With a few swipes, she scattered the Mahayana-level flames back into the heavens and earth.

After completing this task, she turned and looked in the direction where Lan Junyan had been sent flying, seemingly having something she wanted to ask the other party. But just as the woman's silhouette took a step forward, the Youlan Ancient Mirror began to make the sound of cracking.

The woman's silhouette wavered, looked down at the ancient mirror now in four or five pieces at her feet, sighed softly, and with resignation, dissipated into the air.

All of these events might sound complicated, but they happened in just a few breaths' time.

By the time the woman's silhouette dissipated, the City Lord of Qingmu City, Mei Shouyi, and Mr. Zhu, among others, had just managed to arrive at the scene.

"Fairy Lan!"

"Boss Song!"

Mei Shouyi rushed straight toward the unconscious Song Xili in the courtyard, while Zhu Chuanren unsurprisingly dashed towards Mr. Lan, who had been sent flying.

The City Lord of Qingmu City looked gravely at the young Taoist standing in the middle of the courtyard. He had been monitoring the situation closely and saw how he had caught Lan Junyan's released magic and thrown it back.

"May I ask, where did you learn your skills, and why are you causing such a disturbance with magic in my Qingmu City?"

The City Lord attempted to occupy the moral high ground.

But Jin Xu had no time to deal with him.

He had already made his decision, choosing between the forefinger and the middle finger— the middle finger!

Jin Xu made a slight move with his foot, sprung up like a bamboo shoot from dry ground, and flashed towards Lan Junyan.

After all, she had been performing the fire "tricks" for him for quite a while; he ought to return the favor with some gesture of his own.

The City Lord of Qingmu City floated in mid-air; seeing that the young Taoist in a dark Taoist robe ignored his question and instead flew away, he instinctively wanted to stop him.

But his survival instincts reined in his hands.

And as for keeping up with Jin Xu's speed, he simply couldn't.

"Lan Junyan couldn't defeat this foe; if he wants to flee, I shouldn't stop him. I better hurry and notify the Dean to come here."

The City Lord thought Jin Xu was about to flee, so he took out the Communication Jade Token and informed Qingyun about the events that had transpired here.

However, just as he had sent the message and turned back to look in Mr. Lan's direction, he found that the little Taoist in the dark Taoist robe had already appeared at Lan Junyan's side.

"Damn it!"

This was the City Lord of Qingmu City's first reaction.

"Could this person really dare to kill the head of the scholars at Qingmu Academy in Qingmu City!"

That was his second thought.

Elsewhere.

Rushing in haste, Zhu Chuanren only felt a shadow whizzing past him, stirring up a gust of wind, and then he saw a person had appeared next to Lan Junyan.

"This silhouette, why does it look so familiar?"

Mr. Zhu looked at Jin Xu's back with some confusion in his heart.

Meanwhile, Lan Junyan lay on the ground, still not fully awake.

"How did I survive a full-strength attack of magic from three Mahayana Realm cultivators?"

Curiosity filled her tiny head.

Mr. Lan had previously been thrown by the blast of the magic explosion, and then the woman's shadow appeared, so she hadn't suffered much from the flames.

Nevertheless, the impact and the few stray flames had been enough to give Lan Junyan a hard time.

At this moment, Mr. Lan felt dizzy, and then she saw the unnamed little Taoist appear in front of her, blocking the sun above.

"I'm sorry, I will try to avoid your vitals," said a gentle voice as Jin Xu bent down.

At that point, Lan Junyan was still somewhat bewildered.

But with those words came a searing, heart-wrenching pain!

"Painful! So painful! Not even when I fell into a valley and broke both legs as a child did it hurt this much!"

For some reason, this thought surfaced in Lan Junyan's mind as the intense pain made her involuntarily groan.

At that moment, she felt an unbearable agony in both her shoulders and on her left leg.

The little Taoist was now standing upright, with his right thumb resting on his middle finger, holding a pose reminiscent of a child flicking another's forehead.

Indeed, Jin Xu had lightly flicked Lan Junyan's shoulders and left leg three times.

In the very spots where the three orchids had been close to her.

"Are you, Jin Xu?"

Zhu Chuanren, who was hesitantly holding a high-grade attack talisman, asked.

He was originally planning to intervene directly when he saw the Taoist in the dark clothes and mask approaching Fairy Lan.

But the little Taoist's words about avoiding the vitals made him hesitate and ask.

"Mr. Zhu, it's been a while," said Jin Xu as he turned around, removing the dark, featureless mask from his face and smiling in greeting.

"Eh... ha... ha, it's been a long time, little Taoist," Zhu Chuanren replied with a forced laugh as he swapped the attack talisman in his hand for a Healing Talisman.

"Little Taoist, how come you are here, and... and you took action," Mr. Zhu asked while walking toward Lan Junyan, struggling to choose his words carefully.

Jin Xu scratched his head, pondering where to start explaining what had happened.

Above Qingmu City.

The current Dean of Qingmu Academy, Qingyun, arrived.