Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Kneel and Apologize
Shen Daoxing looked up to see a young woman, no more than fifteen or sixteen years old.
The woman was dressed in white with a veil covering her face, obscuring her features. However, her figure was undeniably curvaceous and graceful.
Shen Daoxing smiled. "No, I just practice a little when I’m bored."
"When you’re bored?"
The woman’s eyes lit up as if she had found a kindred spirit. "Do you also find this place boring?"
Shen Daoxing put the finishing touches on the wood carving and said flatly, "For me, yes."
The woman looked at the carving and exclaimed in admiration, "The rabbit you carved is so cute! It looks just like a real one."
Shen Daoxing blew the wood shavings off the carving and smiled. "If you like it, it’s yours."
The woman blushed slightly, saying with some embarrassment, "Oh, I couldn’t possibly. My mother told me not to accept things from strangers."
Shen Daoxing waved his hand. "It’s fine. It’s just a wood carving."
The woman hesitated for a moment. "I don’t have any Gold Coins on me, so let me trade you this for it."
With that, the woman took out a round, cyan bead.
Shen Daoxing accepted the bead and saw that it was exquisitely engraved with a mighty and domineering black tiger.
"My name is Gu Yawei."
The woman, toying with the small rabbit in her hands, asked, "What’s your name?"
’He seems so different from everyone else here,’ she thought.
"Shen Daoxing."
"Thank you for the wood carving. I’ll take good care of it."
"I’ll take good care of your gift, too."
Gu Yawei cradled the small rabbit, her careful movements making it seem as if she were holding a priceless treasure.
Just as Shen Daoxing was about to speak, a cold voice came from not far away.
"So this is where you were hiding, you brat!"
Shen Daoxing turned to look. The newcomer was a beautiful woman, her delicate features shimmering under the lights, highlighting her captivating presence.
It was none other than Zhao Ziqi.
"It’s the Zhao Family’s eldest young miss, Zhao Ziqi!"
At the same time, the eyes of the young elites in the crowd lit up.
After all, the Zhao Family was one of the capital’s top Noble Families, and Zhao Ziqi herself was one of the Four Beauties of the Imperial City.
Winning Zhao Ziqi’s favor would not only mean winning the heart of a beauty but also gaining the Zhao Family’s support—an absolutely wonderful prospect.
Zhao Ziqi stared daggers at Shen Daoxing. "Do you have any idea how much trouble I went through to find you?"
Shen Daoxing said flatly, "Did you need something?"
"Did I need something? How dare you ask me that?"
Zhao Ziqi was seething with rage. "If you don’t get on your knees, kowtow, and admit you’re wrong today, you can forget about leaving the Celestial Joy Tower."
The commotion attracted more curious onlookers.
Who could be so bold as to provoke Zhao Ziqi, one of the Four Beauties of the Imperial City?
Ye Tian also shuffled closer, his expression changing instantly. "So it’s this madman."
The memory of that scene was still fresh in his mind.
He Ku, who had been stuffing his face, saw the scene and hurried over, asking in confusion, "What’s going on?"
Zhao Ziqi looked at He Ku and asked coldly, "Are you with this brat?"
He Ku answered honestly, "Yes, we are."
Zhao Ziqi said coldly, "Very well. Then you can get on your knees and apologize with him."
’Kneel and apologize!?’
He Ku’s face went pale when he heard this. He whispered, "What right do you have to make us kneel and apologize?"
"Because I can. Is that a good enough reason?"
Just then, a grim voice interjected.
A high-spirited young man dressed in rich brocade robes stepped forward.
A wave of gasps immediately rippled through the crowd.
"It’s Xia Junze’s younger brother, Xia Chen! He’s a genius too!"
"I heard Xia Chen has already been accepted as a disciple by the vice headmaster of Celestial City Academy ahead of time. His cultivation is now at the Sixth Layer of the Profound Platform Realm."
"Heavens! To reach the Sixth Layer of the Profound Platform Realm at such a young age! He truly is Xia Junze’s brother."
"He might even make a run for the Martial Arts Ranking in the future. Why else would the Eldest Prince and the Seventh Prince be trying to recruit him?"
...
Hearing the surrounding discussion, He Ku’s face grew even paler.
He had heard of Xia Chen’s fame when he first came to the Imperial City; he was one of the most sought-after geniuses of this generation.
Xia Chen’s older brother, Xia Junze, was even more impressive—the number one expert of the Martial Kingdom’s younger generation, a renowned genius on the Martial Arts Ranking, and someone whom every member of the Royal Family and all the Noble Families were vying to recruit.
Qin Xiaoyue walked over, and seeing the situation, she couldn’t help but curse inwardly.
’Is this Shen Daoxing an idiot?’
’Provoking Xia Chen of all people!’
’Does he not know what kind of terrifying power is behind him?’
When He Ku saw Qin Xiaoyue, he quickly said, "Miss Qin, you’re just in time. Perhaps there’s some misunderstanding..."
He was not very eloquent and hoped Qin Xiaoyue could clear up the misunderstanding.
’Damn it!’
Qin Xiaoyue cursed inwardly, pretending not to have heard He Ku’s words.
Xia Chen, however, looked over at her. "What’s this? Are you well-acquainted with these two?"
Qin Xiaoyue quickly distanced herself. "Young Master Xia, you misunderstand. I don’t know them at all!"
’Doesn’t know them!?’
He Ku stared at Qin Xiaoyue in disbelief.
"Then stand aside."
Xia Chen turned his gaze back to He Ku and Shen Daoxing and said coldly, "Do as Ziqi said. Both of you will kneel, apologize, and then get out of the Celestial Joy Tower."
Zhao Ziqi crossed her arms, a cold sneer on her face.
Most of the onlookers wore expressions of schadenfreude, though a few looked on with pity.
Instantly, an incredibly tense atmosphere descended upon the scene.
Cold sweat beaded continuously on He Ku’s forehead.
Coming from a rural village, he had never witnessed a scene like this.
Just then, Shen Daoxing spoke, his voice flat. "Who the hell do you think you are!?"
BOOM!
As his words fell, the entire banquet plunged into a deathly silence.
Everyone stared at Shen Daoxing in stunned disbelief.
Who was Xia Chen?!
He was a chosen one from birth, a famous and renowned genius, and now he had even been accepted early as a disciple by the vice headmaster of Celestial City Academy.
Not to mention his older brother, Xia Junze, was one of only two geniuses from the Martial Kingdom on the Martial Arts Ranking, a figure whose fame shook the entire nation.
Even the Noble Families and Royal Nobility had to treat a genius like Xia Junze with the utmost respect and deference.
And yet, Shen Daoxing dared to speak so arrogantly to Xia Chen!?
Ye Tian swallowed hard and muttered, "So arrogant!"
Qin Xiaoyue shook her head to herself. ’He’s crazy. This Shen Daoxing is truly crazy.’
She had originally thought that a genius valued by Wang Hu would be someone extraordinary and had wanted to befriend him. Now, it seemed he was just an arrogant, brainless fool.
’Befriending someone like that would inevitably lead to deadly trouble.’
"Good, good, good!"
Xia Chen was so furious he laughed. "You ask who I think I am? I’ll show you exactly who I am right now."
The next moment, the Primordial Energy in Xia Chen’s body surged, and he stomped his foot hard on the ground.
BOOM!
The Primordial Energy of the Sixth Layer of the Profound Platform Realm erupted, and the air beneath his feet instantly exploded into powerful shockwaves.
