Only I am Venerable

At Qin Li’s words, the four young people who had been watching the spectacle were stunned. Their expressions quickly soured. An Artifact Refining Master they deeply respected, even worshipped, was being utterly disparaged by this young man... ’This is... going too far, isn’t it?’

The clerk’s face turned purple as he struggled desperately in Qin Li’s grip. His eyes bulged, and it looked as if he was about to be choked to death. Qin Li sneered. Just as he was about to release the man, a soft yet commanding voice drifted from the inner room. "Young man, haven’t you gone a bit too far? First you wound with your words, and now you resort to violence. I wonder, how has my humble shop offended you to provoke such anger?"

The speaker’s voice held no hint of temper, but its authoritative tone made his displeasure clear. Qin Li gave an indifferent smile and tossed the gasping clerk to the floor. The man coughed violently for a moment, panting for breath as he stared at Qin Li with eyes full of hatred.

Qin Li said coolly, "So the vicious dog bites someone, and now the dog is in the right? Don’t you look at me like that. Be careful, or I might just kill you." Qin Li’s gaze on the clerk was placid.

Perhaps frightened by the madness lurking beneath Qin Li’s calm demeanor, the clerk truly didn’t dare to look at him again and averted his eyes.

Just then, a man emerged from the inner room. He looked to be in his fifties, with a long beard, a ruddy complexion, and charming, almond-shaped eyes beneath thick, silkworm-like eyebrows. He stood a full two meters tall and carried an air of natural authority.

The moment the man appeared, the four young people were stunned, and then their faces lit up with delight.

The petite woman was the first to speak. "Master Jin, I can’t believe you’re here!"

"Greetings, Master Jin," the other, taller woman said shyly. She seemed more introverted.

"A pleasure to meet you, Master Jin. My father is Peng Wansan. He once commissioned two Spiritual Artifacts from you several years ago," said the young man in the sapphire-blue robes, his expression full of reverence for the man who had just emerged.

"Master Jin, my name is Wen Bin, and my master is Qiushuizi. He has long wished to meet you again to ask for your guidance on Artifact Refining," the young man in the black cloak added, his tone equally respectful.

"Ah, yes, Qiushuizi! I remember him!" Master Jin’s expression softened considerably upon being recognized. He exchanged pleasantries with the young people. "I haven’t seen Sect Leader Qiu in several years. To think he still remembers me! When I have the time, I shall certainly pay him a visit."

He then turned to the young man with the surname Peng and smiled. "I remember your father, a deacon in the Outer Sect of the Moon Shaking Immortal Palace. Excellent, you are all excellent. The younger generation is truly stepping up. Heh, it seems we old-timers will soon be fading from the Martial World!"

Master Jin sighed pointedly, then shot a cool, disdainful glance at Qin Li. Turning to the clerk, who was still standing there shaken, Master Jin’s expression became gentle. "Are you alright now?"

The clerk was overcome with gratitude. "I’m alright, Master. This man is despicable! It’s all my fault for allowing him to disturb your peace!"

"It’s not your fault. It takes all sorts to make a world, and there is no shortage of ignorant people. Pay him no mind."

Master Jin then turned to Qin Li. "Young man, you should remember that you can’t just run wild wherever you please. You’re lucky you ran into me today. Had it been someone with a shorter temper, you’d already be lying on this floor. Now go. I won’t stoop to your level."

Qin Li let out a soft laugh. "Such magnanimity, Master Jin. However, I just heard something that I find rather puzzling. I was hoping Master Jin might be able to clear up my confusion."

"Insolence!"

The young man named Wen Bin scowled and snapped impatiently, "This is no place for you. Get out! Master Jin is kind enough to let this go, yet you continue to pester him. Tongtian City is not a place for you to run wild!"

Qin Li gave the young man, Wen, a wry smile and mused, "What’s the matter? Afraid I’ll expose you? Heh, if you’re scared, you shouldn’t have done something to feel guilty about!"

"W-what are you talking about? I don’t understand!" Wen Bin’s expression flickered. He shot a furtive glance at Master Jin, then, seeming to gather his courage, he said coldly to Qin Li, "Kid, you’d better learn when to back down, or you’ll bring disaster upon yourself!"

At that, the young man surnamed Peng and the petite woman beside him seemed to sense something was amiss. They both instinctively took a step back.

Qin Li smiled faintly and looked at Master Jin. "If you really are the renowned Artifact Refining Master of the Land of the Far West, why resort to such boring little tricks? Isn’t wearing a Disguise tiring? And another thing, with your half-baked Artifact Refining skills, aren’t you ashamed of the things you create?"

As he spoke, Qin Li turned to the petite girl. "If I may ask, miss, were all your previous Spiritual Artifacts purchased from this shop? And I assume it was he," he said, gesturing to Wen Bin, "who brought you here the first time?"

The petite girl looked at Qin Li in confusion. She nodded, then retorted, "What... what are you implying? Wen is a good friend of my senior brother. You’d better not be trying to sow discord!"

Wen Bin nodded vigorously and glared at Qin Li. "Kid, you got a death wish? Daring to cause trouble in Tongtian City... We’ve never even met you, yet you show up here trying to sow discord. What exactly are you after?"

However, the young man in the sapphire-blue robes, surnamed Peng, frowned slightly. A flicker of doubt flashed deep in his eyes. Clearly, his mind was not at ease; perhaps he was starting to put something together.

As for Master Jin, having been subjected to Qin Li’s barrage of taunts, he was now utterly furious. Pointing a finger at Qin Li, he roared, "Get out! You are not welcome here! Don’t force me to throw you out!"

Qin Li grinned. "Master Jin, I hear your cultivation has reached the Pill Nascent Soul Transformation realm. How about you give us a little demonstration? Broaden my horizons?"

"Who do you think you are? Kid, you’re not worthy of my attention!" Master Jin stroked his long beard, his eyes half-lidded as he regarded Qin Li with utter contempt.

"Still keeping up the act, huh? I wonder what the real Master Jin would do if he saw a charlatan like you. Smack you dead with a single slap, perhaps?" As Qin Li spoke, his figure blurred. The onlookers saw only a flash and heard a sharp gasp. By the time their eyes could focus again, they were all frozen in stunned silence.

In Qin Li’s hand was a long beard, attached to which was a mask of human skin as thin as a cicada’s wing. It looked as if it were made of real flesh, with eyebrows, a nose, and a mouth that were incredibly lifelike.

The man who had been Master Jin was now a pale, bald man in his thirties. He stood there, jaw-dropped, staring at Qin Li as if he’d seen a ghost.

The young man surnamed Peng and his junior sister were frozen in place, staring dumbfounded at the scene. He gave Wen Bin a long, hard look, then said coolly, "Wen, I just remembered I have something to attend to. I won’t disturb you any further. We’ll see each other another day."

With that, he pulled his still-dazed junior sister along and quickly strode out the door.

By now, if the young man surnamed Peng couldn’t see this was an elaborate scam targeting him, he would truly be an idiot. ’Though I despise Wen Bin for this,’ he thought, ’I know his Sect is no weaker than my own. If I were to make a scene, it would lead to nothing but public humiliation.’

The only thing to do was to swallow the bitter pill and cut off all ties with Wen Bin in the future.

The girl beside Wen Bin suddenly erupted. This tall, beautiful girl who had seemed so shy and introverted stared at Wen Bin in disbelief. After a long moment, she spoke. "Wen Bin, I can’t believe you’ve been lying to me all this time! You should know, I like you for who you are, not for some Master Jin! And not for any Spiritual Artifacts! You even kept me in the dark... You... you’re too much!"

With that, the tall girl shot Wen Bin a venomous glare, turned on her heel, and walked out.

Wen Bin’s mouth opened slightly as if to say something, but he closed it again with a soft sigh. When he looked at Qin Li again, his eyes were filled with venomous hatred. He said grimly, "You turned my friends against me, turned my lover against me. Kid, you’re dead!"

The "Master Jin" imposter seemed to have recovered his senses as well. He stared at Qin Li with malice and said coldly, "You stuck your nose where it doesn’t belong, kid. You won’t come to a good end!"

Qin Li just smiled, shook his head, and muttered to himself, ’Are all con artists so self-righteous these days?’

With that, he turned and walked out the door, paying no mind to the hateful stares fixed on his back.

In truth, Qin Li had caused this trouble entirely on purpose. He simply didn’t care about the consequences.

He was completely in the dark about the Land of the Far West. He knew nothing about the local Martial World, which families and Sects were enemies, and which were allies. As for the locations of Lengqiu Palace and the Moon Shaking Immortal Palace, Qin Li was utterly clueless.

’So, it’s better to just make a scene and muddy the waters. I’m sure that once the people from Lengqiu Palace, the Moon Shaking Immortal Palace, or even the Hai Family get wind of me, they’ll come looking for me themselves!’

The Qin Li of today possessed a far greater confidence than before. He didn’t know if there were any Martial Artists at the Thunder Tribulation Realm in the Land of the Far West, but even if there were, they certainly wouldn’t reveal themselves to him so easily.

And as for those at the Pill Nascent Soul Transformation realm, Qin Li was confident he could take on three or even five such experts without fear.

It was this profound self-assurance that gave Qin Li his indomitable aura.

In the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, Only I am Venerable!

This was precisely the aura and mindset he needed. (To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please log in to www.qidian.com for more Chapters and to support the author and genuine reading!)