Zi Lingling sneered, "Of course, I never intended to force any of you to stay!"
"Many thanks, young lady!" The one who was chosen as the spokesperson cupped his fists, a beaming smile on his face.
"Don't thank me just yet! Didn't I say? If you want to leave, you can either kowtow and apologize, or you can defeat me!"
Just as the spokesperson was about to signal the members of the Ju Yan Sect to depart, he heard Zi Lingling's words. His face immediately darkened. "Are you determined to make trouble for our Ju Yan Sect?"
Zi Lingling let out a cold laugh. "Make trouble for you? You're the one twisting things! You attacked my premises first, and I merely gave you a small lesson, and that's considered deliberately making trouble for you?"
"So, if you smashed the barrier to my courtyard, I should have prepared fine wine and delicacies to entertain you, and then grovelingly begged for your forgiveness, and that would be considered not making trouble for you?"
"Hmph! I don't care if you seek to feel superior elsewhere, but if you dare to bully me and expect to walk away unscathed, who gave you the audacity?"
"I'll say it again, before I get the urge to kill, either kowtow and apologize, or fight me. Choose!"
After she finished speaking, she stood there serenely, exuding an air of unchallenged dominance.
The spokesperson was instantly rendered speechless by her retort. Of course, he knew that no matter what he said, he couldn't change Zi Lingling's decision.
So, he glared fiercely at Zi Lingling and, returning to the Ju Yan Sect's ranks with indignation, asked, "You all heard her. What do we do now?"
All the Ju Yan Sect disciples cast sharp glances at Zi Lingling, then began to discuss amongst themselves in a babel of voices.
"What can we do? I'm certainly not going to kowtow and admit fault!"
"Right! The barrier was smashed by Liu Binbin, and the order was given by Senior Brother Yan. We didn't do anything, so why should we kowtow and apologize?"
"Rather than kowtow and apologize, we might as well unite and fight her!"
"I agree! A true man would rather fight than kowtow!"
"But..."
"No 'buts'! Fight!"
"Fight!"
"Fight!"
"..."
Every single one of them was a prodigy to have become a disciple of the Ju Yan Sect. To make them kowtow and apologize was the greatest insult to them. As prodigies, how could they tolerate such a thing? Thus, in just a moment, they had reached a consensus! Fight!
The spokesperson asked, "Since we've decided to fight, shall we send one person or all of us at once?"
"All of us at once!" Zi Yuling called out hastily before anyone else could answer. She wanted Zi Lingling to be humiliated, and more people would ensure it. As for any notions of chivalry or pride, they held no meaning for her, blinded as she was by hatred. Furthermore, even Yan Long couldn't withstand two moves; if the rest of them went one by one, they would likely be annihilated.
"She's just a woman. Is she worth all of us attacking her together? Junior Sister Zi, aren't you making too much of this?"
"Exactly! The two of us, a bunch of grown men, having to deal with one woman and attack her together? This is simply an insult to us!"
"Indeed! Junior Sister Zi! We can't afford to lose face like this!"
"Agreed!"
"Seconded!"
"..."
Zi Yuling let out a cold laugh and pointed at Yan Long, who was lying unconscious on the ground. "Are any of you as powerful as Senior Brother Yan?"
The crowd's faces turned grim as they shook their heads. Yan Long held the undisputed position of the foremost young talent in the Ju Yan Sect, and they couldn't compare to him. Zi Yuling comparing them to Yan Long was clearly meant to humiliate them. If Zi Yuling weren't Yan Long's intended, they would have turned on her immediately.
The spokesperson's face also grew displeased. Among the Ju Yan Sect disciples present, his strength was second only to Yan Long and Liu Binbin, ranking fifth within the inner sect. This was why everyone had elected him to "negotiate." However, Zi Yuling's words left him utterly shamed.
"Junior Sister Zi, what do you mean by this?"
Zi Yuling mocked, "What do I mean? Senior Brother Yan didn't... was knocked unconscious. Your strength is not even comparable to Senior Brother Yan's. If you go one by one, aren't you just serving yourselves up to that little brat on a platter?"
Upon hearing this, a hint of solemnity crept into their grim expressions. That was right. How could they have forgotten that Senior Brother Yan hadn't lasted two moves against that woman?
"Perhaps not! In my opinion, Senior Brother Yan wasn't defeated by that woman, but was heavily injured by that man beforehand."
"Yes! That woman only said she would fight, not that man. As long as that man doesn't interfere, how powerful can a mere girl of fourteen or fifteen be?"
"How about this, we send one person to test the waters first, what do you say?"
"You're all too cautious! Can a mere girl of fourteen or fifteen really scare you? Your courage is too lacking!"
"If you're so brave, then you go first?"
"I'm a man, and I'll go first if I have to! What's the big deal?"
After saying this, the man stepped forward and stood facing Zi Lingling, arrogantly declaring, "Brat, are you good for your word? If I win, I can leave safely?"
Zi Lingling frowned, a sliver of coldness flashing in her eyes. She said sternly, "Do you know that people who are impolite usually meet a miserable end?"
The man let out a hearty laugh. "Trying to scare me? I wasn't raised by being scared!"
Zi Lingling's entire aura abruptly turned icy. "You? Do you think you're worthy? Originally, if you lost, you would have only had to leave an arm behind. But now, I've changed my mind."
"You'd better pray you're lucky enough to have good fortune, otherwise, if you lose, you'll not only lose an arm but also your tongue!"
Without giving the man time to prepare, she immediately unleashed a move, "Fire Spirit Blast." The man was no pushover; while he was speaking with Zi Lingling, he had already been on full alert, secretly gathering his strength. Therefore, as soon as Zi Lingling attacked, his powerful move was also unleashed.
"Divine Fire Shield!" With a loud shout, a shield formed from the law of fire appeared before him.
"Boom!"
The two forces collided, emitting a thunderous roar.
"Crack!"
Dense cracks immediately appeared on the man's shield of fire law. He was greatly alarmed, but it was already too late.
"Bang!"
The man was sent flying by the immense energy, gouging a trench two feet deep and three meters long in the ground.
"Pfft!"
The man spat out a mouthful of blood, mixed with fragments of internal organs. He then lay on the ground, unable to get up. Zi Lingling's figure flashed, and she appeared before him, a gleaming surgical knife in her hand.