"Senior Sister Jiang, it's really you!!!"
The voice Chu Feng heard belonged to Jiang Furong.
Looking closer, it was indeed Jiang Furong. Not only was she there, but several other outstanding disciples from Qingmu Mountain were present as well—Bai Yunxiao, Qi Yanyu, Tao Xiangyu, Ben Leihu, Zhao Jingang, and others.
However, at this moment, Jiang Furong had been stopped by a group of people. They were from the Ximen Imperial Clan. Not only had they completely surrounded her, but an old man stood before her, his face twisted with menace. He was a powerful Martial Emperor—and he was the same one who had just shouted at Jiang Furong.
Behind this group of Ximen Imperial Clan members stood an enormous war chariot. From the surrounding crowd's murmurs, Chu Feng learned that the reason Jiang Furong had been stopped was because she had accidentally bumped into this chariot.
Normally, this would have been a trivial matter. But the Ximen Imperial Clan refused to let it go—they were clearly determined to extract some kind of accountability.
In this situation, Bai Yunxiao and the others were thoroughly terrified. They stood off to the side, not daring to utter a single word, deeply afraid of being implicated along with Jiang Furong.
After all, the other party was none other than the renowned Ximen Imperial Clan—and among them was a genuine Martial Emperor.
"Senior, we are disciples of Qingmu Mountain. We came here upon the invitation of Baiyue Cloud City. We martial siblings were just about to participate in the competition among the Nine Powers' disciples. The competition has already begun—if we don't hurry, we'll be too late."
"Furthermore, Senior Sister Jiang didn't do it on purpose. Could you possibly be magnanimous and give her a chance?"
Yet, to Chu Feng's surprise, after struggling with himself for a moment, Bai Yunxiao actually spoke up. Not only did he speak—he was pleading on Jiang Furong's behalf.
Though his voice trembled as he spoke, he had at least found the courage to say something. This scene genuinely surprised Chu Feng.
Because in his memory, Bai Yunxiao and the others didn't exactly get along with Jiang Furong—they were essentially rivals within Qingmu Mountain.
By all logic, with Bai Yunxiao's character, he should have been the type to stand by and watch with glee in a situation like this.
Yet he was willing to risk himself to plead for Jiang Furong. From this, one could see that Bai Yunxiao perhaps wasn't as bad as he had imagined.
"Not on purpose? And you think just saying 'not on purpose' is enough to settle the matter?"
"I don't care which sect you're from—daring to collide with my Fifth Prince's chariot is tantamount to courting death. If you don't want to die, get lost immediately. Stop getting in the way here."
Yet despite being a Martial Emperor, the old man showed none of the dignity befitting such a rank. His mouth was filled with profanity, and his behavior was that of a common scoundrel.
"Senior Brother Bai, we're running out of time—let's just go." Seeing the Martial Emperor fly into a rage, the already-frightened Tao Xiangyu and the others hurriedly urged him to leave.
Seeing this, Bai Yunxiao didn't dare linger either. He hurried off with Tao Xiangyu and the rest, leaving Jiang Furong all alone.
"Senior, I truly didn't mean it. May I offer you my apologies?" Jiang Furong said, her face full of humility.
She had traveled a long way to get here and certainly didn't want to miss the wonderful opportunity of the Nine Powers' junior competition.
"Apologies? If apologies were enough, then would murder not count as a crime either?" The old man was relentless, utterly domineering.
Facing such harassment from the old man, Jiang Furong's face turned unsightly. She didn't know what to do. After all, the other party was a true Martial Emperor. To put it bluntly, she was merely a Martial King—she didn't even qualify to stand against him.
"Well now, quite the tyrant." But just as Jiang Furong was at a complete loss, a figure suddenly shot out from the crowd and appeared before her. It was none other than Chu Feng.
However, Chu Feng had concealed his appearance. Not only could others not recognize him—even Jiang Furong couldn't tell who he was.
But there was no doubt that Chu Feng's appearance shocked everyone. They couldn't fathom how someone could have such audacity—to challenge the Ximen Imperial Clan—and a young person at that.
"And who are you? Looking to meddle?"
The old man of the Ximen Imperial Clan raised his sword-like brows sharply, his eyes glinting with cold light. He even subtly released his oppressive aura—clearly trying to intimidate Chu Feng into leaving and minding his own business.
But Chu Feng wasn't the least bit intimidated. Not only did his expression remain unchanged, but he even smiled faintly and said, "Who I am isn't important. What matters is... who are you?"
"What do you mean by that?" the old man asked. He had a vague sense that this young man was somehow different.
"The Ximen Imperial Clan—one of the Four Great Imperial Clans of the Sacred Land of Martial Arts, hailed as one of the races possessing the noblest bloodlines in all the Sacred Land."
"But I truly never imagined that such a noble clan would also commit such disgraceful acts."
"To begin with, this is the venue for the Sacred Land of Martial Arts' junior competition. Why is the Ximen Imperial Clan here?"