Chapter 20: Pressure

AGM 0020 – Pressure

Feeling depressed in his heart, Qin Wentian left the Star River Association. Initially, he’d wanted to see if the divine imprint he’d inscribed was capable of forging a divine weapon, but who would’ve thought that before he could do so, he would be unceremoniously thrown out. But at least he had managed to understand the process of weapon creation, somewhat aiding him in his quest to gain insights on the path of weaponsmithing. If, in the future, he had the necessary materials, and was under the right sets of conditions, he ought to be able to forge a weapon by himself.

When he finally got back to the area near the Qin Residence, it had already become evening. Qin Wentian chose to enter via the main entrance, as he wanted to see what the current circumstances outside the Qin Residence were.

Qin Wentian halted his steps far off in the distance, before the entrance of the Qin Residence, only to see a group of armored soldiers surrounding the Qin Residence.

“Do they really dare to take action against our Qin Clan?” Qin Wentian’s expression was somewhat unsightly. Holding the reins of the horse he was riding, he prodded the horse as he galloped towards the area that was guarded by the Qin Residence’s troops.

The troops of the Qin Clan, upon seeing that it was Qin Wentian, made no moves to halt his movements, allowing him to reunite with Qin Chuan and the rest.

“Wentian, come in first.” Qin Chuan, seeing that it was Qin Wentian approaching, called out.

“Do they think they can hide there forever? The scions of the Qin Clan, including Qin Wentian, were already selected as part of the first batch. Besides, Marshal Wu will arrive soon.” The leader of the Silver Feather Legion, Icehawk, coldly laughed. The person he was waiting for would soon arrive, and thus, he had no need to hurry.

Qin Wentian walked in front of Qin Yao with a questioning look upon his face.

“Do you still remember the words said by the old master of the Ye Clan after the academy examination ended? You, me, Qin Shang, Qin Zhi — that they’d forcefully bring us away.” Qin Yao’s expression was extremely unsightly. Qin Wentian immediately recalled the words said by the old master of the Ye Clan previously. Supposedly, the current Emperor had “bestowed” a great kindness to them, and the youths of the Qin Clan with sufficient talent could go to the Godly General Military Palace for their cultivation, while in reality, they would be forcefully brought over to the military palace so that they would be under strict control.

It seemed like currently, they were going to use force to achieve their aims.

“Marshal Wu, also known as Asura Wu — his methods are ruthless, and he possesses truly tyrannical strength.” Qin Yao added. Asura Wu from the Godly General Military Palace was resoundingly famous in the Royal Capital.

“The Ye Clan clearly understands the intentions of our Qin Clan, and knew that there was no way that we would comply with the imperial edict. Now that Asura Wu is coming, I’m afraid the matter won’t be as simple as just leading the four of us away.” Qin Wentian murmured, causing the crowd to sigh, crestfallen. The reason why the Ye Clan and the Silver Feather Legion hadn’t taken any action yet, was because they were afraid of the consequences, and were somewhat terrified of the hidden strength of the Qin Clan’s — Wu King’s — martial might.

Far off in the horizon, the light of the setting sun revealed a line of shadowy silhouettes, which slowly entered into the vision of the crowd. At the forefront, were two men. One was middle aged, extremely tanned, and his gaze gave off a sinister and ruthless feel; while beside him, there was a youth about 16-17 years of age. The eyes of the youth were sharp and beast-like, and emitted an aura of danger.

“Asura Wu, and his disciple, Ye Lang from the Ye Clan.” Qin Yao stared at the duo in the distance, stating, “Ye Lang changed his name after condensing an Astral Soul from the Demonic Wolf Constellation, and is the younger cousin of Ye WuQue. He’s practicing cultivation in the Godly General Military Palace. Although he’s young, his methods are merciless, and his level of cultivation is at the peak of the Body Refinement Realm — but don’t underestimate him just because of that. I heard that because of his immense explosive power, he’s once killed a cultivator who’d just stepped into the Arterial Circulation Realm.”

“Qin Chuan.” Asura Wu icy voice rang out, as he his gaze became riveted on the members of the Qin Clan, “His Majesty has bestowed a great kindness towards the Qin Clan — towards Qin Yao, Qin Wentian, Qin Shang and Qin Zhi. They will be allowed to return with me to the Godly General Military Palace to practice their cultivation.”

“Qin Chuan thanks his Majesty for his kindness, however, the Qin Clan had already made arrangements for the cultivation practice of our younger generation. There’s no need for Marshal Wu to worry about this.” Qin Chuan calmly replied.

Asura Wu’s lips slightly curled upwards in an unpleasant smile, only to see the youth beside him advance forward on his horse, raise his finger, and point it at Qin Chuan, “Old fogey, we gave you face yet you don’t accept it. My esteemed teacher was polite to you, but you better not let that cloud your vision. Your Qin Clan and that bunch of younger generation trash has a chance to enter the Godly General Military Palace! You should be thanking us on bent knees.”

“Audacious!” Looks of rage appeared on the faces of members of the Qin Clan. This youth from the younger generation actually pointed his finger at Qin Chuan, and even dared to say such words.

“The younger generation of Ye Clan weren’t taught any manners?” Qin Chuan cast a glance at Ye Lang.

“Manners?” Ye Lang looked at the members of the Qin Clan, his gaze filled with contempt and bloodlust, akin to that of a wild beast, as he pointed to the members of the Qin Clan behind Qin Chuan and roared, “This bunch of trash that was nurtured by the Qin Clan, do you believe that I can’t crush you with but a single hand?”

“What an egotistical fellow, I truly want to see how you crush me to death!” A member of the Qin Clan from the younger generation couldn’t tolerate the humiliation of Ye Lang anymore, as he rushed towards Ye Lang, bellowing with rage.

“Qin Mu, come back!” Qin Chuan shouted, only to see a cruel smile displayed on the visage of Ye Lang. His body arched, and began to take the shape of a wild beast pouncing on its prey, while the chilly aura emitted from his body began to ferment to his absolute limits — to the point where his warhorse was constantly shivering, as it fell over on to the ground foaming at the mouth.

“Buzz!” The body of Ye Lang transformed into a blur, and disappeared from sight.

“What a quick speed!”

“Argh!” a sound, reeking of suffering and injuries, rang out, followed by the sound of bones breaking, as the body of Qin Mu flew overhead, landing heavily on the ground. It seemed like all the bones in his body had been snapped by an overwhelming strength.

“Kacha!” Ye Lang stomped heavily on the ground, causing huge fissures to appear. From this, it could be seen that he did indeed possess overwhelming strength. As his beastlike eyes coldly glanced at the body of Qin Mu, Ye Lang once again burst forth, as his hands formed into the shape of sharp claws, aimed directly at the head of Qin Mu who was lying on the ground. If this vicious blow of his landed, the head of Qin Mu would surely explode.

The expressions of the Qin Clan members underwent a drastic change, as many on the scene closed their eyes. Qin Mu was one of the young talents in the Qin Clan whose strength could be considered extremely strong, with his cultivation at the 9th level of the Body Refinement Realm. And yet, he couldn’t even face a single strike from Ye Lang. What was more terrifying, was that Ye Lang actually had intended to kill.

“Impudent.” Abruptly, the palms of Qin Chuan caught hold of Ye Lang’s clawed hand an instant before he destroyed Qin Mu’s head. As steady as a mountain, Ye Lang couldn’t move an inch, while the Qin Mu who was lying on the ground, had cold sweat broken out on his forehead, looking straight into the eyes of Ye Lang, and was terrified beyond belief.

Ye Lang inclined his head, as he looked straight at Qin Chuan, who was in front of him. That beastlike eyes were filled with contempt as he sneered, “The young one can’t handle it, so the old one has to cover for him?”

After saying this, Ye Lang retracted his arm and stalked a few steps closer to the younger members of the Qin Clan, “Do you want me to teach these trash how to fight? If one is insufficient, you can all attack me at once.”

Although Qin Chuan was infuriated, he couldn’t help but to silently sigh. Although he’d stayed a long time in the Sky Harmony City, he was still clear about the ongoings of the Royal Capital. Not to mention Ye WuQue, he knew that even the other youths of the Ye Clan, when compared to the younger generations of the Qin Clan, were still much stronger. This wasn’t a matter of talent, but because of the disparity in wealth, and thus, cultivation resources.

“Arrogant, too arrogant.” The expressions of the members of Qin Clan turned ashen, as Qin Yao, unable to tolerate any longer, exclaimed, “Ye Lang, you’re too unbridled!”

The gaze of Ye Lang landed on Qin Yao, as his gaze began roaming her body, pausing at the contours of the twin peaks of Qin Yao, as a lascivious smile broke out on his visage, causing the expression of Qin Yao to turn unsightly.

“Qin Yao, although your talent is ordinary, your beauty is still passable, capable of stirring my heart. How about becoming my concubine? Ye Lang stared at Qin Yao licking his lips, causing the youths of the Qin Clan to be incomparably angered. Qin Yao was the precious pearl of the Qin Clan, one of the four great beauties of the Sky Harmony City. She had outstanding looks and an outstanding figure, plus her talent was also extraordinary. To think that this Ye Lang actually behaved in such a vulgar way towards her, and even wanted her as his concubine?

Qin Yao began to walk forward, only to be held back by Qin Wentian. She turned her head back, only to see Qin Wentian staring coldly at Ye Lang. After embarking on the path of cultivation, he’d never had the chance to fully unleash his strength. Qin Wentian wanted to use Ye Lang as his first test.

“Elder sis, allow me.” Qin Wentian revealed a gentle smile as he gazed at Qin Yao.

“Wentian, this Ye Lang’s strength is terrifying, extremely terrifying.” Qin Yao shook her head. Although Qin Wentian’s talent was illustrious, he had just stepped onto the path of cultivation. He definitely wouldn’t be a match for the ruthless Ye Lang.

“To deal with this type of scum, I’m afraid that sister Qin Yao’s hands would be dirtied.” Qin Wentian maintained his smile, as he lightly pinched Qin Yao on her cheek, causing Qin Yao to be dumbstruck, and to glare at Qin Wentian. This fellow, at such a critical moment, still had the mood to joke about. However, she understood that Qin Wentian, regardless of the urgency of the moment, would always calmly deal with situations — akin to a happy-go-lucky fellow. Even though he was an idiot, it was still heartwarming when interacting with him.

“Be careful.” Qin Yao softly whispered.

“Got it.” Qin Wentian walked forward with a smile, staring at the pair of cruel, beastlike eyes that belonged to Ye Lang. This Ye Lang was similar in age, but he was truly a malicious character. He was extremely arrogant, held nothing in high regards, and viewed everything with contempt.

“Qin Wentian.” Ye Lang, emitting an extremely oppressive aura, with hints of coldness in his gaze, looked towards Qin Wentian, “I’ll disable those hands you used to touch Qin Yao with.”

“I heard that you’re at the peak level of the Body Refinement Realm. Although I’m only at the 6th level, I do truly want to see how you’d disable my hand.” Qin Wentian indifferently replied.

“I’ll suppress my strength to the 6th level, I want you to know how weak of a worm, the Qin Clan considered to be a genius, really is.” Ye Lang’s eyes flashed, as his body flickered, bursting forward like a wolf sprinting in the wilds, causing the sound of the wind to howl with increasing volume.

The sharp claws of Ye Lang directly lunged towards the head of Qin Wentian, as cracking sounds became audible. The Heavenly Wolf Claw of his seemed to glow with a dim light, as Ye Lang had indeed suppressed his strength level. Otherwise, it would surely have been more terrifying.

Traces of cold laughter appeared in Qin Wentian’s eyes, as he saw that Ye Lang was suppressing his strength. This was totally different from his earlier demeanor. Under the pressure of the immense killing intent, as well as the aura of extreme danger, the Astral Energy within Qin Wentian body began spiraling around frenziedly, and surged towards his arms.

“Dong!” Qin Wentian stepped forward, as a thunderous roaring sound was emitted from his palms. It was akin to a soaring dragon flying through the skies, disregarding everything in it’s sight.

The chilly Heavenly Wolf Claw clashed against the Dragon Subduing Fist, causing an extremely terrifying sound to ring out. Ye Lang involuntarily let out a low-volumed roar, as he felt his sharp claws crack and splinter, as an extreme sense of danger appeared in front of him.

“You dare lie to me?” Ye Lang’s body shuddered violently from the aftermath of the strike, as his blood surged frenziedly around his body, as he snarled. There was no way that this kind of power couldn’t possibly exist at the 6th level of the Body Refinement Realm. Ye Lang visibly trembled, as all his energy erupted outwards, his whole body filled with the sounds of crackling, as he took a few steps backwards from the direct clash with Qin Wentian. He was even more dangerous now, appearing to be storing up energy.

Like a raging squall, sweeping aside all in it’s path, Ye Lang once again lunged forward. The terrifying chilly aura seemed to cause the atmosphere to solidify, as Qin Wentian only felt that the area around him had become the domain of that chilly aura — as if there were numerous demonic wolves rushing over to devour him.

“What a strong aura.” Qin Wentian silently stated in his heart. This surge of energy was sufficient to overwhelm him, however, at this moment, the Astral Energy in his body seemed to be even more terrifying. Akin to a hurricane, the astral energy converged rapidly in his stellar meridians, before explosively being extracted out. It travelled through the pathways of the stellar meridians, and was infused in his arms. The Qin Wentian now, felt no sense of fear. He could only feel that he was filled with boundless might..

TL Notes:

Ye is a clan/surname, Lang stands for wolf. Ye Lang = Wolf from the Ye Clan.

Ye WuQue, Wu Que stands for flawless. Ye WuQue = Flawless one from the Ye Clan