Urban Romantic Divine Doctor

Xu Wendong’s expression was cold and stern; a snort burst from his nose, sharp as a blade of ice: ”Hmph, today I really want to see just what kind of ’Divine beings’ you lot are, that you dare be this arrogant, to openly commit violence in broad daylight beneath this clear sky. Do you truly think there is no one in this world who can rein you in?”

Hearing this, a chilling gleam flashed through the old man’s turbid eyes, like ghostfire suddenly flaring in the depths of the night.

He slowly straightened that long-hunched spine of his, like a withered tree suddenly meeting spring and stretching its branches anew, his chin lifting high.

The arrogance on his face overflowed beyond words as he shouted in a voice that seemed able to pierce the Soul, loud and ringing: ”This old man changes neither his name when walking nor his surname when sitting—Shangguan Hong, at your service!”

His voice was like a great bell tolling, shaking the ninth heaven, rolling out across this noisy, bustling back street teeming with people.

As though a bolt of razor-edged lightning had cleaved through the crowd, the people all around seemed struck by some powerful current, bodies jolting, faces one after another showing looks of extreme shock.

The crowd instantly boiled over like a pot of oil, with cries of surprise and heated chatter rising and falling, endlessly ringing out.

”What? He’s Shangguan Hong! That’s the legendary Great Cultivator! His name shook the land all around even so many years ago. I thought it was just some Jianghu tale, never thought I’d get to see him with my own eyes today!”

”I heard he’d already been in seclusion cultivating for many years, ignoring worldly affairs, single-mindedly pursuing that supreme Cultivation Realm. Who would’ve thought he’d appear here today—this is truly our honor as mere mortals!”

”Aiya, to think it’s actually Senior Shangguan—seeing him just this once today is truly a blessing earned over three lifetimes! Even if I only get a distant look, it’ll be enough for me to brag about for half my life when I go back!”

Everyone chimed in one after another, the discussion fervent.

Their gazes toward Shangguan Hong were filled with blazing admiration and devout worship, as though he were some Divine savior descending from the heavens to rescue all living beings.

It was clear as day that Shangguan Hong was a long-famous powerhouse, the sort who could stomp his foot and make the entire Cultivation World tremble three times.

In this mundane mortal dust, he possessed an even more extraordinary, eye-catching influence; his name was like a spell that made all who heard it instinctively feel awe.

Listening sideways to the crowd’s comments, Shangguan Hong’s lips slowly curved into a supremely proud arc; that smile on his ravine-carved, wrinkled face appeared especially eerie, like a sly old fox that had just caught its prey.

Right after, he spoke again in no great hurry, his voice deliberately drawn out, carrying a precisely measured majesty: ”This old man hails from the Cultivator Association. The peace and stability of this Cultivation World rests on our exhausting our minds and hearts, painstakingly maintaining it!”

”If not for us to hold down the fort, who knows what kind of chaos this world would have fallen into by now.”

As soon as these words left his mouth—

Those ordinary commoners who had never even heard the name Shangguan Hong before—

Their eyes instantly turned feverish as well, as if after groping in darkness for so long they had suddenly seen the first light of dawn, or as if devout believers had personally witnessed a god descend into the mortal world.

In their simple and muddled understanding, Cultivators were themselves transcendent to Saint, lofty and mysterious beings, like Immortals and gods upon the clouds, forever out of reach.

And this Cultivator Association was even more so like that unscalable Heavenly Court which is Sovereign of Heaven and Earth, ruling over the life and death, honor and disgrace of countless Cultivators, and serving as their powerful backing to safeguard the peace and stability of their everyday lives.

Upon learning that Shangguan Hong hailed from the Cultivator Association, the crowd’s awe and worship surged even more violently, like a flood bursting through a dike, utterly unstoppable.

Some shallow-minded folk, their heads completely drowned by fanaticism, even unconsciously had their legs go weak and dropped to their knees in worship, mumbling under their breath as they prayed for Shangguan Hong’s protection.

”Hmph, so just because you’re from the Cultivator Association you can throw your weight around and bully people, committing violence in the middle of the street? Don’t tell me you’re parading under the banner of the Cultivator Association just to run wild outside and commit all manner of evil?”

Xu Wendong’s sword-like brows stood on end, cold light flashing in his eyes. He hadn’t expected the other side to actually be from the colossal entity that was the Cultivator Association, yet the stubbornness and boldness in his bones left him utterly unafraid.

He pondered inwardly that if these people really didn’t know life from death and pushed him too far today, if they truly enraged him completely, he wouldn’t mind staking everything.

Even if blood splattered within five steps, he would still tear this so-called Cultivator Association up by the roots, making them pay a horrific price for what they had done today.

However, before Shangguan Hong could respond, the commoners around them, whose minds had already been overwhelmed by frenzied emotion, exploded first.

Their eyes bulged with fury; like barrels of gunpowder set alight, they glared at Xu Wendong one by one, vile curses pouring from their mouths as they berated him for being disrespectful toward Shangguan Hong, for blaspheming the god in their hearts.

And there was even one thick-necked fellow with a face full of meat, looking every bit the street thug, who bellowed at the top of his lungs: ”That arrogant brat actually dares be so rude to Senior Shangguan—does he really think the rest of us don’t exist?”

”If we don’t hack him into eight pieces today, how are we supposed to uphold the dignity of the Cultivator Association! How are we supposed to quell Senior Shangguan’s wrath!”

In an instant—

The scene was like a wild horse that had thrown off its reins, becoming ever more chaotic and unmanageable.

In a split second—

In the eyes of the masses, Xu Wendong had already become like a rat scurrying across the street, with the curses and spittle of those fanatics surging toward him like a raging tide, seemingly intent on drowning him completely.

Yet Xu Wendong stood there like a towering reef that had weathered countless storms, standing firm amid the howling winds and crashing waves, his posture straight, utterly unshaken.

His eyes were cold and severe, like stars in a frigid night sky, as he watched this farce woven from ignorance and fanaticism with a calm, detached gaze; there was no fear in his heart, only scorn for this absurd world.

Shangguan Hong slightly raised that hand of his, dry and twig-like, palm facing downward, and gently pressed it down, as though he possessed Magic Power that could control heaven and earth.

This seemingly simple motion was like pouring a basin of cold water into a boiling wok of oil; the uproarious scene miraculously quieted down at once.

When the clamor of the crowd had fully ebbed away and the place was so silent that a needle dropping could be heard, Shangguan Hong spoke again, slowly, his hoarse, gloomy voice like it drifted up from the Nine Nether Hell, yet carrying a kind of authority no one could resist: ”Everyone, do not panic. Hear this old man out.”

”Since its founding, my Cultivator Association has shouldered a sacred and weighty mission—that mission is to balance that subtle and complex relationship between mortals and Cultivators.”

”What we do today is by no means unprovoked troublemaking; in truth, it is to better safeguard the vital interests of common folk, to protect the peace of this patch of heaven and earth!”

He paused, his gaze slowly sweeping across the crowd, as if scrutinizing each person’s Soul, then continued: ”This day, our coming to Qingyuan is not a deliberate move against this little girl.”

”To speak plainly, this is a decision reached after careful deliberation by the Cultivator Association—all Golden Core Realm Cultivators must hand over their Soul Blood.”

”Only in this way can the Association conveniently exercise unified management, strangling all latent dangerous factors in the cradle, ensuring that they will not rely on their powerful Cultivation Level to run wild, thereby threatening the peaceful lives of ordinary commoners.”

”All of this is for the sake of the greater good!”

Xu Wendong’s lips lifted in a faintly playful smile. ”And what if I refuse?”