Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique

"What’s there to be envious about? Come on, let’s go get something to eat. We’ve been on the road for over a month, we can finally have a proper meal." Chu Aoqing had no aversion to eating and sleeping, and she grabbed Mu Chen, locked onto a restaurant, and dashed over.

Dragged along by Chu Aoqing, Mu Chen could only rub his nose in resignation and follow. But Chu Aoqing had a point. For a month and a half, they had been rushing, eating nothing but roasted meat every day. While it was nutritious and not bad, eating the same thing all the time was bound to get tiresome. Besides, girls generally weren’t big fans of meat.

However, just as Chu Aoqing was stepping into the restaurant, a figure unexpectedly stepped out from inside. It all happened so abruptly that as soon as his foot landed on the threshold, Chu Aoqing’s foot came down right on top of it. And with that single step, trouble began.

"Hm?"

Suddenly feeling she had stepped on something, Chu Aoqing paused. She looked up and saw a man dressed in a luxurious, gold-embossed long robe. The man was rather handsome, not far off from Mu Chen himself. His black hair was tied up in a golden topknot, and his eyes revealed a trace of contempt and anger. His entire face had a harsh, arrogant look to it that was instantly off-putting.

"Sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose."

Although the man was indeed repulsive, she was the one who had accidentally stepped on him, so Chu Aoqing apologized first.

However, the instant Chu Aoqing looked up, the anger and contempt in the man’s eyes immediately turned to lust and astonishment. Indeed, Chu Aoqing’s looks could be described as peerless; even in the Central State Territory, she would be ranked among the very best. Although she had disguised some of her features, she still couldn’t hide her stunning beauty.

But when the man’s eyes followed Chu Aoqing’s slender arm to Mu Chen standing behind her, the lust and astonishment instantly morphed back into anger and arrogance. He said indifferently, "You stepped on my foot, and you think a simple ’I didn’t do it on purpose’ is the end of it?"

Chu Aoqing frowned at his words. Not a single flicker of his expression had escaped her notice. Though she was used to such gazes, she didn’t want anyone looking at her like that in front of Mu Chen; it made her feel extremely uncomfortable. The moment the man spoke, she knew that this couldn’t be resolved by ordinary means. ’In the Central State Territory, arrogant people usually have some kind of backing,’ she thought. ’But no matter what his background is, he poses no threat to me. In the entire Central State, there’s no one I can’t afford to offend.’

Having come to this realization, Chu Aoqing’s expression instantly turned cold. Just as she was about to act, she felt a warm, firm grip on her hand. Turning her head, she saw Mu Chen step up beside her from behind, a gentle expression on his face.

After giving Chu Aoqing a slight shake of his head, he turned to the man and said sincerely, "I’m sorry. What just happened was indeed our fault. If you feel an apology isn’t enough to resolve the matter of your foot, then how about this? You name a solution, and as long as it’s within our power, we’ll do our best to accommodate you. How does that sound?"

His voice wasn’t loud, but it was clear enough for everyone present to hear.

The Central State was always crowded, even at the border, and this was especially true in front of a restaurant. Many people had already noticed the trio when the scene began, but because Chu Aoqing was so beautiful, most of the attention was focused on her. As for what had actually happened, no one was quite sure.

But after Mu Chen’s words, it dawned on everyone. So, all this fuss was just because the stunning woman had accidentally stepped on the man’s foot. For such a minor incident, he was making both of them apologize. Instantly, everyone in the crowd turned to look at the man in the luxurious robe with expressive gazes—some filled with contempt, others with disdain. A flood of stares fell upon him, making him extremely uncomfortable.

The man gritted his teeth. ’If I make an unreasonable demand now, I’ll make a complete fool of myself.’ His name was Zhou Ziheng, and he wasn’t from the Central State. He had only come this time to find his uncle. Who would have thought he’d run into this situation the very day he arrived in the Border City? He had originally wanted to use this as an excuse to hit on the woman, but he never expected things to get to this point. Now, backing down would mean losing face, but pressing forward would only antagonize the crowd. He was caught between a rock and a hard place, in an extremely awkward position.

But just then, a group of men in red robes, holding weapons, walked toward the restaurant, surrounding a man of about twenty-six or twenty-seven in a brocade robe.

The commotion in front of the restaurant quickly caught their attention. The man in the brocade robe frowned and barked coldly, "What’s going on? Don’t you all have your own business to attend to?"

Hearing his voice, the crowd’s faces initially filled with anger. But when they turned and saw it was the man in the brocade robe who had spoken, they all looked as if they had seen a ghost. Their expressions changed dramatically, and they scattered like startled birds, deliberately lowering their heads as they left, as if afraid he would see their faces.

The once-crowded street was now orderly. Shopkeepers returned to their business, and vendors to their stalls. Not a single person dared to glance at Mu Chen and the others again. The scene was quite astonishing, causing Mu Chen, Chu Aoqing, and Zhou Ziheng to all turn their gazes to the man in the brocade robe, their eyes filled with curiosity.

However, the moment Zhou Ziheng saw the man in the brocade robe, his pupils constricted. The awkward expression on his face was instantly replaced by delighted surprise. The man in the brocade robe was also taken aback when he saw Zhou Ziheng, and then he called out, "Ziheng?"

"Cousin Zihan!"

Hearing this, the man named Zihan looked equally thrilled. He strode forward, placed both hands on Zhou Ziheng’s shoulders, and looked him up and down, exclaiming, "It really is you, kid! It’s been ten years. You’ve gotten taller, but your face hasn’t changed a bit."

Zhou Zihan squeezed Zhou Ziheng’s arm and chuckled. "Tsk, tsk. Looks like you’ve been working hard on your cultivation these past ten years. You’re already a Five-Ring Emperor. I remember you’re only twenty-one this year, right? Not bad, not bad at all. You’re not that little crybaby anymore."

As he spoke, Zhou Zihan suddenly asked, "Why did you suddenly come to the Central State? Aunt didn’t even send word. I wasn’t prepared at all."

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Zhou Ziheng quickly waved his hands and said nonchalantly, "I just came to deliver something to Uncle for my mother. I wanted to give Uncle and you a surprise, so I specifically asked Mom not to send a message."