Chapter 184: You're Trying to Bargain With Me? Do You Even Have That Right?
Xiao Yuan's calm voice echoed across the plaza, instantly silencing the murmurs of the crowd. Countless gazes, filled with various emotions, shifted back and forth between his tall, unmoving figure and the unconscious, pale-faced Yao Sheng lying on the ground.
On the other side, Reina had already been effortlessly defeated by Xiao Yan.
Reina's strength was merely that of a four-star Dou Ling, with unimpressive combat ability. Xiao Yan, after activating his Heavenly Flame Three Mysterious Change, easily made up for their gap in Dou Qi strength. With his wealth of combat experience, there was never any chance of him losing.
Clap, clap, clap!
Suddenly, a round of applause rang out. More people followed suit. Soon, the whole crowd was clapping.
Even Bai Cheng, after a moment of hesitation, began clapping along.
Whatever else could be said, the terrifying combat power displayed by Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan had won the respect of everyone present. The students of Canaan Academy were undoubtedly talented—many even considered geniuses—but if they were honest with themselves, none of them could've accomplished what Xiao Yuan had at the Da Dou Shi level.
Those who had previously questioned Xiao Yuan's strength were now thoroughly embarrassed. And to think this was just Xiao Yuan's first month at the academy. In three years? Even the elders might have to bow to him!
A man so visibly destined to become a powerhouse… even if you couldn't befriend him, you definitely shouldn't make him an enemy.
So who would be unhappy in this moment?
Of course… Han Xian.
At this moment, the members of the Yao Gang all looked terrible—Han Xian especially. In his heart, he had already cursed Yao Sheng to death a dozen times over.
How disgraceful! A seven-star Dou Ling loses to a Da Dou Shi? Trash!
But he soon stopped cursing—not because he had a change of heart, but because Xiao Yuan's gaze turned toward him.
Instantly, sweat broke out on Han Xian's back.
If even Yao Sheng was defeated, what chance did he have?
Still… if the Lionheart Society kept selling pills like this, the Yao Gang would be finished in no time!
Damn it! How is Xiao Yuan's battle power this monstrous? Did he lie about his strength?
But he quickly dismissed the idea.
Xiao Yuan was only eighteen. Being a seven-star Da Dou Shi already bordered on the unbelievable. If he were a seven-star Dou Ling at that age, what hope would anyone else have?
Han Xian, unwilling to just sit and wait for doom, quickly racked his brain—and finally came up with a plan.
As Xiao Yuan approached him with an unmistakably hostile air, Han Xian braced himself and forced out some bravado.
"Though your strength is impressive, if I don't accept your challenge and you attack anyway, you'll be violating the academy's rules!"
He said it with forced sternness.
"So?" Xiao Yuan sneered. "You weren't worried about rules when you trashed Lionheart's sales booths, were you?"
His powerful aura surged outward, silencing Han Xian's retort before it could escape his lips.
"There's no such rule in the academy!" Han Xian snapped through gritted teeth.
"I think you misunderstood me," Xiao Yuan said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "I'm talking about my rules—Lionheart Society's rules. Isn't that what the Inner Academy is about? The strong make the rules. I agree with the elders' regulations, but mine—you'll obey them too."
Xiao Yuan patted Han Xian's shoulder as he spoke. His tone, icy and precise, carried a distinct warning.
"Besides, even if I'm a new student, you don't seem qualified to talk about rules in front of me."
As his smile grew colder, Han Xian's face twisted. The hand on his shoulder shifted between icy cold and searing hot—an unbearable torment that made his whole body twitch.
"Don't get ahead of yourself! Yao Sheng was only seventeenth in the Strong Ranking. There are sixteen stronger than him. And he's from Crack Mountain! Liu Qing charges a high price, but we—Yao Gang—can afford it!"
Han Xian growled.
"Heh… then go ahead and bring him here," Xiao Yuan said with a sneer. "Tell him to say that to me directly. Fool."
With a sudden burst of aura, Xiao Yuan flung Han Xian away with just a wave of his energy. Han Xian coughed up blood as he slammed into the ground.
Then, unhurriedly, Xiao Yuan walked over to Yao Sheng and retrieved his Fire Crystal Card, draining nearly 700 Fire Energy points—leaving just the 7-point safety buffer.
Xiao Yan followed suit and extracted nearly 400 points from Reina.
The watching crowd winced. Even in official arena duels, nobody usually drained their opponent's Fire Energy completely. Xiao Yuan was ruthless!
What was more absurd was that the academy's elders did nothing.
In fact, the elders were just as confused—but no one dared question the Grand Elder's orders.
After all, even back when they were students, the Grand Elder was already the Grand Elder.
"Tch… oh, right. Your Yao Gang likes to buy herbs, right? You must have lots of Fire Energy stored up."
Xiao Yuan's expression changed as he suddenly smiled warmly and approached Han Xian.
"Xiao Yuan! Don't push your luck! If your Lionheart Society has an alchemist, then let's settle this alchemist to alchemist! If I lose, you can have the Fire Energy. But if you lose—then stay out of pill sales forever!"
Feeling cornered, Han Xian blurted his challenge in a booming voice.
Pfft!
Xiao Yuan couldn't help laughing aloud.
"Han Xian, did I smack your brain stupid? Your pills are worse than ours, you came looking for trouble, got beat, and now you want to make deals? If you lose, we get Fire Energy. If we lose, we give up pill sales?"
He stepped forward, voice turning frosty.
"You want to negotiate with me? Do you even have the strength for that?"
With a swipe of his hand, freezing air burst forth. Han Xian was instantly frozen to the ground. Xiao Yuan then calmly retrieved Han Xian's Fire Crystal Card—draining another 600 points he had just topped up.
Jackpot.
Xiao Yuan mentally applauded, then froze Han Xian's mouth shut. Before turning away, he dropped one last line:
"Next time, bring someone important if you want to negotiate with me. I beat you and I'm still supposed to follow your terms? What's the point of beating you then? You're this weak and this confident—ridiculous."
Han Xian trembled from head to toe, furious yet unable to speak—then passed out cold.
"As for the rest of Yao Gang… I assume you're involved too."
Xiao Yuan raised his voice to the crowd.
"You have three choices:
Hand over half your Fire Energy and avoid further trouble.Leave Yao Gang, hand over one-fifth of your Fire Energy, and be done with it.Join Lionheart Society—for free. Not only that, but you'll earn more Fire Energy than ever before.
Or… you can resist. But I've still got strength left. If you think you can take me—come at me."
He opened his arms, releasing an aura comparable to a seven-star Dou Ling. His robe fluttered, his black hair danced in the wind. His commanding figure drew gasps of awe.
Under this overwhelming pressure, nearly half of Yao Gang's members silently stepped forward. Heads lowered, they stood before Lionheart Society and turned to face Xiao Yuan, expressing their allegiance.
Others threw away their Yao Gang emblems in frustration. Some glared at Xiao Yuan, handing over half of their Fire Energy with clenched jaws.
But fight to the death? None dared.
This wasn't a close fight. It wasn't bravery—it would've been suicide. They were alchemists, not soldiers.
"Oh, and one more thing," Xiao Yuan said coolly, scanning the former Yao Gang members who had joined them. "Don't even think about betraying us after getting access to our pill formulas. No one will accept you. And even if they do—I'll make sure they regret it. I'd say this even if every faction leader was here. Try me."
Several of them shifted uncomfortably. Clearly, some had considered it—but Xiao Yuan's warning made them abandon the idea.
Arrogant as he was—his strength backed it up.
A new student who waged war alone against entire factions—this hadn't happened once in Canaan Academy's history.
Report him to the elders? A joke.
Veterans, beaten by a freshman, running to the elders for help? The elders would probably say: "Pathetic. Get back to training."
Still, forcibly draining Fire Energy like this wasn't great for the academy's balance.
And so—
"Well, well. Things sure are lively here."
Elder Su suddenly appeared beside Xiao Yuan, smiling pleasantly.
"Elder Su!"
The crowd quickly bowed in greeting.
"Elder Su, what brings you here?"
Xiao Yuan calmly pocketed the Fire Crystal Card and asked politely.
"Hehe. You're quite something. But per the Grand Elder's latest directive—effective immediately—no student, whether new or old, may forcibly take another's Fire Energy outside of official duels or academy events."
Elder Su's smile vanished into seriousness.
"This rule goes into effect right now."
All eyes turned toward him.
Wait… doesn't that mean Xiao Yuan already got away with everything?
Well, who would've thought a freshman could crush upperclassmen like this?
"I'll obey the rules, Elder Su."
Xiao Yuan nodded sincerely.
It didn't matter. He'd already earned enough. With the alchemists now on their side, Lionheart Society would soon completely replace Yao Gang. Fire Energy would no longer be a concern.
As for the stash they'd just scored—it would fuel his own training. The sixth floor of the Qi Refining Tower cost six days' worth of Fire Energy per day—180 for a month. That wasn't cheap.
With this stash, Lionheart Society would have enough funds to function comfortably. Once the Pill Hall was fully operational, Fire Energy would flow endlessly.
Finally… he could focus on cultivating.
Seeing no resistance, Elder Su nodded and vanished.
"Everyone, thanks for coming. It's over—go on now."
Xiao Yuan smiled and dismissed the crowd.
"President Xiao, no need to be so polite. Lionheart's pills really are better than Yao Gang's. As long as you keep it up, you've got our support!"
People responded with grins and compliments.
"Haha, don't worry. Lionheart Society will never hike prices. Unless herb costs skyrocket, our prices won't change. In fact, we'll hold monthly specials—get more, pay less! Watch for our announcements!"
Xiao Yuan laughed brightly, seizing the moment to promote the Society again.
Many who had used their pills before looked excited—no one ever complained about having more quality potions.
"Thank you, President Xiao!"
They saluted him with cupped hands before dispersing.
"President! Vice President! That was awesome!"
Ah Tai rushed over, eyes shining.
"Haha, let's go. Take the brothers and the new recruits back—we've got plenty of work to do now."
Xiao Yuan patted his shoulder with a smile.
"Got it! Busy is good! It means Lionheart Society is moving forward!"
Ah Tai beamed.
His cultivation wasn't top-tier, but when it came to management and relationships, he had a real knack—and he loved the work.
"Haha! Off you go then!"
Xiao Yuan laughed and waved him off.
Then he and Xiao Yan strolled behind, chatting leisurely.
"Bro, I'm planning to start cultivating Three Thousand Lightning Movement soon. Want to join?"
Xiao Yan asked with a grin.
"Yeah, it's about time. But first—I need to learn a bit of alchemy from you."
Xiao Yuan replied seriously.
(END CHAPTER)
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