Jin Peng and the others stood proudly in the air above the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, looking down at the wreckage strewn below, their gazes settling on Chen Xin and Gu Rong.
"Chen Xin, Gu Rong, you lost."
Jin Peng's voice was neither loud nor soft, yet it carried clearly in every direction.
"If you lose, you must have the sense to accept defeat."
Jin Peng raised a hand and pointed at Gu Rong. "Just now, you said you would make our Body Sect's Young Sect Master kneel in repentance? Now, Gu Rong, kneel before me and apologize for those words."
Gu Rong lay amid the ruins, covered in blood, bloody froth accompanying even his breaths.
He gritted his teeth, struggling to stand.
"Kneel before me!"
The phantom of Elder Zhao's enormous foot pressed down over Gu Rong's head. Gu Rong gave a muffled groan and lay flat on the ground, unable to move another inch.
"I..."
Gu Rong's voice was hoarse, laden with endless humiliation. "I... apologize..."
"Louder! Haven't you eaten?"
Elder Zhou barked coldly.
Gu Rong trembled all over, his clenched teeth grinding audibly. Finally, he closed his eyes and shouted with every ounce of strength in his body, "I, Gu Rong... apologize for my earlier arrogant words!"
Chen Xin knelt on one knee amid the rubble, leaning on his sword. Watching Gu Rong suffer such humiliation, he dug his nails into his flesh, blood seeping between his fingers.
Only then did Jin Peng nod in satisfaction, sweeping his gaze over everyone in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect below.
"From now on, whenever any of you from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect encounters a disciple of our Body Sect, keep your heads down and take the long way around."
"If anyone fails to follow the rules-"
Jin Peng paused. "I will tear down this sect compound, brick by brick and tile by tile."
As he spoke,
Jin Peng turned to Ning Fengzhi again and said calmly, "Furthermore, the five Titled Douluo of our Body Sect left our mountain, delaying our cultivation. Your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect must compensate us for that loss as well!"
"Please state your terms."
Ning Fengzhi nodded in humiliation. "Our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will do everything we can to fulfill them."
Jin Peng held up one finger. "First, one hundred million Gold Soul Coins."
"Deliver them to our Body Sect within three days."
One hundred million Gold Soul Coins.
The moment those words left his mouth, the disciples of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect below all sucked in a breath of cold air.
However wealthy their Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect might be, producing such an astronomical sum would surely strain its very sinews and bones.
Ning Fengzhi clenched his fists but voiced no refusal.
Yet Jin Peng showed no intention of stopping, raising a second finger.
"Next, rare metals. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has been operating for years, so you should have quite a few mineral veins. I want ninety percent of the rare metal output from every mineral vein under your sect's name, for ten years!"
"And spirit medicine. Fifty plants, each at least a thousand years old."
"As for Soul Beast materials, regardless of species, I want thirty complete sets from beasts at least ten thousand years old."
With every sentence Jin Peng spoke, Ning Fengzhi's expression grew uglier.
Spirit herbs, Soul Beast materials, refined iron veins-converted into money, these things were worth far more than those one hundred million Gold Soul Coins!
Especially surrendering ninety percent of their mines' output for ten years.
That was no different from slicing flesh straight off the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and continuing to slice for ten whole years!
"Senior, isn't this a little too excessive?"
Ning Fengzhi truly could not hold back any longer.
"Don't rush. I'm not finished yet."
Yet Jin Peng merely smiled faintly. "Finally, there are the Soul Bones."
"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is, after all, one of the Upper Three Sects. Surely you have Soul Bones? Our Body Sect doesn't want much. Just three Soul Bones, each at least ten thousand years old."
"Deliver them to the Body Sect within three months."
At those words,
Chen Xin abruptly raised his head.
"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect... has no Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones!"
That was the truth.
Although the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect possessed immense wealth and extensive holdings, Soul Bones were always something one could only chance upon, never obtain on demand.
The sect had only a few unabsorbed Soul Bones, all of them low in age.
Jin Peng glanced down at Chen Xin, his gaze indifferent. "That is your problem."
"In three days, deliver one hundred million Gold Soul Coins to the Body Sect. Within three months, deliver this year's rare metals, the spirit medicine, the Soul Beast materials, and three Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones. All of it."
"If even one thing is missing-"
Jin Peng's voice was level. "I wouldn't mind turning the Upper Three Sects into the Upper Two Sects."
His words fell.
Jin Peng and the other four turned into streaks of light and vanished into the horizon.
Within the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the silence was as deathly as a grave.
An unknown length of time passed before the first person made a sound-
It was Ning Rongrong.
Looking at her blood-soaked Grandpa Sword and Grandpa Bone, Ning Rongrong burst into loud sobs, broke free of her maid's hand, and staggered toward them.
"Grandpa Sword, Grandpa Bone, don't scare Rongrong..."
For the first time, Chen Xin did not comfort Ning Rongrong. He braced both hands against the greenstone ground, his head hanging so low that no one could see his expression.
Gu Rong, meanwhile, had already passed out.
Ning Fengzhi stood where he was, looking up in the direction where Jin Peng and the other four had disappeared. After a long while, he closed his eyes and drew a deep breath.
Some time later,
Ning Fengzhi opened his eyes and spoke hoarsely. "Pass down my orders... all stewards and retainers are to gather in the main hall in two hours to discuss matters."
"And-"
"Bring me every ledger from the sect's storehouses. I will count everything, item by item."
"Gather one hundred million Gold Soul Coins within three days... find three Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones and fifty plants of Thousand-Year Spirit Medicine within three months, and..."
Ning Fengzhi's voice had gone hoarse. "No matter what, we must gather it all!"
More than a dozen li away, scouts from the various factions took in everything.
From Jin Peng and the others making Gu Rong kneel and apologize to those compensation terms with their astronomical prices, everyone witnessed the entire process.
"How is this compensation? They're skinning the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect alive."
"Too ruthless!"
"It started as nothing more than a conflict between juniors. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's young lady was a little spoiled and willful, but this revenge from the Body Sect-"
"Making Bone Douluo kneel and apologize, humiliating the entire sect in public, demanding astronomical compensation... this isn't establishing their might anymore. It's grinding the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's face into the mud."
"They're practically bandits. No, they're worse than bandits!"
"Bandits rob you once and leave. The Body Sect wants to suck the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's blood for ten years."
The scouts from these factions all discussed the Body Sect's tyrannical actions among themselves.
Their thoughts were remarkably unanimous-
The Body Sect was a sect of bandits, and terrifyingly powerful ones at that!
No matter what, they must never provoke disciples of the Body Sect in the future. Otherwise, what had happened to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect today would happen to them tomorrow!
As the scouts departed, the news spread to every corner of the continent at an astonishing speed.
High in the sky, Jin Peng and the other four sped above the clouds.
"Hahahaha!"
Jin Peng laughed aloud. "That felt incredible!"
"Ning Fengzhi's voice was shaking when he admitted defeat," Elder Wei said with a laugh. "And Gu Rong's face went green when he knelt and apologized."
Elder Zhao curled his lip. "They lost a lifetime's worth of face today."
Jin Peng's voice rang out. "Think back to our era-Shrek, the Sun Moon Empire, the Holy Spirit Cult. Which of them wasn't a ruthless force?"
"But now?"
Jin Peng spread his arms. "Aside from Spirit Hall, all the other factions are far too weak!"
"Our Body Sect can do whatever we want!"
Elder Qian patted his chest. "Haha, come on, let's go back and report the good news!"
"One hundred million Gold Soul Coins, ten years of mine output, spirit herbs and Soul Beast materials, and three Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones-our Body Sect's rise begins today!"
The five figures turned into streaks of light, their laughter echoing among the clouds.
Before you continue