Emerging Glory

Outside the Jade Truth Hall, the Dan family members were in a state of high alert, standing ready and facing the approaching Wang family members with tense anticipation, on the brink of a full-scale battle. The clash between these two prominent families was a significant event that would shape the future of Tianyun City. In the distance, many pairs of eyes were closely watching this scene, observing the further development of the situation.

Dan Ming cast a brief glance into the distance, and then his gaze returned to Wang Zhenshan. He spoke with a deep voice, "For the past five hundred years, the downfall of three emerging families has been linked to the Wang family. I had foreseen this day, but I never expected it to come so soon."

"Hahaha, the Wang family possesses such strength!"

Wang Zhenshan laughed heartily, brimming with pride. However, he quickly composed himself and spoke with severity, "Dan Ming, old man, I'll give you one last opportunity. If you hand over Dan Chen, Liu Wanfeng, and all your alchemical enterprises, I can show leniency and spare you. Otherwise, today will be the day of your demise."

This was not an act of mercy; it was clearly an attempt to undermine the Dan family's fighting spirit. For most people, surviving was preferable to risking their lives in a battle.

"Dream on! Our alchemical industry is the cornerstone of the Dan family. Losing it would not only jeopardize our status as a noble family but also leave us with no future. In the end, we would still face the disaster of extinction. If a family cannot protect its members, it loses its reason for existence."

Dan Ming responded decisively. With his wealth of experience, he immediately saw through Wang Zhenshan's wicked intentions and directly exposed them, shattering the illusions of some Dan family members.

"We, the Dan family, are not a bunch of cowards. We'll face these scoundrels head-on!"

"Old man, if you're brave enough, why waste your breath? Just take action!"

"Humph, if they want to swallow us, your family will have to suffer significant losses. When that happens, the tables will turn, and you will also be at risk of being destroyed."

Wang Zhenshan observed his own faction, where some people displayed hesitation. He couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his eye, realizing that he had thrown a stone at his own foot. His original intention had been to undermine the enemy's resolve, but now it had backfired.

He stepped back a few paces and nodded slightly to a young man at his side.

"Where is Dan Chen, the little brat? Come out and meet your doom!" The Wang family youth understood his leader's signal, moved forward, and searched among the Dan family's young members.

Dan Ming coldly chuckled but chose not to intervene.

The Dan family members' gaze converged on Dan Chen, and some of the younger ones whispered among themselves.

Dan Chen was initially taken aback, but then he smiled lightly and said to Liu Wanfeng, "Mother, your child will be back soon."

Without any hesitation, he strode forward.

"Chen, don't act recklessly!" Liu Wanfeng couldn't help but worry.

Liu Wanfeng became extremely anxious, but Dan Yuan whispered beside her, "Aunt, don't worry. Brother Chen has got this."

Liu Wanfeng was taken aback. She knew that Dan Yuan had been raised with strict principles and wouldn't tell lies. But could Dan Chen really possess such strength in just a few days of Spirit Gathering?

The Dan family's young members were also bewildered. They displayed expressions of surprise.

"Why would Wang Kaijun, one of the top five young talents in the Wang family, challenge Dan Chen?"

"Half a year ago, Wang Kaijun already had the cultivation of the fourth- staged Initial Martial Realm, while Dan Chen is just at the Body Tempering Stage. He is bound to lose!"

"Dan Chen is really too straightforward. With such a gap in their cultivation, even if he refused directly, surely no one would laugh at him. Yet, he chose to act tough."

Discussions spread among the onlookers, but Dan Chen remained unfazed. He stood opposite Wang Kaijun. Wearing an astonished expression, he asked, "Is Wang Changkong your father?"

"How...how did you know?" Wang Kaijun, who was about to attack, lost his momentum after being suddenly questioned by Dan Chen.

Wang Changkong was the biggest laughingstock in Tianyun City, and as his son, Wang Kaijun faced a great deal of pressure. Despite his extraordinary talent, ranking fifth among the young generation of the Wang family, people still made fun of him behind his back.

Dan Chen knew he had guessed correctly and burst into laughter. "I've only beaten up Wang Changkong, and you're so eager to jump in. Your identity is pretty easy to guess." He appraised Wang Kaijun from head to toe and praised, "Your father is so useless, but he did manage to produce a son with some talent. Not bad, not bad, you could be considered unfilial."

"You..." Wang Kaijun's face turned bright red.

"Haha! Dan Chen has a sharp tongue. Even though Wang Kaijun clearly inherited the talent from his father, he insists on calling him unfilial." Dan Le, who reacted the fastest, laughed loudly from the back.

Even some members of the Wang family couldn't help but chuckle. Wang Kaijun's reputation within the family wasn't great due to his father's antics.

"You bastard, you're asking for death!" Wang Kaijun's face alternated between pale and red. His eyes were bloodshot, and he charged at Dan Chen like a mad boar.

Wang Kaijun had an extraordinary strike, using both palms. His True Qi surged as he attacked, and with each move, two palm shadows, each over three feet in size, appeared out of thin air, reaching towards Dan Chen.

"True Qi Manifestation!"

"A fifth rank Initial Martial Master!"

Various exclamations sounded from different directions, one after another.

"Dan Chen is in danger!"

Behind Dan Ming, the Grand Elder closely watched the situation, a hint of worry visible in his expression. This old man had been antagonizing the mother and son, yet he suddenly seemed concerned. Sun rised from the west.

The second and third elders exchanged a glance, sharing this thought.

Dan Ming chuckled softly, "No need to worry; Dan Chen's strength is far beyond your expectation."

"Excellent!"

Dan Chen appeared excited, not dodging or evading. He struck with both fists, instantly forming two equally sized fist shadows, which collided with the two palm shadows.

With a muffled sound, Dan Chen's shoulders swayed slightly, but his feet were firmly planted in place.

Scratch, scratch, scratch! Wang Kaijun's blood and energy surged, and he took three steps back to regain his footing.

"Am I seeing things? Dan Chen is actually gaining the upper hand?"

"Goodness, did he hide his true strength all along and only reveal it at a critical moment?"

"This kid hid it very well; he fooled all of us."

"Darn it, I used to mock him for no reason, and now the joke is on me."

Dan Chen's astounding performance ignited chaos among the youngsters of the Dan family.

"It's impossible! You were just a trash without even Spirit Gathering, how did you suddenly reach the fifth rank Initial Martial Realm?" Wang Kaijun couldn't believe his eyes and wore an expression like he had seen a ghost.

A few days ago, when Dan Chen defeated Wang Changkong, this incident indeed shocked Tianyun City. However, based on the accounts of two Wang family servants who had watched the fight, Dan Chen had no Spirit Gathering; he had solely relied on physical strength to win.

But in just a few days, Dan Chen had attained the fifth rank Initial Martial cultivation.

Deep scheming! Cunning!

At this moment, regardless of their allegiances, people from both the Wang family and the Dan family shared these evaluations of Dan Chen.

If Dan Chen knew, he would feel very wronged. However, would anyone listen to his explanation? Probably not.

"Two moves, I'll defeat you within two moves." Dan Chen extended two fingers and gestured towards Wang Kaijun.

"Arrogant!" Wang Kaijun seethed with anger. He was just caught off guard earlier, and now, knowing that the opponent's strength wasn't lacking, he realized that Dan Chen's desire to win wouldn't be easy to fulfill.

"True Qi Grand Capture!"

Wang Kaijun, filled with rage, unleashed the ultimate move of the premium martial technique, True Qi Palm. Each martial technique had its finishing move, representing the essence of the martial technique itself. Their power might exceed that of regular techniques by several times, making it quite common for one strike to defeat an opponent.

Everyone, especially the young members of both families, fixed their gaze on the battlefield. They understood that the victory or defeat would be decided in these two moves.

Wang Kaijun's True Qi Grand Capture was overwhelming. The massive palm formed by condensed True Qi energy, which was over ten feet in size, pressed down fiercely upon Dan Chen.

Dan Chen's expression grew serious. It was the first time he had faced a finishing move of this caliber, and pretending not to be nervous would be a lie. Under the shadow of this gigantic palm, he felt his muscles stiffening, as if a few feet around him were imprisoned by this palm.

What a formidable True Qi Grand Capture!

Dan Chen secretly praised it, and he forcefully infused his legs with True Qi transforming his body into a blur that suddenly disappeared.

A deafening roar echoed as the True Qi Grand Capture smashed directly into the ground. A shallow pit several inches deep appeared on the stone-paved square, and the released energy scattered rocks in all directions. The situation in the area couldn't be clearly seen for a moment.

Some people couldn't help but think that if Dan Chen were directly defeated, it would be quite amusing. They watched the scene, barely blinking.

"Watch out, Chen!" Liu Wanfeng's heart was about to jump out of her chest.

"Look!" a voice suddenly exclaimed.

The hearts of everyone present tightened, and they quickly searched for the source of the voice. They soon made a discovery.

A figure shot out, leaving behind several afterimages, causing a dizzying sight.

"Fish to Dragon!"

Both the Dan family and the Wang family had people shout out this name.

"This is the Fish to Dragon, a deadly move from the Swimming Fish Step! It can only be used when you have perfected the Swimming Fish Step," a young member of the Dan family exclaimed.

Dan Chen had actually perfected the Swimming Fish Step?

That was the indeed the case. In five days, Dan Chen had practiced this middle-ranked footwork to perfection and developed the deadly move called Fish to Dragon.

Wang Kaijun's pupils constricted, and a look of terror appeared on his face. The True Qi Grand Capture had actually failed. Wasn't Dan Chen supposed tot be a useless person? How had he done this?

At this critical moment, this thought arose in Wang Kaijun's mind, but he quickly dismissed it and focused all his energy on handling the current crisis. He crossed his legs and swiftly retreated.

The Wang family's Spirit Cat Step was also a middle-ranked footwork, which was not inferior to the Swimming Fish Step. However, Wang Kaijun hadn’t perfected the Spirit Cat Step though he had practiced it for three years. Without reaching perfection, he couldn't develop a deadly move. Natural talent was crucial, and not everyone could be like Dan Chen.

The Fish to Dragon was incredibly flexible and unpredictable. With it, Dan Chen moved like a ghost, and it was far superior to the Spirit Cat Step that hadn't reached its pinnacle.

In just a single breath, Dan Chen appeared in front of Wang Kaijun. His right fist struck, and a shadow of his fist suddenly appeared. The power, derived from True Qi Manifestation, far surpassed the physical strength of an ordinary martial artist.

Wang Kaijun spewed blood from his mouth and was sent flying, unable to maintain his balance as he fell to the ground.

The outcome was decided!

Dan Chen slowly retracted his fist and looked at Wang Kaijun, calmly saying, "Too weak."

“Is it over just like that?”

The whole venue fell silent. No one had expected Dan Chen to win so cleanly.

"Dan Chen is amazing!"

"Dan Chen is the best!"

"Dan Chen, Dan Chen, I love you!"

“What kind of young master from the Wang family is that? He’s simply too weak!”

The morale of the Dan family soared, and their young members couldn’t stop praising Dan Chen.

The elder of the Dan family had a surprised expression and couldn’t help but exclaim, “This little rascal isn’t any worse than his father. He even mastered the Fish to Dragon.”

The comprehension difficulty of footwork-type martial skills was much higher than that of offensive and defensive skills. For instance, Wang Kaijun had perfected the True Qi Palm but could only barely master the Spirit Cat Step.

Dan Ming chuckled and looked at Dan Chen with a hint of approval in his eyes. He knew that Dan Chen hadn’t perfected the Swimming Fish Step. But he managed to reach perfection in a few days, which was an astonishing display of talent. Dan Ming hadn’t told the others that Dan Chen had deduced both the Supreme Jade True Art and the two martial skills, so they didn’t know that Dan Chen had already mastered two superior martial skills to perfection.