Sword Drawn, Ghosts and Gods Alarmed

"Yes, yes. He's just a little kid—how could he possibly be that strong? Du Bingzhao, you nearly died there, didn't you? Did you find some stooge to brag about because you were afraid we'd punish you?"

"Du Bingzhao, kneel and apologize now, and we can let bygones be bygones."

Voices of doubt rose from many of the elders.

Du Bingzhao's expression changed, and he said anxiously, with anger in his voice, "You may not believe me, but you cannot accuse this gentleman of being a stooge!"

"Haha, absurd! He is only a seven-year-old child. How much strength could he possibly have? Fine, since you are so certain, let him prove it for everyone to see. If he cannot, Du Bingzhao, your cultivation will be crippled and you will be thrown out of the sect. Do you dare accept this wager?" Wang Tong said gravely.

"Why wouldn't I dare?" Du Bingzhao held his head high, his conscience clear.

"Good! Then let this 'expert' who is supposedly stronger than me prove himself." Wang Tong looked down at Chen Xiaofan with lofty disdain.

Many of the elders and disciples nearby wore mocking expressions. He was merely a seven-year-old child. Daring to come here and swindle them was bad enough; they had already shown him mercy by not rebuking him. Yet he still remained so calm.

Du Bingzhao turned around and cupped his hands toward Chen Xiaofan in salute. "I am truly sorry, sir. The people of my sect are blind and fail to recognize a true dragon. I must trouble you to show them a little of your skill and prove yourself. Would that be all right?"

"No matter." Chen Xiaofan lightly waved his sleeve, swept his gaze over the crowd, and drew his sword.

"How should I prove it? Would splitting this hall apart be enough?" he asked.

Split the hall apart?

The elders were stunned, all showing looks of disbelief.

This hall was built from steel and ironwood. It was indestructible. Even the sect master, famed for his abundant Internal Energy, could not split it apart. Yet this child spoke as though he could casually cleave it open?

"Forget the hall. If you damage it, where will we live? That stone stele is forged from Mysterious Iron and is even more durable than this hall. Use that to prove yourself." Wang Tong immediately raised the difficulty to a hellish level, deliberately intending to humiliate him.

A stele with defenses stronger than the hall—let's see how you split that.

He was only a seven-year-old child, yet he dared openly come to his Tiangang Sect to swindle people. If Wang Tong did not put him in his place, would people not think everyone in the Tiangang Sect was useless?

After saying that, Wang Tong did not even wait for Chen Xiaofan's agreement before pointing at a stone stele nearby.

Chen Xiaofan turned and looked. On the left side of the hall stood a massive stele, nine feet tall and three feet wide and thick. It was black as ink from top to bottom, incomparably heavy.

"You really think highly of me." Guessing that it was a heavy object used by the Tiangang Sect for training, he murmured to himself.

Then, without another word, he drew his sword and slashed.

He then sheathed his sword, clasped his hands behind his back, and stood calmly.

"What, that was your sword strike?" Wang Tong sneered.

He had moved so fast that not even a flash of sword light had been seen. The stele was completely undamaged. Was that all?

The others nearby also wore complicated expressions. Was that all? Really?

"Don't rush. Let the stele react for a while," Chen Xiaofan said calmly.

The moment his words fell, a loud crack rang out. Amid billowing smoke, the stele suddenly split apart and crashed to the ground!

Boom!

The tremendous impact smashed through the ground, and the two halves of the stele blasted two enormous pits into the earth!

The entire hall could not withstand the shock and began to sway precariously!

"What?!"

"Gasp!"

"He... he really... really split it apart!"

A chorus of sharp gasps suddenly erupted from the crowd!

Every elder, disciple, and protector, including Sect Master Wang Tong, was shaken to the core and stood frozen like wooden chickens!

Only Du Bingzhao had expected this. He remained calm where he stood, utterly out of place among the stunned crowd around him.

A long while later.

"Gasp! I misjudged you earlier. I was wrong! You truly are stronger than me, the sect master. To be honest, Wang Tong thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. I now solemnly apologize to you. Sir, please accept this bow from Wang Tong!"

The Tiangang Sect's sect master tumbled down from his seat of honor, landed on his knees, and repeatedly bowed.

The others looked at one another, then hurriedly dropped to their knees as well, kowtowing over and over.

"Sir, you are so powerful. We were wrong just now, and we apologize to you!"

"We were blind and failed to recognize a true dragon. We apologize to you and Du Bingzhao!"

The sight left many of the servants outside the door dumbfounded. Every high-ranking member of the sect had actually knelt before that child? Good heavens, did that child have to be so terrifyingly powerful?

They hurriedly knelt as well, not daring to say a word.

At that moment, everyone in the Tiangang Sect was kneeling, none daring to look directly at Chen Xiaofan.

Though this expert was young, he gave them the feeling of a towering mountain. With just a casual display of skill, he had shown them a mountain they could never cross.

"Enough. I only came because I was invited. Also, I came to sell this scorpion..." Chen Xiaofan explained the matter.

The rest was much simpler. The Tiangang Sect's sect master personally invited Chen Xiaofan to take the seat of honor, served him a fragrant cup of tea, and repeatedly spoke of how he had offended him earlier and hoped he would not take it to heart. His words were incomparably respectful, completely unlike before.

He then calculated the price of the scorpion for Chen Xiaofan. He was fairly honest about it, giving him a full 3,500 taels of silver. Afraid that Chen Xiaofan would find it troublesome, he specially sent someone to the bank at the foot of the mountain to exchange it for Silver Notes of equal value—mainly because the Tiangang Sect usually dealt in cash and had no Silver Notes on the mountain.

Afterward, they held a welcoming feast for Chen Xiaofan, with Wang Tong personally entertaining him.

During the banquet, every elder and protector apologized to him one by one and punished themselves by drinking three cups.

By the time it ended, two hours had passed.

"May I ask whether Senior would be interested in remaining at my Tiangang Sect? If you stay, the strength of my Tiangang Sect will surely increase greatly. From then on..." Wang Tong said respectfully, clearly eager.

Chen Xiaofan raised a hand to interrupt him. "No. I am going to Mount Wudang to take True Man Zhang as my master."

"What? You wish to take True Man Zhang as your master? That makes sense. You are already so formidable at seven years old. If you enter Wudang, you will surely become the next True Man Zhang. We are far beneath you!"

"Wait, he is already this powerful at seven. True Man Zhang may not even be his equal. His future path will go much farther than True Man Zhang's!"

"Yes, yes, yes, I misspoke earlier. This senior is truly an extraordinary person. In the future, he will surely surpass his master!"

The crowd grew lively with excitement.

Wang Tong then took out a Silver Note worth ten thousand taels and respectfully said, "Senior, this is a small token of my esteem. Please do not refuse it. I hope you will accept it."

Meeting such a prodigy was like smoke rising from the Tiangang Sect's ancestral graves. If they did not hurry to cling to him now, would they not be fools?

Chen Xiaofan did not stand on ceremony. He accepted the Silver Note and said calmly, "Rest assured."

Afterward, Wang Tong enthusiastically invited him to stay for a few more days. Chen Xiaofan ate, drank, and rested well there for three days, then set out again on the morning of the fourth day.

After descending the mountain, Chen Xiaofan did not idle away the journey. As he walked, he fused the many martial arts of the Tiangang Sect within his mind.

Because your comprehension was heaven-defying, as you thought more deeply, you successfully integrated all the martial arts of the Tiangang Sect and created an entirely new sword technique...