Chen Feng, wielding the longsword forged from Dark Gold Iron, leaped across the ground to land beside the unconscious Brut.

"Protect the Young City Lord!" With a roar, the City Guards immediately encircled Brent (Brut belonged to the Leif family; Brent was the Young City Lord of Kuta Town—a slight awkwardness in naming choices that caused confusion, for which apologies are extended), raising their long spears to point directly at Chen Feng.

Chen Feng paid no mind to the poised spears, his eyes fixed intently on Brut lying on the ground.

Brut, swept by Chen Feng’s Dark Gold Iron sword across the shoulder and already near death from the combined force of the guards' assault on his back, was breathing in shallow, ragged gasps.

"Go on, all of you, move aside! Do I need protection?" The Young City Lord Brent was clearly repulsed by the guards' efforts. Indeed, for someone so concerned with appearances and fond of showing off, being shielded in the center of a group was utterly unbearable.

"But... Young City Lord, this red-haired fellow is definitely dangerous..." the City Guard leader murmured quietly.

"What do you know? This isn't danger, it's called style, got it?" Brent spoke with slight disdain toward the large man, stepping forward to look at Chen Feng and the prone Brut.

Chen Feng ignored the commotion of the City Guards; rage and resentment filled his chest, lending him a reckless air.

Flicking his finger, a ball of pale blue flame shot into Brut’s body. Brut awoke slowly, groaning from the intense pain wracking him.

Blinking his eyes open, he saw the cold, merciless Chen Feng. After a moment of shock, he relaxed slightly.

If the other party intended to kill him, he surely would have done so already. Furthermore, judging by his current condition—the injuries were too severe—even if Chen Feng spared him now, he wouldn't survive the night.

Knowing death was certain, Brut’s state of mind calmed. He looked at Chen Feng before him and asked, with a mixture of confusion and tension, "Are you really the one cast out by Kayent?" Seeing no answer, he sighed deeply. "I never thought Kigu Kayent, shrewd his whole life, would make such a foolish decision. Banishing you from the family... I fear they'll never see prosperity again!"

"This is all thanks to your family!" Chen Feng’s voice was filled with sorrowful indignation and outright outrage.

Brut’s face flushed, veins bulging on his forehead: "You wounded my nephew, Gubo, and stole the Leif family heirloom, the Jade Bangle. What fault is it of ours, of the Magic lineage, to demand accountability? Cough, cough..." With each fit of agitated coughing, blood seeped continuously from the corners of his mouth and nostrils.

Mages, though mysterious and powerful, are like ordinary men once struck a grievous blow.

"Hahahaha," Chen Feng erupted into wild laughter, as if he had heard the finest joke in the world. Then, with a flick of his wrist, a deep emerald bangle appeared in his hand. "You say I stole this thing?"

A flicker of something appeared in Brut's hazy eyes... "It’s with you... You stole our family's great treasure. If we don't pursue this, wouldn't we look too weak?"

"I stole it? Hahahaha..." Chen Feng laughed maniacally, his crimson hair whipping without wind, displaying his immense fury. "That's right, I took it. I, a nameless nobody with only the cultivation of a Second-Tier Fighter, stole your Leif family's heirloom. I, a boy who knows no magic, stole the magical protective gear that is useless even in my hands! The judgment of the great families is truly impressive... Hahahaha..."

Watching the seemingly crazed Chen Feng, a peculiar thought suddenly dawned in Brut's mind: Have we all been wrong? Did he not actually steal the Jade Bangle? But then why was the bangle in his hand right now?

A flash of insight struck him, causing his body to tremble involuntarily. Amidst the shaking, his severe injuries seemed to ease slightly.

"Could it be..." He suppressed the turmoil raging in his heart and turned his gaze toward Finlanje hanging on the city wall, and Stuart, who had been shredded into pieces of flesh. Sweat mixed with blood trickled down his neck.

"It was Stuart!" Brut finally pieced the whole sequence of events together.

Gubo must have been injured fighting Chen Feng. Stuart, greedy for the "Jade Bangle," must have killed his traveling companion, Peter (the slightly plump follower who had cheered Harry and Chen Feng on), then severely wounded Gubo to steal the bangle, finally framing Chen Feng!

Stuart's insistence on accompanying me this time must have been a plan to dispose of everything so his brother, Finlanje, could sell the "Jade Bangle"! It seems Finlanje accidentally exposed something, which this young man named Chen Feng managed to discover. Failing to extract answers through severe interrogation, he resorted to hanging Finlanje and a bitch together on the city wall, which provoked Stuart into coming to his death!

So that was it. Once the logic clicked, clarity washed over him. No wonder this young man named Chen Feng was willing to be exiled rather than yield—he had been wrongfully accused...

Brut slowly closed his eyes. After a moment, he spoke, "I know our family has hurt you deeply, but can I apologize on behalf of the family? I wish to exchange my blood for your forgiveness!"

Brut could sense Chen Feng's hatred for the Leif family. Hatred from an ordinary fighter would be one thing, but the power this man had just displayed was even greater than his own as a Ninth-Tier Mage. And just eight months ago, this man was merely a common Second-Tier Fighter!

Such terrifying progress, combined with an ice-cold, calculating mind, was certain to bring disaster upon the family. It was with this realization that he was willing to speak in a humbled tone, begging Chen Feng not to cause trouble for the Leif family.

Chen Feng looked coldly at the middle-aged man on the ground; the scorching anger gradually cooled. "Apologize? Apologize..." he repeated under his breath, sounding almost dazed.

Brut, lying on the ground, noticed his strange demeanor and allowed the slightest smile to touch his lips. Slowly, half of a scroll emerged from under the hand pressing him down...

"Young Master, run!" The loud City Guard leader suddenly roared, grabbing Brent, who was close to Chen Feng and Brut, unleashing his Dou Qi and leaping backward rapidly. While mid-air, he felt the ground behind him shudder, followed by a deafening boom—a searing blast of air hammered against his back like an iron sledgehammer.

At the same instant, a woman's shriek echoed from above: "Yagami An, watch out..."

"Pfft!"

The large guard leader spat out a mouthful of blood, using his body to shield the Young City Lord Brent in his arms. Propelled by the blast wave, he tumbled continuously across the ground for more than ten meters before finally stopping.

As soon as he halted, he felt a bone-chilling pain in his back. Touching it, he found the flesh mangled beyond recognition. His clothes were tightly stuck to the shredded tissue, fused with the blood, making it impossible to distinguish between flesh and fabric. His palms, shoulders, and knees were all scraped raw by the ground. It was a small mercy that Young City Lord Brent remained unharmed under his protection.

"Th-this... What is this..." Young City Lord Brent scrambled to his feet and immediately turned deathly pale, looking ahead.

On the street, once smooth as a mirror, there was now a pit five meters deep and about fifteen meters in diameter. Wisps of white smoke drifted up into the air. There was no sign of the red-haired youth or the injured middle-aged mage!

"It was a pseudo-Fourth-Tier Explosion Magic Scroll!" The large guard leader stood up, staring at the gaping hole in the earth with ineffable sorrow. Out of his small squad, only he remained. If he hadn't reacted quickly, seeing the enemy draw the scroll and leaping back with the Young City Lord, Brent alone would surely not have survived this single explosion.

"I've seen pseudo-Fourth-Tier magic before; how could it possess such power?" Brent clearly refused to believe it.

"This is a scroll released by a mage burning their life force; its power is four times stronger than a normal pseudo-Fourth-Tier spell!" the guard leader explained.

"Four times..." Brent's eyes widened into perfect circles. "Then... that red-haired youth must have..."

The large guard leader nodded. "Unless he has reached the level of a Fighter Master, surviving such an explosion would be nearly impossible. I observed the youth earlier; though his attacks were vicious and his cultivation profound, I am certain he had not reached the Fighter Master realm. Therefore, I estimate he has been blown into meat paste."

The leader’s words were delivered plainly, yet a hint of sorrow permeated his calm tone, perhaps mourning his fallen subordinates or perhaps lamenting the loss of the red-haired youth.

"Report to the Third Miss, we have located the red-haired youth you were searching for, near the South City Gate," a mercenary, whose chest bore the emblem of a blood-red wolf head, bowed and reported.

"South City Gate? That’s not far from here. Move out immediately!" Judy clenched her fist, a look of resolve in her eyes. "Yagami An, you will not escape this time!"

"Third Miss, the subordinate saw him just moments ago and returned to report," the mercenary said, pointing toward the confused crowd.

"Hmm?" Judy’s delicate brows furrowed slightly in disbelief. "Doesn't he prefer quiet places? Why would he run into the crowd? Strange." With that, her body moved like a swift fish, weaving through the throng of people, advancing in the direction the mercenary indicated.

"It really is him!" Judy confirmed to herself upon seeing the slightly distracted red-haired youth standing a short distance away. Just as she was about to greet him, she spotted the person lying on the ground pulling out a pristine white scroll—an Explosion Scroll!

Explosion Scrolls were inscribed on a type of white fox hide, making them easy to identify, so Judy knew instantly what it was.

"Yagami An, be careful..." she shouted, leaping high into the air and rushing toward the red-haired youth. Before she even reached him, she saw a flash of bright light, and a powerful shockwave, like a sharp blade, struck her chest directly. Her vision went black, and she instantly lost consciousness...

P.S.: I've been incredibly busy these past few days, not even having time to log into QQ. Sigh, I've only just finished one chapter, and I have to keep writing soon. I’ve been stuck in an internet café for a week now; my body is exhausted, I can barely take it anymore... If you have any monthly tickets, please lend your support and encouragement. I want to break into the top six... Regardless, the bonus for sixth place is two thousand more than seventh! If I can hit sixth, Old Ya will definitely add more chapters... though it won't be tomorrow. Tomorrow is Teachers' Day, and my girlfriend is an honored public school teacher, so I need to spend the holiday with her. We haven't seen each other since Qixi Festival... so tomorrow night's update will be delayed. Apologies in advance... (To be continued, for future events, please log in)