"I'll explain later; let me take care of these people first," seeing the confusion and hesitation in Han Xue's eyes, Xu Ran spoke to reassure her.
"May I ask which power do you hail from, esteemed sir? Has my Hong Family ever offended you?" An elder of the Hong Family asked with a trembling voice. The two elders had already been terrified by Xu Ran, their bodies shaking uncontrollably.
They knew their strength was even less than that of Xia Mang, the Magical Beast; if Xu Ran decided to unleash his full force, they doubted they could withstand him.
Even if they joined forces, their strength was not weak. But having lived so long, they had a basic sense of judgment; seeing how effortlessly the other had killed Xia Mang, the two of them doubted they could pose more than a minor threat to Xu Ran.
"Hong Family? Such an insignificant force; I hadn't even heard of it before," Xu Ran truly had never taken a force of this level seriously. This sort of minor power was practically a nobody to him—if not for a few brief mentions in the original story, he would not have known this small clan at all.
They were but cannon fodder anyway.
"Then why do you seek trouble with us?" Both elders were indignant yet dared not speak out. Hong Chen was especially furious, his family a small clan? Though not prominent in Zhongzhou, they were certainly not nameless in the Northern Domain.
"Have you ever heard of the Feng Lei Pavilion?" Hong Chen huffed coldly. The Feng Lei Pavilion was one of the Four Pavilions in Central Continent; its master Lei Zunzhe was at the pinnacle of Three-Star Dou Zun, and the Northern Pavilion Master Fei Tian was an Eight-Star Dou Zong Expert. On the Central Continent, having a Dou Zun Expert was enough to be considered a major power.
In Zhongzhou, the Four Pavilions indeed wielded great fame across the world.
As one of the Four Pavilions, countless people dreamed of joining the Feng Lei Pavilion, which had extremely high standards. Hong Chen had been valued by an elder of the Feng Lei Pavilion precisely because of his talent and that elder's position within the Pavilion was far from low.
The Hong Family might not be much, but he refused to believe that the Feng Lei Pavilion was also insignificant.
Even if they had a falling out with the Han Family, what was there to fear? With the backing of the Feng Lei Pavilion, what was a minor Han Family worth?
If it wasn't to impress that elder in the Pavilion, he might as well have directly asked for help, easily wiping out the Han Family.
The Feng Lei Pavilion was that impressive in Zhongzhou!
"The Feng Lei Pavilion is very strong in Zhongzhou, and it has stood unshaken for many years," Han Xue hurriedly informed Xu Ran. It was precisely because of the Pavilion's presence that the Han Family had been repeatedly disadvantaged. To them, the Pavilion was a colossal entity they absolutely could not afford to offend.
The Hong Family may not be small, but Hong Chen still prided himself on being able to enter the Feng Lei Pavilion, clearly indicating its fearsome nature.
If it were not truly powerful, how could Hong Chen, such a talent, proudly assume the identity of a future core disciple of the Feng Lei Pavilion?
Not to mention the Northern Domain, even in the heart of Zhongzhou, the name Feng Lei Pavilion carried considerable influence.
"The Feng Lei Pavilion? Is it impressive?" Xu Ran shook his head.
Now, the only powers that barely caught his interest were those at the Gu Clan level.
Forces like the Taixu Ancient Dragon, Gu Clan, Yan Clan, and other such supremely positioned entities were the only ones that could earn his regard. Others, especially ones without a Dou Sheng, were hardly of his concern.
After all, he could blow them away with just a breath.
One of the Four Pavilions, the Starfall Pavilion, was a power established by Yao Lao, featuring a sister who deserved some attention—lest Xiao Yan, that bastard, snatches her away.
"Miss System, remember to keep an eye on her for me," Xu Ran suddenly said.
"Understood, if Xiao Yan attempts anything towards her, I will remind 'Host' brother," Miss System's voice spoke in Xu Ran's mind. Miss System was constantly hidden within Xu Ran's body, allowing her to blend seamlessly with him and experience immense pleasure.
"Pfft. You can't seriously be unaware of the Feng Lei Pavilion, can you? Where exactly are you from?" Hong Chen snorted with laughter. Though Xu Ran was strong, he seemed unfamiliar with the powers in Zhongzhou.
"Northwest Continent," Xu Ran answered indifferently.
"Northwest Continent?" The two elders of the Hong Family, Hong Chen, Han Xue, and others, including those from weaker powers like Han Chong, were all stunned.
The Northwest Continent?
Wasn't that a barren place?
It was said that even a Dou Huang was a rare expert there.
As for Dou Zun, searching for one in the Northwest Continent was like looking for a needle in a haystack, and Dou Sheng—a legendary figure—was an impossible presence.
Since ancient times, Zhongzhou had been the center of the Fighting Spirit Continent. Nearly all outstanding fighters hailed from Zhongzhou, and other regions' fighters mostly developed after migrating from Zhongzhou.
Zhongzhou was unquestionably superior, reducing those from other places to mere country bumpkins.
In the Fighting Spirit Continent, regional discrimination was quite common.
People from the core areas of Zhongzhou looked down on remote places like the Northern Domain. Those from the Northern Domain in turn looked down on places not even part of Zhongzhou.
Xu Ran's strength was immense; he was at least at the pinnacle of Dou Huang, possibly even Dou Zong. Could such a backwater as the Northwest Continent produce such a formidable expert? Surely there was a mistake?
"Pfft, the Northwest Continent? Are you joking?"
"The impoverished Northwest Continent produced an expert like you? That must have been quite difficult. You couldn't possibly be the most powerful there, could you?" Hong Chen said contemptuously.
Hearing that Xu Ran came from the Northwest Continent, he had already forgotten how fearsome Xu Ran's strength was.
For many years, it had been rare to hear of anyone from the peripheral continents rising to prominence in Zhongzhou. Those arriving from the fringes, even if genuine dragons, would first lay low. After all, Zhongzhou's powers all had deep roots; even someone as strong as you couldn't overcome the local big fish, not to mention these big fish often had even bigger dragons backing them up. The Hong Family, for instance, fell under the protection of the Feng Lei Pavilion.
"In the Northwest Continent, I am, without a doubt, the strongest," Xu Ran stated calmly. Of course, what he didn't mention was that even in Zhongzhou, he was also the strongest one there.
"Indeed, even the strongest from a small place can only amount to so much."
"Let me tell you. The master of the Feng Lei Pavilion is a Three-Star Dou Zun at his peak. And my future teacher, that highly reputable elder, is a Dou Zong Expert. You do realize what that means, don't you?"
"You better get going. Being an outsider, you ought to keep a low profile here. Zhongzhou is not like your Northwest Continent. In those small places, you might dominate, but here in Zhongzhou, your strength is merely considered decent," Hong Chen said. He no longer regarded Xu Ran as a concern. Who would choose to offend a Dou Zun Expert? Surely no one could be that foolish.