After all, mere moments before, Wang Wuxie had introduced the White Jade Sect’s Yan Xuehen and Elder Li, the Heavenly Sorrow Sect’s Guan Chouhai, Jadefall Palace’s Palace Master Wan Tongtian and Elder Huo Ling, the Kunlun Void Sect’s… Which one of them wasn’t extraordinary? Among them, only Emptiness Isle’s Elder Peng wasn’t very famous. However, as someone who was capable enough to become a sect elder, she was definitely extraordinary in her own right. Apart from that, Tranquility Temple’s Master Jian Huang was a legendary figure too. Strictly speaking, quite a few of the daoist sects’ upper level figures were his juniors. And yet, a brat like Zu An had ended up being mentioned on the same level as them?

Furthermore, just two days prior, it had been exposed that he and Fairy Chu had previously been husband and wife, making him the target of many people’s envy. This time, he had even become an esteemed guest judge! It was like adding a drop of water to a pot of oil, making it explode.

…

Zu An looked at the explosive amount of Rage points that rushed in. He thought to himself, If Yan Xuehen’s relationship with me were revealed now, would the Rage points double?

However, when he thought about how these sect masters had been Yan Xuehen’s pursuers for so many years, and that he wouldn’t necessarily be able to leave the mountain alive if they found out, he could only give up on that thought.

Amid Emptiness Isle’s ranks, Qiu Honglei secretly tugged on Yun Jianyue’s sleeves and said, “Master, the rumors we spread a few days ago have already gone into effect. Ah Zu is now a public enemy and hated by everyone. Will he be in danger?”

“Don’t worry, he’s the court’s Imperial Envoy right now. Whether it’s Wang Wuxie or the other sect masters, none of them would dare to let anything happen to him,” Yun Jianyue said. She paused for a moment, then added, “Furthermore, even if they didn’t bother, not even all of these youngsters added up together would be a match for him.”

Qiu Honglei sighed in relief when she heard that. At the same time, she found it a bit strange. Why did she feel as if her master had more confidence in Ah Zu than she did?

…

Over on Jadefall Palace’s side, Pei Mianman’s eyes shone brightly. She had never expected to run into Ah Zu here! The heavens have really pitied me! Is this the so-called ‘decree of fate’?

Elder Huo Ling noticed her disciple’s excitement and asked in confusion, “What is it?”

“It’s nothing. I just got a bit excited when I thought about the upcoming competition,” Pei Mianman said. She didn’t dare to tell the truth. She knew that her master hated men due to her past trauma. If she told her master about her relationship with Ah Zu, it could cause quite the dispute.

Suddenly, a tall figure stood up from the Heavenly Sorrow Sect’s side and protested, “I’m opposed to this!”

The eyes of many female disciples lit up as they thought, This senior brother is so handsome!

After asking around, they quickly learned that he was none other than the glorious Zhi Yin. Furthermore, he had been left in a very dispirited state because of the rumors surrounding Chu Chuyan. They all felt heartbroken. Big brother Zhi Yin, hurry and come into my arms!

At the same time, they were really upset. Isn’t Chu Chuyan too scheming? She’s clearly already been married, and yet she always pretends to be some pure young lady, seducing all of the sects’ young men.

Chu Chuyan was famous for being the idol of the daoist sects. Many martial brothers liked her. Normally, because Chuyan was just too beautiful and she carried herself like an immortal, everyone else simply felt a bit ashamed of their inferiority. Now that they knew that she had been married, however, all of them suddenly gained confidence. Ignoring everything else, at least they were still virgins, right? At least they had that edge over her. Once they got the impression that they were at the same starting line, they all began to hate Chu Chuyan out of envy.

“What are you opposed to?” Wang Wuxie asked, his expression turning a bit unpleasant. He was being interrupted by these juniors one after another! Do you think I don’t care about dignity?

Zhi Yin took a deep breath, then pointed at Zu An and said, “All of the others are seniors of virtue and prestige in the world of warriors, so we naturally accept them wholeheartedly as judges of this great daoist competition. But Zu An isn’t even as old as us, and his cultivation seems ordinary. How can he stand side by side with the seniors and be a judge?”

“I agree!” Lou Wucheng added as he suddenly stood up. “I feel that Zu An lacks the qualifications to act as a judge of this competition.”

Previously, he had always been annoyed whenever he saw Zhi Yin’s pretty boy face. Today, he actually felt a bit of admiration for the other man’s courage.

Zhi Yin also gave him a look, thinking to himself, Why do I suddenly find the sight of him so pleasing? The two of them even felt as if they were kindred spirits.

The White Jade Sect’s Elder Li secretly frowned. He naturally knew that his disciple liked this junior sister of his, but he hadn’t expected that Lou Wucheng would act out of jealousy in his love rivalry. He couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Of course, he knew having some kind of drive was important when cultivating the Immortal Sword, so he couldn't really speak up and decrease his disciple’s spirits. He could only patiently watch as things developed.

Zhi Yin said loudly and clearly, “As long as Sir Zu can win against me or Brother Lou, I will be convinced and believe that he has the qualifications to judge this competition. I will also apologize to him.”

Lou Wucheng nodded, adding, “Right. I will even let him give me three strikes first!”

Both of these men had already been beyond frustrated and furious when they thought about how the woman of their dreams was already in the shape of another man. They wanted to take the chance to properly discipline that pretty boy piece of trash. That way, Chuyan would also see just how worthless her man was.

Wang Wuxie was a bit troubled. To be honest, he also felt that Zu An wasn’t worthy, but he was a guest who had been personally invited. These juniors didn’t have any right to intervene.

He was about to speak up when Zu An leaned casually into his chair and said contemptuously, “Even people such as you think you’re worthy of facing me?”

The entire place rose up into a commotion. Many people even cursed Zu An for being shameless.

Pei Mianman was worried and anxious. She thought, What’s wrong with Ah Zu? Why can’t I sense any ki aura from him? With his previous strength, it shouldn’t have been a problem for him to win against Zhi Yin and Lou Wucheng, but now…

Her expression suddenly grew resolute. If these two went too far, she had to protect Ah Zu even if she had to suffer her master’s punishment afterward.

Wan Guiyi laughed and said to Wan Tongtian, “Father, I’m a fan of that guy’s personality.”

Wan Tongtian had a strange expression as he replied, “This young man is indeed bold. But even if you want to boast, you need the strength to back up your words.”

Wan Guiyi said seriously, “Even though he looks ordinary, he’s still able to remain so calm in this kind of situation. If he really were ordinary, he definitely wouldn’t be able to do this. I believe he definitely has a trump card.”

Wan Tongtian nodded in appreciation, saying, “You have good judgment. He is better than those two fools, Zhi Yin and Lou Wucheng.”

Pei Mianman felt a bit of relief when she heard the two of them talk. She felt that she really had been worried over nothing just now. When had Ah Zu ever been on the losing end of this kind of situation?

…

Meanwhile, on Tranquility Temple’s side, the little chubby monk Jie Se couldn't help but say to the old monk next to him, “No wonder master let me experience the world. This world has so many spectacular things in it!”

Master Jian Huang was still paying no attention to outside matters. He continued to mutter to himself, “I have sinned, I have sinned…”

When she heard the discussions of everyone around her, Qiu Honglei wanted to stand up and speak up for Zu An. However, Yun Jianyue grabbed her and stopped her, hissing, “What are you doing? Are you going to expose yourself here?”

Qiu Honglei said angrily, “That Zhi Yin and Lou Wucheng are going too far! I can’t keep watching this.”

“Don’t worry. That kid isn’t so easily bullied. You just need to sit back and enjoy the show,” Yun Jianyue said, not looking worried at all. Considering everything they had gone through, what did this trifling conflict count as?

…

When he saw how the entire crowd was mocking his superior, Zhang Zijiang realized that now was his moment to shine. He stood up and called out, “What do you babies know? Our Sir Zu’s cultivation is profound and immeasurable! He wiped out a powerful army with a single sword before. The two of you really don’t have the qualifications to face him!”

The entire place fell silent. Then, laughter erupted. Even the sect masters had strange expressions. Wiping out an entire army alone… Some of them could  do that, but there were many prerequisites for that to happen. For example, the enemy army couldn't be made up of too many elites, they couldn't excel in formation skills, and they couldn’t be too numerous… Zu An was just a young man; how could he have such strength?

“An army? Are you messing with me right now?” Zhi Yin retorted mockingly. “Then may I ask which army Sir Zu wiped out? Please tell us so that we can worship him.”

“It was…” Zhang Zijiang choked, because he remembered Zu An had given him the order not to publicly disclose the matter of the Twin Dragon Mountains’ Scarface Yang Shen. Military orders had to be obeyed. If he went against that, he could end up losing his head before he earned any brownie points with Zu An.

When he saw that Zhang Zijiang was hesitating, Zhi Yin sneered and continued, “What, you went too far with your boasting and got exposed? If you don’t have the skill, you can only use lies to make yourself sound better. At that point, you can only use even more lies to fill in the holes.”

Zhang Zijiang’s face became completely red. Just how many years had it been since he felt so wronged?

While he was feeling at a loss for what to do, a cold voice suddenly called out, “I can vouch for Sir Zu. He definitely has the qualifications to judge this battle.”

The entire place fell silent once more. That was because the one who spoke was the Snow Queen Yan Xuehen.

Now, even Wang Wuxie and Guan Chouhai, two older generation figures who had just thought they were watching something interesting, looked at her in shock. They understood Yan Xuehen’s nature better than anyone. Why would she speak up for another man so enthusiastically?