“Young Master Chen, the Wind Move Guard won’t be at your side to protect you during the hunt. Are you sure you’ll participate in it?” the Second Elder asked Jiang Chen when he saw him coming. He didn’t mean to offend him, but he just had to clarify. There was no expression on his face when he was speaking.
But the question made many people laugh quietly. They were curious to hear Jiang Chen’s answer.
“Sure,” Jiang Chen said.
The Second Elder nodded. “Ok. Then join the team please.”
Jiang Chen went towards the disciples. It was interesting that those standing closest to him couldn’t help stepping back.
“How tough Young Master Jiang is! Almost a dead duck, but still comes to hunt. Hopefully he wouldn’t be lifted out of the mountain in the end,” a very harsh voice was heard from the disciples.
Most people were only gossiping in a low voice, but this man scorned Jiang Chen to his face, which was quite surprising.
“That’s Jiang Jun, from the west courtyard.”
Someone recognized him. He was from the west courtyard. That explained everything.
Jiang Jun was the same age as Jiang Chen, but one head taller than him. He was just skin and bones. His eyes were as small as those of a mouse.
He quite enjoyed being the center of attention and was wreaking havoc upon Jiang Chen for the overwhelming grievance resulting from Jiang Chen’s previous incomparable excellence.
Jiang Chen didn’t bother to quarrel with him, but went on walking.
Jiang Jun felt even more cocky when he saw Jiang Chen’s silence. He asked, “What’s up? Young Master Jiang doesn’t even know how to talk anymore?”
Jiang Chen looked up at him and asked, “Who do you think you are? How dare you talk to me like that?”
Jiang Jun was startled by his reaction. His face turned completely red. When he came to his senses, he said, “Pah, you think you are still who you were? Why don’t I dare talk to you like that? Beat me if you are capable.”
Jiang Jian, who was standing in the crowd, laughed silently and looked on with both arms folded across his chest.
Obviously, he had plotted the whole thing. This was only the beginning.
“It’s the first time in my life that I’ve heard a request like this.”
Jiang Chen shrugged his shoulders. Hardly had Jiang Jun’s voice faded away, when he punched him.
Jiang Jun, who was following Jiang Jian’s orders, had a level no higher than Cloud Seven. He was in Cloud Six as well. His nose started to bleed from this unexpected punch.
The moment Jiang Chen’s fist hit his face, the whole world grew quiet.
Jiang Jun stepped back with a shrill cry. Crimson blood dripped onto the lawn.
“You are dead meat!” Jiang Jun was severely offended. He threw himself at Jiang Chen, covering his nose with his hands.
“Enough!”
Jiang Jun didn’t have the nerve to oppose the Second Elder when he started to talk. He stepped back into the crowd silently.
The Second Elder went up to Jiang Chen and kept staring at him. He asked, “Young Master Chen, have your meridians been recovered?”
“Yes.”
“How much have you recovered?”
Jiang Chen knew well that the Second Elder was his grandpa’s best help. His intention to inquire was quite obvious.
“One hundred percent. But I am only in Cloud Six now. I have to keep practicing in order to enhance my state. It shouldn’t be too difficult.” Jiang Chen tried his best to give him details.
“Okay.” The Second Elder nodded, still with no expression on his face. No one ever knew what was on his mind.
It was the other disciples who were shocked. To their knowledge, it was impossible to recover a meridian system as broken as Jiang Chen’s.
“Hum, the east courtyard must have spent a huge sum of money on hiring apothecaries to cure you. But it’s no big deal. You are 16 years old this year and you’ve gone back to Cloud Six,” Jiang Jian said to him sneeringly. He was the least happy person to hear this news.
Jiang Chen smiled. “Jiang Jian, as I recall, you were in Cloud Six when you were 16. Are you insulting yourself?”
“It doesn’t matter to me. No one has ever called me a genius. Anyway, my current state is higher than you. I am ahead of you.”
Jiang Jian sneered in contempt. He suddenly looked to other disciples and announced in a high voice, “Anyone in the same team with Jiang Chen is against me.”
Many hands make light work. Of course more people would make it easier to hunt on the mountain.
Acting alone was not only dangerous, but also less efficient.
The Second Elder announced the beginning of the hunt. “It’s time to start the hunt. Those who fail to show up will lose the competition by default.”
There were some important matters to explain before they went into the mountains. “There are people in charge of processing the dead bodies of the beasts of prey you hunt, while the meat will be sent to your respective homes.” Beasts of prey have different ability levels as well, which are soldier level, general level, king level, spirit level and holy level.
Your targets mostly belong to the soldier level. Beasts of the general level can only be hunted by teams. However, in any case, please run away immediately if you see any beasts of the king level. Although you are under the protection of the Wind Move Guard, there are still risks. Take care and keep yourselves safe. Let’s go.”
There were more than 50 disciples of the Jiangs on the spot. The atmosphere was quite lively.
However, these weren’t many people on the whole mountain. Once they went into the mountain and were separated into teams, they wouldn’t be able to see each other because of the vast space of the mountain.
Most of them were walking in teams or at least had one companion, except Jiang Chen. But soon after he went into the mountains, he found that two of the Wind Move Guard were following him. The Second Elder obviously didn’t want anything unexpected to happen to him.
However, he could only rely on himself to hunt the beasts.
The two guards kept a distance from him, but were close enough to keep him in sight all the time, so that they could shoot arrows to save him if there was any danger.
“He looks so lonely. The east courtyard’s days of glory are over and it has been declining so quickly. I feel pity for him thinking of that.”
“After all, that’s the Black Dragon City. By comparison, we are only peasants from the Hundred Thousand Mountains.”
“Yes, you are right. The Jiang Mansion has high prestige in the Hundred Thousand Mountains and has no rivals in the Southwind Ridge. But it’s really trivial in the whole Fire Field.”
“What’s the point in talking about this?”
In a sorrowful atmosphere the two of them found a beast of the soldier level in sight.
One of them took a long arrow out of his bag and put it on the bow. He did this at a stretch. He kept a sharp eye out for anything unusual, so that he could pull the bowstring right away when it was necessary.
“It should be fine. It’s only a soldier level,” the other one said.
Jiang Chen felt weird when he was watching the wild wolf in front of him. He had never killed anything in his days in the Sacred Zone, since he was unable to.
Until today. The living creature he was facing should be the weakest.
He had a subtle feeling that everything had started over again.
He was holding a scimitar in his hand, which was specially prepared for the hunting disciples. He could have chosen a bow and arrow as a second weapon, but he thought it was too much.
He thought of the advice of his father of his previous life.
“Calm down. Nothing can beat you if you focus.”
He could smell the stench in the wolf’s mouth and was sure that this beast wouldn’t mind his identity or be afraid of the Jiang Mansion. It would bite his throat once it got the chance.
This idea gave him a cold chill.
“Is he frightened?”
“It’s his first time after all.”
The two guards didn’t know that what Jiang Chen was feeling wasn’t fear, but excitement. A desire for blood that he had been longing for was awakening in him.
The wild wolf launched itself with all of its strength, flinging soil behind it as it ran. As fast as a lightning, it threw itself on Jiang Chen.
The bowstring of the Wind Move Guard had already been pulled back.
At this moment, Jiang Chen raised his scimitar.
With a scream, the wolf fell to the ground from the air. It was cramping and was soon covered in its own blood.