Chapter 536 534: I've Caught the Culprit

"...piss off and leave this beauty behind, and I'll let it slide."

The man in the golden robes waved impatiently at Luo Tian.

Before Luo Tian could say anything, Yue Linfei was already enraged. Her almond-shaped eyes flew open as she shouted, "How dare you! Watch your mouth!"

As a disciple of the Tai Yuan Sect, she had her own pride and dignity.

Besides, the man in the golden robes had also insulted Luo Tian.

"Oh? This little chick has quite a temper. Perfect. I love a stubborn girl like you. It makes conquering you all the more satisfying!"

The man in the golden robes smirked, completely dismissing Yue Linfei's words.

After all, his Su Family was one of the seven great powers of the Celestial Mountain Realm.

In the entire Celestial Mountain Realm, the Su Family feared no one except the other six great families.

'Even if Yue Linfei came from one of the other six families, what was the harm in hitting on her a little?'

"Hey, punk, why haven't you pissed off yet? Are you waiting for me to get my hands dirty?"

The gold-robed man's eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing within them.

The four guards at his sides stepped forward.

Two of the guards were at the Earth Element Realm Seventh Layer, and two were at the Earth Element Realm Sixth Layer.

To travel with such powerful personal guards showed that the man in the golden robes had an extraordinary status.

"I'll give you three breaths to disappear from my sight."

Luo Tian said, his voice ice-cold.

'He couldn't be bothered to waste any more words.'

The man in the golden robes only sneered. "Punk, I don't think you know who you're talking to!"

"I am Su Qian, the fifth young master of the Su Family!"

The man in the golden robes bellowed.

Hearing the name 'Su Qian', the surrounding onlookers couldn't help but back away.

"Are those people insane? How dare they provoke Su Qian?"

"I know that girl, Jiya'Er. She's a genius from the Ji Family. I heard the Mu Family took a liking to her, so she's studying cultivation with them now!"

"Even so, she isn't a member of the Mu Family. How could she dare to offend Su Qian, the fifth young master of the Su Family?"

The crowd murmured amongst themselves, feeling a measure of pity for Luo Tian's group.

"Men, chop off this punk's hands and feet!"

Su Qian ordered coldly.

'He would make Luo Tian pay a heavy price for his arrogance!'

The guards stepped forward, their expressions cold and detached.

SHING!

One of the Earth Element Realm Seventh Layer guards drew his sword and slashed at Luo Tian's hand!

But Luo Tian merely twitched his finger.

SHINK!

A white Gale Sword Light shot out.

The sword in the Earth Element Realm Seventh Layer guard's hand snapped in two and fell to the ground with a CLANG!

"What? My Treasure Sword…"

The guard's face drained of color.

The next instant, a sharp pain shot through his hands. He looked down and saw his own hands lying on the ground!

"AHHH!"

The guard shrieked in agony.

At the same time, the hands of the other three guards also dropped to the ground, followed by a chorus of agonizing screams.

The sudden turn of events left Su Qian completely stunned. The surrounding crowd was also in a state of shock.

"You... I'll let it go! You can leave!"

Su Qian blustered, trying to sound tough.

'I should treat everyone equally,' Luo Tian thought.

SHINK!

With a flick of his finger, Sword Qi descended, and Su Qian's hands fell to the ground as well.

Now, the crowd was utterly speechless.

They didn't know where Luo Tian came from, but now that Su Qian's hands were crippled, the Su Family would never let this matter rest.

The onlookers hastily backed away, lest they be dragged into the affair.

"AHH! How dare you... My hands!"

Su Qian shrieked like a madman.

"Take this as a lesson. Now scram."

Luo Tian said coolly.

Su Qian and the others fled without looking back.

"Brother Luo, that was too impulsive! Su Qian is the son of the Su Family Patriarch..."

Jiya'Er, also frightened, said in a panic.

"Don't worry."

Luo Tian calmly reassured her. Then, the three of them departed.

The quiet street suddenly erupted into an uproar.

"Now there's going to be big trouble!"

"The Su Family Patriarch will be furious, but that kid is acting like nothing even happened."

"Hm? Why does that man look so familiar?"

...

「Two days later.」

Luo Tian and his two companions arrived at Mu Hai Celestial Mountain.

With Jiya'Er leading the way, Luo Tian and Yue Linfei entered the Mu Family's estate without any trouble.

"Jiya'Er, why are you bringing outsiders into the Mu Family estate?"

A handsome man in white robes, flanked by several other Mu Family disciples, slowly approached.

"Brother Jinyuan."

Jiya'Er immediately bowed.

She was only here to study cultivation, so her status was naturally no match for a talented Mu Family disciple like Mu Jinyuan.

"Hm? Isn't that Luo Tian? What are you doing back at the Mu Family?"

Upon seeing Luo Tian, Mu Jinyuan's expression immediately darkened.

Back then, he and Luo Tian had cultivated in the Cloud Pool together. During the sparring matches that followed, Mu Jinyuan, as the strongest representative of the Mu Family, had challenged Luo Tian.

But he had lost, a defeat that symbolized all the Mu Family disciples being bested by an outsider.

"Still sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, I see," Luo Tian said with a faint smile.

Of course, he remembered Mu Jinyuan.

"Hmph. You took one of our Mu Family's Auditor Disciple spots, yet you show no gratitude and act this arrogantly. I guess the Mu Family just helped an ungrateful bastard," Mu Jinyuan snorted.

He had been intensely jealous of Luo Tian ever since their last battle.

'An outsider, a nobody, somehow got to cultivate in the Mu Family's Cloud Pool and even walked away with a precious Auditor Disciple spot!'

"Luo... Luo Tian? You're here?"

Just then, an old steward approached from a distance. When he saw Luo Tian, his cloudy old eyes widened, and his words came out in a stutter.

"Jinyuan, see to it that Luo Tian is treated well. I'm going to inform the Patriarch."

The old steward said, then hurried away.

Mu Jinyuan was taken aback.

'Is that old steward out of his mind?'

'What's the big deal about Luo Tian showing up? Why was he so shocked? And telling me to treat him well? Not a chance!'

"Go stand over there and cool off. I don't have time to entertain you," Mu Jinyuan snapped impatiently.

'Even if Luo Tian got into the Tai Yuan Sect, he's just an Auditor Disciple.'

'This is the Mu Family's territory—my territory. It's already polite of me not to tell him to piss off.'

"Watch your tone. The steward just told you to host Brother Luo. What's with this attitude?" Yue Linfei said with a frown.

"This is the Mu Family, and what I say goes!"

Mu Jinyuan snorted.

Yue Linfei's delicate brows furrowed in displeasure.

'What is wrong with this person?'

Suddenly, RUMBLE! WHOOSH!

A violent rumble echoed from the distance. A massive, pitch-black warship tore through the sky toward them!

"The Su Family's warship?"

Seeing this, Mu Jinyuan's face paled!

The Su Family was also one of the seven great families of the Celestial Mountain Realm, and they were rivals of the Mu Family.

'Are the Su Family here to attack us?'

"Quickly! Go inform the Patriarch!" Mu Jinyuan shouted immediately.

In less than three breaths!

The massive black warship arrived just outside the Mu Family estate, casting a vast shadow over the grounds.

The many members of the Mu Family were on high alert, as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Mu Family! Hand over the fiend who cut off my son's hands!"

Standing on the prow of the ship was a severe, imposing old man with a grim face—the Su Family Patriarch himself.

His furious roar made the very clouds roil, and a terrifying pressure descended upon them.

Mu Jinyuan's face grew even paler at the sight.

'I can't believe the Su Family Patriarch came himself. He said he's looking for the culprit... This isn't going to be resolved easily.'

He began to retreat, looking for a place to hide.

"Brother Luo, the Su Family Patriarch is here for you! You have to run!" Jiya'Er said, her voice filled with urgency.

'Her heart was in turmoil. It was all her fault. Because of her, Luo Tian had cut off Su Qian's hands and brought the Su Family Patriarch down on them.'

'She had doomed Luo Tian.'

"Hm? Luo Tian! You're the one who caused this mess?"

Hearing this, Mu Jinyuan stopped in his tracks. A look of delighted surprise crossed his face.

"You bastard! You brought this disaster upon the Mu Family! Death by a thousand cuts would be too good for you!" Mu Jinyuan roared.

'Luo Tian has stirred up so much trouble this time, not even Mu Yunshi can protect him!'

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

From all corners of the Mu Family estate, powerful auras erupted into the sky.

"Who dares cause trouble at the Mu Family estate?"

The Mu Family Patriarch, Mu Qianshi, boomed majestically as he and the Mu Family's high-ranking members appeared at once.

They had no idea why the Su Family had suddenly appeared at their doorstep, ready for a fight.

The two sides faced off, the auras of numerous Celestial Level Martial Artists clashing and grinding against each other.

For a moment, the sky darkened. Violent winds howled, and flashes of lightning appeared in the gloom.

All Martial Artists below the Celestial Level felt an invisible, crushing pressure.

"Don't play dumb!"

The Su Family Patriarch's face was grim.

Beside him, the man in the golden robes, Su Qian, and his four guards stepped forward, their hands heavily bandaged.

"My son's hands were severed! According to eyewitnesses, the culprit is right here, in your Mu Family!" the Su Family Patriarch declared.

The Mu Family leadership was completely in the dark about this.

But if it were true, they were indeed in the wrong.

'Who could it be? Who would be so audacious as to cut off the hands of the Su Patriarch's fifth son?'

Patriarch Mu Qianshi was just about to ask who it was.

But Mu Jinyuan, with a cold smirk at Luo Tian, stepped forward and announced, "I've already caught the culprit!"

At once, everyone from both the Mu and Su Families turned their gazes to Mu Jinyuan.

They all wanted to know who the culprit was.

Mu Jinyuan pointed at Luo Tian and barked, "Luo Tian, what are you waiting for? Get on your knees and confess your crime!"

"Father, that's him! He's the one who cut off my hands! I want him to suffer a fate worse than death!" Su Qian cried out, his face twisted with hatred.

'Mu Jinyuan sneered inwardly.'

'This time, Luo Tian is finished!'

'The Su Family Patriarch came here himself. The Mu Family won't make an enemy of the entire Su Family for the sake of an outsider.'

'The shame of his past defeat at Luo Tian's hands could finally be avenged!'

Besides, he was the one who had "caught" the culprit. This was a great service, and he would surely be handsomely rewarded.

However, when the Su Family Patriarch saw Luo Tian, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he fell silent.

And when the high-ranking members of the Mu Family saw Luo Tian, their faces one by one filled with astonishment.

The tense, explosive atmosphere suddenly eased.

"Huh?"

Mu Jinyuan was baffled.

'The culprit is right here. Why isn't the Su Family making a move?'

'The Mu Family elders are acting strange, too. Why aren't they throwing Luo Tian to the wolves?'

'And his own father was looking at him with an expression of pure anxiety.'

It wasn't just Mu Jinyuan who was confused; Su Qian was, too.

"Father, you have to get revenge for me! I want to sever his tendons, peel his skin, and pull out his bones!" Su Qian pleaded, putting on a pitiful act.

"Shut your mouth!"

But the Su Family Patriarch suddenly roared, stunning Su Qian into silence.

'What the hell is going on?'

'The culprit is right there, but not only is my father not getting revenge for me, he's scolding me?'

The next moment, Su Qian saw his father turn to Luo Tian with a solemn expression. "I did not expect you to be in the Celestial Mountain Realm, Luo," the Patriarch said. "This old one has prepared a banquet to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey."

At these words, a tidal wave of disbelief crashed through Su Qian's mind.

He wondered if the man before him was really his father, or if this was all a dream.