The rosy light of the setting sun shone through the clouds, bathing the sky beyond Black Ox Town in pink light.
The cobblestone path leading away from the city was surrounded by dense, towering trees and lined with jagged, unusually-shaped rocks.
This was a barren landscape devoid of any trace of civilization, yet now it was packed with people. They were all citizens of Black Ox Town. They struggled to the front, trying to find a good place to stand and watch. The crowd formed an empty s.p.a.ce about a thousand feet in diameter in its center.
As Ye Zichen left the city, he felt moved. He stopped in the center of the thousand-foot s.p.a.ce, his expression complicated as he looked at Scarface, Zhao Ye and the others.
“Tell me, what do you want?”
Axe Gang members were truly far too kind-hearted, leading Ye Zichen to speak to them much more softly than before.
“What do we want?” Scarface snorted, his face contorting hideously.
They’d finally left the city!
Scarface was truly excited. Earlier, he’d worried that Ye Zichen would linger in the city and refuse to leave. He wouldn’t have guessed that a mere ten thousand spirit coins would be enough to lure him out.
Although ten thousand spirit coins was no small sum, so long as it did the job, it was completely worth it.
He’d been having nightmares every night. Now he finally had a chance to cleanse his heart’s demon. He’d definitely rob Ye Zichen until he had not even a single spirit coin to his name. Then he"d take his Black Ox Town temporary residence permit so he couldn’t even return to the city.
And he absolutely wouldn’t forget to steal Ye Zichen’s pants. Scarface wouldn’t just steal his pants, either; he’d even take his loincloth. There were so many witnesses here, so he’d put on a real show and parade Ye Zichen about like a zoo animal.
Just thinking about it filled Scarface with excitement. He rubbed his hands together eagerly, itching to get started.
When he noticed Scarface’s eagerness, Ye Zichen’s expression grew somewhat strange. He couldn’t help but mutter to himself, “does this guy enjoy being robbed?”
As he considered this, Ye Zichen couldn’t help but gasp, but he didn’t expose Scarface’s secret. There were all manner of strange things in this world. Having a weird hobby was normal.
Besides, they were here to give him money. He had nothing to offer them; all he could do was rob them thoroughly in return.
However, Ye Zichen still had a guilty conscience. He couldn’t help but ask, “Bro, this is….. I really don’t know what to say. How about we forget all this? Let’s just go back.”
Ye Zichen was visibly ill-at-ease. He turned around as if about to leave. Earning money was difficult for everyone! This Scarface was constantly throwing money at him…. What, was he the reincarnation of the Child of Wealth [1] or something?
“You want to leave?” Scarface shouted, expression dark. His subordinates formed a circle and surrounded Ye Zichen. “Now you finally know fear? Let me tell you, it’s too late!
He was as aggressive as can be. By now, Scarface wasn’t even the slightest bit afraid. Everything Ye Zichen was doing proved that he was afraid.
If he were really a peerless expert, he wouldn’t waste time with all this unnecessary quibbling.
The greater Ye Zichen’s terror, the more excited Scarface was. He smiled sinisterly, took a few steps closer, then stood in the center of the circle.
“Don’t say ol’ Scarface is cruel,” he snorted, “so long as you give me everything you have on you, then take off your pants, I’ll spare your life!
Nani?
Take off his pants?
Ye Zichen felt his chrysanthemum clench. He instinctively reached for his b.u.t.tocks, then looked at Scarface in alarm.
So he had this sort of hobby too! That was no good!
Zhao Ye approached as well. He’d been uncertain of Ye Zichen’s strength earlier, but they’d already left town for a long time and he’d yet to see Ye Zichen make any attempt to resist. He even wanted to return to the city.
Zhao Ye felt that, if Ye Zichen were really an expert, he wouldn’t feign terror as part of some sick joke. Everything Ye Zichen did proved that he was truly afraid. As soon as Zhao Ye reached that conclusion, he stepped forward. He couldn’t let Scarface get first dibs at such a fatty piece of meat.
“Brother Ye, I’m sure you know full well just how hard it would be to re-earn all that money. How about you give everything you took from Scarface back, as well as everything you have on you?”
Zhao Ye wasn’t as temperamental as Scarface. His words and tone sounded more like persuasion than coercion.
When Ye Zichen, who was still worried about his b.u.t.t, heard this, he couldn’t help but arch his brows. “Wait, so you’re here to rob me?”
“What did you think I was here for? Yes, I’m here to rob you,” said Scarface aggressively. His jaw protruded so far forward, Ye Zichen worried he’d dislocated it.
”
“Scar, what are you saying?” Zhao Ye frowned, rebuked him, then turned to face Ye Zichen.
“Brother Ye, ‘rob’ is too strong a word,” he said in that same persuasive tone as before. “We’re just here to retrieve what rightfully belongs to us, and at the same time, teach you a lesson: n the mortal great district, the Axe Gang can take from other people, but no one ever takes anything from us. Brothers Ye, just think of those treasures as tuition for the lesson we’re about to teach you.
“So that’s how it is!” Ye Zichen still seemed distressed, as if he were uncertain of whether to give up his treasures or not. If he refused to hand them over, these two would definitely try to rob him by force. Ye Zichen was no soft target. When that happened, he’d definitely rob them instead.
But he couldn’t quite bear the thought of it. This was truly a difficult decision!
“Brother Ye, cultivation isn’t easy and money is just an object. Just hand it over.”
It seemed that Zhao Ye’s persuasion had moved Ye Zichen, who nodded, then reached into his breast pocket. He reluctantly took out a spatial ring, as well as the two bags of ten thousand spirit coins, and tossed them over.
Zhao Ye reached out and grabbed the ring. When his spiritual awareness examined its contents…..
“.....”
Zhao Ye, red-faced, opened the ring’s spatial rift. Gourd after gourd of immortal brew fell from within and splattered against the ground….
The sight made Ye Zichen’s heart ache. As the last gourd of immortal brew shattered on the ground…..
Wham!
Zhao Ye flung the ring to the ground as well, his aura billowing around him.
“You’re messing with me!”
Zhao Ye unleashed all his energy, stirring up fierce gusts of wind that whirled around him and shook the ancient trees lining the path.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Why did these people explode at the drop of a hat? Ye Zichen acted completely innocent. “You told me to give you all the treasures I had on me. I already gave you everything I had…. What else do you want from me?
“I wanted treasures! Treasures!”
Zhao Ye was clearly furious, perhaps even more so than Scarface. He pointed at the shattered gourds, his expression incomparably hideous.
“What is this? A couple hundred spirit coins worth of immortal brew? Do you think I’m three years old or something?”
Bang!
Zhao Ye kicked a gourd into the air. Ye Zichen felt an intense surge of pain as he watched it shatter.
“Then what else do you want? I already gave you all my treasures!”
Ye Zichen’s expression was completely and utterly innocent. In his heart, he felt deeply wronged.
When he saw Ye Zichen’s innocent expression, Zhao Ye snorted and shook his head. He was absolutely certain that Ye Zichen was playing some sort of trick,, so talking to him any more was pointless.
“You said you already gave me everything? I want to take a look for myself!”