The Ransom of a Sacred Beast

As the sixth slap came down, Zhuge Kun pressed his lips shut. He knew that speaking would be useless. Cursing inwardly, he thought: “Damn it, who do you think you are? Even a young master of the Zhuge family dares to provoke? Just wait until I get out of here—I’ll find someone to crush you!”

As if he could hear Zhuge Kun’s inner curses, Xiao Chen delivered twenty slaps in a single breath before stopping.

“When I hit people, I always aim for the face,” Xiao Chen declared nonchalantly, gazing at the swollen face before him.

“You—come here!” Xiao Chen pointed at Hoffman.

Hoffman ground his teeth in fury, but under the circumstances, he had no choice but to bow his head.

Xiao Chen addressed Zhuge Kun and Hoffman: “Slap each other twenty times. If it satisfies me, we’ll stop here.”

Both men’s faces changed color. They were persons of standing, yet they were being humiliated again and again. Flames of rage blazed from their eyes.

“What, still not convinced? Do you want me to do it myself?”

“We’ll do it,” Zhuge Kun said, then “slap” he struck Hoffman across the face.

“Did you not eat? Use some force!”

“Slap!”

“Ow! You damned Zhuge pig-head, you really dare to use force?” Hoffman swung his hand back and slapped Zhuge Kun in return.

“Slap, slap…”

The sounds came without end. Both men forgot each other’s status, venting their anger by beating each other. The slaps echoed without pause, and only after thirty-some hits did they stop.

By now, both men’s eyes were swollen shut, the surrounding flesh so puffy that they could barely open their eyes, their faces bloody messes.

“Alright, let’s end it here. I didn’t expect you to hate each other so much,” Xiao Chen taunted. “Now let’s talk. Let’s see how we resolve the previous issue.”

Luo Guao breathed a sigh of relief. Xiao Chen did not seem inclined to turn on him.

But Hoffman and Zhuge Kun nearly jumped up. “Now” we talk about resolving the previous issue? What was that just now? Was it all for nothing? Was this only the beginning, far from over? The two nearly exploded.

“Little Defiant Dragon was a sacred beast. Yet you killed it. Each of you will prepare one million gold coins.”

“Holy shit!” Hoffman blurted out in shock.

“One million?!” Zhuge Kun was so stunned he nearly collapsed into the hot spring.

What did one million gold coins mean? They could never produce that much. Their families’ power spanned the Southern Wastes, and though they were not the primary heirs, they were directly descended. Even so, their personal fortunes were no more than eighty or ninety thousand gold coins. One million was far beyond their reach—unless they controlled the family.

Two gold coins could buy a high-class feast. One million was unimaginably absurd.

“What, do you have objections?” Xiao Chen sneered. “A sacred beast is priceless. Even with vast wealth, it’s not something you can buy! The vast primitive mountains of the Southern Wastes yield only two or three in a decade, let alone a rare juvenile sacred beast. Raised properly, in decades or a century, it would become a most loyal invincible expert of the Ninth Realm. You killed a sacred beast, do you understand?!” Xiao Chen drew out his words, then roared at the two before him.

Zhuge Kun cursed inwardly: Damn it, this guy is asking for the sky. Who believes that was a sacred beast? Even if it were, it certainly isn’t dead, or else you wouldn’t be sitting here calmly shaking us down. It’s obviously extortion!

Hoffman felt equally aggrieved. He was usually the one shaking down others, committing murder, arson, rape—he had done it all. How did he end up so unlucky today as to meet this freak? He swore silently: Don’t let me walk out of here alive, or I’ll make sure you’re dead.

“My entire fortune is only eighty thousand gold coins,” Zhuge Kun said through clenched teeth. “Even if you kill me, I don’t have that much.”

“I only have a little over eighty thousand too,” Hoffman said, choking with frustration. The words sounded familiar. Wasn’t that the tone he usually used on others? What was wrong with today? How had he become the target of extortion? Truly, fortunes reversed.

“Very well, each of you will pay eighty thousand gold coins first. Have your people fetch the money. I’ll wait here.”

With that, Xiao Chen hauled two bloated men out of the water. These two Sixth Heaven experts, usually arrogant and oppressive, were the personal protectors of the two young masters. But today they had suffered terribly, having drunk their fill of spring water.

Xiao Chen repeated the same message to the two thirty-year-old men. They looked at him with resentment, then at their respective masters.

“Get lost!” Xiao Chen snapped.

Only after the two had departed did Zhuge Kun, Hoffman, Li Dongbo, and Luo Guao snap out of it. This… this guy actually meant it? He actually dared to send people to demand money from the two great families?!

It wasn’t just talk? Was this man insane?!

Beating up the young masters of the two great families might have been let slide by the older generation, since it was conflict among the younger generation. But this guy actually dared to demand a huge sum of gold coins from the families themselves. They had seen arrogance, but never such arrogance!

The older generation could not easily interfere in the conflicts of the young, but there was a limit. Only someone like Xiao Chen, a stranger from another world who had only a half-understanding of the Eternal Continent, would dare to act as if he were “following the rules.”

The elders could not intervene because of certain unwritten rules. But if the family’s honor was trampled, they would have an excuse to act.

The Zhuge family and the Mande family were both top-tier noble clans in the Southern Wastes, extremely concerned with face. If Xiao Chen had privately taken a few thousand gold coins from Zhuge Kun and Hoffman behind closed doors, it could still be considered a conflict among the younger generation. But to send people openly to the two families demanding a huge ransom, as if “following the rules,” crossed the line.

In the Rigen family compound, a middle-aged man received the news. In his study, his brow furrowed slightly. “This Xiao Chen—what background does he have, to be so arrogant?”

A man who seemed to melt into the shadows beside him reported: “According to our investigation, he claims to be from the Mortal World and made a name for himself on Dragon Island.”

“That’s what he said himself. I don’t believe he is from the Mortal World. Such a domineering style gives me a very bad premonition—perhaps he is from the deepest part of the Southern Wastes!” The middle-aged man’s face showed a trace of worry.

“According to the investigation, when they came from the ancient town on the South Sea to Heavenly Emperor City, they disappeared for over a month on the road, arriving a full thirty days late. That blank period—no one knows where they went,” the man in the shadows replied.

“A month’s blank period—he must have returned to the deepest part of the Southern Wastes. My guess might be true. Thirty years ago, a man came from the deepest part of the Southern Wastes and made all the noble sons in Heavenly Emperor City suffer bitterly, almost triggering a great disaster.”

“My lord, are you saying that the ancient legend of the Southern Wastes is real—that several ancient kings are hidden in the deepest part of the Southern Wastes?! But… wasn’t that entire clan sealed away? All of them… every one… was sealed on that mountain in ancient times?!” The man in the shadows felt his mouth go dry, his words stammering.

“The ancient secrets of the deep Southern Wastes are more numerous than you think!”

At the same time, in the Zhuge family, Zhuge Kun’s father was also frowning.

“A month of blank time… could this kid really be from the deepest Southern Wastes? His style is exactly like that man from thirty years ago.”

The man beside him asked respectfully, “My lord, are there really a few ancient beings from mythological legends in the Southern Wastes? Were they truly not all sealed?”

“Those were the few ‘kings’ of that clan. It is entirely possible they escaped. Even if they no longer exist in the world, leaving behind one or two bloodlines is absolutely no problem.”

“No wonder no one has ever been able to enter and leave the depths of the Southern Wastes alive…” The man’s voice carried a tremor of fear.

Zhuge Kun’s father sighed. “The secrets of the deep Southern Wastes are many. It is not only that clan there!” Then he turned and said angrily, “That little bastard has committed every evil deed. He needs to learn a bloody lesson. Tell him to clean up his own mess. I won’t get involved!”

In the second-class VIP area of the Hot Spring Paradise, Zhuge Kun and Hoffman wore expressions of hateful glee.

This Xiao Chen was so insanely arrogant that he dared to send people directly to the two great families demanding a huge ransom. Maybe one of the old monsters in the family would come out. Then we’ll see if you’re still so arrogant!

Li Dongbo and Luo Guao also looked ready for a good show. They couldn’t provoke this madman now, but let’s see if he can laugh until the end. If an old monster gets provoked, you’re dead!

But then, the two returning Sixth Heaven experts brought news that directly stunned Zhuge Kun and Hoffman. Both families’ words were nearly identical: Clean up your own mess—don’t expect the family to wipe your ass. They were so shocked that their mouths hung open. Only when the two guards whispered the words again in their ears did they snap back to reality.

What background did this Xiao Chen have, that their own fathers would be cautious? Did he have deep backing?!

Seeing their expressions, Li Dongbo and Luo Guao’s spectator mentality was broken. They roughly guessed the outcome and found it incredible.

“So you didn’t send the gold coins. Then you two can go drink more water!” Xiao Chen directly knocked the two Sixth Heaven guards into the hot spring. Beside them, over a dozen bloated guards were retching water.

“It seems you two are still not convinced. Then let me continue loosening your bones,” Xiao Chen said with a smile as he walked toward Zhuge Kun and Hoffman.

“Stop… stop! This time I will definitely send gold coins,” Zhuge Kun said through gritted teeth, pointing at a guard who was spitting water. “Go find my steward. Tell him to bring the gold coins.”

Given the situation, Hoffman also hurriedly ordered his men to comply. He felt as if he would vomit blood. He swore silently: As long as I can leave this damned place safely, I will find someone to kill this violent bastard and take back every last gold coin.

While their hearts bled, Zhuge Kun and Hoffman also wondered: How could the family truly ignore them? It made no sense!

They had no idea that Xiao Chen’s style of action was exactly like some man from thirty years ago, and that he was suspected of coming from the same place, causing their fathers deep misgivings.

Half an hour later, two teams of people appeared, each carrying a large sack of gold coins, heading toward the second-class VIP area of the Hot Spring Paradise. Many who came and went from the hot springs looked on in surprise.

Xiao Chen was speechless. With so many gold coins, there was no way he could carry them all alone.

“Are you crazy? Are you trying to mess with me on purpose? Go exchange them all for gold notes!”

Panting heavily, the two teams quickly withdrew.

But word had already spread. Those who frequented the place were all people of status in Heavenly Emperor City—many from the same circles as Zhuge Kun and Hoffman, including young masters, nobles, ladies, and even powerful outsiders who had come to Heavenly Emperor City for the beast-fighting tournament.

“Hey, did you hear? Those two bastards got their comeuppance today. They had to pay tens of thousands in gold to buy their freedom!”

“I heard! The two wastrels from the Zhuge and Rigen families got their noses rubbed in the dirt today!”

“Breaking news! Zhuge Kun and Hoffman were beaten black and blue, and now they have no choice but to trade gold for their lives!”

“Those two have been too arrogant for too long. It was only a matter of time before they ran into trouble. But this Xiao Chen—he’s a madman among madmen!”

“Those two have lost face completely. Still, this Xiao Chen is truly fierce, daring to act like this.”

Within half an hour, the news had spread through the entire Hot Spring Paradise. It was hard for Xiao Chen not to become famous. Added to his earlier defeat of the northern prodigy Wu Xingfeng, his reputation skyrocketed.