Arrogant at First, Respectful at Last

Inside the main hall, all the sea creatures turned to look at the entrance. Bai Suxin walked in with a man dressed as a scholar, followed by two young men with extraordinary bearing.

The trio consisted of Xu Caichen, Xiao Chen, and Cao Youqian, while Chu Feng and the others were resting in a side courtyard.

Such a minor matter didn't require his personal intervention as the master.

The sea creatures instinctively used their divine senses to examine the three individuals, but to their surprise, they could not discern their cultivation levels.

Xiao Chen felt the divine sense sweeping over him, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. Before leaving the Dao-Seeking Academy, his master had prepared a jade talisman for each of them to hide their cultivation level. No one below the level of Saint could see through their cultivation.

Let these Xiao Yu and shrimps guess.

Xu Caichen met Hei Yanjiao's gaze directly and cupped his hands, saying, "Junior Xu Caichen greets Senior Hei Yan."

Under Chu Feng's tutelage for many years, Xu Caichen had long since mastered the art of persuading people with reason.

Xu Caichen!

"How could it be him?"

Upon hearing this name, the sea creatures in the hall instantly adopted strange expressions.

Everyone has heard about Bai Suxin's life in the mortal world, and naturally knows that her husband was named Xu Caichen.

Even the Hei Yanjiao, seated in the main seat, narrowed its eyes and said indifferently, "No need for formalities."

"Thank you, senior."

Xu Caichen completely disregarded the behavior of the sea creatures.

The Hei Yanjiao turned its gaze to Bai Suxin, who was standing to the side. "Suxin, shouldn't you give me an explanation?"

His tone was very cold, but all the sea creatures present could understand the unspoken meaning behind his words.

Bai Suxin said calmly, "Father, Caichen is my husband in the mortal realm, and he has already entered the Dao-Seeking Academy."

Upon hearing this, the entire hall erupted in a burst of laughter.

"Hahaha..."

"Suxin, your lie is far too clumsy. I remember Xu Caichen was just an ordinary scholar, but now you're telling us he's a prodigy from the Dao-Seeking Academy."

"That's right. How could an ordinary person possibly travel from a secular place like Wu Kingdom to the Dao-Seeking Academy? The demons and monsters along the way would devour him completely, leaving not even bones."

"Kid, you say you're a prodigy of the Dao-Seeking Academy? I might as well say I'm Unrivaled Tyrant Fist Cao Youqian of the Dao-Seeking Academy!"

Hei Yanjiao did not stop the people below from mocking Xu Caichen, but wanted to see how this so-called prodigy would deal with this situation.

If Xu Caichen can't even handle this small situation, then he's just fooling himself.

Just then, a loud voice rang out in the hall.

Who was it that just claimed to be Cao Youqian?

After a few seconds of silence, a sea creature with a dragon's head and a human body, holding a wine cup, stood up and said arrogantly, "I'll say it..."

The moment he uttered the word, a large hand appeared out of nowhere, grabbed his neck, and violently yanked him from his seat, slamming him to the ground with a thud.

The sudden turn of events instantly created a tense atmosphere in the main hall.

All the sea creatures turned their gaze to the one who had made the move, and saw a tall, disdainful young man standing with his foot on Hei Bing's head.

"Bold."

"This is not a place for you to commit violence, kid!"

"..."

Cao Youqian completely ignored the shouts of the sea creatures and simply released his aura. As soon as the aura of the Dao Integration Realm appeared, many sea creatures instantly shut their mouths.

Even the Hei Yanjiao, seated in the main seat, narrowed its eyes and asked, "Fellow Daoist, what is the meaning of this?"

Cao Youqian lifted Hei Bing up like a chick and said in a deep voice, "Hei Yanjiao, tell me, this kid is impersonating me, Cao Youqian, to my face. Should I crush his head or rip out his dragon tendons while he's still alive?"

This sentence contained a great deal of information, but the sea creatures in the hall still keenly grasped the three key pieces of information about Cao Youqian.

"Your Excellency is indeed Cao Youqian, a candidate for the Holy Son of Dao Seeking."

Black Dragon suddenly stood up and asked in astonishment.

Even though he was far away in the East Sea, he had witnessed that person's achievements, tearing apart a Nirvana cultivator with his bare hands. Although they were both Dao Integration cultivators, there were still differences between Dao Integration.

Cao Youqian's lips curled up slightly, his aura intensified, and a divine light emanated from his body.

The sea creatures inside the hall couldn't help but gasp in surprise at this sight.

"Divine Physique!"

"He awakened his Divine Physique at the Dao Integration Realm; he is indeed Cao Youqian!"

"..."

Cao Youqian was very satisfied with the reaction of these ignorant sea creatures and sneered, "That's right, tell me, besides this fool, who else in the world would dare to impersonate me?"

hiss...

The sea creatures in the main hall gasped involuntarily, their eyes filled with pity as they looked at Hei Bing.

You dare to talk trash about this guy in front of him?

Isn't this like an old man hanging himself to commit suicide?

Hei Yanjiao was extremely uneasy at this moment. Not to mention that Cao Youqian could tear apart a Nirvana cultivator with his bare hands, as a candidate for Holy Son of the Dao-Seeking Academy, he had powerful protectors by his side.

If Cao Youqian is angered, the entire Hei Yan Water Manor will be razed to the ground.

He suppressed his inner panic and forced a smile that looked more like a grimace as he said to Xu Caichen, "My dear son-in-law, Heavenly Genius Cao is coming. Why didn't you tell me beforehand so I could be prepared?"

Xu Caichen could easily see that Hei Yanjiao was trying to save face, but he couldn't very well expose him directly. He smiled and said, "I haven't even had a chance to introduce my eldest and second senior brothers to my father-in-law yet, and this guy has already spouted such nonsense. There's nothing I can do about it."

"Big... Senior Brother?"

Hei Yanjiao took half a step back, almost losing his balance and falling into his chair. His gaze slowly shifted to Xiao Chen, who had remained silent all along.

Are you referring to that Invincible Sword?

Xiao Chen took a step forward, his imposing aura instantly erupting as he calmly stated, "That's right, I am Xiao Chen."

Bang!

The Hei Yanjiao was so shocked that it plopped down in its seat, completely drained, unable to utter a single word.

The hall fell into a deathly silence, and all the sea creatures seemed to be frozen in place, motionless.

Fortunately, Xiao Chen quickly suppressed his oppressive aura and returned to his previous ordinary appearance.

Clang!

The sound of cups being overturned and chopsticks falling to the ground quickly echoed throughout the hall.

The names Xiao Chen and Cao Youqian had such a powerful impact on these Xiao Yu fry that they were so frightened that they forgot their own names.

Taking advantage of the chaos in the hall, Hei Yanjiao secretly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and said, "Quickly, son-in-law, please lead your two senior brothers to their seats."

"Promise."

After Xu Caichen responded, he turned to Cao Youqian, cupped his hands, and said, "Second Senior Brother, today is my day to pay respects to my father-in-law, and it is inappropriate to shed blood. I beg you to spare his life."

Cao Youqian had prepared to play the bad cop before he arrived, and said with a smile, "Since you've spoken up, junior brother, I, as your senior brother, can't refuse to give you face."

He casually tossed the dragon he was holding back onto his seat and said, "Kid, watch your step next time."

Hei Bing was already terrified out of his wits. Having barely escaped with his life, he hurriedly knelt down and thanked Heavenly Genius Cao for sparing his life, and thanked his brother-in-law for saving his life.

Xu Caichen nodded slightly, and then entered the table with Bai Suxin.

Xiao Chen and Cao Youqian sat in the seats right next to them.

The atmosphere in the main hall was strange. The sea creatures dared not even breathe loudly, fearing that they might displease the three.

Even the Hei Yanjiao forced a smile and occasionally offered a toast to the three of them.

After several rounds of drinks...

Xu Caichen stood up, toasted the Hei Yanjiao, and said, "Father-in-law, I have studied at the Dao-Seeking Academy for many years and have made some progress in recent years. I have brought generous gifts to the Hei Yan Water Manor to propose marriage, and I hope that you will formally marry Suxin to me."

Silence fell over the hall once more, as countless eyes turned to the Hei Yanjiao...