Volume 1 Chapter 9 Provocation!

  Leng Ruoxue and others walked into the room, saw the wealth that was piled up randomly in the room, and didn't want to say anything more...

  "Ah, Lass! I think we should also become bandits. With our abilities, the loot we get will definitely be more than theirs." Old Man Zou proposed with gleaming eyes.

  "This old fellow, this idea is really to my liking!" Leng Ruo Xue teased, but her eyes turned towards Lan Meng.

  "What are you looking at? I won't fall so easily." Blue Ming said with a very firm will.

  "Really? I'm looking forward to it!" Leng Ruo Xue said with a sly smile.

  "Miss, you really want to be a bandit?" Zheng En said with some dismay, was he destined to never shake off the identity of a bandit in this lifetime? Wooo...

  "Of course not, I only bully those who provoke me, haha!" Leng Ruo Xue gave Zheng En a violent slap, laughing as she spoke.

  "Oh, that's great!" Zheng En felt relieved, he didn't want to be a bandit anymore, it was all because of circumstances before!

  Cold as snow, without any politeness, she put all the valuables in the house into her bag, and took possession of them with a calm and composed manner.

  "Little girl, you've made a fortune this time. These riches are enough to rival the entire wealth of an average noble family." Blue Ming said.

  "This is still not enough!" Leng Ruo Xue furrowed her brow, somewhat depressed, and said, "Ugh... there are too many people at home."

  "Isn't this enough? How many people are there in your household?" Lan Meng asked with some disbelief.

  "There are so many people at home." Leng Ruoxue said with a slight headache.

  “……”

  Lan Meng was speechless, if these goods were not enough to support their family, then there must be many people in their household.

  "Zheng En, we'll stay here for tonight and leave tomorrow," said Leng Ruo Xue, turning to Zheng En.

  "Okay, miss, but where are we going?" Zheng En asked with some curiosity.

  "Go to Xiangyang City." Leng Ruoxue said.

  "Ah! Xiangyang City! Miss, can I not go?" Zheng En said with a difficult expression.

  "Why?" Cold-as-snow looked at Zheng En with a suspicious expression, her watery eyes written with 'Give me a reasonable explanation.'

  "I...I don't want to go to Xiangyang City." Zheng En said hesitantly.

  "Give me a reason." Leng Ruoxue glared at Zheng En, half commanding.

  "The Dan Shifu General Assembly is also in Xianyao City, so I don't want to go." Zheng En said bluntly, his heart racing... he didn't know if Miss would kick him out after finding out about his past...

  "Have you and Dan Shifu ever had a falling out?" Leng Ruoxue guessed, her face full of understanding.

  "Miss, actually... I was expelled by the Dan Master Association and had my qualifications as a Dan Master revoked. That's why I couldn't get the medicinal materials, so I had no choice but to make a deal with those bandits." Zheng En explained with a pained expression.

  "Ah! Are you that Zheng En?" Lan Meng suddenly shouted, no wonder he felt the name was somewhat familiar, but because it had been too long, so he hadn't thought of it for a while.

  "Hmm, yes, I am the Zheng En who was expelled by the Dan Shizong 15 years ago." Zheng En's tiger eyes were filled with hateful light as he said coldly, "Alas! Although it has been 15 years, every time he thought of this matter, his heart would bleed."

  "I don't care what kind of grudge you have with someone from the Dan Shizong, but you must go to Xiangyang City. As for your grudge, you'll have to take revenge yourself." Leng Ruoxue said calmly, although she didn't ask him about the details of what happened, she could guess how he was treated, after all, such things are not uncommon anywhere.

  "Miss, it's not that I don't want to take revenge, but my enemy is now very powerful and I'm no match for him." Zheng En said with some helplessness.

  "Not having the power now doesn't mean you won't have it in the future, and I didn't tell you to take revenge right away, what's the hurry?" Leng Ruo Xue said with a faint smile. Since Zheng En was already her person now, she naturally couldn't just stand by and watch others bully him.

  "Hmm, I'm not in a hurry, I've endured for so many years already. Sooner or later, I'll take revenge on the person who framed me with my own hands." Zheng En said with an air of grandeur, as if he had transformed into a different person.

  "Zheng Xiaozhi, that's right! Don't worry, if you want to take revenge, we will definitely help you." The old man patted Zheng En's shoulder with a brotherly appearance.

  "Ah, thank you." Zheng En felt a warmth in his heart after hearing the old man's words. For over ten years, he had been alone, and with those bandits, he couldn't truly open up to them either. So, this was the first time in over ten years that he felt a warm feeling.

  "Let's all get some rest early today! We'll set off at dawn tomorrow." said Leng Yue to the crowd, seeing that Zheng En had regained his confidence.

  "Alright." Leng Qingtian and others responded, then they all went to find a room to rest. However, Lan Meng did not leave.

  "Does Blue have something to say?" Lan Xue looked at Lan Meng and said calmly.

  "Little girl, things back then were very troublesome and complicated. I advise you to stay out of it." Lan Meng said after some thought.

  "Zheng En is now under me, do you think I wouldn't be involved?" asked Leng Ruo Xue calmly.

  "I think it's better to let Zheng En stay here for the time being, until the competition of the Xuan Shi Association is over, you can come and pick him up then." Lan Meng suggested, his implicit meaning was that it's best not to let Zheng En go to Xiao Yao City, lest he be recognized by someone.

  "There's no need for that, but if Lan Hua is afraid of trouble, we can just go our separate ways." Leng Ruo Xue's tone suddenly became somewhat chilly.

  "Hum! You think you're so great, don't you? Now that you've found a new way to get rich, you want to get rid of me, right? Not even a door!" Lan Menghuo roared. His good intentions were actually treated like a donkey's liver and lungs, how unjust it was! He had always thought that he and they were already friends, but this heartless little girl actually wanted to drive him away for the sake of Zheng En, whom she had just met, hum... his heart was so hurt!

  "I didn't say I wanted to get rid of you! I was just afraid you'd find it troublesome!" Leng Ruo Xue's forehead was beaded with cold sweat, and she said somewhat helplessly, "This guy is so unreasonable!"

  "Hmph! You're not afraid, what am I supposed to be afraid of?" Lan Meng shouted somewhat gloomily.

  "Since you're not afraid, then go to sleep! We still have a long way to go tomorrow!" Leng Ruo Xue said calmly, and after finishing speaking, she pulled the demon away together, leaving behind only Lan Ming who was sulking alone...

  After spending a night in the bandit's lair, Cold-as-Snow and others set off early next morning...

  Ten days later.

  Leng Ruo Xue and others arrived at Bu Ye Cheng.

  "This city is called Insomnia City, and after passing through this city, it's just a short distance to Carefree City." Outside the city gate, Lan Meng looked at the tall and majestic city wall and explained that they had rushed for ten days and were finally close to their destination.

  "Is this a city that never sleeps? Does it mean that nighttime is just as lively as daytime?" asked Leng Ruoxue with some curiosity.

  "Uh, it's also brightly lit at night here, and it's extremely lively." Lan Meng said.

  "Compared with Windless City, which one is bigger?" asked Leng Ruoxue.

  "It's almost all, none of them are too big cities." Lan Meng answered with a must-answer tone.

  "Old Blue, does Master Xuan have any other preferential policies?" Leng Ruo Xue couldn't help but ask, having only learned in the past few days that Master Xuan didn't charge any fees for entering the city.

  "When staying in the hotel, if it's fully booked, the Xuan Shi has priority to stay. If both groups of guests are Xuan Shi, then the one with the higher level will be given priority." Lan Ming said with a smile.

  "Oh, Old Blue, let's head into the city! Find a place to rest for now and continue our journey tomorrow." said Cold Snow.

  "Let's go! In the city that never sleeps, there is an inn belonging to our Xuan Shi Guild. Xuan Shi lives there and can get a discount." said Lan Meng.

  "Why isn't it free?" This sect is really stingy, they're even charging their own people, Cold Snow was secretly indignant.

  "The guild also needs to make money! The entire continent of Huàntiān has a population of tens of billions, and even if the number of Xuan Masters is small, there are still several hundred thousand. If everything were free, then even with a lot of money, the guild wouldn't be able to support all those Xuan Masters! However, for Xuan Masters at the Xuan Huang level or above, it's completely free." Lan Ming said with a light smile.

  "Oh!" Cold-as-snow nodded understandingly.

  Then everyone walked into the city that never sleeps.

  "We're here." After walking for a while, Lan Meng pointed to a golden sign in mid-air that read "Xuan Shi Public House".

  Leng Ruoxue glanced at the signboard of the guest shop in front of her and thought to herself, "This Xuan Shi Gong Hui is truly lazy enough. They can't even be bothered to come up with a name, directly writing 'Xuan Shi Gong Hui' on the signboard."

  "Little girl, isn't this place easy to recognize?" Lan Meng said with a proud face.

  "Yes! It's very recognizable." Leng Ruoxue agreed with a stiff upper lip, if it wasn't recognizable here, then where would be?

  After finishing speaking, Leng Ruo Xue and others followed Lan Meng into the 'Mystic Master Guild' inn.

  "Blue will be long, who are they?" When he arrived at the front desk of the hotel, the shopkeeper looked at the person behind Lan Meng and asked with some confusion.

  "They are representatives of our guild." Lan Meng explained faintly.

  "Ah! No way!" The shopkeeper thought he had misheard, the Wufeng City Xuan Shi Public House actually also had a representative participating in the competition, and how could there be such an ugly Xuan Shi? It was truly unthinkable!

  "Can't I even cheat you?" Lan Meng glared, somewhat angrily, and hummed. These people who judge by appearance are idiots. If they provoke that little girl, they'll be the ones to suffer. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel a little schadenfreude.

  "No, no, how can Master Lan deceive us!" The shopkeeper hastily said, to be honest, he didn't have a good impression of the several Taoist priests with somewhat unsightly appearances brought by Lan Meng.

  "Come on, arrange a room for us quickly!" Lan Meng said somewhat impatiently. Hum! These people who look down on others and judge by appearance will eventually get their due.

  "The Blue Mansion has been reduced to just two rooms." The shopkeeper said with a difficult expression.

  "How is this possible? Shouldn't your inn have reserved rooms for the various guilds?" Lan Meng said somewhat angrily, every time the Mystic Master Guild had an official match, the Mystic Inn of Notown would reserve rooms for the major guilds, it was a usual practice.

  "It was originally reserved, but the number of people brought by Director Zhou's master is a bit too many, their rooms can't accommodate them, so...so..." The shopkeeper hesitated and his eyes darted around.

  "So you're just going to give our guild's room to them?" Lan Meng was furious, this was really too much!

  "Blue will be long, I have no way! Director Zhou, I can't afford to offend him, and it was Director Zhou who said that your guild didn't have anyone participating in the competition, so I let them stay in the room." The shopkeeper explained hastily, ...last time's competition, Wu Feng City's Xuan Shi Guild forfeited, so he didn't think that this time they would actually send someone!

  "You mean that Chairman Zhou is someone you can't afford to offend, but I am someone you can, is that right?" Lan Meng said with a hint of displeasure, narrowing his eyes.

  "No... no, I didn't mean it that way, neither of us can afford to provoke the other!" The shopkeeper was so anxious he almost cried, wailing... Can he just pretend to be unconscious?!

  "Blue old man, forget it, why bother with a servant like him? Two rooms are enough." Lan Ruoxue said calmly.

  "That's also true, a servant of the same rank shouldn't be so petty, it would tarnish my reputation." Lan Meng said with an elegant and subtle smile.

  "Take us to our room quickly!" Leng Ruoxue commanded.

  "Yes, yes, please follow me." The shopkeeper said cautiously, uh... this ugly woman's aura is even more intimidating than Blue Willow's.

  "Gentlemen, it's these two rooms." The shopkeeper led Cold Snow and the others up to the third floor, pointing to the two innermost rooms.

  "Lan Lao, we're going to cultivate, you take a room for yourself!" Cold Snow said, and then casually pushed open a door and walked in, followed closely by the others.

  "Don't disturb us if nothing's wrong." After watching Leng Ruo Xue and the others enter the room, Lan Meng turned his head and coldly said to the shopkeeper. Then, he also pushed open the door and entered his own room.

  In Leng Ruo Xue's room and others'.

  "Miss, I want to enter the space." Zheng En said eagerly as soon as he and others like Leng Ruo Xue entered the room, before they even had a chance to take in the layout of the room.

  "Zheng Xiaozi, why are you in such a hurry?" Lao Tou said somewhat speechlessly. If it weren't for considering Lan Ming, this kid would probably have stayed inside and refused to come out.

  "Let's go!" Cold as snow, she turned her mind and brought everyone into the circle.

  As soon as Zheng En entered the circle, he immediately ran to the edge of the medicine field, his tiger eyes shining brightly as he gazed at those precious medicinal materials, almost drooling.

  "Don't let your slobber drip onto my herbs." The little black dog guarding the herb garden warned.

  "No, no." Zheng En hastily assured, and also imitated the little black dog's manner, sitting down at the edge of the medicine field.

  Leng Ruo Xue looked at the person and dog on the edge of the medicine field with some helplessness, shook her head with a lost smile. Ever since she first brought Zheng En here, he didn't want to leave again. And as long as he stayed in the ring, he would definitely be found in the medicine field. Alas! He was truly a dan addict! Zheng En's infatuation with dan medicine and medicinal materials really made her feel ashamed!

  "Monster, let's get some rest early!" Leng Ruoxue turned her head and said to the monster.

  "Mm." The demon nodded and pulled Rong Ruoxue into the Purple Bamboo House.

  As for Leng Qingtian and others, they had already returned to their own rooms to cultivate their Xuan techniques.

  The next morning, Leng Ruo Xue led everyone out of the valley once again.

  "Miss." Zheng En looked at Leng Ruo Xue with a pitiful expression, his eyes full of pleading, and said: "There is a very precious medicinal herb that will mature today. Such an opportunity is rare in a thousand years..."

  "We should get going, there will be more opportunities like this later." Lan Ruoxue's forehead dripped with two drops of cold sweat, and she coaxed him with a hint of helplessness, "Ai! Being stared at by such a tall and majestic man with a stern face, using such pitiful eyes, really makes her uncomfortable."

  "You're not allowed to learn from me!" The demon standing beside Cold Snow gave Zheng En a violent slap, shouting with a face full of displeasure. Damn it, he actually dared to try to act pitiful like him? Humph! His Snow would never be pitied by another man!

  "I didn't." Zheng Enhu's eyes welled up with tears as he said dejectedly, "Waa... Miss's man is so fierce!"

  "Go out, don't let Lan Meng wait anxiously." Leng Ruo Xue said with a strong restraint on her smile, hehe, she thought that the demon's pitiful appearance was even more lovely.

  Leng Ruo Xue and others came out of the room, just in time to see Lan Ming pacing back and forth in the corridor.

  "What's wrong with you, Old Blue?" asked Leng Ruoxue with some curiosity, why was Lan Meng acting like an ant on a hot pot?

  "Little girl, you're just in time. I wanted to talk to you about Director Zhou..." Lan Meng had barely opened his mouth when he was interrupted by Leng Ruoxue.

  "Old Blue, an unimportant person, I'm not interested," said Leng Ruoxue with some disinterest.

  "Little girl, you'd better listen!" Lan Meng sighed and said with some helplessness.

  "Alright, go ahead!" said Leng Ruoxue indifferently.

  "Little girl, that Prefect Zhou, whose name is Zhou Kun, is the leader of the Sun Zhou City Xuan Shi Public House. Sun Zhou City is one of the three major cities on the continent of Hao Tian, and its area is much larger than that of Xiao Yao City. Moreover, it is also the main city of the Sun family, and the Zhou family is the second largest family in Sun Zhou City. The relationship between the Sun and Zhou families has been very close for thousands of years. As the eldest son of the Zhou family, Zhou Kun's talent is extremely high, and his mother is also the eldest sister of the Sun family, so Zhou Kun's status in the Sun family is also very high."

  "Zhou Kun is the beloved disciple of the Vice-President of the Xuan Shi General Assembly, while my master is the President of the Xuan Shi General Assembly. However, my master has been in seclusion for many years, so the affairs of the Xuan Shi General Assembly are basically handled by the Vice-President. He has always hoped that his beloved disciple can inherit the position of President of the Xuan Shi General Assembly, so he has been suppressing me all along. And being arranged to come to Wu Feng City's Xuan Shi Guild is also his intention." Lan Ming explained.

  "Lao Lao, you're a member of the Lan family, aren't you? If the vice president acts like this, isn't he afraid of offending the Lan family?" asked Leng Ruoxue with great certainty.

  "Alas! Little girl, I'm just a illegitimate child of the Lan family. Moreover, the Xuan Shi Gong Hui has rules, the direct descendants of the three major families are not allowed to hold important positions in the Xuan Shi Gong Hui, while the illegitimate children, once they become the president of the Xuan Shi Gong Hui, it's equivalent to leaving their family, and naturally, the family will no longer protect you." Lan Ming said with some helplessness.

  "It seems that the rules of the Xuan Shi Gong Hui are quite numerous." Leng Ruo Xue said calmly, this was probably also to prevent the Xuan Shi Gong Hui from being controlled by the three major families, and had no choice but to resort to this tactic. However, she didn't think it was a good idea.

  "Uh-huh." Lan Meng nodded in agreement.

  "Isn't Zhou Kun also closely related to the Sun family? If he becomes the president, what's the difference between him and a member of the Sun family being the president?" Leng Ruo Xue asked somewhat perplexed, thinking that this was essentially just a change in name only.

  "This... he doesn't count as a true member of the Sun family, so if he becomes the president, it won't go against the principles of the Xuan Shi Guild." Lan Meng's forehead was dripping with cold sweat, thinking to himself, "Ah! This girl's reaction is too sharp!" Although this was something that everyone already knew in their hearts, no one had dared to ask about it so directly before.

  "If I'm not mistaken, you haven't really cut ties with the Lan family either, have you?" Leng Ruoxue said calmly. Rules are dead, but people are alive. No matter what time it is, people can always find loopholes in the rules and take advantage of them. This has long been an unchanging fact.

  "Yes, I must fulfill my duty to the Lan family, but the Lan family has no responsibility towards me." Lan Meng said with some helplessness. This is probably the sorrow of being a child of a noble family! They are forever just pawns of the family, and even for the sake of the family's prosperity, they may have to sacrifice their own lives at times.

  "Have you ever thought of changing your own destiny?" asked Leng Ruoxue in a calm tone.

  "That's not an easy thing." Lan Meng sighed and said calmly.

  "As long as one has the heart, nothing is impossible." Lan Xue didn't agree with this idea at all. She had always believed that getting stronger was her goal, and she knew that only by becoming a strong person above others could she control her own destiny, so she had been working hard towards this goal.

  "You really don't understand the family's power at all, little girl." Lan Meng had always wanted to break free from the family's control, but now he simply couldn't.

  "Hah, this girl is our host, her words are imperial decrees to us, what else does she need to know?" The old man interrupted.

  "Also, right, little girl, in a while we might have to hit the road with Zhou Kun and them." Lan Ming reminded.

  "Why?" asked Leng Ruoxue somewhat displeased, she didn't want to walk with that Zhou something together.

  "This morning I received a notice that the general assembly has sent someone to pick us up, so we should set off together." This was also the main reason he mentioned Zhou Kun to Leng Ruoxue. Along the way, he had already understood Leng Ruoxue's vengeful personality, so he was afraid that she would conflict with Zhou Kun. After all, at present, she was absolutely no match for Zhou Kun.

  "Oh, don't worry, as long as he doesn't come to provoke me, I won't take the initiative to provoke him." Leng Ruo Xue said calmly, but if that guy comes to provoke her without opening his eyes, then don't blame her!

  "That's good." Having heard Leng Ruoxue's guarantee, Lan Meng felt at ease, because he knew that Leng Ruoxue wasn't someone who liked to stir up trouble.

  "Lan Lao Tzu, when will he send someone over?" asked Leng Ruo Xue.

  "There should be about an hour left, enough time for us to go to the restaurant and have some breakfast." Lan Meng said, looking at the time.

  "Let's go!" said Leng Ruoxue.

  Leng Ruo Xue and others arrived at the first floor restaurant, specifically looking for a spot by the window. However, who knew that just as they sat down, an annoying voice suddenly appeared in their ears.

  "Oh, isn't that Blue Association's leader? I heard that this year, your Windless City Xuan Shi Guild finally has someone who can participate in the competition?" The voice was light and carried a hint of provocation.

  But nobody paid attention to him...

  "It's been so long since we last met, I didn't know that Blue Will had become mute? What? Are the masters you brought with you also mute?" Zhou Kun, standing by their table, suppressed his anger and continued to provoke, "Hmph! He didn't believe that Lan Meng would not get angry!"

  "You don't speak, and no one will take you for a mute." The old man said in a low tone.

  "How dare you be so presumptuous, actually daring to be insolent to your superior! Do you know who I am?" Zhou Kun roared in anger, and no one had ever dared to speak to him like that before. This old man is finished."

  Her face as cold as snow, she slightly raised her head, and lightly swept a glance at the man standing in front of their table. This oily-faced guy was Zhou Kun!

  The man in front of him, Zhou Kun, was about thirty years old and looked quite handsome, but he had a somewhat effeminate appearance. His eyebrows were stern and his eyes seemed to hold a violent energy. His strength should be on par with Lan Meng's, but his demeanor was far inferior to Lan Meng's.

  "You didn't even introduce yourself, how would we know who you are?" said Leng Ruoxue calmly.

  "Hmph! You bunch of ugly freaks, listen up! I am Zhou Kun, the president of the Sunzhou City Xuan Shi Guild. Our Sunzhou City is one of the three major main cities, not something that can be compared to a small city like Wu Feng City." Zhou Kun's face was full of pride, but in his heart, he felt a bit nauseous. What the...? How did Lan Meng find these ugly people?!

  "It's actually Chairman Zhou, I've long admired your great name." Leng Ruoxue said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

  "Do you know me?" Zhou Kun asked in surprise, unexpectedly his great name had spread to that remote place of Wu Feng City, he was truly proud!

  "It must be known! Everyone knows that President Zhou is the most promising person in the Xuan Shi Guild, how could I not have heard of it?!" Leng Ruo Xue said with a face full of admiration.

  "Uh! I still have something to do, so I'll take my leave first." Zhou Kun saw the extremely ugly woman in front of him, looking at him with admiring eyes, and was shocked. He even felt that if he stayed any longer, he would vomit, damn it, she's really disgusting.

  "Girl, you scared him off." Watching Zhou Kun make a quick escape from their table, Old Man Zhao chuckled and teased, "Heh heh, this girl is really too much."

  "Little girl, you're amazing." Lan Meng looked at Leng Ruo Xue with a face full of admiration and praised.

  "Don't worship me, I'm just a legend." said Leng Ruoxue with a slightly playful smile.

  "Xue Er, you actually smiled at another man just now, humph... this is the only time, don't think it's okay to do it again!" The spoiled and jealous one pouted, dissatisfied.

  Leng Ruo Xue wrapped her arms around Yao Jiao's neck, without saying a word, and directly gave him a heavy kiss on the lips, then coaxed him into smiling again.

  "The blue will be long, the person who has been in charge has arrived." At this time, the shopkeeper walked to their side and said cautiously.

  "Let's go!" Lan Meng said without even looking at the shopkeeper, directly addressing Leng Ruo Xue and the others.

  Leng Ruo Xue and others nodded, then stood up and walked directly towards the shop entrance.

  Outside the store, two giant flying spirit beasts were landing on the street, even blocking traffic...

  "I'd rather not ride the same spiritual beast as these ugly freaks!" A spoiled and piercing voice rang out on the main street...

  Digression

  Thank you dear jenhui, 15279165859, and Huali Shuijing for sending flowers.

  Thank you dear milk tea beauty, lemon shallow grass like dawn, plop plop plop plop, lucia799 for the votes.