by D cat
"Isn't that the little bastard who humiliated me in the hall of League of Martial Cultivators?"
It was said that when enemies met, their eyes would turn bloodshot. Yang Shi recalled the humiliating experience, gritted his teeth, and walked towards Su Lang with a cold smile.
He could vividly remember each and every detail of the humiliating experience that he went through yesterday. Moreover, the tale of his humiliation seemingly spread like wildfire.
Those opponents who once didn't even dare to see eye to eye with him were now mocking him.
This angered Yang Shi so much that he just wanted to find Su Lang and shred him into pieces.
Now that Su Lang was finally within his grasp, he ran towards him, fearing that Su Lang would run away.
"Eh!"
When he was making his way towards Su Lang, he realized that something was wrong with the picture he was seeing.
He could feel the faint spiritual energy fluctuations coming from Su Lang's body.
"What's going on? Did he break through the Martial Mortal realm and became a Standard Martial Cultivator?"
"No, no, no, what's wrong with me? How can that be possible? He just broke through the Intermediate Body Tempering realm yesterday."
As Yang Shi's group came forward to help him, they noticed the spiritual fluctuation in Su Lang's body, and they felt their will to help Yang Shi waning.
"Young master, this man is a Martial Mortal. I'm afraid he isn't the one who humiliated you yesterday."
"That's right, young master. Master told us not to offend Martial Mortals on a whim."
"..."
The group tried their best to persuade Yang Shi.
"What are you afraid of?"
"Are you saying that I dare not offend a mere Martial Mortal?"
"So, what if I beat him and end up being wrong? Who can touch me?"
"Moreover, he might not even be a Martial Mortal. Perhaps he has some kind of treasure that can emit spirit energy fluctuations!"
For some reason, Yang Shi believed his own stupid reasons, and he increased his pace; eyes lit up with golden dollar signs.
The others had no choice but to follow.
Soon, Yang Shi and the others arrived in front of Su Lang.
"Brother, you're here?"
Su Lang asked with a smile.
"Stop trying to get close to me!"
Yang Shi looked at Su Lang with disdain. Then... he was even more surprised.
He could feel that the spiritual fluctuation of Su Lang's body was indeed coming from within him, not from some treasure he was hiding. This only meant that his previous assumption was wrong, and Su Lang was actually a Martial Mortal.
Spiritual fluctuations were unique to a martial cultivator. At such a close distance, they couldn't be faked whatsoever.
"Yo-you! You really broke through to the Martial Mortal realm?"
Yang Shi's eyes were as wide as saucers due to the sheer disbelief. He felt he was looking at an alien.
"Are you blind? Can't you tell?"
Su Lang looked at Yang Shi with a playful smile.
"That's impossible!"
Yang Shi's entire body trembled, and he roared in alarm, "Just yesterday morning, you broke through the Intermediate Body Tempering realm. It's been only 24 hours since them, so how could you've broken through the Martial Mortal realm?"
"No, this can't be real. This is absolutely a scam. I don't believe it!" (E/N:- Excellent mind break protag in the making.)
"Tsk tsk, you can't even take a blow?"
Su Lang sneered, "So, what are you going to do next?
I warned you not to let me see you again.
However, not only did you not walk around when you saw me, you actually rushed here."
"Have you heard the adage: If you don't walk on the path to heavens, you'll on the path to hell?"
"Hmph, what are you being so arrogant about!"
Yang Shi's eyes were bloodshot; he was going through envy, shock, and anger all at once. "Did you think you can be arrogant in front of me just because you are a Martial Mortal now?
Let me tell you, regardless of your cultivation and talent, you are a mere piece of trash in front of me. I'll defeat you and torture you till you beg for death."
Su Lang was an Initial Martial Mortal. Yang Shi had brought along four Initial Martial Mortals with him. Their sole purpose was to cater to his needs and keep him safe.
This gave Yang Shi unbridled confidence. After all, even a toddler could tell that four always beat one.
CHAPTER 48 - ONE SECOND ONE SLASH!
"Oh, I'm so scared!"
Su Lang mockingly crossed his arms. "You know what, I'm arrogant because I'm a Martial Mortal. Just wait, I'll beat you by your pigtail."
"You slut, I'll kill you!"
Yang Shi was so angry that he was fuming, and his face was twisted. He turned around and roared, "What are you still standing there for? All of you, go!"
"Yes!"
The four Initial Martial Mortals immediately surrounded Su Lang.
The old master had ordered them and Yang Shi to not get in unnecessary trouble.
However, now that Yang Shi was literally being humiliated to death, how could they stand by and watch?
Since they were outside the city, they decided to discreetly take care of Su Lang. Even if they ended up killing him, the Yang family would just suppress the matter.
"Humph! Are you scared?"
Yang Shi looked at Su Lang with a sneer. "If you kneel down and beg for mercy now, I can consider sparing your life."
"Kneel down!"
"Our young master is not someone you can mess with!"
"Kneel down quickly, otherwise don't blame us for being ruthless!"
"Quick, kneel down!"
The four guards looked at Su Lang with disdain. It was four against one battle; there was no suspense about the outcome.
"Sigh. It's your misfortune that you ended up provoking me."
Su Lang sneered and pulled out the Tang Blade.
The sunlight shone on the blade, reflecting a bloody cold light.
Yang Shi and the four guards felt something was wrong and shivered at the same time.
"Hurry up, what are you afraid of?"
"I'll give you three seconds to finish him off!"
Yang Shi shouted, clenching his teeth.
"Kill him!"
The four guards roared and pulled out their swords to attack Su Lang.
"I can't believe I was scared of this kind of trash for even a second. It's really..."
Yang Shi sighed as he watched multiple sword slashes surrounding Su Lang, leaving him with no room to dodge.
Within seconds, he would be grievously injured and would no longer have control over his own life.
Yang Shi could already imagine Su Lang being beaten like a dog. Borken and injured, left at his mercy.
Imagining a bloody and battered Su Lang begging him for mercy filled him with goosebumps, and a cruel smile formed on his lips.
However, the very next second, his face and that smile froze.
An incredible scene reflected off his pupils. A saber with lightning dragons coiling around it slashed out, and four figures were thrown into the sir.
Bang, bang, bang, bang!
The four martial artists landed on the ground in different positions, letting out miserable cries.
One second—no, it was one second and one saber.
That's all it took to defeat Yang Shi's four guards. All that was left of them was a weeping mess on the verge of death.
"How could this be? Am I dreaming?"
Yang Shi murmured in disbelief. It was indeed a battle that lacked suspense, but that was true only for Su Lang. Yang Shi, on the other hand, experienced quite the mindfuck.
"Am I dreaming? Then what is this feeling of dread!"
Su Lang sneered and took a step forward. He arrived in front of Yang Shi like a gust of wind. He raised his hand and slapped Yang Shi.
> Slap!
Despite being Quasi Martial Cultivator, Yang Shi could not even see Su Lang's movements. He spun and flew away.
"Ah!!!"
"It hurts! My face! My face!"
Yang Shi fell face-first on the ground. The intense pain made him instinctively cover his face and scream.
Right now, half of Yang Shi's face was swollen, and he was bleeding from his nose, ears, and mouth.
All this when Su Lang didn't even slap him that hard.
Had Su Lang used his Advance Martial Mortal realm+ combat strength, bits of Yang Shi's head would've been flying everywhere.
"Aaaah! It hurts! Blood... I'm bleeding! "
Yang Shi touched his own blood and was so frightened that he began crying.
"Trash! I haven't even gotten serious yet!"
Su Lang sneered and slowly walked towards Yang Shi.
"No, don't come over!"
"Go away! Go away, you devil!"
"Ah! I don't want to die!"
Su Lang's footsteps were like death tolls for Yang Shi. With every step, his heart beat faster; he feared that he would die from his heart bursting before Su Lang could even hurt him.
"Did we not agree on torturing the loser till death?"
Su Lang walked in front of Yang Shi. The tip of his foot was only a few centimeters away from Yang Shi's face.
"No! I beg you to give me another chance. I won't dare do something like that again!"
"I know I was wrong. Lord Su, please let me go."
Su Lang smirked. "Showing a bit of mercy isn't completely off the table. Let's see if you can afford my mercy."
To have four Initial Martial Mortals as guards, the Yang Family must be extremely wealthy. So, refusing a fat sheep, like Yang Shi, was hard for the dirt poor Su Lang.
CHAPTER 49 - AN EXORBITANT PRICE
"I have five Spirit Stones here with me, and I have a lot more back at my house."
Anxious about his survival, Yang Shi said, "I am the eldest heir of my family. They will pay you as much money as you want for my life."
"Tsk tsk. If you have so much money, why were you taking that measly allowance given by the League of Martial Cultivators? Fortunately, you ended up provoking me that day."
Su Lang smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "Alright. Stop talking nonsense. Ask your family to immediately bring 200,000 gold coins here."
The Yang family sent four Initial Martial Mortals to protect their young master, so they were second only to the mighty Ye family.
Therefore, Su Lang demanded 200,000 gold coins directly.
"200,000 gold coins!"
Yang Shi's body trembled, and his face twitched.
The Yang family had been accumulating wealth for years, yet Yang Shi was sure that 200,000 gold coins were nearly half of their entire savings.
"What's wrong? Are you not worth the price?"
Su Lang raised his eyebrows. "Forget it; I'll just send you to hell."
After saying that, Su Lang lifted the Tang Blade, which was still enveloped by lightning dragons.
"No! Don't!"
Yang Shi shouted in horror. "200,000, right? My father will give you that since I'm his only son."
"Deal!"
Su Lang gave a happy little smile and sheathed his sword.
Actually, Su Lang himself knew that he was asking for a ridiculous price. So, when Yang Shi agreed to his demand, he was pleasantly surprised. Getting 200,000 golden coins out of him was beyond Su Lang's wildest imaginations.
With this many gold coins, he could easily upgrade the three functions that the system gave him. At that time, Su Lang's improvement speed would increase by leaps and bounds.
"Thank you for sparing my life, Lord Su! Thank you, thank you!"
After being pardoned like this, Yang Shi's excitement knew no bounds, and he kept kowtowing as tears streamed down his face.
Finally, he didn't have to face certain death.
He knew that because of this incident today, he would be harshly punished. He would be punished according to the family laws, and maybe he would have to even shred a layer of skin.
However, all of that would be worth it. Why? Because he would be able to live for the rest of his life. He would still be able to squander his wealth, play with beauties, and trample over ordinary people.
"Alright, all of you, get up!"
Su Lang shouted. Yang Shi and the others trembled when they heard the resounding shout. Due to their injuries, they struggled to get up as they had to endure the pain.
"You!"
After looking for a moment, Su Lang finally found a guard who could still walk. "Go and report this to your family head.
"Ask him to prepare 200,000 gold coins. I want them sent to the red forest in the E-class area. The one delivering the coins should be a Standard Martial Cultivator, and I want them within half a day."
"If I don't get the money before the time limit or if the Yang family dares to play any tricks, then your young master will die a horrible death."
"After I kill him, I'll deliver his head to you guys. You'll not only lose your dignity but would also become a laughingstock."
Of course, Su Lang wasn't going to risk his life; he would obviously leave all those life-threatening tasks to his clone.
As for why he chose the E-class territory of the Green Deer beast? It was because his clone was there currently hunting deers, and that place didn't belong to any faction; there was no stronghold there.
"Yes! Lo-Lord... I'll go and inform them right away!"
The guard nodded like a chicken pecking grains and rushed towards the stronghold.
"Let's go."
Su Lang turned around and began walking.
"Huh?"
Yang Shi was stunned for a second and said carefully, "Lord Su, you are going in the wrong direction. We won't reach the Green Deer territory if we walk in that direction."
"Who said I was going to the Green Deer territory?"
Su Lang glanced at Yang Shi indifferently. "By the way, did I say you can talk?"
"I'm sorry; I was wrong!"
A single rebuttal from Su Land scared him so much that he shrunk his neck like a turtle.
He shut his mouth and began following Su Lang with his three injured guards.
After placing his three guards between him and Su Lang, he finally felt a little secure.
Soon, Su Lang brought Yang Shi and his guards to a deserted mountain stream.
"Clone Dispatch!"
With a single command from Su Lang, the clone hunting in the Green Deer territory appeared before him.
"T-this... Black robe, white mask..."
When they looked at the clone, Yang Shi and his guards were so surprised that their eyeballs nearly fell out of their sockets.
Before encountering Su Lang, they were actually returning to the city. They were told that a black-robed guy was going around and stirring up trouble for the Ye family. He had already destroyed their F-grade stronghold.
And now, that black-robed lunatic was standing right in front of them.
Moreover, one second he wasn't there and the next—he was standing there! He literally came out of nowhere!
What surprised them more was the fact that this black-robed maniac was bowing towards Su Lang. He looked like a subordinate bowing to his master.
"Is this black-robed madman Su Lang's subordinate?"
This thought struck Yang Shi and his group's minds almost simultaneously. But this just went on to increase the shock and fear they felt.
Breaking through the Martial Mortal realm from the Body Tempering realm within a day was already an unbelievable feat.
Just when they thought that Su Lang couldn't surprise them anymore, he went up and summoned a subordinate from supposedly the abyss.
This was simply illogical and unbelievable.
Just what kind of background did this Su Lang have?
CHAPTER 50 - HIS EYES WERE ABOUT TO POP OUT
Was he an alien? Or was he a
monster?
Even words like these couldn't explain who Su Lang was.
Looking at the simple-looking young man before them, Yang Shi and his guards couldn't help but feel speechless.
"Next, my subordinate will lead you to the Green Deer territory."
"But before that, hand over all your belongings and write down all the techniques you know. "
After saying his piece, Su Lang gave them a pen and a notebook each.
"This... as you say, Sir."
Yang Shi and the others didn't even think about disobeying. They simply handed over their belongings and began writing their cultivation techniques down.
After Su Long stored their belongings in the system storage, his gold coin balance jumped by 600 coins.
Right now, he had amassed over 5,000 gold coins.
Soon, Yang Shi and his guard wrote down their cultivation techniques and handed them over to Su Lang. Even though they were about to gain freedom, their hands still trembled when they handed the notebooks over.
Excluding the Infinite Heart Sutra and the Origin Bodybuilding Technique, there had given him a total of three new cultivation techniques. All of them were beginner Body Tempering cultivation techniques.
"It just so happens that my defense and endurance are a bit lacking. I can make up for it now!"
Su Lang smiled faintly and began to flip through the cultivation techniques.
The first Body Tempering technique was called the Art of Spirit Rejuvenation. It helped a cultivator by increasing their spiritual qi recovery speed. Moreover, with time, it even increased their endurance.
The second Body Tempering technique was called the Golden Body Forge. It specialized in tempering the bones and increasing defense.
The second Body Tempering technique was called the Boulder Body. Similar to the second one, this, too, specialized in increasing the defense.
After flipping through the three cultivation techniques, Su Lang condensed a lightning bolt and burned all the books.
"Hiss...!"
Looking at the crackling lightning bolt in Su Lang's hand, Yang Shi and the others couldn't help but shiver.
That was an attribute cultivation technique. Only God knew how much time and effort it would take to reach Entry level mastery in a cultivation technique like that.
Yet, here we had Su Lang. He had mastered a skill like that while being a mere Initial Martial Mortal. Absurd, that was all they could call this scenario.
