Chapter 179: Dispute
“I heard that recently a female demon has emerged in the Demon Ridge, practicing her skills by sucking blood. She’s vicious and ruthless, with formidable cultivation. I wonder where she came from?” said an outer disciple of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion, who appeared to be around twenty years old.
Lin Chenyu sneered, “Are you talking about that monster that escaped from the Crimson Void Secret Mansion?”
Lin Chenyu had a very handsome face, with delicate features, but his complexion was unusually pale. He had no Adam’s apple on his neck, and his voice was sharp and shrill, almost like a woman’s.
Another female disciple of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion said, “That’s right! It’s her! I heard that the Martial Market Academy sent ten top experts to deal with her, but she still managed to escape.”
“Half a month ago, the Great Sword Sect was wiped out overnight, leaving only over eight hundred dried-up corpses, all drained of blood and dead. Even the sect master of the Great Sword Sect, Yun Kaishan, was severely injured and had to hide in the Demon Martial City.”
Lin Ningshan sat beside Lin Chenyu, somewhat shocked, and said, “The Great Sword Sect is a very powerful seventh-rate force, and its sect master, Yun Kaishan, is a martial arts myth at the Heavenly Extreme Realm, renowned throughout the Demon Ridge. Is that monster even stronger than Yun Kaishan?”
When Zhang Ruochen had joined the Martial Market Academy, Lin Ningshan had also joined the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion. Now, her cultivation had reached the late Mysterious Extreme Realm, a considerable improvement.
Zhang Shaochu followed Zhang Ruochen’s gaze and also saw Lin Chenyu and Lin Ningshan.
He naturally knew that his ninth brother had liked Lin Ningshan since childhood, but Lin Ningshan had never looked favorably on his ninth brother. Moreover, she was engaged to the Seventh Prince, Zhang Tiangui.
“That incident must have hit my ninth brother hard!” Zhang Shaochu thought to himself as he stared at Zhang Ruochen.
He assumed Zhang Ruochen still harbored feelings for Lin Ningshan, so he said with some concern, “Ninth brother, Lin Ningshan isn’t worth you being so devoted to her. Besides, Princess Yanchen is a hundred times better than her; she’s simply not worthy of you.”
“Hmm?”
Zhang Ruochen snapped back to reality and said, “What are you talking about?”
Zhang Shaochu sighed, “I mean, the past is the past. You need to learn to let it go.”
Zhang Ruochen shook his head with a smile, “I was just listening to them talk about that blood-sucking monster.”
Zhang Ruochen hadn’t expected that Lu Han had become so powerful, able to escape the siege of the Martial Market Academy’s ten top experts and even wipe out a seventh-rate sect.
If she continued to grow, she would surely cause a major disaster.
But Zhang Ruochen’s current cultivation was only at the Great Perfection of the Mysterious Extreme Realm, far too weak compared to hers. Even though he possessed the blood of the Golden Cloud Half-Saint, it would be very difficult to retrieve the Half-Saint’s light.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Fourth brother, what else did you just say?”
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen truly didn’t seem to care about Lin Ningshan, Zhang Shaochu no longer worried about him. He squinted and smiled, “Ninth brother, your fourth brother is begging you to help me bid for a ‘companion’ so I don’t have to end up alone forever.”
“Is it that serious?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
Zhang Shaochu immediately leaned closer to Zhang Ruochen, his face contorted in a pitiful expression, his voice choked with tears: “Last time I returned to the royal capital, Mother gave me an order. If I don’t bring back a princess consort next time, she won’t acknowledge me as her son. Ninth brother, you know that your fourth brother isn’t as handsome as you, nor as talented. Those senior and junior sisters in the academy don’t look twice at me. Now, you’re the only one who can help me. I’m really doing this out of filial piety, which is why I plan to buy a ‘companion’.”
Zi Qian glared at Zhang Shaochu and spat coldly, “Shameless!”
“Senior Sister Zi, I’m speaking from the bottom of my heart,” Zhang Shaochu said.
Zhang Ruochen sighed, “If I help you bid for a ‘companion’, will you really marry her as your princess consort?”
Zhang Shaochu quickly glanced at the eight stunningly beautiful women and immediately said solemnly, “I can swear to the heavens…”
“No need! Since we’re brothers, and you truly want to marry, how could I not help you?” Zhang Ruochen said.
Hearing Zhang Ruochen’s words, Zhang Shaochu was overjoyed. He tightly hugged Zhang Ruochen’s arm, tears of emotion streaming down his face.
Zhang Ruochen also looked at the eight enchanting women and asked, “Which one have you set your sights on?”
Zhang Shaochu said, “Any one will do.”
“How can it be ‘any one’? We have to bid for the ‘Head Companion’ to match the status of the Fourth Prince,” Liu Chengfeng said.
“If I can bid for the ‘Head Companion’, that would be the best,” Zhang Shaochu said with a grin, almost drooling.
The so-called “Head Companion” was the leader among the eight companions, with both looks and dancing skills that were one in a million.
Of course, many people would compete for the “Head Companion,” and the auction price would naturally be the highest.
At that moment, the disciples of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion in the distance started talking about another matter.
One of them, with a flattering expression, poured a full glass of fine wine for Lin Chenyu and said with a smile, “Brother Lin, I heard you’re going to the Martial Market Arena this afternoon to compete for a spot on the ‘Mysterious Ranking.’ I wish you a smooth victory, winning ten consecutive matches and becoming a Mysterious Ranking martial artist.”
Another disciple laughed, “Brother Lin already won nine consecutive matches last time and almost became a Mysterious Ranking martial artist. Now that Brother Lin’s cultivation has improved again, winning ten consecutive matches should be no problem.”
“Once you win ten consecutive matches, you’ll get a reward of one million silver coins. That’s really enviable.”
Seeing everyone flattering her brother, Lin Ningshan’s beautiful face showed a proud expression, and she said, “My big brother has already cultivated the ‘Cloud Platform Technique’ to the seventh level. Not only can he become a Mysterious Ranking martial artist, but he also has a good chance of breaking into the top five hundred of the Mysterious Ranking.”
Hearing this, the four outer disciples of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion were all shocked. To have cultivated the ‘Cloud Platform Technique’ to the seventh level at the Mysterious Extreme Realm was something few in the entire outer sect of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion could achieve.
Zhang Shaochu had always disliked the Lin siblings. Seeing the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion disciples flattering Lin Chenyu so eagerly, he felt extremely irritated. He snorted coldly, “What’s so great about a mere Mysterious Ranking martial artist? My ninth brother is aiming for the top ten of the Mysterious Ranking.”
Zhang Shaochu’s words immediately angered those Cloud Platform Sect Mansion disciples, and their gazes all turned toward him.
One of the outer disciples, seeing that the speaker was a fat, big-headed man, couldn’t help but feel a bit contemptuous. He said sternly, “Who’s making such arrogant claims here? Don’t you know that Brother Lin is the eighth-ranked genius in the outer sect of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion?”
Zhang Shaochu showed a look of disdain and said, “Eighth-ranked genius? He’s just a dog raised by someone else, and a neutered one at that.”
The Cloud Platform Sect Mansion disciples all knew that Lin Chenyu was a servant taken in by Zhang Tiangui, but no one dared to say it openly.
“How dare you! Insulting Brother Lin like that—I’ll cut out your tongue!” That outer disciple of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion, named Hua Jiuhan, had a cultivation at the Great Extreme Position of the Mysterious Extreme Realm.
Hua Jiuhan knew that Lin Chenyu was Zhang Tiangui’s servant, so he tried his best to flatter Lin Chenyu. Today, it was he who had invited Lin Chenyu and Lin Ningshan to dine at the Heavenly Moon Pavilion.
Since someone was causing trouble, he naturally had to step forward.
Lin Chenyu pressed down on Hua Jiuhan’s shoulder, picked up a glass of wine, stood up calmly and composedly, and said with a smile, “I never expected the Fourth Prince to be in the Near Heaven Pavilion as well. And my cousin, it’s been a long time. Why not come over for a drink?”
Zi Qian glanced at Lin Chenyu and found this man somewhat familiar.
After thinking it over carefully, she finally remembered. Lin Chenyu had once spent a fortune to hire assassins from the Underworld Gate to kill Zhang Ruochen.
She never expected that Lin Chenyu was actually Zhang Ruochen’s cousin.
Should she warn Zhang Ruochen?
Just as Zi Qian was deep in thought, Zhang Ruochen stood up, looked at Lin Chenyu, and said indifferently, “Drinking? There’s no need for that.”
Hua Jiuhan sneered coldly, “Brother Lin personally invites you for a drink, and you refuse to show face. Are you disciples of the Martial Market Academy looking down on us disciples of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion?”
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Hua Jiuhan, thought for a moment, and said, “Fine, since that’s the case, I’ll accept the invitation.”
Zhang Ruochen stood seven zhang away, raised his finger, and the glass of wine that had been on the table beside Lin Chenyu flew up steadily.
The next moment, the glass of wine flew across a distance of seven zhang and landed in Zhang Ruochen’s hand, not a single drop spilled.
Zhang Ruochen drank it all in one gulp, swung his arm, and the glass flew back steadily to the table seven zhang away.
Many people on the first floor of the Near Heaven Pavilion saw this scene and were all greatly astonished.
“Retrieving objects from a distance!” exclaimed a rather pretty young girl in the distance.
Only those who had cultivated the sword to the advanced realm of “sword following the heart” could achieve retrieving objects from a distance. Even martial artists at the Earth Extreme Realm rarely reached this level.
This display by Zhang Ruochen completely stunned those outer disciples of the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion, and no one dared to say another word.
“In just one year, my cousin’s martial arts cultivation has reached such a level—truly breathtaking. But cousin, I have one question: why haven’t you become a Mysterious Ranking martial artist?” Lin Chenyu said.
Liu Chengfeng said, “The Ninth Prince is now the top expert of our Western Courtyard, already famous throughout the world. Why would he care about the empty fame of the Mysterious Ranking?”
“So he’s the top expert of the Western Courtyard, the Ninth Prince of the Cloud Wu Commandery, Zhang Ruochen.”
Everyone suddenly understood.