Xiang Ming said nothing. He’d been so thoroughly humiliated that he truly found it hard to even open his mouth.
He glanced over at Tian Dong, who instantly understood. His expression filled with grief and righteous indignation as he said, “Uncle Master Wang, this person is called Su Yi. He charged into our Divine Firmament Peak and offended Junior Apprentice Sister Wen Lingzhao. We couldn’t repress our anger, so we told him to apologize. Who would have thought he was so vicious and unbridled…..?”
One vehement statement, and he effectively transformed their provocation into a righteous act. Su Yi, meanwhile, became nothing but a thug on a mad rampage.
The others chimed in too, one after another.
Su Yi had just forced them to their knees; they no longer had any face left, and their anger had gone to their heads. Now that their seniors were present, who among them?didn’t?want to avenge this grudge?
When Wen Lingzhao heard this, her delicate eyebrows knit together. However, she hadn’t witnessed any of this for herself, so she wasn’t really in a position to say anything.
Wang Jianchong and his two companions’ expressions instantly grew even darker.
It was then that Zheng Muyao walked over. First, she passed Su Yi the paper and writing implements she was carrying. Then, she turned and faced her sectmates in a huff. “Tang Dong, don’t you have any shame? Do you dare say that again to my face?”
“I….” Tian Dong’s expression froze.
But before he could open his mouth, Zheng Muyao turned toward Wang Jianchong and clasped her fist in greeting. “Uncle Master Wang, I saw everything that happened just now. It wasn’t at all like Tang Dong said.”
She then went on to explain everything that had happened.
Throughout this process, Xiang Ming, Tian Dong, and the others’ expressions changed erratically, and their hearts filled with unspoken resentment. They wouldn’t have guessed that Zheng Muyao would disregard their bond as sectmates for Su Yi’s sake!
Just as they started to panic and rack their brains for counter-arguments, Wang Jianchong waved and interrupted Zheng Muyao’s story. “No need to say more. No matter what, he’s an outsider, yet he barged into Heaven’s Origin Academy, then assaulted and humiliated our disciples. Behavior like this is simply unforgivable!”
This vice palace master of Heaven’s Origin Academy had a calm, indifferent look on his face, but his voice boomed, and his words were forceful.
Zheng Muyao was stunned. She couldn’t help but say, “Uncle Master Wang, they were obviously the ones who started it, so why….”
Wang Jianchong furrowed his brow, then interrupted her again. “Zheng Muyao, you’re an inner sect disciple here too, yet during the battle just now, you made no attempts to stop them. Now, here you are, arguing on behalf of an outsider. What is the meaning of this?”
Zheng Muyao’s expression shifted, and her heart surged with indescribable anger. This was her first time encountering such a situation, and she almost dared not believe that someone as esteemed as the vice palace head would say something like that.
Meanwhile, Xiang Ming and the others relaxed, and their eyes lit up with wordless, complacent glee. There was no way they’d miss that Wang Jianchong planned to intervene on their behalf!
Zheng Muyao was the daughter of the Zheng Family, yet she couldn’t even see through Wang Jianchong’s intentions? She deserved her scolding!
“Out of respect for your father and for your master, I won’t pursue this matter,” Wang Jianchong snorted coldly. “But if you persist, don’t blame me for punishing you in accordance with?sect?regulations!”
Zheng Muyao gnashed her teeth and was just about to respond when Su Yi patted her on the shoulder. He said flatly, “When you encounter someone impervious to reason, arguing is a pointless waste of time. Just ignore him. If he insists on seeking death, I don’t mind giving it to him.” 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘭．𝘦𝘵
Zheng Muyao was stunned. She was moved, but more than that, she couldn’t help but feel flabbergasted.?Uncle Su doesn’t even take the vice palace master seriously? That’s amazing!
“What…. What did you just say?” Wang Jianchong’s face reddened, and his eyes bulged.
The others’ eyes widened in disbelief. Who among them would dare believe that, even under these circumstances, Su Yi would dare say a vice palace chief was “seeking death”?
Even Wen Lingzhao was a bit flabbergasted.?Why didn’t I realize earlier that this seemingly aloof, ‘above-it-all’ guy was actually so wildly arrogant?
“Brother Wang, please remain calm. I already understand the situation. What need is there to lose your temper with a mere child who knows not the grandeur of the heavens nor the depths of the earth? Leave this to me.”?The elder in Confucian robes and a wide belt laughed, then stepped forth, his cold gaze landing on Su Yi. “Youngster, you just forced our disciples to their knees. I’ll give you just one chance: kneel and await your punishment, or else….”
Before he could finish, Su Yi’s calm voice cut him off. “Don’t waste your breath. If you want to throw your life away, get on with it already. I guarantee that you won’t live to tell the tale.”
As he spoke, he walked over to a boulder near the pine tree, then set down his writing implements.
The atmosphere changed sharply; it was now as oppressive as could be.
Everyone, from Xiang Ming and his lackeys to Wen Lingzhao, stared blankly at Su Yi. This seemed so absurd, they couldn’t even put it into words.
The elder in Confucian robes was called Chu Kongchao, and he was the eighth-ranked elder of Heaven’s Origin Academy, with second-level Inner Furnace Realm cultivation. His attainments in the Martial Dao were so impressive that mundane martial artists of the same cultivation were no match for him.
Yet now, Su Yi dared insult him like this!?
Even Wang Jianchong and the whiskered swordsman were stunned.
“You cocky little brat!” Chu Kongchao was so angry, his expression was ashen. He leaped into the air, and the aura of a Martial Dao Grandmaster instantly surged around him.
It was like the sudden eruption of a long dormant volcano. His surging qi and blood bore down on his surroundings, throwing the air currents into turmoil and scattering rocks and sand.
So strong!?The disciples’ hearts shook, and their expressions filled with excitement and anticipation.?Su Yi provoked the eighth elder into attacking? He really doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘death’!
Boom!
Chu Kongchao didn’t give them any time to think at all. He simply charged and attacked with all his might.
His fingers were like sharp swords as they reached for Su Yi. Dazzling light circulated around his digits, eye-catching and bright; they really did look like sharpened knives.
As his hand shot towards his target, the air ripped apart like cotton with a shrill wail.
The mid-rank earth-level secret tome—the Flying Goose Grab!
If it hit its mark, it could tear through metal walls as easily as if they were made of paper.
Even just watching from a distance, Xiang Ming felt suffocated.
Alas, although none of them knew it, Su Yi had slain a young third-level Grandmaster of the Wheel of the Moon Sect just last night.
They certainly didn’t know just how many Grandmasters had fallen at Su Yi’s hands of late.
A faint, cold smile tugged at Su Yi’s lips, and he gently shook his head. Only when Chu Kongchao drew close did he finally stretch out his hand, clench it into a fist, and swing.
Like a deity beating a massive drum!
Crunch! Crunch!
Su Yi’s fist was like a streak of flowing light, yet it had unblockable momentum. When it landed, all ten of Chu Kongchao’s sharp, sword-like fingers snapped and broke. The joints, bones, and tendons burst with a splatter of blood.
With nothing left to block it, Su Yi’s punch continued, slamming ruthlessly into Chu Kongchao’s chest.
Bang!
Beneath the crowd’s shocked gazes, Chu Kongchao’s gaunt frame snapped like a kite with its strings cut, flew through the air, and slammed into the cliffside over a hundred feet away with a low, muffled boom. The surrounding rocks crumbled and scattered.
Bones cracked and tendons snapped in rapid succession, the sound reminiscent of beans sizzling in a hot wok. When the elder fell from the cliff,?he just lay there, sprawled out like mud, his head lolling to the side. He was no longer breathing.
One punch was enough to kill a Grandmaster!
That inexorable momentum and domineering presence shocked everyone present. Their hearts clenched violently in their chest.
“This….” Xiang Ming and the other inner-sect disciples felt as if their souls had left their bodies. They dared not believe their own eyes.
That was the eighth elder! How mighty was he, even amongst Grandmasters? Yet now, some Qi Accumulation teenager had killed him in a single punch?
Wen Lingzhao’s beautiful face froze, and her eyes widened in a daze. That?fist?was like a heavy hammer; it struck the tranquil waters of her heart, stirring up great waves of shock.
All of the deep-rooted pride and confidence she had when she faced Su Yi shattered, as if that fist smashed it into powder.
Her jade-like hands silently clenched, and she pursed her lips. Those clear eyes seemed to mist over with bewilderment.
It’s only been a month since he recovered his cultivation, but he can already obliterate Grandmasters!?
“Father wasn’t lying to me after all…. Uncle Su really is terrifying….!” Zheng Muyao’s heart shook with terror, and her beautiful eyes widened. She couldn’t help but recall her father’s repeated reminders—
“Young Lord Su is a man like a banished immortal. He might look young, but his methods are miraculous, like stealing fortune from the heavens. Whatever you do, you must not show him the slightest disrespect!”
At the time, Zheng Muyao had only half believed him, but now, she had no choice but to take his words seriously.
As for Wang Jianchong and the whiskered swordsman, they were instantly solemn, and their expressions changed erratically.
The power of that fist shook them too. Their hearts and minds trembled, and they realized that something wasn’t quite right here.
Su Yi was just a Qi Accumulation Youth, yet he slew Chu Kongchao in a single punch before their very eyes!
Who could have anticipated this?
It was Su Yi who broke the following deathly silence. He said flatly, “I don’t want any more nonsense, nor do I wish to waste any more time. If you’re not convinced, just attack. Let’s get this over with.”
In his blue robes, he looked cool and aloof, just as he had before.
Yet in the eyes of the crowd, this mere seventeen-year-old now emanated an aura so terrifying, their hearts quivered.
“Su Yi, do you have any idea of the consequences of what you’ve just done? If you insist on becoming our irreconcilable enemy, I’m afraid you won’t make it out of Heaven’s Origin Academy today!” The whiskered man’s tone was grave, and his face was ashen.
Su Yi glanced at him. “Draw your sword, and I’ll grant you death.”
Waves coursed through everyone’s hearts once more. The whiskered swordsman was called Li Fengxing, and he was the academy’s seventh elder, a Grandmaster of the Dao of the Sword!
He’d once traveled throughout the Great Zhou, polishing his swordsmanship for thirteen years to create his own personal sword art, “The Nine Flowing Cloud Strikes.” He was famed throughout the province!
It hadn’t been long since he entered the sect. Otherwise, with his attainments in the Martial Dao, he would easily be among the sect’s top five elders!
Yet now, Su Yi was announcing his intentions to “grant” Li Fengxing death!
“You really are vicious….” Li Fengxing sighed, then suddenly drew his sword. In an instant, his gaze was as sharp and intimidating as the edge of his blade.
He hefted his blade and stepped forth, his frame seemingly enveloped in an ethereal, floating cloud. As for his sword, countless streaks of faint, misty sword qi instantly manifested around it, like clustered rainclouds. They were beautiful, and they looked gentle and soft to the extreme.
Yet extremely dangerous, too.
Those streaks of sword qi could easily pierce heavy-iron armor or shatter boulders and steel. They were incomparably sharp.
When he slashed his sword, if his opponent failed to block it, the countless streaks of misty sword qi would slice them into tiny chunks of meat!
Su Yi arched his brow, and the depths of his gaze faintly lit up.?This sword… Is actually somewhat interesting…!
But just as he was about to strike, a dignified voice, like the ringing of a temple bell, filled the air and echoed throughout the surrounding area.
“Stay your hand!”