Chapter 901: Chapter 900: Taking Action_1
The crowd was numerous, but Shi Xiaole’s arrival still drew the attention of some.
"Young Hero Shi, you truly keep your talents hidden. Compared to you, the rest of us are mere mortals."
A young couple approached, the man’s smile laced with surprise, the woman’s face full of admiration and fervor; they were none other than Jie Yuhui and Jie Yuyan, whom he had a chance encounter with at the Drunken Spring Breeze that night.
Back then, Feng Guoting challenged Shi Xiaole with fierce words, excessive talk. Everyone believed Shi Xiaole had chickened out, but it turned out he simply disdained to respond.
Indeed, no matter how a lamb provokes, it cannot ignite the rage of a tiger, for it is not worthy.
"Hahaha, Brother Shi’s arrival takes away seven parts of the hall’s brilliance. Brother Shi, take a careful look, how many young ladies are observing you."
King Huan and Princess Miaoyan also came over, King Huan with a mysterious smile on his face, whispering, "These are all daughters of nobility, heh heh, would you like this prince to introduce you to some, Brother Shi?"
Shi Xiaole hurriedly declined.
"It’s just the prince being frivolous. With Brother Shi’s capabilities, who would need any introduction?"
Princess Miaoyan snorted at her brother, then smiled and said, "Brother Shi, you promised to come see Miaoyan, and now you’ve been in Sky City for many days, yet you’ve avoided meeting. Have you forgotten about Miaoyan? It really breaks one’s heart!"
Shi Xiaole noticed that glances from all around were landing on him, even those who had been engrossed in their own conversations began to size him up covertly.
King Huan was sociable and popular among the Sky City nobility, and Princess Miaoyan, romantic and stunning as the nation’s beauty, was the dream lover of many.
It was the first time for people to see the two of them being so courteous to someone of a common background, which inevitably aroused curiosity. And from the chirping discussions around, some knew of Shi Xiaole’s identity, their expressions revealing a range of emotions.
"Is he the Kirin?"
On the west side, three men and three women showed a look of surprise.
"Indeed, his aura hasn’t even reached a half step into the Void Origin Realm, letting him challenge Fujiki Naotsugu now would be difficult."
A man with a full beard commented.
"He defeated an Earth Immortal from the Divine Border Realm while in the Dragon Gate Realm, perhaps he can create a miracle."
Another woman said, though even she did not quite believe her own words.
If a Dragon Gate Realm could overcome a Divine Border Realm, one might find a handful of examples in past history, but for a Divine Border Realm to beat a half step into the Void Origin Realm was a completely baseless notion.
The so-called half step into the Void Origin meant that the warrior’s body had already generated some Vigorous Air Vortexes. Even without discussing martial arts, just the sheer amount of Vigorous Air was enough to easily crush any Terrestrial Immortals. How could there be a fight?
It was not something that could be compensated for by talent.
"Even the Sky Mountain Six Harmonies Formations were of no use, what can an Earth Immortal from the Divine Border Realm do."
Next to the woman, a pale-faced scholar drank his wine silently, lacking enthusiasm.
These six men and women were the Sky Mountain Six Heroes, who had been defeated by Fujiki Naotsugu.
The Sky Mountain Six Heroes were recluses with eccentric personalities, avoiding the public eye for many years. They had re-entered the Martial World for the sake of the martial arts community only to be thwarted in Sky City, with four of them severely injured, naturally full of frustration.
Luckily, King Jin had timely provided the most precious healing elixirs, preventing the worsening of the four injured members’ conditions. This was why the Sky Mountain Six Heroes were obliged to attend an event so at odds with their temperament.
"Shi Xiaole, long time no see."
A cold, firm voice echoed through the venue.
The speaker was a ’tall man’, his very skeleton larger than the average person, his entire being exuded an unapproachable mountainous presence; who else could it be but Yao Mie Sheng?
Yao Mie Sheng stared at Shi Xiaole, his eyes flashing like lightning.
He would never forget that humiliating battle and someday, he would reclaim his glory before all the heroes of the world. But until then, he hoped that this archenemy would not lose.
His gaze then swept over the Japanese swordsmen at the head of the table, and Yao Mie Sheng retracted his sharpness.
Shi Xiaole naturally noticed him as well, nodding his head as a greeting. To this day, Yao Mie Sheng no longer caused any stir within him, not even hatred, because they were already on different levels.
To speak bluntly, Shi Xiaole still had a long way to go to close the gap with Shi Xuanzhong, and Yao Mie Sheng’s ambition to become a Destroying Saint was destined to remain a dream.
"A heartbroken person, at the ends of the earth; where there are people, there will be ’ends of the earth’, so everyone is bound to suffer heartbreak."
A mournful voice arose, causing many experts on the west side to shiver.
This was a youth in tattered clothes, with sagging eyebrows and drooping eyelids, each pore on his face exuding a heartbreaking sadness. Seeing him always reminded others of unpleasant memories.
Therefore, within three meters of him, only one person was seated.
Others, however, were cowed.
The Heartbroken!
This man was the Heartbroken, one of the Nine Great Heaven Kings, and he was also present!
Many people also looked at the only young man within three meters who was seated.
His face bore a naive and honest look; perhaps due to constant sun exposure, his skin was extremely dark, his feet bare, a fishing net tucked in his waist, and a fish basket placed under the table, resembling a fisherman who had just returned from the sea, taking a sip of wine and then revealing an inexplicably satisfied smile.
Some people recalled this saying and then looked again at the simple young man unaffected by the Heartbroken, their faces changing dramatically.
"Well now, three of the Nine Great Heaven Kings have arrived, and it’s been said that the Heartbroken does not acknowledge the Kirin, having secretly challenged him before. There will be a show to watch tonight."
"Three? Wrong, there are five!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a golden-robed man and an orange-dressed woman walked in. In terms of appearance and temperament, they were above many of the nobles present. Who else could they be but Mu Ling and Duanmu Keren?
Seeing Shi Xiaole seated at the end of the western seats, the two didn’t make a fuss and went straight over.
"Brother Shi, that old turtle is still in jail, yet here you are, enjoying your days and nowhere to be found!"
Mu Ling gave Shi Xiaole a punch to the chest, not too hard.
Shi Xiaole just smiled.
"Have you found anything?"
Duanmu Keren asked through a transmitted message.
There was no question of misunderstanding; with the intelligence of Jade Lion and Heavenly Phoenix, they would certainly not be foolish enough to think Shi Xiaole was so enticed by beauty that he had forgotten his duties.
"Still looking, I’m not sure yet,"
said Shi Xiaole.
As the three were secretly communicating, more people gradually entered, including Feng Guoting, Tao Baishan, Zhang Baichuan, and others. Catching sight of Shi Xiaole, several of them sneered secretly.
When a stunning woman made her appearance, the brilliant chandeliers dimmed, and even the moonlight seemed hazy. Many men breathed heavily, their faces flushing red, swallowing their saliva without regard for their image—it was none other than Mei Junyi.
Mei Junyi took a look around and just nodded at Shi Xiaole, then walked to a seat reserved especially for her, where all eyes were drawn.
"Indeed a disaster-level beauty, now I even suspect that you truly are infatuated with beauty,"
said Mu Ling, looking at Shi Xiaole.
It wasn’t long before King Jin, the host, made a low-profile appearance, finally drawing everyone’s attention back. He was dressed in the plain clothes of a scholar and always wore a smile, like a breath of spring, managing to chat for a while with everyone he met.
Passing by Shi Xiaole and the others, King Jin stopped for a long while, acting like an old friend not seen for years—quite good at keeping the conversation going without seeming overly deliberate.
Some observant individuals noticed that King Jin lingered longer by Shi Xiaole’s side than by anyone else. In the end, he personally presented Shi Xiaole and his companions with a token each.
This was King Jin’s command token. Whoever held this token could withdraw the highest amount of money and cultivation resources from King Jin’s mansion every month, could enter the front yard of King Jin’s mansion without announcement, and more so, they could mobilize a certain degree of King Jin’s forces in various places.
For the few who were aware, this was something that not even King Jin’s closest confidants might obtain.
Some people’s expressions changed; this was plainly a public recruitment of the three, and the sincerity was perhaps too great. But if they were courting Kirin, why would they also invite Fujiki Naotsugu? Wasn’t that just asking for trouble?
King Huan’s face turned ashen, but he quickly recovered. Princess Miaoyan beside him was all smiles, her eyes wandering across the faces of King Jin and King Huan, deep in thought.
Once the round was done, King Jin took his seat at the main place, and the night banquet officially began. What followed was a series of performances that could be described as spectacular, including dance and acrobatics. The audience occasionally erupted into exclamations and cheers, though it was unclear how much was genuine.
"Your Highness King Jin, while the performance is splendid, it is a bit too scholarly. I have a suggestion. Since you have invited many friends from the Martial World, why not ask them to come up for a demonstration of martial arts? It would be an eye-opener for all of us."
After another guqin performance ended, a lavishly dressed young man stood and spoke.
"Hahahaha, this king has no say in this matter, for the Martial World has its own rules,"
said King Jin with a laugh, his casual remark earning the favor of many martial artists present.
The young man sat down with a wry smile; although he was the son of Sky City’s City Lord, he had no official title and was not foolish enough to order around people from the Martial World.
Just when it seemed like the situation had calmed, suddenly, a man from the Martial World sitting in the west stood out and walked towards Shi Xiaole, "Young Hero Shi, a Japanese swordsman sits in the chief seat; this man has repeatedly humiliated our Central Plain martial artists, claiming our land struggles to find a decent fighter. Please, teach him a lesson!"
"Young Hero Shi, my teacher Wang Weiguo was slain by his hand. Please, avenge my teacher!"
Another man stepped forward, claiming to be the disciple of ’One Stroke Overwhelms the City’ Wang Weiguo, causing a stir among the crowd.
Afterward, more individuals approached Shi Xiaole, pleading for him to take action; their words were poignant, their attitudes earnest. As they became emotional, some even knelt on one knee.
Many bystanders from the Martial World couldn’t help but be moved; the reputation of the Central Plain’s martial arts community was on the verge of collapse. Could they really allow a warrior from a tiny jurisdiction to rampage and swagger here?
Feng Guoting and the others exchanged a glance, revealing a malicious grin that disappeared as quickly as it came.
King Huan watched King Jin, who seemed unperturbed, and let out a sigh of relief, his earlier annoyance vanishing.
This matter was clearly someone’s doing, intended to make Kirin lose face, and it was happening right in King Jin’s mansion. Now they would see how King Jin continued to win people over.
"Please, stand up,"
Shi Xiaole said, his expression cold, looking down at the people kneeling before him.
"Kirin, are you willing to fight?"
The man who first instigated looked up, his voice filled with excitement.
"Nobody can force me to do what I don’t want to do."
The expressions of the people around him changed.
The man cried out, "Could it be that Kirin is truly fearful and dares not to fight? To forsake martial dignity for mere reputation—I must say, you do not deserve the title of Kirin!"
"Hahaha, what Kirin? He’s not even qualified to battle our young master. I could take care of him myself,"
At that moment, a Japanese man behind Fujiki Naotsugu in the west became infuriated and drew his sword. He leapt into the air, a tremendous swordsman’s air crossing the crowd, slashing directly towards Shi Xiaole."
He couldn’t stand the assumption by the people of the Central Plain that Kirin’s involvement meant a match for their young master. He intended to show everyone that not just anyone was worthy of drawing the young master’s sword!
