Watching the Mountain

Chapter 209: Chapter 145: Suppressed with a Wave of the Hand

"Xu—" Shen Wuchen’s face lit up as he strode quickly toward Xu Ran. He was about to speak when he saw Xu Ran raise a finger to his lips and whisper, "Let’s talk later."

He immediately caught on, knowing that Master Xu preferred to keep a low profile. Many people in the Sect were unaware of his true identity.

So he nodded, swallowing the title that was on the tip of his tongue, and his expression returned to one of aloof arrogance.

Zhang Zhentian seemed completely unsurprised by Shen Wuchen’s arrival. He called out to him, "Junior Brother Shen, you’re just in time. Let’s go."

Shen Wuchen merely glanced at him, his expression unchanging. He gave a slight nod and then silently fell in step behind Xu Ran.

The attendant from Celestial Sea Peak watched them leave, a cold sweat beading on his forehead. His heart sank as a terrifying thought struck him:

’Oh no. Do I know too much? Wuchen True Monarch clearly wanted to greet him just now, but that young man stopped him with just a few words. I don’t even have to think about why he’d do that. It’s obvious the three of them know each other, and I’m the only outsider here. They must have been wary of me.’

’So, what fate awaits me tomorrow?’

*

*

*

While he might have been slow to place Zhang Zhentian, it was only when Xu Ran heard how the attendant from Celestial Sea Peak addressed Shen Wuchen that he truly processed it: Shen Wuchen was a Supreme Elder of the Sect.

The thing was, Shen Wuchen was still far too young. Even now, he was barely over two hundred years old.

When Xu Ran first met him, he was just a boy, sitting on a huge boulder by a cliff, agonizing over how to break through to the Qi Refinement Fourth Layer.

Even though his Cultivation progressed rapidly, he was the same as ever each time they met.

Shen Wuchen was a man who never changed. Besides, he was always seen as the weakest Nascent Soul, which made it particularly easy to forget his station. As a result, Xu Ran had barely registered the change in his status and position.

Only at this moment did he suddenly realize that the weakest Nascent Soul was still a Nascent Soul, and Shen Wuchen had long since become a Supreme Elder of the Sect.

Just a little over two hundred years. It was simply too fast.

In that time, he hadn’t even broken through the Foundation Establishment Stage, while Shen Wuchen was already a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Xu Ran shook his head slightly. ’Indeed,’ he thought, ’even a genius with a mere A+ Root Bone is still a genius. Not someone a person of ordinary talent like me can compare to.’

While he was lost in thought, the group arrived at Zhang Zhentian’s Cave Mansion.

After walking into the Cave Mansion, Zhang Zhentian looked at Shen Wuchen, who was walking behind Xu Ran, and asked:

"Junior Brother Shen, Senior Brother is here today. What do you think about our business? Should we reschedule, or should we finish it first and then entertain him? I’m fine either way. It’s not like it’ll take long, even if we start now."

Shen Wuchen looked at Zhang Zhentian with a blank expression. "You say it won’t take long?"

Zhang Zhentian shrugged and asked nonchalantly, "Am I wrong?"

Shen Wuchen’s face stiffened. He turned his head away, snorted coldly, and ignored Zhang Zhentian.

Hearing their conversation, Xu Ran asked with some curiosity, "What’s this about?"

Zhang Zhentian waved his hand dismissively and replied, "Oh, it’s nothing. Junior Brother Shen just wants to fight me."

"Ohhh," Xu Ran drew out the sound, nodding thoughtfully.

If that was the case, then he understood Shen Wuchen’s feelings. Zhang Zhentian’s attitude just now was simply too arrogant and infuriating.

So, he turned his head to Shen Wuchen and said, "What’s there to even talk about? He’s being so arrogant, just beat him up."

Hearing this, Shen Wuchen’s expression stiffened. He shot Xu Ran an aggrieved look and just stood there, stunned.

’Master Xu knows my combat strength. So with those words, does he want me to beat up Senior Brother Zhang, or for Senior Brother Zhang to beat me up?’

Xu Ran patted his shoulder and encouraged him earnestly, "He was just as arrogant with me back then. Then, in front of everyone, I scared him so badly he collapsed to the ground, not even daring to fight back. He became the laughingstock of the Sect."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Zhentian, who had been looking arrogant, suddenly stiffened. He too shot Xu Ran an aggrieved look and said in a melancholy tone:

"Senior Brother, that was so long ago. How can you still remember it? It’s about time you forgot, don’t you think?"

Xu Ran said with a smug expression, "Such a wonderful memory? I’ll remember it for a lifetime. How could I possibly forget?"

He glanced at Zhang Zhentian. "Besides, this is someone being arrogant to my student right in front of me. Don’t you think I should teach someone like that a lesson they won’t forget?"

He said this with a chuckle, his eyes narrowing into a smile.

Zhang Zhentian gave a dry laugh. "Come now, Senior Brother. I was just trying to spur on Junior Brother Shen, to motivate him to put more effort into his Cultivation."

Shen Wuchen felt incredibly moved. He remembered that in the past, whenever he was with Master Xu, he was always the one who ended up getting hurt. He never expected that this time, Master Xu would actually stand up for him.

Then he looked at Zhang Zhentian and snorted coldly. "Hmph. If you want to fight, then let’s fight."

Xu Ran’s face stiffened, his expression helpless.

’Alright, maybe I stood up for him a bit too soon. My own student’s attitude is pretty infuriating too.’

But Zhang Zhentian seemed to be used to it. He didn’t have much of a reaction and just readily accepted the challenge.

Then, the two of them began to fight, right in front of Xu Ran.

As it turned out, Zhang Zhentian’s earlier words weren’t arrogance, but a statement of fact.

In just three moves, Shen Wuchen was defeated.

However, Xu Ran found something strange. During the first two exchanges, Zhang Zhentian’s performance was odd. His sword strikes were limp, completely lacking in force. He took two of Shen Wuchen’s attacks squarely before finally putting in effort on the third move.

Meeting Xu Ran’s gaze, Zhang Zhentian explained:

"Senior Brother, don’t look at me like that. I wasn’t going easy on Junior Brother Shen. I had no other choice."

"Hm?" Xu Ran let out a questioning sound, looking at Zhang Zhentian in confusion.

Seeing this, Zhang Zhentian sighed helplessly and spread his hands. "Never mind. Senior Brother, just fight a round with Junior Brother Shen. You’ll understand once you experience it for yourself."

Xu Ran nodded thoughtfully. Without hesitating, he walked over to face Shen Wuchen and said, "Let me see for myself."

Seeing this, Shen Wuchen hesitated for a moment before bowing slightly and saying, "Then, this disciple shall begin."

The moment his voice fell, Xu Ran immediately sensed something was wrong. At this moment, Shen Wuchen, standing opposite him, gave him the feeling that he could be obliterated with a wave of a hand.

Not only that, but as soon as the thought entered his mind, he suddenly found that he couldn’t put any strength into the sword he was holding.

It was as if a voice were stopping him: ’To go all out against someone who can be obliterated with a wave of the hand is simply ridiculous. HAHAHA, a person like this only needs to be suppressed with a casual wave.’

Realizing this, he froze, his eyes wide with disbelief as he stared at Shen Wuchen.

’What did he do to me? How could I possibly be such an arrogant person?’

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