"Yang Zhen, stop right there!"
Another earth-shaking roar came rolling down from the sky. The deafening sound waves, amplified by the vibrations of True Essence, sent chills down the spine.
Yang Zhen was startled by the booming voice. He looked up and immediately broke into a grin.
Ma Dexing no longer looked like an immortal sage. Standing on his flying sword, he showed none of a master's bearing. He was like a furious lion, raging like thunder.
Clearly, Zhang Zongjin must have woken up and told Ma Dexing about the Blood Silkworm.
With everyone watching, Ma Dexing had realized he had fallen for Yang Zhen's trick. He had killed the wrong man in front of all those people, slapping Duan Langcai dead. How could he not fly into a rage from humiliation?
Wang Shuiyan and the others watched, their faces pale. They couldn't understand why Yang Zhen had offended such a powerful figure. Ma Dexing, an elder of the Tonglin Sect, was a Golden Core Realm cultivator and a senior expert renowned throughout the Youyang Kingdom. Yet Yang Zhen had actually driven him into such a state.
A gleeful look flashed across Young Master Lu's eyes. He turned to Wang Shuiyan and said, "This Yang Zhen really is a jinx. Wherever he goes, chickens fly and dogs jump. Now he's even offended an elder of the Tonglin Sect. He simply doesn't know whether to live or die. Still, he has some self-awareness. He knows he's an ill-omened man."
A woman beside him said, still shaken, "Yes, Shuiyan, you actually invited someone like that to travel with us. Luckily, he left on his own. Otherwise, if Senior Ma implicated us, how could either of us bear it?"
Wang Shuiyan stared blankly at Yang Zhen's hastily departing back and said with some anger, "Young Master Yang hasn't offended us. Why are you throwing stones at him when he's down a well?"
Hadn't offended them?
Young Master Lu and the woman exchanged a glance, a trace of awkwardness flashing across their faces.
He had done far more than offend them. Young Master Lu even felt the humiliation of having Yang Zhen snatch away his love. Throwing stones at him when he was down a well would be getting off lightly. If he could, after Ma Dexing killed Yang Zhen, he wanted to go over and give Yang Zhen's corpse a couple of kicks.
"Shui... Miss Wang, in any case, Yang Zhen has provoked Senior Ma into such a fury that he's even pursuing him on his sword. There's no way Yang Zhen can survive."
Young Master Lu regained his gentle, refined expression and said to Wang Shuiyan, "We'd better leave here quickly. Senior Ma isn't someone we can afford to offend."
Wang Shuiyan started to speak but stopped. Then she shook her head. "I just have a feeling Yang Zhen won't die so easily."
"He won't die?" Young Master Lu laughed aloud. "Then let's stay here and watch. If Yang Zhen can escape alive from Senior Ma, I'll..."
"You'll what?" Wang Shuiyan gave Young Master Lu an indifferent glance.
Wang Shuiyan's indifferent expression stung Young Master Lu, making him flush with anger. He gritted his teeth and said, "If Yang Zhen survives, I'll slap myself twice and never speak of him again."
Everyone listened in astonishment, but then they understood. As Young Master Lu had said, Yang Zhen had offended a Golden Core Realm expert. What chance did he have of staying alive? Even if Young Master Lu wanted to slap himself ten thousand times, Yang Zhen probably couldn't give him the chance.
By then, Ma Dexing had caught up on his sword. He shouted again from the air, "You brat Yang Zhen, why haven't you stopped and accepted death?"
"Pah!"
Yang Zhen had no idea Wang Shuiyan and the others were watching him. At those words, he turned and spat, then pointed at Ma Dexing's nose and cursed, "Do you take me for an idiot? I'm not stopping. Stop yourself if you've got the guts!"
Ma Dexing snorted coldly and stopped his sword in midair. Pointing at Yang Zhen, he raged, "I've stopped. You... impudent brat! You dare make a fool of me?"
Yang Zhen roared with laughter, clutching his stomach as he stumbled and nearly fell flat on the ground. "Old fellow, you really are something. I told you to stop, and you stopped."
"You... you little bastard! I'll make you wish you were dead!"
"Like I'm afraid of an old thing like you. Come and catch me!"
Pfft!
Wang Shuiyan couldn't hold it in any longer and burst out laughing. She looked at Yang Zhen, both amused and annoyed.
Young Master Lu and the others also stared in astonishment as Yang Zhen and Ma Dexing traded insults while one chased and the other fled. They all felt their minds struggling to keep up.
Yang Zhen... actually dared to curse Ma Dexing and even played him for a fool?
What kind of man was Ma Dexing? How could he be a fool?
When everyone first heard Yang Zhen tell Ma Dexing to stop, they had thought Yang Zhen was going to fight him to the death. Before they had time to gloat, they saw Yang Zhen turn and run even faster.
He was ridiculously practiced at that maneuver.
Boom!
In his fury, Ma Dexing casually unleashed a towering wave. Terrifying True Essence gathered in midair, forming a spear that shot toward Yang Zhen. The violent wave let out a series of piercing whistles as it tore through the air, making its terrifying power plain to see.
Yang Zhen's heart tightened. He could tell that if this force struck him, he wouldn't be able to withstand it even with his Ancient Elephant Lightning Defense Body perfected. After all, the gap in their strength was simply too great.
There was no time to turn around. Yang Zhen could only sense the approaching danger by instinct. A cloud of white burst beneath his feet, and amid the rolling waves, he shot forward.
Rumble!
An earth-shaking crash rang through the valley. Yang Zhen's body was sent flying, and he landed on the ground in a sorry state. Even the wood he had been carrying on his back fell off.
Yang Zhen wiped a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, bent down to pick up the wood, and planted it on the ground. He stared coldly at Ma Dexing.
Ma Dexing sneered, hovering in midair as he looked down at Yang Zhen. A trace of cold, disdainful killing intent flashed in his eyes.
"Bastard brat, go on, run!"
Many people enjoyed the game of cat and mouse because the feeling of toying with someone in the palm of their hand really was pleasant. Ma Dexing was very fond of it. The more hysterically Yang Zhen struggled, the happier Ma Dexing became.
But to Ma Dexing's surprise, Yang Zhen showed none of the frustration of a cornered dog jumping over a wall. Instead, he looked at Ma Dexing with an increasingly calm expression.
"That was just a warm-up. Why would I need to run from an old fellow like you?"
Yang Zhen laughed aloud. Bracing his right hand on the wooden stick, he pointed his left hand at Ma Dexing. "Come on, old man. I'll give you three sword strikes!"
"What?" Ma Dexing froze, thinking he had heard wrong. When he saw the expression on Yang Zhen's face, he flew into a rage.
Wang Shuiyan and the others were even more dumbfounded. They had seen arrogant people before, but never anyone this arrogant. Yang Zhen was a Foundation Establishment Realm Sixth Layer cultivator, yet faced with a powerful Golden Core Realm existence, he actually wanted to give him three sword strikes?
How was that any different from courting death?
Wang Shuiyan looked at Yang Zhen strangely, as though trying to see where his confidence came from. But she failed. The confidence on Yang Zhen's face was completely natural; it didn't look feigned.
"What a sharp-tongued, sinister and cunning brat. Do you think I need you to give me a chance? And don't hope to provoke me into giving you three sword strikes, either. I can tell you plainly: you're dead!"
As he spoke, Ma Dexing slowly descended. The long sword beneath his feet suddenly erupted in a burst of azure light and charged toward Yang Zhen. For a moment, lightning flashed and thunder roared, while True Essence erupted like surging thunderbolts.
"This sword is called Thunderclap. It's a high-grade heaven-tier Law Treasure. To die beneath this sword could be considered your good fortune!"
"It's over!"
Wang Shuiyan's expression changed. She closed her eyes, unwilling to see what came next.
But just then, Yang Zhen suddenly burst out laughing and slapped his right hand heavily against the wooden stick. "Old thing, you've fallen for it!"
Hum!
A hair-raising wave surged out from the wooden stick in all directions. The entire stick shattered into countless grains of powder in Yang Zhen's hand. Though his face was somewhat pale, a trace of mockery appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Thunderclap, which had been raging like a thunder dragon, actually fell with a clang in front of Yang Zhen. He picked it up and ran for all he was worth.
"Wh... what happened?"
Young Master Lu and the others stared in utter bewilderment.