Aristocratic Clans, Arrogant and Overbearing

Inside the inn, Dongfang Pangpang's punch had not only left Lin Fang stunned; Shen Zhou and the others were just as dumbfounded.

San Mazi exclaimed, "Whoa, when did Dongfang Pangpang get so gutsy?"

Lin Fang clutched his face and stared in disbelief. "You dare hit me?"

As a member of the Lin Family, he had always been feared or fawned over by everyone. And now someone had actually dared to hit him?

Once he came to his senses, Lin Fang flew into a rage and shouted to the men behind him, "What are you standing around for? Get him!"

The Lin Family's men snapped out of it and immediately drew their swords, charging at Dongfang Hongyu.

Shen Zhou had been curious to see how Dongfang Pangpang would handle the situation. But who would have thought that after throwing his punch, the latter would immediately hop behind him, shove him forward, and shout, "You take them on! Beat them up! I'll cheer you on!"

"..."

Shen Zhou was dumbstruck.

Fuck me!

So you were only so gutsy because you'd already decided I'd clean up your mess?

With the Lin Family men already upon them, Shen Zhou had no time to argue with Dongfang Pangpang. He figured this was the perfect chance to test his true strength after body cultivation, so he didn't even summon the Taixuan Sword. Relying only on his fists, the thousand-year-tree-bark toughness of the first layer of the Golden Body Art, and the strength and physique he'd gained from cultivating the Wild Desolate Art, he threw himself into hand-to-hand combat with the Lin Family's men.

Thud, thud, thud...

Every punch landed solidly, every move hit hard.

Shen Zhou fought eight opponents alone, and then proved two things through firsthand experience.

First, two fists really couldn't beat four hands.

Second, his current strength after body cultivation wasn't quite as impressive as he'd imagined.

So from the very start of the fight, Shen Zhou was at a disadvantage and got beaten until he was yelping.

A Dai and the others joined the fight later, but they'd either only been cultivating for a short time or weren't even as strong as Shen Zhou. The outcome was obvious.

Just as Shen Zhou was about to activate his Entry and wreak havoc, Tan Tong appeared. With his cultivation at the Coagulation Eighth Realm and his strength at the Golden Body Art's second layer, the Stone Skin Realm, he beat up Lin Fang and his men.

After being beaten, Lin Fang looked at Shen Zhou, unconvinced. "If you've got guts, don't call for help! Let's see if I can't beat you until you're on your knees begging!"

Shen Zhou stuck out his chin. "Come on, let's see who ends up on their knees begging. You should be glad my senior brother came to save you. Otherwise, I'd have left you in pieces."

"You're only at the Blood Coagulation Third Realm, and you're still running your mouth? If your senior brother weren't here, I'd beat you with one hand."

Shen Zhou couldn't take it anymore. With a flick, the Taixuan Sword appeared in his palm. Tan Tong hurriedly stopped him and urged, "Forget it, forget it... This guy isn't worth drawing your sword over. Where would we stay if this inn got wrecked?"

Lin Fang still had no idea how outmatched he was. At last, he pointed at Shen Zhou and Tan Tong and threatened, "Fine. Just you wait... Once the rest of my Lin Family gets here, I'll make you regret everything you did today. Let's go!"

With that, Lin Fang left, looking as though he'd lost the battle but won the war.

In his eyes, Shen Zhou and the others had only saved face thanks to his senior brother. In a real fight, he could have suppressed the whole lot of them by himself.

After Lin Fang left, Shen Zhou was still fuming. "Damn it! If I'd known that bastard was so damn irritating, I should've chopped him with my sword from the start. Look at the way he strutted around... I'm so pissed!"

For a moment, Tan Tong didn't know what to say.

It was hard to even know what to make of it.

The second day after they arrived in Mine Market Town.

Shen Zhou got up early in the morning with a long face, in a foul mood.

After what Lin Fang had pulled the night before, Shen Zhou hadn't slept well at all.

When Old Man Ji saw him, he asked Dongfang Hongyu, "What's wrong with that kid? Why's he got a face like that first thing in the morning? Constipated?"

Dongfang Hongyu sneaked a glance at Shen Zhou, then quietly replied, "He's petty. He's still holding a grudge over what happened last night."

Old Man Ji couldn't help laughing.

It really was funny. A guy who could cut down someone in the Celestial Firmament Realm with a sword had ended up getting beaten by a few young scions in the Blood Coagulation Realm. It was hard not to laugh.

When Shen Zhou saw Old Man Ji's gloating expression, his face darkened even more. "Old man, are you looking for a beating?"

Old Man Ji slowly took a puff of his pipe. "If you don't use your sword, I can spar with you. I could even give you some pointers while we're at it..."

The Taixuan Sword appeared in an instant.

Shen Zhou gripped the sword. "Come on, let's spar!"

Old Man Ji nearly choked on his smoke. He immediately backed down. "Forget it, forget it. I think I'll go out for a stroll instead."

The Three Little Ones nearly lost it when they saw Old Man Ji get put in his place.

By now, they were used to Shen Zhou and Old Man Ji bickering. It was more entertaining than listening to a storyteller or watching a puppet show.

To cheer Shen Zhou up, the Three Little Ones dragged him back to the market that morning.

Besides food, the market had plenty of fun things to see.

There were ring toss games, sugar figurine blowers, acrobatic performances... And today, it was clear there were many more people in the market than the day before.

"People from the Five Great Families, people from the Qin Family, and even rogue cultivators who came rushing over after hearing the news to join in the excitement. They're practically crammed into every corner of Mine Market Town."

San Mazi grumbled about it.

As they strolled along, a large group of martial artists suddenly poured onto the street ahead, clearing a path through the crowd.

Shen Zhou and the others were no exception. They were pushed to the very back of the crowd, where they watched a large procession of carriages and horses enter the market in grand style.

"Who's that? What a show they're putting on."

"Shh, keep your voice down. Those are the Wu Family's carriages. I heard the heads of all the great families would attend the negotiations between the Xu and Qin Families this time. The one riding in that carriage is probably the Wu Family Head!"

"Ah..."

Hearing the people around them discuss it, Shen Zhou and the others finally realized that the procession belonged to the Wu Family, one of the great clans.

A Dai couldn't help marveling, "A royal carriage, with pedestrians forced to make way. This is almost as grand as the emperor himself!"

Dongfang Pangpang's family also put on a considerable show in the East Continent, so he was used to it. "People from the great families have always been like this. Otherwise, how would anyone know how extraordinary their families are?"

Shen Zhou curled his lip. "Extraordinary? They're just throwing their weight around to bully people."

Only after the Wu Family's procession had gone far did the pedestrians return to normal.

After that interruption, Shen Zhou was no longer in the mood to stroll around. He told the Three Little Ones and Dongfang Hongyu to have fun on their own, then headed back to the inn.

Once he was back in his room, Shen Zhou didn't waste any time. He swallowed a lingzhi and began cultivating the Wild Desolate Art, using his qi and blood along with the medicinal power to rapidly strengthen his flesh and physique.

Not long after the technique began circulating, a faint layer of red light seeped from the surface of his body, enclosing him like a cocoon.

Had a powerful cultivator been there, they might have keenly sensed how Shen Zhou's qi and blood surged through his body like a mighty river, powerful and turbulent. His muscles had grown denser, and his bones had become tougher and more lustrous.

It was a tempering that came from the inside out.

Grrr...

Who knew how long had passed before Shen Zhou's stomach rumbled with hunger. His qi and blood had also weakened considerably; it was a sign that he'd refined too much.

Shen Zhou quickly stopped cultivating, then swallowed a medicinal herb and refined it. Only then did he recover.

He clenched his fist, and surging power instantly welled up from every part of his body. The potential was astounding.

"Blood Coagulation Fourth Realm!"

He'd broken through four realms in less than a month of cultivation. If word got out, it would shock a lot of people.

Of course, aside from cheating with his Entry and having the support of a powerful cultivation method like the Wild Desolate Art, his earlier cultivation had also been relatively easy. Making progress this quickly would probably be much harder later on.

"Whatever. I'll worry about that when the time comes."

Shen Zhou took it in stride.

By the time he stepped out of his room, it was already afternoon.

He'd just broken through and felt refreshed. He was about to order some food to fill his stomach when Xi Mei suddenly came running in from outside, crying. The instant she saw Shen Zhou, she shouted anxiously, "Brother Zhou, hurry! Brother A Dai and Brother San Mazi are about to be beaten to death!"

Shen Zhou's expression changed at once. "What?"

Let's briefly turn back the clock.

After Shen Zhou returned to the inn, the Three Little Ones and Dongfang Hongyu kept exploring the market.

Around noon, they stopped at a shop selling steamed glutinous rice cake and ate some.

Xi Mei loved the cake's soft, sticky sweetness and was happily eating when a huge tiger's head suddenly poked over her shoulder. Its tongue darted out to lick the cake in her hand.

Caught off guard, Xi Mei was startled. The cake in her hand flew out and landed right on the tiger's head.

The tiger roared in anger, frightening the passersby into retreating.

Only then did A Dai, San Mazi, and the others react. They hurriedly pulled Xi Mei back, then turned to look. The tiger was five meters long, with a tail like an iron pillar. Standing up, it towered higher than the awnings the roadside vendors had set up. Its striped body and the king-shaped marking on its forehead made it look ferocious, its killing intent overwhelming.

While A Dai and the others were still wondering how such a huge beast had wandered into the town, a young master and five or six of his men hurried over from behind the tiger.

When the young master saw the sticky rice cake smeared across his beloved pet's head, his face immediately darkened. He barked at Xi Mei, "You little slave, how dare you dirty my War Pet? Slap her!"

At his command, the young master's men charged forward to hit her.

A Dai and San Mazi immediately stepped in front of Xi Mei and argued, "Your tiger suddenly rushed over and scared her. Instead of apologizing, you're blaming us for getting it dirty. Do you have any sense of reason?"

The young master sneered. "What are you supposed to be? My War Pet has the bloodline of a rare demon beast and is worth ten thousand gold. Even if you tied all of yourselves together and sold you, you wouldn't be worth one of its whiskers. And you expect me to apologize? Do you think you're worthy?"

At those words, A Dai and San Mazi clenched their fists at the same time.

This was too much!

Not only was the other side unreasonable, they were saying the boys weren't even as valuable as a beast. They were arrogant and overbearing to the extreme!

Dongfang Hongyu stepped forward. Although he knew the other side was at fault, he also knew that if they tried to argue the matter now, they would undoubtedly be the ones to suffer.

So he gave A Dai and San Mazi a look telling them not to act rashly, then addressed the other side. "Brother, I'm Dongfang Hongyu of the Dongfang Clan in the East Continent. Could you let this matter go for my sake? I'm willing to offer a thousand gold as compensation. Would that be acceptable?"

The young master curled up the corner of his mouth. "The Dongfang Clan? It may be a wealthy clan in the East Continent, but it doesn't carry much weight in the Southern Prefecture. Still, if you sincerely apologize, that'll do. I'll give you a chance. Pay ten thousand gold, and leave that girl's right hand behind. Then I'll be magnanimous and let you off this once. How about it?"

"What? You want her hand?"

A Dai and San Mazi's expressions changed again and again.

Xi Mei's face had gone deathly pale with fright, and for a moment she couldn't speak.

Dongfang Hongyu's expression darkened. "I can pay the ten thousand gold, but taking an arm... isn't that going too far?"

The young master's expression turned severe. "Do you think I'm some street vendor, haggling over the terms I've given you?

"Anyway, I gave you your chance. If you don't want it... don't blame me for taking matters into my own hands!

"Get them!"

The young man's men advanced again.

A Dai and San Mazi gritted their teeth. "If you want to lay a hand on our little sister, you'll have to get past us first!"

With that, the two of them charged into battle against the young master's men without hesitation.

But they hadn't been cultivating for long, and their strength wasn't anything special. They'd barely traded a few blows before one was kicked flying and hit the ground, spitting blood; the other was pinned to the ground, unable to move.

Seeing this, Dongfang Hongyu hurriedly said to Xi Mei behind him, "I'll try to hold them off. Go find Shen Zhou, quickly!"