Jiang Chen spent a short moment calming his excited and churning emotions after obtaining the Wuji Sword Sutra.
Silence.
The surrounding menial disciples occasionally glanced over at Jiang Chen, noticing that his emotions had fluctuated violently before finally returning to calm.
They looked as though they had something to say, but in the end, they still didn't dare to whisper among themselves.
Are you kidding? Jiang Chen was right there. Someone who could easily defeat Wang Yuan had definitely reached the level of Qi Refining 3rd strength.
Even if the rumors were exaggerated, this much was definitely certain.
On the path of immortal cultivation, even at just the Qi Refining stage, the enhancement to one's hearing was terrifying.
After a moment, Jiang Chen let out a long breath and turned to leave.
Today's tasks were already completed, and his top priority now was to hurry back to his quarters to cultivate.
Seeing Jiang Chen use his menial token to leave, the crowd finally began to chatter among themselves.
"Hey, what do you make of the look on his face just now? Could it be that he found out about Wang Yuan's backing?"
Someone spoke up. With the parties involved gone, they naturally felt safe enough to gossip freely.
As his voice trailed off, another person took up the conversation: "You know, you might actually be right. I reckon it's possible."
"With just that Qi Refining 2nd Layer strength of his, Wang Yuan has had the audacity to act so arrogant here for all these years. Sure, he only ever bullied the new menial disciples, but there are plenty of Qi Refining 2nd Layer cultivators among the veteran menial disciples. Why would they let him run amok like that? That's something I figure the newcomer Jiang Chen must have figured out just now."
He paused, then added: "That Wang Yuan's cousin is a powerhouse at the Qi Refining 5th Layer. Tsk, Jiang Chen is in for a world of trouble."
At that moment, a menial disciple who had a bit of a grudge against Jiang Chen chimed in: "Hahaha, didn't you see his expression just now? He didn't take us seriously at all. Qi Refining 3rd Layer is fine and all, but it's still way too far off. Wang Yuan's cousin is going to cripple him."
Someone added: "Don't put it like that. Just a lesson, a lesson is all."
As soon as he said that, most of the people burst into laughter in unison.
Although this group of menial disciples had been here for a while, they had spent the entire time being bullied.
Seeing a newcomer like Jiang Chen act so domineeringly and increase his strength so quickly filled them with jealousy. Naturally, they couldn't wait to see Jiang Chen come to a bad end.
...
Jiang Chen returned to his quarters just like any other day, without showing the slightest change in expression.
As he passed by the dwellings of some female cultivators, he could see many of them dressed revealingly, repeatedly casting amorous glances at him with sultry eyes, and calling out continuously.
"Senior Brother Jiang Chen~ Come play with us~"
"That's right, Senior Brother Jiang Chen! You're so handsome, this humble one can even charge you fewer spirit stones~"
"..."
Jiang Chen's expression turned stern. These sirens, whose ages were unknown but definitely decades or even a century older than his, were still shamelessly calling him senior brother.
They were nothing but cheap, flashy vixens.
They weren't even worthy of making him think of using them to aid his cultivation.
He quickened his pace and left the area at a brisk clip.
Seeing Jiang Chen leave, the group of female cultivators couldn't help showing disappointed expressions.
"Oh my, who would have thought Senior Brother Jiang Chen's Dao heart would be so firm? All our flirting didn't affect him in the least."
"Indeed, what a pity. Since he crushed Wang Yuan earlier, he must have a lot of resources on him. If he were willing to get into my bed, I'd definitely find a way to squeeze a ton out of him..."
"..."
These female cultivators were so enthusiastic naturally because they had heard some things mentioned by the 'customers' who came today. Knowing full well that Jiang Chen was not short on spirit stones and resources in his pockets, they had all been eager to try their luck.
It was a pity they weren't given the chance.
In a corner where no one was paying attention, three people—bruised and battered, with numerous injuries on their bodies that had only received simple treatment—were hiding behind a massive boulder, acting all shifty.
On this mountaintop, boulders and giant trees were the most common cover. After all, in the eyes of the higher-ups of the Xianyun Sword Sect, giving this bunch of menial disciples a place to live was already generous enough; who cared about a decent environment?
If Jiang Chen were here, he would undoubtedly recognize these three as Wang Yuan and his lackeys, whom he had taught a lesson earlier that day.
At this moment, all three wore fierce, hateful expressions as they stared fixedly in the direction Jiang Chen had left.
"Senior Brother Wang, that damned fellow Jiang Chen is finally back. I wonder when Big Brother Wang Hu will be free to come and cripple this brat?"
Beside Wang Yuan, a menial disciple said excitedly.
After being taught a lesson by Jiang Chen today, they were feeling quite depressed. Usually, they threw their weight around here and acted mighty and majestic.
Ever since they were given a brutal beating by Jiang Chen, they felt they had lost face even just walking down the path. It wasn't until just now that Wang Yuan suddenly told them to come and keep an eye on Jiang Chen. Both of them had assumed Wang Yuan had brought his older cousin over, and they were beyond excited.
Hearing this, Wang Yuan said viciously, "No, we're just here to take a look for now."
As his words fell, the other two instantly showed disappointed expressions, muttering inwardly: *You're telling me your cousin isn't free, so what did you bring us here for? To take another beating?*
Of course, these petty complaints were only things they dared to think about; they would never dare to show them.
Suddenly, Wang Yuan changed his tune and sneered, "My cousin needs to focus heavily on his cultivation over these next ten days. He... is trying to break through to the Qi Refining 5th Layer Mid-Stage. Once he successfully breaks through, he'll be considered upper-middle tier in terms of combat strength among the menial disciples."
"At this critical juncture, I naturally can't go disturbing my brother. But... ten days from now, I will definitely make this Jiang Chen wish he were dead!"
Wang Yuan was immensely confident in his cousin's strength.
Hearing this, the other two grew excited.
"Hahahaha, then we'll just let that damned brat prance around for another ten days."
"Yeah, ten days from now, these new menial disciples will finally know to weigh their own worth!"
"..."
Ten days!
When Jiang Chen was crippled by Wang Hu in ten days, the face they had lost would naturally be recovered. At the same time, it would serve as a warning to the others, letting these new menial disciples see just how powerful Wang Yuan's connections were!
As for the two of them who ran errands, they would naturally become even more imposing.
...
Jiang Chen returned to his small cabin.
"That Wang Yuan really doesn't know when to quit, bringing those two moronic underlings to keep tabs on me."
Jiang Chen shook his head with a chuckle, his eyes filled with utter disdain.
When he was walking back, he had naturally already noticed Wang Yuan's surveillance, but he simply couldn't be bothered to care.
His Qi Refining 3rd Layer strength naturally made his perception much sharper, not to mention his innate talent, Sword Heart Clear and Bright. Although its current constraints on his strength were massive, Sword Heart Clear and Bright inherently made his sensory awareness incomparably acute.
Did mere trash—one at the Qi Refining 2nd Layer and two at the Qi Refining 1st Layer—really think they could pull the wool over his eyes?
What an absolute pipe dream.
"That guy's older brother is at least at the Qi Refining 5th Layer."
Jiang Chen muttered to himself.
Why did he make such a guess?
The reason was simple: the Qi Refining 4th Layer wasn't enough to back up Wang Yuan's level of arrogance.
And the Qi Refining 6th Layer?
If that were the case, Wang Yuan would only be even more arrogant.
Only the Qi Refining 5th Layer made the most logical deduction.
"Time to cultivate."
Jiang Chen's most pressing matter was cultivation, and he didn't want to waste too much time on this farce.