Chapter 17: The Fearlessness of the Ignorant

“You insolent brat, how dare you harm disciples of Mount Mao! Are you courting death?” At that moment, Ye Yijian, seeing his fallen disciples, was furious beyond measure. With a flick of his palm, a wave of force surged toward Jiang Xiaofei.

“Ye Yijian, you dare to be distracted while fighting me? You’d better worry about your own safety!” The Ghost King laughed heartily. With a graceful sweep of her jade hand, the Soul-Devouring Hand pressed down with sudden force upon their protective barrier.

Ye Yijian and his companions were shaken so severely that they coughed blood, but even so, they gritted their teeth and poured all their strength into maintaining the shield, resisting the Soul-Devouring Hand.

Jiang Xiaofei, sensing the incoming attack, remained completely composed. With a casual wave of his right hand, a surge of millennium ghost energy swept forth, easily dissolving the palm strike.

Having neutralized Ye Yijian’s attack, Jiang Xiaofei’s eyes flashed as he looked across at Ye Qiuchen and smiled. “Well? Now that you’ve witnessed my strength, do you still wish to continue?”

Ye Qiuchen was silent, unable to comprehend why Jiang Xiaofei had shown mercy.

The crowd from the Ghost Realm watched with puzzlement as well. The power of Lord Fei’s earlier blow was more than enough to wipe out the disciples of Mount Mao, and yet, astonishingly, after the attack, they were merely knocked down and otherwise unharmed.

Finally, a man in black robes stepped forward and asked in a low voice, “Lord Fei, why didn’t you finish them off just now?”

Jiang Xiaofei replied coldly, “And who are you to question me? Step back at once, and if you dare to stand before me again, don’t blame me if I take your life.”

The black-robed man dared not protest and wisely withdrew.

The disciples of Mount Mao began to pick themselves up, clutching their chests. Though the blow hadn’t killed them, it had left them in pain.

A young man approached Ye Qiuchen, keeping a wary eye on Jiang Xiaofei as he spoke. “Senior brother, I don’t know what sort of forbidden arts this fellow has learned, but his power is immense. Still, if we defend as one and form the True Qi Grand Array, he may not be able to best us all.”

Hearing this, Ye Qiuchen retorted angrily, “Are you not ashamed enough? He showed mercy. If you wish to die, I won’t stop you, but don’t drag your fellow disciples to their deaths with you.”

“He showed mercy? How can that be?” Han Yang replied in disbelief. “Senior brother, you must be joking. I think this guy is all bluff—powerful in appearance but hollow within, unable to truly control the millennium ghost energy, which is why he couldn’t harm us.”

Ye Qiuchen sneered, “If he couldn’t control it, you’d all be dead already. That’s what makes such talent most terrifying—perhaps his cultivation rivals that of the Ghost King.”

“Rival the Ghost King?” Han Yang scoffed. “Senior brother, you’re just undermining our spirit. If you won’t fight, content to watch our sect master and the others battle with their lives, I, Han Yang, will not cower like a turtle.”

With these harsh words, Han Yang turned to the assembled disciples and shouted, “Do you wish to defend Mount Mao? Do you wish to avenge our fallen brothers and sisters?”

“We do!” the disciples cried in unison, their fervor making Jiang Xiaofei frown.

“Han Yang, are you mad?” Ye Qiuchen shouted, enraged by the fearless determination surging among his juniors.

“I am not mad, senior brother. It is you who are deluded. Do you think we still have any retreat left? If we do not resist, the moment the Ghost King is free, death is all that awaits us.” Han Yang’s face was resolute as he shouted, “As long as the mountain stands, so do we!”

The words unleashed a roar among the disciples: “We will live and die with Mount Mao!”

Jiang Xiaofei shook his head at the spectacle, sighing softly. “There’s no need for such futile resistance. If you surrender, I, Jiang Xiaofei, will guarantee your safety.”

“Did you hear him, junior brother? He’s promised not to kill us,” Ye Qiuchen said to Han Yang.

“You’ve changed, senior brother, but I don’t blame you. Save your breath. I will never yield to the Ghost Realm—unless I am dead.” Han Yang shook his head, his eyes firm. “Brothers and sisters, follow me! Defend Mount Mao and avenge our fallen!”

With that, Han Yang led the charge.

“Come back!” Ye Qiuchen shouted anxiously, but no matter how he called, his juniors ignored him, surging toward the Ghost Realm.

“So you choose stubbornness. Don’t blame me for being merciless.” Jiang Xiaofei sighed. With a flick of his hand, ghostly energy coiled around him.

Seeing this, Ye Qiuchen shouted, “Spare their lives!”

“Don’t worry, at worst they’ll be crippled,” Jiang Xiaofei replied with a slight smile. Ghost energy swirled around him, and with a change of hand seal, the energy transformed into a ferocious ghostly face that howled toward the Mount Mao disciples.

The sight filled Ye Yijian with dread, and he called out desperately to the mountain gate, “Sect Master Qin Shan, please help save my disciples! I, Ye Yijian, will be forever indebted to you!”

As his words fell, a man’s voice echoed down from the gate. “Ye Yijian, I can help, but not for the sake of your disciples—rather, for this young man here.”

As the ghostly face howled toward them, the disciples of Mount Mao turned pale and hurriedly set up the True Qi Grand Array in a desperate attempt to block it.

But soon cracks began to spread across the array. It was clear the formation could not withstand the ghostly face.

A female disciple, terrified, cried out to Han Yang, “Second senior brother, what do we do? The array is about to break!”

Han Yang’s expression was grim, but he shouted, “Don’t be afraid! Channel all your spiritual power into the formation—it will hold!”

“A bunch of children. How naive. Let me lend you a hand,” came a man’s laughter from above, falling upon the ears of the disciples.

Looking up, they saw a man in dragon-embroidered robes standing above the array. When they recognized him, they exclaimed in delight, “It’s Sect Master Qin Shan of Dragon Tiger Mountain! He’s come to help us!”

Jiang Xiaofei’s gaze shifted to the newcomer, his brow furrowing. “Who are you? Have you come to die as well?”

Qin Shan laughed. “I am Qin Shan, sect master of Dragon Tiger Mountain. Are you afraid now, boy?”

“Afraid?” Jiang Xiaofei sneered. “I care not who you are. Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he couldn’t save anyone from me today.”

“Oh? Is that so? Then watch me shatter this ghostly face and save them right before your eyes.” Qin Shan laughed, and with a mighty slap of his palm, a wave of force struck the ghostly face, dispersing it.

As the ghostly visage vanished, the disciples of Mount Mao felt the crushing pressure lift from their bodies and breathed a collective sigh of relief. They bowed gratefully to Qin Shan. “Thank you, Sect Master Qin, for saving us! Please, as a fellow of the righteous path, help us vanquish the Ghost Realm!”

Qin Shan paid them no mind, his gaze locked on Jiang Xiaofei, his curiosity growing with every glance.

Under Qin Shan’s unwavering stare, Jiang Xiaofei grew uneasy and snapped, “You’ve saved them, now leave. You may be strong, but if you anger me, the outcome is far from certain.”

Qin Shan laughed. “Young man, though your attitude vexes me, I rather like your spirit. Why not come to Dragon Tiger Mountain and become my personal disciple? I can guarantee a hundredfold better life than what you’ll find in the Ghost Realm.”