Capital City Storms — Petty Clowns

After thanking the auction house guards who had escorted us back to the manor, we chatted and laughed all the way toward the main hall. We usually gathered in the outer hall; only when matters were important would we discuss them in the secret chamber within the rear garden. The hall faced the artificial lake outside. A gentle breeze stirred droplets from the lake and brushed them across our faces—a true pleasure.

When we entered the hall, Sister Yu and the others were still immersed in the day's enormous profits. Two million nine hundred thousand taels of silver was no small sum! Even a relatively wealthy tycoon generally possessed only around one million taels of silver in assets. The distinguished guests in the auction house's private rooms were usually members of the Four Great Families, count families, or baron families. A family with assets of roughly one hundred million taels of silver could generally be granted the title of a baron family; with around one billion taels, they could become a count family. Great families generally possessed over ten billion taels of silver in assets, and beyond that, they also needed tremendous influence throughout the entire nation.

Seeing how excited everyone was, I knew none of us would likely be able to sleep tonight. On this New Year's Eve, we should have been enjoying ourselves to the fullest, but we had all been busy with the Dragon Soaring Jade Shop, which was about to open. We had not even had the servants prepare anything to celebrate New Year's Eve. Moreover, Star Peak Manor had only just begun operating, and everything had only just started falling into place. There were many matters requiring our attention. Of everyone here, I was probably the most relaxed.

I sensed that those greedy fellows had already entered my manor's gates. Although two among us had reached the Innate Realm, quite a few others were truly too weak. I was not at ease letting them face this band of greedy men. My three disciples, with their three-legged-cat skills, wanted to fight experts? Heh, were they tired of living?

"Everyone, go into the rear garden with Yu. Enter the secret chamber through the rockery with Yu. I've already told him how to open the passage to the secret chamber. Some blind fools have entered our manor. I'll go teach them a proper lesson. Don't you trust me? Go in. Staying here will only hold me back!" I said to Brother Wang and the others. I waved my hand and dismissed the servants waiting nearby as well.

Sister Yu and the others looked at me. Though they all knew that staying here would only distract me, they still hated their own helplessness. Yet they merely smiled at me and followed Yu toward the rear garden.

Lang Feng was furious with himself for being too weak. He had only just crossed into the Innate Realm. Anyone daring to come and rob money tonight would certainly not come without a Second-Rank or Third-Rank Expert leading them. After all, they knew that anyone daring to auction such peerless treasures must have the confidence to protect them, so they would definitely have genuine experts holding the field. With strength like his, barely beyond the Innate Realm, if he went out there... the result was easy to imagine. From now on, he had to train his martial arts well. He would never again let his second brother take action personally. Lang Feng swore silently in his heart.

Everyone followed Zhang Yu into the formation. At that moment, they all secretly resolved to train their martial arts well. They would never allow what happened today to occur again. When foreign enemies attacked, their leader had to face them alone while they hid to one side without daring to emerge. That was a humiliation.

I watched everyone leave the hall. Once my Spiritual Sense detected that they had all entered the rear garden, I finally relaxed. Now I had no more worries holding me back. I could let loose without restraint. I sat quietly in the grand chair identical to the one in the Zhang Family's rear hall, waiting for those fellows to arrive. I could already imagine their fate. A cruel smile rose to my lips despite myself. I would let everyone know that Star Peak Manor was not to be violated. Oh, these fellows were not too bad—they had not attacked the servants I had hired and had come straight for the hall where I was.

I watched as this group of mysterious men flashed into the hall with great speed, displaying no small measure of martial skill. They were all dressed in black nightwear, clearly afraid to show their true faces. But it did not matter. Having met me, they had only one outcome. No matter who they were, there was no need for me to know their identities.

The three groups eyed one another with hostility, yet none wanted to weaken their own forces before obtaining the two million nine hundred thousand taels of silver. They could only glare at one another with wide eyes.

"Why are you all standing around? Attack already. Otherwise, you won't get another chance!" I said to them with a grin.

"Young man, don't be so arrogant. Do you know how strong we are? Being this insolent at such a young age, it seems your elders never properly taught you how to respect your seniors," said the leader of the group in the middle.

"The group on the left only has one Third-Rank Expert and a few nobodies who cannot even take the stage. The group on the right is about the same. As for the group in the middle—the ones who just spoke—you're not bad. One Second-Rank Expert and three Third-Rank Experts. You can at least make me a little excited. The one who spoke has decent martial skills too, with the strength of a Third-Rank Expert. But shouldn't the Second-Rank Expert behind you be the one talking? Enough nonsense. Make your move—I can barely stand it anymore!" I rose from my chair. That fellow actually dared put on airs before me. Who did he think he was? He was nothing but a robber. Smiling, I walked straight toward them.

The eyes of all three groups filled with shock. They looked at one another and knew that the other two groups had also been identified correctly. Yet the groups on the left and right were especially stunned by the middle group's strength. A Second-Rank Expert, along with three Third-Rank Experts—such formidable strength had to belong at least to a count family, perhaps even a great family.

But the middle group was even more shocked. The young man before them, who looked only around twenty, had actually seen through a Second-Rank Expert's strength at a glance. That meant this young man possessed at least the strength of a Second-Rank Expert. Yet they had never heard of such a young Second-Rank Expert! Even Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, had only reached Second-Rank strength at around thirty. Could it be... could there truly be an art of returning to youth?

The man who had spoken immediately retreated to one side, while the Second-Rank Expert behind him stepped forward. Since he had already been exposed, there was no point pretending any longer. He might as well step forward openly.

The Second-Rank Expert looked at the young man before him and was deeply shaken, because he could not sense the other's strength at all. At first, he had thought the other man did not know martial arts, but the young man had seen through his strength at a glance. It seemed he had truly encountered a reclusive master—and one of those legendary peerless masters who had returned to youth.

Once the Second-Rank Expert decided that the man before him was a reclusive master, he immediately became respectful. Cupping his hands, he said, "Since Senior is here, we shall not disturb you further. But I ask Senior to reveal your name, so this junior may know Senior's great reputation." This fellow was already an old man, yet he called someone so young a senior. It truly looked strange. But no one present felt anything was wrong, because Sword Qi was now surging from Zhang Xingfeng's body, a Sword Qi that seemed capable of shaking heaven and earth.

I was already impatient. They wanted to run after learning my strength? Did they take me for such an easy target?

"Since you've come to my place, how could I possibly send you off without giving you some unforgettable memories?" I said as I charged toward them.

What was a difference in essence? What was bullying? One look at my methods would tell you. Like a streak of light, I tossed these fellows one by one into the Eight Formations in the rear garden. With my True Primordial Energy serving as its power source, even Golden Core Stage experts could not escape the Eight Formations, much less experts of the Azure Dragon Continent. At most, they had reached the late Grain Abstinence stage. Without cultivation arts, how could they possibly enter the Golden Core Stage?

The Second-Rank Expert watched the "reclusive master" before him effortlessly hurl members of all three groups northward. He knew what lay in that direction—the legendary Eight Formations! Yet he could only watch as those men were tossed over there like little chicks by the "reclusive master." The gap was too vast. They had no ability to resist whatsoever. Even the several Third-Rank Experts could not hold out for even a moment. Watching the man stroll through the crowd as though taking a leisurely walk, he actually began to feel afraid.

At last, everyone except himself had been thrown into that terrifying formation. Now it was his turn. Steadying himself, he thought that with his Second-Rank strength, he might not be unable to contend with the other.

I looked at the Second-Rank Expert before me. Not bad—under my mental suggestion, he could still stir up his fighting spirit. But resistance was useless all the same. My True Primordial Energy trembled, and my body immediately split into three phantoms. It was mainly because I was too fast; it looked like that.

Amid his astonishment, I grabbed him and hurled him into the formation. Looking at the now-empty hall, a feeling of loneliness welled up within me. Looking across the world, how many people could be my match? I smiled and headed toward the rockery in the rear garden.

From a distance, I saw Yu waiting for me by the rockery. The moment he saw me, Yu immediately came toward me and asked calmly, "How is it outside? Where are those people?"

Though he knew those people could not possibly pose any threat to me, Yu was still somewhat worried.

"Far away at the edge of the sky, yet right before your eyes," I said with a smile.

Yu looked at me, puzzled. Then his eyes suddenly lit up. "Master, are they in the Eight Formations?"

I looked at him in surprise. I knew he was clever, but this was too impressive. Even Yu had guessed it. I smiled approvingly and nodded, indicating that his guess was correct.

"Yu, we have a very important meeting to hold today. Let's enter the secret chamber first," I said to Zhang Yu, suddenly recalling something I had long wanted to do.

Yu said nothing and simply entered the secret passage with me, heading for the secret chamber specially used for important meetings.

At the entrance to the secret chamber, I saw everyone inside discussing how I might deal with those blind little clowns. The moment they saw me, they immediately rushed over and asked how I had dealt with them.

"Master, did you kill them all and throw them out onto the streets?" My eldest disciple was always afraid the world was not chaotic enough.

"Young Master, did you strip off all their clothes and throw them into the artificial lake?" The moment I heard that voice, I knew it was Sister Yu. Being with Brother Wang, she had not learned even a trace of Brother Wang's calmness!

"Enough. Master threw them into the Eight Formations," Yu said, unable to listen any longer, and immediately gave them the answer.

I looked at everyone and said, "Enough talking. Let's hold the meeting now and discuss how we should develop from here on!"

The moment they heard this, everyone immediately fell silent and took their respective seats, quietly waiting for me to speak.