Chapter 150: Who Could It Be...

Chapter 150: Who Was It...? (Please Subscribe)

Zheng Jian listened with interest. He knew both Ouyang Xiyi and Wang Tong. As for their martial arts, neither had reached the Grandmaster level; they were about as strong as Du Fuwei, the “Heaven-in-His-Sleeve.” But Zheng Jian had already crossed hands with Du Fuwei, so he naturally wasn’t all that interested in these two.

As for the other man, Zheng Jian had guessed who he was, too. It was probably Wang Shichong, another formidable warlord in the world of the Great Tang. His martial prowess, strategic mind, and breadth of vision were all first-rate.

“Ah, Big Brother Zheng, I’ve got it! Shi Qingxuan is so indifferent to fame and fortune that she hardly ever accepts anyone’s invitation. I was wondering about it, but now it makes sense. It must be Senior Wang. He’s the greatest scholar of our age; only someone like him could persuade Sister Shi to come.” Shan Wanjing sounded rather excited.

“Oh, oh, oh. Now she’s your sister, is she? Little Jingjing, you sure do get familiar with people fast.”

Shan Wanjing: “...I like her. What’s it to you?”

Shan Wanjing’s resentment points +666.

Just then, an unexpected disturbance erupted.

A cry came from outside the main gate. Moments later, two people came flying through the air and slammed hard into the ground. Their landing position? Well, bottoms up—an elegant face-first dive.

The guests parted like a tide. Soon, amid the swish of clothes cutting through the air, a man and a woman swept into the hall and came to a stop.

The man was tall and straight-backed, with sharply defined features, a high nose, and deep-set eyes. He clearly had foreign blood in him, and exuded a forceful, domineering charm. He stood in the hall, his back seeming to stab at the heavens.

The heavens: What the hell—he’s stabbing me in the back?

The woman, too, clearly wasn’t from the Central Plains. She had a curvaceous figure, fair skin, a beautiful face, and long legs. Her expression was icy, her body hot. The contrast gave her an unusual allure.

“As the saying goes, heroes emerge young! May I ask what your connection is to Bi Xuan?” Ouyang Xiyi was the one who spoke.

Zheng Jian thought, That flashy entrance makes it obvious who this is. There’s no one else it could be but Ba Fenghan... And the woman must be Fu Junyu, Fu Junzhuo’s junior sister...

“But there’s another saying: a child may be brilliant, but that doesn’t mean he’ll amount to much as an adult.” The moment Zheng Jian heard the phrase “heroes emerge young,” he couldn’t resist contradicting it. He was just too practiced at arguing for argument’s sake to hold himself back...

The hall fell silent. Ouyang Xiyi’s imposing old face took on an unmistakably awkward expression...

But the most awkward one of all was Ba Fenghan, who had been posing this whole time. The comment nearly made him throw out his back.

Ba Fenghan’s resentment points +666.

The grand entrance he’d planned was now stuck in his throat. After a long moment, he turned his gaze toward the crowd. “Who was it?” His voice was icy, and he looked ready to start a fight at the slightest provocation.

Every eye in the hall quickly turned to Zheng Jian. Shan Wanjing, standing beside him, could hardly bear the heat of all those gazes. She was genuinely impressed by Zheng Jian’s talent for provoking people.

Zheng Jian paused, then began to sing:

“I sent you here to stand beside me, beneath that round, round moon...”

His strange melody drifted through the courtyard.

“Pfft...” The great scholar Wang Tong had just taken a sip of tea. He couldn’t hold it in and spat it right out...

Ouyang Xiyi’s expression turned peculiar, as though he were struggling to keep from laughing. Wang Shichong, on the other hand, was laughing so hard he nearly fell over.

It was like he’d had a piece of never-ending chewing gum. He just couldn’t stop.

Everyone present was thinking the same thing: Is this man sick or something? He’s got to be a little crazy!

As for Shan Wanjing, she was already laughing like a goose. “Honk, honk, honk, honk...”

Ba Fenghan’s resentment points +1,999.

Ba Fenghan’s handsome face flushed red with anger. He nearly choked. He’d heard about this grand gathering and had spent ages imagining all the ways he might make his entrance, making sure he’d look impressive and strike swiftly, so he could make a name for himself in one fell swoop.

And his entrance had been impressive, sure enough. But once he’d arrived, why had everything gone so badly off script...?

The conviction in Ba Fenghan’s heart had once been as firm as Mount Tai. Now, the mountain had collapsed...

Ba Fenghan swallowed with difficulty. He still wanted to salvage the situation, to somehow steer things back on course.

So he forced down his anger, curled his lips into a cold smile, and said evenly, “I am Ba Fenghan. I came here today with this young lady, and we intend to—”

But the beautiful woman in white cut him off at once. “You’re you, and I’m me. Who said we came together?”

Ba Fenghan’s composure promptly fell apart all over again...

“Since you’ve just barged in and injured people, I have no choice but to intervene...” Ouyang Xiyi rose to his feet, slowly wrapping his hand around his sword hilt.

Fighting spirit flared in Ba Fenghan’s tiger-bright eyes. His outer robe stirred though there was no wind, as he prepared to face Ouyang Xiyi head-on. This was the scene he’d wanted all along...

But Zheng Jian spoke up again. “Senior Ouyang is truly hale and hearty for his age—an old steed still eager to gallop, an old tree with deep roots, an old man still... well, you know.” He cleared his throat. “Truly admirable!”

Ouyang Xiyi: “...”

The aura the two of them had managed to build up dispersed yet again...

Ouyang Xiyi’s resentment points +500.

Ba Fenghan’s resentment points +999.

Wang Tong laughed so hard he doubled over. He hadn’t met someone this entertaining in ages. “Hahahahahaha!”

Ouyang Xiyi’s expression changed again and again, flickering like a lantern show.

As for Ba Fenghan, he felt he must have left home without checking the almanac. The scene he’d imagined—defeating Ouyang Xiyi, one of the Central Plains’ foremost experts, and making a name for himself in a single battle—seemed to be slipping farther and farther away...

Zheng Jian strode forward with easy confidence and said calmly, “Ba Fenghan, do you want to make a name for yourself in a single battle?”

Ba Fenghan nodded firmly. He made no attempt to hide his ambitions.

It wasn’t just Ba Fenghan. This was the dream of almost every martial artist in the hall.

“Do you want to rise above the rest?”

Ba Fenghan nodded again.

“Do you want your martial arts to match Bi Xuan’s, or even surpass him?”

Ba Fenghan continued nodding.

“Do you want to unite the world and become its master?”

Ba Fenghan nodded once more.

Zheng Jian paused, then said, “Then what are you waiting for? Hurry home, wash up, and go to bed.”

Ba Fenghan froze. Wang Tong, Ouyang Xiyi, and Wang Shichong all froze, too. Everyone stared as if they’d been struck dumb.

The next second, Ba Fenghan understood. So did everyone else.

And then...

Ba Fenghan’s resentment points +1,999; Ouyang Xiyi’s resentment points +200; Wang Shichong’s resentment points +666; and so on...

A whole-room roast!

If this had special effects, countless streams of black smoke would be gathering from every direction and converging on Zheng Jian. At that moment, he was the source of all evil!

The hand gripping Ba Fenghan’s sword trembled. His lips quivered; he opened his mouth to speak, but couldn’t get a word out.

The beautiful woman in white beside him stared at Zheng Jian, mouth hanging open in astonishment.

The worst thing... was the sudden silence...

Zheng Jian’s mouth twitched. He was struggling to hold it in. He was so happy—damn, so happy! He’d gone for the big one, and the resentment points in the system’s backend were climbing at lightning speed.

“Ding, ding, ding... Isn’t that wonderful? Listen to that sound—it’s like the clinking of coins, like music to my ears!” Zheng Jian said to himself.

...

The third update is here. That’s all for tonight. I’m completely drained~~~