I'm begging for recommendation votes!!
*************
"Enter the mining district?" Long Zaitian's face darkened instantly as he eyed Yang Kai warily. "He's not a disciple of the Gang, is he?"
Yang Kai stepped forward and spoke respectfully. "I'm a disciple of Lingxiao Pavilion."
"If you're not a disciple of the Gang, you're not getting in!" Long Zaitian bristled, his beard puffing with indignation. He looked Yang Kai up and down with undisguised contempt. "Even our own disciples can't just waltz into the mining district whenever they please, let alone an outsider like you."
He turned to Hu Meier, his expression one of deep disappointment. "Miss, how could you bring an outsider here? You're young — you don't understand how the world works. As the saying goes, you can never see what's inside a man's heart just by looking at his face. This mining district has earned our Gang a fortune over the past few years, and there are people out there green with envy, watching us like hawks. All sorts of shady characters have been trying to dig up information about the place. If it weren't for me keeping watch here year-round, who knows what kind of trouble might've erupted."
Yang Kai's expression soured. The old man was clearly pointing at the mulberry while cursing the locust tree — the barbs stung.
Hu Meier noticed Yang Kai's displeasure and quickly spoke up. "Grandpa Long, you've got it wrong. He's not here to snoop — he just wants to buy something."
Long Zaitian let out a mocking laugh. "Buy something? And he came all the way here to shop? Now that's a clever excuse, I'll give you that. Listen here, kid — I don't care what your real purpose is. You're going to get the hell out of right now. If I ever catch you sniffing around here again, see if I don't kill you where you stand."
Yang Kai felt a surge of fury climb up his chest. The old bastard was insufferably full of himself. But despite the anger boiling inside, Yang Kai knew the gap between their strengths was enormous — if it actually came to blows, one breath from the old man could probably snuff him out.
He crushed the rage down and said nothing. Starting a conflict now would only bring him trouble.
"Coward!" Long Zaitian sneered, looking even more disdainful.
Inside Yang Kai's body, his True Yang Energy began to churn and surge uncontrollably as he glared at Long Zaitian.
Sensing the shift in Yang Kai's energy, Long Zaitian erupted in fury. "How dare you! You want to fight me?"
Without any further provocation — ignoring the vast gulf in seniority and strength — he struck out with a palm toward Yang Kai. The moment the strike landed, Yang Kai found himself frozen in place, unable to move a single muscle. It wasn't fear paralyzing him — the old man had used some kind of technique to lock him down.
Yang Kai's face went pale. He never imagined the old man would be this shameless. He'd sensed the hostility radiating from Long Zaitian, but he couldn't understand why. And now, out of nowhere, the man had moved to kill him. A jolt of pure terror shot through Yang Kai's soul.
The stench of death rushed toward him. The crushing pressure from a Shenyou Realm master made Yang Kai's heart skip a beat, his breathing cut off entirely. Deep within his desperate situation, a fierce will to survive ignited and spread through his body.
Then, from deep inside his bones, a searing wave of heat surged outward and dispersed in an instant. The next moment, Yang Kai felt the force pinning him vanish without a trace.
In a frantic burst, he poured every ounce of strength into his legs and threw himself sideways.
Long Zaitian had struck casually, expecting to crush this Lingxiao Pavilion disciple under his palm without effort. To his surprise, the kid had actually dodged.
How is that possible? Long Zaitian's brow furrowed.
His Shenyou Realm restraint technique — how could a mere boy have broken free? Because he hadn't anticipated that possibility, his offhand strike had failed to connect.