"This guy… isn't he Xue Wen, the Jinx's husband? He's still not dead?"
Voices began to rise one after another as the hall filled with murmurs.
"Yes, it's him. That useless trash. To think he actually dared to slap Elder De, hah! Not even the heavens can save him now."
"Tsk… stupid fool. I heard he even beat up Ding Huian a few days ago, left her crawling on the ground. And now he dares to slap her father? He's truly asking for death. He'll be nothing more than a corpse before the incense burns out."
The whispers turned into a wave of mockery and shock, echoing through the Depository Hall.
Some people laughed quietly, others looked pale, but all had the same thought, Xue Wen had just sealed his own fate.
In one corner of the hall, two figures stood with stunned faces, Ding Chao and Ding Jing, both watching the scene unfold with disbelief.
Just now, when Xue Wen had struck Elder De, a ripple of spiritual energy had escaped from his body.
It wasn't the weak aura of a Bone Awakening cultivator anymore, it carried the solid, condensed strength of someone who had already broken through.
"Already… at the Bone Cracking Stage," Ding Jing muttered under his breath, his eyes wide. "And not just one crack… at least two!" He could hardly believe his own words.
Xue Wen, the so-called trash, the one-star waste everyone mocked, had somehow advanced faster than anyone could imagine.
Just a few days ago, when he fought and humiliated Ding Huian, he was still only at three-quarters Bone Awakening Realm.
Even that had been unbelievable at the time.
But now, two cracks Bone Cracking?
It was beyond comprehension.
Beside him, Ding Chao let out a cold snort. "So what if he's reached Bone Cracking? I'm already at five cracks. Once he dares to step outside the clan again, I'll personally kill him. This time, I won't let him escape."
Ding Jing frowned, his brows knitting together. "What happened to the two men you sent after him the other day?"
Ding Chao's jaw tightened. His hand curled into a fist. "I lost contact with them. And now that I've seen his power… I don't think I need to guess what happened. They're dead."
A tense silence fell between them.
Ding Jing's expression grew darker. "Something isn't right here. How can someone like him, someone who could barely cultivate, improve so quickly? It doesn't make sense. We have to be careful. I've got a bad feeling about this."
But Ding Chao only scoffed, waving his hand dismissively. "Careful? What's there to be careful about? Look at Elder De's face! He's burning with rage. That old man will kill Xue Wen himself before we even get the chance." He gestured toward the center of the hall.
Ding Jing followed his gaze.
Elder Ding De's face was a storm of fury, his jaw clenched, his eyes bloodshot, and his cheeks still burning red from the imprint of Xue Wen's slap.
The slap itself hadn't hurt that much, but the humiliation… that was unbearable.
In front of so many disciples and elders, to be struck by someone he considered a lowly insect, it was worse than death.
"Xue Wen!" Elder De's roar shook the entire hall.
His spiritual energy erupted outward like a violent wave. "You have a death wish!"
A suffocating pressure instantly descended upon everyone present.
The tiles beneath their feet trembled, and the weaker disciples fell to their knees, gasping for breath.
Xue Wen and Ding Mei stood at the center of it all.
The pressure bore down heavily on them, Ding Mei's body trembled violently, and blood trickled from the corner of her lips.
She gritted her teeth, trying not to cry out.
"Dear…" she whispered, her voice faint under the crushing weight.
Elder De raised his right hand, summoning a gleaming spirit sword.
The blade hummed softly, glowing with a pale blue aura that distorted the air around it. "I will kill you today!" His eyes burned with hatred. "You dared to lay hands on me, a clan elder? Not only will I kill you, I'll slaughter that bitch standing beside you too!"
His killing intent burst forth like a storm.
The onlookers froze.
No one dared to speak now. The atmosphere turned suffocating.
"Xue Wen is done for."
"There's no way he survives this."
"Even if the Patriarch himself came, he couldn't save him."
The whispers grew, but all eyes remained locked on the center of the hall.
Xue Wen's eyes darkened when he saw blood dripping from Ding Mei's lips.
Fury flared in his chest, hot and sharp like a blade.
He clenched his fists and glared at Elder De.
"Old fart," he growled. "So what if I slapped you? A piece of trash like you deserves it! I slapped your daughter because she begged for mercy after bullying others, and today I've slapped you because you've earned it. If you've got the guts, come and touch me!"
The hall went still.
Everyone was stunned that he would speak so fearlessly under such pressure.
Even Ding Mei could hardly believe the man beside her was the same one everyone once mocked.
Elder De's expression twisted with rage. His entire body trembled, not from fear but from fury. "You think I won't kill you?" he hissed, his voice filled with venom. "You think the Patriarch will protect you after you die? When you're gone, who will he side with, a dead piece of trash or a Bone Reforming powerhouse?"
With that, he raised his sword high, spiritual energy gathering at its edge, the blade humming like a living creature thirsting for blood.
Xue Wen's gaze darted around.
The aura was too dense to escape completely.
'If I move fast enough, I can avoid a fatal strike, he thought. But I'll have to sacrifice an arm… after that, I'll run straight to the Patriarch's hall.'
His muscles tensed, ready to move...
But just as Elder De's sword began to descend, a calm, commanding voice resounded through the hall, cutting through the tension like a blade of its own.
"Ding De. Stop."
The voice was neither loud nor harsh, but the instant it sounded, every person in the hall froze.
The spiritual pressure vanished as if it had never existed. Elder De's sword halted mid-air, trembling slightly in his hand.
Xue Wen turned his head toward the entrance, his eyes narrowing.
A figure was approaching, calm, composed, and radiating authority.
The disciples bowed their heads instantly, recognizing the voice.
"Patriarch…" someone whispered.
The true power in the room had arrived.