Chapter 43: Chapter 42: Testing the Mettle of the Martial Arts World? (Please vote for recommendations, add to favorites!)

Faced with Ye Jizu’s murderous intentions and Qin Fan’s terrifying, irresistible power, a single emotion dominated Zhan Long’s entire mind: regret.

He had calculated everything, but he never could have predicted that Qin Fan would be at the Transformation Realm, capable of injuring people with a mere flick of his finger and a blast of air. Before a Grandmaster, so-called Dark Energy Martial Artists, even at their peak, were only fit to die! He had come to understand this with absolute clarity during his time by Lan Xiaosheng’s side.

In that instant, a single word filled his entire brain: escape!

At this moment, Zhan Long forgot his hatred and his desire for revenge. He no longer puzzled over how someone as young as Qin Fan could possess such cultivation. All he wanted was to run, to get as far away from this heaven-defying monster as possible.

The moment the thought arose, he acted without a second’s hesitation. Whirling around, his body shot forward like a spring. Zhan Long pushed his Middle Stage Dark Energy speed to its absolute limit, ignoring the excruciating pain from his pierced wrist as he leaped furiously toward the window.

“Master Zhan, do you really think you can escape?” Qin Fan chuckled lightly, watching the leap that seemed to unfold in slow motion before his eyes.

He raised his fist. Just before Zhan Long’s silhouette vanished from the window, he punched through the air toward him.

BOOM!

A muffled thud erupted from Zhan Long’s back. Had this been captured in slow-motion, one would have clearly seen a fist-shaped indentation sink into his back at that instant. Struck by the incorporeal Illusion Fist of True Qi, Zhan Long’s balance instantly failed. With his internal organs feeling as if they had been violently displaced, he spat a mouthful of blood in midair as his body plummeted heavily to the ground floor below.

Qin Fan didn’t hesitate. After throwing the punch, his figure flickered, vanishing from the sight of the Ye father and son in the blink of an eye. He descended from the air, landing with both feet on Zhan Long’s body.

“Lan Xiaosheng is my father-in-law! If you kill me, he won’t let you off! He definitely won’t!” Zhan Long, his mouth full of blood, shouted as forcefully as his weakened state would allow.

“I don’t know any Lan Xiaosheng or Hong Xiaosheng. I kill people without ever caring about their backing. As for this drama about revenge, to be honest, I’m quite happy to take on the challenge! My only condition is that my opponent isn’t pitifully weak. Heh heh—!”

The name Lan Xiaosheng meant nothing to Qin Fan. Facing Zhan Long’s disbelieving eyes, he chuckled, his expression firm and masculine.

Zhan Long couldn’t believe it. He doesn’t know Lan Xiaosheng? How could anyone in the current Martial Arts World of Huaxia not know that name? But this very disbelief only deepened his fear of Qin Fan. A monster who doesn’t even care about Lan Xiaosheng… what chance do I have of surviving at his hands? No!!!

“Let me go! Two hundred million—no, three hundred million! I’ll give you three hundred million, just let me go!” In his desperation, the memory of the one-hundred-million deal between Qin Fan and Ye Jizu flashed through his mind. It was like seeing a glimmer of hope for survival, and he shouted out his offer in a frantic rush.

He reasoned that if money could solve the problem, it was no problem at all for a Middle Stage Dark Energy Martial Artist like himself. Yet, he forgot one crucial thing: if something was of no concern to a Dark Energy Martial Artist, how could it possibly tempt a Transformation Realm Grandmaster? Asking Ye Jizu for one hundred million was merely Qin Fan’s excuse to make a move!

“Master Qin! Don’t! I’ll pay too! I’ll give three hundred million, three hundred million! Finish him!” Staggering out just in time to hear the exchange, Ye Jizu grew frantic. With all pretenses dropped, letting the tiger return to the mountains again would mean his absolute ruin!

“We agreed on one hundred million, so one hundred million it is,” Qin Fan said flatly.

Before Zhan Long could plead any further, Qin Fan exerted a slight pressure with the feet standing on him. Instantly, an overwhelmingly powerful True Qi surged into his body, barbarically rampaging through his internal organs and meridians.

“Urk—”

A low, muffled groan escaped his lips under the pressure.

The next moment, blood gushed from his seven orifices—his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. His eyes, wide with unwillingness and regret, stared blankly. With that seemingly casual exertion of force from Qin Fan, Zhan Long, suffering from Seven Orifices Bleeding, breathed his last.

He died with his eyes wide open, never having imagined that this journey of revenge would end at the hands of a teenage Transformation Realm Grandmaster.

If he could choose again, he would still have come for revenge. However, he would never have been foolish enough to return after Ye Jizu had let him go. But in this world, there are no “ifs.” This was fate. Had he come half a month earlier, he never would have met Qin Fan. Had he not confidently allowed Ye Jizu to find help, his revenge would have already been complete. Had he not seen Ye Haoyuan as he was leaving, he never would have returned only to meet his death.

Ultimately, life and death are governed by fate; everything is preordained. He had escaped disaster five years ago, but five years later, the Judge’s Pen had written his name in the Book of Life and Death, leaving him nowhere to run.

“Master Qin, Zhan Long’s backer is Lan Xiaosheng! The very same Lan Xiaosheng who was once as famous as Hua Xiaotian!” With his murderous aura finally subsiding, Ye Jizu swallowed nervously, his voice laced with fear.

“What does that have to do with me? Or are you planning to use me as a scapegoat?” Qin Fan asked nonchalantly, the corners of his lips suddenly curling into a deceptively harmless smile.

That seemingly harmless smile, in this context, sent a cold chill straight down Ye Jizu’s spine.

Use him as a scapegoat? He wouldn’t dare, not even if he had ten thousand times the courage! That would only hasten the death of himself and the entire Ye Family. He wasn’t foolish enough to not understand something so simple.

“No, no, no, Master Qin, you’ve misunderstood! Even if you gave me, Ye Jizu, a hundred times more courage, I would never dare to harbor such a thought. I was just… I just wanted to tell you about the person backing Zhan Long! Master Qin, he’s no simple character. After more than twenty years, it’s highly likely that Lan Xiaosheng has also become a Transformation Realm Grandmaster! Now that you’ve killed Zhan Long, he certainly won’t let this matter rest!” Ye Jizu said, watching Qin Fan nervously, his body trembling slightly.

The title of Transformation Realm Grandmaster alone was often enough to scare countless people senseless, and Ye Jizu was no exception. If it weren’t for Qin Fan, would he have dared to take Zhan Long’s life? Not even if he had a hundred times the courage! This wasn’t a matter of cowardice; the only way he would have done it was if he wanted to perish together.

“If he won’t let it rest, all the better. I need to test the quality of this Martial Arts World. A Transformation Realm Grandmaster, you say? At my current stage, that might be a very good opponent,” Qin Fan said, his gaze drifting into the distance.

Ye Jizu was completely stunned by these words. A Transformation Realm Grandmaster? A good opponent? Test the quality of the Martial Arts World? With Qin Fan’s current age and cultivation, if he just lay low for a few years to accumulate his power, who in the future could possibly stand above him? Wouldn’t the entire world be his for the taking? But now he wants to fight against those renowned Transformation Realm Grandmasters. Once his true power is exposed, would the figures standing at the peak of the Martial Arts World ever allow such a person to exist? No, they wouldn’t! That would undoubtedly place him in mortal danger! He’s still so young! He chose to reveal his brilliance when he should have been biding his time. A truly unwise decision!

After some deliberation, Ye Jizu ventured, “Master Qin, with your current age and cultivation, the entire Martial Arts World would be yours to command if you just wait a few years. Is it really a good idea to confront the powers that be so early?”

How could Qin Fan, who had lived for over five hundred years, not understand something so simple? “Then can you stop that Lan Xiaosheng fellow from coming to avenge Zhan Long? Heh…” he retorted, shaking his head with a faint smirk.

“This…” Ye Jizu was struck speechless, his old face flushing with embarrassment.

“Alright, that’s enough nonsense. I’m leaving.” Unwilling to waste any more words on Ye Jizu, Qin Fan gave a dismissive wave and strode away.

“Idol, wait for me!” Ye Haoyuan, still shaken from his near-death experience, had been silent the entire time. Seeing Qin Fan walk away, he belatedly cried out and scrambled after him.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep