Chapter 58 - 058: Enemies Everywhere
Medicine Elder choked on his fine brew when he heard Yang Zhen’s words, coughing repeatedly. He hurriedly explained the significance of the token to Yang Zhen.
Lan Fangyue stared at Yang Zhen with an odd expression, saying to Hua Youyue, “Tower Master, don’t you think you might have made a mistake by simply handing Yang Zhen a Dark Gold Token?
“Possibly!’1
Hua Youyue turned her back on Yang Zhen without a word, huffing as she walked away.
“Hey, don’t leave! This Dark Gold Token… Dark Gold?”, Yang Zhen perked up, turning to ask Lan Fangyue, “What level is your token?”.
A twinge of annoyance flickered on Lan Fangyue’s face, “Gold level!”
“Which is better, Gold level or Dark Gold level?
“You little brat! Were you sent from heaven to punish me?” Medicine Elder shot a hard glare at Yang Zhen, “The Dark Gold token from the Changyue Tower is the highest level token there is. It practically gives you access to all resources from the Changyue Tower. Of course, you must use them wisely and not waste or transfer them. Since the establishment of Changyue Tower, only five guest practitioners have ever received the Dark Gold token. Without a doubt, you’re the fifth one!”
Yang Zhen quickly tucked the Dark Gold token into his pocket, murmuring to himself, “Me, who receives such a favor… didn’t Flower Tower Master fall for me? This is the first time that someone likes me… What should I say so as not to reveal that it’s the first time… Oh my, I’m a bit nervous….”
Hua Youyue, who was just making her way up the stairs, almost stumbled upon hearing those words, gritting her teeth as if she had heard nothing.
Lan Fangyue and Medicine Elder watched Yang Zhen in disbelief, as if they were given a new understanding of how shameless Yang Zhen could be.
“Boy, throughout my life, I’ve never met someone as shameless as you. You have great potential! You need to count yourself lucky.”
Medicine Elder clapped Yang Zhen on the shoulder, taking a last peek at the upstairs before turning to leave.
■■Old man, considering our statuses, you should address me as master. Stop saying ‘old man’ this and ‘old man that!
Clang!
Medicine Elder’s head hit the door frame.
Lan Fangyue could not help but burst into raucous laughter.
News about Yang Zhen becoming the fifth Dark Gold guest practitioner at Changyue Tower spread like wildfire.
In a lush grand tavern in Flame City, a young man dressed as a lama chuckled slightly, saying to his companion, “Changyue Tower seems to be desperate, giving a Dark Gold token to a practitioner who has not even broken through the Minor Mahayana Phase.”
The Lama companion laughed and said, “That may not be the case. I heard that this Yang Zhen unexpectedly understood Sky Crossing Void due to some fortuitous event. This kind of martial skill is extremely rare and is no less than our Lachan Temple’s Golden Cicada Step.”
The Lama burst into laughter, looking intrigued: “So, if we had come a day earlier, could we also have become Dark Gold guest practitioners of Changyue
Tower?”
The Lama companion forced a smile, “That’s because you, Yun Jie, are naturally smart. I am not so competent, as I still have not understood Golden Cicada
Step.”
Yun Jie chuckled lightly, looking at the undulating clouds outside the window, “Junior Brother Yun Kong, you are being modest. Tomorrow is the first round of the Three Kingdoms Trials. We’ll just have to see this Yang Zhen and take his
Dark Gold token.”
Yun Kong was surprised: “Senior Brother, you want to compete with Yang Zhen in comprehension?”
Yun Jie nodded, “This is a rare opportunity. The other four Dark Gold Token holders are all in the master realm. Defeating them in their field of expertise is quite difficult. But this Yang Zhen is different. The Sky Crossing Void is just a heaven-level martial skill which only entails a little bit of Taoist feeling. How can it be more profound than our Lachan Temple’s Golden Cicada Step?” Yun Kong nodded interestedly, “Then I look forward to Senior Brother Yun Jie’s outstanding performance in the Three Kingdoms Trials!
Yun Jie laughed heartily, shaking his head, “Tomorrow is the Spirit Soul training, which has nothing to do with comprehension or talent. We’ll deal with Yang Zhen later. Just spread the word quietly for now. Under many watchful eyes, Yang Zhen will certainly be in a difficult position and will not be able to refuse!”
Yun Kong nodded, hesitating to speak.
Yun Jie laughingly said, “I know what you are worried about. The few people from the Wanhuagu and Wu Xin Sect who came this time are indeed troublesome. But do not forget, Yang Zhen has drawn too much attention and has almost become a public enemy. All we have to do is sit back and wait for the right moment. Once isolated, who can stop us?
As he said this, Yun Jie was surrounded by a strong golden light, seemingly emitting the sound of Buddhist chanting and appeared dignified, making it unbearable for people to look directly at him.
The Three Kingdoms Trials in Flame City had attracted a lot of attention. The trials this year were particularly lively with participation from two major sects from Dajiang Country, Lachan Temple and Wu Xin Sect, followed by the struggle between the dragon and the tiger in Wanhuagu from Water Spirit Country. Coupled with the young talents from the Great Sects of Nether Sun Country, the level of anticipation for this year’s trials had increased tremendously.
The rising dark horse, Yang Zhen, especially caught the attention of all heaven-level talents, their focus landing upon him.
For a while, all kinds of news was swirling around Flame City, and the betting odds against Yang Zhen were incredibly high, shocking everyone.
The thing that animated everyone was the news that Yun Jie, a heaven-favored talent from Lachan Temple of Dajiang Country, challenged to defeat Yang Zhen at his proudest talent and take the Dark Gold Tower Card, signifying the highest guest status at Changyue Tower as his own.
Once this news dropped, all practitioners in Flame City were buzzed, sinking into excitement.
All kinds of news flew around, stirring the city.
“Have you heard? Zeng Bishu from the Heartless Sect seems interested in Yang Zhen.”
“The Heartless Sect and Lachan Temple, they are both great sects from Dajiang Country, their ties tight as a belt. But who knows why? The Flower Tower Master had given an Dark Gold Tower card to Yang Zhen. Didn’t she know that it would attract attention?”
“The Flower Tower Master is in charge of Changyue Tower, how can she not know the rules regarding the guest cards? The Dark Gold card is different from others, it is the highest status of Changyue Tower guests, the rest of them all being great masters. Yang Zhen shows exceptional talent, whoever defeats Yang Zhen in this domain can replace him.”
“Alas, it seems like Yang Zhen is going to be humiliated, he gets demoted just after getting his Tower card.”
“It’s not necessarily so, Yang Zhen has comprehended the Sky Crossing Void after all.”
“Maybe you are uninformed, but Yun Kong has comprehended the Golden Cicada Step from Lachan Temple!”
“What’s the Golden Cicada Step?”
“Ha, it’s a martial skill created by the master at Lachan Temple. It’s said to embody the Taoist Feeling, and it’s major!”
“Hiss!”
The surrounding crowd drew in a collective breath.
“I feel a little sorry for Yang Zhen, he’s got the whole world for his enemies now!”
“Feeling sorry for him? What’s worse is that those talents from Nether Sun Country also seem to find Yang Zhen too dazzling and hold no good will towards him, so Yang Zhen is basically fighting alone this time!”
At Changyue Tower, after Yang Zhen had his fill of food and drink, he turned his head to see Lan Fangyue hesitating to speak, he paused and asked, “What’s the matter?”
Lan Fangyue, annoyed, glared at Yang Zhen, “How could you still be eating and drinking? Don’t you know how critical your situation is?”
“I truly don’t know!”
Yang Zhen was stunned; how dire could his situation be?
“You…” Lan Fangyue was taken aback, “Ding Keqizhi vows to take your life in the trial, you are now in a you versus the world position. All the talents of the three countries are targeting you, they want to step on your head to make a name for themselves!”
Yang Zhen shook his head, “No, not everyone is against me.” “What?” Lan Fangyue was startled, “Who else would help you?”
Yang Zhen blinked, “You!”
Lan Fangyue was stunned and murmured, “What good can I do? You are up against the world!”
Yang Zhen chuckled heartily, standing tall. A strange smile curled at the corner of his mouth, “So, what if the whole world opposes me?”
At that moment, there was no hint of playfulness about Yang Zhen. Looking at Lan Fangyue with a face full of confidence, he declared, “Some people can’t be trampled, no matter how many are against them. They’re geniuses. I am the effing master of geniuses!”
“Master?”
Hearing this word, Medicine Elder, who was just about to step into the room, shuddered. He quickly left.
Lan Fangyue stared at Yang Zhen in a daze, “Where does your confidence come from?”