If Jiang Chen hadn't seen through Xiahou Ying's true nature, he might easily have been taken in by her coquettish innocence, thinking her nothing more than a spoiled and headstrong young lady.
But Jiang Chen had long been on his guard against Xiahou Ying, and naturally wouldn't be deceived by such tricks.
He offered a faint smile, neither confirming nor denying anything.
The purple-robed young man from earlier could no longer contain himself. He shot to his feet, glaring at Jiang Chen with fury in his eyes.
"Shao Yuan, I have to say—you're awfully arrogant." This purple-robed young man's surname was Jing, and his given name was Jing Yi.
"Arrogant in what way?" Jiang Chen replied with an indifferent smile.
"So many sacred land geniuses, and which of them didn't enter before you? Which of them doesn't have more seniority than you? You sit here putting on airs, acting all deep and mysterious—don't you think that's arrogant enough?" Jing Yi's temper was running hot.
Jiang Chen chuckled. "I was perfectly content in my own cultivation cave. You're the ones who dragged me out here, and now you want to throw your weight around to put me in my place? And then you call me arrogant? I'm genuinely curious—surely not every genius in our sacred land is like you lot, turning black into white and abandoning all sense of reason?"
Xiahou Ying now began to whimper softly. "It's my fault, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have come. Senior Brother Jing, please don't argue with Young Master Shao. Everything is my blame. Please stop fighting—don't let an outsider like me damage the harmony between fellow disciples." She let out a series of pitiful sobs.
Xiahou Ying had entered her performance mode once again.
Those tears of hers were a lethal weapon against men.
Jing Yi fixed Jiang Chen with a cold stare. "Listen here, Shao. I don't care how much of a genius you are—from one man to another, I demand that you apologize to Miss Ying."
Jiang Chen laughed in disbelief. "I don't think I owe her any apology? Why should I apologize?"
"You made Miss Ying cry, and you still say you don't owe an apology? Are you even a man?" Jing Yi was practically seething.
"By your logic, you must think that looking the way you do right now makes you particularly manly, is that right?" Jiang Chen was practically speechless at Jing Yi.
Jing Yi said icily, "Are you going to apologize or not?"
Jiang Chen shrugged. "I can't find a single reason to apologize."
Jing Yi was so furious he actually laughed. "Fine, fine, fine. Looks like you won't back down until you've hit rock bottom. In that case, don't blame me, Jing, for getting rough today."
"What exactly do you have in mind?" The look Jiang Chen gave Jing Yi was hardly distinguishable from the way one might regard an idiot.
He was genuinely disappointed. If every genius in the sacred land was this dim, he really did feel sorry for the Eternal Sacred Land.
He wasn't sure about Jing Yi's actual talent. But his brainpower was clearly lacking. A woman's crude little tricks—a few crocodile tears—and the man had already lost all reason?
"What do I have in mind? I'm challenging you to a duel between men. Shao Yuan—do you dare?"
"A duel?" Jiang Chen's expression remained impassive.
"That's right. A duel between men. No matter who wins or loses, neither side goes crying to the elders afterward. How about it? Do you dare?" Jing Yi's eyes brimmed with provocation.
Jiang Chen smiled and looked Jing Yi up and down.
Jing Yi, as a true disciple, had clearly already broken through to the Heavenly Position realm—likely at the first level of Heavenly Position. Within the Eternal Sacred Land, that would place him among the more prominent geniuses.
But he certainly wouldn't be considered a top-tier talent.
Perhaps Jing Yi figured that as a first-level Heavenly Position cultivator, crushing an Emperor-realm peak cultivator like him would be as easy as stomping on a chick?
"No running to the elders to cry, then?" Jiang Chen smiled, then suddenly let his expression darken. "Are you sure about that?"
"Hmph, what's there to be sure about? If you're afraid, you can beg for mercy. With so many fellow disciples watching, I, Jing, might consider giving you a chance to mend your ways." Jing Yi savored the humiliation he was dishing out—or at least he believed he was humiliating his opponent.
"Your name is Jing Yi, is it? I don't know how high a position your elders hold in the sacred land to have raised someone so lawless. Did they only teach you cultivation and forget to teach you how to think?"
Jiang Chen was truly exasperated.
He had seen men lose their heads over women before. But for a sacred land genius to perform this poorly—that was something else entirely.
Jing Yi's face darkened. "Kid, a man's duel is decided with fists, not a silver tongue. If you've got guts, accept the duel. Don't make everyone look down on you even more."
Jiang Chen said coldly, "For the sake of some woman I have no relation to, I, Shao, genuinely have no interest in fighting. However, since you, Jing, insist on stepping on me, I don't mind teaching you how to behave. Perhaps in a few years, you'll realize just how childish you were today, and who knows—you might even feel grateful to me."
As he spoke, Jiang Chen's gaze swept across every person present.
"As for all of you—you must all be of one mind since you're gathered here. Anyone else who wants to offer their 'guidance'? Step forward now, so we can get it over with instead of dragging this out endlessly. You may have the leisure for this, but I certainly don't."
Now that he understood their intentions, there was no point in being polite.
"Gan Ning, my friend—I'm not sure what role you've been playing in all this. You're supposed to be one of the Five Great Young Masters, after all. I have to say, you've been a bit of a disappointment. Though I'll give the other four the benefit of the doubt—they'd probably be ashamed to be seen with you."