Chapter 79: Insensitive Man
Ye Guan walked over to the tall tower, which was known as the Martial Tower. The Martial Tower had thirty-one floors, and each floor represented a ranking.
The highest floor was known as the Hall of Enlightenment, and only the first placer on the martial list could access the floor. Rumors had it that one could meet the will that the Sword Master had left behind in the Hall of Enlightenment.
Ye Guan walked to the tower, and an old man appeared in front of him. He was holding an opium pipe, and his hair was completely white. His overall demeanor made him look sinister.
He stared at Ye Guan and shouted, “Which floor?!”
After thinking about it for a while, Ye Guan replied, “The tenth floor!”
The old man’s eyes narrowed. “Are you sure?”
Ye Guan nodded.
The old man stared at Ye Guan for quite a while before saying, “Ten thousand gold spiritual crystals!”
Ye Guan blinked in confusion and asked, “Why is it so expensive?”
Ye Guan’s pockets were plump, but he still wanted to save money.
The old man calmly replied, “We’re afraid of people stirring trouble for no reason.”
Ye Guan handed ten thousand gold spiritual crystals to the old man.
“Your name?” asked the old man after receiving the crystals.
Name? Ye Guan thought for a bit before saying, “Yang Guan!”
Little Pagoda was at a loss for words.
The old man made a sidelong glance at Ye Guan and said, “You’ll find thirty teleportation arrays inside the tower. You should go ahead and pick the tenth array.”
“All right!” Ye Guan replied and walked into the tower.
The old man frowned slightly, seemingly in deep thought.
Little Pagoda asked, “What’s up with Yang Guan?”
“Didn’t Brother Qin tell me to keep a low profile for the meantime until I’m strong enough?” Ye Guan replied.
Little Pagoda said, “I understand. I’m asking why you picked Yang as your surname.”
Ye Guan smiled and explained, “The Sword Master’s surname is Yang, right? That’s exactly why I chose it!”
Little Pagoda remained silent.
Ye Guan asked, “Master Pagoda, is there something wrong?”
“No! You should go ahead and challenge the list!” Little Pagoda replied.
“Okay!”
Meanwhile, Little Pagoda sounded shocked as he spoke in the tiny pagoda.
“It’s just a coincidence, right? Wait, it’s too much for it to be a simple coincidence!”
The mysterious voice replied, “I don’t think it’s a bad thing. What’s bad is if he becomes like his bloodthirsty father who keeps on muttering about committing patricide!”
Little Pagoda didn’t know what to say.
…
Ye Guan stepped into the teleportation array and arrived on the tenth floor.
He sat cross-legged. I guess it’s time to wait!
Talents on the martial list were known as defenders. A challenger could challenge a defender by entering the floor that the defender had conquered. The defender would have to show up within an hour. Otherwise, their spot on the list would be forfeited.
A man soon appeared in front of Ye Guan.
The man was clad in a brocade robe, and there was a spear in his hands. He smiled slightly as he examined Ye Guan and said, “It’s been a while since someone challenged me!”
“Can we start?” Ye Guan asked.
The man nodded and said, “Yes, you could have immediately attacked me the moment I appeared!”
Swoosh!
Ye Guan abruptly vanished. He reappeared in front of the man and thrust his sword toward the latter’s throat.
The man’s pupils constricted. He thought of evading Ye Guan’s sword thrust, but the sword was already inches away from his throat.
He staggered with a look of disbelief.
Ye Guan calmly said, “You’ve lost.”
He then turned around and started walking to the next floor.
The man shouted, “Wait!”
Ye Guan frowned slightly and turned to look at the man.
A few moments later, the man asked, “Can we talk?”
“Nope.” Ye Guan shook his head and continued on his journey to the ninth floor.
“A hundred thousand!” the man hurriedly shouted, “I’ll give you a hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals. Just give me a minute of your time.”
Ye Guan stopped in his tracks.
He turned to look at the man and asked, “Why are you going so far just for a chat?”
The man revealed a self-deprecating smile. “Can you not ask so many questions? A hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals for a minute of your time. It’s great, right?”
Ye Guan shook his head once more.
The man chuckled bitterly and said, “My reputation will plummet if you leave early!”
The man was panicking because he was aware that his reputation as a powerful cultivation would be ruined the moment they discovered that he didn’t last even half a minute against Ye Guan.
Ye Guan thought about it before saying, “Two hundred thousand!”
“Deal!” the man agreed almost immediately.
He took out a storage ring and sent it flying toward Ye Guan.
Did I ask for too few spiritual crystals? Ye Guan was silent. Ye Guan eventually put away the storage ring and sat cross-legged on the floor.
“All right, what do you want to talk about?”
You spent so much money just to talk to me, so I’m more than willing to indulge you. In fact, I can do this every day!
The man chuckled and asked, “What’s your name, Brother?”
“Yang Guan!”
“Nice to meet you, Brother Yang. I’m Yun Chen!”
“It’s nice to meet you as well, Brother Yun.”
You’re a swordsman, right?” asked Yun Chen.
“Of course,” Ye Guan replied with a nod.
“Your sword was too fast. Your sword is the fastest I’ve ever seen!”
“You’re the strongest person I’ve ever seen as well!”
Yun Chen didn’t know what to say. Since you don’t know how to compliment people, you should have just kept your mouth shut…
An awkward silence filled the air.
Ye Guan eventually shattered it by asking, “Brother Yun, I’m curious about something.”
“What is it?”
“Do you really get five hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals every month just by being the tenth placer on the list?”
“Yeah, but you have to defend your rank for an entire month,” Yun Chen explained.
Ye Guan nodded. “I see.”
“Brother Yang, are you challenging the martial list for money?” Yun Chen asked.
Ye Guan asked back, “Aren’t you supposed to challenge it for money?”
Yun Chen went silent. He was convinced—the bastard in front of him was poor!
Ye Guan suddenly stood up and said, “Time’s up, Brother Yun! Are you going to renew your subscription? If not, I’m not going to chat with you anymore.”
Yun Chen’s expression stiffened. Ye Guan stared at him, waiting for his reply.
“No, I’m fine, Brother Yang.”
He had enough money to make Ye Guan stay here for a long time, but he wasn’t that pretentious.
Ye Guan cupped his fists and said, “I’ll be off then, Brother Yun. I hope we’ll get another chance to meet in the future!”
Ye Guan turned around and left for the ninth floor.
Yun Chen stared at Ye Guan’s departing figure with a frown. He couldn’t help but wonder about where Ye Guan had come from.
Ye Guan suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned around to ask, “Brother Yun, does the match begin the moment the defender appears?”
“Yes, there are no rules here. You can use any method to win. The match starts as soon as the defender shows up,” Yun Chen explained.
Ye Guan nodded and cupped his fists once more before going up the stairs and walking into a shining door.
Ye Guan sat cross-legged on the ninth floor and patiently waited for his opponent.
Rumble!
The space in front of him rippled like water and rumbled. Moments later, a green-robed woman emerged from a rift in space.
Ye Guan took that as a signal and abruptly vanished.
Swoosh!
He thrust his sword toward the woman.
The green-robed woman had just emerged from the rift in space, but a sword was already inches away from her forehead.
The green-robed woman froze in place.
Ye Guan stared at her and said, “Miss, you’ve lost.”
The green-robed woman snarled at Ye Guan. “A sneak attack? Where have your morals gone?”
Ye Guan pondered over it and explained, “Brother Yun Chen told me that the match starts as soon as my opponent shows up.”
“So it’s that bastard!” the green-robed woman cursed and said, “Yun Chen… I should have crippled you back then!”
Ye Guan ignored the green-robed woman’s cursing and turned around to leave.
“See you later,” he said before heading toward the eighth floor. However, he made sure to walk slowly so that the green-robed woman would have enough time to think.
As expected, the green-robed woman shouted, “Wait!”
Ye Guan turned around almost immediately and asked, “Yes?”
“Are you a swordsman?” asked the green-robed woman.
She’s trying to stall for time without paying me! Ye Guan immediately said, “Miss, I’m busy, so I’ll see you later!”
He cupped his fists and turned around to leave.
Swoosh!
However, the green-robed woman abruptly appeared in front of him. She looked annoyed as she snarled and asked, “Can’t you stay here and talk with me for a while?”
Ye Guan pretended like he was thinking about it before saying, “Brother Yun Chen paid me two hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals just to talk to me.”
The green-robed woman froze. She stared at Ye Guan in disbelief. “Are you poor?”
Ye Guan nodded.
The green-robed woman examined Ye Guan and asked, “How can a talent like you be so poor?”
“Well, it’s not like I want to be poor, but what can I do?” Ye Guan said.
The green-robed woman’s lips twitched ever so slightly. She stared at him with contempt before showing him a storage ring. “Let’s have a rematch. There are five hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals in here!”
Five hundred thousand?! Ye Guan was visibly moved. His eyes were wide in shock as she asked, “Is the martial list full of rich people?”
The green-robed woman retorted, “I think you’re just too poor.”
Ye Guan’s expression froze.
The green-robed woman chuckled, seemingly amused by his reaction.
“Are you going to accept my offer or not?”
“Sure.” Ye Guan nodded and said, “Let’s do it!”
Boom!
The space around Ye Guan abruptly shattered, and at least ten light rays flew toward Ye Guan at breakneck speeds.
However, Ye Guan wasn’t alarmed at all. As soon as the final syllable of his sentence fell, his figure had abruptly vanished, and his sword was already inches away from the green-robed woman. It was a repeat of what had happened earlier.
The light rays froze in their tracks.
The green-robed woman’s pupils were constricted as she stared at Ye Guan in a daze. Moments later, she chuckled bitterly and said, “You’re too fast!”
Ye Guan wordlessly sheathed his sword.
The green-robed woman opened her palm, and the same storage ring from earlier floated over to Ye Guan. The storage ring truly had five hundred thousand gold spiritual crystals in it.
Ye Guan put it away and said, “Thank you, Miss!”
He then turned around and started walking toward the eighth floor.
“How should I address you?” asked the green-robed woman.
Ye Guan stopped in his tracks and replied, “Yang Guan!”
“Is that your real name?”
Ye Guan shook his head.
“Can you tell me your real name?”
Ye Guan shook his head once again.
It’s better if I stay low-profile!
However, the green-robed woman didn’t give up and asked, “What if I gave you some money?”
“Miss, there’s a reason why I’m hiding my name. I hope you’ll understand,” Ye Guan said with a smile.
The green-robed woman nodded. “All right, I understand. Anyway, my name is Xue Yiren! Have you heard of me before?”
Ye Guan thought about it before shaking his head.
The corners of Xue Yiren’s lips twitched. “Get out!”
“All right.” Ye Guan nodded and said, “I’m leaving.”
With that, he finally turned around and climbed the stairs to the eighth floor.
Xue Yiren stared at Ye Guan’s departing figure and muttered to herself. “I had no idea that the Zhongtu Divine Continent’s Guanxuan Academy had such a young swordsman…”
“Wait…” Xue Yiren seemed to have realized something. “What the hell? He got lucky enough to talk to me, but he still dared to charge me? Am I not beautiful enough? What an insensitive man!”
Xue Yiren pouted and stomped away.
…
Ye Guan soon arrived on the eighth floor.
He sat cross-legged and waited for his opponent.
Little Pagoda suddenly asked, “You know you have a lot of money, right? The amount you have in your storage rings will last you for a long time.”
Ye Guan nodded and replied, “Yes, I’m sure I’ll have enough money for a long time.”
Ye Guan’s response baffled Little Pagoda.
“So why…” Little Pagoda trailed off.
Ye Guan answered, “It’s because of what Brother Qin told me. He said that I would need millions of gold spiritual crystals to reconstruct my physique.”
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