A joyless smile slowly began to appear on Sean Wu’s face. A single tear rolled down his cheek. Why did this quest system have to suck so much? He didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry, this was a hopeless situation! How was he supposed to survive if that evil old man would play whack-a-mole with his corpse as soon as he’d pop his head out?

Pàng Zi seemed to notice the young man losing heart. The burly man laughed and put a hand on the youth’s shoulder, “Senior Wu, don’t lose hope! You have gone through so much more than this! Many who have lost their cultivation have also ended up losing the will to live, but not you! In your eyes, a small setback like this is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Don’t worry, with our talents, there is nothing we cannot handle working together!”

Pàng Zi’s passionate speech made Sean want to fall into despair even more. This was all based off of a misunderstanding! Sean didn’t have the heart to tell the large man his faith was misguided. Still, he had to think of something!

[When in Rome, act as the Romans do.]

Sean’s earlier thoughts had re-emerged. had read wuxia novels before, tales of great exploits and battles under the heavens. Perhaps he could somehow use this knowledge to his benefit? The young man crossed his legs and went into a deep think. Pàng Zi, seeing the youth’s renewed faith, watched quietly with anticipation.

After two minutes, Sean Wu uncrossed his arms. He opened his eyes and began to speak, “I think we will have to…”

下一章

In a barren land without any semblance of life, a stone slab was pushed off to side. Two men stuck their heads out of a hole and cautiously looked around. When they had confirmed no one else was there, the two men slowly climbed out.

“Let’s go.”

“Wait, what is that?” Pàng Zi pointed to a figure in the distance. As the two approached, they came upon the corpse of a demonic beast with a spear sticking out of its rear. It was a sight to behold, but the two did not have time to dawdle around.

“Never mind that, I think I see him.” Sean pointed to a body on the ground. “Get Fǎ Shù and let’s go before they come back.”

At Sean’s behest, the large man hurriedly lifted Fǎ Shù onto his back and ran back. Now was the hard part. They didn’t know where the other two had gone, but they didn’t have time to waste. Pàng Zi passed Fǎ Shù’s body over to Sean. The young man hoisted the old man onto his back and nodded. Now was the time. Pàng Zi smirked and gave him a thumbs up. Their plan was set in motion!

Sean immediately ran to left, while Pàng Zi made his way to the right! Shénqí Lǎorén, who had been watching them the entire time while standing in the sky watched with confusion. What the hell were those two doing? Their plan was to split up and run like chickens?

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The two did not get very far before they were both stopped.

Shénqí Lǎorén landed in front of Sean and spoke, “enough.”

Likewise, Pàng Zi was intercepted by Wǒ Bìxū Lā Shǐ. By the looks of it, the the old man and his red-haired companion were not in a good mood. Wǒ Bìxū Lā Shǐ was clearly irritable for whatever reason as his face was stuck in a permanent scowl. If looks could kill, then Shénqí Lǎorén would have had Sean dead already.

“Kill me and my sect will hunt you down like a dog!!” Sean suddenly shouted with immense fury. The old man was taken off guard. Was this imbecile a young master to some invincible sect?

Shénqí Lǎorén stopped dead in his tracks. While it was true that no one was watching, this did not mean that a sect would not notice the death of a prodigy. It was not uncommon for great sects to provide their inner disciples with wooden identification tokens. These wooden talismans continually give off a signal when held on one’s person. If a signal is abruptly cut, it would immediately raise suspicions!

Offending these powers would be akin to giving oneself a death sentence! It was not incorrect to say Shénqí Lǎorén would be hunted down like a dog! While he was an elder with respectable cultivation, he was not invincible! When compared with these great behemoths, the difference was heaven and Earth!

“Nonsense! I will not be fooled by this scheme!” Roared Shénqí Lǎorén. “You are no sect disciple! I do not sense even a shred of cultivation coming from you! Junior, you dare?!!”

“Hmph! Senior, you dare?!”

Shénqí Lǎorén was left dumbstruck. In the face of imminent death, this young man dared to shout back with a fury to rip apart the heavens! What kind of invincible backing gave him such confidence? A bead of sweat rolled down Shénqí Lǎorén’s forehead. No, this was only a scheme! He would not be tricked again! However, upon seeing the young man’s furious expression, the old man took a step back.

“No, it must be true!” Thought Shénqí Lǎorén. “He would have to be the king of bullshitting to pull off something like this!”

The king of bullshitting was struggling to hold back the sweat from rolling down his forehead! This guy really took the bait! This scheme would not have worked had it not been for Sean Wu’s innate knowledge of xianxia worldbuilding! He was insider, so to speak! Despite having only read about two poorly translated works in his lifetime, Sean Wu felt he could still bluff the inner workings of a martial sect, dao philosophy, and cultivation because he access to knowledge a mere mortal could never hope to know!

This knowledge of martial law and cultivation arts was what dumbfounded Fǎ Shù in the first place! A mere mortal could discuss dao philosophy? Of course he would be a hidden master! There was no other possible explanation!

To Shénqí Lǎorén, there was no reason to fault this young man’s background any longer! Whether he did have backing or not was something to consider, however. Shénqí Lǎorén was furious at these two for scheming against him, however his rage was far from blind. Unlike Fǎ Shù who was akin to a mindless beast, daring to strike all who would meet his blade, Shénqí Lǎorén was a crafty snake, cautiously prowling and waiting for the right moment to strike! He would retreat when need be, and attack when the opportunity arose. Ironically, this cautiousness, while being his greatest strength, was also his greatest weakness!

In front of this ant who dared to bite him, Shénqí Lǎorén was busy deciding whether it was worth it or not to kick the ant’s nest! What if there really was a deadly viper underneath, ready to strike his foot should he dare? Shénqí Lǎorén became deathly silent for some time.

“No, you are lying.”

Shénqí Lǎorén suddenly locked eyes with Sean Wu!