“Xiao Xue. Are you crazy?”
Lu Yanwu tugged the corner of Lu Yanxue’s shirt and urged her.
Everyone else in the Lu family had lowered their heads obediently before the visitor. From the corner of their eyes, they caught a glimpse of Lu Yanxue who had held her chin up proudly. They couldn’t help but sneer at her. “Lu Yanxue, do you really think you are Cinderella? Chen Beixuan’s enemy is here now, and we can’t wait to see how you handle them.”
Many of the Lu family members had been jealous of Lu Yanxue’s special treatment due to her connection with Chen Fan. Even though they were from the same family, they looked at the girl as if she was their enemy.
Lu Yanxue was unfazed by the development; instead, she lifted her chin slightly up.
Lei Qianjue had noticed the pride in the girl, so he examined her with great interest. “I wager you are the girlfriend of Chen Beixuan? Aren’t you afraid of me like the rest of your family?”
“Of course not.” Lu Yanxue said firmly, her voice was laced with confidence. “As you said, I am Chen Beixuan’s girl, and how could I be scared of you? If I was, I would be giving everyone the wrong message that Chen Beixuan is not as powerful as you.”
“Very Good!” Lei Qianjue clapped and exclaimed. “I have never expected a young girl to have more backbone than the entire Lu family of Lin City. Chen Beixuan has picked the right girl, and I have to give him that.”
Faces of the Lu family members flushed red as soon as they heard the insult. Many young people from the third generation of the family clenched their fists, trying to hold back their bursting anger and shame.
“Backbone aside, you have to face reality sooner or later. Chen Beixuan killed one of my disciples. He will have to pay for what he did.” Lei Qianjue suddenly changed his tone as his gaze grew cold.
“If I really can’t find him, I will have to lure him out.”
Everyone watched as Lu Yanxue flicked a finger and shot out a gleaming white line from the tip of his finger. The line writhed in the air and covered the dozen meters distance between Lu Yanxue and the old man in a blink.
Lu Yanxue was terrified by the spell. Try as she might, she couldn’t stop the color from ebbing away from her face. However, she managed to stand still and didn’t evade the attack. Tears and indignation flickered in her eyes.
“Shuuu!”
The clear and glittering lines turned nearly invisible right before it buried into Lu Yanxue’s body.
Despite the white silken blouse she was wearing, the fear inside of Lu Yanxue made her feel so cold that her body couldn’t stop shivering and her teeth chattering. Lu Yanxue’s pale skin looked even paler under such fear, so much so that the skin looked like ice that was covered with a thin layer of frost. Her cute face was robbed of life as fear turned her into an ice statue. Even the people standing beside her could feel the coldness emanating from her body.
“The Qi from the Art of Thousand Trickeries was formed from the frigid winds of the northern tundra. Just one lash of the Frigid Qi attack would be able to freeze a polar bear in place. I have injected one into your body, and it will release its Frigid Qi slowly into your system, turning you into an ice sculpture.” Lei Qianjue explained calmly.
His even tone didn’t help to ease the minds of his listeners.
He had shot out a Qi energy into the girl’s body to turn her into an ice block slowly? What kind of savagery was that? Some onlookers still found it hard to believe that such a technique existed in the first place. However, as soon as they saw the shivering Lu Yanxue, their doubts were gone.
“Don’t even try to cure her. Modern medicine wouldn’t help her, either. If you wish to resolve the effect of the Thousand Trickeries, you will have to find a Grand Master, such as Chen Beixuan. Tell him that I will wait for him at the shore of West Lake.”
As soon as Lei Qianjue finished talking, he turned around and sauntered away.
The middle-aged man of multiracial heritage gave the Lu family a contemptuous glance, shook his head and then followed his master, leaving a group of stunned and humiliated Lu family members glaring at his back.
The Lu family was a prominent Martial Arts Family. Never once have we endured such humiliation twice in a row. However, let it be Chen Fan or Lei Qianjue, they were both powerful Grandmasters that could bring any martial artist to their knees. Chen Fan was able to kill a Grandmaster as if butchering helpless chickens. Lei Qianjue, on the other hand, had defeated Lu Tianfen seventeen years ago. In the last seventeen years, he must have furthered his martial arts so that by then, his skills had become unimaginable that he could kill a person by injecting a strand of Frigid Qi.
The Lu family would never be able to rival those two incredibly powerful Grandmasters.
So thinking, many people looked to Lu Yanxue with a mix of gloating and pity. To freeze to death slowly was a horrible way to go, yet, the punishment was especially cruel since it was used on a twenty-year-old girl.
“Xiao Xue, are you alright?” Lu Yanwu hurried to steady her sister,
“I am fine.” Lu Yanxue managed a pale smile. However, her body trembled uncontrollably.
“Where is the doctor? Call the doctor!” Seeing everyone’s stupefied looks, Lu Yanwu shouted at them.
Lu Yanwu’s voice finally woke up the Lu family members. They hurried toward the two girls to help out. Some cradled Lu Yanxue in a blanket and brought her into a heated room; some poured hot water for her. Even in the heated room, Lu Yanxue’s body was turning colder by the second.
“Great-great Grandpa, we need to call Chen Beixuan here! Xiao Xue is not going to last long.” After the doctor had exhausted his tests and was still unable to improve Lu Yanxue’s condition, Lu Yanwu came to her Great-great Grandpa and pleaded.
“The doctor said Xiao Xue had the most bizarre ailment. Her temperature is already a few degrees lower than that of a normal person, and it was still dropping. In less than a few months, her organs, blood, marrow, and muscles will all freeze over, killing her in the process.”
The thought of such a terrible death made Lu Yanwu shiver. A pang of terror suddenly seized her.
“As a Grandmaster of a renowned sect, how dare he do such a crude thing to a girl!” She cursed under her breath.
“Sigh… you don’t understand, do you. The Grandmasters are the true dragons.” The old man heaved a sigh and shook his head. “At his level, he is already on his path toward immortality, and therefore, he sees the world very differently than us mortals. In his eyes, we are nothing but foolish monkeys. Do you really expect him to feel bad for a dead monkey?
“But you are right about calling Chen Beixuan for help, I will send a messenger to the Medicine God Valley Sect to deliver the news.”
Even after Great-great Grandpa had left, Lu Yanwu stood still as she mulled over the old man’s words.
“In the eyes of the Grandmasters, we are like monkeys… Does that mean Chen Fan also sees Xiao Xue and me in that way as well? If that’s the case, will he still come to her rescue?”
Lu Yanxue was suddenly at a loss.
She was not sure if the Young Grandmaster would risk falling into the trap of another powerful Grandmaster for a woman he didn’t even care about.
Lei Qianjue had returned!
The news of Lei Qianjue’s return swept across the world of martial artists and cultivators.
Compared to Chen Fan, Lei Qianjue was much more popular. Seventeen years ago, he had dominated the landscape of Martial Arts in China and defeated many powerful opponents, including two Grandmasters. If not because of Ye Nantian who had stopped him cold in his tracks, he would still be in the seat of power in China.
Despite his victory, Ye Nantian was only able to win the fight with Lei Qianjue with a very small edge. In fact, the two’s levels of attainments were on par with each other seventeen years ago. How powerful would Lei Qianjue be after seventeen years of hard cultivation in seclusion?
No one knew the answer to that question. Meanwhile, they had all heard that Lei Qianjue came back to China to avenge his disciple, Linhu. He is staying at the West Lake in Lin City, waiting for the Young Grandmaster to rise to the challenge.
Every day, Lei Qianjue could be found in a small fishing boat on West Lake wearing a white coat and a straw hat and looked relaxed as if he was on vacation.
The middle-aged man of multiracial heritage that followed him everywhere was called Romon. He had departed from his master and started to challenge all sects in China.
“May 20, Romon challenged the Xin Yi Sect, and defeated Guo Yuntao.”
“May 27, Romon challenged Ba Ji Sect, and defeated Mu Shan.”
“Jun 1, Romon visited the Gu Family and sparred with Gu Shitong. After half an hour, Gu Shitong conceded defeated.”
“Jun 15, Romon reached the Wu Family of Northwest China…”
In less than two months, Romon had become a household name. As the Final Disciple of Lei Qianjue, his master’s most proud protege, Romon’s martial arts skills were extraordinary. He had fought over nineteen battles in the two months and always emerged victorious. Worse, when he defeated Gu Shitong, a semi-transcendent state martial artist, he didn’t even use his most powerful art: the Thousand Trickeries.
The entire martial arts community could feel the tension and the smoke in the air. Many people had claimed that Romon was the most powerful man below the Grandmaster Level.
However, Romon’s fight on August 3 had stunned the entire community for a very different reason.
“August 3, Romon challenged Tai Chi Sect’s Grandmaster Chen Jiuyang. After three hours, the match ended in a draw.”
Rumor had it that Romon displayed such power that nearly outshone Chen Jiuyang. Despite Chen Jiuyang’s powerful Qi that was so carefully manipulated and amplified by Tai Chi techniques, Romon was able to counter the Tai Chi master with belligerent attacks. Each jab and kick carried such force that could crack open a mountain. Roman also demonstrated his incredible endurance since he was able to fight with full force and speed from the beginning to the end.
“He must be a Grandmaster! Lei Qianjue’s disciple is a Grandmaster!” Many people were shocked by what the fight had revealed.
“I had heard that Romon was not a Grandmaster yet. However, he was well learned and versed in all kinds of martial arts techniques that existed not only in China but also all around the world. Let it be Aikido, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Ancient Muay Thai or Sambo, he was an expert in all fields. Plus, he has a superb physique that would even pose a threat to the Grandmasters. There was a term for a person like him in this world. They call it Mixed Martial Arts Master. Their abilities were on par with that of a Grandmaster.” someone put in.
Needless to say, Romon’s sudden rise to power had been sensational news of late.
“If Lei Qianjue’s disciple was as powerful as a Grandmaster, what about Lei Qianjue himself?” Many people have asked themselves, as their attention returned to the little fishing boat on the West Lake.
Many people had thought of challenging Lei Qianjue as soon as they heard he was back, but his disciple’s display of power made them think better of it.
“It had been two months, and Chen Beixuan was still nowhere to be seen. I wager he had chickened out.” Some people could help but sneer at Chen Beixuan.
Meanwhile, in the Medicine God Valley Sect, Chen Fan’s cultivation had reached the most critical moment.