Looking at the young man's tender face, the elderly man in the green robe nodded kindly and said, "The Little Leader's cultivatioo have strengthened a bit more."

  Xiao Yan chuckled slightly, "Steward Mo, I only tested it yesterday. How could it have improved so quickly?"

  "Ha ha ha, maybe it's the impression of relentless progress that the Little Leader gives off..."

  Xiao Yan followed the steward through the back courtyard. Finally, he stopped solemnly in front of the reception hall. He knocked respectfully on the door befently pushing it open.

  The hall acious and there were quite a few people inside. Sitting at the highest position were Xiao Zhan and the three Elders, whose authority within the was han that of the Head.

  To the left of these four sat some of the 's most iial and strong elders. Sittio them were a few of the younger geion of people who had shown outstanding achievements within the .

  When Xiao Yan arrived, all the younger geion in the hall greeted him with friendly smiles.

  "Greetings, Little Leader."

  "Good m, Little Leader."

  "The Little Leader's cultivation has progressed again."

  "Hehe, Yan Er, you're here. e, take a seat." Seeing Xiao Yan arrive, Xiao Zhan owards him aured with his hand.

  Xiao Yan, smiling, nodded and walked straight to a seat just below the Third Elder. His status was now virtually on par with the elders, and he could be sidered their equal. o Xiao Yan's position sat Xun Er.

  Xun Er's position within the Xiao was quite unique. Although she didn't hold any official power within the , even Head Xiao Zhaed her with great courtesy. It could be said that she had the freedom to do as she wished within the .

  However, what made Xiao Yan somewhat surprised was that the important guests mentioned by Xiao Zhan turned out to be two elderly men and a young girl who seemed to be around his age.

  The beauty of the young girl even surpassed that of Xiao Mei by a few points, and perhaps the only person within the who could be pared to her was Xiao Xun Er, who was like a blooming green lotus.

  Green jade pendants hung delicately from the girl's earlobes. They emitted a crisp jih every gentle sway, adding a touch of elegao her appearance. In addition, three golden stars were embroidered o the girl's budding bosom.

  Xiao Yan's brow furrowed as he thought, 'A 3-star Dou Practitioner. If this girl hasn't relied oernal objects to enhance her strength, she's truly an exceptional genius to be on par with my cultivation level.'

  'She really lives up to being a member of the Misty Cloud Sect.'

  Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed as he noticed the cloud-patterned silver sword embroidered on the cuff of the girl's robe and khat she was from the Misty Cloud Sect.

  If the Xiao could be sidered the hegemon of Wu Tan City, then the Misty Cloud Sect could perhaps be sidered the hegemon of the entire Jia Ma Empire.

  Therefore, the name of the girl in front of him was already oip of his tongue.

  Nan Yanran.

  Simply put, she was his fiancée.

  'What is she doing here?'

  Xiao Yan scratched his head, pletely fused as to why this Nan Yanran had suddenly e from the Misty Cloud Sect to this remote area for no apparent reason.

  He hadn't e of age yet, so the e matter shouldn't be brought up nht?

  Nan Yanran also noticed Xiao Yan's arrival. What surprised him was that Nan Yanran's eyes were actually stubborn, as if she was carrying some kind of determination.

  She stood up and said in an inparably serious tone, " Head Xiao, I have e to the Xiao today to annul the e!"

  !!!?

  Everyone present was suddenly stunned into silenot only were the younger geion dumbfounded, but evehree Elders and Xiao Zhan were pletely perplexed.

  Why oh would she do such a thing?

  Childhood es were usually arranged by the elders, and in this case, it had been arranged by Xiao Yan's deceased grandfather, Xiao Lin, and Nan Yanran's grandfather, Nan Jie, in their earlier years.

  Not long ago, Xiao Zhan had exged letters with Nan Jie, and both sides were very pleased with each other's children.

  Xiao Zhan had known about Nan Yanran's visit si night. That was why he had goo the cliffs te Xiao Yan to rest early, hinting that it might be food reason.

  But reality turned out to be quite the opposite.

  Xiao Zhan and the various Elders exged puzzled gnces, uo uand where things had gone wrong. Xiao Zhan asked in fusion, ''Niean, could there be some mistake? I just exged letters with yrandfather not long ago, and nowhere did he mention breaking off the e."

  Nan Yanran did not falter in the face of his question and firmly replied, "This is my own decision and has nothing to do with my grandfather or the Nan ."

  Good girl! It was no wohat Nan Yanran had only brought along two elder representatives from the Misty Cloud Sect to discuss this matter. It seemed like she had made this decision on her own. It was akin to running away from home with a few trusted friends.

  "Ahem." Seeing the fusion imosphere, one of the elders who had been sittio Nan Yanran stood up and csped his hands towards Xiao Zhan, "Hehe, Head Xiao, Yanran joihe Misty Cloud Sect five years ago. She has shown exceptional talent in cultivation and has earhe favor of the Sect Leader. The Sect Leader once said that cultivation is also about cultivating one's heart, and the most important thing for a cultivator is to be true to oneself. Therefore, I would like to ask Leader Xiao if it's possible to... dissolve this marriage arra."

  Ka! The jade cup in Xiao Zhan's hand suddenly turned into a pile of powder with a loud noise.

  The atmosphere in the hall became somewhat solemn. If Nan Yanran's a could still be sidered impulsive, Ge Ye's stance was certainly not. This had obviously been discussed beforehand.

  Moments ter, however, tless eyes that seemed to want to devour someone were directed at the Ge Ye trio. Not to mention Xiao Zhan and the various Dou Grandmasters, even some of the younger geion in the who were only at the 4th or 5th Stage Dou Disciple let out a series of teeth-grinding sounds.

  Humiliation!

  Xiao Yan, as their Little Leader and the future bea of their , was their pride. Yet now, they wao publicly break off his marriage arra! This was like a harsh sp in the face to all the members of the Xiao .

  The Ge Ye trio suddenly felt as if they had fallen into a wolf's den, as if a pack of hungry wolves was staring at them. As long as the Wolf King gave the order, no matter if they were from the Misty Cloud Sect or not, everyone would be rushing to take a bite out of them.

  Such was the charisma of Xiao Yan.

  Ge Ye offered a forced smile and said, " Head Xiao, we uand that our request today is somewhat impolite, so I've brought something as a form of apology."

  With that, he retrieved a green a jade box from his ste ring. A unique fragranstantly filled the hall.

  "This is from Pill King Gu He..."

  Befe Ye could finish, Xiao Zhan curled into fists. A faint green Dou Qi gradually covered his body, finally coalesg into an illusory lion's head.

  This was the highest-css Qi Method of the Xiao bsp;Intermediate Xuan Css, Furious Lie!

  Ge Ye was taken aback when he saw Xiao Zhan's rea. His hands curled like eagle cws. Green Dou Qi gathered in them, releasing a subtle but sharp sword i.

  Misty Cloud Sect's Low Xuan Qi Method, Green Wood Sword!

  As their auras collided, the wooden box in Ge Ye's hands fell to the ground. A pill the size of a dragon's eye rolled out of the wooden box.

  However, uedly, all the members of the Xiao didn't even spare a g the pill that had fallen to the ground. Eveantalizing fragrance of the pill was overwhelmed by their anger.

  Ge Ye g the pill on the ground and then at the expressions of everyone around him. In the presence of such a treasure, not a single person showed greed in their eyes. Instead, their expressions were filled with anger.

  Finally, his gaze shifted to the young man sitting on the side, who had been sipping his tea in silence as if he were an outsider, without uttering a single word this whole time.

  He, Ge Ye, had misjudged. This young man had actually mao uhe entire . This was su incredible feat!

  Even in the Misty Cloud Sect, the various fas within the sect would not all blindly follow the orders of the Sect Leader.

  "Yanran, why don't we go bad discuss this matter more thhly?"

  With a loud footfall, Nan Yanran took a step forward and said with a serious tone, "When I joihe Misty Cloud Sect five years ago and followed the Sect Leader's teags I came to uand ohing. How I live my life and who I marry are decisions that I, Nan Yanran, have to make for myself!"

  The atmosphere in the hall suddenly fell silent. Even Ge Ye was startled by Nan Yanran's resolve.

  Cp, cp, cp...

  The sound of g suddenly resounded in the hall. Surprisingly, it was Xiao Yan who uding.

  "Taking trol of one's destiny, well said. I, Xiao Yan, also have someone in my heart, and therefore this marriage should indeed be annulled."

  Xun Er, who was sittio Xiao Yan, suddenly blushed when she heard Xiao Yaion that he had someone in his heart. Her mind began to wander wildly with tless thoughts.

  Xiao Yan maintained his characteristifident smile as he rose from his seat to address his 'fiancée', "However, by requesting my father to dissolve agement in such a publiner, you have put my father's face as the Head at stake. This act could greatly diminish his authority and bee a source of ridicule for him."

  Xiao Yan's words were straightforward, and his gaze became cold and intimidating.

  He wasn't particurly ed about the e itself, but if they were to dissolve an e that had been agreed upon by both parties just like that, how would their Xiao be able to maintain its position iure?

  "I, Xiao Yan, am not unreasonable. One move, if you withstand a single move from me, then this marriage arra will be dissolved."