Immortal of the Nine Realms

Fang Zhixue stuttered, "Are you crazy? You claim to be a Longevity Qi martial artist?! Do you even know what that level of strength even means? Even in the Frost Water Empire, there are only a few people within that realm. My elder brother told me about it once..."

When the sixth daughter had heard him utter such brazzen, absurd words, she stared at him wide-eyed in shock. But briefly later, she calmed down. She suddenly felt at ease, more than anything. The guy was surely insane and was exaggerating. Afterall, who in Grand Xia could brag like this?

"Even your brother, the youngest Qi Core Stage martial artist of Grand Xia, is not my match,” said Zhao Yan with a faint smile. “I heard he defeated Ji Lengyue recently in the capital. Ji Lengyue should only be at the Vajra Qi Stage, or the Innate Qi Stage, at best. Having defeated him, Duke Fang is very well indeed capable of being called the hero of the Grand Xia Empire.

"But let me tell you a story,” he began. “Many years ago, there was an ordinary fishermen couple who lived by the Grand Xia River. They made an honest living catching fish. They went out to work everyday regardless of how bad the weather was. The couple’s life was decent, and they didn’t need to worry about a day’s meal. So, they gave birth to a son. A new life which had filled their lives with more joy.

"Unfortunately,” Zhao Yan sighed softly, "one day, a heavy rainstorm brought raging waves to Grand Xia River, taking away their lives. Their son was only three years old. With no relatives or anyone to care for him, he was left very hungry. Hungry enough to eat grass and tree bark. He wanted to catch fish like his parents, but unfortunately, they hadn’t had the time to teach him yet. Neither was he strong enough to do it, either.

"Finally, starving, he walked toward the mountains, hoping to find something that could truly fill his empty stomach. Walking and walking, he chanced upon a cliff. There, he discovered peculiar fruits, found a skeleton that had been sitting, seemingly for many years, and found a book. He didn’t know how to read, but one of the fruits had filled him up, and prevented him from dying young.

"A single fruit could keep him full for an entire week. That’s why, whenever the boy felt hungry, he’d come back and eat another of the fruits. And during that period, the boy found a private school outside of which he stood and listened secretly. With time, he learned how to read.” a smile found its way up Zhao Ya’s lips. "Finally able to read the book he had found, he did. He read. Whenever he felt hungry, he’d eat one of the fruits. Before he knew it, four years passed, and he entered the Qi Core Stage.

“When he reached that realm, the boy finally found the courage to survive on his own. And through his own hard work, he was accepted into a school. But the boy never forgot his martial arts. At the age of seventeen, he reached the Longevity Qi Stage. It was then that he realized it was called the fourth level of the Earth Profound Stage.

"But no matter how strong a martial artist is, he must answer to his homeland. That’s why the boy chose to study hard, hoping that one day he could enter the court and fulfill his aspirations."

By this point, Fang Zhixue and the sixth daughter had already realized that he was talking about himself.

Fang Zhixue was secretly shocked. "Could it be... that he is really at the peak of the Earth Profound Realm?"

It was then that the sixth daughter exclaimed, seemingly realizing something. She pointed at Zhao Yan, her voice trembling, and said, "You are, you are Brother Zhao Yan!"

Zhao Yan smiled. "So you still recognize me, Xia He.”

"Sister Zhixue, don’t be afraid. Brother Zhao Yan won't harm us!" said Xia He excitedly.

Zhao Yan’s face froze, and he stared at Xia He in a daze. After a moment, he slowly shifted his gaze away. "Why are you so sure that I won't harm you?"

"Because you are Brother Zhao Yan! When you took me to visit the temples, you couldn't bear to see the beggars on the road, so you gave them all your meal money that you had budgeted over for the next several days. Brother told me that you didn't have any money to buy food and had to starve for a few days," said Xia He.

"I'm a martial artist.” Zhao Yan snorted. “Even if I don’t eat for a couple of days, I won't feel hungry."

Fang Zhixue was somewhat uncertain, "If you know her, why did you kidnap us?"

"... It's because of that incident," Xia He turned downcast. "I have always believed that Brother Zhao Yan is definitely not that kind of person."

"I don’t understand. What exactly happened? What’s with all these games you’re pulling?" Fang Zhixue was somewhat impatient at this point. She didn’t want to escape anymore, she just hoped to know what had happened in the past and what Zhao Yan's purpose was. Just then, a hoarse voice came from outside the cave.

"Martial Aunt, are you there?"

"Victorious Buddha!” Fang Zhixue was pleasantly surprised and immediately looked at Zhao Yan. "My big brother's disciple has come to find us. You can't escape now!"

Zhao Yan frowned slightly, slowly got up, and walked out of the cave. He saw a giant ape standing not far away, gazing at him with cold eyes.

"A demon?"

Zhao Yan looked at Victorious Buddha and said, "I never thought there were real demons in this world. You can even talk."

He glanced around and noticed the figures of Tiger Mountain Lord and Profound Green. He couldn't help but smirk.

"I thought Fang Zhixue was just boasting. Now it seems that Fang Chen has really subdued you."

"How dare you address my master by his name!"

A cold light flashed in Victorious Buddha's eyes. His figure turned into a flash of lightning and he rushed straight toward Zhao Yan. His sandalwood-sized fist fiercely struck down!

Tiger Mountain Lord and Profound Green did not stay idle either. Attacking from both sides, they wanted to quickly rescue Fang Zhixue. In their minds, there was no such thing as bullying the weak with numbers.

"Let's see how powerful you demons are. Perhaps, my martial arts are better!” Zhao Yan remained calm as he gently raised his hand. A majestic aura emerged, forming an invisible wall that not only blocked the attacks of the three demons but also sent them flying.

The three demons crashed through several towering ancient trees before stabilizing themselves, looking somewhat sorry. A hint of surprise and suspicion that couldn't be concealed rose in their eyes.

This martial artist in front of them had such terrifying cultivation? This was the first time they encountered someone who could easily resist them after their years of cultivation.

"Is this all you've got?" Zhao Yan smiled before pressing down slowly.

Boom!

His endless Longevity Qi seemed to transform into a massive mountain, ruthlessly pressing down on the three demons. Trees shattered, and the surrounding earth caved in and sank by several inches. Webbing of shattered rock spread on the land, and a pit with a radius of ten yards appeared.

The three demons were in quite a sorry state, but fortunately, they had wrapped themselves in spiritual energy, which the longevity Qi found hard to penetrate through.

The three cut sorry figures, but their injuries were not severe. This was the difference between cultivators and martial artists. The disparity between spiritual energy and internal energy was no joke.

Cultivators could be defeated by martial artists, but as long as the strength gap wasn't too large, it wasn't easy for martial artists to easily kill cultivators.

Fang Zhixue and Xia He had already reached the entrance of the cave by now. When they saw this scene, their mouths turned into tiny “O’s.”

"This...” Fang Zhixue sucked in a sharp breath. “Such formidable strength...!" Zhao Yan hadn’t been lying at all! To cause such terrifying destruction with such ease, the likelihood of him being at the peak of the Earth Profound Realm was extremely high!

Soon, Fang Zhixue reacted and quickly looked at the three battered demons. "Are you three okay?"

"We're fine, just... fine...."

The three demons answered with difficulty. They didn’t look too good.

Zhao Yan was surprised, then curious. "You shouldn't have been able to withstand this move of mine with your capabilities. Is there something special about demons, perhaps?"

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