Chapter 1588 — Someone Starts Trouble

"What? He passed too? He actually didn't stay there to cultivate?" Zhao Qibing's eyes went wide with disbelief.

"Young Master Qi, this Zhao Qitan is probably afraid that if he stays behind to cultivate in the Ice Palace, you'll seize the initiative and claim the position of family head!" Li Cihua said. "You can't afford not to be on guard. This fellow has always been ambitious, but back when you didn't have the strength, Young Master, we didn't care. But now, you're the legitimate candidate for family head!"

"Damn!" Once Zhao Qibing grasped Zhao Qitan's intention, he was thoroughly displeased. "So you're telling me it's a foregone conclusion that Zhao Qijiu will become an Earth Rank expert?"

"You could say that." Zhu Bo had just finished his cultivation session and now spoke up. "In the Ice Palace, as long as one works hard, breaking through to Earth Rank shouldn't be much of a problem."

"Then what do you think I should do? If I put in the effort, catching up to Zhao Qitan wouldn't be an issue, but Earth Rank... I'm afraid I can't reach it in the short term!" Zhao Qibing asked anxiously.

"Young Master Qi, you needn't worry too much! After I took the Meridian-Opening Pill, not only did my injured meridians fully recover, but my strength was restored as well! What's more, those injured meridians, nourished by the Meridian-Opening Pill, have grown much sturdier than before. I'm already showing signs of a breakthrough -- I'm on the verge of reaching the peak of early Mystic Rank!" Zhu Bo said. "Besides, with Elder Bi's favor toward you, Young Master Qi, our supply of spirit medicine won't run short. Given some more time, I'll break through to Earth Rank as well. In truth, for us cultivators, apart from those blessed with extraordinary talent, our constitutions are basically the same. The real question is who has the most spirit medicine!"

"That's great! Ha ha!" Zhao Qibing beamed with delight. "Rest assured -- your spirit medicine will never run short!"

"Mm, and if all else fails, my elder brother will stand firmly on your side, Young Master Qi. He's also an Earth Rank expert with a solid place in the Zhao family!" Zhu Bo said.

"Right! How could I have forgotten that?" Zhao Qibing's face lit up. "Big Brother Zhu is an Earth Rank expert after all! Even if Zhao Qijiu breaks through to Earth Rank, so what?" He nodded, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

But the very moment he let out that breath, a tremendous crash suddenly echoed from outside the bar!

"What's going on?" Zhao Qibing nearly leapt out of his skin and barked, "What the hell is happening out there?"

No sooner had Zhao Qibing spoken than Su Jiaonang rushed in in a panic. "Young Master Qi, Brother Cihua -- bad news! Someone's here to crash the party! The bar's front door has been smashed!"

"The front door? Isn't it made of iron?" Zhao Qibing froze.

The iron gate at the bar's entrance hadn't even been opened yet this early in the morning -- how could it have been smashed to pieces?

"It's someone we don't recognize. He came calling you out by name, saying he's here to smash the place and demanding that Young Master Qi and Uncle Zhu come out to take a beating," Su Jiaonang said cautiously.

"Someone we don't recognize?" Zhao Qibing frowned at once. "How could he be so powerful? Could he be a cultivator?"

"I don't know, Young Master Qi. What should we do?" Su Jiaonang asked.

"Come on, Uncle Zhu -- come with me and let's see who's got a death wish, daring to wreck my turf!" Zhao Qibing had just broken through to early Yellow Rank and was riding high on a surge of hot-blooded zeal. With no sparring partner in sight, this was perfect -- someone had volunteered to walk right into his hands, and he certainly wasn't about to let the opportunity slip!

Zhu Bo had only just recovered and was on the verge of breaking through to the peak of early Mystic Rank as well. His hands were practically itching for action -- finding someone to spar with right now would be the perfect catalyst for his next breakthrough!

The two had barely reached the entrance when they spotted Wu Chengtian standing before the gaping hole where the bar's door used to be. Pointing imperiously into the bar, he bellowed, "Listen up, all of you in there! Send out that old fossil surnamed Zhu and that idiot Zhao Qibing to take their beating -- or I'll tear this whole bar down!"

In that moment, Wu Chengtian had brought his posturing skills to their fullest expression! He was positively ecstatic. Before Wei Zhao, he had never dared to put on airs -- had never even been able to. All that practice had been utterly wasted with nowhere to show it off. But now, at last, it was paying off!

Wei Zhao was sitting in a car parked by the entrance, not showing himself. He would only step in personally if Wu Chengtian couldn't handle things on his own. This grudge was Wu Chengtian's own -- better for him to beat Zhu Bo down himself for the satisfaction of it.

Yet the moment Wei Zhao caught sight of Zhu Bo's strength, he had no intention of getting out of the car at all. Early Mystic Rank -- though he couldn't fathom how Zhu Bo's meridians had recovered or how he had returned to early Mystic Rank, it didn't matter. Wu Chengtian was a well-rounded cultivator of early Mystic Rank, adept in both internal and external arts; overwhelming Zhu Bo was practically a given.

"Kid, so it's you!" Zhu Bo frowned. He hadn't expected Wu Chengtian to come seeking revenge. If Wei Zhao had come in person, Zhu Bo might have believed it. But Wu Chengtian -- a mere Yellow Rank expert -- daring to strut around like this?

Could it be that he didn't know Zhu Bo had already recovered his Mystic Rank strength? Yes, that had to be it! This kid still thought Zhu Bo was only at the mid-Yellow Rank level!

"Wu Chengtian, you've got some nerve, don't you? Didn't you know this bar belongs to me, Zhao Qibing?" Zhao Qibing certainly recognized Wu Chengtian. When Qibing Tower had been completed, he had even invited Wu Chengtian to the ceremony. Truth be told, the two had had a cordial enough relationship back then, though it had never gone particularly deep.

"Of course I know. If I didn't, I wouldn't be smashing it," Wu Chengtian replied coolly.

He had now fully aligned himself with Wei Zhao's stride, and having watched with his own eyes as Er Goudan had punched a hidden Pi clan expert to death, he no longer feared the hidden clans the way he once had!

In his eyes, the hidden clans were nothing special -- before Wei Zhao and Er Goudan, they were nothing but punching bags. So what if you're impressive? What does being impressive matter? Wei Zhao and Er Goudan were alive and well, not a scratch on them.

"Oh?" Rather than growing angry, Zhao Qibing broke into a smile. "I think you're tired of living. Kneel down right now, apologize to me, and compensate me one hundred million for the door repair -- and I'll let you off. Otherwise, your secular Wu family will be struck from the roster of clans, forever!"

Now that Zhao Qibing was the heir apparent of the hidden Zhao family, his confidence was on an entirely different level. He had also learned Wei Zhao's favorite trick: bleeding people for their money. So Zhao Qibing decided to use the same tactic to shake down the Wu family for a fortune!

In his view, while wiping out the Wu family wouldn't be difficult for the hidden Zhao family, the crucial problem was that he wasn't yet the young master of the Zhao family and therefore couldn't command its experts. (To be continued)

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