Chapter 78: If Force Fails, Try Gentleness

A crisp slap rang out.

Though the burly man’s skin was thick and his flesh tough, without the support of spiritual energy, he was still left seeing stars by that slap. Landing on both feet, Shen Wan quickly withdrew his stinging hand into his sleeve and clasped his hands behind his back, forcing himself to assume the stern posture of an elder as he declared in a severe tone:

“I am the ninth elder of the Owe Xuan Sect. What kind of decorum is this, for you to bully disciples of my sect here?”

He had thought that invoking his status as an elder would cow the opposition.

But who could have guessed that, his face flushed red, the burly man simply raised his giant axe.

“Elder? I’ll give you elder!”

The man was truly furious now; as the senior brother of his sect, he had been slapped in full view of everyone—what face was left to him? Even if you were the sect master, it had nothing to do with him.

Blinded by rage, veins bulged on his muscular arms as he swung the massive axe down from above, the blade sparking as it sliced through the air.

“Heaven-Shattering Strike!”

With a furious roar, the blow came straight for Shen Wan’s face.

Startled, Shen Wan thought, Good heavens, so status doesn’t mean anything to outsiders.

He was still making sarcastic remarks to himself, but his eyes were locked on the descending axe.

Seeing this, Lin Bufan darted forward, intending to shield his martial uncle from the blow. However, his cultivation was far inferior to the burly man’s—he simply wasn’t fast enough.

Realizing he was too late, Lin Bufan shouted anxiously:

“Martial Uncle, be careful! ‘Mountain-Cleaving Rend’ is a top-tier Earth-grade technique—one swing can split a mountain! Dodge quickly!”

“Dodge? How am I supposed to dodge?!” Shen Wan thought, panic flooding his heart as the axeblade gleamed coldly, speeding toward him.

Yet Lin Bufan’s words echoed in his ears, and suddenly something clicked. His eyes lit up—

“A technique…?”

As someone without spirit energy, how could any immortal technique possibly threaten him?

Enlightenment flashed through his mind—then why should he dodge at all?

Swiftly, Shen Wan drew out his other hand, extending a single finger to block before his face. He lifted his eyelids slightly, his expression calm as he watched the giant axe approach.

The burly man snorted coldly at this. The highest cultivation permitted in the ruins was Foundation Establishment—did this fool think a single finger could block his Mountain-Cleaving Rend? Preposterous.

He poured more spiritual power into the axe, adding even more force.

Clang!

The axe struck Shen Wan’s finger directly.

Yet the expected explosion of blood did not occur. The burly man was shocked, feeling a powerful backlash surge up his arm. The force rebounded, traveling from his hand to his shoulder without any outlet, and in an instant, his entire arm was shredded to a bloody mess.

“Aaagh!” he screamed. The giant axe flew from his grip and stabbed deep into the ground.

Shen Wan wore a look of utter certainty, sneering with disdain. He was about to show off, pretending to blow smoke from his finger like a gun, when a searing pain shot through his fingertip.

Looking down, he saw the ax’s residual force had split the skin of his finger, blood welling out. Hissing in pain, he quickly shoved the finger into his mouth, sucking at the wound.

“Ow, ow, ow…!”

The pain was excruciating, as if the nerves of all ten fingers were connected to his heart.

The burly man, clutching his mangled arm, had already sealed his veins to staunch the bleeding, but there wasn’t a single intact spot left on his limb. Blood-smeared bone was barely held together by a few shreds of flesh—it was obviously ruined.

Shen Wan bared his teeth in sympathy, unable to look straight at the gruesome sight.

“Oh, that’s terrifying,” he muttered, quickly grabbing someone nearby to shield his view from the ruined arm, his nerves finally settling.

The burly man, gasping for breath, gazed at Shen Wan in terror. When his fellow disciples hurried over to check on him, he said not a word. Silently he retrieved his giant axe, and seeing Shen Wan did not stop him, gritted his teeth, bowed deeply, and led his sect’s disciples away.

Shen Wan shook his head. “What was the point of that?”

The crowd that had been besieging them all took a step back, silence falling so absolute that even a pin drop would have sounded loud; apart from a few nervous swallows, all eyes were fixed on Shen Wan, not a soul daring to move.

Lin Bufan and the others weren’t particularly surprised—this sort of thing was nothing new to them. But Zhao Dongsheng, standing at the back, felt his heart pounding violently.

“The Ninth Elder is indeed extraordinary…”

Shen Wan, unconcerned, trotted over to his group and asked softly, “Are you all alright?”

“We’re fine.” Lin Bufan’s nerves eased considerably. For some reason, having this junior uncle around always brought him a strange sense of security.

Zhu Qianqing and Han Yuechan felt the same. There was a new respect in their eyes as they looked at Shen Wan.

Seeing his companions unharmed, Shen Wan let out a sigh of relief.

“This isn’t a place to linger. Let’s talk elsewhere,” he said, waving his hand to lead them away.

But the dozens of sect disciples still surrounded them, none daring to approach, but none stepping aside either, refusing to make a path. Clearly, they were clinging to a last hope, thinking they might yet obtain something from the Owe Xuan Sect—after all, they had numbers on their side.

Shen Wan frowned in displeasure.

“What? Is someone still not convinced?”

At his words, the crowd exchanged glances—no one stepped forward, but no one backed down either.

Well, now it was Shen Wan’s turn to feel anxious. Though his display of power against the burly man had been impressive, it didn’t seem enough to intimidate these people.

“Should I take down a few more as an example…?” he considered, but as the thought formed, he imagined a scene of hundreds of people beating him with sticks, a truly brutal spectacle. He shivered instinctively. Even a cornered dog will jump the wall—he couldn’t be foolish enough to light that powder keg.

After some thought, he decided if force wouldn’t work, he’d try gentleness.

He unclasped his storage pouch and had Lin Bufan fetch something for him.

He remembered that back in the underground chamber, there had been a particularly large jar on the wooden rack, filled with hundreds of pills emitting a rich, refreshing fragrance.

Judging by the crowd, there should be enough for one pill each.

Lin Bufan didn’t question him, and following Shen Wan’s instructions, searched the pouch.

Zhao Dongsheng, seeing this particular pouch, felt a pang of shock. When the Star Spirit Ginseng had been distributed, he’d watched as Senior Brother Wu Xi had pulled out a large package from that very pouch—filled with treasures, including over a dozen top-quality Star Spirit Ginsengs.

Alas… not one for him. His heart ached.

Of course, at that time Lin Bufan, Zhu Qianqing, and Han Yuechan hadn’t been present, so they had no idea what the junior uncle intended now.

The jar was produced, and Shen Wan took it, opening the lid.

Instantly, a heady medicinal aroma wafted out, spreading in all directions. The crowd sniffed eagerly, the invigorating scent drawing a collective sigh from them all—a sound beyond words.

“What a potent fragrance… What is that?” the crowd murmured, the tense silence dissolving into a lively buzz.

Shen Wan paid them no mind, pinching out a pill to show Lin Bufan.

Lin Bufan’s eyes widened, his reaction identical to the others.

“A… Foundation Establishment Pill…”

Peering into the jar—good grief, over a hundred Foundation Establishment Pills! Was martial uncle planning to sell wholesale?

Seeing the crowd’s reaction, Shen Wan felt reassured. This would do nicely.

Cradling the jar to his chest, he found a large stone, hopped atop it, and swept his gaze over the assembled crowd before raising his voice:

“These ancient ruins are filled with rare opportunity. All of you have worked hard, striving day and night within these ruins.”

At his words, the crowd immediately fell silent again, all eyes turning to Shen Wan, unsure what he was up to.

Satisfied, Shen Wan nodded.

“As an elder of a sect, seeing such diligence among the younger generation is truly gratifying. Naturally, I also feel some sympathy. Therefore, to encourage you all to strive even harder, I am willing to gift each of you a…”

He paused, turning to Lin Bufan and whispering, “What’s this called again?”

Lin Bufan blinked, then replied, “A… Foundation Establishment Pill.”

“OK!” Shen Wan flashed him an ‘OK’ sign, then continued loudly:

“Each of you will receive a Foundation Establishment Pill as encouragement.”

With that, he pinched one out of the jar to display.

“Of course, once you receive your pill, leave at once—do not trouble my sect’s disciples any further. If anyone is dissatisfied, you’re welcome to challenge me. But not only will you fail to get a pill, I promise you won’t walk out of these ruins in one piece!”

His voice grew louder and more forceful, an unmistakable threat that made the crowd’s hearts skip a beat.

A choice between a valuable pill and a beating—only a fool would pick the latter.

Besides, the memory of the black-faced man’s ruined arm was still fresh in everyone’s mind.

Now that there was a benefit to be gained, who would waste words?

Someone stepped forward, the first to approach Shen Wan.

Shen Wan smiled, gave him an approving look, and handed over a pill without hesitation.

The disciple, staring at the Foundation Establishment Pill in his palm, was overwhelmed with excitement, bowing deeply before slipping out of the crowd and leaving.

One led to another. The rest, seeing this, hesitated no longer, surging forward for fear the pills would run out.

Shen Wan watched these ‘juniors’ and found them quite teachable. As he handed out pills, he patted their heads now and then, offering encouragement.

“Keep it up!”

The line soon stretched out of sight. Lin Bufan and the others stood behind Shen Wan, staring in disbelief.

But Zhao Dongsheng’s hands were shaking, his heart bleeding with anguish.

“Damn it, what kind of elder squanders like this? What a wastrel!”