Chapter 329 – The Feeling of Being Ignored
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Hearing Zhu Ping’s words that were dripping with irony, Lin Wanshan’s complexion became extremely unsightly. “Zhu Ping, what are you trying to say? Didn’t Lin Ming go out to fight the enemy?”
“I didn’t say that. I’m only saying what I know. From the very start, he ran into the pack of beasts, and now there isn’t even his shadow. If it wasn’t for that yellow-clothed knight, our army might have already been broken through.”
As Zhu Ping spoke here, he glanced at Shi Linkai with open contempt. Originally, Shi Linkai had wanted to throw the yellow-clothed youth, and matters had almost boiled down to a fight. As for Zhu Ping, he was very respectful and managed to have the yellow-clothed youth stay in Green Mulberry City. If it wasn’t for his actions, who knows what would have happened in today’s battle.
Shi Linkai was just retreating from the battlefield to take a rest when he caught wind of Zhu Ping’s words. His face turned red as he said, “Surname Zhu, what are you trying to say!?”
“What? Clan Leader Shi thinks differently? If you fought with that yellow-clothed knight, do you think you could have won?”
Shi Linkai paused, he didn’t have anything he could say. If he really did fight with that yellow-clothed youth, he would have been beaten up, maybe even killed.
As several people were speaking, the yellow-clothed youth had just engaged with two fourth-level vicious beasts.
They were two Double-headed Corrupt Wind Wolves, fourth-level vicious beasts that had excellent speed. They attacked the yellow-clothed youth from the right and the left, but were completely not the yellow-clothed youth’s match. In just a few sword slashes, the Double-headed Corrupt Wind Wolves turned into puddles of blood.
“Fierce!”
Lin Wanshan couldn’t help but acknowledge that this yellow-clothed youth was truly strong. He had persisted in this one-sided massacre for so long, had killed thousands of vicious beasts, and didn’t seem to be running low on true essence.
But as for him, Zhuang Fan, Shi Linkai, and the others, they had fought for only a quarter of the time and their true essence was exhausted. They had to fall back to the army camp and recover their strength.
Together, the three of them only managed to kill two or three hundred vicious beasts, a mere fraction of what the yellow-clothed youth killed. The disparity between them was just too great.
As Lin Wanshan’s eyes left the yellow-clothed youth, he looked over to where Lin Ming had disappeared, his heart secretly worrying. Just where did Lin Ming go? Only two or three quarters of an hour had passed, but he hadn’t even heard from Lin Ming since then. There was also that heavenly thunder that had flashed a moment ago; why would there be thunder in such a clear night sky?
Seeing Lin Wanshan’s anxious appearance, Zhuang Fan said, “Old Lin, don’t worry, everything should be fine.” Because the Zhuang Family and the Lin Family often cooperated in business, the two families had good relations with each other.
Shi Linkai added, “Hero Lin is strong so there isn’t anything to worry about. Even if he encounters several fourth-level vicious beasts, they are not his match. And with Hero Lin’s speed, he can retreat whenever he wants, he is much quicker than these vicious beasts.”
Hearing several people talk, Zhu Ping sneered in his heart. Fourth-level vicious beast? What if he encountered fourth-level vicious beasts, and then was sneak attacked by a master?
That old man’s strength had reached the late Houtian realm. It wasn’t wrong that Lin Ming was a master from a sect, but that old man was too!
Not just that, but the old man was proficient in sneak attacks and concealment techniques. With these skills – and it being a late Houtian master against a boy at the middle Pulse Condensation period – Lin Ming would surely die in the middle of such chaotic combat. Even if Lin Ming had hidden strength, he still wouldn’t be able to block such a strike!
Although he hadn’t known the old man for very long, Zhu Ping could feel that the old man acted in a very safe and cautious manner. He would not do something daring. If the old man said he had a 70 or 80% chance of success, then he wouldn’t fail!
Thinking that Lin Ming had died tonight, Zhu Ping was incomparable excited. ‘Just wait, your Lin Family’s good luck is about to come to an end. As soon as Lin Ming dies and the Tenth Prince ascends the throne, the Zhu Family will marry another woman to the Tenth Prince as the empress. Then, my Zhu Family will rise into the top three families of the Sky Fortune Kingdom. But as for your Lin Ming, they will become history!’
Thinking of the Zhu Family’s endlessly bright and magnificent future, Zhu Ping’s fantasies became a bit carried away. He couldn’t help but gloat as he said, “Young Hero Lin is certainly fast, but sometimes on the battlefield things don’t go as planned. If there is any mistake, death wouldn’t be too surprising. A virtuous and kind man like Young Hero Lin will certainly be blessed by the heavens, so he should be safe. But in case anything happens, Brother Wanshan should be prepared…”
Lin Wanshan was furious. His was anger was about to blow up when suddenly, a loud and cold “humph” resounded in the air, like a muffled cry of thunder in the ears of everyone nearby. When Zhu Ping heard this sound, he felt his entire body shake, his face paling and being forced to take several steps back. The blood in his body violently surged, and he was almost injured.
“Army Commander Zhu, I’m sorry to disappoint you.”
In the army compound, a figure emerged from the shadows, his hand holding a long purple spear. This shadow was Lin Ming.
In that instant, all the blood drained from Zhu Ping’s face!
No… impossible… didn’t that old man say he was going to kill Lin Ming?
Did that mean that Lin Ming had instead killed that old man?
No, this was impossible, absolutely impossible! That old man’s strength had reached the late Houtian realm, and he was also a martial artist from a sect. Looking back, it could be said that even if Lin Ming defeated that old man, it was impossible for him not to be wounded.
Where did the old man go? Listening to the intent behind Lin Ming’s words, he had already deduced what was happening!
Seeing Zhu Ping’s frightened and panicked expression, Lin Ming faintly smiled as he said, “Army Command Zhu, you seem to be very nervous about me coming back safely. Do I look scarier than some vicious beast?”
Lin Ming smiled, but his eyes were cold and pitiless, with a thick murderous intent seeping out. Zhu Ping felt a chill freeze his heart. Before, Lin Ming had always given the impression of a mediocre boy that was harmless. In fact, he had even seemed like he would be easy to bully. This was the impression that Lin Ming had developed in his 15 years of growing up in Green Mulberry City. This image had been set in the minds of many for a long time, and was difficult to change.
Although Zhu Ping was well aware of Lin Ming’s current status, with the support of the old man, he had always subconsciously thought of Lin Ming as a boy with half a foot in the grave. He spoke to Lin Ming respectfully, but in his heart he wasn’t afraid of him.
But now, facing Lin Ming’s merciless eyes, Zhu Ping felt as if his very soul had been penetrated. An invisible suppressive force pressed down on him, causing him to break out in a cold sweat!
Now, he was horrified to see that Lin Ming was no longer that green and naïve boy that was easy to bully, but instead a super master that held the life and death of mortals in his hands!
Zhu Ping gulped, forced a smile and said, “Young Hero Lin, please don’t joke with me… since Young Hero Lin has come back safely, I am of course incomparably happy. With Young Hero Lin here, defending Green Mulberry City will be much easier.”
“Oh? So it’s like this? Haha…” Lin Ming was still brightly smiling, but that smiling face caused Zhu Ping to shiver; it was a pressure from pure and utter domination of strength.
‘Calm down… calm down…’ Zhu Ping repeated to himself. Even if that old man’s sneak attack failed, Lin Ming wouldn’t necessarily know that he was related to him. At best, he would only have a guess. There was no evidence.
Zhu Ping comforted himself by thinking this. What he didn’t realize – or what he didn’t want to realize – was that things such as evidence, rules, laws, or things like that only applied when two individuals were of similar status. For instance, if a normal person was accusing another person, or a high level sect martial artist was accusing another high level sect martial artist.
For those with such an enormous gap in status, for instance, between Lin Ming and Zhu Ping, one didn’t even need evidence. Lin Ming’s words would become evidence; his words would become the rules, his words would become the law!
At this moment, Lin Ming suddenly heard a pleasant voice, “Perhaps that is Young Hero Lin Ming? My name is Lan Yi, I would like to greet you.”
Lin Ming turned his head and saw that the one speaking was the white-clothed girl from the Moon Seizing Sect.
After she came to Green Mulberry City she had bathed, and had already changed into a loose dress made from snow silk. She had the full and mature figure of a beauty, and her clothes were carefully cut close to the body, accentuating her graceful and slim waist. She appeared delicate and exquisite; it was easy to fall into a daydream looking at her.
Lan Yi?
Lin Ming had a very accurate and good memory. He thought back for a moment and didn’t recall this person’s name on the name lists of the joint talent training program.
An 18 or 19 year old girl that reached the peak Pulse Condensation period and wasn’t on the joint talent training program? Or, was she hiding her real name?
Lin Ming was only casually wondering. He politely greeted her, “So it’s Miss Lan. It’s nice to meet you.”
Lan Yi returned a faint smile and said, “Young Hero Lin, a moment ago, southeast of here there was a strike of heavenly thunder that appeared. I wonder if Young Hero Lin witnessed it?”
As Lan Yi asked, her beautiful eyes were wide. When the join talent training program was first announced, she hadn’t gone to the Seven Profound Valleys. But, she had heard many rumors of Lin Ming. She had heard that he was a 16 year old that had just reached the early Pulse Condensation period, but was actually able to defeat multiple peak Pulse Condensation period geniuses. It was also said that Lin Ming was a thunder-attribute martial artist with an astonishingly high fusion compatibility, and controlled a surpassingly mighty thunder energy weapon.
This youth in front of her was also named Lin Ming, and his age appeared to be around 16 too. However, his cultivation was at the middle Pulse Condensation period, just a bit higher than the Seven Profound Valleys’ Lin Ming. But, if Lin Ming had recently broken through, this would also make sense.
This caused an inevitable association in Lan Yi’s mind. Was that terrifying heavenly thunder that occurred a moment ago caused by Lin Ming? The chief disciple of the Seven Profound Valleys, and the only heaven-step talent chosen by Divine Phoenix Island? That Lin Ming?
She had just come to this city, but had encountered the legendary top talent of the 19 third grade sects. The circumstances of this situation were just too bizarre.
Lan Yi didn’t have high hopes that this was true, she was only thinking that it might be possible. If he really was Lin Ming… then he might be able to help her fulfill her wish…
Thinking this, Lan Yi widened her smile, trying to seem friendlier. But she had never done these things before, so it was a bit awkward for her.
Lin Ming saw Lan Yi’s supposedly sweet smile and was a bit doubtful. His impression of the white-clothed girl was that she had a very cold and frigid personality. Of course, this was reasonable. Just a few days ago her entire sect was destroyed, along with everyone else she knew, so she would absolutely be in a horrible mood. But why was she suddenly smiling so brightly at him?
Lin Ming nodded and said, “I saw the heavenly thunder. Why? Does Miss Lan think that a rare heavenly treasure fell down to the world?”
…….
As Lin Ming was speaking, the yellow-clothed youth suddenly released a stunning sword technique on the battlefield, killing another Two-headed Corrupt Wind Wolf. The soldiers on the field let loose thunderous cheers.
The yellow-clothed youth liked this feeling very much. He had grown up within the Moon Seizing Sect, and had never felt like he existed, let alone enjoyed so many cheers from people.
He turned back to glance at the army compound, his eyes filled with expectation. The yellow-clothed youth wanted to see his little junior-apprentice sister watching him instantly slay the fourth-level vicious beast with his sword in a grand and majestic fashion. However, he happened to see Lan Yi standing near Lin Ming, a warm and sweet smile spreading across her face, as if she were having happy conversation with him.
She didn’t even spare him a glance…