The impact of Jaune's landing sent dust swirling across the courtyard. The ground slightly cracked under the sheer, controlled force of the Golden Lightning.
"S—Sky Profound Realm,"
Xiao Kuangyun stammered, his eyes wide.
The Sect Heir was shocked, not by the violence, but by the presence of such a high-level cultivator in this backwater clan.
Jaune ignored him entirely.
He knelt instantly beside Yun Che and the injured Xiao Lingxi.
He pulled out a bottle of his High Potion and fed it to Lingxi without a second thought.
All of her bruises, cuts, and the shock from the confrontation healed instantly.
"To use such a treasure to heal someone like them,"
Xiao Kuangyun sneered, regaining his arrogance, already deciding the items must belong to some lower-ranked celestial artifact shop.
"May I ask who you are and where you come—"
Xiao Kuangyun didn't finish his sentence.
A blur of Golden Lightning shot from Jaune's hand.
It wasn't his sword; it was a projectile condensed by his own Aura, fired from his index finger.
The projectile, thin and piercing like a bullet, cleanly scratched Xiao Kuangyun's cheek, drawing a thin line of blood before burying itself deep into the stone wall behind him.
"Shut up,"
Jaune's voice was low, cutting through the chaos.
"I don't want to hear anything from you. Speak one more word and it will be your head."
The threat was absolute, and the proximity of the shot proved he was capable of delivering.
Jaune then looked at the Clan Head, Xiao Yunhai, the man who had ordered the expulsion.
"Tell me, Clan Head, did you truly expel Xiao Che from the clan?"
Xiao Yunhai was sweating profusely, trapped between the Sect Heir's fury and the terrifying power of Jaune Arc.
"I… I can't change the rule, Young Master. He is not of the blood."
"Then he is no longer of the Xiao Clan but the Arc Clan,"
Jaune declared, the statement hanging like a new law in the courtyard.
"He is under my protection, along with Xiao Lingxi and Elder Lie."
Jaune's gaze then settled on Xia Qingyue, who had stood by silently during the entire ordeal.
"Why have you done nothing?"
He asked, his disappointment sharp and clear.
Xia Qingyue shook, not from cold, but from the searing impact of his gaze.
She was an ice genius, but Jaune's disapproval stung her to the core.
"Forget it,"
Jaune sighed, shaking his head.
"I shouldn't expect anything from a girl like you anyway."
"Come with me, Che, Lingxi, and Elder Lie. This clan is not worth being with anymore."
Xiao Lie, Yun Che, and Xiao Lingxi nodded immediately, their relief overwhelming.
They trusted Jaune implicitly and gathered themselves to follow.
Just as Jaune turned to lead his new dependents away, a crisp, cold voice announced a new decree.
Chu Yueli appeared in a streak of white, floating just above the manor roof.
She looked down at the shocked clan members.
"Yun Che, Xiao Lingxi, and Xiao Lie are also under the protection of Frozen Cloud Asgard,"
She announced, her voice echoing with the authority of her Sky Profound Realm.
"If the Xiao Clan or the Xiao Sect dare do anything to them—even touch a single hair—it is the same as declaring war against the entire Frozen Cloud Asgard."
With that final, unassailable warning, she flew away, following the disappearing flash of Jaune and his group.
She hadn't had a chance to interfere with the fight because she had been observing from a distance, unwilling to directly violate the political customs until absolutely necessary.
Now, she would make up for it by aligning herself fully with Jaune, ensuring he saw her efforts.
Xiao Kuangyun was apoplectic with humiliation.
He wanted to order his elder to follow them and demand an apology and a reckoning.
However, the elder who had accompanied him grabbed his arm, his face pale.
"Young Master, we cannot. You… you gravely offended them both. The boy is a supreme power, and the Elder Chu Yueli has just had a breakthrough. Your father, the Sect Master, might be furious with you for provoking a war with Asgard."
"Humph! Just you wait! I won't let this matter slide!"
Kuangyun swore, his face a mask of scarlet fury. This humiliation—the scratch, the threat, and the loss of the genius bride—he would return it a thousand times over.
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