Chapter 251: Rising Fame (Bonus for Ally Huang Wei Cleon)

"Not even a single cigarette finished..." Fang Qi took another regretful puff, "Far too fleeting!"

As Fang Qi looked over while blowing out clouds of smoke, the young maidens, still immersed in the shock of the preceding scene, nearly shrank back into a tight huddle.

"Stay back! This lady needs to verify whether you are one of those ancient demons who used some wicked art to regain a youthful countenance!" Ruan Ning's heart began to flutter with apprehension.

It was preposterous; at such a tender age, even if he had begun cultivating from within his mother's womb, it was impossible to attain such a profound realm!

Even if that old demon had just broken free and was in a weakened state where his full might could not be exerted, he was still not someone just anyone could contend with!

The solitary explanation! This guild master before them appeared to be in his twenties but was in truth a centuries-old monster!

There were such individuals within the city, and every single one of them was an old eccentric! At this thought, Ruan Ning grew increasingly uneasy!

The mere sight of Fang Qi reminded her of a thoroughly disreputable, notoriously wicked old freak from the inner city, and she instinctively categorized him as the same breed!

"Er..." Fang Qi remarked, "Then I simply won't come over."

"Ah! Why are we getting closer and closer to this fellow?!" The three girls were on the verge of clutching each other and screaming when they glanced beneath their feet—they were still treading upon a flying sword!

The flying sword was gliding forward of its own accord!

"What are you trying to do!" The three maidens feared they had encountered some man-eating fiend!

Fang Qi instantly rapped each of them on the forehead, "You don't even recognize your own guild master?! Ancient demon?! Keep calling me that and see if I don't hurl you all down! How could I run a guild without a bit of capability?"

The trio: "..."

"You really aren't?!" Su Zhi's bright, clear eyes blinked as she drew nearer to scrutinize him, "Could it be that you are some ultra-prodigy from a supreme, hidden grand sect?!"

"Cough, cough! Well..." The untalented, unscrupulous proprietor wore a look of sheer awkwardness, "My lady, have you perhaps read too many biographical chronicles?"

"..." Ruan Ning murmured under her breath, "He must be some ancient devil who regained his youth. Think about it, who would willingly admit to such a thing!"

Su Zhi and Su Yao nodded in unison. The sliver of admiration that had just blossomed instantly vanished without a trace, and they instinctively distanced themselves, quietly retreating from the tip of the flying sword toward the hilt.

Overhearing their hushed whispers, Fang Qi was utterly bewildered, "...Why does this turn of events feel entirely wrong..."

I am still bloody young! My true age is under twenty, and my mental age is under thirty! What on earth is an old demon?!

And what is the meaning of all of you staring at this proprietor as if he were a deviant?!

"Enough, let us return and discuss the guild regulations!" The maddened Proprietor Fang barked, his face darkening with exasperation.

...

Regardless, and whether Proprietor Fang's development was right or wrong, the annihilation of the Honglin Herb Shop and the destruction of its very nest was undoubtedly a momentous event in the outer city!

Overnight, nearly every faction scrambled to uncover which power had eradicated the Honglin Herb Shop.

And the "Defying Heavens Online Gaming Guild" forged its reputation in that single night! Everyone came to know that this newly established power with a rather peculiar name had risen!

Even as a nascent force, it was not one that just anyone could afford to provoke!

The Black Demon Branch.

Seated upon a broad beast-skin chair, Iron-Heart Demon fixed his fierce, tiger-like gaze upon the bald cultivator before him, "You say the faction that slew Li Huangquan has been found?"

"Yes...!" The bald cultivator seemed about to append something, but was instantly cut short by Iron-Heart Demon, "Lead me there!"

He casually snatched the black cloak beside his seat, donning it as he prepared to depart!

"But... but..." The bald cultivator appeared exceedingly anxious.

"Why the hesitation?!" Iron-Heart Demon snorted coldly, kicking the bald cultivator flat onto his face, "Scram to the front and lead the way!"

"Yes..."

Before he could step outside, a cultivator clad in a grey cloth robe walked straight through the door.

"Wang Jin?" Iron-Heart Demon said icily, "I did not grant you permission to enter!"

"I am here to deliver a message on behalf of Boss Black Demon," the grey-robed cultivator spoke. "Iron-Heart Demon, you are to remain in closed-door cultivation at your estate for one month. Without Boss Black Demon's command, you shall not emerge!"

With that, he turned and left.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Iron-Heart Demon erupted in fury, "Make it bloody clear to me!"

"If there are any questions, please ask Boss Black Demon yourself," the grey-robed cultivator replied. "I am merely the messenger."

"Dammit!" Iron-Heart Demon slammed his fist violently against the doorframe.

Not limited to the outer city, this matter even drew the attention of the inner city.

"Overnight, the Honglin Herb Shop was uprooted? Qin Honglin's cultivation entirely destroyed, his fate unknown, and suspected to have been dismembered by vengeful foes?" A middle-aged man scrutinized the intelligence report in his hands with a grave expression, "This Qin Honglin, if I recall correctly, was in the Divine Ocean Realm, was he not?"

"Yes, Father." Clad in green attire with a white silk skirt, Xi Yue had her raven hair gathered behind her head into a drifting-cloud bun, adorned with an exquisite phoenix hairpin that looked ready to take flight, further accentuating her noble demeanor, "Yesterday, at the invitation of my sisters, I happened to be present at the scene."

The current issue was that while the cause of Qin Honglin's ruin was easy to discover, very few were truly willing to believe it, and more detailed confirmation was required.

"You mean to say..." the middle-aged man spoke solemnly, "that store is guarded by an expert, an expert capable of crippling Qin Honglin in an instant, leaving him without the slightest ability to resist?"

"Could it not be some mechanism or a powerful magical treasure?" the middle-aged man inquired with a trace of skepticism.

"It is not impossible," Xi Yue said. "But even so, it indicates that behind this proprietor lies an immensely formidable power, and this appears to be merely a branch store."

"A branch...?" Doubt surfaced in Xi Chenzhou's eyes.

"It is a branch," Xi Yue nodded. "It seems the main shop is located in some Great Jin Country, in a city called Jiuhua City..."

"To be frank, I have never even heard of that city, but it does not seem to belong to a minor nation. There are even customers in the Divine Ocean Realm there, and more than one."

"What exactly does that shop do?" As a manager of the Coiling Flood-Dragon Manor, Xi Chenzhou naturally needed to grasp the background of every major power.

"Er..." Soon, Xi Yue began to describe "The Legend" to Xi Chenzhou.

"Killing chickens...? Robbery...? And it can even raise one's cultivation?" Xi Chenzhou looked utterly bewildered.

Xi Yue could only continue her explanation.

"Treasure hunting...? Exploration? Dropping equipment...?!" What on earth was all this?!

Xi Chenzhou grew even more dumbfounded; aside from raising cultivation, not a single word made sense to him, "Once I finish handling the matters at hand later, you shall take me there."

"Alright! Oh, by the way..." Xi Yue remembered something else, "Can I join that Defying Heavens Online Gaming Guild?"

"Join what?" Xi Chenzhou suspected he had misheard.

Instead of staying in the fine Coiling Flood-Dragon Manor, she wanted to go to some Defying Heavens Online Gaming Guild?!

"Yes..." Xi Yue spoke with a hint of bashfulness. Though the name sounded rather embarrassing, her sisters had all joined. When the time came, they would all be decked out in top-tier gear with sky-high levels while she wore mere rags—how awkward would that be!

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