Facing the deputy’s stern shout, Xiao Yunlong remained unfazed, continuing to eat heartily at the dining table, not even bothering to spare the man a glance.
Let alone a mere deputy, even if Director of the City Defense Department, Liang Minghui, had come in person, Xiao Yunlong wouldn’t have paid much attention.
As the Zhenbei King of the Dragon Country, a dignified sovereign, Xiao Yunlong was naturally exceptionally proud and disdainful.
Seeing Xiao Yunlong’s inaction, Jun Bufan, now his follower, immediately stood up and asked in a deep voice, “May I ask if Deputy Zhou is looking for Mr. Xiao for something?”
“Are you Xiao Yunlong?” Deputy Zhou immediately turned his gaze towards him.
Jun Bufan gave an awkward laugh, “I’m naturally not Mr. Xiao; I’m Mr. Xiao’s follower.”
“Since you’re just a follower, then get out of the way. Do you have a right to speak?”
Deputy Zhou sternly shouted, then fixed his gaze on Xiao Yunlong, grinning mockingly, “You must be that Xiao Yunlong. You’ve got some nerve, coming here to arrest me personally, and you’re still sitting there!”
Xiao Yunlong spoke indifferently, “Why didn’t the Director of the City Defense Department come?”
Deputy Zhou grinned mockingly, “You think this is some grand occasion? For a young punk like you, does it require our Director to come personally?”
Xiao Yunlong shook his head and sneered, “Don’t you know that Bai Zhenwei died by my hand last night? He had over thirty subordinates with him then, and you, with only seven or eight now, dare to come to my door to arrest me. Who gave you the courage?”
“I heard about what happened to Bai Zhenwei last night. Although he had over thirty men with him, they were all his personal guards. The ones with me now are all City Defense soldiers, top-tier experts. Besides, that fellow Bai Zhenwei, can he be compared to me?”
Deputy Zhou said this, then grinned again, “To be honest, I should really thank you for killing Bai Zhenwei. Otherwise, when would I, a mere deputy, ever get the chance to become the Head of General Affairs?”
Xiao Yunlong chuckled, “So, in that case, I’ve indirectly helped you?”
“Naturally. But it’s a pity that you killed someone, and today you must come with me no matter what. Only if I personally apprehend you and help Bai Zhenwei avenge himself can his subordinates obey me, and I can smoothly ascend to the position of Head of General Affairs!”
Deputy Zhou laughed triumphantly as he said this, his very expression twisting.
Liu Hongguo, standing nearby, couldn’t help but shake his head inwardly, thinking that this fellow was finished, truly courting death.
Xiao Yunlong’s expression remained unchanged. He said, “Let me also speak from the heart; you shouldn’t have come, and you shouldn’t have told me all this.”
“What if I told you? You killed someone, and you’re destined to die!”
Deputy Zhou’s expression suddenly turned grim, and he gritted his teeth, shouting, “I’ve said what I needed to say. You’d better cooperate and come with us. If you dare to resist, the Director has given orders that you can be killed on the spot without question!”
As soon as he uttered the words “killed on the spot without question,” the seven or eight City Defense soldiers behind him simultaneously drew their weapons, their movements swift and practiced.
It was evident that these City Defense soldiers were indeed much stronger than Bai Zhenwei’s personal guards from last night.
Xiao Yunlong’s expression remained unchanged, showing neither anger nor mockery.
He continued to eat slowly with his chopsticks and said coldly, “You’re not worthy of me making a move. Jun Bufan, go and deal with them. Also, break all four of this deputy’s legs!”
“Yes, Mr. Xiao!” Before Jun Bufan could finish speaking, he had already lunged forward.
In the morning, he had finally taken half a step towards the level of a Grandmaster of Hua Jin, feeling a significant increase in his overall strength. He was eager for an opportunity to test himself, and hearing Xiao Yunlong’s command, he could no longer hold back.
A fierce wind swept through the dining hall as Jun Bufan unleashed the Eight Trigram Swimming Dragon Palm, instantly closing in on Deputy Zhou and the others.
“Damn it, you dare to attack? You’re courting death!” Deputy Zhou roared in anger, instinctively preparing to strike.
However, as soon as he assumed a stance, with a loud bang, he was sent flying by a palm strike from Jun Bufan.
This Deputy Zhou wasn’t bad; a minor Grandmaster of Neijin was considered an expert even within the City Defense Department. However, facing someone who was half a step into Grandmaster level, he was naturally no match.
After sending the opponent flying with one move, Jun Bufan’s confidence soared. He continued to employ the Eight Trigram Swimming Dragon Palm, moving like a swimming dragon.
In an instant, the dining hall echoed with a series of thuds. Within a few breaths, all seven or eight City Defense soldiers were subdued.
Deputy Zhou stumbled to his feet from the ground, saw the situation was dire, and turned to flee.
“Trying to run?” Jun Bufan snorted and dashed in front of him.
“You scoundrels, what more do you want? I warn you, I am the Director’s deputy, his confidant. Do you really dare to lay hands on me?” Deputy Zhou threatened with a ashen face.
Xiao Yunlong still didn’t look up at him, merely sneering, “I dared to kill Bai Zhenwei, so what makes you think I wouldn’t dare to touch you? Jun Bufan, break his four legs!”
“Yes, Mr. Xiao!” Jun Bufan hesitated not at all, even though the man was the Director’s confidant deputy, he showed no reservation.
Palm strikes were delivered repeatedly, instantly breaking Deputy Zhou’s arms and legs, causing him to scream like a slaughtered pig.
“You… you have such great audacity… audacity, you wait!” Deputy Zhou’s face was covered in sweat as he roared at the sky, surprisingly not passing out. It seemed he was indeed worthy of being a minor Grandmaster of Neijin.
Xiao Yunlong sneered, “I’ll be waiting. Go back and tell your Director that I’ll give him one hour. If he doesn’t come, I’ll head directly to your City Defense Department!”
“Good, you have guts… you have guts!” Deputy Zhou roared through gritted teeth, then, carried by a few City Defense soldiers, he left in disarray.
Jun Bufan stood in the center of the hall, looking at his hands, and couldn’t help but say, “As expected, after touching the realm of Grandmaster of Hua Jin, my strength has increased significantly.”
Xiao Yunlong simply smiled and shook his head, saying no more.
Liu Ruyan, however, put down her chopsticks and said, “Yunlong, I’ve finished eating. I’ll go to the study first, waiting for you.”
“Alright, I’ll be there after I finish!” Xiao Yunlong shrugged helplessly.
Perhaps seeing Jun Bufan’s sudden surge in strength, Liu Ruyan’s desire to learn martial arts became even more restless, eager to become stronger.
Xiao Yunlong naturally understood her feelings. After finishing his meal, he headed straight to the study.
Originally, Jun Bufan wanted to ask Xiao Yunlong if he should call some experts from the Jun family over, as the City Defense Department was not simple, especially the Liang family behind it, which was the foremost family in Sucheng.
But seeing Xiao Yunlong’s consistently calm and composed demeanor, Jun Bufan held back the words that were about to be spoken.
In the study, as per Xiao Yunlong’s instructions, Liu Ruyan sat down cross-legged again.
“Next, I will teach you the method for sensing the internal energy in your Dantian, until you can sense the internal energy I have stored there. Of course, this is only the first step.”
“Once you sense it, you will need to gradually learn to control and direct this internal energy. Then I will teach you the circulation path. Once you can circulate the energy on your own, it means you can mobilize your own internal energy, and learning martial arts techniques will be twice as effective with half the effort, and the power will be greater!”
Xiao Yunlong sat cross-legged in front of her, explaining in detail.
Liu Ruyan nodded and said, “Yunlong, I understand the general idea. The first step is to sense the internal energy you’ve guided into my Dantian. Now, please teach me the sensing method.”
Xiao Yunlong nodded slightly, then leaned in and whispered, teaching her word by word.
He did not write down the sensing method because the mysterious old man had told him that while this sensing method could be passed on to others, it could not be written down, just in case. It had to be taught orally, word by word.
Xiao Yunlong had promised to keep his word.
Fortunately, Liu Ruyan had a strong memory. In fact, she was a top student in college, which was why she was directly recommended to the best university in the Dragon Country, Imperial Capital University, for her master’s degree.
In less than five minutes, Liu Ruyan said, “Yunlong, it’s done. I’ve memorized it.”
“Memorized it? So quickly?” Xiao Yunlong was somewhat surprised.
“Yes, I’ve memorized it all,” Liu Ruyan nodded.
“This can’t be taken lightly. Recite it for me to hear.” Xiao Yunlong said.
Liu Ruyan then recited it word for word. After listening, Xiao Yunlong was deeply impressed. He remembered that it took him three hours to memorize this sensing method, which was nearly eight hundred words long, due to its profound and convoluted nature.
Yet, Liu Ruyan had memorized it in just five minutes, which truly shocked Xiao Yunlong.
Seemingly sensing Xiao Yunlong’s surprise, Liu Ruyan smiled and said, “Yunlong, have you forgotten? I majored in Chinese literature, and memorizing texts has always been my strength. Moreover, my research direction is ancient Taoist classics. I’ve already read a lot of books in this area before, and many of the related terms in this sensing technique are familiar to me.”
“Also, some of the sensing methods are similar to the Taoist classics I’ve read before, which is why I could memorize it so quickly.”
“So that’s how it is,” Xiao Yunlong realized with a sudden understanding and shrugged, “I never expected that a girl like you would be interested in ancient Taoist classics.”
Liu Ruyan smiled without answering the question.
“Alright then, you should carefully try to sense it. If you have any questions, you can ask me later!” Xiao Yunlong said, then stood up and walked out of the study.
Although Liu Ruyan had memorized it, it didn’t mean she had fully understood it. Even if she understood it, it didn’t mean she could successfully sense it. In other words, this was just the beginning of martial arts cultivation; there was still a long road ahead.
And for this subsequent journey, Xiao Yunlong could offer guidance, but more of it would depend on Liu Ruyan herself.
At this very moment, a group of City Defense soldiers were carrying Deputy Zhou back to the City Defense Department in a hurry.
Director Liang Minghui was sitting in the main seat of the assembly hall. Upon seeing Deputy Zhou being carried in, he sprang up from his chair.
“What’s going on? What in the world happened? Why is he in such a state?” Liang Minghui roared.
“Reporting to the Director, it was that fellow surnamed Xiao. He ordered someone to break Deputy Zhou’s arms and legs!” a soldier said.
“Outrageous! This is utterly outrageous! That damned Xiao Yunlong, his audacity is truly too much!”
Liang Minghui was furious, his hair practically standing on end.
“Issue an order: all experts and all soldiers in the department are to assemble. We will accompany me to the Liu Family Manor. Today, no matter what, we must capture that brute Xiao Yunlong!”
“Yes!” This time, the entire City Defense Department was mobilized.