âHas Shen Langâs cultivation really reached this level? To condense his Powerful Qi with such a casual palm strike, hitting only Xu Qingâs face without harming him anywhere else?â
Zhou Feng, who was standing closest and was also the most senior, was astonished.
Previously, when Zhou Feng heard Shen Lang say he could deal with Celestial God Academy, he had assumed Shen Langâs cultivation was probably on par with Chu Qingchengâs. After all, he had seen Shen Lang fight Nalan Ziyun before.
But this display from Shen Lang, condensing his Powerful Qi so it didnât disperse at allâthat was one of the hallmarks of the Spirit Martial Realm!
âCould it be...â
If this had been anyone else, it would have been one thing. But for it to be Shen Lang, a sixteen-year-old boy, was simply too absurd, too shocking!
Just from seeing that single palm strike, Zhou Feng was completely dumbfounded.
"Shen Lang, youâre too insolent! How dare you hit me in front of the vice-dean? Youâll be expelled from Tayun Academy! Youâll definitely be expelled!"
Qin Hun, on the ground, struggled to stand up several times. But each time he struggled, the force from Shen Langâs foot increased, pressing down on him until he couldnât stop coughing up blood.
"I donât bother those who donât bother me, but I will retaliate against anyone who does! I made that clear to you a long time ago."
Shen Lang sneered, reached out, and grabbed Qin Hun by the neck, lifting him off the ground.
A look of disbelief filled Qin Hunâs eyes. He struggled with all his might, but it only made Shen Langâs grip tighten.
He beat against Shen Langâs arm with both hands, but it didnât feel like a human arm at all. It was like a Vajra Iron Wrist; no matter how hard he struck, he couldnât budge it in the slightest!
Only now did he sense it from Shen Langâs eyes and the strength of his grip...
Shen Lang intended to kill him!
And before Shen Lang, he was utterly powerless to resist!
With just a slight squeeze of his right hand, Shen Lang could snap his neck instantly!
The fear of death enveloped Qin Hun. He didnât dare struggle anymore. He just twisted his head desperately, making muffled, garbled sounds as he tried to call to Wooden Zither and Zhou Feng for help.
Fortunately, the two had only been stunned for a moment before they reacted.
Zhou Feng and Wooden Zither took a step forward and shouted in unison, "Shen Lang, donât!"
"Why not?" Shen Langâs voice was frighteningly calm. "If I were weak, he could crush me as he pleased. Now that Iâm strong, who can do anything to me? In this world, isnât it the strong who are respected?"
Zhou Feng was speechless...
"Shen Lang, no matter how he offended you, please put him down first. Donât worry, if he truly colluded with someone to kill you, Tayun Academy will ensure you get justice!" Wooden Zither said, growing anxious as she saw Qin Hun was barely breathing.
She wasnât worried about Qin Hunâs life, but she felt that killing a tutor on this occasion would give Shen Lang a bad reputation.
He might even face severe punishment!
In her mind, Shen Lang was now far more important than some Qin Hun.
Meanwhile, Shui Qingwu, Xue Dangdang, and the others stood by without saying a word.
They would generally not object to whatever Shen Lang decided to do.
Especially Xue Dangdang. Hearing that Qin Hun had wanted to kill Shen Lang, it was a great act of restraint on her part not to run up and stab him with her sword.
"Hmph!"
Shen Lang snorted coldly and, with a casual flick of his wrist, tossed Qin Hun aside like a dead dog.
"I can overlook you making things difficult for me at the academy, as part of your duties as a tutor. But you never, ever should have developed the intent to kill me! Donât think I didnât feel it! Out of respect for the vice-dean and Wooden Zither Tutor, Iâll spare your life today. But if you dare to provoke me again, Iâll snap your neck like a dogâs, and no one will be able to stop me! Not even the Heavenly Phoenix City Lord, Ye Xiao Zheng!"
Ye Xue, who had been hiding silently in the crowd from Celestial God Academy, was startled and jerked her head up, only to meet Shen Langâs soul-stealing gaze...
When Shen Lang first appeared, Ye Xue had secretly hidden herself, not daring to show her face.
She had been watching everything unfold but was too afraid to reveal herself.
Suddenly hearing Shen Lang mention Ye Xiao Zhengâand even boast that Ye Xiao Zheng couldnât stop him from killing Qin HunâYe Xue looked up in horror.
But what she saw was Shen Lang staring coldly right at her!
Ye Xue shuddered, all her usual pampered arrogance gone. Instead, she was like a helpless girl-next-door encountering a bandit, timidly lowering her head, not daring to meet his eyes.
But Shen Lang already knew this woman was sinister and vicious, very likely the main culprit behind his fatherâs misfortune. Besides, he had seen her at the entrance of the Treasure Pavilion that day, manipulating Tang Sheng into trying to kill him. Why would he ever believe the pitiful act Ye Xue was putting on now?
Shen Lang withdrew his gaze and sneered. Without even glancing at Qin Hun, he walked over to Sun Qing and the others from Celestial God Academy.
"You all seemed to be enjoying yourselves just now. You like watching me beat people up, is that it?" Shen Lang said lightly.
With Tayun Academy in turmoil, of course the people from Celestial God Academy were happy. Were they supposed to pull long faces like the Tayun Academy crowd?
Sun Qing and his group couldnât help but start laughing again.
Seeing their reaction, Shen Lang smiled too. "Since you enjoy watching me beat people up so much, then, just for that laughter, Iâve decided..."
"Decided what?" Sun Qing asked subconsciously, a bad feeling creeping in.
The corners of Shen Langâs mouth curled up into a grin. "Iâve decided not to show any mercy to you people from Celestial God Academy. Iâm going to give you all a good thrashing..."
He pointed at the group of students from Celestial God Academy and said, "I want all of you to be carried back! Donât blame me; you were all laughing too happily just now... Also, your vice-dean really shouldnât have picked a fight with me. I was planning to go home, but he just had to drag this out endlessly."
"Bullshit! Thatâs too arrogant! You think weâre really afraid of you?"
"You cheater who brought a Flying Spiritual Artifact! Youâre going to be disqualified from this trial. You wonât get a chance to be arrogant!"
"Even Chu Qingcheng wouldnât dare say something like that! Who do you think you are!"
The crowd from Celestial God Academy erupted, with students shouting one after another.
Sun Qingâs face was long and grim. He said sinisterly, "It seems you want to prove you can refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact? Hehehehe, then letâs see what kind of peerlessly talented Artifact Refining Master Tayun Academy has produced, hahahaha!"
The crowd behind him immediately joined in his laughter.
âAre you kidding? Refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact? No one at Celestial God Academy or Tayun Academy can do that!â
âNo one in Celestial Phoenix City can do it either!â
âAnd you, a sixteen-year-old brat, dare to boast that you can make a Flying Spiritual Artifact?â
âYouâve probably never even touched a real Flying Spiritual Artifact before!â
âEven if you started learning Artifact Refining in your motherâs womb, you couldnât possibly reach that level in sixteen years!â
âTalk is cheap! Do you really think weâre that ignorant?â
âThis reckless fool is clearly trying to pull a fast one, using something that just looks like a Flying Spiritual Artifact to bluff his way through! But does he really think he can fool these old eyes? Iâve eaten more salt than youâve eaten rice!â Sun Qing sneered inwardly.
On the Tayun Academy side, everyone was sighing, unsure of what to do.
In their eyes, what Shen Lang was claiming was clearly impossible.
The more he boasted and the more arrogant he acted, the more face he would lose when he ultimately failed.
If he failed, todayâs events would immediately become a joke.
A huge joke that would spread throughout all of Celestial Phoenix City!
The worst part was that he had already made the claim, and now Sun Qing and the others had seized upon it, leaving no room for him to back down...
What they found strange, however, was that after speaking, Shen Lang simply folded his arms across his chest and did nothing, just watching Sun Qing and his group with an amused grin.
"Brat, arenât you going to prove you can refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact? What are you doing standing there with that stupid grin? Hurry up and prove it to us!" Sun Qing was infuriated by his smile.
"Yeah, yeah, Master Shen, hurry up and refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact! Let us pay our respects!"
"Hurry up, we canât wait! This is destined to be a historic moment!"
"Ohoho, a sixteen-year-old Artifact Refining Master! Someone whose Artifact Refining Dao surpasses that of both the Artifact Refining Institute Directors! Haha!"
The people from Celestial God Academy echoed Sun Qing, their taunts growing louder.
Every one of them was waiting to see Shen Lang make a fool of himself, waiting to see Tayun Academy become a laughingstock.
If Shen Lang couldnât produce one, not only would he be shamefully kicked out of the trial, but Tayun Academy would lose all face, giving Celestial God Academy the complete upper hand!
At that point, even Chu Qingcheng would be too embarrassed to step in!
Shen Lang said nonchalantly, "No rush, no rush. Iâll show you in a little while. But speaking of which, you all must be thinking youâve already won, right?"
"Heh heh," Sun Qing let out a cold, mirthless laugh.
Shen Lang paid him no mind and continued, "Since thatâs the case, letâs make a wager. Everyone can put up some stakes to make things a little more interesting."
As he spoke, he turned and glanced at Shui Qingwu.
Shui Qingwu covered her mouth with a smile and was about to step forward when a figure rushed out from the side, moving past her.
Chu Qingcheng trotted over without a shred of grace and said, "Aiya, itâs been a long time since something this interesting happened! Iâm the first to agree! Iâll bet on Xiaolang to win! Iâll wager two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones!"
BOOM!
The crowd went into an uproar.
That guy Chu Qingcheng was a master at borrowing money, but getting him to spend his own was harder than climbing to the heavens. Yet he had just pulled out two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones in one go!
And he was even betting on Shen Lang to win!
Two thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones... that was probably his entire fortune. He was being really generous.
If he lost, he wouldnât even be able to find a place to cry...
Just as everyone was left wondering whether to laugh or cry, Xue Dangdang walked over. With a SLAP, she slammed a small Storage Pouch onto the ground. "Iâll stake three thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones! I bet on Brother Lang to win!"
The entire crowd fell silent.
Sun Qingâs expression became a colorful sight to behold. He huffed and puffed for a long moment before finally saying, "Insolence! This is about you proving whether or not you cheated! This is a very serious matter, and you dare to set up a betting pool? How outrageous!"
"Elder Sun, youâre the one who insisted Shen Lang prove he could make a Flying Spiritual Artifact, and youâre also the one who refuses to believe he can. Could it be that you actually believe Shen Lang can refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact and youâre just trying to give him a hard time on purpose? Otherwise, why wouldnât you dare to take the bet?" Zhou Feng said as he slowly walked over.
Zhou Feng smiled. "Weâre all reasonable people here. You canât just have everything your way. The situation is simple: if you believe Shen Lang can refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact, then thereâs no need for a bet. We can all disperse. If you donât believe him, and you think itâs absolutely impossible for him to refine a Flying Spiritual Artifact, then what are you afraid of?"