Heart thumping, he extended his hand and pointed a finger at it.
The turtle-wok immediately flickered, shrank down, and flew toward Bai Xiaochun. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared into the tip of his finger. Eyes wide with shock, Bai Xiaochun leapt to his feet and backed up a few steps. He looked down at his finger, and then back at the empty stove.
“This… this….” He pointed his finger down at the ground, and a black gleam of light flashed, and a clanking sound rang out as the wok appeared once more.
After experimenting a few more times, his expression flickered from grim, to delighted, to mournful. Finally, he sighed.
“Well, I can suck this thing into my body, but the price I had to pay was a year of longevity. How come it still seems like I screwed myself?”
The next day at noon, Bai Xiaochun was trying to figure out a way to get back the longevity which had been sucked away from him. He was in the middle of doing some research when, all of a sudden, he looked up. He had just sensed that there were eight people heading toward the entrance of the Ovens.
That was something he would never have been able to detect when only in the first level of Qi Condensation. However, now that he was in the third level, he could instantly sense that one of the eight people was none other than Xu Baocai.
Almost at the same time, Xu Baocai’s voice suddenly rang out, filled with fury and hatred.
“Bai Xiaochun, you have Elder Brothers to protect you, but so do I! Today, the enmity between the two of is going to end permanently!”
Please go to
install our App to read the latest chapters for free
Chapter
8: We're Gonna Go All Out!
As soon as he realized that Xu Baocai was coming, Bai Xiaochun shot to his feet.
“Well, he came sooner than expected....” he thought, his eyes flickering with hesitation. Although he had done everything he could to prepare in the last half-year or so, he still didn't feel ready. As far as he was concerned, the best option would have been to go into the conflict in the fourth level of Qi Condensation. Only then would he have felt safe.
Seeing that Xu Baocai had come with a group of seven others, Bai Xiaochun knew that hiding wasn’t an option. Gritting his teeth, he said, “Fine! I’m gonna go for it!”
Taking a deep breath, he quickly donned eight leather coats, and then attached his backup wok to his back. Only then did he nervously open his door and step out.
The first thing he saw was Big Fatty Zhang and the others out by the front gate, hefting meat cleavers and huge kitchen ladles as they blocked the path of Xu Baocai and his friends.
“I was wondering why I heard the crows squawking this morning,” Big Fatty Zhang roared, his voice echoing like thunder as he stood there, tall and mountain-like. “As it turns out, a bunch of brats from the Supervisors’ Department decided to come cause a scene here in the Ovens!”
“Other people might be scared of the Ovens, Big Fatty Zhang, but the Supervisors’ Department doesn’t give a crap about you. We received a complaint from Junior Brother Xu, and we're here with the authority of the Supervisors’ Department. Do you really dare to resist us?” Seven arrogant-looking men clustered around Xu Baocai. Although they wore servant uniforms, their sleeves were conspicuously embroidered with the character ‘Supervisor,’ indicating that they were from the Supervisors’ Department, and had a status and power beyond ordinary servants.
One of the men was a burly fellow who looked as tough as a tiger and as sturdy as a bear. He emanated the spirit pressure of the third level of Qi Condensation, and his eyes glittered coldly as he stared at Big Fatty Zhang. Apparently, he didn't seem fazed at all by Big Fatty Zhang and the others.
“Hogwash!” replied Big Fatty Zhang. “He was trying to kill my Junior Brother. How do you explain that!?” He then laughed coldly as his hand whistled through the air, causing the big black wok on his back to suddenly fly up into the air, looking completely majestic. The burly man’s cohorts looked on with flickering expressions, and as for the burly man himself, his eyes widened. Then his hand flashed in an incantation gesture, causing a small flag to fly out. Mist poured out of the flag, from within which the roaring of a wild beast could be heard.
Even as the figurative swords were being drawn, Xu Baocai saw Bai Xiaochun stepping out of his thatched hut, and all his previous rancor and hatred erupted inside of him.
“Bai Xiaochun!!” he roared.
As soon as the words left Xu Baocai’s mouth, he waved his hand, sending his wooden sword flying out.
Looks of shock could be seen on the faces of Big Fatty Zhang and the others. Just as they were about to leap to stop the wooden sword, the burly man from the Supervisors’ Department laughed coldly and blocked their path.
However, it was in that same instant that Bai Xiaochun, eyes bloodshot, roared, “Xu Baocai, you’ve pushed things too far! You and I are going to go all out!”
Bai Xiaochun’s heart was pounding. He had never actually been in a fight in his entire life, much less magical combat against another cultivator.
He was so nervous that he was shaking. Roaring to build his own courage, he unleashed the power of the third level of Qi Condensation, holding nothing back from his cultivation base. He poured all of his spiritual energy into his wooden sword, then waved his finger to send it flying toward Xu Baocai.
As the wooden sword whistled through the air, the two designs hidden by the garish paint flickered slightly. Suddenly, the sword expanded in size and exploded with an oppressive coldness as it bore down on Xu Baocai.
The speed and majesty with which it shot through the air caused Big Fatty Zhang, as well as the group from the Supervisors’ Department, to gasp and stare in astonishment. As the ferocious aura of the sword filled the area, all hearts were struck with shock, and suddenly, nobody was interested in fighting any more, and instead stared at the sword.
Xu Baocai hadn’t even gotten close to Bai Xiaochun yet, and was struck with terror by his energy. From what he could tell, this version of Bai Xiaochun was completely different than the person he had faced several months before. The way he gritted his teeth and looked like he was going all out caused Xu Baocai’s heart to fill with shock.
Next, his eyes widened with disbelief as he saw Bai Xiaochun’s wooden sword speeding toward him. It was like a stream of white light, bursting with the type of energy that he had only seen during fights between Outer Sect disciples. He was so flabbergasted that his scalp went numb.
A bang rang out as Bai Xiaochun’s wooden sword slammed into Xu Baocai’s. Xu Baocai’s wooden sword trembled, completely incapable of standing up to the force of the blow. Starting from the tip, it shattered into pieces. In the blink of an eye, it was completely destroyed, transformed into countless shimmering fragments.
As for Bai Xiaochun’s wooden sword, it didn't even pause. It continued to shoot through the air toward Xu Baocai, who by this point was scared witless. Using all the power he could muster, he dodged out of the way. The wooden sword whistled past him, slicing his shoulder in the process, and then slashing into a nearby tree.
A boom rattled out as the tree was chopped completely in half, and then collapsed onto the ground, sending a cloud of dust into the air. Xu Baocai let out a miserable shriek as blood splashed all over his arm. Face pale, he immediately fell back.