Chapter 127: A Duel Once More

The onlookers consciously parted to create a path. Du Long leaped from the back of the great lion; without needing a reminder, the beautiful Spirit Guardian had already helped him remove the heavy weights he wore. To engage in cross-rank combat while carrying hundreds of pounds of weight would be nothing short of foolish.

Like a soaring eagle, Du Long vaulted over dozens of meters and landed gracefully, standing a mere ten meters from Fan Tong. He cast a look of disdain at Fan Tong before turning his gaze toward the twin sisters, who were watching him with expressions of concern.

"Xiao Fen, Xiao Fang! Do you still remember your cousin Du Long from twelve years ago?" Du Long asked with a playful grin.

The sisters, true to their twin nature, blushed simultaneously and chirped in unison, "Of course we remember! Watch out, Cousin Du Long!"

Before Du Long could say more, Fan Tong waved his hand impatiently. "You talk too much for a dying man!"

"Oh! You’ve actually broken through to the seventh rank of the Qi Cycle! No wonder you dared to challenge me," Du Long remarked, turning back to Fan Tong with a faint smile.

"You little brat! You caught me off guard last time, but it won't be so easy today!" Fan Tong’s face turned livid as he glared at the person who had repeatedly provoked him. A year or two ago, he would have dared to crush this annoying pest, but now, he could at most teach him a lesson. The reason was simple: Du Long was not only the direct grandson of the Du family but also the future imperial son-in-law.

*Hmph! My Fan family’s grand plan hasn't fully unfolded yet. When it does, I will be the first to eliminate this wretched brat!* Fan Tong thought to himself.

"Caught you off guard? Haha, you flatter yourself!" Du Long replied nonchalantly.

"You're courting death!" Unable to restrain himself any longer, Fan Tong erupted, lunging forward and unleashing the first form of the Heaven-Splitting Palm with all his might.

"Hmph!" Du Long snorted. Instead of retreating, he advanced, meeting the strike head-on with the full force of his Profound Yang Double Wave.

*Boom!*

With a violent thud, Fan Tong was sent flying backward by the tremendous force, while Du Long also stumbled back several steps to regain his balance.

Fan Tong tumbled through the air before landing in a disheveled heap. His arms ached intensely, and he stared with a deathly pale face at Du Long, who stood looking at him with an air of indifference.

"You..." Fan Tong could not fathom how, even after advancing a major rank, he was still no match for this guy. Back on the Royal Academy’s arena, he had been able to suppress Du Long in raw strength, and only lost because of a slight disadvantage in speed and the fatigue from his previous fight with Yang Yunfeng. He had assumed that breaking through from the sixth to the seventh rank of the Qi Cycle would make defeating this guy a breeze, yet this was the outcome!

Little did he know that in this short time, Du Long had advanced to the fourth rank of the Qi Cycle. Having jumped two levels, the gap had not only closed but reversed. Furthermore, as Du Long’s strength increased, his physical resilience and overall constitution had improved rapidly.

"What about me? Did you really think that while you were improving, everyone else would just stand still?" Du Long mocked.

"Take this!" Unable to bear the repeated taunts, Fan Tong unleashed his family’s secret technique again: the Mountain-Cleaving Palm.

Having endured this very strike at the Royal Academy, Du Long knew exactly what he was planning. With that experience, he already had a countermeasure.

Advancing rather than retreating, Du Long pushed his speed to the limit, moving like a phantom toward Fan Tong at an oblique angle. While it appeared to be a frontal assault, he was actually using the Wind-Walking Footwork, shifting his position within a narrow angle.

Having reached the fourth rank of the Qi Cycle, Du Long’s internal罡 Fire had absorbed all the Purple Flame Orbs, increasing his power threefold. With his Profound Yang constitution and constant weighted training, his physical strength had reached an astonishing level.

As Du Long went all out, Fan Tong could barely track him, let alone lock onto a precise target for his attack. He was forced to unleash the Mountain-Cleaving Palm with everything he had.

A faint smile played on Du Long’s lips. He swung his palm fiercely, striking the side of Fan Tong’s guard and shattering the technique instantly. Lacking the necessary strength to lock onto the current Du Long, Fan Tong was left wide open, stumbling forward uncontrollably.

Du Long no longer feared offending the Fan family heir. Seeing the wide-open side, he delivered a swift kick to Fan Tong’s hip. The force sent Fan Tong spinning like a top, causing the nearby onlookers to shriek and scramble out of the way.

Du Long followed up, using his Wind-Walking Footwork to close the distance. While Fan Tong was still dazed, Du Long delivered another kick to his face—a blow restrained in force, yet enough to twist Fan Tong’s features and send him rolling over ten meters across the ground.

At this point, Fan Tong had completely lost the ability to resist. Showing no mercy, Du Long continued the assault, raining down punches and kicks on the man who now lay like a dead dog.

"Du Long! Stop! Or you will suffer the wrath of the Fan family!" Fan Wei shouted, his tone aggressive but his heart clearly trembling.

Grabbing Fan Tong by the collar and hoisting him like a limp rag, Du Long turned to Fan Wei with a playful smile. "Is that so? Your Fan clan truly lives up to its reputation as a den of trash! You issue a challenge, and when you lose, you run to bring the elders of your family. Calling you shameless would be an understatement! Hahaha!"

With that, Du Long tossed Fan Tong aside like a sack of grain. As Fan Wei moved to help him, Du Long’s ghostly figure suddenly appeared before him.

"Ah! Du Long, what do you want?!" Fan Wei recoiled in terror, as if he had seen a ghost.

"What do I want?" Du Long surged forward. "You dared to touch my cousin, and you ask me what I want?"

Fan Wei was far too slow. He was caught instantly, and another storm of punches and kicks followed. Soon, there was another body lying on the ground like a discarded carcass.

Seeing both Fan brothers beaten into the dirt, Li Xiaojun and the others didn't dare stay a moment longer; terrified, they scattered and fled for their lives.

"Pah! A bunch of lackeys who only know how to act like dogs for the Fan family," Du Long spat with disdain.

"Well done!" A roar of applause erupted from the crowd. Du Long’s actions had deeply satisfied the onlookers.

Du Long bowed to the crowd, then walked over to the twin sisters, who were watching him with adoration. Looking at the identical beauties, dressed exactly alike, he scratched his head. "Which one of you is the elder sister, Xiao Fen, and which is the younger, Xiao Fang?"

"Hehe!" one of them giggled. "I am the elder sister, Luo Xiaofen! She is my younger sister, Luo Xiaofang! Cousin Du Long, I have a small red mole on my ear—have you really forgotten?"

"Oh! So that’s it! My apologies, it’s been so many years, I truly forgot!" Du Long said, feeling slightly embarrassed.

At that moment, Princess Huofeng and Xia Qinglian arrived on the great lion. Du Long quickly introduced them. "This is Princess Huofeng, and this is Sister Qinglian."

"Greetings, cousin-in-laws!" the twins said in unison.

Du Long asked in surprise, "Why do you address them that way?"

"Hehe, Cousin Du Long! Even though we don't go out much, we’ve heard of your deeds. We’ve always wanted to talk to you, but were afraid of being too abrupt!" the elder sister, Luo Xiaofen, replied with a smile.

"We owe you our thanks, Cousin Du Long. Otherwise, my sister and I would have been in real trouble!" Luo Xiaofang added gratefully.

"You two are too kind," Du Long waved his hand dismissively. "Even if I saw those thugs bullying ordinary people, I wouldn't stand by, let alone when they were targeting my own cousins."

"Husband!" Princess Huofeng suggested at the right moment. "This is not the place for conversation. Since we’ve met the two Luo cousins, why don't we return to the Du estate and talk slowly?"

Du Long realized that many people were still lingering, watching him with curiosity. He had no choice but to take the four beauties and ride the great lion toward the Du estate.

As for the two Fan brothers left on the ground, their family would naturally come to collect them. Du Long knew exactly how much force he had used; they would certainly suffer their share of aches and pains, but their lives were not in danger.