Chapter 358

Chapter 358: You Don’t Respect Me

Su Qing went blank for a moment.

So did everyone watching from the Cloud-Mist Pavilion.

Heads turned. Eyes widened. A ripple of attention swept through the crowd.

Wang Jie faced the second blocker, expression hard. “What should you call me?”

The man’s jaw tightened as he glanced at his companion sprawled on the ground. “Who are you?”

“Another blind fool,” Wang Jie said.

He threw a punch.

The force cracked through the air like a hammer. The man released starforce to block, but Wang Jie’s power tore through it as if it were paper.

These two had a little over three hundred thousand combat power. They were nowhere near him.

The first man staggered back up, eyes bloodshot. He drew his blade and charged. “You’re courting death!”

Wang Jie didn’t even look at him. He spoke to Su Qing instead, voice flat. “Still standing there?”

Su Qing snapped out of it. She stared at Wang Jie, stunned. Was he actually helping her?

She didn’t trust him. She didn’t like him. But she swallowed her pride and slipped past him, rushing toward the Cloud-Mist Pavilion.

Inside, Huo Ming Xue’s expression changed at once. She stepped out, deciding to block Su Qing herself.

Su Zhi watched with growing interest, eyes bright. The two roaming-star realm fighters rushed Wang Jie—and were dismantled effortlessly.

This one’s good.

And he’s only full-star realm?

Someone like this should’ve shown up at the Full-Star Tournament.

And he seemed to be a lockforce cultivator.

Wang Jie suppressed the two men without using any techniques that might expose him and knocked them down the mountain.

Then he turned to Huo Ming Xue.

He lifted his hand and flicked a finger.

A sharp gust tore through the air and slammed into Huo Ming Xue’s projected starforce, ripping it open.

Su Qing seized the opening instantly and drove a palm strike through Huo Ming Xue’s defense, injuring her.

Huo Ming Xue stumbled back, face pale with rage. She glared at Wang Jie. “Who are you? Why are you helping her?”

Wang Jie looked down at her, expression severe. “Because you don’t respect me.”

Huo Ming Xue froze, baffled.

Su Qing stared too, momentarily stunned.

“What did we do that disrespected you?” Huo Ming Xue demanded.

“Your eyes,” Wang Jie said coldly, “and your tone.”

Huo Ming Xue’s rage flared. This was an excuse—a pretext. He was helping Su Qing and trying to dress it up as righteous.

She snapped her gaze at Su Qing. “So you two are together. What’s your relationship with him?”

“Huo Ming Xue,” Su Qing barked, “watch your mouth!”

“Oh, I’m watching,” Huo Ming Xue shouted. “You claim you’re devoted to Senior Brother Xie, but the moment he leaves, you’re tangled with Senior Brother Situ—and now you’ve found another. Su Qing, you really have methods.”

“If you slander me again,” Su Qing roared, “I’ll fight you to the death!”

The crowd inside the Cloud-Mist Pavilion stirred. Voices rose.

“Isn’t that Junior Brother Lu—no, Senior Brother Lu?”

Wang Jie turned toward the pavilion.

A familiar face stepped forward—Cheng Fan, the one who had guided him into Zen Mountain. His eyes widened. “Senior Brother Lu?”

Wang Jie nodded politely. “Senior Brother Cheng.”

Cheng Fan’s mouth twitched. “I wouldn’t dare. Everyone—this is Senior Brother Lu Bu Qi. The one who entered with a Zen Token and controls a mountain range.”

A wave of surprise rolled through the crowd.

“So that’s him?”

“Didn’t Senior Sister Su complain about him before, saying he acted shamelessly? Why is he helping her now?”

“I remember that.”

“The Zen Mountain has only three Chengchan disciples. Eldest Senior Sister Jiang Jing Yue, Senior Brother Xie Shen Yun who’s traveling, and this one. Lu Bu Qi entered with a Zen Token—so it must be him.”

Huo Ming Xue’s smile sharpened when she heard the name. She looked from Wang Jie to Su Qing and sneered. “So that’s it. Su Qing, you really are clever.”

Su Qing’s eyes flashed.

Huo Ming Xue pressed on, voice poisonous. “You act devoted to Senior Brother Xie, but you’re tangled with Senior Brother Situ. And the way you dragged Senior Brother Situ into this—was that your way of throwing him off?”

“And this man—you called him shameless. Was that because you have something with him too?”

Wang Jie almost laughed at the audacity of her imagination.

Su Qing lunged in fury. “Huo Ming Xue! You’re ruining my name!”

“Who’s ruining it?” Huo Ming Xue yelled back. “If he’s as shameless as you said, why would he help you?”

“Senior Brother Xie will see what kind of person you are!”

“You’re lying!”

“You two are adulterers!”

They clashed again, both trembling with anger.

Wang Jie’s expression darkened.

He stepped forward with Sword Steps and appeared between them in a blink.

Before Huo Ming Xue could react, Wang Jie swung his hand and slapped her hard enough to send her flying.

The entire pavilion fell into stunned silence.

Even Su Qing froze.

No one expected him to hit that hard—or move that fast.

Su Zhi’s eyes lit up. Excellent footwork.

Huo Ming Xue crashed to the ground, staring at the earth as if she couldn’t believe it.

Then she lifted her head, humiliation and rage twisting her features as she glared at Wang Jie.

Wang Jie looked down at her. “If you spread rumors again, it won’t end with a slap.”

Huo Ming Xue’s fists clenched. She shot a vicious look at Wang Jie and Su Qing, then left without a word.

Wang Jie didn’t care.

He had too many enemies to count. One more didn’t matter.

And if Huo Ming Xue were truly capable, she wouldn’t waste so much time tangled up with Su Qing.

A filthy mouth deserved a lesson.

Su Zhi stepped out and bowed. “I am Su Zhi of the Milky Way Defense Corporation. Would Your Excellency be willing to join this loan mission?”

Wang Jie returned the bow, polite. “I came only to clear my head. I didn’t intend to disturb you. Please don’t take it personally.”

Su Zhi waved it off with a smile.

“As for the loan, I’ll pass,” Wang Jie said. “The Wandering-Star Tournament is approaching. I want to break through as soon as possible.”

Su Zhi didn’t push. “Then we’ll meet another time. The Milky Way Defense Corporation has many missions.”

Wang Jie nodded, bowed again, and left.

Less than an hour after he returned to the Sunset-Glow Mountain Range, Su Qing came to see him.

Her expression was a mess—gratitude tangled with discomfort, and something she didn’t know how to name.

Wang Jie invited her inside. She refused.

Instead, she bowed. “Thank you for helping me. If Huo Ming Xue’s words caused you trouble, I’ll clarify what I can.”

Wang Jie shrugged. “I don’t care about my reputation.”

Su Qing hesitated, then said, “Su Zhi has selected me. If you hadn’t injured Huo Ming Xue’s people, I wouldn’t have gotten in. Thank you.”

“Why do you want the Milky Way Defense Corporation loan so badly?” Wang Jie asked.

“Because Senior Brother Xie is there,” Su Qing answered instantly, without even thinking.

Wang Jie nodded. “I see.”

Silence settled.

Su Qing opened her mouth as if to speak, but Wang Jie cut in first. “I’ll be direct. It’s still about the eyelash.”

Su Qing’s face changed—anger, shame, confusion, and unease all at once.

“Don’t misunderstand,” Wang Jie said quickly. “I don’t mean anything else. Just treat it like I’m completing a task.”

Su Qing clenched her fist, then reached up, plucked out an eyelash in one swift motion, dropped it into his hand, and turned to leave.

Wang Jie watched her retreat and let out a slow breath.

Done.

“I hope you and Senior Brother Xie end up together,” he called after her.

Su Qing didn’t answer. She only walked faster, almost running.

Wang Jie returned to cultivation.

Because of the wooden figure, he’d delayed cultivating the Heavenly Astral Body-Forging Chart. Ting Chen had claimed the wooden figure could help him. It hadn’t.

He couldn’t waste any more time.

By his calculations, he still needed six years to break into the roaming-star realm.

Six years to merge lockforce. Six years to cultivate the Heavenly Astral Body-Forging Chart.

The biggest decision was what form he would shape his lockforce into.

The Heavenly Astral Body-Forging Chart didn’t simply merge starforce or lockforce into the body. It spread it in a special pattern, forging it into something tougher than the usual method.

It was something even Zen Hall and Zen Lake cultivators coveted.

Wang Jie had thought it through.

In the end, he chose a sword.

He was best with the sword. The sword rig he’d obtained through Ban Xia was sword-based as well. The Myriad-Instant Slash he cultivated here was a blade art used for disguise.

His true weapon was still the sword.

He began forging: lockforce pouring into his body, shaping and spreading into sword-forms throughout his flesh.

Perhaps because Master’s method had already forced him to endure pain and temper power inside his body, this cultivation went unusually smoothly.

Sometimes it even felt as if he controlled lockforce inside himself better than he did outside.

If this continued, in six years he would not only enter the roaming-star realm—he would also achieve minor success in the Heavenly Astral Body-Forging Chart.

Then, with roaming-star realm cultivation and lockforce forged into sword-forms, every technique he used would strike far harder than it did now.

Elsewhere, Shu He was troubled.

She couldn’t explain it. She only felt a need—an urge—to reach a place twenty times farther than anywhere she’d ever traveled.

From birth until now, how far had she gone?

Almost nowhere beyond Third Zen Heaven.

So why this pull? Why this restlessness?

If she didn’t go, she felt hollow, as if her soul had been misplaced.

Was it bloodline? Some invisible connection?

But it wasn’t even a fixed direction. Any direction would do.

That meant it wasn’t a single object calling her. It was something else—something she couldn’t name.

“Senior Sister Shu He?”

A voice called. A thin man stood ahead, smiling ingratiatingly.

Shu He’s eyes flashed with disgust. “Junior Brother Tang. You’re here for Young Master again?”

“Yes.” Tang Xu Bai bowed, still smiling. “Please, Senior Sister. Help me.”

Shu He told him to wait and went inside to report.

“Young Master. Tang Xu Bai is here.”

“Mm. Let him in.”

Shu He hesitated, as if she wanted to say more, then turned away.

“Go,” she told Tang Xu Bai coldly.

His face brightened. “Thank you, Senior Sister.”

Shu He’s voice hardened. “Young Master is still young. Don’t fill his head with nonsense. If you corrupt him, you’d better be prepared to die.”

Tang Xu Bai’s smile went stiff. “Senior Sister, don’t worry. I absolutely won’t.”

Shu He watched him closely. This man was cowardly and poisonous, always feeding vicious ideas. Part of Young Master’s temperament had been shaped by him.

She had already reported it to the First Zen, but this was Third Zen Heaven. People prioritized themselves. Even the First Zen let Young Master live as he pleased.

If Young Master truly went astray, it would be out of anyone’s control.

Tang Xu Bai slipped inside.