Chapter 024
Chapter 24: A Slap
“Wang Jie, brother, congratulations! Blue Star’s hunting team is ranked eleventh. I think the top ten isn’t too far off, so I’m congratulating you in advance,” Qi Five said warmly.
Wang Jie was surprised. “You’re keeping track of that?”
Qi Five chuckled. “Of course! When you’re in business, you’ve got to keep an eye on everything.”
Wang Jie replied, “It’s all thanks to the Leading Pillar Group.”
Qi Five smiled. “Brother, you’re not being fair here. I know the market well. Even if the Leading Pillar Group is rich, they can’t buy enough cataclysm materials.” He leaned in closer. “But speaking of that, the Leading Pillar Group is indeed wealthy. Brother, can you introduce me to that little boss?”
“Sure,” Wang Jie didn’t refuse.
Qi Five was pleased, and the two conversed happily.
Soon after, Wang Jie realized the purpose of the gathering was for the trial takers to settle the division of spoils. They had joined the Upper Capital City meeting under the condition that they’d be granted the chance to leave the battle slave ranks and refrain from harming Blue Star natives. Now that they had what they wanted, it was time to discuss how to split the gains.
“Are all the trial takers here?” Wang Jie asked, confused.
Qi Five shook his head. “No need for everyone to come. Some of them know each other. Don’t be fooled by how few people there are here—this actually represents the interests of twenty to thirty trial takers. As for the others, if they show up, fine; if not, it’s simple.”
“What if the other trial takers stir up trouble?”
“Most trial takers are about the same strength. If they were much weaker, they’d be in sects already. A small number wouldn’t be able to cause much trouble. Besides, a lot of trial takers die every time.”
“Why don’t you handle it?” Wang Jie asked.
“No one dares to steal my share. Let them figure it out,” Qi Five said confidently.
Wang Jie glanced toward the corner, where Wen Zhao was standing silently. He felt Wen Zhao was too proud to be involved in this kind of gathering—she must have other reasons for being here.
Lian Qin and her daughter arrived and greeted Wang Jie. They exchanged polite words but said little else.
Once the trial takers had settled their discussion, one of them approached Lian Qin and her daughter, mentioning Wang Jie.
Wang Jie looked over in surprise.
A marriage proposal?
Lian Qin glanced at Wang Jie from a distance before replying to the trial taker, “Though I haven’t agreed yet, I don’t think I’ll refuse. They clearly have feelings for each other, and with the Leading Pillar Group facilitating things, it’s not bad.”
Wang Jie was speechless. He looked at Lian Fei, whose expression remained calm. It had to be Qing Old Two’s doing.
The trial taker sneered and turned to Lian Qin. “I can get your daughter out of the battle slave ranks. Can a wretched native compare to that?” He then turned his gaze on Lian Qin, his eyes burning. “Of course, I’m talking about you, too, beautiful mother.”
Lian Fei frowned. The trial taker was flirting with both mother and daughter.
Wang Jie raised an eyebrow. Though it was a misunderstanding, being insulted in front of everyone made him uncomfortable.
Lian Qin laughed lightly, about to respond when Wang Jie walked over.
The trial taker looked at him, sneered, and muttered, “Played enough, I’ll give it to you.”
Wang Jie stopped in his tracks, casually slapping the trial taker. The man was thrown sideways into the wall, creating a human-shaped indentation.
The scene shocked everyone.
The room fell silent.
Wang Jie lowered his hand and spoke coldly, “Wretch.”
The other trial takers’ expressions darkened. How dare he slap a trial taker here?
Wen Zhao was surprised, her gaze fixed on the trial taker, who had been knocked away. The act of slapping him was a bit dramatic.
Lian Qin hadn’t expected Wang Jie to be so bold, completely disregarding the trial taker.
In the distance, the trial taker slumped, unconscious. That slap had been no light blow.
“Friend, you could have said something. Jumping straight to physical action is too much,” one trial taker said, stepping forward. The others began to surround Wang Jie.
Wang Jie looked at the speaker. It seemed this person was the one organizing the meeting for this batch of trial takers. “I’m a rough man.”
“Is he with you?” the trial taker asked, looking at Wen Zhao.
Wen Zhao nodded.
“Give us an explanation.”
Wen Zhao turned to Wang Jie. “I originally planned to use them to deal with that powerful enemy. Now, you’ve ruined it.”
The surrounding trial takers froze. That was straightforward.
Wang Jie was speechless. “I didn’t know.”
“Let’s go,” Wen Zhao said.
The trial takers blocked their way, glaring at Wen Zhao and Wang Jie, especially the leader, who stared at Wen Zhao. “We could have just teamed up without asking any questions. Seems like you have ulterior motives. Who are you? Where are you from?”
At that moment, Qi Five stepped in to mediate. “Gentlemen, the negotiation with Blue Star is imminent. Internal conflict now will only make us a laughingstock in front of them. You don’t think those trackers on you are only for locating you, do you?”
Wang Jie then noticed that, like Wen Zhao, these trial takers also had trackers.
The leader of the trial takers squinted, staring at Wen Zhao and then at Wang Jie. “Let them go. We’ll talk after the meeting.”
Wang Jie nodded at Qi Five and left with Wen Zhao.
“Brother Chuan, just like that? That woman is giving us no face, and that native even dared to make the first move,” a trial taker grumbled.
Brother Chuan, the leader, spoke in a low voice. “That woman must be from the Wen family.”
The other trial takers gasped. “The Wen family? One of the three families?”
“Impossible. Why would a Wen family member participate in the trial?”
Brother Chuan glanced at Qi Five. “Thanks.”
Qi Five grinned. “As long as you all take care of my business.” He had just informed Brother Chuan about Wen Zhao’s background. Without that, things would not have been so easily smoothed over.
The Wen family was qualified to ignore them. While they were all trying to join Armor One Sect, the Wen family was one of the three families under Armor One Sect’s control.
Elsewhere, Wang Jie and Wen Zhao walked out.
“Why did you hit him?” Wen Zhao asked curiously.
Wang Jie replied, “His mouth wasn’t clean.”
“You made me come here for nothing. You need to take responsibility.”
“How should I take responsibility?”
“I chose you over those trial takers. What do you say?”
“Help you deal with those heavenly insect people?”
Wen Zhao nodded.
“Are those heavenly insect people really that powerful?” Wang Jie asked.
Wen Zhao met his gaze. “What’s the most numerous thing on Blue Star right now?”
Wang Jie was about to say mutated beasts but quickly realized that mutated beasts came in both animal and plant forms. What they had overlooked were insects.
“Not insects. Endless insects. That lass can control them, which means she is the insect tide herself,” Wen Zhao explained.
Wang Jie’s face changed. It was as if he had heard of someone controlling a beast tide.
Wen Zhao smiled. “Scared?”
Wang Jie shook his head. “Not really, but it’s troublesome.”
“That’s the price of impulsiveness. Of course, you don’t have to help me,” Wen Zhao said calmly.
Not help? Wang Jie couldn’t do that. He was the one who sought out Wen Zhao and suggested cooperating. Backing out now would be awkward.
Of course, if it came down to life-threatening danger, he would retreat if necessary.
But for now, as a native, there was no need to worry about losing face to the trial takers.
Back at his residence, Wang Jie immediately grabbed Qing Zheng. “It was you, wasn’t it?”
Qing Zheng looked confused. “What?”
“Lian Fei.”
“Oh, you mean that woman? What happened? Boss, did she write you a marriage proposal letter? I told Father many times that she should write it herself, the more sincere the better. If she could write some love letters, it would be even more perfect.”
Wang Jie… This misunderstanding was growing bigger.
The moonlight spread across the ground like a silver veil. Beneath Upper Capital City, two red dots suddenly moved on a screen.
“Teacher, they’ve moved. Two trial takers are on the move.”
“Contact Bai Yuan and Tang Jie immediately.”
“Wait, another trial taker is moving. They’re all on the move. Where are they going?”
“Sound the alarm.”
The alarm echoed through the night sky over Upper Capital City.
In the Leading Pillar Group’s branch, Old Five suddenly opened his eyes and looked out the window. “Boss, a customer is approaching.”
In another direction, in a clean courtyard, Little Black suddenly looked up, its pupils reflecting the moonlight as it howled at the sky.
Bai Xiao sat up. “Little Black?”
A streak of white light reflected in the moonlight, heading toward the courtyard.
Bai Xiao threw off the blanket, and the soft blanket crashed through the wall to block the white light. But the light pierced right through it.
From all four directions of the courtyard, eight figures appeared and attacked.
With a crash, the house shattered. Bai Yuan opened his eyes, grabbed his sword, and struck.
One strike killed a man.
Looking at the familiar face beneath the moonlight, Bai Yuan’s eyes burned with killing intent. “Divine Wind hunting team.”
Further away, individuals emerged, charging toward Bai Yuan. At the front was none other than Brother Chuan.
The Upper Capital City meeting had been a ruse; the true objective was to enter the city and kill Bai Yuan.
Once the top Hua Xia elites were killed, no one could resist them.
At the same time, Tang Jie was attacked by two trial takers. Both were at eight seals, and they were confident they could kill her.
However, what awaited them was an ambush.
Tang Jie’s hunting team elites were all at her house.
Meanwhile, Bai Yuan’s side—Brother Chuan and the trial takers following him—were being dragged back by an invisible force.
Brother Chuan turned and asked, “Who?”
A person stepped out from behind a tree, facing Brother Chuan with a slight smile. “We meet again.”
Brother Chuan’s face changed. “Zuo Tian? What are you doing here?”
“Trial takers are, after all, a bit foolish,” Zuo Tian said, and with a sweep of his hands, the two eight-seal cultivators were forcibly controlled.
Brother Chuan was shocked. “One of the eighteen ultimate techniques—Empty Grasping Hands?”
“Don’t be surprised. Bai Yuan has already killed all of your people.”
The situation in Upper Capital City was rapidly changing.
The battle between the eight-seal cultivators was creating a huge commotion.
Meanwhile, Wang Jie noticed an incoming attack. Two eight-seal trial takers were approaching, one of whom was the same trial taker Wang Jie had slapped earlier. They had originally been tasked with attacking Tang Jie but planned to deal with Wang Jie first, since it was on the way.
Who would have thought that the first strike would leave them stunned? Watching as Wang Jie easily took their specially crafted war blade, the trial taker with the slap mark on his face looked confused. How could he be so fast? Could it be Armor Eight Steps?
The next moment, a sharp pain shot through his back. The war blade lodged deep into him, and his body collapsed.
The other trial taker regretted it. He shouldn’t have gotten involved in this mess. He turned to run, releasing his eight-seal power, the shockwaves from his energy shattering windows along the street. But Wang Jie casually flicked his blade, piercing the man’s body, and blood sprayed across the street.
Wang Jie watched as the trial taker collapsed. He raised his hand, and the war blade flew back to him, catching it and slashing.
The trial taker was horrified. “No—”
Blood sprayed.
There is no remedy for regret in this world. Wang Jie didn’t want any enemies left alive.
Just as he killed the trial taker, Old Five’s urgent voice came through. “Boss, left side.”