Chapter 108: He Could Wait, and He Could Outlast

It was a one-sided crushing, a king trampling bronze.

In truth, if those two had truly fought with everything they had, they might not have been reduced to such utter helplessness before Yan Shu. But the image of Yan Shu as a genius of the immortal path had long since taken root in everyone’s hearts. Moreover, it was common knowledge that she had reached the early Spirit Transformation stage fifty years ago. At her rate of cultivation, even if she were not already at the Integration stage, she should at the very least be in the middle or late Spirit Transformation stage by now.

Spirit Transformation against Golden Core—let alone two opponents. Even if an entire crowd came, they would not be enough to fill the gap between her teeth.

What was more, Yan Shu’s astonishing feat of turning her whip into a flood dragon. Even if everyone noticed that the force of her attacks was not as terrifying as they had imagined, no one would think her cultivation had regressed. They would only assume that she was holding back, unwilling to overwhelm the weak with the strong.

Watching the thunder dragon chase the two men as they leapt and dodged, every time it caught up it did not strike them into serious injury. Instead, as though it had some peculiar taste for the matter, it merely lashed them once, not too hard and not too lightly, sending bolts of lightning through their bodies until they howled miserably.

For some reason, though this ought to have been a grave and solemn scene, everyone found it faintly absurd.

The two men being beaten, however, were far from amused.

Though the thunder dragon’s tail strikes were not especially heavy, they still split skin and flesh. But the wounds of the body were only secondary; what they could not endure was the force of lightning that burrowed into their bodies and deep into their souls.

Both of them had broken through before and had already been baptized by heavenly thunder. Yet the lightning upon that dragon was like heavenly thunder and yet unlike it. It was stranger than heavenly thunder, and far more agonizing.

Each lash seemed to strike directly at their souls. Each blow made their Golden Cores tremble uncontrollably.

At first the two of them still shouted that they were in the right and that Yan Shu was abusing the strong to bully the weak. But gradually, they began to falter, especially when they sensed that their Golden Core cultivation seemed to be slipping backward.

At first, there had still been people in the crowd defending them. Yet Yan Shu did not spare them so much as a glance, only focused on beating the two men.

She put the original owner’s icy aloofness on full display.

Those people, having failed to gain any purchase, and not daring to challenge Yan Shu’s strength, let the matter go with an excuse for themselves.

“Enough, enough. Considering that she still showed restraint and did not truly cripple those two, let her vent.”

“Exactly. Yan Shu is, after all, one of the four peak masters of the Profound Heaven Sect. By seniority, we should at least address her as Aunt-Master. Those two were truly foul-mouthed and deserved punishment.”

“She is, after all, a woman. To be publicly denounced like that for no shame or modesty at all, it is only natural for her to be angry.”

“There must be some hidden story here. If Yan Shu really were the sort of petty fool blinded by lust, those two would have been beaten to death on the spot. How could they still be shouting here?”

“Right? Didn’t Xiao Jihan just say something about giving an explanation? He doesn’t seem like the kind of person who speaks recklessly.”

“Could we have been made fools of? That master and disciple pair look rather sharp-tongued and mean, especially the disciple.”

Hearing this, Qiu Shuoran nearly went over to argue with that man, but Sun Changfeng pressed him down at once and sent a voice transmission: “Stay calm. Don’t waste your breath here. What we need is for Xiao Jihan’s reputation to be utterly ruined, for him to become a rat that everyone in the cultivation world wants to beat. Not for us to bicker with these people!”

“Besides, what can you do in front of so many eyes? You are not Yan Shu. You cannot beat someone up and still have others praise you for showing mercy!”

In the cultivation world, in the end, strength was still everything. More importantly, this matter was aimed at Xiao Jihan, not Yan Shu. From the very beginning, Sun Changfeng and Qiu Shuoran had never intended to drag Yan Shu down with it.

They all knew Yan Shu’s standing in the Profound Heaven Sect. If they truly implicated her, they would gain nothing at all.

Faced with the change in the crowd’s attitude, Qiu Shuoran could only swallow his resentment.

Among those dissatisfied with the shift in public opinion were not only Qiu Shuoran and Sun Changfeng, but also Shan Zhiqing.

She had thought that by holding back Yu Wenche, she could make Yan Shu lose all face. Never had she imagined that Yan Shu’s reckless attack would not only fail to draw condemnation, but instead cause the crowd’s opinion to turn.

They were actually saying there must be some hidden circumstances, and that Yan Shu had gone from being shameless to having no choice but to strike, and even then she had shown restraint.

No matter how unhappy Shan Zhiqing was, it was useless. Right now, there was nothing she could do.

She looked at Yan Shu, whose expression was cold yet only made her beauty seem all the more detached and unearthly, and after some thought she said to Yu Wenche, “A woman’s reputation is still very important. Right now, Senior Sister Yan is saying nothing. Though she showed mercy, it only amounts to tacitly admitting that there is something between her and Xiao Jihan.”

“If Xiao Jihan can give an account of himself today, then so be it. If he cannot, Senior Sister Yan will surely be dragged down too. And even if he can explain himself, her actions today will definitely be criticized. Senior Brother, you are on good terms with Senior Sister Yan. Why not go and persuade her?”

Hearing this, Yu Wenche frowned.

He did not wish to attribute the worst malice to this junior sister whom he had watched grow up. Though ten years ago he had already felt that she might not be as innocent as she once seemed, over these ten years she had not done anything out of line.

Perhaps she truly was only worried, only thinking of Yan Shu’s interests. He should not be so sensitive.

So he turned to Shan Zhiqing and made himself clear. “What you are considering is not unreasonable, but right now she is in a fit of anger. I did not appear earlier to protect her, and she has been wronged. Now she is venting her anger. If I step forward to stop her at this moment, what would she think of me?”

“I believe that she and Xiao Jihan are not what others are guessing. Otherwise she would not be this angry. Besides, even if they are, it does not matter. The path of immortality stretches through tens of thousands of years; I can wait, and I can afford to.”

Hearing this, Shan Zhiqing felt a sharp pain in her heart.

Her senior brother, so lofty and immaculate that no one could compare, had actually lowered himself this far for Yan Shu.

And yet, because he was so clever and so clear-headed, all her little schemes were utterly useless.

Yu Wenche did not know what she was thinking. He merely looked quietly at Yan Shu, whose brows were marked with displeasure, and the corners of his mouth rose once more into a smile.

At that point, the two men being beaten could finally no longer endure it. Especially after feeling that their Golden Cores seemed to be slipping in cultivation, they could no longer care about face or boasting. While dodging, they began begging for mercy.

“Aunt-Master Yan, I know I was wrong. I was the one who spoke like trash. Please don’t hold it against me!”

“Aunt-Master Yan, I know I was wrong too. Please, take back the dragon. I am willing to accept punishment!”

“Aunt-Master Yan, please!”

“Aunt-Master Yan…”

Yan Shu looked at them and said coldly, “If you want me to withdraw the thunder dragon, that can be done. Notify your masters right now and have them come apologize and take you away!”

That’s right, she was going to report them. Those worthless loudmouths were not her responsibility. Someone else would handle them.

She was determined to make an example of them today, or else from now on any fool would dare spit in her face.