Not Our First Meeting

The once-bustling hall had fallen into an eerie silence.

The martial artists who could enter through that bronze gate were no nobodies.

Just as Lan Shi had said, they either had the skills or the connections. So among the martial artists present, there couldn't be many true fools.

With his striking looks, the long banner in his hand, and the Sword Box on his back, Chen Ye was clearly no ordinary man.

Add to that his question, brimming with murderous intent, and any smart person should have known Chen Ye had come looking for trouble.

But drunkards were another matter.

The Bone-Splitting Mad Owl had no idea how much he'd drunk. His steps were already unsteady as he staggered up to Chen Ye and shouted, "I've broken countless legs! How the hell should I know which one you're asking about?! You dare use my young master's name? You're asking to die!"

The smell of alcohol made Chen Ye frown. He swept his gaze around the hall and quickly picked out several martial artists near the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl.

They all looked like vicious criminals. Were these people really planning to rescue those boys and girls?

Chen Ye had run out of patience. He asked again, "I'll ask one more time. Who beat up the owner and staff of Baiye Teahouse?"

At his words, the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl's companions finally reacted. One after another, they grabbed their weapons.

Chen Ye turned to the stunned Lan Shi and asked with a smile, "Didn't you say weapons weren't allowed at the Horizontal Saber Inn?"

The young girl still seemed unable to shake off her shock and confusion. At Chen Ye's question, she merely nodded on instinct. "They really aren't allowed... Ah, watch out!"

As Lan Shi cried out, a gust of force shot toward Chen Ye's lower body.

It was the drunken Bone-Splitting Mad Owl. Ignoring the Horizontal Saber Inn's rules, he drew the Bronze Short Staff at his waist and swung it at Chen Ye.

Chen Ye hadn't been prepared. He hadn't expected the drunkard to suddenly attack.

He'd clearly underestimated the ruthlessness of martial artists.

What did it matter that the Horizontal Saber Inn forbade fighting? Anyone who followed the rules wouldn't have entered the martial world in the first place.

But even caught off guard, Chen Ye was much faster than his attacker. The Ten Thousand Soul Banner slid several inches to the side, blocking the Bronze Short Staff.

A deafening bang rang out as the Single-Legged Bronze Man slammed into the banner's shaft.

The shaft was barely two fingers thick. It should have snapped, but it was the Bronze Short Staff that bounced away from the collision.

The Bone-Splitting Mad Owl had swung with such force that the web of his hand split open. Blood sprayed out along with the Bronze Short Staff.

But an injury that small wasn't nearly enough to pay the price.

He had struck the Ten Thousand Soul Banner.

A chilling wind rose, and the Ten Thousand Soul Banner snapped in the air. The Bone-Splitting Mad Owl suddenly pitched forward and crashed to the floor with a thud, his entire head slamming into the wooden boards.

Splinters and blood flew everywhere. If the floor hadn't been made of wood, the impact would have shattered his skull.

Mortals couldn't see resentful souls, so they had no idea what had happened. Only Chen Ye could see the hideous ghost pressing down on the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl.

Yang Chongguang roared, "Despicable wretch! How dare you hurt my benefactor!"

"Benefactor, put him in the Ten Thousand Soul Banner. This old man will make sure he can't even cry!"

Chen Ye shook his head and told Yang Chongguang, "Hold on. Let me get the whole story first."

Chen Ye was speaking to Yang Chongguang, but the mortals couldn't see him. They thought Chen Ye was telling the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl, whose head was split open, not to act rashly.

He hadn't even moved. How had the eight-foot-tall Bone-Splitting Mad Owl fallen?

Could this young man's martial arts be so powerful that no one could even see him move?

The crowd was both shocked and afraid. The Bone-Splitting Mad Owl's companions looked especially grim. They still gripped their weapons, but their hands were trembling.

They stood no chance against martial arts this unfathomable.

When Chen Ye's gaze swept over them, one of the martial artists immediately called out, "Friend, fighting is forbidden at the Horizontal Saber Inn! Are you going to break the rules of the martial world?!"

He wasn't speaking to Chen Ye. He was appealing to whoever stood behind the Horizontal Saber Inn.

The commotion had drawn the staff over. They were all nimble martial artists, and a fat man who looked like the innkeeper pushed through the crowd and came to Chen Ye.

The fat man froze for a moment when he saw Chen Ye's face. But he had come over in a fit of anger, and he soon recovered. He cupped his hands toward Chen Ye. "Friend, whatever your grievance, you can settle it outside the inn. I'm sure you know the rules of the Horizontal Saber Inn."

Chen Ye smiled. "Are you the owner of the Horizontal Saber Inn?"

The fat innkeeper said, "No, no. The proprietor isn't here today. I'm just the innkeeper. My friends in the martial world are kind enough to call me..."

Chen Ye impatiently waved a hand. He didn't want to hear another of those tired martial-world nicknames.

"Innkeeper, fighting is forbidden at the Horizontal Saber Inn. He attacked just now. Didn't you see? And even if you didn't, surely everyone here saw it clearly."

Chen Ye had cut him off, and the fat innkeeper's expression darkened.

He'd spent years roaming the martial world, relying on the Horizontal Saber Inn's reputation, and no one had ever dared to treat him so rudely. The kid was certainly handsome, but did he really think looks alone could carry him through the martial world?

Since Chen Ye showed him no respect, the fat innkeeper stopped being courteous too. "I don't care what your grievances are. The rules are the rules. Besides, he was dead drunk and lost control. You've already grievously injured him, so he's been punished. But you broke my inn's rules and damaged our floor. How do you propose to settle that debt?"

"So being drunk is an excuse. In that case..."

Chen Ye swept his long banner sideways, hooked an unopened jar of rice wine, and took a hearty swig. Then he turned to the fat innkeeper and said, "I'm drunk now too. Will you show me some leniency?"

The fat innkeeper narrowed his eyes and sneered. "Of course. Once your head's stuffed into the floor, I'll make an exception for you too!"

At that, Chen Ye lost interest.

"I thought the martial world might be interesting. But in the end, it's the same old thing: righteousness can't beat connections, and connections can't beat fists. What a disappointment."

The fat innkeeper paid no heed to Chen Ye's words. He slowly raised his right hand, and the staff beside him moved in practiced formation, surrounding Chen Ye.

Strange noises came from the corridors around the hall. Hidden murderous intent closed in on Chen Ye.

After all these years, they'd seen plenty of people relying on their martial arts to cause trouble in the inn.

The inn staff were all skilled martial artists, and there were concealed weapons and traps hidden all around. No matter how strong you were, causing trouble here was suicide!

Chen Ye didn't move. He merely gave the Ten Thousand Soul Banner a gentle shake.

Terrifying shrieks echoed from the black banner, turning everyone's faces pale.

Dozens of resentful souls flew out and pounced on the people in the hall.

Everyone who harbored hostility or murderous intent toward Chen Ye was pinned to the floor just like the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl, their heads driven deep into the wooden boards.

Martial artists relied on physical strength; cultivators relied on spiritual energy.

A cultivator in the Qiling Realm could only see spiritual energy. There wasn't much difference between one and a mortal. Back when Chen Ye went hunting, he'd needed to borrow a zombie and hadn't dared to act himself.

But the Qi Sea Realm was another matter. The qi sea absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, allowing one to cast spells and use magical treasures. The gap between mortals and cultivators was as vast as the distance between clouds and mud.

Heads thudded against the floor one after another, as if bowing to Chen Ye. The sight turned the remaining onlookers pale, and they hurriedly fled.

Chen Ye paid no attention to the bystanders as they scattered. He turned and looked at Lan Shi, who was edging toward the exit.

The young girl looked terrified, and she was trying to slip away with the crowd.

But Chen Ye called out to her.

"Miss Lan, please wait."

Lan Shi didn't dare stop. She was about to use her lightness skill when she found her body rigid, as if a thousand-pound weight had fallen on her.

Panicked, Lan Shi hurriedly said to Chen Ye, "Young master, I really don't know anything! I only mistook you for someone else. Please spare me, I beg you, spare me! Please let me live!"

Chen Ye walked up to Lan Shi and smiled. "Things have come to this, and you're still acting. You're far more committed than I expected. But let's save each other some time.

"Miss Lan, you knew from the start that I wasn't Young Master Jiang, didn't you? You deliberately misidentified me and brought me here, then deliberately called out Young Master Jiang's name so I'd get into a fight with them. You were already waiting here before I entered the Horizontal Saber Inn."

Lan Shi hastily said, "Young master, you've misunderstood. I met you for the first time at the Tongmen. I really didn't..."

Chen Ye said nothing. He simply stared into the young girl's eyes.

At first, Chen Ye hadn't noticed anything amiss. But just now, even the fat innkeeper had taken quite a while to recover when their eyes met.

If even a man had reacted that way, how had Lan Shi merely widened her eyes when she first saw him, then immediately greeted him?

The reason was simple: this wasn't the first time the young girl had seen him.

The allure Mo Ci had mentioned was simply the shock mortals felt when they first saw a god. Perhaps they were truly dazzled at first, but they quickly recovered.

She had been watching him long before. Their chance encounter at the bronze gate had been an act, which was why her reaction had given her away.

Was the plan to rescue the boys and girls real or not? And how had she known it would catch his attention?

Chen Ye had lost interest in the martial world's childish games, so he might as well lay everything out.