Lin Tian saw clearly that the swift figure dashed in front of him, and with a flick of the long sword, the blade slipped across Kun Yun’s wrist, severing the tendons, and blood gushed out like a fountain.

Everything happened too suddenly. By the time Kun Yun reacted, there was only the excruciating pain in his hand, making his face contort and his hoarse throat cry out like a ghost wailing.

Lin Tian looked at the stunning figure. She still held the long sword in her hand, its tip stained red with blood, exuding an air of lethal sternness.

"Auntie." Lin Tian was slightly taken aback, then said with some annoyance, "Were you hiding in that plum tree all along?"

Xu Xianrong nodded gently, then pointed with her sword tip at Kun Yun and said, "This old man is quite cunning. If I didn’t hide first, do you think he would have shown himself?"

Lin Tian rolled his eyes in annoyance, "So I turned out to be a bait."

Finding his complaint amusing, Xu Xianrong chuckled lightly, "Being used as bait by me is already quite an honor. You performed adequately enough."

Her smile was gentle like a clear pool but had the power to ripple the heart.

Just for this smile, Lin Tian decided not to argue with her. After all, she had appeared at the critical moment, hadn’t she?

"Damn it, is this the right time for the two of you to flirt?" Kun Yun’s face was already riddled with wrinkles, and with the pain in his hand, his expression twisted into something bizarre.

After using his Inner Strength to stop the bleeding in his hand, he held the Peach Wood Sword in his left hand, muttered something under his breath, and slashed towards Xu Xianrong’s neck.

Lin Tian had anticipated this scene long ago, but he had no intention of intervening. The speed of Xu Xianrong’s swordplay just now was too fast for anyone to see through her true strength. Now was a good time to observe.

The Peach Wood Sword in Kun Yun’s hand looked dull, but after muttering some incantation, the entire blade emitted a faint golden light. Especially in such dim light, it was strikingly eye-catching.

"Wow, does this old man look like a pay-to-win player? It’s just a shabby wooden sword, yet so flashy." Lin Tian muttered quietly to himself.

Nonetheless, he had to admit that the golden-glowing Peach Wood Sword seemed much more formidable than before. As the blade sliced through the air, it emitted a sizzling sound, as if on fire.

Xu Xianrong’s brow furrowed slightly. With a twist of her delicate hand, she lightly lifted her long sword to effortlessly block the strike. The sword in her hand trembled, forcing Kun Yun to retreat two steps with the shock.

Xu Xianrong advanced two more steps with her long sword, transforming it into a silver-white cutting line. With a ’click,’ she directly severed the golden Peach Wood Sword.

Kun Yun’s face was filled with disbelief. Even though he used his left hand to wield the sword, he shouldn’t have been so thoroughly defeated by a woman, should he?

Whoosh~

Xu Xianrong, one hand behind her back and the other holding the long sword, struck again with a shadowy flourish of sword flowers. The Peach Wood Sword was sliced into three segments, and she deftly severed the tendons in Kun Yun’s left hand, causing blood to splatter once more.

"Ah!"

Tears appeared at the corners of Kun Yun’s eyes as he lowered his head in a shrill scream, as unpleasant as a crow’s caw.

"Hiss~"

Lin Tian gasped. He didn’t expect this woman to be so ruthless, cutting the tendons in two hands in one move!

With his tendons severed, Kun Yun’s Inner Strength could no longer reach his hands, rendering them useless. Drawing charms, setting up formations, or forming Hand Seals would be impossible.

This was equivalent to being stripped of all his martial skills!

"Ruthless is certainly ruthless, but... I like it," Lin Tian thought silently, casting a subtle glance at Xu Xianrong, full of satisfaction.

Kun Yun’s wailing fully demonstrated his lung capacity, almost running out of breath by the end.

Bang!

Suddenly, Xu Xianrong lifted her shapely leg, outlined by black pants, and kicked Kun Yun in the neck, pinning him to the ground!

"It’s just two severed hands, what’s all this wailing? Noisy!" Xu Xianrong’s voice was as chilling as the piercing cold winds of a winter night, sending shivers down one’s spine.

Lin Tian smacked his lips. This woman was too domineering. She severed someone’s tendons and wouldn’t even allow them to cry out?

If it were him, he’d kick as well but would allow a few cries.

Suddenly, Lin Tian felt he had a kinder heart.

With his tendons severed, Kun Yun sprawled on the ground, biting the dust, feeling utterly frustrated.

All these years, it was the first time he’d been at such a disadvantage, and the first time he fell at a woman’s hands!

Kun Yun wasn’t concerned about his tendons. Whether orthodox spells or sinister arts, he was proficient. The severed tendons could be healed.

Severing his tendons implied his life had been spared!

Kun Yun was now more concerned about why, with Xu Xianrong hiding in the tree, weren’t the wandering spirits targeting her?

These questions puzzled him until the corner of his eye caught sight of the long sword in her hand, finally realizing why even his Peach Wood Sword was cut through.

Xu Xianrong said calmly, "This time you keep your wretched life as a warning. Disturb my Xu Family again, and I will take your head! Now go!"

After speaking, Xu Xianrong’s foot finally lifted off Kun Yun’s body.

Kun Yun struggled to crawl up from the ground, as if receiving a pardon, ran a few steps, then turned back to cast a cold glance at Xu Xianrong, before fleeing into the dusk.

Watching the disappearing figure, Lin Tian said, "You actually spared his wretched life."

"If you want to kill him, you can catch up. He is just an ant now, incapable of resistance." Xu Xianrong said, "The Xu Family has two rival factions, but there are still lines we don’t cross. If it comes to taking lives, the enmity would become irreconcilable! Although those lines will eventually be crossed, it certainly cannot be me to do it. I have no desire to become embroiled in the feud between the two factions."

Lin Tian gave a wry smile, "I’m already caught up and can’t get out."

Indeed, he had already offended that one faction’s four siblings thoroughly—each had tasted defeat at his hands.

"Miaoqiu is already your woman. Naturally, you won’t remain uninvolved, but judging by your previous performance, you should at least be able to protect yourself."

Lin Tian rolled his eyes continuously, This remark made it seem like using me as bait was some test?

"Miaoqiu and Xu Dongxu are still upstairs. Aren’t you worried? Go check on them." Xu Xianrong said.

"What about you?" Lin Tian asked.

"Me?" Xu Xianrong looked at Xu Beishan and Xu Xichao in the courtyard and said, "Since I’m back, I naturally should go say hello."