Sovereign of the Three Realms

Jiang Chen’s voice had barely echoed across the ring when more than a dozen copies of himself appeared. Yan Hongtu was absolutely flabbergasted. All of the silhouettes looked so realistic, he couldn’t tell the real from the fake.

“Yan Hongtu, we are of the same sect, but you insist on being so overbearing. You reign supreme over the Soaring Clouds area and are accustomed to trodding upon others. So today, let me show you the feeling of being stepped on!”

All of a sudden, a storm started into whirl into existence around the ring. A golden glimmer to its winds, the storm instantly covered the ring, like an endless golden ocean.

“Magnetic storm!” Jiang Chen had been building up to this for quite a while, and the power of the magnetic storm that now erupted was enough to eclipse everything Yan Hongtu had done. With Yan Hongtu’s current strength, Jiang Chen’s magnetic storm wasn’t enough to swallow him whole. However, if many storms gathered together, then their combined might would still be quite terrifying.

Yan Hongtu suddenly felt that he’d been caught up in a strange tempo. His movements had suddenly become sluggish, fettered by the storm. “What’s going on? Why’s my body suddenly so heavy?” He was immensely shocked.

Yan Hongtu lost his balance when a tendril from the storm wrapped around his waist. He was about to move away with a flash of light when further tendrils firmly held his limbs down.

This was when all of the various copies of Jiang Chen reverted back to their real forms. Countless vines had transformed into durable, tenacious ropes that thoroughly trussed up Yan Hongtu.

As much skill and ability that Yan Hongtu had to him, he could call upon none of that in this moment.

Jiang Chen’s true form suddenly wavered and appeared in front of Yan Hongtu. The nameless saber raised high and whisked past Yan Hongtu’s head.

Fft!!

The blade’s light flashed.

Cold gripped his body as Yan Hongtu’s heart spasmed. He cried out ghastly, but realized that he was fine. Only a tuft of hair on his head had been cut away.

“Jiang Chen, kill me if you will, why toy with me?!” He flew into a rage from his humiliation.

Jiang Chen’s expressed darkened. “It’s not that I won’t kill anyone, but that I don’t feel like killing anyone. Sage Dan Chi brought me to the Regal Pill Palace and if I kill you today, people will surely fault Sage Dan Chi for bringing in a troublemaker. It would besmirch his reputation. If it was just up to me, I wouldn’t frown even once if I beheaded you ten times over.”

Jiang Chen’s voice suddenly increased in volume. “I only have one principle, and it’s that I do not attack if I am not provoked. If I am, then retaliation is a foregone conclusion. This is your first warning Yan Hongtu, and I spare you for consideration of Sage Dan Chi’s face. If there is another time, my blade will show no mercy no matter who it is!”

Jiang Chen was making use of Yan Hongtu’s matter to proclaim to the entire Rosy Valley that do not piss me off. Whoever does so next will not pay the mere price of a few hairs.

Yan Hongtu was ashen-faced. He’d never thought that he’d be trampled so easily at fifth level origin realm. No matter how fierce he was normally, he was unable to utter any tough words at this point. If he managed to irk Jiang Chen, he’d be dead with a single stroke, no matter how much courage he had.

Those watching beneath the stage of the ring were also dumbfounded and quiet. It had been a battle that everyone had thought Yan Hongtu was sure to win, but had ended so quickly in such a bizarre fashion. The latter had lost almost so utterly and suddenly before anyone had figured out how Jiang Chen was fighting.

Everyone’s hearts were solemn and grave in that moment. They didn’t doubt Jiang Chen’s words in the slightest. That he didn’t kill Yan Hongtu didn’t mean that his next challenger would be so lucky.

Jiang Chen withdrew his arts and strode down from the ring, ignoring all of the flabbergasted and insensate looks around him. Things were as he’d thought, status and treatment were to be fought for. He trusted that no one would dare point fingers or gossip about him in the Rosy Valley after this match, and that there would definitely be no one as insensible as Yan Hongtu, wanting to make an example out of Jiang Chen to show off their own power.

Jiang Chen wasn’t an easy target, but a tough bird that would break their teeth if they tried to devour him!

The world of the sects was just this odd. The weak never received any respect, and the more the strong fought and displayed their brilliance, the more they’d receive widespread attention.

Summaries of what had happened travelled swiftly after the battle had ended, and Sage Dan Chi naturally received his news at first light.

“The eye of the sage one is indeed different! Haha, it’s only Jiang Chen’s third day in the Rosy Valley, but he’s already beaten Yan Hongtu into the ground. It looks like the order of the Rosy Valley is about to be upended!”

“I have to say, Jiang Chen is changing my view of the sixteen kingdoms. Whether or not it’s to their credit that they cultivated a talent such as Jiang Chen, it at least proves one point—even the smallest and most unassuming places can give rise to geniuses!”

“Sage one, you should discover and recruit more geniuses like these!”

These were all Sage Dan Chi’s confidantes, so there were a slight fawning tone in their words. However, Jiang Chen’s performance was so perverse that it was no trouble for them to do so.

It was rather Sage Dan Chi who didn’t have much of a reaction. To him, defeating a mere Yan Hongtu was no great feat. With his knowledge of Jiang Chen, even a sixth level origin realm might not have won against Jiang Chen, much less a fifth level.

Dan Chi’s eye for talent was quite keen. He’d thoroughly studied the fight in which Jiang Chen had utterly trounced Sunchaser. He’d felt that Jiang Chen had been quite at ease and hadn’t displayed all of his abilities in that fight. Therefore, Dan Chi’s estimation of Jiang Chen’s strength had long since reached the level of the peak of the earth origin realm. He even felt that Jiang Chen wouldn’t be defeated by even a sky origin realm cultivator.

This was purely a conclusion he’d reached after minute observation. Therefore, Dan Chi really wasn’t that interested in Jiang Chen’s fight against Yan Hongtu. He was much more interested in Jiang Chen’s performance in the competition of pills.

Dan Chi had learned from the referee of what had happened. Dan Chi had taken quite a while to recover from the throes of his shock after learning of what Jiang Chen had done. If the referee’s descriptions hadn’t been exaggerated, then Jiang Chen’s performance in the dao of pills far outstripped his display in the ring.

“Jiang Chen….” Several more traces of expectation were attached to this name in Dan Chi’s heart.

The changes after Yan Hongtu’s challenge were indeed great. When Jiang Chen returned to the Rosy Valley, he felt a noticeable decrease of hostility that had been replaced with respect and awe. After all, the outside world now felt that Jiang Chen’s strength was enough to compete against the peak of the earth origin realm, and this level of strength all lived in the Sky Pillar area. Unless their brains had been crushed by a door, no one else wanted to become a second Yan Hongtu.

Having been defeated in one match, Yan Hongtu had left the Rosy Valley that day and journeyed outside to train. It was obvious that he had no face left after this match, and he didn’t even have a reason to hate Jiang Chen with.

It had been Yan Hongtu stirring up trouble all along. Jiang Chen had only been forced to answer his calls. Jiang Chen hadn’t even killed him in the end, not out of consideration for Yan Hongtu, but for Sage Dan Chi in not wanting to slaughter his own peers. It could be said that Jiang Chen was displaying the very height of genteel manners.

The Demigod of Wood Mu Gaoqi was undoubtedly the most surprised. He’d been encouraging Jiang Chen to take a step back ever since he and Yan Hongtu had butted heads. He didn’t look favorably on their match at all. But who knew that Jiang Chen would trample Yan Hongtu so easily? Mu Gaoqi was so surprised that his eyeballs were almost falling out of their sockets.

“Brother Jiang Chen, I was short-sighted and did not recognize Mt. Tai. I am ashamed!” Mu Gaoqi was now a common fixture in Jiang Chen’s residence.

“All’s well as long as we haven’t delayed exploring the spirit spring.” Jiang Chen smiled faintly. He naturally knew that Mu Gaoqi hadn’t thought much of his chances, and that Mu Gaoqi had kind intentions. After all, logically speaking, a mere first level origin realm did indeed not have the foundation to fight against a fifth level origin realm.

“Heh heh, I feel more steady at heart after seeing how strong Brother Jiang Chen is.” Mu Gaoqi was also willing to thoroughly display his sincerity as he took out some more pill flasks. “Brother Jiang Chen, these are some Spirit Consolidation Pills. I promised you last time that I would take care of all the pills that your followers need.”

Jiang Chen smiled and flicked a glance at the pills. “Daoist Gaoqi, it’s bad to always put you out of pocket. I have a few things that I’d like to ask you.”

“Not at all, not at all. Please ask whatever you’d like, Brother Jiang Chen. I am half of a private investigator as well, my intelligence network is a sharpe” Mu Gaoqi was well versed in refining pills, and many core disciples who didn’t want to waste their own time in refining pills or had lesser pill potential would all ask Mu Gaoqi to refine their pills for them. After a while, it was easy for Mu Gaoqi to obtain intelligence that was useful to him, so his intelligence network was quite strong.

“I urgently need some resources at the moment. What do you think is the fastest shortcut to obtaining resources in the Regal Pill Palace?”

“Accepting sect missions and adventuring outside.” Mu Gaoqi blurted out. “There are many levels to the sect missions and the rewards are high. The risks are great in adventuring outside, but so are the gains.”

“Are there no other ways? Operating a business in pills for instance?” Jiang Chen probed.

“A business in pills?” Mu Gaoqi was surprised. “There is a habit of trading pills in the sect, but who is so bored as to refine pills all day and night? This is a huge drain on time and will impact one’s martial dao training. The key point is that there are no exclusive pill recipes. The pills that you refine, so too can others. I think that’s not a way to gain riches.” He refined pills for others normally speaking, but had never given thought to operating a pill business. After all, pills weren’t in such shortage within the sect. A pill that you could refine yourself would never be so popular as to the point of being sold for profit.

Jiang Chen sighed lightly, it looked like he wouldn’t be able to accomplish his plan alone. “Is there an organization that operates business in pills in the Regal Pill Palace?” He asked further.

“Pills are uniformly distributed in the sect. There are many barters and transactions with the sect, but the best pills are in short supply. As for outside of the sect, there are certainly several external powers and secular factions who operate their business, but the quality of their pills is absolutely substandard for us.” Mu Gaoqi shook his head and was in obvious disparagement of Jiang Chen’s sudden stroke of insight.