Chapter Ten: Shameless

The leading man was momentarily stunned by Chen Xiang’s words. To think he would not only catch such an ugly and fierce demon beast to ride as a mount but even develop feelings for it? How does one’s emotional attachment even work in such a way? But this, in a roundabout way, proved Chen Xiang’s uniqueness.

He spoke anxiously, “Brother, we don’t mean to force you, but our youngest junior brother desperately needs the gallbladder of this Azure Fox Beast to save his life. I beg you—please part with it for his sake!”

“A matter of life and death, is it? Well, it’s not impossible,” Chen Xiang replied, stroking his chin.

The leading man was overjoyed and said hurriedly, “Brother, what do you want in return? If we have what you need, we’ll trade with you!”

Hearing this, the other four couldn’t help but frown. Their eldest senior brother was just too upright—this was merely a brat at the ninth level of Qi Refinement, easily dismissed, so why bother speaking to him so courteously?

The two women were only slightly displeased, but the sullen man and the slightly plump man were clearly irritated.

“I don’t really know what I want. How about this—lay out everything you have, and I’ll see if anything catches my eye,” Chen Xiang said indifferently.

After all, he had a system—what couldn’t he obtain if he truly wanted it? Truth be told, after wandering in the forest for so long and facing countless dangers, he hadn’t yet had the chance to properly browse the system’s marketplace for good items.

To Chen Xiang, his tone seemed innocuous, but to the other four, it was pure arrogance.

Lay out all our possessions? Did he think this was a marketplace?

The sullen man couldn’t stand it any longer. “Hey, kid, you should consider it an honor that we’re willing to trade with you. What’s with that attitude—do you look down on us?”

The plump man chimed in, “Exactly! A mere brat at the ninth level of Qi Refinement, acting so cocky before a group of Foundation Establishment seniors—if it weren’t for eldest brother’s mercy, I’d have thrashed you myself.”

The leading man’s face changed at these words. “Enough! Second brother, fourth brother, apologize to this young man at once!”

The two were instantly displeased.

“Eldest brother, we’ve been searching in this Shimmering Forest for more than ten days—junior brother can barely hold on. Now that we’ve finally found the Azure Fox Beast, we should take its gallbladder and hurry back to save him!” the sullen man pleaded softly. He glanced at Chen Xiang, then added, “Not waste time haggling with this swindler. He claims to have survived in the Shimmering Forest for days? Nonsense!”

Impressive! Chen Xiang thought to himself. This man’s performance was moving enough to stir even him, but it was no excuse for repeatedly targeting him.

“Oh? Do I look down on you? You’re absolutely right—I do! So what? I’ve changed my mind, I’m not trading anymore. Farewell, and may we never meet again,” Chen Xiang said coolly. He cupped his hands in farewell, ready to leave.

The leading man was startled and quickly blocked his path. “Wait! Brother, please don’t take offense at my junior brothers’ behavior—they’re only worried for our injured brother.”

But the two junior brothers had other ideas. They immediately advanced to surround Chen Xiang, while the two women hesitated, then gritted their teeth and joined in, blocking his retreat.

“Senior brother, there’s no need to waste words with this swindler. The five of us together can easily subdue him, take the Azure Fox Beast’s gallbladder, and save junior brother. We can leave him some spirit stones afterward,” the sullen man said coldly.

“That’s right, senior brother—junior brother is suffering unbearable pain from damaged meridians, and he’s barely hanging on. We can’t delay any longer,” the plump man urged, shooting Chen Xiang a look full of contempt.

The leading man was torn, unable to decide. On one hand, his junior brother’s life was at stake; on the other, his principles, upheld for decades, wouldn’t let him act dishonorably.

Chen Xiang was amused by their talk. They thought to capture him? He’d survived several beast tides in the forest, each with over a dozen Foundation Establishment demon beasts, and twice with Core Formation beasts mixed in—yet he had always escaped unscathed.

Moreover, he still had five or six Void Escape Talismans in his pouch. If he really couldn’t get out of a tight spot, one would do the trick. If not, two would suffice!

Chen Xiang sneered. “Heh. I was willing to trade since it was a matter of life and death—at worst, I’d just catch another to ride. Who knew you’d be so shameless? I’ve decided, I’m not trading. Whether your junior brother lives or dies is none of my concern.”

The leading man was shocked and quickly said, “Brother, please, don’t—”

The sullen man snorted coldly. “Hmph, that’s not for you to decide. The Azure Fox Beast stays.”

The two women were furious at Chen Xiang’s refusal; they doted on their youngest junior brother most of all and couldn’t tolerate someone refusing to save him.

“Oh? So you want a fight? Good! My hands are itching anyway,” Chen Xiang said eagerly.

If they made a move, he wouldn’t mind gaining some experience. In the forest, he’d only encountered a handful of lone demon beasts, all at the Qi Refinement level; the rest traveled in packs, and he hadn’t dared to engage. Once, curious to test his strength, he’d been surrounded by over a dozen demon beasts, two of which were Foundation Establishment. In the end, he’d only managed to kill one at the eighth level of Qi Refinement before fleeing.

That was why he remained at the peak of the ninth Qi Refinement level, but he was confident he could fight Foundation Establishment cultivators. If not, he could always run.

“Hah, not only is this kid a swindler, he’s a fool,” the sullen man sneered.

In his eyes, a mere ninth-level Qi Refinement brat stood no chance of escaping their encirclement. Any one of them could easily subdue him, so he wasn’t worried at all.

The plump man and the two women snickered quietly, equally dismissive of Chen Xiang’s chances.

The leading man frowned deeply, torn between intervening and his concern for his junior brother. It was a difficult bind.

The Azure Fox Beast beneath Chen Xiang grew restless. It could tell a fight was imminent, and it seemed its fate would be even worse if it fell into these people’s hands. After thinking it over, it decided it was safer to stick with Chen Xiang—at least, though he got smacked often, his life wasn’t in danger.

Chen Xiang shouted, “Well? Are you going to fight or not? Don’t waste my time—if you’re not, I’m leaving. I want out of this wretched forest as soon as possible!”

“Hmph! Arrogant brat. Let’s see how cocky you are in a moment,” the sullen man said darkly.

“Oh, I’ll wait—what the—how shameless can you be?” Chen Xiang cried out.

Suddenly, he leaned forward atop the Azure Fox Beast, rolled in a Thomas spin across its back, and kicked the man behind him square in the chest. The man flew backward like a cannonball, crashing into a tree before finally stopping.

“Senior brother!” the women exclaimed, rushing to his side.

“Junior brother!” the leading man, still hesitating, was startled and hurried over.

Chen Xiang landed steadily on the beast’s back, sneering. “Trying a sneak attack? Pathetic. I’ve survived countless ambushes in this forest; your speed is far too slow!”

The sullen man’s face grew dark. He was shocked. The plump man, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, had failed to ambush the boy and had been sent flying—could he really just be at the ninth Qi Refinement level?

The two women checked on the plump man. He was unconscious, blood trickling from his lips, a deep footprint caved into his chest. The leading man arrived, checked his pulse, and breathed a sigh of relief—he was alive, just unconscious.

The prettier of the two women glared at Chen Xiang with fury. “How could you do this? If you wouldn’t trade, fine, but why injure my senior brother so badly?”

“Tsk!”

Chen Xiang sucked in a breath. Unbelievable! Her senior brother had failed a sneak attack and his self-defense was entirely justified; if he hadn’t defended himself, he might well be dead now. Women truly had a logic all their own.

He grew angry. “Oh? I didn’t want to trade, and you surrounded me and tried to ambush me? Frankly, that kick was lenient.”

“You…” The woman wanted to retort, but couldn’t find the words—after all, they were in the wrong for starting the fight.

At this moment, the sullen man stepped forward. “Hmph. You injured my brother—that cannot go unpunished. If you have any sense, leave the Azure Fox Beast and walk away. Otherwise, don’t blame us for being ruthless! Sisters, brother, lend me a hand!”

He drew his sword, addressed the still-hesitant leading man, and then blocked Chen Xiang’s path.

The prettier woman drew her sword without hesitation, and the younger girl, after a moment’s indecision, followed suit.

“Enough!” A roar broke out. The leading man stood up.

“Put your weapons away!” he ordered his two junior sisters and the sullen man sternly.

“Brother, I—” the pretty woman began, but a glare from the leading man silenced her; she sheathed her sword angrily.

He shot a look at the sullen man, who also obediently put away his sword. After all, the eldest brother held great authority in their sect.

The leading man bowed to Chen Xiang. “Brother, I apologize on behalf of my juniors. But I still beg you to trade the Azure Fox Beast with me—I am willing to offer all I have in exchange.”

“Brother, you mustn’t!”

“Yes, brother, you can’t do that!”

The other three were shocked and rushed to dissuade him.

But the leading man ignored them, fixing his gaze firmly on Chen Xiang.

Chen Xiang looked at him with interest; he hadn’t expected such loyalty and righteousness.

“Very well. Since you’re so sincere, I can hardly refuse. But I have one condition,” Chen Xiang said.

“What condition?” the leading man asked.

“I want them to apologize to me,” Chen Xiang replied calmly.

The leading man glanced at his juniors and nodded. “Agreed.”

“To be continued…”